South Elementary Family Newsletter
Volume #5 January, 2024
Message from the Principals
Dear South Families,
As we leave 2023 behind and move onto 2024, we are excited about the possibilities and opportunities for our students and families. This part of the year typically involves more complex learning for each grade level and challenges learners to apply skills in a new and/or different way. During these experiences, it is helpful and important to reassure your child that it's ok for things to be difficult. Mistakes and struggles help us to grow. From them, we learn that we can do hard things.
One factor in mastering skills and applying them in new ways is attendance. When a child is sick or has an appointment, then they obviously need to miss school. However, coming in late and being dismissed frequently, as well as missing school often, can have detrimental effects on a child's educational development. Each day a student is absent is a missed chance for your child to learn something they will need in order to understand more difficult material later. Whenever a child is late or leaves early, learning gets interrupted. Research shows that being chronically absent (defined by the state as missing 10 percent of school/18 days per year) can negatively impact learning. If you need help with setting up a morning routine or helping a reluctant learner come to school, please let us know. We want all of our Crickets here when they can be!
This month, our PRIDE traits (Perseverance; Respect; Independence; Diversity/Equity/Inclusion; and Empathy) the specific skills we will be working on are : staying on task; being an effective problem solver; expressing empathy and understanding for others; being flexible; and, being a good friend.
Let's continue to work together to support our children in their educational journey and foster their growth and development. Wishing you a very Happy New Year filled with peace, health, and happiness!
With Aloha,
Steph Brown and Rebecca Hurley
508-324-3180
Important Dates
Monday, January 1-No School-New Year's Day
Tuesday, January 2-First Day back to school in 2024!
Thursday, January 11-Papa Gino's Night, 869 GAR Hwy, Somerset- 4-9PM-Mention South School when you please your order. For online orders, enter Code 19 at the payment screen and click redeem. South School PTO gets 20% of orders.
Monday, January 15-No School-Martin Luther King Jr Day
Tuesday, January 16th-PTO Mtg @ 6PM @ South School Cafegymatorium
Wednesday, January 24-Early Release @ 12:30PM
From Mrs. H., School Adjustment Counselor
Happy New Year!
January has the distinction of being It's OK To Be Different Month, which celebrates both our differences as human beings, like race, and gender identity.
It also champions those who delve into their creative side and walk a different path than the rest of normative society.
You can easily tie this in with International Creativity Month and National Hobby Month. What makes you different and unique?
We will continue to celebrate and educate our Unique differences and what makes us special.
The world has more than eight billion people with different perspectives, abilities, and beliefs. When we come together in an environment such as the workplace and School, it's essential to embrace the differences that make us all unique.
Month-long observances:
National Mentoring Month
Poverty in America Awareness Month
Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month
Important January DE&I calendar dates:
January 1 – New Year’s Day
January 4 – World Braille Day
January 7 – Coptic Orthodox Christmas
January 25 – Mahayana New Year (Buddhist)
January 13 – Maghi (Sikh)
January 21 – World Religion Day
January 15 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
January 24 – International Day of Education
January 26 – International Customs Day
January 27 – International Holocaust Remembrance Day
Your name will be put in a raffle to earn a Gift card if you share one thing that makes your South Student Different and Special.
Cecilia.Huard@somersetschools.org
Please write Different and Special in the Subject line to be entered into this fun Activity.
List of Books for January
A Chair for my Mother by: Vera B. Williams
All are Welcome Here by: Alexandra Penfold
Be Bigger by: Colleen Doyle Bryant
Berenstain Bears Show Some Respect by: Jan & Mike Berenstain
The Bicycle Man by: Allen Say
Do Unto Otters by: Laurie Keller
Great Joy by: Kate DiCamillo
How Full is your Bucket for Kids by: Tom Rath & Mary Reckmeyer
I Can’t Believe you Said That by: Julia Cook
I Just Don’t Like the Sound of No by: Julia Cook
Interrupting Chicken by: David Ezra Stein
Kindness Starts with You by: Jacquelyn Stagg
Matilda by: Roald Dahl
The Recess Queen by: Alexis O’Neill
Rulers of the Playground by: Joseph Kuefler
That Rule Doesn’t Apply to Me by: Julia Cook
The Way I Act by: Steve Metzger
Always in your corner,
Cecilia Huard, LMHC
School Adjustment Counselor
From Ms. Bertrand, School Nurse
New Year, New Physicals!
