Roadrunner Tracks
February 2024
February 5th: Celebrating 100 Days of School!!!
We Are "100 Days Brighter"!
To celebrate our 100th day of school on Monday, February 5th, we are asking everyone to dress in neon or bright colors! Our theme is "We Are 100 Days Brighter!" and we want to show our school pride and school spirit by bringing the bright colors into our hallways. We are also challenging each class to donate 100 items towards our Food Drive for Community Ministries. What better way to show support for our community than donating items that will help someone in need? Donation ideas: peanut butter, jelly, spaghetti sauce, pasta, spaghettios, canned fruit, canned vegetables, boxed oatmeal packets, pancake mix, syrup, canned meats, etc. They are also in need of new underwear for men and women, tennis shoes/work boots for men and women, children's clothing, men's pants (size 30/32/34). Let's see which grade level and class can bring the most "light" to our community!
SJES' Average Attendance Rate for January 2024: 93%
Read Across America Week at SJES
February 26th - March 1st
Monday, February 26 Reading is Cozy!
Wear your pajamas, bring your favorite small stuffy and a book.
Tuesday, February 27 Reading is Powerful!
Dress in your favorite superhero shirt, wear a shirt about books or a shirt that makes you feel powerful. Capes optional.
Wednesday, February 28 Reading Unleashes Creativity!
Dress in your most creative/ silly outfit.
Thursday, February 29----LEAP DAY and Talent Show Day!!
Reading Let’s Us Be Unique
Wear stripes or polka dots in honor of Rare Disease Day and to recognize how unique we all are. Celebrating Rare Disease Day raises awareness for rare diseases and improves access to treatment for people with rare diseases and their families. This day helps us to love one another for our unique qualities. Plus, books help us discover all kinds of unique characters. 💜
Friday, March 1st Reading Should be Celebrated!
Dress like a favorite book character for our annual South Jefferson Book Character parade after announcements. Bring your book or a sign about your favorite book character/book for the parade.
News From Kindergarten
Kindergarten is enjoying being outside in the crisp weather. Please make sure you send a heavy coat with a hood or hat and gloves to protect them from the cold weather. Please make sure that your student has a winter change of clothes here at school.
100th day of school will be celebrated in early February and Groundhog Day will be celebrated on Feb. 2! Valentine’s Day is just around the corner so we would like to remind everyone that cards are allowed as long as your child has one for each of their classmates. You are allowed to send in pencils, erasers, stickers etc.
There are many cool websites that your child can visit to enhance their skills while at home. Two good ones that we use here at school are: www.starfall.com and www.abcya.com
When working on the reading/phonics homework sheets please ensure that your student is practicing correct letter formations with their handwriting. Encourage them to make the letter sit on the baseline of the handwriting line and form the lines correctly like we teach in class.
Our reading themes for the month of February are Presidents and American Symbols and Weather and the 4 Seasons!
Please review and practice skills at home that your child is learning in his/her classroom. Some skills that we will be covering throughout February are: measurement, writing and recognizing numbers 11-20, counting to 100, counting on from any given number, joining/adding numbers and continuing to recognize color words, number words and tricky words. The children will be adding to their “tricky” sight word list and will continue to read their picture reader in class! We will also be focusing on rhyming and word families using our short vowel sounds over the next few weeks. Students will also be learning about adding -s to the end of nouns to show more than one. They will also learn that s can make the /z/ sound like in is, has, his. They will start to blend initial consonant sounds to hear “sound clusters” to sound out 4 letter words:
(ex. /s//p/ /o/ /t/ sp-o-t = spot)
Writing is also a key skill that will be practiced from now till the end of the school year! We will start with writing phrases and then move into adding tricky words to form a complete sentence. EXAMPLE: Decodable phrase - "cat on bed" Sentence - "The cat is on the bed." (sentence can come once they have learned tricky words: the is) Detailed sentence - "The red cat is on top of the blue bed." (the detailed sentence can come once they have learned tricky words: blue of)
Thank you for playing an active part in your child’s education!
