Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Principal's Epistle



www.stmarksmilford.org            http://stmarksmilford.blogspot.com            
Calendar                   
30 Chapel at 9:15AM
1  Runners’ Club until 4 PM, School Bd. mt. at 7PM
4 St. Mark’s has worship services at 8AM, 10:30AM, and 6PM with Sunday Sch. at 9:15AM
6 Runners’ Club until 4 PM
7 Chapel at 9:15 AM, Preschool chapel 1PM, staff mt. 3:30PM
8 Runners’ Club until 4PM
9 Special “fire” night with Student Council 7-8:30 PM
Prayer Families
Willy G. (PK), Gus H. (P4), Andrew B. (2)
Saint Salute
A big Saint Salute and great thanks to Mrs. Schulte for her love, comfort, concern, and care given to a student while they were waiting for a broken arm to be transported to the hospital.
A big Saint Salute to those students changing point clubs on the AR Wall of Fame
Thomas G. (2)           100 points
Calvin B. (7)              1300 points
Thoughts
            Why does a child have homework?  There are a multitude of reasons to answer that question.  Preschool children occasionally have “fun work” to learn how important it can be, to help the educational bond between the child and a parent, and to support the learning process that took place during their class that day.  K-8 may have some homework so the student can practice what they learn in school.  The student may also have homework because of poor choices they made at school – like not spending time when given to work on some of their work.
            So, what can a parent do to help this process?  I suggest letting the child relax for a little while upon returning home.  If your child wants to get started right away, let them, but monitor them to make sure it is going great.  Some students get restless when working on homework.  I suggest letting them get up and move to a new spot.  A planned break can also do wonders.  Solving problems can still be a challenge for any student.  As a parent, you could help your child make a list of strategies they could use when they get stuck.  Another tip is call a friend or the teacher.  One or the other usually works great!
Important Dates to Know
10  Parent’s Night Out 5-9 PM
14 Half day of school, Dismiss at noon for K-8
    End of first Quarter
15-16 No school – Teachers’ Conference
23    Walk-a-thon
Nov. 5-6   Picture Day
October tuition is now due
Extended Care for Oct. 14
If you need extended care for Oct. 14 starting at noon (when K-8 dismiss), please contact the office by Oct. 9.  PK and P4 PM classes will meet until 3PM.
Parents’ Night Out
Parents’ Night Out Babysitting Fundraiser—October 10
The 7–8 grade students of St. Mark’s school invite you to have a night out on Saturday, October 10, 5:00–9:00 pm. Parents with children from infants to 6th grade may drop them at St. Mark’s so they can spend some quality time together. The students will watch them under adult supervision with a variety of activities, games, pizza dinner ($3), and other forms of fellowship. Children will be divided into groups based on age. A free will donation will be taken upon pickup. The proceeds will go toward their end-of-the-year trip. When was the last time you had a date with your spouse or time to shop without the kids?
Box Tops for Education
BOX TOPS NEWS – WE HAVE A WINNER – The Box Top$ challenge to collect the largest amount per student has been won by the 7th and 8th grades.  Congrats kids!  They collected over 51 Box Top$ per student.  First grade came in second with 28 per student followed by 5th and 6th grades in third with almost 24 Box Top$ per student.  The 7th and 8th grade students will enjoy an ice cream treat for all their hard work collecting all those Box Top$.  They collected 672 Box Top$! 
Keep collecting those Box Top$ and watch the Principal’s Epistle for the announcement when we will run another contest.  You may want to save your Box Top$ until that time.  Thank you to everyone who sent in Box Top$!  We have over 21,500 Box Top$ that we are sending in for this early submission date.  Gil and Judi Schepmann
School Sweatshirt Order
St. Mark’s will again this year offer sweatshirts for sale at our cost.  All youth sizes are $15 each while adult sizes are $19 each.  An XXL costs $22.  Order forms are being sent home and are also available in the school hallway.  Orders are due Oct. 9.  These make great presents.
