South Elementary Family Newsletter
Volume #7 March, 2024
Daylight's Savings
First Day of Spring
Happy St. Patrick's Day
Message from the Principals
Dear South Families,
As we transition into March, we look forward to more daylight, "Music In Our Schools" District Festivals, and some warmer weather with the beginning of spring. In addition, the end of the second trimester of school is fast approaching and report cards will be coming out toward the end of the month. Please take some time to reflect on and celebrate the growth and milestones your child/ren has/have reached since starting school this year, whether it is mastering a new skill in math, writing an entertaining narrative, or demonstrating kindness and leadership. Each of these achievements deserve recognition and praise. We are proud of our students for their growth and hard work!
The skills we will be targeting from our PRIDE traits during March (Perseverance; Respect; Independence; Diversity/Equity/Inclusion; and Empathy) will help us throughout our lives. They are: having a positive attitude and outlook; contributing to discussion; appropriately dealing with frustration; and, appropriate behavior in the hallways. We will also focus on diversity and continue to learn about other cultures from some of our very own South students who celebrate Ramadan which starts on March 10th and goes through April 9th. Click HERE for some facts about Ramadan.
With Aloha,
Steph Brown and Rebecca Hurley
508-324-3180
Mark Your Calendars
Week of March 4-March 8- Read Across America Spirit Week-$5 Donations can be made on Cheddar Up using the link: https://somersetsouthelementarypto-181.mycheddarup.com/
Monday: Reading is Timeless! Dress from your favorite decade.
Tuesday: Reading is Active! Dress in your favorite sports team or active wear.
Wednesday: We Are Wild About Reading! Wear camo, animal print, or South wear
Thursday: Read, White, and Blue: Wear red, white, and blue.
Friday: Reading is Relaxing! Wear pajamas or comfy clothes.
**A winner from each class will be picked each day! (Prizes are $10 gift certificates for the in-school Scholastic Book Fair!)
Tuesday, March 5-Early Release Day @ 12:30PMThursday, March 7-The 7th Annual Lip Sync Show, 6-7:30PM. The cost is $5 per person and tickets can be purchased online at: https://somersetsouthelementarypto-181.mycheddarup.com/
The 5th Grade Committee will be hosting a treat table at the Lip Sync Show to help offset the cost of the yearbook. The committee is looking for donations of snack sized bags of chips, goldfish, pretzels, fruit snacks, as well as donations of baked goods (cupcakes, cookies, etc). If you are interested in donating, please email the Fifth Grade Committee at: south5thcommittee@gmail.com
Thursday, March 7-Papa Gino's Night, 869 GAR Hwy, Somerset- 4-9PM-Mention South School when you please your order. For online orders, enter Code 19 at the payment screen and click redeem. South School PTO gets 20% of orders.
Sunday, March 10-Daylight Savings-"Spring Ahead" one hour
Sunday, March 10-Ramadan starts
Tuesday, March 12-Chorus District Festival @ 7PM @ SBRHS Performing Arts Center
Wednesday, March 13-Strings District Festival @ 7PM @ SBRHS Gym
Wednesday, March 13-Early Release Day @ 12:30PM
Thursday, March 14-Band District Festival @ 7PM @ SBRHS Gym
Thursday, March 14-School Committee Meeting @ 6:30PM, SBRHS Library
Tuesday, March 19-PTO Mtg @ 6PM @ South School Cafegymatorium
Tuesday, March 19-First Day of Spring
Friday, March 22-2nd Trimester Report Cards on Aspen
Thursday, March 28School Committee Meeting @ 6:30PM, SBRHS Library
Friday, March 29-No School-Good Friday
From Our Amazing PTO!
PTO’s March Newsletter
Upcoming Events: Mark your Calendars!
March 4th-8th Read Across America Spirit Week
Monday: Reading is Timeless! Dress from your favorite decade.
Tuesday: Reading is Active! Dress in your favorite sports team or active wear.
Wednesday: We Are Wild About Reading! Wear camo, animal prints, or Cricket wear
Thursday: Read, White, and Blue: Wear red, white, and blue.
Friday: Reading is Relaxing! Wear pajamas or comfy clothes.
A winner from each class will be picked each day!
Prizes are $10 gift certificates for the in-school Scholastic Book Fair!
$5 Donations can be made on Cheddar Up using the link: https://somersetsouthelementarypto-181.mycheddarup.com/
Thursday, March 7th: Papa Gino’s Night 4PM-9PM
869 GAR Highway, Somerset
Walk-in or phone orders: Mention this fundraiser when you place your order for South School to get the credit for your order.
Online Orders: Enter Code 19 at the payment screen and click redeem.
South School earns 20% of orders!
Thursday, March 7th: 7th Annual Lip Sync Show
March 7th: 6:00PM-7:30PM at South School Cafe
Tickets can be purchased on Cheddar Up https://somersetsouthelementarypto-181.mycheddarup.com/
The cost is $5 per person.
The 5th Grade Committee will be hosting a treat table to help offset the cost of the yearbook. The committee is still looking for donations of snack sized bags of chips, goldfish, pretzels, fruit snacks, and donations of cookies, cupcakes etc.
Any 5th Grade families interested in donating treats can email: south5thcommittee@gmail.com
Tuesday,March 19th: PTO Meeting
South School Cafe at 6PM
This meeting will recap the year so far and discuss upcoming events.
All are welcome!
