Prairie Vista Pawprint

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1 Prairie Vista Pawprint June 2015 Four Star School Congratulations to the Prairie Vista Students, Staff and Parents!! We have received great news from the Indiana Department of Education. Prairie Vista has been chosen as a Four Star School. The Four Star School Award is the state's highest distinction. To be considered a Four Star School, a school's combined English/Language Arts and Math ISTEP+ passing percentages must fall into the top 25th percentile when compared to schools statewide. The annual award is non-monetary and schools earning this honor receive an award certificate. It is hard to believe that this is the final newsletter of the year. I would like to thank all of the parents for taking such an important role in the educational growth of their child/ren, and for supporting our staff as we continue to encourage each child to reach their highest potential. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to our PTO board who accomplished so much this year. Our volunteers never cease to amaze me with the time, dedication and thoughtfulness they put into everything they do. Heartfelt thanks to the outgoing PTO board for their hard work and a warm welcome to next year s officers: Becky de- Varona (President), J.W. Rossow (President-Elect), Jill Girzadas (Treasurer), Amy Kuzmic (Corresponding Secretary) and Kristie Brennan (Recording Secretary). Attached to this newsletter you will find the PHM Corporation Calendar. The calendar is also available online. Please note that the first day of school is Wednesday, August 19th for students in grades 1-5 and Thursday, August 20th for kindergarten students. The PTO will be sponsoring an Ice Cream Social and a Building Walk Through on Monday, August 17th from 5 to 7 p.m. Teachers will be available to meet and greet families on Tuesday, August 18th from 1 to 2 p.m. The school office will be open on Wednesday, August 5th. A letter will be sent out to parents in August to update you on further information. Report cards will be mailed out the week of June 8th. ISTEP results will not be available from the Indiana Department of Education until next fall. Finally, I would like to wish our current 5th graders all the best as they make the transition to middle school in August. I know they are eager and ready to move on and experience all of the opportunities that await them. We will miss them but we are proud of them and happy for them as they move forward on this next step to adulthood. Have a safe and relaxing summer! FINAL DAY OF SCHOOL TUESDAY, JUNE 2nd

2 Lost and Found If your child is missing personal items, please check our Lost and Found area in the commons. Unclaimed items will be donated to an organization in need at the end of the school year. 5th Grade Recognition Ceremony Our 5th grade recognition program will take place on Monday, June 1st. We will begin at 1 p.m. with a walkthrough by our 5th grade students. At 1:15 p.m. we will gather in the gym where students will receive certificates acknowledging that they are moving on to 6th grade. They will be recognized for their participation in different school groups and receive individual academic honors. Parents are welcome to attend. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT PARENTS DO NOT PARK IN THE BUS PARKING SPACES OR CAR PICK-UP LINE FOR THIS EVENT. IT WILL END WHEN SCHOOL ENDS SO THERE WILL BE NO TIME TO MOVE YOUR VEHICLE AFTER THE CEREMONY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION! High Ability Identification Update We are in the process of completing our high ability identification process for this school year. The fifth grade selection committee has met and the parents of the newly identified 5th grade students received letters in the mail around April 27. When spring NWEA testing is finished in late May, the parents of the newly identified students in grades K-4 will be notified. The dates for the mailings will be posted on the P-H-M website at the following address: as they become available. P-H-M Silver Mile Run for Education and Health and Fitness Fair We would like to thank everyone who made our penny wars an over the top success this year. As a school we set a goal of $2500 and we met and then exceeded that goal. We raised $ and we couldn t have done it without your enthusiasm and your pennies! The entire school celebrated with a dance party on Thursday. Mrs. Hlade s class won the penny war.

