Fostoria Intermediate 1202 H.L. Ford Drive

Phone: 419-436-4125

Fax: 419-436-4169

Fostoria City Schools

Inside this issue

Principal’s Message ..................... 1

Asst. Principal’s Message ............ 2

McDonald’s Peelers .................... 2

6th Grade Leaders....................... 3

P.E. News .................................... 3

Teacher Requests ........................ 4

P-T Conferences .......................... 4

Leaders of the Month ................. 4/5

Guidance News ........................... 5

Literacy Specialist ....................... 6

Waiver Days ................................ 6

PTO Carnival ............................... 7

Dates to Remember

March 2 - Spring Picture Day

March 13 - End of 3rd grading period

March 26 - BOE Meeting 6:00

March 19 & 24 - Parent-Teacher Conferences 3:30-7:30 pm

March 30 - Bank Day - NO SCHOOL

March 31 - April 3 - Spring Break - NO SCHOOL

April 6 & 7 - Waiver Days - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS

April 8 - School resumes

From the Desk of Mrs. Matz

March Newsletter Volume 2, Issue 7

With the recent frigid temperatures, it is hard to believe March is upon us and spring is just weeks away. At this point all grade levels have participated in their first round of the new PARCC assessments. With all of our snow days and delays over the last two weeks we have had to adjust our testing schedule. Below is information regarding our updated schedule for the Perform-ance-Based Assessments (PBA). Please note that in the event of a closing we will simply push our testing back by a full day. In the event of a delay we will begin testing as soon as we arrive at school. Below is the updated testing schedule, please look to see when your child/children will be taking tests, and plan appointments, etc. accordingly. It is very important that all students are here on testing days. Students who are in advanced math courses will test on the days of the grade level of the math they are placed in (i.e. a third grade student in advanced math will test on the dates of the fourth grade test, etc). **Make-up testing will take place as testing labs are available throughout the next two weeks.

TARDY TO SCHOOL We have had an excessive amount of students arriving tardy to school re-

cently. Please remember that classes start at 8:30 and a student is consid-

ered tardy if they are not in their classroom by that time. Please ensure

your student arrives early enough to have time to go to their locker or take

care of other needs and still be in class before 8:30.

Grade 4 Math Grade 4 Social Studies

3/2 3/3

3/10

Grade 5 Math Grade 5 Science

3/4 3/5

3/11

Grade 6/7 Math Grade 6 Social Studies

3/6 3/9

3/12

FROM THE DESK OF MR. RENZ

5 Simple Homework Strategies to Help Your Child

Just as your children have schedules and expectations each day at

school, it is important to have them at home as well. This is espe-

cially important for helping to get homework done with the fewest

possible frustrations for both you and your child. While establishing a

routine may be time consuming in the beginning, it does become

routine, and thus easier with each passing day. Homework expecta-

tions will become just one more part of their and your busy lives.

The following 5 simple, yet effective, homework strategies can help

your child stay on track:

Plan study time with a schedule

Look ahead to see what needs to be accomplished in the next day, week, and month. Be realistic when estimating the time it will take to complete an

assignment or project.

Prioritize with a to-do list

Write out a to-do list each day.

The list should include homework assignments, activities, chores,

and plans with friends.

Organize each day

Make sure backpacks are packed with the appropriate books, binders and school supplies. Help your child pack the backpack the night before and unpack it as soon as they come home from school. Each subject binder should have two labeled sections: one for

work to be finished and one for completed work.

Set up a positive workspace to facilitate good study habits

Make sure the space has good lighting, a clutter-free table top,

and a comfortable chair. There should be little or no noise. Avoid

distractions such as loud music, instant messaging, phone calls,

text messages, television, and electronic games.

Encourage your child to talk with his teacher

Help your child ask questions when he doesn't understand

something or needs help with classwork or homework. Rehearse with your child what to say when she needs help

http://www.ldonline.org/article/42715

2

.Thank You for Supporting the

McDonald’s Peeler

Fundraiser!