UPDATED PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS
It is very important to have your child’s health record updated at all times. Please submit a copy of your child’s updated physical examination as soon as it is completed. Thank you.
COVID-19 Isolation and Exposure Guidance for Children and Staff in Child Care, K-12, Out-of-School Time (OST) and Recreational Camp/Program Settings
Please use this link for the latest Covid Guidelines which have not changed since August 2022:
From Our Amazing PTO!
PTO’s January Newsletter
Happy New Year!
Upcoming Events: Mark your Calendars!
Thursday, January 11th: Papa Gino’s Night 4PM-9PM
869 GAR Highway, Somerset
Walk-in or phone orders: Mention this fundraiser when you place your order for South School to get the credit for your order.
Online Orders: Enter Code 19 at the payment screen and click redeem.
South School earns 20% of orders!
Tuesday, January 16th PTO Meeting
South School Cafe at 6PM
This meeting will recap the year so far and discuss upcoming events.
Friday, February 9th: Sweetheart Dance at South School
The dance will be in 2 sessions to accommodate capacity.
Session 1: Grades K-2 is 5PM-6PM
Session 2: Grades 3-5 is 6:30PM-7:45PM
Come to the January PTO meeting to share ideas and plan the event! More details to follow.
PTO Review and Updates:
Holiday Spirit Week
Thank you to everyone donated during the Holiday Spirit Week! The PTO appreciates your continued support! Your donations raised $300.00.
There were a total of 60 raffle prize winners that week of fun and festivities!
The PTO sponsored Donut Day and delivered donuts to each classroom. A special thank you to Melanie Ferreira and Melinda Pereira for creating fun and festive balloon arches!
Every student also received a special treat of mittens, hot cocoa, and a candy cane as a part of Spirit Week.
These treats and events are made possible with the continued support from families who volunteer and make donations. Thank you!
The next spirit week will be in March during Read Across America Week. More details to follow.
Pie Fundraiser
229 Pies were sold for an estimate of $1500.00 raised during the Pie Fundraiser!
Thank you to everyone who purchased pies and helped organize and distribute pies.
Winterfest
This year’s Winterfest included all the PTO’s in the district coming together to sell chocolate bars at Winterfest.
A special THANK YOU to County Fare and A-1 Hardware for helping support the PTO by selling candy bars.
Chocolate bars are still available for purchase and there are still 3 GOLDEN TICKETS available each ticket is worth $200 in Visa Gift Cards.
If anyone is interested in purchasing candy bars, purchases can be made through the Donate to South PTO Cheddar Up page: https://my.cheddarup.com/c/donate-to-the-south-pto?cart=53baab95-8401-41f6-9c8b-91b0e19f9e74%21%2170081199
Prices for chocolate bars:
$2.00 each
$5.00 for 3 bars
$20.00 for a box of 12 bars
Contact PTO
Follow South Elementary PTO on Facebook for updates and information!
Parent Resources
January Lunch Menu: please click HERE.
**Click HERE for January Read Aloud Books for Elementary Students
Click HERE for a 100s Chart to help count to 100, add, subtract, and notice number patterns.
Click HERE for an Alphabet Linking Chart to help your child match sounds and letters when writing/reading.
Somerset Public Schools, SY' 23-24 Calendar: please click HERE
KINDERGARTEN
GRADE 1
Happy New Year, everyone! For a short month, first graders were very busy in December! In math, we worked on patterns, counting by 5’s, and played games with nickels, dimes and pennies. Our number corner activities focused on 3d shapes- cubes, cylinders, spheres, and rectangular prisms. We also continued with our lessons on telling time. In phonics, we started learning about consonant blends, which means first graders are becoming skilled at reading words with four letters! In writing we identified and wrote about the characters, problems, and solutions in stories. In the days leading up to vacation, we made time for fun too! We got together with our fourth grade buddies to do some STEM activities, and had a visit from middle schoolers who read us winter-themed books. The concert at the middle school, and the visit from the high school musicians were both very exciting! On the last day of school, we celebrated with a movie and by passing out cards to friends. First grade wishes everyone a happy and healthy 2024!
