March 2014 Island Creek Elementary Crocodile Courier INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Principal s Letter 1 Calendar 2 7855 Morning View Lane ~ Alexandria, VA 22315 571-642-6300 ~ Fax 571-642-6397 Attendance email to: IslandCreekES.Attendance@fcps.edu or call 571-642-6363 School Website: www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes Check Out the Library 3 Message for 5th Grade 4 The Energy Zone 5-6 What s Happening 7 Dear Parents, In light of the horrific accident that claimed the life of an Arlington County school parent this past week, I would like to share with you an email from our crossing guard, Kim Barber, who is part of the FCPD. Safety Concern In light of the recent tragedy at Nottingham Elementary School in Arlington, I am very concerned about parents parking along Morning View Lane who enter and exit their vehicles, with students, on the street side. Due to the buses, day care vans, kiss & ride and local traffic, Morning View Lane is extremely busy during arrival and dismissal. Let's keep our Crocs safe and have them enter and exit your vehicles on the sidewalk side of the school. Kim Barber/FCPD Crossing Guard It is with deep concern that I bring this to your attention. I ask that you take a look at your arrival and dismissal procedures at Island Creek. Often, we see the hustle and bustle of daily lives cause members of our community to make unsafe decisions during drop off and pick up. We are all collectively responsible for the safety of our children. I strongly ask that you review the arrival and dismissal procedures on the link below to ensure the safety of all our students. This is another opportunity to team up and make sure our students are safe each and every day during arrival and dismissal. Sincerely, Arrival/Dismissal Safety Guidelines Michael G. Macrina Principal IMPORTANT REMINDER SNOW MAKEUP DAY APRIL 7 WILL BE A FULL DAY The snow makeup day scheduled for Monday, April 7, will be a full day. We will follow a Wednesday schedule from the actual missed snow day, January 22. Lost and Found If you or your child have not had the opportunity, please stop by and check the lost and found bins located just outside the cafeteria. All remaining items will be donated to charity at the end of each quarter. Please be sure and put names on coats and lunch boxes!
Page 2 March 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 9 10 4 3-4:00 All County Chorus Rehearsal 11 5th Grade SOL Multi Choice Writing Test 10:15-11:15 PTA Day Meeting @ Kingstowne Library 5 11am-11pm PTA Spirit Event at Chili s 12 7:15-8 YMIM 5th Grade SOL Short Paper Writing Test 1st Grade Field Trip 6 Read Across America Week 13 7 5:30-9pm PTA Family Bingo Night, Café (Doors open at 5:30, 1st game at 6:30pm) 8 14 15 16 17 St. Patrick s Day 18 Spring Picture Day for PS & 4-6 19 7:15-8 YMIM Spring Picture Day for K-3 2:50-4:15 GEMS 20 21 22 6-9pm PTA Father-Daughter Dance, Cafe 7-8:30pm PTA Meeting, Library 23 24 25 26 7:15-8 YMIM 2:50-4:15 GEMS 27 28 29 30 31
Page 3 Check-it Out at the March 2014 Library Connections : Connecting Books to the Virginia SOLs Available at http://itweb.fcps.edu/connections/index.cfm or from my Blackboard site Library with Mrs. Woodall under the websites tab. 6th Grade Book Club The next meeting of the 6th Grade Book Club is Thursday, April 10th at 7:30AM in the library. We are reading Murder at Midnight by Avi. See you there!! http://libcat.fcps.edu/uhtbin/cgisirsi/x/0/0/57/49?user_id=429web
Page 4 IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR PARENTS OF CURRENT 5 TH GRADERS It s not too early to check! As a parent of a current 5 th grader, you need to know that all students in Virginia schools must receive a booster dose of Tdap vaccine prior to entering sixth grade, if at least five years have passed since the last dose of tetanus toxoid-containing vaccine (DTP, DTap, DT or Td). This is not an Island Creek Elementary rule, and it is not a Fairfax County regulation; it is a State regulation that all schools must follow. Please -- check your child s immunization records carefully. If you need a copy of your student s record call the school office and we will provide you a copy. If your child is required to have a Tdap booster, we ask that your child receive it as soon as he or she is old enough, and most importantly that you provide documentation to the school office. This documentation can be a copy of your child s immunization record, or a note from your physician listing the date of their most recent Tdap booster shot. If your child won t be old enough for the shot until a specific date, we need a note from the doctor stating that. The Tdap booster can be obtained from your child s physician. Immunizations required for school are also available at the Fairfax County Health Department at no charge. Clinic locations and walk-in hours are online at http:// www.fairfaxcounty.gov/hd/hdclinicsite.htm. Students receiving immunizations at the Health Department must be accompanied by an adult, and students should bring their immunization records to the Health Department with them. Please, plan ahead to attend to this matter at your earliest convenience. When the 2014/15 school year begins, sixth graders for whom the office has no documentation of the Tdap shot will not be assigned to a teacher. If you have any questions about this immunization requirement, you may contact Deborah Jackson, the school public health nurse, at 703-704-6100, or email her at deborah.jackson@fairfaxcounty.gov.
