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Mark Your Calendars:
• PTO Meeting Tuesday, April 14 8:00 a.m. MPR
• Science/Math Night Tuesday, April 14 5:30-7:30 p.m. Cafeteria/MPR
• Vanguard Applications Due for current 1st-4th graders Friday, April 17
• STAAR Testing Math, 5th grade Monday, April 20 Math, 3rd & 4th Grades Tuesday, April 21 Reading, 3rd & 4th Grades Science, 5th Grade Wednesday, April 22
• WUES Invitational Track Meet Friday, April 24, 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Butler Stadium
• Iowa Testing 1st-5th Grade Students May 4 - 8
Dear Parents, Budget requests are due today. Visit westupto.org to complete the form. Tomorrow morning is our PTO meeting at 8:00 a.m. in the MPR. Please contact me if you have questions, comments, or feedback. Have an enjoyable week. Magnetized to WUES, Elizabeth Karkowsky PTO President 2014-2015
The Pony Express Spring Edition, Volume 14 April 13, 2015 West University Elementary School
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
PTO Corner 1-4
President’s Column 1
Birthday Book Club 2
Marathon Kids 3
Star of Hope Book Drive 3
Math & Science Night 3
Citizens of the Month 4-5
Next week we finish up our STAAR testing for the year with 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades taking some portion of the test. Since there will be multiple grade levels testing Monday through Wednesday, we will have small group testing all around the building. As a result, we will have closed lunch Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, April 20-22; parents will not be able to eat lunch with their child. We will have make-up testing on Thursday though we usually do not have many students absent during the regular testing days. We have a prediction of rain each day this week (though the sun is shining now). Our floors get quite slippery when wet particularly for those wearing the rubber rain boots. Please make sure you and your child wipe your feet thoroughly on the interior mats at each entrance. We don’t want to see anyone hurt by falling. Three cheers to our 3rd Grade Odyssey of the Mind team who placed 2nd in their division at the State finals. This team now advances on to the World Competition in East Lansing Michigan in May. Congratulations to these students:
Mary Sydnor Duffy, Nicholas Hanson and Kate Jeong (Ms. Hyvl's class) Lucy Ginzel and Neela Ravi (Mrs. Morton's class) Andrew Nanna and Nathan Giang (Ms. McLamb's class)
We are proud of these children and their great accomplishment! Thanks our coaches Christina Hanson, Maria Duffy, Annie Ginzel who did a super job with this team. Well done! Have a stupendous week! John T. Threet, Principal
PTO President’s Notes
Principal’s Place
PTO Corner
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י ו ם ה ו ל ד ת חמש , Happy Birthday, Maligayang Bati! The following students are celebrating their birthdays this week by donating a book to our school library:
Kinsey Schwartje April 19th Gigi Graves May 13th William Herold May 1st Landon Fisher May 14th Christian Attra May 2nd Audrey Gross May 15th Parker Manley May 3rd Zachary Barnett May 16th Sophia Giron May 3rd Austin Courtney May 16th Isla Fricker May 4th Watson Fleming May 16th Oliver Bishop May 4th Charlie Graf May 16th Annabel Lane May 4th Alexandra Berger May 17th Jordan Ross May 4th Viknesh Venkatachalam May 18th Azkar Madison May 4th Anshul Nayak May 18th Artur Prokofiev May 4th Catherine Cerda May 19th Thomas Jackson May 5th Ryan Brooks May 20th Lourdina Shatto May 5th Oscar Lipski May 21st Daniel Thompson May 6th Presley Grewal May 23rd Trinity Sloan May 7th Cole Mansour May 23rd Ava Ravandi May 8th Thomas Wade May 23rd Neda Ravandi May 8th Daniella Barg May 24th Petra Kubiak May 9th Margaret Barg May 24th Rebecca Priske May 10th Anne Marie Maurer May 24th Acacia Yoon May 11th Blake Melton May 25th Sarah Behan May 11th Will Coffman May 25th Sophia Johnson May 11th Abigail Lisette Horn May 25th Lillian Cutrer May 11th Luke Brasher May 26th Callie Yeager May 11th Nathan Giang May 26th Walker Colson May 12th Michael Burt May 27th Julia Levan May 12th Raj Patel May 29th Taryn Morris May 12th
Thank you very much for supporting West U Elementary Library! All May birthdays are included in this week’s Pony Express. If you have not yet ordered a Birthday Book Club membership for your child, please note that Tuesday, April 14 is the last day to turn in your student's form for inclusion in this year’s Pony Express. After that date, we will be unable to process your request for this school year. Order forms can be found at www.westupto.org or by contacting Tracy Benner ([email protected]) or Guadalupe Harper ([email protected]).
