Friday night is the big "Movie Night" for North Moms and their sons. The movie will start at 6:00 and we will be watching Megamind. P.T.O. will provide popcorn and water for the movie. The Handel's cart will be here if you are interested in buying ice cream. Miss Gura will also be here selling candy bars to raise money for the "Relay for Life." Please bring chairs or blankets to sit on during the movie. I look forward to seeing all that are attending!

Friday is the last day for turning in art entries for the Elementary Art Show. Please make sure the tag with all your child's information is attached.

We finished our book this morning. Please ask your child about the 'discovery' that Destiny finally made! We talked about all the discoveries that you can find in the Spring. As you are spending time together outdoors, please talk with your child about those discoveries that they may see or hear. It is so nice to enjoy the new beginnings of Spring!

Last call for "Green Team" placemat entries. All entries will be turned in on Thursday, March 31st. Good luck to all who enter!

Tomorrow we will finish our last chapter in our book, "Big Whopper." The main character, Destiny, confessed to Gina and Ms. Katz, the after-school teacher, that she told a big whopper. Gina started to cry, because of the guilty feeling that she had for telling a 'whopper'. Ms. Katz was proud of both girls for telling the truth. She explained it was better to tell the truth so that "your stomach does not get tied up in knots." Tomorrow, Destiny, will finally make a discovery for the discovery wall.

The students were given their "Act of Kindness" assignment for the week. Their kindness is to help with laundry. We talked about different ways to help which can be sorting the laundry, folding it, or putting the clean laundry away. If your house is anything like my house, this is a never-ending job. It was nice to see that a few students raised their hands to share that they already helped with laundry at their house this past weekend. Mrs. Hruby and I told them they could always come to our house to help!

Please return your reservations for Mother/Son Movie Night. It will be this Friday, April 1st.

I want to send a big "Thank you!" to Diane Kluchar, Callie Kopp and their committee for outdoing themselves for our "Spring Fling" last night. They decorated the gym with balloon arrangements and flower cut-outs. This area served as the dance floor and restaurant, where chicken nuggets, fruit, and punch were served. As the girls and their 'special guy' came into the gym, they had their picture taken. This was put into a frame that was decorated during the evening along with a flower pot that they painted. Our North P.T.O. is such a wonderful organization, without them , nights like these would not be possible. Thanks again to everyone who helped out and thanks to all the 'special guys' that came!

North Elementary will be hosting the annual Art Show on April 15th. Please encourage your child to submit art work so that it can be displayed throughout our building. There are 2 different categories for judging. The 1st category is for drawing and painting. The second category can be an assortment of art work such as sculpture, photograph, paper mache, or edible art. All entries need to be in to the school by April 1st with the 'Elementary Art Show' tag completed and attached to the art piece.

Ask your child if they completed their 'Random Act of Kindness' for this week, we'll talk about it tomorrow!

Popcorn Day!

Tomorrow, Mrs. Hay's 3rd grade class will be selling popcorn for 50 cents. This is part of their Economic unit and ties in with their Social Studies standards. This popcorn sale is a 4 part process starting with the students filling out a job application followed by advertising in the hallways of the school. Tomorrow, the 3rd graders will visit each classroom to take popcorn orders, deliver the popcorn, and collect money. The last step is sorting and counting the money from the sale. Mrs. Wittenauer's 3rd grade class will be selling popcorn in April. Thank you for supporting the "Poland Poppers!"

Thursday evening is Father/Daughter Night-put your dancing shoes on and we'll see you at 5:30!

Today in our book, Big Whopper, our main character, Destiny, told a fib. She told another girl in her art class that "her great, great, greatest grandfather was Abraham Washington, the Father of Our Country." We discussed how not only was this a fib, but it was not the correct information. Destiny chose to tell this fib because she was having a hard time making a new discovery for the week. Immediately after the words came out of her mouth, she felt guilty about 'the big whopper' she just told. As we continue the book, we will discover how Destiny handles the fib she told and how an unusual friendship forms.

The students seem to be enjoying their "Random Acts of Kindness". They expressed today how parents were 'proud', 'happy', and 'thought they were being good' because of the garbage cans being taken out or brought in. This week's assignment is to make a card for someone just because. This could be a card to thank someone or to just brighten someone's day. We talked about creating a card for friends, family members, neighbors, bus drivers, etc. Please encourage your child to participate in these activities and spread kindness!

Yesterday, we had a special guest join us for our morning announcements. Mr. Pike, a North father of a 2nd and 4th grader, just returned from Afghanistan. He came in to share some stories about his experience. Mr. Pike talked about sand storms, how hot the temperature gets, and how heavy his equipment is. He finished his visit with leading us in the Pledge of Allegiance. I want to personally thank Mr. Pike for visiting us and for all that he does for our country. North Elementary is very proud of him!

Enjoy the sunshine and have a great weekend!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! It was a sea of green in our building-from headbands, to blinking shamrock earrings, to crazy socks. Second grade enjoyed their special treat.