Page 5 NOTES FROM THE ENERGY ZONE MARCH IS NATIONAL NUTRITION MONTH In partnership with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the Energy Zone is celebrating March as National Nutrition month. Use http://www.choosemyplate.gov as a reference for healthy eating habits. Lifestyle changes including daily exercise are more effective than quick fixes. There are many diet myths. Ensure the nutrition information you are getting is from a credible source a registered dietitian nutritionist or science-based articles. Evaluate a food by reading nutrition labels. Basic understanding of a food label can help you make smart food choice. EAT WHOLE GRAINS EVERY DAY Eat 3 or more servings of whole grains every day. They are an important source of fiber and reduce risk of chronic heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Many Americans only eat one serving per day and over 30 percent do not eat whole grains at all. Read the label, and if the first ingredient is whole wheat, whole grain, oatmeal, brown rice, bulgur, popcorn, or wild rice, the product is most likely a whole grain food. Good Source: A half serving of whole grains Excellent Source: A full serving of whole grains 100% Excellent Source: A full serving and all grains are whole Daily whole grain menu suggestions: Breakfast Lunch and Dinner Snacks Whole grain cereal Whole grain bread Whole grain crackers Oatmeal Tortillas or wraps Popcorn Whole grain bagel Whole grain pasta Whole grain pretzels Brown rice Whole grain chips
Page 6 NOTES FROM THE ENERGY ZONE MARZO ES EL MES DE NUTRICION NACIONAL En sociedad con la Academia de Nutrición y Dietéticos, la Zona de Energía esta celebrando el Mes de Nutrición Nacional. 1. Use http://www.choosemyplate.gov. como referencia para tener hábitos saludables en la comida. Los cambios de estilo de vida incluyen ejercicios diarios siendo éstos más efectivos que las rápidas soluciones. 2. Hay muchos mitos de dieta. Asegúrese de que la información de nutrición que usted consiga sea de una fuente creíble un dietista certificado o artículos científicos. Evalue el alimento leyendo las etiquetas de nutrición. El entendimiento básico de la etiqueta de nutrición puede ayudarle a tomar una decisión de alimento inteligente. COMA GRANOS INTEGRALES CADA DÍA Coma 3 o más porciones de granos integrales cada día. Estas son importantes fuentes de fibra y reducen el riesgo de enfermedades crónicas del corazón, diabetes y obesidad. Muchos americanos solo comen una porción diaria y más del 30 por ciento no consumen alimentos integrales del todo. Lea las etiquetas y si el primer ingrediente es trigo integral, granos integrales, avena, arroz integral, granos de trigo (bulgur), palomitas de maíz, o arroz salvaje, es muy probable que el producto sea alimento de granos integrales Buena Fuente: Mitad de una porción de granos integrales Excelente Fuente: Una porción completa de granos integrales 100% Excelente Fuente: Una porción completa y todos los granos sean integrales Sugerencias Diarias para un menú de grano entero: Desayuno Almuerzo y Cena Snacks Cereal de grano entero Pan de grano entero Galletas de grano entero Avena Tortillas o envolturas Palomitas de maíz Bagel de grano entero Pasta de grano entero Pretzel de grano entero Arroz integral Papitas fritas de grano entero
Page 7 MARCH WHAT S HAPPENING ON THE ISLAND? Students in Mrs. Thompson s class performed Contraction Surgery. The students had to do surgery to put two words together to form a Kindergarten finally celebrated the 100th Day of School on Tuesday, February 25th HIP HIP HOORAY! Even the snow could not keep away the excitement. We enjoyed marching around the school with 1st Grade to celebrate in style 100 Day glasses and Hats!!! We created 100 day snacks, and shared our 100 Mystery Bottles with other grade levels. We feel 100 days smarter!!! Selected 5th and 6th grade chorus members performed in the pyramid concert at Hayfield Secondary. First grade students in Mrs. Valent s and Mrs. Keller s class explored the world of Chinese music during the Chinese New Year by creating their own dragons and doing a Chinese dragon dance around the classroom. They learned about the rhythms used in Chinese dragon dances and also used drums, a gong, and cymbals to help create the beats they danced to!