Our McDonald’s Peeler fundraiser was once again a huge success here at FIES. Our students sold 767 peeler cards to their family and friends. Not only was this a great fundraiser for our school, but was an awe-some service project as well — allowing us to donate $767 to Ronald McDonald House Charities. We had 58 students sell 5 or more cards, 30 sell 10 or more cards, 16 sell 15 or more, and 13 sell more than 20 cards. All profits sold went directly towards stu-dents’ sixth grade camp trip. The following students were the top three sellers in the building, receiving cash prizes for their hard work! First Place Keilani Maragne, 30 cards; and then a 3 way tie between Jacob Durst, Anthony Elliott, and Uriah Miller with 27 cards each!

3

6th Grade Leaders Need Your Help! Back in October, a group of FIES 6

th grade students decided they wanted to

make a positive difference in our school. The students started having classroom lunchtime meetings to begin to plan activities, and they decided on the name “The Leaders of Justice.” After those first meetings, the students invited the rest of the 6

th

graders at FIES to join the group. Now, we meet for a half hour each week in the auxiliary gym, and over 85 students attend each meeting. So far, the Leaders group members have discussed ways to be good role models; we made cards for the adults in our building for Thanksgiving and Christmas; we have made posters to put up in the halls to remind everyone to show good behavior; and some of our members served as helpers and greeters for the 6

th grade sponsored Health Fair in

January. Now, the Leaders group has decided to make a positive difference by reach-ing out to the community to help organizations that do good things for others. The first group we are “adopting” is TEDDY'S RESCUE, which is a non-profit organiza-tion that is an all-breed dog rescue shelter which also houses and finds homes for cats. Most of Teddy’s Rescue’s animals come to them: instead of being put to sleep at humane societies or shelters, from pounds as strays or abused or ne-glected animals, from situations when guardians pass away or go into nursing homes, or are surrendered by owners who cannot take care of their pets any longer. A representative from Teddy’s Rescue, which is located on County Road 99 just outside of Findlay, will be coming to one of the Leaders meetings to share more about their mission to provide shelter, network with other rescue groups, provide necessary medical care, and find forever homes for animals. The Leaders group is asking for help from our FIES students and fami-lies as we collect items that will help Teddy’s Rescue continue to help ani-mals survive and find loving homes. Here is a list of items that we are asking students to bring in:

Garbage Bags (large black and regular white) Paper Towels Dish Soap Laundry Detergent Bleach Cat/Kitten food Leashes (dry or canned) Towels Dog Toys Treats (dog/cat) Blankets Beginning on March 2 and continuing throughout the month of March, there will be large boxes in the FIES cafeteria for students to put donations of the items listed above. Any money donations should be turned directly into the office in an envelope marked “Teddy’s Rescue.” All students who bring in a donation will be able to write their names on a large sign, which will be presented to Teddy’s Rescue along with all of our donations at the end of March. Thank you for supporting the 6

th grade Leaders of Justice group and Teddy’s

Rescue!

FROM MR. PESSELL

As I am writing this, March is closing in quickly. We are to the point where assessments for physical education will be ad-ministered. For classes that are part of an SLO, the testing win-dow is the third week of April. All fifth graders are assessed by the Ohio Physical Education Assessment; these observations will be made starting in April, and will continue through the end of the school year. We have encountered another tough winter this year. We have not had an uninterrupted week since we have come back from the Christmas break. Unfortu-nately, this means that your child’s physical education classes have been interrupted in a negative fashion. I request all parents to encourage their chil-dren to get as much physical activity as they can outside of school. If you are a member of the YMCA, try to get your chil-dren there as much as possible. In the case that you are not a member, your child can partici-pate in strength and flexibility exercises at home. Running in place while watching the televi-sion can even be of benefit. If the temperatures permit, have your child go sledding. You can get one heck of a workout haul-ing a sled up the sides of the reservoir. Hopefully spring will be here soon, and a return to playing outdoors weather. Think warm thoughts!