GRADE 2
Over the past month in reading, we have looked closely at books written by some popular authors including Tommie dePaola and Jan Brett. We broke down the genres of fiction (fantasy, realistic fiction, folktales) and nonfiction (informational, biography, narrative). Next, we went into expressing our opinions about books. Our interactive read alouds have had us exploring stories about the pleasure of giving as well as reading some folktales. Our next step is to read a genre of books called Trickster Tales! In phonics, we have explored the predictable vowel teams of igh, oa, ee, and oe. We will continue to explore more predictable vowel teams over the next month including ai, ay, oi, oy, au and aw. In writing, we have started to add details to the main event in our stories and will begin to add elaborate beginnings and endings to our narrative stories. In math, we concluded our chapter on 2-digit addition. Next, we will be taking a break from our Number Sense to focus on Money and Time. Our science mystery next month will have us exploring physical science starting with answering the mystery “Why do we wear clothes?” In social studies, we talked about our place on the map. After vacation, we will begin exploring other map skills including the map key, map symbols, and map scale.. Have a great holiday week. See you next year!
GRADE 3
Dear Third Grade Families,
The holidays are upon us! This time of year brings joy, excitement and a whole host of emotions! We are keeping a tight focus on rituals and routines to balance learning and fun! Number Corner activities have ignited a fierce interest in fractions while we focus on unit fractions, writing equations and finding equivalent fractions. Students are working in phonics daily to segment multisyllabic words and identify the “schwa.” We are working through Unit 2 in science to learn about Forces, Motion and Magnets. Our reading workshop lessons have centered around humorous texts, with a special focus on identifying theme and author’s message. In writing, we have been exploring the essential elements of narrative writing. Through the use of graphic organizers, the students have been applying these elements to their own writing. We are also working on improving our typing skills and becoming proficient in using Google Drive. We wish you health and happiness while you cherish moments with friends and family over the holiday break!
The Third Grade Team
Grade 4
December was a wonderful month of learning! We enjoyed meeting with you all during conferences to share your child’s academic progress. Thank you for taking the time to meet with us! In writing, we continued focusing on nonfiction. We analyzed introductions and conclusions in nonfiction writings. We talked about creating an interesting lead that grabs the reader's attention. We are beginning to build on our knowledge of research and use our skills to research to help our writing. In reading, we are focusing on historical fiction. We are reading about important events in history and analyzing what is fiction and what is factual. In Social Studies, we are beginning to study the early European explorers through notes, research, discussion, and reader’s theater.
In 4th grade, we were able to wrap up some units before break! In Math, we just worked on multiplying 1-digit numbers, and have moved on to multiplying 2-digit numbers. The kids have completed their Energy Unit in Science. They had so much fun trying to figure out where energy comes from, how it is transferred to other objects, and how energy is released! We had some fun investigations for this unit. We will be moving on to Sound Waves and Communication after the break.
Grade 5
December was a wonderful month of learning! We enjoyed meeting with you all during conferences to share your child’s academic progress. Thank you for taking the time to meet with us! In writing, we continued focusing on nonfiction. We analyzed introductions and conclusions in nonfiction writings. We talked about creating an interesting lead that grabs the reader's attention. We are beginning to build on our knowledge of research and use our skills to research to help our writing. In reading, we are focusing on historical fiction. We are reading about important events in history and analyzing what is fiction and what is factual. In Social Studies, we continue to learn about the important events in the Revolutionary War.
In 5th grade, we were able to finish up some units before vacation! In Math, the kids have learned how to add and subtract decimals, and are now moving on to multiplying decimals. In Science, we have finished the Earth and Space unit and will be beginning the unit of Chemical Magic. They are really excited about this unit!