3 INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION LAUNCHES SUMMER LITERACY INITITATIVE The Indiana Department of Education launched its third annual Hoosier Family of Readers summer literacy initiative today. In order to continue to promote reading throughout the summer months and build a culture of readers in Indiana, Hoosier students will have free online access to thousands of books through a partnership with MyON Reader. During IMC time, Prairie Vista students watched a video on how to access the books online. The link to the webpage: and then click on the myonbooks icon. In addition to offering free access to books through MyON Reader, the Indiana Department of Education has created an online portal called WONDERful Destinations. This new and innovative website, created in partnership with the National Center for Families Learning, will allow students to virtually visit 12 destinations throughout Indiana, such as the Indiana State Museum. The WON- DERful Destinations website will be accessible beginning in early June. Visual Arts Academy The Snite Museum of Art at the University of Notre Dame and Penn-Harris-Madison are teaming up to offer an extraordinary week-long summer learning experience for our students! This exciting 2015 Visual Arts Academy will integrate art history, art production, and writing into a week-long, intensive and enriching learning experience that will challenge children to think outside of the box. Students will create works of art inspired by pieces in the Snite Museum s collection as well as learn about museum objects through tours, reading and writing. A highlight will be a field trip to the Snite Museum of Art that all students will take, one day of the week. Watch the Visual Arts Academy Video! P-H-M teachers, the Snite Museum's Curator of Education, and an Artist-in-Residence will lead this learning experience. Watch the Visual Arts Academy Video at v=x1dhdn1kbvk The Academy is free of charge, however registration is required! For more information, go to REGISTRATION FOR SUMMER SCHOOL AND ACADEMIES You will receive a confirmation if you registered your child for summer school or an academy. If you registered your child and do not receive confirmation by June 3rd, please contact the office.

4 Learning Resources for Summer Students can access our computer based learning programs Odyssey and Acuity all summer! They can work on skills and lessons that are individualized and directly linked to their reading and math levels. Parents can access these sites from home at under the Parents and Students heading and then you will find a shortcut to get to Odyssey and Acuity at Home under the drop down box. Odyssey and_acuity at Home Login student ID number, first initial, last initial (no spaces) Password student ID number immediately followed by the letters phm. Typing or keyboarding is another skill to work on over the summer. As the state moves to online testing this will be a necessary skill for all students. Kindergarten through second grade students use Dance Mat during the school year. This program can be accessed at home: Third through fifth grade students use Username: Student ID number Password: Student ID number There are many other typing programs available online for free.

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6 IMMUNIZATION INFORMATION FROM THE SCHOOL HEALTH OFFICES: The Indiana State Department of Health has released the immunization requirements for school year Please note: Current 5 th grade students: to enter the 6 th grade in August, you must have a Tdap, meningococcal (MCV4), and 2 varicella vaccines BEFORE the first day of school August 19, Current 11 th grade students: to enter 12 th grade in August, you must have a meningococcal (MCV4)l booster vaccine BEFORE the first day of school August 19, 2015 Kindergarten and Grade 1: 3 Hep B, 5 DTaP, 4 Polio, 2 MMR, 2 Varicella, 2 Hep A Grades 2-5: 3 Hep B, 5 DTaP, 4 Polio, 2 MMR, 2 Varicella Grades 6-11: 3 Hep B, 5 DTaP, 4 Polio, 2 MMR, 2 Varicella, 1 Tdap, 1 MCV4 Grade 12: 3 Hep B, 5 DTaP, 4 Polio, 2 MMR, 2 Varicella, 1 Tdap, 2 MCV4 Please call your health care provider to discuss getting appointments now so that your student s education will not be interrupted in August If this is not taken care of by the first day of school August 19, 2015, you may receive a letter notifying you of the possibility of exclusion from school.

7 Kindergarten made us smile!

8 The Jungle Book! We would like to thank Mrs. Gallo and her cast of delightfully talented 4th and 5th grade students who made us forget where we were for over an hour on a morning in April. This special performance took a tremendous amount of effort on the parts of many people and we would like to say thank you to the cast, crew, teachers and parents who worked to make it happen. Your efforts were appreciated and enjoyed!

9 Start of School-Important Dates Wednesday, August 5th 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The school office reopens. Friday, August 14th Class lists posted Monday, August 17th 5:00-7:00 p.m. Parent and Student Walk Around 6:00 p.m. - New Parent Meeting Tuesday, August 18th 1:00-2:00 p.m. Meet and Greet (parents and students meet teachers) Wednesday, August 19th Grades 1-5 (7:55-2:20)- First day for students, bus transportation will be provided. Kindergarten parent and student orientation (9:00-10:00 a.m.) - Students attend with a parent/guardian. Parent/Guardian provides transportation. Thursday, August 20th 7:55-2:20 p.m. - Kindergarten students begin their first full day of school. Bus transportation will be provided. Tuesday, August 25th 5:30 p.m. - Parent Information Night (Grade 1) 6:30 p.m. - Parent Information Night (Grade 4) Thursday, August 27th 6:00 p.m. - Parent Information Night and Camp Information Meeting (Grade 5) Thursday, September 3rd 6:00 p.m. - Parent Information Night (Grade 2) Thursday, September 10th 6:00 p.m. - Parent Information Night (Grade 3)

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