Bulldogs of character!!

Transcription

1 October, 2015 MRS. KEMPF-COHEN, SCHOOL COUNSELOR PARKVIEW & READFIELD ELEMENATARY SCHOOL DISTRICT OF NEW LONDON * Please watch your Thursday envelopes for Red Ribbon Week Activities/information, a Make a Difference Day family challenge, and information about Adopt-A-Family for the holidays. Bulldogs of character!! Our character assembly for the month of October was held on Tuesday, the 6th. The Character Kids created a video that highlighted the character pillar of Caring and it was shown at the assembly. Next month s assembly at Readfield will be held on Tuesday, November 3rd at 2:30 P.M. Each month at Readfield Elementary School, a different "Bulldog Pillar of Character" trait is discussed in classes. The character pillar for October is Caring, but students can be selected for showing any of the district s nine character pillars (listed on the inside cover of the district calendar). Adults working or visiting Readfield Elementary School may nominate students who have demonstrated exemplary character. The students are congratulated at the monthly character assembly for their outstanding behavior and a reason for their selection is hung on the bulletin board by the gymnasium. Please join us for our monthly character assemblies! We love seeing you! Bulldogs of Character for September 2015 Grades K-2! Bulldogs of Character for September, 2015 Grades 3-4!

2 S C H O O L D I S T R I C T O F N E W L O N D O N Be a Bulldog of Character each and every day! Assembly Pictures & Class of Character Percy shows CARING by being a good listener and being kind to others! Character Kids are 3rd and 4th grade students who give up some of their recess time to record clips for a character video that is created each month to be shown at the assemblies. We changed our format this year so that students aren t missing time outside to exercise and socialize, and also because we want to promote technology. Parent(s)/Guardian(s), Grandparents, and other family members are always more than welcome to come to school for character assemblies. We thank you for your outstanding support! Each month, a mystery staff at Readfield is selected to monitor classes for excellent behavior in conjunction with the monthly character pillar. The mystery staff can be anyone, except for a grade level teacher and their task is to choose a class that demonstrates outstanding character for the month. The winning class gets character beads and the teacher gets crowned! Mr. Krause was the mystery staff at Readfield for the month of October! Congrats to Miss Hoppenjan s Class! Miss Hoppenjan s 4th Grade Class of Character for the month of October!

3 PEER MEDIATION TRAINING ****************************** T h i r t y - t w o 4 t h G r a d e S t u d e n t s a t P a r k v i e w a n d R e a d f i e l d p a r t i c i p a t e d i n P e e r M e d i a t i o n t r a i n i n g o n O c t o b e r 8 t h a t R e a d f i e l d E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l. ( p i c t u r e s o n b a c k p a g e ) * * * C h i e f S c h l u e t e r w i l l b e a t o u r N o v e m b e r c h a r a c t e r a s s e m b l y t o s w e a r - i n o u r m e d i a t o r s! What Are We Learning in Guidance? Content Topic Theme for September: Transitions & Learning Skills Content Topic Theme for October: Social Skills *All grades practiced working memory skills this month and we will continue to focus on working memory skills throughout the school year. Kindergarten & First Grade: Students are learning and reviewing what their job is at school (learn, be kind, follow directions, be a good listener, make good choices, etc.). For October, students will be talking about friendship both how to make friends, and how to be a good friend. Second Grade: Reviewed the above information and second graders have focused a lot on how to be a good listener in school. Students have learned some steps to take when hearing or reading directions to help them slow down and make less mistakes. (Hear the direction, Freeze or Stop, Repeat the Direction, Do the Direction) Third & Fourth Grade: Students have reviewed and practiced how to be good listeners, as well as their expectations in school. We are also working on learning how to take notes to be better learners. A large focus in Guidance for the next month will be learning skills. We will continue to talk about how to take notes, how to study for a test/quiz, asking for help, making mistakes, etc. *Each week, students learn about a new word of the week. Here are the words that they have learned so far: Empathy, Self-Control, Perseverance, Caring, Selfless and Considerate *Students also learn about what the character pillar is for the month: September: Self-Discipline October: Caring **The definition of all district character pillars are listed on the inside cover of the district calendar. WHAT IS PEER MEDIATION? Peer mediation is available to students at Readfield Elementary School as a resource if and when students need help working out a problem with another student. Peer mediation is NEVER about being in trouble and always about being given a chance to talk about a problem. Peer mediation provides both students with an opportunity to explain how they are feeling and mediators help them to come up with a solution together. Readfield commends students for using peer mediation as a way to work out their problems. District Calendar Family Challenges (also listed on Sunday of the district calendar) Week 1 - October 4-10: Complete a random act of kindness together Week 2 - October 11-17: Leave a note or a picture for someone telling them how great they are Week 3 - October 18-24: Collect unused items and donate to local shelters Week 4 - October 25-October 31: Thank someone who has been an important person in your life Character Pillar for October- CARING District Definition: Be kind * Be compassionate and show you care * Express gratitude * Forgive others * Help people in need

4 Red Ribbon Week - October 19th-23rd Students will receive a red ribbon for home and be able to participate in dress up days to celebrate being Drug Free! Please watch for more information in Thursday envelopes. Monday: We re Crazy About Being Drug Free! (students can style their hair crazy today) Tuesday: Follow Your Dreams-Be Drug Free! (students can wear pajamas to school) Wednesday: Being Drug Free is No Sweat! (students wear warm-ups or athletic/sport clothing) Thursday: Together We Can Say No To Drugs! (students wear their assigned class color) Friday: Paws and Think-Don t Do Drugs! (students wear NL Bulldog colors and clothing) ***** Peer Mediation Pictures ***** (Chief Schlueter will be at the November Character Assembly to swear-in our Mediators) Bulldogs of Character What exactly is a Bulldog of Character? It is a way of living dedicated to making positive character choices at home, school, workplace and within the community. Want to be part of the Bulldogs of Character in the Community Committee? Please let me know. We would love your input and feedback! Character is Contagious...Is YOURS worth catching? National Make a Difference Day October 24, Please complete the family challenge form that was sent home and return it to school for a chance to win a family prize!

5 Parenting Resources & Information: Sibling Rivalry: A sibling is a special gift, but one that is often unappreciated during the childhood years. While siblings are often excellent playmates, partners in crime, and in later years best friends and confidants, arguments among them are bound to occur and are absolutely normal, even though they can be a parent s worst headache! It is important that you as a parent recognize the individual personalities, feelings, and needs of each of your children, and know how to effectively diffuse conflicts that arise so that the entire family is happy and healthy. What can parents do? Check out: If you are interested in more information, and you don t have internet at home, please let me know and I can get the information printed and sent home for you. Love & Logic Website great articles! - Kindness in Chalk Students participated in the Kindness in Chalk antianti-bullying campaign the first week in October to spread kindness through messages written in sidewalk chalk. 7 businesses also participated this year! OCTOBER IS NATIONAL BULLY PREVENTION MONTH (Please watch your Thursday envelopes for tips on how to help your child, along with general information about what bullying is) Walk to/at School Day Thank you to all of the family members and friends for coming to walk with our students at school on Wednesday, October 7th! It was great to see so many of you, and our students enjoyed their time outside with you. Are you doing FIRE UP YOUR FEET? It s not too late to register online. Thank you to The East Central Wisconsin Safe Routes to School program for our awesome toolkit with amazing prizes and information!