SIS October News
We Are Solon Strong!
A Note from the Principal
It's so hard to believe we are already headed into October. Fall is my absolute favorite time of year. I've always said that if I could live in any climate, year round fall would be IT! (I've yet to learn of a place like that!). Regardless, we can enjoy all fall weather has to offer: fall leaves changing colors, wearing comfy sweatshirts and jeans, and the crispness of the air outside. Bonfires, anyone??
Fall at school means we finally get to get into the nitty gritty of our academics. The newness of the year has worn off, routines are well established in classrooms, and our beginning of the year assessments are wrapped up. There are new books to explore, new topics to write about, and lots of learning ahead. We are so excited to see just how far we are able to grow our students academically! In fact, I've included a new section called "Eye on the Classroom." Be sure to check it out and learn more about our math instruction and the use of math workshops!
Just a few reminders as we go through the year:
- If your child is going to be absent, please email his/her homeroom teacher and our secretary, Laurie, at larwine@solon.k12.ia.us
- As the weather turns colder, please consider writing your child's name inside his/her coats and/or sweatshirts. Our lost and found is growing.
- Bus passes will only be allotted for emergent needs related to childcare only. We have limited seats on our bus routes and are unable to provide transportation for additional needs at this time.
Thank you for all you do for your child and our school. We are #solonstrong and couldn't be prouder!
Happy Fall, Y'all!
Mrs. Holtz
HOCO Decade Day
Math Workshop
Teamwork!
Reading
HOCO Beach Day
Math Congress
Eye on the Classroom
NO WONDER we don't appreciate it as much as we could!!
It's far time we take a good hard look at what math instruction used to be and consider what math instruction can be! It can be an opportunity for kids to share their thinking, collaborate with one another, make real-world connections to its uses in authentic context, and discover new ways of thinking! Math is powerful and math can be exciting!
Maybe you've already heard your child talking about some of their own math learning this year. Walk into one of your child's 4th or 5th grade classrooms during math and you'd find the math workshop to be quite different from the same old, same old we grew up with.
Math workshops invite our students to engage with authentic learning and work together to better understand the world around us. The ideal of delivering math instruction through math workshop allows students to engage in number sense routines, authentic tasks, focused whole-group lessons, and guided math interactions with teachers designed to meet students where they are. The beauty of this design is the individual instruction students receive based on where their current understanding and readiness for learning lies. Additionally, teachers will know your students even better than before as they analyze student data and prepare to guide them to the next learning step in the math learning progressions landscape.
You'll be hearing more about this work at conferences as our teachers continue to build their own learning around math workshops and work with students in both whole group and small group instructional formats. For now, think of it as reading workshop but with math. We are excited to see how this way of teaching impacts the overall understanding and engage of our young mathematicians!
Halloween Celebrations
COVID Mitigation
- AM Amp Up (our morning arrival time) has been moved outdoors while weather permits. If weather does not permit, students will spread out outside their classrooms in learning lane until teachers escort them into their classrooms prior to announcements and the pledge.
- Lunch is now broken into 4 shifts (2 specials groups per grade level per shift). We have 12 tables spread out, split in half for designated specials groups to eat at. We have also marked sit spots for students to allow for extra spacing between students as they eat. We will continue with the sanitary measures we were already taking between each lunch.
- Carpet time has been suspended in classrooms until further notice. This will allow for greater spacing between kids throughout the school day.
- We are encouraging use of water bottles only at our water fountains. Please consider sending a water bottle with your child, if you have not already.
- We will continue to share possible COVID exposures with families by homeroom classes as exposure dates change.
Thank you for partnering with us in this process. Thank you for keeping your child home if he/she is experiencing any COVID-like symptoms. As always, when in doubt, please keep your child home and feel free to call our school nurse to discuss your situation before sending him/her to school.
Additional Information Items
Picture Retakes!
Mark Your Calendars
Oct. 11: No School: Teacher Inservice
Oct. 29: PICTURE RETAKES
Oct. 29: Halloween Celebrations
Nov. 11: Parent/Teacher Conferences
Nov. 18: Parent/Teacher Conferences
School Lunches
Contact Info
Email: mholtz@solon.k12.ia.us
Website: www.solon.k12.ia.us
Location: 200 West 5th Street, Solon, IA, USA
Phone: (319) 624-3401
Twitter: @theholtzfamily4