4

LEADERS OF THE MONTH

Layla Desbin shows great leadership qualities by following directions and taking it upon herself to help other classmates and teachers. Great job Layla! - Miss Binkley Karma Williams always goes out of her way to help other students; she also works hard to complete her homework and work in class. - Miss Golamb Skylar Sherman is a very responsible leader in our classroom by completing tasks and helping others.- Mrs. Noel Chloe Salisbury has demonstrated good leadership by showing respect and helpfulness in the classroom. During class discussions, she keeps her eye on the speaker and listens at-tentively. She has offered her assistance to help other classmates and the teachers when something needs done. Chloe's great efforts have shown continued improvements in her math fluency assignments, too. We are proud of her confidence, leadership, and improved progress with her class work. - Mrs. Reino Ally Lewis was new to Fostoria Schools this year and has done a fantastic job of being a leader in our classroom. She is a great role model as she always follows directions, helps others, and leads by example. - Mrs. Ross Landon Dunn has been working very hard in class! He always follows the classroom rules and works to do his best every day. - Mrs. Schermer David Diaz always completes his class assignments and homework assignments on time; he is helpful in the classroom, and he helps other students . - Mrs. Schreiner Noah Augsburger always participates in class, and he is a kind and thoughtful classmate to others. - Mrs. Armstrong Belinda Burkett is an all around leader. She has turned in every homework assignment this year on time. She has a contagious positive attitude and is a great friend to all her classmates. She takes her studies very seriously and is determined to succeed in each sub-ject. She is a perfect example of how to behave in class. She always tries her best and is more than willing to help out other students in need. I cannot express what a positive impact Belinda has on anyone she comes in contact with! - Miss Bartz Mia Botton is kind and helpful to everyone in class. Her work is always completed, and

she tries to do her best.- Mrs. Linhart

Andres Sanchez always has good manners and is kind to his classmates and shows good sportsmanship. - Mrs. Riedlinger

TEACHER REQUESTS It is never too early to begin

planning for the next school

year. As we look ahead to the

2015- 2016 school year we will

begin the process of placing

students in homerooms and

developing class rosters. If you

would like to request your

child’s teacher for the upcom-

ing school year and have a valid

academic reason, please stop by

the school and complete the

teacher request form in the of-

fice. These forms need to be

completed by Friday, April

17th. We will do our best to

honor all requests, but it is im-

portant that we balance our

classes.

PARENT—TEACHER

CONFERENCES

Parent-Teacher Con-

ferences will be held

on March 19 & March

24 from 3:30-7:30 p.m.

An appointment sheet

will be sent home soon

with your child with a

day and time for your

conference. Please be

sure to sign it and re-

turn it to your child’s

teacher. We hope to

meet with all of you!

Anthony Taylor is a great leader because he consistently completes his homework; does his best on a daily basis, and is always willing to help his classmates and teachers. - Mrs. Sharkey

Elizabeth Welly always strives for excellence and is willing to lend a helping hand to others who need help. - Mrs. Terres

Wyatt Cobb is a dependable motivated student. He can always be counted on to give his best effort on all his work and is always a supportive and involved member of the class. - Mrs. Click

Constance Nye is very respectful and caring. She is always prepared for class and participated in all of our activi-ties. - Mrs. Hossler

Anya Moore always completes her work on time and never uses the words "I can't". Anya willingly participates dur-ing class and helps other students anytime that she is asked. - Hushour

Freedom Aspell is an excellent leader for other students to follow. She works hard on everything she does and takes pride in her work! She is kind to her classmates and is always willing to help them. I am lucky to have Freedom in my classroom. - Miss Jennison

Kaitlynn Desbin is a hard worker and always tries her best; she is kind to others and treats everyone with fairness. - Mrs. Lewis

