March 2017 Newsletter

Tiger Times

Upcoming Events

Mission: At Eugene Field School, we challenge and inspire students to become productive and successful citizens.

Dear Field Families,

The warmer weather in February made us think it was the end of April already, but its Missouri and we know how quickly it changes. Its hard to believe, its time for 3rd quarter

parent/teacher conferences. Taking the time to meet with your child(ren)s teacher(s) for a parent/teacher conference will provide you the opportunity to discuss how your student is doing academically and socially in his/her classroom. Taking a few minutes now to jot down some questions before the conference will prepare you to have a positive, meaningful conference. I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, March 14th and Wednesday, March 15th from 4:00-7:00.

Conference Information:

Mrs. Loch will be sending home notes regarding conferences this week. For those that had conferences on Monday last time, will be moved to Wednesday at the same time. For those that had your conference on Tuesday last time, will remain on Tuesday at the same time as well.

When you come for parent teacher conferences you will be given a note if you have student(s) that are in tested grade levels. (3-6) This notecard is going to be given to your child prior to MAP testing to send them off on a positive note from you! Please take the time during conferences to write your child a note of encouragement!

PLEASE come take part in our school blood drive held on March 15th here in the gym. You can sign up on-line or by calling the school. Times are from 2:00-7:00pm

From Reading Connection Resource-Tips for Reading Success

Vocabulary Boosters

A large vocabulary can turn your child into a better reader and writer. Try these everyday ways to help him/her learn new words.

Keep your ears open. When you and your youngster go places, point out words that people use. Maybe a waiter describes an entre or the dentist talks about molars. Encourage your child to figure out what they mean by the way theyre used.

Go beyond nouns. Help your youngster add verbs and adjectives to her vocabulary. Sports and games offer opportunities to use action words. Let your child hear you comment on the softball that soars or the runner who sprints. When he/she sends thank-you notes or greeting cards, suggest descriptive words (a polka-dot shirt, a fantastic birthday).

Top Tiger Bulletin Board is up! Admire it when you come in the front doors!

Tolerant Winners for February:

Macklyn Tipton, Andrew Hardy, Lewis Bangerter, Rawley Thompson, Yannick Eichenmueller, Avery Kane, Jacey Jackson, Rebekah Hnem, Jackson Flint, Ella Schwope, Taylor Adams, Reymon Perez-Roblero, Jermarius Shepherd, Emily Johnson, Van Thang, Wyatt Johnson and Clancey Woodward

Cooperation Winners for February will be in the next newsletter!

The Character Word for March is Cooperation, which means Cooperation is working together toward a common goal! Teachers will be on the lookout for deserving students throughout the month!

PTA News:

Counseling Connection:

Have you ever heard of the term MINDFULNESS? It is defined as a mental state achieved by focusing ones awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting ones feelings and thoughts.

Here are 6 ways to teach your child mindfulness:

1. Bell Listening Exercise: Ring a bell and have your child listen closely to the vibration. Once sound ends, have them focus on other sounds they hear. This helps them connect to the present moment and the sensitivity of their perceptions.

2. Breathing Buddies: Take stuffed animal or small toy and place it on their bellies. Have your child breathe in silence for one minute focusing on how the breathing buddy moves up and down and to imagine their thoughts are like bubbles and float away on the exhale.

3. The squish and relax method: While laying down have your child squish and squeeze every muscle in their body as tight as they can. Hold the squished position for a few seconds and then relax. This helps kids loosen up and understand the art of being present.

4. Smell and Tell: Have your child smell something you have chosen like an orange peel and focus just on the smell. Smell can be a powerful tool for anxiety-relief.

5. The Art of Touch: Give your child an object such as a ball, feather, stone etc While their eyes are closed have them describe the object and what it feels like. This is a simple way to help kids practice the isolation of their senses from one another.