“Children see magic because they look for it!” – Christopher Moore
The Kindergarten Team
First Grade News
Winter has made itself known! Happy FEBRUARY!
With that being said, please make sure your child layers well during the winter. We try to go outside if the feels like temperature is above 32*F. First graders are more available to learn if they can get their wiggles out and socialize with their classmates.
We are continuing on with CKLA Language Arts Skills unit 3. In this unit the focus is on:
Writing a fictional narrative
Reading and spelling patterns “oo,” “ou,” “oi,” and “aw”
Identifying nouns and verbs (past and present tense)
Reviewing diagraphs, both vowel and consonant
Weekly spelling tests
Adding a few new tricky words
Our CKLA Knowledge unit is all about astronomy. The students will learn about the sun, space, stars and constellations, the moon, space exploration, and even facts about the planets.
In math, we will focus on strategies to use for subtraction, how fact families are related, missing numbers in subtraction equations, and two digit place value to 99.
As we are more than half way through the school year, please make sure to replenish your child's change of clothes and any supplies he/she may need.
As always, thank you for your continued support,
The FIRST GRADE TEAM
Hello from Second Grade
This year is just flying!! Not only will we be celebrating Valentine’s Day this month, but we will also be celebrating the 100th day of school! WOW!! Please be on the lookout for further information in your child’s purple communication folder on the details of both of these special days. We will continue to work on telling time, and we will also begin identifying coins and counting collections of coins. Practicing both of these skills at home will significantly help your child grasp the concepts much easier. Please continue to read with your child daily and check for homework in the purple communication folders. Thank you for your continued support.
What's Up in Third Grade?
Who is special? It would be you---third grade students and parents!
A friendly reminder that our recess is scheduled at 11:20. The temperature does not always reach the high for the day by that time. Please make sure your child comes to school wearing appropriate clothing for the season.
We are working on building stamina for reading and writing. Please make sure your child is completing the reading/writing homework assignments from their teacher. Students should be reading/writing at least 20 minutes a night. Students need to be practicing math facts (addition, subtraction, and multiplication).
We will be sending home a class list with students’ names for Valentine’s Day. Students may create a Valentine box or bag by using stickers, tissue paper, wrapping paper, doilies, hand made hearts, etc. Please remember that if your child chooses to do Valentine cards, he/she must make one for every student in the class. The bags/boxes will be a contest. We will judge them based on neatness, creativity, and authenticity (being original).
As always, we appreciate your support in making this year a successful one for your child. Please remember the PTO is always looking for volunteers.
Third Grade Teachers
Fourth Grade News
The fourth grade would like to say thanks again for all the holiday volunteers and the great donations we received over the holiday season! We have such amazing parents!
We will begin our Watershed unit this month. This program comes to us through the Potomac Audubon Society. An instructor will come to school for 5 different sessions to teach our students about water quality, what a watershed is, how to test ph, water density, erosion and what is needed to protect our watershed. We will go on a field experience trip to Cool Springs in April to culminate this program.
Field trip season is fast approaching. The fourth grade will be taking two trips this year- one to Fort Frederick and the other to Cool Springs Nature Preserve. The Fort Frederick trip will help students better understand information that we have learned and are learning in our Revolutionary War unit for CKLA. The Cool Springs trip will be a hands-on experience for students to solidify what they will be learning through the Watershed Program this year. More information about these trips will be coming home with your student as soon as final approvals are received and dates are confirmed. 😊
We will celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 14. A note with directions and student names will come home soon from your child’s teacher.
The three best ways you can help your student at home this month include helping them practice math facts, reading with them, and helping them practice paragraph writing.
Thanks for all you do and have a fantastic February!
Greetings from Fifth Grade
ELA:
We are reading the novel, The Adventures of Don Quixote in ELA. This is a quirky story of a knight and his many "misadventures". As we read the story, we will try to determine how the main character's traits affect his actions. To end the unit, the students will write a 3-5 paragraph persuasive essay defending whether these actions were justified. We will continue to have spelling tests about every 3 weeks. Please make sure your child is studying his/her words at home.