Just a reminder, reservations for Father/Daughter Night are due tomorrow.

I would like to leave you today with an Irish Quote:

"For each petal on the shamrock

This brings a wish your way-

Good health, good luck, and happiness

For today and every day."

The 'Green Team' placement contest has been extended! All entries need to be turned in to me by March 30th. Please make sure that your entry is colorful and has the correct information on the back. Good luck!

Today, I began reading a chapter book called "Big Whopper" by Patricia Reilly Giff. In the story, the main character tells a lie called the 'big whopper'. She has difficulty deciding what to do after someone finds out about it. We will be reading this book for the next 2 weeks. Ask your child about it!

Last week we had our 6th 'Snow Day', let's hope this is our last! We will need to extend the school year and have a make-up day on Monday, June 13th.

Please send in all Gorant and 'Fun Pasta' orders and payments with your child by March 17th. The orders will be ready to pick up on Monday, April 18th. Thank you for supporting this fundraiser.

There will be another Town Hall meeting this Wednesday, 7:00 p.m. at Union Elementary. Again, this is an informational meeting regarding the upcoming school levy.

The Father/Daughter Night is March 24th. Please make sure you send in your reservations by Friday, March 18th. The theme is a "Spring Fling" with dancing and other activities planned. The dress is casual, so come comfortable ready to dance!

We discussed last week's kindness assignment about smiling. It was great to see such a large number of kids participate and share their experience. The next "Random Act of Kindness" is: Take out the garbage or bring in the empty garbage cans for your parent, neighbor, or both. Thank you for your help in reinforcing this assignment.

Tomorrow during morning announcements, we will be talking about the "Random Act of Kindness" that the students were to complete. They will share how they felt and what reaction they received from the people they smiled to. Monday morning, will be our next assignment.
I told the students how pleased I am with hearing manners in the lunchroom. It makes for a more pleasant place when 'please' and 'thank you' are being used.

Tonight there are two events taking place at North. The 4th Grade Recognition meeting will be at 6:00 for those wanting to help. The Town Hall Meeting begins at 7:00 regarding the School Levy.

Thank you to the P.T.O. for welcoming me to the school at their March meeting. I appreciate all that the P.T.O. does for our building and look forward to working with them. If you are interested in becoming an Officer , please return the nomination forms. The election will take place during the April 7th meeting.

Thursday evening, the committee for 4th Grade Recognition will have a meeting at 6:00. If you would like to help, please plan on attending. The Town Hall meeting regarding the upcoming school levy will also take place at North at 7:00.

The students went out for recess today for the second day in a row! Considering what our winter was like, it was well-needed. As March temperatures change, please make sure that your child has on coats, hats etc. that will keep them warm enough on the playground.

Thursday evening at 7:00, North will be hosting a Town Hall Meeting. This is an opportunity to have any questions answered regarding the upcoming School Levy.

See you tonight for the P.T.O. meeting at 6:30.

Tomorrow evening is our monthly P.T.O. meeting at 6:30. There will also be a special meeting regarding Father/Daughter Night at 5:45. Please plan on attending to help organize this special event. I look forward to seeing many of you Tuesday evening.

Today , the students were given their 1st 'Random Act of Kindness.' Every Monday morning, I plan on giving them an assignment to carry out. We will be talking about the reactions they get from others and how they feel about it on Friday mornings. This week's assignment is to smile to 3 people they do not know. I look forward to hearing about their 'Act' on Friday.

We made it through a school week with no delays or cancellations. That hasn't happened for awhile. Armstrong Cable, Channel 20, was here today to film a lesson with 1st Grade classrooms. They made hats and decorated them with markers and stickers after enjoying a story. I will send along the date and time that it will air so that we can all tune in.

Thank you to our 3rd and 4th Grades for donating birthday supplies. We were able to wrap and deliver 48 "Birthday Boxes" to the Beatitude House. The children living there will be able to celebrate in style! Have a great weekend and stay dry!

During morning announcements, we talked about the March character trait of Courage. The students shared different times when they showed courage. They talked about when they were brave enough to do the right thing even though they were scared.

Kindergarten Registration is this weekend at Union Elementary. Anyone with a child that is entering Kindergarten in the Fall may register from 9:00-12:00 on March 5th or March 12th.

There is a meeting scheduled tonight for Father/Daughter Night. The meeting will be at the Poland Library at 6:00 for all those that are able to help with this special event.

We started a "Riddle of the Day" during our morning announcements. Each morning a different grade is asked a riddle that needs to be answered by the the end of the day. Tomorrow is 3rd grade's turn! Ask your child about it.

3/1/11

It is so nice to see the sun shining today! Finally the students were able to go outside for recess to get some fresh air. The school's fundraiser information was sent home yesterday with the kids. Any support that you can give the school for this fundraiser would be much appreciated.

Just a reminder for 3rd and 4th grade, 'Birthday Box' supplies need to be brought in tomorrow. We had a great response so far. I know the Beatitude House will be grateful for everything we send them. I will let you know the final count of boxes assembled at the end of the week.