Kratz Elementary Husky Herald
Sept. 1, 2017
Eclipse Viewing
Reading Rockets!
By the time a child is 4 years old, there is a staggering difference in the number of words heard…
Professional families:
45 MILLION words heard
Working class families:
26 MILLION words heard
Impoverished families:
13 MILLION words heard
That’s a gap of 32 MILLION words!
“Even when children reach primary grades, research has shown that repeated (at least three) picture book readings increase vocabulary acquisition by 15-40 percent, and the learning is relatively permanent.”
“Students from classrooms where there were more book discussions tend to score higher in national reading assessments and read more outside of school.”
2017 - 2018 Fundraiser
Visit our online store with access to over 1,700 items. Enter our School ID at www.gaschoolstore.com. All items paid by credit card and shipped directly to the home.
Our School ID #: 4615191
Our last day of fundraising is Sept. 6!
Get Ready to Eat a Rainbow
Ritenour Child Nutrition Services is excited to announce Kratz Elementary School as a USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) Grant awardee for the 2017-2018 school year! This means your child will enjoy a fresh fruit and vegetable snack two days a week at no cost to you!
Snacks are served in the classroom starting September 5th with a lesson about the nutritional value of the fresh fruit or vegetable snack of the day from Cooperative Extension Services materials presented by their classroom teacher and our nutrition education partner University of Missouri Extension.
The goals of this program:
- Encourage students to try new foods.
- Teach lifelong healthful eating habits.
- Increase the amount of produce children eat.
This is Kratz's second year for participating in the program. Examples of fruits and vegetables served last year include: watermelon, radish, carrots, apple slices, strawberries, blackberries, asparagus, cauliflower, bell pepper, jicama and mango.
Favorites listed will stay on the FFVP menu and more varieties are added as available. For best nutrition, fruits and vegetables are served fresh, in their most natural form and based upon season.
To promote the FFVP, menus are posted monthly on the district website. Please make an effort to boost your child’s interest in eating new fruits and vegetables while they take part in this program and beyond! For questions or more information, email or call Shannon Ebron, child nutritionist at ebrons@ritenourschools.org or (314) 493-6096. Follow Ritenour Child Nutrition Services on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
PTO September Meeting
The Kindergarten Team will present, and we will talk about the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program and provide some samples.
Goal Setting Conferences
Thursday, Sept. 28: 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 29: 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Chat with Cummings
Welcome back, Kratz Family! As some of you know, I am split between both Buder Elementary and Kratz Elementary this school year. I am the new social-emotional counselor for both schools, which means that I work closely with those students who are in need of more social or emotional support and/or have experienced trauma in their lifetime.
I will be providing support through responsive services such as: small group counseling, school-based cognitive behavior therapy, individual student plans and crisis response. At Kratz, I will also be working closely with Coach B, our social-emotional interventionist, and Ms. Egyed, our social worker, as we implement Kratz's first refocus room.
A refocus room is a place in the school where identified students can go to practice replacement skills, stop acting out, calm down, prepare an apology and create a plan to make better choices for themselves. Trained individuals in supporting students experiencing trauma and dysregulation will supervise, assist and help students get regulated and return to class. It is not punitive or an in-school suspension room.
I am at Kratz on Tuesdays and Thursdays this school year. I look forward to spending my first year with you in my new role!
Love,
Miss Tina Cummings
cummingst@ritenourschools.org; (314) 493-6367
By text: text “@kratz2017” to 81010 to access me on Remind
For more information on Ritenour’s refocus rooms and our district’s movement toward becoming trauma-Informed, check out this article in Ritenour News: Ritenour Staff Begins New Focus of Teaching the Whole Child
For more information on Missouri’s Trauma-Informed Schools Initiative, visit the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: https://dese.mo.gov/traumainformed
Welcome New Kratz Staff
- Meagan Bowers - Kindergarten Teacher
- Tina Cummings - Counselor
- Mandy Koch - Music Teacher
- Michael Loveless - Physical Education Teacher
- Sara Czerniejewski - SSD Teacher's Assistant
- Michael Nobile - Assistant Principal
September Events
Sept. 5 PTO Meeting - Kratz Library; 6:30 p.m.
Sept. 6 Fundraisers Due
Sept. 13 Grandparents Day (Letters A - M) 7:30 - 8:15 a.m.
Sept. 14 Grandparents Day (Letters N - Z) 7:30 - 8:15 a.m.
Sept. 14 Early Release Day @ 1:25 p.m.
Sept. 16 RHS Homecoming - RHS; 1:00 p.m.
Sept. 18 Fall Picture Day
Sept. 21 McTeacher Night - McDonald's @ Brown and St. Charles Rock Road
Sept. 22 School Spirit Wear - Wear your favorite football jersey or team colors!
Sept. 26 Evening Conferences - 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 Evening Conferences - 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 29 Morning Conferences - 8:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Grandparent's Day Breakfast
Wednesday, Sep 13, 2017, 07:30 AM
Kratz Elementary School, Edmundson Road, St. Louis, MO, United States
Fall Picture Day:
Show Your Husky Pride at RHS Athletic Events
As part of the safety efforts for all students, staff and visitors, all children younger than high school age must be accompanied by an adult and supervised in the designated spectator areas at all Ritenour High School athletic events. All families are invited to Husky athletic events.
Entry fees for home football and basketball games are $5 for adults and $2 for students. (Middle and high school students should bring their school IDs.) Entry to girls volleyball games is $3 for adults and $2 for students. Other home athletic events are free.
2017-2018 Season passes to all Ritenour home events can be purchased in the Athletic Office: $50 for a Family Pass or $20 for an Individual Pass.
Faced with a projected budget deficit, the Ritenour School District Board of Education unanimously voted in August to place a tax levy increase on the Nov. 7 ballot. Called Proposition A, the ballot issue is designed to provide the needed financial resources to provide quality education programs for all Ritenour students.
If approved by a simple majority, Proposition A will maintain and protect Ritenour’s current instructional programs and teaching positions, prevent deficit spending, expand the use of technology for all students and provide funds for the general operation of the district. Proposition A is an operating tax rate increase of 39 cents for each $100 of assessed value. This means the average annual tax increase from Ritenour would be approximately $59 per year for the owner of an $80,000 home, or about $1.14 per week.
“Our community members have always taken great pride in their schools and taken the right steps for children,” said Ritenour Superintendent Dr. Chris Kilbride. “Our district is a key anchor of our community. We know by keeping our schools strong, that our neighborhoods remain strong, our community remains strong, our property values remain strong, and Ritenour continues to be a place where families want to locate.”
Residents who aren’t registered to vote, can do so at Ritenour schools, most city halls, St. Louis County libraries, the Department of Motor Vehicle registration offices and the St. Louis County Election Board, 725 Northwest Plaza Drive in St. Ann. To be eligible to vote, a person must be a U.S. citizen, be at least 17 1/2 years old (18 by election day) and a resident of St. Louis County. To vote in the Nov. 7 election, a person must register to vote on or before Wednesday, Oct. 11.
For more information about voter registration, visit: For more information visit http://www.stlouisco.com/YourGovernment/Elections/VoterRegistration