The Siple Scoop
February 2020
A NOTE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
I read a quote this week that said, "Nothing is lost until Mom can't find it!" Is that true at your house? It certainly is at mine. I remember days when my daughters were little that felt like all I did was hunt for missing shin guards, shoes, or library books. When I got tired of it I worked out a plan to teach my girls how to keep track of their own things.
I am a firm believer in routines. Children especially need routines because it reduces feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. Our evening routine was especially important to ensure we had a great morning the next day. I like the philosophy of beginning with the end in mind. So I started with bedtime and worked backwards. If bedtime was 8:00 p.m. (which it was until my girls were in middle school) then I made a schedule for everything we needed to do in order to be ready for lights out at 8:00. Every family has their own rhythm but here was the plan that worked for us.
Beginning at 7:00 p.m.:
- Double check backpacks for next day. (This was done together and included making sure all completed homework was in their folder, I signed anything they needed me to, we packed gym shoes, snacks, water bottle and anything else they needed to take the next day.)
-Lay out clothes for the next day including socks, shoes, etc. (This helps avoid delays caused by decision making difficulties, lost shoes and so on.)
-Review school lunch menu. This helped my girls have time to decide if they wanted hot lunch at what they wanted. If they didn't, I knew once they went to bed that I needed to prep their lunches. School lunch decision is a big deal! Our littles often need guidance and help to navigate through it to avoid lunchtime struggles the next day.
-Eat a snack.
-Bath, pajamas and brush teeth.
-Gather the entire family on the couch for snuggles and story time. This was our favorite part of the night. My girls often had my husband do the reading because he did the best voices. This quiet time together is one of our favorite memories with our girls. They would be sleepy and cuddled up together. They loved picking 2 or 3 books to read. As they got older they got to read to us. It helped develop a love of reading early in their lives.
-8:00 p.m.: off to bed they went. The quiet reading time helped slow them down and prepared them for sleep. It worked like magic.
Every family needs to do things in a way that works for them. I share what worked for us in case you haven't found that routine that works for you to eliminate the often frustrating bedtime and morning routine of finding everything before the bus comes. I hope this is helpful.
Speaking of lost items, we have two tables of lost and found items outside the office. Have you been looking for your child's snow pants, sweatshirts, boots, gloves, hats? If so, take a look before intersession to see if they are in lost and found. Also, please be sure to write your student's name inside their boots/winter gear. For some reason those items turn up missing regularly. Please also check occasionally to see if they are bringing home their own things and not someone elses. It helps to have you work with them to teach them putting these items away at home. When they know where to put there boots, snow pants, and gloves at home they are more likely to be able to manage their gear at school. My teachers work hard to teach the children the routines at school and your support is greatly appreciated.
Here's to smoother bedtimes and school mornings. Thank you for the opportunity to partner with you in your child's education. It is my honor to work with you and the children.
Christy Flowers, Principal
810-591-5104
KINDERGARTEN ROUND UP
Parents, if you have younger children at home we wanted to make you aware that we are now starting the waiting list for Early-5's. Our Early 5's program is for children that will turn 5 between June 15 and December 1, 2020. This is an excellent program to prepare young children for kindergarten. It is a full day program that focuses on kindergarten readiness. To add your child to the wait list please call the Thomson Elementary office at 810-591-0911.
Kindergarten Round-up will be held April 20th-24th this year. Parents can call the Thomson Elementary office to register for your appointment beginning March 2nd. The age required for kindergarten and early 5's is that they must be 5 by September 1, 2020. Don't wait to call to register for kindergarten. Space is limited at Siple and we want to make sure all of our Siple STARs get registered. The phone number to call to make your appointment is 810-591-0911.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS??
SIPLE STARS OF THE MONTH
Each month classroom teachers will nominate one student from their class to be entered into the grade level drawing for the STAR of the MONTH for that grade. Each grade level STAR of the Month will receive a certificate, medal, and their photo will be on display in the hallway during that month.
We are pleased to recognize students for consistently demonstrating excellent behavior. Thank you for sharing your outstanding children with us. I am please to announce our STARs of the Month for January are:
Kindergarten: Levigh Blackledge
1st grade: Carson Unger
2nd grade: Miles Turner
3rd grade: Brecken Kale
4th grade: Kellan Riley
Our other outstanding nominees for the month of January were:
Kindergarten: Maizen Kingsland
1st grade: Richard McLain and Carter Schlaud
2nd grade: Emma Leigh Fredericks, Ava Herron and Jaxon Vanderwerken
3rd grade: Lauryn Lee and Ainsley Perry
4th grade: Dylan Sanchez, Logan Schlink and Madison Sutton
Congratulations to these outstanding young learners!