PTO Review and Updates:
PTO Board Openings!
The PTO has the following openings for next year:
President
Treasurer
Event Coordinators (2 openings)
The PTO is always looking for families to join the PTO.
It’s a great way to get involved in your child’s school and to meet families.
Nomination /sign up forms will be available on Cheddar Up in April.
Voting will take place at the May PTO Meeting.
Please email Carla with any questions or interest. somersetsouthelementarypto@gmail.com
Contact PTO
Follow South Elementary PTO on Facebook for updates and information!
Parent Resources
March Lunch Menu: please click HERE.
Click HERE for March Read Aloud Books for Elementary Students
Click HERE for 2024 MCAS Dates
Click HERE for a 100s Chart to help count to 100, add, subtract, and notice number patterns.
Click HERE for an Alphabet Linking Chart to help your child match sounds and letters when writing/reading.
Somerset Public Schools, SY' 23-24 Calendar: please click HERE
KINDERGARTEN
GRADE 1
Vacation week made this a short month, but first graders still got a lot done in February! In phonics class we did a lot of work with digraphs and sight words. All our work in phonics means at this point in the year, first graders are getting to be more confident and comfortable with independent reading! We learned how to express our opinions in writing, and in math, we worked with 3-digit addition equations, congruent shapes, two and three digit numbers, and explored equality. Our science lessons covered light and sounds with some interesting activities, including one where we learned a way to communicate with flashlights. We also had time for fun. First graders celebrated the 101st day of school this year with crafts and activities. We also exchanged valentines with friends on Valentine’s Day!
GRADE 2
February is always a month that passes so quickly! We hope everyone enjoyed their vacation week! We started the month reading stories about Facing Challenges. We have begun exploring stories on the importance of determination. During our mini-lessons, we spent our time examining where stories take place and we began our study on noticing text resources. In writing, we have been learning how to write main events in our stories by adding actions, descriptions, thoughts/feelings, dialogue and sound effects. Next up, adding a conclusion to our stories. In phonics, we wrapped up our unit on predictable vowel teams. We have begun learning unpredictable vowel teams “ie” and “ow”. In math, we wrapped up our chapter on time and money and now we are moving on to 2-digit subtraction! In science, we will be wrapping up our unit on exploring properties and materials of matter. In social studies, we have started our unit on immigration and family heritage. Happy March!
GRADE 3
Dear Third Grade Families,
While we are being teased with lovely spring weather, we must be careful to keep a tight focus on teaching and learning! This time of year brings fast paced learning, tremendous progress but also time to pause and fine tune areas of need. Students are excelling in foundations of fractions and will work in Chapter 9 to develop an understanding of fractional comparisons and problem solving. Number Corner activities will help us determine area/perimeter of irregular shapes. Students are working in phonics daily to segment multisyllabic words and identify suffixes and affixes. We are working through the 13 Colonies in Social Studies. Our reading workshop lessons have centered around nonfiction texts with a special focus on nonfiction text features in both reading and writing. Students have completed two shared informational writing pieces. March will bring biography writing into focus. We are always working on improving our typing skills and becoming proficient in using Google Drive. Unfortunately, winter bugs have been hard to beat! Antibacterial wipes would be much appreciated to keep us all healthy and moving forward.
The Third Grade Team
Grade 4
We can’t believe we are already at the end of February in Fourth grade!!
In Science, we just finished up our unit on Sound Waves and Communication. The kids had fun learning about how sound moves and vibrates. Some of their investigations included creating their own high-pitch and low-pitch sound waves with a rope, learning about the connection between sounds and vibration using a paper cup telephone, and exploring how to generate their own codes in order to transfer information across the classroom using a “secret snack” code. We have moved on to Earth’s Features and Processes.
In Math, the kids have been working on dividing by one-digit numbers, and we are moving on to Factors, Multiples, and Patterns. We are looking forward to the weather getting nicer so we can bring some of our lessons outside!
In writing, we began our Narrative unit. Students are excited to write stories! We are already noticing good use of dialogue. We are learning that writers freeze the story to describe critical characters, settings, and objects. The descriptive language we are using is impressive! In reading, we are looking at poetry and the components of poetry. We also are writing our own poetry. Students are getting very creative! In Social Studies we are finishing our unit on explorers and will begin to learn about the different regions in the United States as well as all the states and capitals.
Grade 5
Our 5th graders have been working really hard in Math and Science!
Our Science investigations have had the kids learning about the alchemists, a historic group that used “potions” to try to transform materials, and their thoughts about turning different metals into gold. They were able to see how chemical reactions happen with vinegar and salt to “clean” pennies, and how to detect acids using different substances. One of our classes tested out our own chemical reactions by making pickles. They were able to choose the measurements of the ingredients, and then try the different ones! We have moved onto the Web of Life and they are excited for some of the projects that we will be doing!
In Math, we have finished up adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators, and have moved on to multiplying fractions. We are looking forward to the weather getting nicer so we can bring some of our lessons outside!
In writing, we began our Narrative unit. Students are excited to write stories! We are already noticing good use of dialogue. We are learning that writers freeze the story to describe critical characters, settings, and objects. The descriptive language we are using is impressive! In reading, we are looking at poetry and the components of poetry. We also are writing our own poetry. Students are getting very creative! In Social Studies, we are finishing our unit on the American Revolution and will begin learning about the principles of the United States Government.