Birthday Book Club
Clear out your bookshelves of new or gently used books to donated to the Star of Hope homeless shelter. Star of Hope meets the needs of homeless men, women and their children through positive life structured programs. The books will be utilized in the Transitional Living Center and the Family Emergency Shelter as well as outreach programs reaching toddlers through age 12. Please bring elementary age children books only. They especially are looking for toddler board books, books in various languages and cultures, bibles, books with real photographs, and wholesome topics. They ask the we NOT bring scary books (monster or murder mysteries), or books including dark or depressing topics. Just bring your books to the MPR each morning on your way to class. Volunteers will be needed to help sort each afternoon starting at 1:00 pm. Questions? Or to volunteer, contact Leslie Wade [email protected].
Exploration for all ages! Let your mind wander and your hands explore the World of Math and Science tomorrow evening at our Math and Science Night! From Robotics to Fossils and Molecules to Medicine, let us and our participants take you on a fun-filled journey of discovery! Our travels take place in the MPR and Cafeteria. Please enter via Goode Street.
Book Drive benefitting Star of Hope, April 20-24, 2015
Congratulations to the 2014-2015 Marathon Kids for running their 26.2 mile commitment. The young runners are: Madeleine Tejtel, Colt Voelte, Amelia Kusinski, Sharan Thind, Nemanja Jovanovik, Hana Kusinski, Varun Manickam, Hannah Tejtel, Jack Bray, Thomas Frederiksen, Rex Petrulis, Joseph Capelli, Maria Cheng, Tegh Thind. Your finisher shirts will arrive here at school next month. As a reminder, the Marathon Kids Finisher Medal Celebration event is Saturday, April 18th, 10:00 a.m., at Tellez Track Stadium on the UH campus. You will receive your finisher medal after running your last lap around the track. Registration for 2015-2016 will take place in September. Keep running! Irene Duvo, Physical Education
2014-2015 Marathon Kids
PTO Corner
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Math & Science Night This TUESDAY at 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.
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Counseling Corral: Citizens of the Month Our character trait for the month of March was Generosity. Students were nominated by their teacher or another
faculty member based on how they exemplify this character trait. Congratulations to these students for being selected as Citizens of the Month: Matthew Kallmeyer, Ms. Inman’s 4th grade class Ms. Inman said, “Matthew is such a generous boy. He is always making sure no one is left out and everyone is included. If he notices someone is sitting alone at lunch he will be sure to include them and invite them to sit with him. Matthew always puts others before himself. Matthew is a kind, hardworking, and friendly student. I am overjoyed to have him in my class.” Matthew’s favorite book is Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling. His favorite subject is science. What he loves about West U are the really nice teachers. When he grows up he wants to be a scientist. Matthew shared, “my hero is my mom because she is always there when I need her.” To make West U No Place for Hate, he said, “I encourage people to be nice to each other.” Wissam Waheed, Ms. Wood’s 4th Grade Class Ms. Woods said, “Wissam is an outstanding student that freely gives his time and material items to help others. This is his first year here and he has easily acquired our generous West U ways. I feel very lucky to have Wissam in my class this year and I look forward to watching him grow up. Wissam’s favorite book is the Magic Tree House Series by Mary Pope Osborne. His favorite subject is math. What he loves about West U are the teachers. When he grows up he wants to be a video game designer. Wissam said, “My hero is my cousin Amaun because if I have a problem, he helps me.” To make West U No Place for Hate, Wissam said, “If I see someone lonely, I try to play with them.” Matteson Trefz, Mrs. Holland’s 1st Grade Class Mrs. Holland shared, “Matteson is always willing to give to others before taking for herself. She is respectful of all of her classmates and to her teachers. Matteson can always be counted on to think of others and practice the golden rule. Way to go Matteson!” Matteson’s favorite book is The Ghost in the 3rd Row by Bruce Coville. Her favorite subject is Reading. What she loves about West U are the nice teachers. When she grows up she wants to be a baker. Matteson said, “My hero is Mrs. Holland because she’s very nice.” To make West U No Place for Hate, she said, “I don’t bully and I am nice to others.” Isabella Germann, Ms. Herrera’s 3rd Grade Class Ms. Herrera said, “Isabella is first and foremost a great friend. One thing that makes her a great friend is her generosity towards others. When our class was working on an activity where scissors were required, one student was unable to continue working because he did not have scissors. Isabella paused her work to lend out her scissors to this friend so that he could continue. Isabella shows kindness and generosity to all.” Isabella’s favorite book is Masterminds by Gordon Korman. Her favorite subject is Reading. What she loves about West U are all of the nice teachers. When she grows up she wants to be a singer. Isabella said, “My hero is my Uncle David because he is really nice and watches over me.” To make West U No Place for Hate, she said, “I am nice to people.”