COUNSELOR'S CORNER
Anti-Bullying Presentations: Bully B.E.A.N.S.
In the month of February the school counselor will visit classrooms to give a presentation about anti-bullying. The goals of these presentations are to:
Define bullying
Give ways to prevent it
List suggestions on how to handle bullying
Define an up-stander and describe the impact of is individual
One of the most common mistakes students make is the definition. One mean event is not necessarily bullying. Bullying happens when someone hurts or scares another person on purpose and the person being bullied has a hard time defending him or herself. Usually bullying happens over and over.
The book being used for the lesson is called Bully Beans by Julia Cook. The book describes Bobbette being a bully to Winston. One of Bobbette’s comments is that if Winston doesn’t listen, she’ll turn him into a human pretzel. Luckily, the main character talks to her mom about the problem. Mom gives this character “Bully B.E.A.N.S.” that she eats before standing up to the Bobbette. They helped give her courage. At the end, the author explains that the Bully B.E.A.N.S. aren’t really magical, but they helped our character find the courage to stand up to Bobbette. The acronym that goes with Bully B.E.A.N.S. is Bullies Everywhere Are Now Stopped. The students and I will talk about the strategies used to help prevent bullying and all the kids will be able to decorate a paper jellybean with a strategy they can use. These will be on display in the hallway of our school.
After the presentation students will bring home a note to parent(s)/guardian(s). This will detail definitions, prevention, how to handle the bully behavior, and define the role of an up-stander. Please be sure to go over this information with your child. Your children are so precious to all of us at Siple Elementary. Thank you for being wonderful parent(s)/guardian(s)!
Eddie Eagle and T.E.A.M. Safety Lessons
Our Kindergarten, 2nd and 4th grade students will have lessons from Officer Foster about safety throughout January, February and April. Kindergarten will receive the Eddie Eagle Gun Safety Lesson in April. Second graders had 4 lessons on Monday afternoons in January/February and fourth graders had 4 lessons on Tuesday afternoons in January/February. The lessons covered conflict resolution, internet safety, emergency services, drug and poison awareness and what to do if you find a weapon.
Mrs. Simonsen, Counselor
810-591-0227
DID YOU KNOW.........
Did You Know This Service is Available
There are many great resources for families in the area. This section of the Siple Scoop is dedicated to introducing you to a FREE resource each month.
This month we are featuring The Genesee County Free Medical Clinic (GCFMC), which provides health care (excluding emergency care and obstetrics) to the employed uninsured. All services (including prescribed medications) on-site or by referral, are free. Call 1-810-235-4211 or click on their website for more information: https://www.gcfmc.org/
FUN TO BE FIT
Happy February! We just finished our bowling unit and moving on to basketball. We will be working on some basketball skills such as dribbling, passing and shooting. The students will learn some different games that they can play at recess or at home that are fun and will help them continue working on their basketball skills. I love this unit and I'm very excited to get started teaching our Siple Stars how to dribble, pass and shoot a basketball.
Winter is still here - Please make sure the students have tennis shoes for class. This is for their safety. Winter boots are not made to run and do some of the things that we do in gym class. If they wear boots to school please make sure they pack their tennis shoes in their backpack so they can change into them before class. Have a great month of February!
Mr. Sipley, Gym Teacher
810-591-0231
MUSIC NOTES
KEEP THOSE CALENDARS MARKED FOR OUR:
**4th Grade Musical - March 19, 2020**
(7:00 pm in the DHS Auditorium)
**3rd Grade Recorder Concert - May 7, 2020**
(Times will vary by class/6:00 pm - 8:00 pm/ In the Siple gym)
Mrs. Odglen, Music Teacher
810-591-0238
PTO NEWS
February 11
March 16 (Monday)
April 21
May 12
UPCOMING EVENTS
February 11: PTO Meeting/6:30 p.m.
February 14: Valentine's Day Parties/P.M.
February 17- February 20: NO SCHOOL/INTERSESSION II
February 21: NO SCHOOL
March 1: March is Reading Month
March 2- March 6: Book Fair
March 3: Family Reading Night/5:30 p.m.
March 4: Early Release Day @ 1:35
March 13: Popcorn Friday
March 27: No school
March 30-April 5 Spring Break
Siple Elementary
9286 E. Coldwater Road
Davison, MI 48423
Christy Flowers, Principal
Follow Mrs. Flowers on Twitter: @Principal4Kids
Office Phone: 810-591-5104
Office Fax: 810-591-5102
Attendance: 810-591-5100