6. Heart-To-Heart: This is a way for your child to talk about their feeling with you. Name a feeling, how do you feel, what do you feel etc

Overall benefits: Give your child tools they can use to calm down, slow down and feel better.

Do you see what Mrs. Simpson is holding in her hands? (Mrs. Smalls class earned this award as well!) Why its the PTA Trophy! How did these classes earn this trophy full of candy? At the last PTA meeting, these classes had the most representation! Who will earn the trophy at the next PTA meeting? Mark your calendars for March

Eugene Field was awarded The Outstanding District PTA Unit! What a deserving award for all of our hard working parents and volunteers.

We have 4 boxes full of coats, gloves, shoes, mittens, shorts, shirts etc that have to belong to someone! We are going to take the boxes to Goodwill at the end of confrences, so please come and claim what is yours!

Here are some Character Kids teaching their lesson on Honesty to the Kindergarten and Fourth graders!

MUSIC NOTES:

2nd & 3rd grade program will be held on March 9th. The show will begin at 6:15 and doors will open at 6:00! Looking forward to sharing our performance with all of you!

From the Clinic:

It is that time of year for the growth and development lessons in 4th-6th grades. Below are the dates:

March 15th: 6th grade boys @ 2:30

March 16th: 5th grade boys and girls @ 2:30

March 31st: 4th grade girls only

From Home & School Connection Resource

Parent Power

There are many ways you can support your childs learning and his/her school. Try these tips:

Spend a few minutes every evening looking over handouts your child brings home. Fill out forms to return the next day.

Tell your childs teachers if your can help them out at school or from home.

Make sure teachers know you appreciate their efforts. From time to time, send a thank-you note or an email.

Contact your childs teacher immediately if you see a problem. Working together will help your child succeed.

Attend conferences, parent meetings, and school events regularly.

One Book One School Program Stuart Little by E.B. White

Just in case you havent heard, our school launched the ONE BOOK ONE SCHOOL program. On Wednesday, February 8, we had a launch assembly to announce this program and the book we will be reading as a school. Hopefully your child has eagerly told you a little about this exciting adventure. Every student received a copy of Stuart Little to keep!!! Teachers have been given the freedom to decide how they want to incorporate in their classrooms. What a community builder for our students.

Sixth graders had a visit from the Drug Free Superstars from CHS. Thanks Jaylin and Tucker for coming to talk about the importance of living a drug free lifestyle! You two are an inspiration to all of us!

Around the classrooms:

Kdgn:

Kindergarten students read the informational text Happy Presidents Day! They learned about many different presidents who are remembered for what they did for our country while they were in office. The students were then asked to write about something they would do for our country if they were the president. Lastly, they made adorable self-portraits. We really enjoyed this writing project! If you get a chance, check them out in the main hallway!

1st:

1st Grade students have recently begun using i-Ready. This is an individualized assessment program that is done on the computer for both math and reading. It is also so much more than merely an assessment. Once the initial diagnostic is complete, thats where the real fun begins! Teachers receive very specific feedback about the students strength, weaknesses, and needs. This will allow us to meet and challenge the kiddos right at their level! The students will receive additional computer instruction tailored to their specific goals given in a fun, engaging format that they are sure to enjoy. It really seems like a pretty amazing program! We are very excited to dig in! 2nd: Second graders love to research! We just finished researching and learning about the oceans and bodies of freshwater in Science. Now they are researching and learning abouta person that they would like to write a biography about for our genre writing piece. We continue to solve math problems up to 200 that require regrouping in the tens and hundreds place. Second graders are becoming quite the mathematicians!!!

3rd: Third graders are learning machines! Ask us about fractions because we know how to compare them and find equivalent fractions. We also really love to think about food when studying fractions, especially right before lunch when we we are starving! Recently we have paired up with reading buddies to read the whole school book Stuart Little. Students will meet with the buddy each day during reading intervention time. They will also work assignments that correlate with the reading skills weve been learning this year like character traits, point of view, cause and ef