Henry Jones, Ms. McIntyre’s 4th Grade Class Mrs. McIntyre writes, “Henry was in the library and had selected his allotted number of books, when he heard that his classmate could not check a book out because she had forgotten her books. Henry returned one of his books and checked out the book for his classmate. Henry is well liked by his teachers and classmates and has proven all year that kindness goes a long way.” Henry’s favorite sport is baseball and his favorite book is Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. Henry’s favorite subject is Math. Henry said, “My mom is my hero because she inspires me to do things and she helps me do my homework. To make West U No Place for Hate, he said, “I help anybody if they get hurt.”
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W e s t U n i v e r s i t y E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l H o u s t o n I n d e p e n d e n t S c h o o l D i s t r i c t
3756 Univers ity Blvd., Houston, TX 77005, 713-295-5215 Fax: 713-667-8514 We’re on the Web! visit us on the web at: www.westues.org
Tracey L. Wyatt, Magnet Coordinator John T. Threet, Pr incipal Amber Pinchback, Ass istant Principa l
It is the policy of the Houston Independent School District not to discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, handicap or disability, marital status, religion, veteran status, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression, or any other basis prohibited by law in its educational or employment programs and activities.
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Christian Scheibner, Mrs. McClintock’s 3rd Grade Class Mrs. McClintock said, ”Christian is always willing to lend a helping hand to myself and his classmates. He has really shown that he is giving it his all this year and has made great improvements in schoolwork and in his character. I am proud of the young man that Christian is becoming and happy he is part of our class!” Christian’s favorite book is Athlete vs. Mathlete by W.C. Mack. His favorite subject is Math. What he likes about West U is that the teachers are nice. When he grows up he wants to be an engineer. Christian said, “My hero is my dad because he will always be there for me.” To make West U No Place for Hate he said, “I try to inspire people to do new things and help them out if they struggling with trying a new thing.” Riva Desai, Mrs. Saleem’s Kindergarten class. Mrs. Saleem said, “Since the first day of school, Riva has shown outstanding behavior. She is a soft spoken, understanding, and very intelligent girl.” Riva’s favorite books are The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne. Her favorite subject is Science. What she loves about West U is that the teachers are nice. When she grows up she wants to be a doctor. Riva said her hero is: “My mom because she helps me with my homework.” To make West U No Place for Hate, Riva said, “I play with people at recess when they are lonely.” Margaret Reid, Ms. Parish’s 4th Grade Class Mrs. Parrish writes, “Every character trait would describe Margaret, but her generous spirit is evident every day. She is the first one willing to help others and me. Margaret unselfishly involves herself with others who are struggling. Her sunny disposition and ready smile are like a sweet honeycomb or beautiful spring flower.” Margaret’s favorite books are the Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene. Her favorite subject is Math. Asked what she loves about West U she replied, “We have tons of spirit and the teachers are encouraging.” Margaret said her hero is, “my mom because she encourages me to work hard and follow my dreams.” To make West U No Place for Hate, she said, “I tell people to be who they are.” Grant Marshal, Mrs. Pflugfelder’s 5th Grade Class Coach Jones nominated Grant for Citizen of the Month saying, “Grant always shows great care and concern for others. He goes above and beyond what is expected. Without being asked, I saw him escorting two groups of kids after school because one of the other patrols was absent.” Grant’s favorite book is Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. His favorite subject is Math. What he loves about West U is, “How everyone fits in and no one is left out.” When he grows up he wants to be a goalie on a professional soccer team. Grant said my hero is, “my mom because she is always rooting for me even if we lose a game.” To make West U No Place for Hate, Grant said, “I try to give compliments to three different people everyday.” Vishwa Anandu, Ms. Webb’s 1st Grade Class Ms. Webb writes, “Vishwa is a student who truly listens with his eyes, his ears, and his heart. He focuses on the speaker and he cares about what others have to say. Vishwa always does his best on schoolwork and strives to learn more than required. He keeps peace on the playground and consistently follows classroom rules. Vishwa is a model West U student.” Vishwa’s favorite book is the Darth Vadar and Son by Jeffrey Brown. His favorite subject is Math. What he loves about West U are the nice teachers. When he grows up he wants to be a doctor. Vishwa said, my hero is “My mom because she helps me with my homework.” To make West U No Place for Hate he said, “I don’t listen to bullies. I let people play with me.”
Counseling Corral: Citizens of the Month (cont.)
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