Cougar Pride
May 9, 2022
Message from the Principal
3rd and 4th Grade STAAR Test
Virtual Celebration of Learning - 4th Nine Weeks
May 26 - Last Day of School and Early Dismissal @ 2:00pm
Calendar of Events
May 25: 4th Nine Weeks Awards Day via Zoom
May 26: Last Day of School for Students
4th Grade Promotion Ceremony @ 9am
Report cards go home
Early Dismissal @ 2:00pm
My Brother's Keeper lunch program - REGISTER BY JUNE 1
Each day menu provides, cereal, a lunch entrée, snack, fruit, freeze pop and juice for each (school age) child that is registered. Birth certificate must be provided.
The program is not related to nor sponsored by Alief ISD or Kennedy Elementary. It is a community resource being shared. For questions, please contact My Brother's Keeper at 281-498-9933 from 10am - 1:30pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Character Trait: Gratitude
The dictionary defines gratitude as: “the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.” The definition we are using in class is:
Gratitude: choosing to notice and appreciate things in our life, things in others, and things in the world.
We want to make sure we share with students that Gratitude is 1) a choice that we get to make over and over again on where we put our focus and 2) doesn’t always have to be about something positive. We can feel grateful even for tough or challenging things in our life! There is plenty of research that shows a strong connection between Gratitude and reduced anxiety, increased happiness, and better relationships.
Conversation Starters
Talk about why you were grateful for the teachers and mentors in your life then ask your children why they are grateful for theirs. Have they had a favorite teacher? If so, who? What makes that teacher a favorite? If they haven’t had a favorite yet, find out what makes a great teacher in their eyes.
Gratitude takes practice! What can we do as a family to work on expressing Gratitude more regularly to each other and those around us?
Discuss why you are grateful for your child. Be specific: who are they? How do they make you feel? Ask them what they are grateful for about your family, your home, your neighborhood, etc..
Questions You Could Ask
Has anyone ever said, “What do you say?” when they want to remind you to express Gratitude? Why do you think that saying “thank you” is so important? Why do you think we refer to it as one of our “magic words” when we’re trying to teach you to say it?
What if you woke up tomorrow and only had the things you expressed Gratitude for today? What would you still have? What would disappear? How can you express Gratitude daily?
How do you know someone is grateful for you? What do they do? How does it feel to receive Gratitude? How does it feel to give Gratitude?
Activity
Start a Family Joy Journal where you keep an ongoing list of gifts (people, places, things) that you are grateful for and how you showed your Gratitude for that thing. Try to write in it each day for 30 days. Write as many things as you can think of for that day as possible. How many days until you reach 100? How about 1000?