Greetings Elm Families,

We still have some eLearning chromeooks in the office for families that had requested one. If you asked about getting an eLearning chromebook, but have not yet picked it up, please do so as soon as possible. The office is open 7:30-3:30 each school day.

Attached is the 23-24 school year calendar. Please bookmark this calendar as it has some important dates for next school year.

Our Winter Break will begin on Friday, December 23rd. We hope your family has a restful and fun break where you can enjoy time with family and friends. When we return from Winter Break our 3-5 grade students will be working on ClearSight Interims. These tests are used to help guide enrichment and remediation for students. Our k-2 students will be taking DIBELS starting in the middle of January. Students will review our SOAR guidelines upon returning from break as well. We are always looking for SOARing Eagles to give SOAR tickets to.

Best,

Mrs. Beers

Nov 28- Dec 22 - CogAT testing for Kindergarten, 2nd and 5th

Dec 14 - 4th Gr. Bowling Trip 11:30-1:30 pm

Dec 19-Jan 1 - PTO Holiday Lights Scavenger Hunt

Dec 23 Jan 8 - Winter Break

Jan 13 - End of 2nd Grading Period

Jan 16 - No School Recess Day

Jan 17 - Start of Kindergarten Registration

Congratulations to the following

“Eagles” for their wonderful

“SOAR” behavior

Mrs. Barnes: Aubrey & Daniel

Mrs. Gagyi: Ezra & Blake

Mrs. Geyer: Maddie & Sam

Mrs. Bush: Marley and Carter

Mrs. Hinton: Ellie, Julian & Kaydence

Mrs. Portolese: Loganne & Corion

Mrs.Taylor: Gwyneth & Auggie

Mrs. Clark: Henrik & Grace

Ms. M.Miller: Lilian & Jack

Mrs. Richard: Kaija , Miles , Ancil

Mrs. Tornquist: Alex & Shannon

Ms. Anderson: Reese & Cole

Ms. C. Miller: Abby & Isaac

Ms. Railton: Abbey & Ava

Mrs. Cook: Audrina and Jedaiah

Mrs. Freeman: Zoey, Kayden & Madison

Mrs. Newcomer: Luke and Martin

Ms. Funkhouser: Ellie & Emery

Mrs. Mellor: Olivia & Royce

Mrs. Napolitan: Izzy & Lauren

Mrs. Shreiner: Brielle & Kaylynn

It is that time of year again….cold and snowy weather! Please remember to dress your child appropriately. We will go outside as long as the temperature and wind chill factor are above zero. All students are expected to go outside. If your child is to remain inside, please provide a doctor’s note. To play in the snow, children should wear a winter coat, snow pants, hat, gloves, and boots. Please make sure you mark your child’s belongings with his/her name. With regard to sledding, please be reminded that children may bring a plastic roll up sled to school during snowy days. Please make sure that your child’s name is on the sled. Keeping your children safe is our main priority. Sledding is always supervised!

A special thanks goes to Epic Church for their donations for Thanksgiving meals for families in need. This month I would like to highlight a community agency: Real Services.

Real Services of St. Joe County can assist families with utility bills in the winter. Please call them at 574-233-8205 for more information regarding their Energy Assistance Program or Team Heat Program.

As the colder weather approaches, winter coats, hats and mittens will be necessary. If you need a referral for Christ Child, please contact Andrea Shell as soon as possible. There are only a few dates left.

______________________________________________________________________

This holiday season I am going to motivate you and your family to “press the pause button.” Our lives are usually busy, but during the holidays they become even more hectic. I encourage you to take time to enjoy one another during this time. Here are some tips on how to be more intentional with time:

• Stop and listen

• Turn off your phone/television/electronics

• Choose to be kind

• Switch the focus from receiving to giving

• Do something that makes you feel proud

• Be mindful of your time and most importantly your relationships with others

• Take time for yourself

These are only some ideas, what do you plan on doing this holiday season to be more intentional?

As always, if you have any questions or needs, please don't hesitate to give me a call at 259-3743 or email me at ashell@phm.k12.in.us

To celebrate success in reading, each classroom teacher has selected two readers as their November Readers of the Month. These readers will be recognized on our morning news, receive a book of their choosing, certificate, and bookmark, and have their picture displayed on our readers' bulletin board. Congratulations to the following February Soaring Readers.

Kindergarten

Mrs. Barnes: Koa and Aubrey

Mrs. Gagyi: Charlotte

Mrs.Geyer: Charlotte and Braylin

First Grade

Mrs. Bush: Gianna and Carter

Mrs. Hinton: Julian and Ian

Mrs. Portolese: Austin and Clara

Mrs. Taylor: Cora and Alannah

Second Grade

Mrs. Clark: Taylor and Henrik

Miss M. Miller: Naomi and Zayn

Mrs. Richard: Lauren and Grady

Mrs. Tornquist: Shannon and Aurora

Third Grade

Ms. Anderson: Sophia and Reese

Mrs. C. Miller: Aubrie and Richard

Miss Railton: Carter and Josephine

Fourth Grade

Mrs. Cook: Warren and Kamdyn

Mrs. Freeman: Emma and Jackson

Mrs. Newcomer: Nora and Ariel

Fifth Grade

Miss Funkhouser: Jackson and Arianna

Mrs. Mellor: Anna and Royce

Mrs. Napolitan: Skylar and Lily

Mrs. Shreiner: Kyle and Adam

Welcome to Winter!

During the month of November we’ve been busy finishing up some skeleton relays and a cooperative game called “Cross the River” (3rd-5th grade) in the gym. We have also been playing numerous games based on Veterans’ Day and Thanksgiving. Kindergarten-second grade finished up some soccer skills and games. We’ve held discussions about honor, gratitude, patriotism, veterans, soldiers, thankfulness and the food plate.

Mr. Morgan from Star Martial Arts was a guest in our gym for each class this month. He taught some moves while focusing on healthy habits, confidence, bullying, treating others with respect, following directions, personal best and setting goals. He offered a free class to each student at Star Martial Arts if a parent signs their child(ren) up at startkd.com.

While working on our cardiovascular fitness, first through fifth grade competed in a “Fastest Class Challenge”. Each class ran for five minutes and laps were counted, then we found the average laps per student using our math skills. Congratulations to Ms. Funkhouser/Mrs. Mellor’s class in 5th grade for having the highest average and being our fastest class at Elm Road! The fourth graders received the traveling trophy for now, as we will be running this again in a few weeks to see if they remain the fastest class champs!

A focus during gym has also been placed on basic locomotor skills. Please help your child practice tying, hopping, jumping, skipping, throwing and catching when there is opportunity. Many kindergarten through second graders are needing lots of help with tying! There are many YouTube videos that demonstrate shoe tying if your child needs additional help. Mrs. Sime and I will be giving out some rewards for students that demonstrate the skill of tying in grades K-2.

In December our physical education focus will be working on the underhand roll with bowling along with playing some holiday games the last week.

Stay Healthy,

Debbie Parisi and Sarah Sime

In November we recognized a lot of American traditions in music. We honored Veterans Day with traditional songs, marches, and even learning sign language to "My Country 'Tis of Thee". As we approached the end of the month, we have been practicing returning to a routine of using the xylophones along with the music that we play and create in class. Students have been doing a very nice job and enjoying these instruments. We will continue to use them in December with our music. We also will be preparing winter songs for our annual sing-along which is returning back to the gym this year on the last day before break!