Paw Prints š¾ November 2020
The Newsletter of Auburn Early Education Center
Principal's Message
Hello AEEC Families!
Congratulations to Mrs. Abby Brown, AEEC Teacher of the Year. Mrs. Brown is very deserving, as she shows the attributes of a highly effective educator: strong instructional strategies, organized classroom atmosphere, and a major love for all her students, families, and coworkers. We are proud of you Abby!
This month we practice the word gratitude with our students. We will learn to say it, see it, know it, BE IT. Let me start by exercising some gratitude by saying Thank You for all you have done to make this year run smoothly at AEEC, as well as for all of your support with the annual drive. Through your generous donations, we were able to hit our goal and continue on with all of our valuable school projects and initiatives. We will publish final totals after the drive ends Tuesday evening. We love our AEEC parents and community!
With November comes the inevitable ramp up of many school activities. In a separate email we sent the flyers with more info, but here is a quick snapshot of some upcoming activities:
Scholastic Book Fair: Our media center is set up as usual, but the event will look a little different. Please see the email that was sent Nov. 2nd with details on how to browse selections and purchase books. It can also be found here: https://www.auburnschools.org/Page/3415
Barberitos Spirit Night: Tuesday, November 10th is our monthly Spirit Night. Stop by Barberitos at 1619 Opelika Rd (by the mall) for a delicious and fresh Tex Mex meal. A portion of the proceeds goes directly to AEEC PTO to support our students and teachers.
AEEC Book Bingo: As a reading incentive for students, we are once again holding the AEEC Book Bingo challenge. The students really got into this last year and we had many complete the challenge. Students who return the signed form will receive a book and recognition at the December pep rally.
Veteransā Day: One of our favorite days of the year is when we welcome our studentsā family members and friends who are current or past military members for our Veterans Day celebration. While we are unable to do that this year, we are putting together a virtual program and video message to share with all students, parents, and the AEEC community. Stay tuned for more! Reminder - No School on actual Veteransā Day Wednesday, November 11th.
Beat Bama Food Drive: We will once again participate in the Beat Bama Food Drive. Last year we brought in 2004 lbs worth of nonperishable food items to support our local community. Wow! Each pod will have a bin for students to drop food as they enter each morning.
Have a wonderful November!
Matt Bruner, Principal
Curriculum News
We are rolling strong into the second quarter of the school year! Our teachers are working hard each and every day with your child(ren). This month for curriculum corner, we are going to focus on ways to practice high frequency words. The terms high frequency words and sights words are often used as synonyms but a sight word is thought of differently when it comes to reading research. Here is a little background on both types of words.
A high frequency word, is a word that is commonly used in speaking, writing, and reading every day. Students come into contact with these words countless times a day and are often the āglueā for young readers to be able to read stories and write stories. High frequency words are often taught before they are phonetically taught because young readers need to be able to automatically recognize them in books that they read (e.g. the, all, from). These words help stories to āmake sense.ā
A sight word is any word that can be automatically pulled from a childās lexicon (a personās vocabulary). Whether it is seen on a flashcard or seen in context of a story. Once a word is stored in a childās lexicon then it is known as a sight word. Young readers are building words every day to store in their lexicons, and once these words are automatically stored in their lexicons, then it becomes known as a sight word. For example, if your child can read the word ādinosaurā automatically while reading a story aloud to you, then ādinosaurā is a sight word to him or her.
Whether you call it a high frequency word or a sight word, please keep in mind that the purpose of learning these words is to build automaticity of recognizing these āglueā words in reading and writing. Each grade level has a specific list they focus on for each of the nine weeks. When you choose to practice these high frequency words (sight words), please keep the following tips in mind:
1) Look for high frequency words in books, magazines, or any other print and read that word within the context of the sentence.
2) Practice high frequency words by using your entire body (sky write, sidewalk chalk, arm tapping, singing, dancing, etc.)
3) Always see, spell, write the word, and use it in a sentence to build context of the word.
Please let me know if you have any questions. I have included high frequency words for each grade level that your child will be learning over the next nine weeks. You can reach me at padorman@auburnschools.org or call the school at 334-887-4950. Always remember, you are your childās number one advocate and you play the most important role in your childās success in school! Thank you!
Kindergarten High Frequency Words
2nd Quarter (End of Quarter): went, my, are, little, he, in, you she, do, with
First Grade High Frequency Words
2nd Quarter (Mid-Assessment): be, have, from, all, your, said, will, who, you, are
2nd Quarter (End of Quarter): the, this, that, what, he, there, with, each, they, which, ask, thank, from, old, stop, them, then, think, were, take
Second Grade High Frequency Words
2nd Quarter (Mid-Assessment): why, think, give, know, would, went, still, ask, where, from
2nd Quarter (End of Quarter): always, around, because, before, many, over, follow, another, picture, again, sentence, away, letter, mother, study, should, different, place, green, answer
Always Be Kindā Dr. Dorman
Title 1 News
Counselor News
During the month of November in guidance we will be learning all about the word GRATITUDE, which means being thankful and letting others know you see how theyāve helped you. We will also be learning all about Erinās Law through our K-2 age-appropriate Safer, Smarter Kids curriculum. For more information about Erinās law, please visit http://www.erinslaw.org
A few other topics we will be learning about in guidance classes during the month of November are: understanding diversity, accepting differences in culture, families, and learning. November is going to be an AMAZING month!!!
Nurse News
We would appreciate any clothing donations to update our "Clothing Closet" at school. We are especially in need of boy athletic shorts and girl leggings. Donations may be dropped off in the front office or sent to school with your child.
Media Center News
Music and Art News
Many thanks go out to those of you who participated in our Square1Art fundraiser! Our orders are currently set to arrive at school shortly before Thanksgiving break and will be sent home with your child shortly thereafter. Also, a huge thank you to the second grade families who donated old t-shirts for weaving; second graders have begun their collaborative class weavings and weāre all super excited to see how they turn out! First and second grade has also been learning about symmetry and using it in some symmetrical printing projects while kindergarten has been showing some awesome creativity with their monster drawings and paintings. All students are also participating in a collaborative eagle head for our virtual Veterans Day program by creating unique feathers. (Mrs. Basgier)
PTO News
Barberitos Spirit Night is Tuesday, November 10. Be sure to tell them you're with AEEC!
Thank you for all of your support during the Color Me AEEC Annual Drive. This critical drive supports so many aspects of our school!
Upcoming Dates for AEEC
November 2-13 Book Fair
November 11 Veterans Day/No School
November 25-27 Thanksgiving Holidays