Dolphin Parent Connection
April/May 2017 Volume 2, Issue 6
Upcoming Events and Important Dates
· Tuesday, April 18th: Art Club @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Tuesday, April 18th: Stock Market Club @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Tuesday, April 18th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Tuesday, April 18th: Report Cards Issued
· Wednesday, April 19th: Grade 1 Field Trip to Children's Museum @ 9:00 AM-1:30 PM
· Wednesday, April 19th: Robotics Club @ 2:50- 4:00 PM
· Wednesday, April 19th: SCA Meeting in Café @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Thursday, April 20th: Helping Hands @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Thursday, April 20th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Friday, April 21st: Spirit Day: Purple Up! Wear purple to honor our military children.
· Friday, April 21st: Grade 4 Cultures of Jamestown Outreach
· Tuesday, April 25th: Kindergarten Registration @ 9:00 AM
· Tuesday, April 25th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Wednesday, April 26th: Grade 2 China Outreach
· Wednesday, April 26th: Robotics Club @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Wednesday, April 26th: PTA Talent Show Rehearsal at PAMS @ 6:00-8:00 PM
· Wednesday, April 26th: Admin Professionals Day
· Thursday, April 27th: Super Hero Spirit Day--Dress as your favorite Super Hero
· Thursday, April 27th: St. Baldrick's Rally/Dance @ 3:00-4:30 PM (tickets must be purchased)
· Friday, April 28th: PTA Talent Show at PAMS @ 6:00 PM
· Monday, May 1st-Friday, May 5th: Teacher Appreciation Week
· Tuesday, May 2nd: Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast @ 8:30 AM
· Tuesday, May 2nd: Art Club @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Tuesday, May 2nd: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Tuesday, May 2nd: Spirit Night at McDonalds @ 5:00-9:00 PM
· Wednesday, May 3rd: Spring Make-up Pictures and 5th Grade Group Picture 10:00-12:00 PM
· Wednesday, May 3rd: Robotics Club @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Wednesday, May 3rd: SCA Meeting in Café @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Thursday, May 4th: 5th Graders visit Princess Anne Middle @ 9:30 AM
· Thursday, May 4th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Thursday, May 4th: Helping Hands Flower Pick-up @ 4:30-5:30 PM
· Tuesday, May 9th--Wednesday, May 17th: Spring Book Fair
· Tuesday, May 9th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
· Tuesday, May 9th: PTA Board Meeting @ 5:30-7:00 PM
· Wednesday, May 10th: National School Nurse Day
· Wednesday, May 10th: Kindergarten Field Trip to Brookdale Farms @ 8:10-11:20 AM
· Wednesday, May 10th: Robotics Club @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Wednesday, May 10th: Band & Strings Concert and PTA General Meeting @ 7:00 PM
· Thursday, May 11th: Helping Hands @ 2:50-4:00 PM
· Thursday, May 11th: SOL Tutoring @ 2:50-3:50 PM
Red Mill SCA & St. Baldrick's Join Forces to Fight Childhood Cancer
Red Mill Elementary fights to conquer Childhood Cancer! The SCA is currently holding a fundraiser for the St. Baldrick's Foundation, which provided life-saving medicine for one of our own students, Abby Furco. There are several ways you and your child can be involved in this campaign.
- Purchase a 'SuperHero' badge for $1. Students simply bring their money to their homeroom. Students purchasing badges will be entered into a drawing for a chance to be a "shaver" on April 27th. Classes and grade levels with the highest totals will receive additional incentives.
- Purchase a Red Mill St. Baldrick's "Shave the Day" t-shirt for $10.00. Order forms are on the school webpage and are due by Thursday, April 20th. Click here for the Order Form . Checks should be made payable to Red Mill Elementary.
- Purchase a ticket for $5.00 to attend the Red Mill Rally/Dance on Thursday April 27th from 3:00 - 4:30 PM. Tickets will be available for sale beginning Monday, April 24th.
- Sign up to be a "Shavee" at the Red Mill Rally/Dance on Thursday April 27th from 3:00-4:30. Participants must sign up on the event website and have a waiver signed to be a shavee. Click HERE. Scroll down to find your child's teacher and click "Join Team."
- Donate Online. Click HERE. Scroll down to find your child's homeroom teacher and click "Donate."
- Have your business be a sponsor for the Red Mill Rally/Dance on Thursday, April 27th. Contact Patty Furco at 559-836-9802 or email PattyLynn1@aol.com.
Kindergarten Registration
Red Mill Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast
We would like to invite all parent and community volunteers that have helped us during the 2016-17 school year to our annual Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast on Tuesday, May 2nd at 8:30 AM in the school library. Please RSVP to the office if you will be joining us at 648-3560. We are so thankful for your unending support and gracious gift of time.
Young Author's Night
Mark your calendars now for our Young Author's Night on Tuesday, May 16th from 6:00-7:30 PM. This will be an opportunity for all parents to see your student's growth as a writer this year. All students in grades K-5 will have their writing on display. The Book Fair will also be open that evening. In addition, information regarding summer reading programs will be available. Other fun, interactive writing activities will be set up as well.
Helping Hands Spring Flower Sale
Are you ready to bring a little color to your yard? The Red Mill Helping Hands' Club is currently taking orders for a beautiful variety of flowers. Visit the Red Mill webpage and look under "In the News" for ordering information: http://www.redmilles.vbschools.com/.
