January 2023 Northtowne News
Inside: School news, Community Help & More
PBIS Mission Statement
I am prepared and ready to learn.
I will be respectful, responsible and focused.
I will make choices that focus on teaching and learning.
My hands are for helping, NOT hurting.
And my words are for encouraging.
I will be the best ‘me’ I can be.
January Important Dates
January 13 - End of Quarter 2 for grading
January 16 - No School; Martin Luther King Jr. Day
January 17 - No School; Professional Development
January 18 - No School; Records Day
January 25 - Picture Day
February 1 - No School; Professional Development
Watch for information to be coming on Caregiver Teacher Conference dates.
A January event for families will be shifted into February due to the number and timing of days in January with no school.
You can keep up to date with the District wide school calendar by clicking here or using the button below.
Reminders!
Attendance Email
Morning Drop Off
Please stay with your child prior to 8:30 a.m. and/or when there is no adult supervision. For the safety of your child, please wait until a staff member is outside.
Children should not be dropped off before 8:30.
Dress for the Weather!
If you need any assistance with getting the necessary outerwear for the Ohio weather, reach out to Family Ambassador Sarah Bowman. She will get the details of your needs and connect you with Northtowne Elementary or community based resources to help.
The Lost and Found has a large number of jackets and coats already accumulating. If your student has lost of any of these items at school please contact the classroom teacher or Family Ambassador Sarah Bowman for assistance with attempting to locate items.
Contact the Family Ambassador at: sbowman@columbus.k12.oh.us or you can call or text 614-859-9654
Principal's Corner
Hello Families, Caregivers, and Students,
Welcome back to school! I hope families were able to enjoy some time together over the winter break. Students seemed a little tired on the first day back in the new 2023 year. By now, though, it looks like they are well on the way to getting back into the school routines.
It was really amazing to see the families turn out for the Gingerbread Contest. You made this our most highly attended event so far this year! I loved seeing all the different ways our family teams built and decorated the houses. I heard a lot of compliments on the houses coming from our staff as well. Everyone was very impressed, and the voting for winners was competitive!
Friday, January 13th, is the final day of the 2nd Quarter/Grading Period. It also marks the half way point for the school year. It is still hard to believe how quickly the school year goes. Grades will be entered on records day and grade cards will be completely finalized by January 24th. Families can check the student report card in the Parent Portal in the "Grades" section. Any family having difficulty with Parent Portal access can contact our Family Ambassador for assistance.
As always, we strive to be Respectful, Responsible, and Focused (RRF) at school. In January, students will be participating in sessions to remind them of what being RRF looks like in our hallways, classrooms, lunch room, restrooms, and on the playground. These "booster" sessions will be led by Mr. Dickerson and Mrs. Hughes.
I hope all of our Northtowne Knights have a great start to this new year!
Mr. Taylor
Family Gingerbread House Contest Success!
Thank you to all of the families who came out in December for this event; the attendance was great! The gingerbread houses created were so creative and detailed that it made it hard for the judges to pick only a few winners. In the end, it was decided to pick a winner at each grade level. We hope students with classroom hot chocolate parties enjoyed the extra excitement on the last day of school before winter break.
A huge thank you also goes out to our Northtowne 5th graders for providing the gingerbread selfie stations at the stage. Under the guidance of Ms Blake, they constructed all three of the large gingerbread stations using structure supports, paper, and lots of tape. The students used and developed many of the attributes of the Portrait of a Graduate while working on this project. Some of those attributes practiced were adaptability, communication, creativity, and critical thinking.
Below, you can check out some photos from the event. Remember, you can click on any photo to see a larger image. You can also take a look at all of the Portrait of a Graduate attributes that we are working to instill in our students.
Spotlight on Pre-Kindergarten and Special Needs Pre-Kindergarten
In the Special Needs Pre-K class, students are learning winter vocabulary. When you start to list winter themed words there are a lot! Snow boots, mittens, sled, icicle, ski, ice-skate, and more! Mr. Aldridge shared a fun way to "ice-sake" at home without any ice. Place feet on dry "Swiffer" cloths or in empty tissue boxes. Then, slide your feet along the floor. This works best with hard surface floors rather than carpeting. Children do need adult supervision for this activity because the sliding is definitely a big balance challenge.