Math:
In math, we will continue our work with decimals. We will be working toward decimal calculations as we add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals. Please be sure to continue to study the daily cool-downs and review the math with Mr. Collins videos on Canvas for extra practice and support.
Science/Health:
In Science, students will be learning about Earth’s Interactive Systems (geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and the atmosphere) and how they interact with each other. In Social Studies, we will be studying the causes of the Civil War, the major battles and notable individuals that played a part.
In Health, we will be finishing up our study of the different body systems that make up the human body.
Thank you!
The 5th Grade Team
Notes from the Gym by Mr. Atkins
Physical education is a subject devoted to building overall health and wellness and sports literate students. We have spent most of the first semester developing cardiovascular health and are ready to begin learning some sport skills.
Fifth Grade will be working on Volleyball. They will be learning skills such as bumping and setting which will ultimately be used in game-like situations. Fourth and Third grade will begin units on Basketball. The Fourth graders will be working on basketball skills including dribbling, shooting and learning about positions and game play. Third grade will be learning about basketball as well but will focus on ball handling skills and shooting.
First and second grades are going to be exploring many different sport skills involving kicking, throwing, catching, fitness, etc. We are continuing our focus on cues and locomotor skills such as tracking, cross lateral development, hand-eye coordination, foot-eye coordination, decision making, etc.
Kindergarten will continue their warm up routine including jumping jacks, squats, pushups, planks and other exercises. We will be using these warmups to get us ready to bend and stretch in a cross-lateral movement series involving dancing, exercises, balancing and so much more.
Music Notes from Mrs. Shearer
Kindergarten is continuing their work with steady beat, learning to work together as a musical community, and identifying high and low pitches and long and short sounds in music.
First grade is continuing their work with recognizing and notating quarter note and beamed eight notes. We are preparing to label high and low sounds as SO and Me and add them to their musical vocabulary very soon.
Second grade and Third grade are working hard in music class preparing their classwork for their SJES Arts Night in March— (More information coming soon.)
Fourth Grade has begun their long-awaited recorder unit while continuing to expand their music vocabulary.
Fifth grade is currently working on a combined ukulele and recorder unit. Adding to their musical reading skills as well as their understanding of melody and harmony.
Chorus: We have begun rehearsing for our spring concert. I will let you know the date as soon as it is scheduled.
The Creative Corner by Mrs. Fiolek
Hello families!
K&1- I am not sure if our snowy landscapes had anything to do with this snow or not but they sure had fun making them and doing their snow dance! When you are out driving, help your child be an art observer and look for things such as the horizon-line. Note how objects closer to you are larger and further away are smaller.
Note: If you feel so inclined to send in hand wipes, it always makes clean-up sooo much easier!
2nd&3rd- Hope you enjoyed the 3D paper hot chocolate mugs in the style of Heather Galler that came home! Students worked on paper folding techniques and patterns in the style of Heather Galler. Coming up we will be moving on to some Charlie Harper animal collages.
4th &5th- The Year of the Dragon is taking off with some incredible modeled dragon eyes. I was impressed with the learners textures and watercolor painting skills.
I am looking forward to seeing how the students interpret and analyze a variety of artwork and create their own modern day masterpieces.
In all grade levels throughout February we will be going more in depth looking a variety of artists from various time periods. We will be highlighting African American artists such as: Kehinde Wiley, Romare Bearden, and Alma Thomas.
As always, thanks so much for your support!
Pages from the Library by Mrs. Moody
I am so excited to share that we have had a great time checking out potential Caldecott Award winners. In February we will be looking at some other award-winning books, as well as getting some practice with technology.
We love having visitors so if you are interested in coming in and doing a read aloud with your child’s class, please reach out and we can get you on our schedule! Send a message through Canvas, or my email – alison.p.moody@k12.wv.us
Looking ahead, we have an author/illustrator, Brian Yanish, scheduled to visit us in March! We will also have our library fundraiser, the Scholastic Book Fair, coming March 14 through March 22.
Again, for those of you that like to see what we are doing and want to check out our library website, please use the QR code, or visit – tinyurl.com/sjeskids.
Thanks so much for your support!