Makayla Owens always puts forth her best effort in class. - Mrs. Costello

Dylan Young works very hard, gives his best effort, has shown a lot of improvement, and demonstrates very good conduct. - Mr. Kramer

Logan Weidner is a very responsible student and a great kid. He has a wonderful future ahead of him. - Mrs. Miller

Hannah Mathias does a great job on her assignments and is kind and respectful to her classmates. - Mrs. Riley

Emrys Botton is a very bubbly student who does her best on all her assignments. I enjoy having her in my class!- Mr. Smith

Wyatt Russell shows leadership and responsibility each and every day. He works well with other students and shows kindness to everyone. - Mrs. Stone

Maddy Davis works hard to keep up on work she misses and to do a good job, and she is friendly and gets along well with everyone. - Mrs. Ward

5

LEADERS OF THE MONTH—CONT.

In the next several weeks, I will be talking with students about cooperation, and we will practice cooperating by completing group activities. Each 3rd grade class will be working together to get across a pretend pit of hot lava using paper plates as their stepping stones. Each 4th grader is creating a self-portrait and then cutting it into four equal parts to combine it with other student’s pieces of their self-portraits to create a new group portrait. Each 4th grader is also identifying ways that he/she can be more cooperative. Each 5th grade class is working in a construction team, using only paper and tape, to build something creatively. The difficult part is that they must work in silence. Each 6th grade class is working in groups, using string to create letters and shapes, initially they can discuss their strategies; however, they must try to create the letters and shapes with-out talking as well. Due to the weather, Social Skills Groups are still finishing up this month. Throughout the next couple weeks, we will be focusing on Expressing Ourselves Positively, and Making Good Choices. If your son/daughter expressed an interest in participating in a Family Support Group, more information, in-cluding a permission slip, will be sent home at the end of March. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at 419-436-4125 ext. 3203 or by email at bsanford@fostoriaschools.org. Stay Warm! Bethany Zambori-Sanford, Guidance Counselor

FROM THE GUIDANCE COUNSELOR

6

Syllables As students read increasingly complex texts, they will encounter many multi-

syllabic words. To decode these words, students must be able to divide the

words into recognizable chunks, not just individual letter sounds. There are

six syllable patterns that make up most of the syllables in English words.

Students can use this strategy to help them read more complex text.

6 Syllable Types

Closed-These syllables end in a consonant. The vowel sound is typically short.

The vowel is “closed in” by the consonants. (rab/bit, nap/kin)

Open-These syllable send in a vowel. The vowel sound is typically long. The

vowel is “open” and free to say its name. (ti/ger, pi/lot)

Consonant + le-Usually when le appears at the end of a word and a consonant

comes before it, the consonant + le form the final syllable. (ta/ble, lit/tle)

This is also true for words ending in ion.

Vowel Team-Many vowel sounds are spelled with vowel digraphs, or teams,

such as ai, ay, ee, ea, oa, ow, oo, oy, oi, ie, and ei. The vowel teams must stay

together and appear in the same syllable. (ex/plain/ing, team/mate)

r-Controlled-When a vowel is followed by the letter r, the vowel and the r

must appear in the same syllable. They act as a team that cannot be broken

up. (tur/tle, mar/ket)

Final (Silent) e-When a word has a vowel-consonant-e (VCe) spelling pattern,

the vowel and the final silent e must stay in the same syllable. (con/pete, de/

cide)

What you can do at home to help:

1-Have your child read daily. It is recommended that children read 20 min-

utes every day.

2-Encourage your child to use the information above to decode unknown

words. They’ll be amazed at the words they can read when they know the

“rules” for decoding text.

Happy Reading,

Mrs. Dawn Skornicka

Information taken from McGraw-Hill Reading Wonders

WAIVER DAYS Fostoria City

Schools will be con-

ducting in-services

for all teachers

PreK-12 on Monday,

April 6 and Tues-

day, April 7. There

will be no school

for students on

those two days.

FROM THE LITERACY SPECIALIST