Fair Oaks Elementary School Cobb County School District February 2015 Volume 7, edition 1 MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL Dear Parents, Welcome to February! We all hope that the weather is beautiful this winter. In the event of inclement weather, you will be able to find information on the local news stations and the school district website. The school district is also sending out text messages and voice messages to alert parents and staff members to school information. This will be a very busy month. We hope you had an opportunity to come to school to see your child’s Leadership Notebook. They are very proud of the goals they have set. Each child has set goals for this nine weeks. Ask them about their reading, math and personal goals. We have so much to learn and it will be very important for students to stay focused on learning, remembering to practice the 7 Habits will help everyone be successful. If your child is having difficulty with anything at school, please talk to their teacher. Here are a few more things that will help your child succeed in school:  Come to school every day!  Pay attention and do your very best work all day every day.  Finish your work and turn it in. Teachers can tell if you understand something if they see your finished work.  Ask questions if you don’t understand. No one will think you are silly for asking a question.  Do your homework every night and bring it back to school. Practicing what you’ve learned at school helps you remember what to do. If you have any questions about how to help your child do well in school, please call the school. We would be happy to help you! Mark your calendar for Math & Science Night on February 12th! Have a fabulous February! Cindy Szwec Ronald Crawford Principal Assistant Principal ONLINE TOOLS FOR PARENTS With daily screen time averaging 7.5 hours for today’s young people, it’s time to embrace the learning potential. COMMON SENSE MEDIA (commonsensemedia.org), a non-profit online resource, has an in-depth learning potential rating system developed by specialist to score the media children use. “Our goal is to give families information about what’s best for their kids”, says Seeta Pai, VP of research and digital content. KHAN ACADEMY (khanacademy.org), a nonprofit online “global class- room” works as a free, personalized tutor. Join for engaging video mini-lessons, customized practice problems and student progress data tracking. “It’s a learning tool to help their kids get ahead or catch up”, says chief of staff Jessica Yeun. Valegrams for Sale Parental Involvement Survey Valegrams are a cute valentine card that you can send to a fellow student or teacher. They will be for sale in the front of school the week of February 9 to 13. They are $1 and all money goes to Relay for Life. Dear Parents. In January you should received the Parent Involvement Survey. The survey will assist us in effectively determining the needs of our school. The feedback given by parents is vital to our school so that we may afford opportunities for parental assistance and support. It is essential that you complete and return the survey to the teacher, front office or to the Parent Liaison Diana Rossie by February 14. Once the surveys are returned we will advise you of upcoming activities. Thank you in advance for your help Greetings Fair Oaks Families! Music class is off to a great start and the children are enjoying moving, singing, playing instruments and getting deeper into our latest curriculum from Quavermusic.com. Not only are the students becoming more interactive with technology and music, they are more engaged than ever and really enjoy the experience that music gives them. Your child can explore Quavermusic.com free! There is no cost to you whatsoever. Just go to www.quavermusic.com and register for your free account. Once you are registered I can add your child to my quaver account and we can interact through music assignments and songwriting contests, and that’s only the beginning. Quavermusic makes music accessible to everyone, regardless of their age or grade. Most of all it’s just really FUN! Chorus students will be taking a trip to Kennesaw State University to sing the National Anthem on Saturday February 21st during a basketball game. Students will take to center court and later stay a while and enjoy the game and some refreshments. We will need some parent volunteers who would like to accompany us. Let me know if you are interested. Thanks and have a wonderful February! Mrs. Martinez Helping Your Child Succeed in School As a parent, you have a special interest in your child's education. As you become more involved, here are some basic tips that you may use at home:  Encourage your child to read. It's the single most important thing that you can do to help your child succeed in school. Read with your child right from the start, and make sure there are lots of reading materials in the house.  Talk with your child. Talking and listening are major components of children's school success. By having many opportunities to use and hear spoken language, children are given a tremendous advantage, picking up the language skills they will need to do well in school.  Monitor homework, and how much time children spend watching television, playing video games, and using the Internet. Help your child get organized and provide a quiet place in the home for him or her to study. Limit the amount of time your child spends watching television, surfing the Internet, and playing video games. Help your child learn to properly and effectively use the Internet.  Encourage your child to be responsible and work independently. Make it clear to your child that he or she has to take responsibility for actions both at home and at school.  Encourage active learning. Listen to your child's ideas and respond to them. Active learning also can take place when your child plays sports, acts in a school play, plays a musical instrument, or visits museums and bookstores. Leaders Loving Math and Science Thursday, February 12 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Science Projects, Math, and Science games, Fun , Fun, Fun!!! Drinks $1.00 A Slice of Pizza and a cookie for $1.00 Attendance: A key to your student’s Success. Schools are responsible for teaching your child. But schools can’t do their job if your child is absent. Learning builds day by day. A child who misses a day of school misses a day of learning. Research shows that children who are in school most of the time do better on standardized test. Studies also show that kids who are absent more often score lower on standardized test. Being late for school hurts a child’s learning, too. A student who is 10 minutes late every day will miss 30hours of instruction during the year. Children can copy notes or make up an assignment, but they can never get back what’s most important: the discussions, the questions, the explanations by the teacher and the thinking that makes learning come alive. Your child’s success in school depends on having a solid educational background—one that can only be gained through regular school attendance. Here’s How You Can Improve Your Child’s School Attendance  Talk with your child about why it’s important to attend school regularly.  Avoid scheduling family trip or doctor appointments during school hours.   Make sure your child stays healthy by eating nutritious food and getting enough sleep and exercise.   Don’t accept excuses for why your child “must” miss or be late school.  Discuss with your child what happened at school each day.  Support school rules and conse- Volume 7, edition 1 quences for skipping class and being tardy. Show your child why education is important. Give specific examples of how education helps people succeed. Research shows that attendance is the single most important factor in school success. The Parent Institute. www.parent-institute.com Lead by example. If children see parents taking off work for no real reason, they may expect to be able to do the same thing. Page 3 Black History Month Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of African Americans in U.S. history. The event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating black history. Everywhere you look, black culture, talent and expression have played an enormous role in shaping America’s past and present. The PE Place For more information about the below activities, check out: http://fairoakspe.weebly.com/ Make Yours a Healthy Heart! Heart-A-Facts Your heart is a pump that moves blood to all the different parts of your body. The pump works when the heart expands (fills with blood), then contracts (pushes the blood out). When you are physically active, your heart works harder and faster to get your blood to the muscles you are using. Physical Activity Raises Your Heart Rate Your heart beats to fill up with blood and then pushes it out to reach all of the parts of your body. When you are active, your body needs more oxygen from the air we breathe, and your heart has to get it there fast! So, when you are active, your heart has to beat faster than normal. To see how fast, try this experiment: Put your hand on your chest now. Can you feel anything? Probably not much if you have not been active. Now, do 25 jumping jacks, and then put your hand on your chest again. Do you feel anything this time? That is your heart beating faster to get oxygen to the muscles you just used doing jumping jacks. Coach Kindra Brock