Orders are due by Friday, April 28th. Flowers will be available for pick-up on Thursday, May 4th from 4:30-5:30 in the Red Mill cafeteria.
Honoring Our Military Children
April is the Month of the Military Child. We recognize that our military-affiliated students make sacrifices too. For some, this means moving states multiple times during their childhood, requiring children to jump into previously established friend groups, a new curriculum, and in some cases, like our NATO families, a new language and culture. For other children, the sacrifice means having to live life without their mom or dad for long periods of time while their parent is deployed. At Red Mill, we have over 180 students with military connections. As a small token of our appreciation for their sacrifices, we are asking everyone to wear purple this Friday, April 21st. Purple Up! with us as we honor our military children.
Upcoming SOL Testing Dates
Our SOL testing will begin soon. Our students have been working hard to master the grade-level curriculum. We know they are well prepared for the tests. The testing dates are listed below.
Grade 3
- Reading- May 31 Part 1 & June 1 Part 2
- Math- June 2
Grade 4
- Reading- May 18- Part 1 & May 19- Part 2
- Math- May 22
Grade 5
- Reading- May 23-Part 1 & May 24-Part 2
- Math- May 25
- Science- June 6
- History- June 7
If you are willing and able to volunteer your time to be a hall monitor for any of the testing dates please let Mrs. Boyce know by calling the office at 648-3560.
Camp Invention Back at Red Mill This Summer
Head Lice: What Parents Need to Know
For many parents (including myself), finding out your child has head lice for the first time can be embarrassing and extremely frustrating. Not only did I feel like others would judge me as a parent, but I also spent hours washing linens, bagging up pillows, and treating my daughter's long hair. After my daughter's first case of lice, I did some research and realized that my daughter's lice was not a reflection on my housekeeping skills or my child's cleanliness. In fact, lice liked clean hair as much as they liked dirty hair. But the fact remains ... dealing with lice is annoying and time-consuming. It will take all of us working together to keep the frustration of lice from as many Red Mill families as possible. To help us help you, we ask parent(s) to contact our school nurse, Janice Hart, at 648-3567 if you are aware your child has head lice. If the school is made aware, we can take additional steps in the classroom to keep transmissions at bay. If your child's head lice is discovered while at school, Mrs. Hart will contact you so that your child can be picked up from school. Your child should not return to school until they have been treated, and all live lice are gone from your child's head. Parents of the other students in the classroom will also be informed via a form letter of the confirmed anonymous case of lice. Please know that our teachers and nursing staff try to be as discreet as possible. However, our ultimate goal is to keep the lice from spreading. Having been through this with my daughter on three separate occasions in three different schools, I know that I certainly want to keep other parents from the extra work if possible. Below you will find some great information about lice. If you have additional questions, please contact Janice Hart in the school clinic.
HEAD LICE (or pediculosis) are little insects that live on the human scalp and feed on blood. They are a small, tan‐colored critter (less than 1/8 long). They may live for days or weeks depending on temperature and humidity. They deposit tiny, gray/white eggs, known as “nits”, on the shaft of hair 3–4 mm from the scalp because the eggs need the warmth from the scalp for hatching. They cannot live for more than 48 hours away from the scalp as adult insects, and eggs cannot hatch at temperatures lower than those found close to the scalp. Head lice do not carry disease, and they are not a sign of uncleanliness. Lice are transmitted by direct contact, head to head. They crawl, they do not fly or hop.
10 Steps to Stay Ahead OF HEAD LICE:
1. Watch for signs/symptoms of head lice: excessive itching or scratching of the head especially behind ears and nape of neck.
2. Check family members for live lice and nits (eggs) at least once a week. It helps to use natural light and a magnifying glass. Nits (eggs) attach with a cement‐like substance to the shaft of individual hairs.
3. Treat family members who have lice. Over the counter medications (pediculocides) that kill lice and nits are recommended. Most of these chemicals require 2 treatments 7‐10 days apart. If crawling lice are still seen after a full course of treatment contact your health care provider.
4. Use head lice specialized shampoos, following manufacturer’s instructions, to be most effective. Use product over sink. Keep eyes covered with washcloth.
5. Removing all nits (eggs) with a special fine‐toothed comb is the most effective way to get rid of them. This may be a tedious job.
6. Wash infested articles that can be laundered at 130 F (54.4 C) and dried on the hot setting. (hats, pillows, bedding, clothing, etc.)
7. Toys, personal articles, bedding, and other fabrics that cannot be laundered with hot water and a dryer or dry‐cleaned can be kept away from people (in a plastic bag) for more than 2 days if there is concern of infestation.
8. Head lice can live for 1 ‐2 days away from the scalp; chemical treatment of the environment is not necessary. To remove head lice vacuum floors, carpets, mattresses, and furniture.
9. Continue to check head daily for at least 2‐3 weeks after discovery. Removing nits every day for 3 weeks is the most effective treatment.
10. Help prevent lice infestation by encouraging your child not to engage in activity that causes head to head contact.
Additionally, you can find an additional article about the myths and facts of lice on our school webpage under the Clinic tab: http://www.redmilles.vbschools.com/pages/secondary/clinic/index.asp