💜 Mrs. Moody
YEARBOOK SALES for 23-24 school year!
Yearbook Sales
Purchase your 2023 – 2024 South Jefferson Elementary School yearbook
Online site open – ybpay.lifetouch.com
Yearbook ID Code - 11890124
Online price $20.00
In school purchase - flyers will be coming home soon
Cash or checks made out to South Jefferson Elementary School
We will only be doing a pre-sale this year.
No extra yearbooks will be purchased, so order yours before the deadline of May 3, 2024.
PTO News
We invite you to attend our public meetings on the second Tuesday of each month. We will be skipping our next meeting on February 13 at 7 pm, in the SJES cafeteria. Instead this meeting will be a quarter auction planning meeting for anyone interested in helping us with community outreach and gathering of donations. Please plan to attend if you are interested in helping.
Spirit Night
February 13
Grab a meal from Chick-Fil-A in Ranson on February 13th between 5 and 7 pm, and we will receive a portion of the proceeds! Just mention SJES when ordering inside or in the drive thru!
Quarter Auction
April 19
Please save the date for this exciting event! This is a public event, open to all adults (note, children may not attend or participate).
Attend our first planning meeting on February 6th to learn about gathering donations and community outreach opportunities.
School Store
February 13-15
Most items cost between $0.25 to $5.00; children are responsible for their own money, and we’ll have adult volunteers to assist with money counting.
Tuesday 2/13 - Grades 4 & 5
Wednesday 2/14 - Pre-K, K, & 1
Thursday 2/15 - Grades 2 & 3
Little Caesars Fundraiser
February 5 - March 6
Our Little Caesars fundraiser begins February 5. Additional details and the ordering link will be available soon. Watch for a flyer to be sent home with students!
Apparel
SJES apparel/spirit wear can be personalized and purchased at www.Zeroinsports.com/sjes.
Contacts:
President: Karisma Neely; Vice President: April Davis; Secretary: Jessica McIntosh; Treasurer: Amber Fuller
Contact us at SJESPTO@gmail.com or on Facebook at South Jefferson Elementary PTO.
IMPORTANT EVENTS in FEBRUARY
- February 5th: 100th Day of School: "We are 100 Days Brighter!"---don't forget to wear neon or bright colors!
- February 5th: Community Ministries Food Drive Begins---can each class bring in 100 items??
- February 7th: SPRING CLASS PICTURE DAY (Individual pictures will be taken on March 26th)
- February 8th, from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Parent Teacher Conferences
- February 16th: TWO HOUR EARLY DISMISSAL/Staff Faculty Senate
- February 26th - March 1st: READ ACROSS AMERICA
Snow Days 6 - 10 Update
As we are moving through the winter season, we wanted to update you about our snow day policy. For the first 5 snow days, there is nothing required. They are actual snow days, as we traditionally know them. We have used 4 of those 5 days already so we need to prepare for days 6 - 10. On the 6th day, we are required to provide instruction to our students. This instruction will look different, depending on if you are a PreK-2 student or a 3-5 student. Our students in grades 3 - 5 will bring home their Chromebook and will have work assigned by their teacher to complete. Our students in grades PreK - 2 will have information via paper/pencil to complete on each snow day. Each teacher will have "office hours" and information sent home to caregivers/students regarding how they can be reached, if assistance is needed or a meeting needs to be scheduled. Our goal is to provide meaningful learning opportunities for our students that will continue when we return to school.
If we believe that snow or inclement weather is impending, we will send devices home (grades 3 - 5 only). IF we avoid a snow day, we just ask that your child bring his/her device back to school the next day. Our staff will be working, attending professional development, holding open office hours for caregivers and students and attending staffing meetings during those days. Our hope is to keep this as simple as possible and to move through these potential snow days effortlessly. We have worked with our students in class, to show them what is expected and how to navigate through assignments, if needed. All of our students are knowledgeable about what is expected. Who knows? We may not need to worry about snow days after the 5th day. IF we would surpass 10 snow days, we would be required to make up any days, beginning with snow day #11. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at kmahoney@k12.wv.us.
Thank you,
Ms. Mahoney