PRE Newsletter
May 10, 2019
News went out this week concerning PRE Field Day 2019. It will look a little different this year with K-2 rotating through three hours of field day stations in the morning and 3-5 in the afternoon. If you are volunteering to help on this fun day and want to make sure that you are helping during your child's time, please make sure that you sign-up for the correct time slot...AM or PM. The other half of the day the students will be signing yearbooks, doing a class activity, and participating in another field day-type activity with the specials teachers. We are already hoping for good weather!
Please check our important dates below as well as the newsletter from your child's classroom teacher. This time of year is busy with so many great end-of-year activities. We don't want you to miss out on anything!
Have a fantastic weekend!
Kristel Fulcher
PRE Principal
Important Dates
May 13-17 1st Grade Author's Parties, 2nd Grade Camp Learned a Lot, 5th Grade Space Camp
May 20 Shawn McWhirt Retirement Party at 4:00 P.M.
May 20-24 STUCO Spirit Week (see details below)
May 21 5th Grade Farewell
May 22 Talent Show at 10:00 A.M. and Lunch with Cougar Dens at 11:30 A.M.--Please send a sack lunch or purchase one from the cafeteria!
May 23 Field Day--Please send a sack lunch or purchase one from the cafeteria!
May 24 Last Day of School! Dismissal at 12:10 P.M.
August 12 Back to School Night, 5:00-6:30 P.M.
Staffing Changes
First, we have two staff members that will be leaving Prairie Ridge at the end of the school year. Shawn McWhirt, Voyagers Teacher, will be retiring at the end of the school year. We wish Shawn well as she embarks on this new chapter. Katie Fitzgerald, third grade teacher, is going to stay at home next year. I am sure that she will stay busy keeping up with her two little girls!
The new gifted facilitator is Chrissy Russell, and she is coming to us from the Kansas City, KS school district where she has worked with gifted students for several years. She actually completed her practicum in our school district with one of our former gifted facilitators.
Sarah Stephenson will begin her teaching career at PRE teaching 4th grade next year. Sarah completed her practicum as well as student teaching experiences at Prairie Ridge this year. We are thrilled that she will be joining the 4th grade team.
Melissa Mendez, current 1st grade teacher, will be joining the 2nd grade team next year. We are delighted to have her continue at PRE.
Save the Date
PRE will host Back to School Night on Monday, August 12 from 5:00-6:30. This is a come-and-go time where students take their school supplies to their classroom and meet their teachers. Mark your calendars today!
First Day of School
Wednesday, August 14, 2019, Half-day 8:45-12:10 P.M.
First FULL Day of School
Thursday, August 15, 2019, 8:45-3:50 P.M.
Field Day 2019
Dear PRE Parents,
I am very excited to be putting together my very first field day here at PRE. My main goal for this year is to make field day a fun and exciting experience for all students to be a part of! The plan is to have 13 stations for students to rotate to in a morning rotation/afternoon rotation format with K, 1st, and 2nd rotating through stations in the morning and 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade rotating through in the afternoon.
Here is an outline of the current schedule, without any weather issues:
- Field Day Kickoff: 9:05-9:15
- AM Stations (K, 1st, 2nd): 9:15-12:30
- 3-5 Break/Lunch: 11:45-12:30
- K-2 Break/Lunch: 12:30-1:15
- PM Stations (3rd, 4th, 5th): 12:30-3:30
I have a sign up genius set up for field day volunteers. I am in need of quite a few volunteers to help this day run as smoothly as possible. There will be two options for signing up and you will be given the choice to volunteer for a morning station or an afternoon station based on your preference. If you don’t mind giving your time to help, I would love to see you on the 23rd of May for PRE Field Day!
Here is the link to sign up to run a station:
Thank you,
Coach Barnes
STUCO Spirit Week
Monday (20th): PJ Day
Tuesday(21st): Royals Gear/Blue
Wednesday (22nd): Summer Vacation (sun hat, sun glasses, Hawaiian, vacation shirt)
Thursday (23rd): Athletic Wear (field day)
Friday (24th): PRE All School Shirts
Summer Reading
Worried that you might feel the midsummer boredom blues??
Might we recommend some…SUMMER READING…
Just the adventure you are looking for!
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First, join the Johnson County Public Library Summer Reading Program!
The theme this year is: A Universe of Stories
Visit the Monticello branch starting May 20th to get your FREE book!
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Second, participate in the Summer Reading Program at Barnes and Noble to earn a FREE book!
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/h/summer-reading
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Third, join the summer reading program at the Bonner Library to earn some awesome prizes! You can register at the library starting Tuesday, May 28th to get your reading log.
Happy Reading!! ~Mrs. Ptacek and Mrs. Sudac
Double Diamond
•Listen AND follow teacher directions
•Only talking during appropriate times
•Use an inside voice when working
•Show RESPECT to everyone and to property
•Enter and Exit the classroom appropriately
•Give YOUR personal best effort during class
This week Ms. Simpson's 3rd grade class won the award! Congratulations!
Teacher Spotlight
A little bit about Mrs. Reinoehl's family..
I have three sons--Taylor (26), Cory (23), and Chandler (20).
Mrs. Reinoehl's best or favorite memory of being an elementary school student:
I grew up in a rural area, so not a lot of choices when it came to field trips. So when my parents purchased a 55 tropical fish aquarium at an auction, my teacher got creative and we spent the afternoon at my house after studying about ocean life! My mom supplied cookies and Kool-Aid and we played kickball out in the field.
The best thing about teaching is...
Relationships--I love getting to know students and being able to relate to them on some level. They remember things forever. I might tell a student something in 1st grade and they will remind me of it when they are in 5th! Also, it's great to have a job where you can belly laugh every day about something. Elementary students are hilarious and full of love. How can you not enjoy your day?
The best thing about PRE is...
Again, my answer would be relationships--Long-lasting relationships not only built with our students but also parents and co-workers.
Teacher Spotlight
A little bit about Mrs. McWhirt's family..
I have Been married to my husband Andy for almost 30 years. We have two awesome children (Alex and Grace) who both graduated from Mill Valley. We also have two fur babies, Charlie and Lucy (both girls) who keep us company now that our children have moved out.
Mrs. McWhirt's best or favorite memory of being an elementary school student:
I had the same teacher for 5th and 6th grade. Her name was Mrs. Schropp. She was awesome! As the youngest of four children, I didn't always get a lot of attention. I came up with what I thought was a very funny comedy routine, "Harried Harriet". Mrs. Schropp would let me perform my routine (made up on the spot) whenever we had free time. I'm embarrassed to think of how stupid the routine must have been, but I loved the laughs!
The best thing about PRE is...
the love! From teachers to students and from students to teachers!
PTO Survey
PTO wants to hear from you! Please fill out the brief survey by Friday, May 17th!
Community Service
THANK YOU PRE FAMILIES FOR AN AWESOME YEAR OF GIVING BACK!!
Special thanks to the committee members that coordinated these activities with me!
Laura LeRoy, Lisa Miller, Jennie Strathman, Maria Turvey, Jan Kelly, Melanie Chezem, Natalie Tucker, Kari Woods
If there is anyone that wants to be a part of this committee next year – please contact Kristin Repp at kristinlayne9@hotmail.com
School Supplies
2019-2020 PRE School Supply Lists and PTO School Supply Order Forms are available on our website. Order forms are due May 24. The following links will connect you to them:
A Special Thank You to the PRE PTO Carnival Sponsors
PRE PTO wants to thank everyone who came out to the Carnival on May 3rd. It was a huge success. A special thank you to our Sponsors!
Witters Real Estate
Lure Creative
Price Chopper
Sombreros