In Mrs. Cole's Pre-K class, students are learning about animals right now. This includes how they care for their young, where they live (habitats), and what they need to live (food, water, shelter, etc). They are also starting numbers 10, 11, and 12, as well as letters S, J, and D. They have a meeting of our Art Club coming up that the kids always look forward to. Art Club is a monthly art project with a class from Northland High School. Art is fun and it's fun to be around the big kids. Finally, Mrs. Cole's class will also be starting the Jumpin' Jax program through the Jazz Arts Group where they will move and learn about Jazz for 4 weeks. What fun!
From the Guidance Counselor
January and the middle of the school year bring a great chance to remind students of what it means to be Respectful, Responsible, and Focused (RRF). Even when behavior expectations have not changed, it is often helpful to occasionally review the expectations that do exist. We will be providing exactly this type of reminder for our students during January and February.
For January, guidance supports for social emotional learning (SEL) will continue to focus on small group work. Small groups really help with being able to show students how the SEL topics can be used in their real life, day to day experiences. Small groups also provided better opportunities for students to begin to try out and practice the strategies that are being discussed.
Students throughout the school are getting an opportunity to practice SEL strategies for self-regulation in our new SEL space. The SEL space is an area that has been set up outside of Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Dickerson's offices. This is a space for students to focus on applying strategies for self-regulation so that they can return to the classroom better able to focus on learning. Have you ever been in an upsetting situation and managed to stay calm? Maybe you took several deep breaths, excused yourself to walk away for a moment, visualized being in a place where you always feel happy, or used another strategy. If you did this and kept calm, you participated in effective self-regulation of your emotions. We are actively working to help support our students with learning these valuable skills. Click here for web site that gives more information about self-regulation and how it impacts a person. The photos below are of the area and items that students my use when practicing self-regulation strategies.
Notes from Nurse Brandi
Attention 2nd and 3rd grade parents:
The Columbus Public Health Dental Sealant Team will be at Northtowne in the coming weeks to place dental sealants on your student's teeth. This is a FREE service that will help prevent cavities on your child.
Please fill out the form that is coming home with your child to sign up for this service as soon as possible. Don't put it off and risk losing the form. Forms can be returned to the teacher or nurse. Our goal is to have 100% of the student's say YES to getting sealants! Upon return of the form with a YES checked, your student will receive a toothbrush. On the day sealants are placed they will receive another toothbrush, stickers and a water bottle!
If your student already has a dentist or sealants, that's alright. Please, still return the form and check YES. Doing this will let the team check your student's teeth and apply sealant if needed.
This is an exciting opportunity for our school and hopefully everyone can participate.
If you have any questions or need assistance filling out the consent, please call or email Nurse Brandi.
Phone: 380.997.2099
Email: blzeiter@columbus.k12.oh.us
Grateful for Family Involvement
Thank you so much for your support and involvement with your child’s learning. Whether it’s conferences, attending the family meetings, or a quick chat throughout the day, we appreciate your involvement and efforts to build the lines of communication between home and school.
Report cards/grades will be available in the Parent Portal. If you need help accessing the Parent Portal please contact our Family Ambassador, Sarah Bowman. She can even link families to interpreters (Bilingual Engagement Liaisons or BEL) to help with understanding the Parent Portal set up process. Email: sbowman@columbus.k12.oh.us or you can call or text: 614-859-9654SPECIAL GIFT FOR ALL COLUMBUS CITY SCHOOLS 5TH GRADERS AND THEIR FAMILIES!
5th Grade families, please take advantage of this amazing offer by the end of January!
You're invited to become a COSI member for FREE! Thanks to the generosity of the Robert Weiler Company, COSI is proud to offer a complimentary one-year COSI Family Membership to Columbus City Schools 5th Grade Students and their families.
You're invited to give your family the gift of science learning with year-round visits to COSI. It's simple! To sign up for your free membership:
- Visit cosi.org/CCS5 to fill out your application form.
- Visit cosi.org for hours, directions, member benefits, FAQs, and policies.
It’s absolutely FREE and absolutely FUN! Your COSI FAMILY MEMBERSHIP includes
- Free year-long admission to COSI.
- Free reciprocal admission to 360+ science centers worldwide.
- Invitations to member previews and events.
- Discounts on parking, Science2Go Gift Shop, and the Atomic Café.
Upcoming Virtual Family Engagement Sessions:
Virtual Family Engagement Sessions took a break in December, just like the rest of us. Now that school is back in session, so are the Virtual Family Engagement opportunities.
Virtual Family Engagement Sessions are typically scheduled for every Tuesday and Thursday starting at 6:oo p.m. Sessions rotate through various topics.
Click here to find out what the upcoming session topics will address.
Click here to join the sessions directly starting at 6:00 p.m.
Does your schedule not allow you to join the sessions live? No problem! Past sessions are recorded and posted on the Virtual Family Engagement Session Library in case you are unable to attend.
Winter Reading Challenge with the Library is Still Happening!
Columbus Metropolitan Library is bringing back for a fourth year its Winter Reading Challenge, in which students can earn prizes just by reading over break. A twist on CML’s Summer Reading Challenge, Winter Reading Challenge aims to keep reading skills strong when students are out of school over the holidays. From Dec. 1 through Jan. 31, K-12 students can register in person at CML’s 23 locations throughout Franklin County. Those interested can learn more at columbuslibrary.org.
The annual program challenges students to track their progress as they read for 20 days and complete five activities on their game boards. Examples of game board activities include “Read a book about a famous person,” “Read a book with a magical creature,” “Tell a staff member about a book you read” and many more. Just for signing up, students will receive a bookmark, mechanical pencil, eraser and sticker. Students who complete the program will earn a book they can keep, as well as a drawstring bag.
The closest Library Branch to Northtowne is the Karl Road Branch. 5590 Karl Rd, Columbus, OH 43229
Ohio ACE
The Ohio Afterschool Child Enrichment (ACE) educational savings account program provides funds for students and families to use on various enrichment and educational activities, including tutoring, day camps, music lessons, study skills services and field trips.
Parents and guardians can apply through the Ohio Department of Education for a $500 educational savings account to be used to pay for services that help their child learn a social/emotional skill or provide them with an academic opportunity to make up for a learning loss that occurred due to Covid-19. Income verification is required. Qualifying parents and guardians will receive an email from Merit International, Inc. notifying them of their award, and inviting them to accept their digital access credential, or “merit.” This credential will be used as the login for the Ohio ACE app.
Local Matters Veggie Van: Partnering for food access throughout Columbus
Veggie Van is a mobile grocer and food education program on wheels. We partner with schools, places of worship, and other community organizations to create a consistent range of fresh food access points throughout the city.
Reliable access to healthy food is key to increasing food security and preventing diet-related disease. Veggie Van brings affordable, convenient food access to neighborhoods across Columbus. To ensure all customers can shop at Veggie Van, we accept cash, credit, SNAP/EBT, Produce Perks, and more. We invite you to order from our year-round mobile market for all your fresh, local-when-possible produce, shelf stable items, and meal kits!
Northtowne's Resource Center
If there is information that you need, but don't see available, please reach out to our Family Ambassador, Sarah Bowman. She will be happy to help you locate services to meet your needs. mailto:sbowman@columbus.k12.oh.us or 614-859-9654
Thank you for reading this month’s newsletter.
Send a note to let us know what you thought, make suggestions or ask a question. We would love to hear from you. Please send a note to your child’s teacher or send a message.
Contributors:
Austin Taylor, Principal
Phone: 614-365-5488
Fax: 614-365-5487
Email: ataylor4@columbus.k12.oh.us
Sarah Bowman, Family Ambassador
614-859-9654
Email: sbowman@columbus.k12.oh.us
Susan Bryant, Building Coach
614-365-5488
Email: sbryant9569@columbus.k12.oh.us
Frank Beickelman, Grant Provider
614-365-5488