Happy Birthday
30        Jack H. (4)
6          Kinley M. (PK)
Classroom information
Mrs. Frey (P-3 & P-4)
Preschool is enjoying L for Leaves this week! 3’s will read Leaf Man and create leaf man puppets to retell the story. 4’s will create fall trees using Q-Tips dipped in fall colors. Both classes will bring in a fall leaf for leaf rubbings, leaf prints, and sorting by color/shape/size. This week our sensory table will feature a fall scene of acorns, seeds, leaves, pine cones, and other nature items. In Bible Time 3’s will learn about God’s faithfulness in blessing Abraham and Sarah with their son Isaac. 4’s will learn about the prideful people of Babel and the consequences of sin.
Mrs. Reynolds (PK & P-2)
In the Pre-2 class we are talking about ducks this week. We will waddle like ducks, sing 
"Five Little Ducks" and make a duck craft using the letter D. In Bible we will continue to talk 
about the creation story and work on our creation books!  In Pre-k this week we are learning 
about the letter A. Apples is our theme of the week! We are tasting apples and doing a 
science experiment with apples to see what different substances like pop, vinegar, and 
lemon juice do to change our apples. We will also be dissecting apples and making a list of 
what we find inside!! In Bible we are reading about the first sin and discussing how we all sin
but God forgives us and still loves us. 
Mrs. Sherman (K)
Fall has arrived and Kindergarten is enjoying learning about fall colors by observing a leaf experiment, painting watercolor leaves and making colorful fall trees.  In math, they continue to explore shapes and numbers.  They are learning about community helpers during reading and becoming pizza makers in the class pizza shop.  At Bible time, they are hearing about the plans God had to bless Abraham and Sarah with a baby.  The full day students will read about different jobs and sort tools that different occupations may use at work.  They will, also, identify words that rhyme with pin, complete letter sorts, play counting math games and read about fall!
Mrs. Reisenbichler (1)
This week we learned about the crossing of the Red Sea and how God provided for the needs of His people by giving them manna and quail.  On Monday, we celebrated Johnny Appleseed's birthday by making applesauce, making a list of adjectives to describe apples, and completing a packet of material.  We worked on mastering our high frequency words and improving our fluency in reading.  In math, the students were introduced to analog clocks.  The children also completed their crash course on phonics and will spend the rest of the year working on mastering the rules and skills.
Ms. Rhonemus (2)
This week in second grade we decorated our door for the door decoration contest put on by student council so feel free to swing by at your leisure before or after Sunday school to check it out.  In reading we worked on determining the author's purpose for writing while we read about how to take care of dogs and how some dogs take care of humans.  Meanwhile, in writing, we focused on using descriptive words during narrative writing so that the reader can picture what the writer is saying.  The second graders also learned about animal adaptations like camouflage which aids in animal survival.  In seventh and eighth grade science we learned about the respiratory and excretory systems and the students prepared advertisements that inform different age categories of the effects of smoking.
Mrs. Mayo (3-4)
This week in religion we'll be studying the account of Nicodemus and talking about the Trinity. We're excited to meet our pre-K chapel buddies this week and we'll be reading to them. In grammar we'll be starting on complete subjects and verbs.  In reading we'll be making a timeline about Helen Keller's life in words and pictures.     In social studies we'll be learning about New Jersey and Pennsylvania.  In science we'll hopefully make the polymer we didn't get to last week.  Then we'll learn about cells and the world as seen through a microscope.  In math the 3rd graders will be learning different ways to add and subtract.  The 4th graders began the week with a test and then will move on to multiplication.
Mr. Postenrieder (5-6)
In our Bible time this week we looked at Jacob and Laban and the troubled families they had because of sin. We also looked at how God has blessed our families. We also began to study the life of Joseph. In 5th grade math we worked on comparing millions, billions, and trillions. We also enjoyed our 2nd test. In 6th grade math we took our 3rd test. We also worked with fractions in depth. In our Language Arts time we continued reading Summer of the Monkeys and taking character notes and writing conclusion-proof paragraphs based on those notes. In Social Studies we were fired up for our test over chapter 2. We also began our study of cultures of the world. In Science we worked on solutions to problems we are having with our worm bin. We also checked bluebird houses. Measurement was our last topic of the week.  In Spelling we had our first review week with a lot of tests over words from lessons 1-5.
Mr. Mayo (7,8)
In History, we’re learning about how the Spanish treated the natives here in the “New World”.  While it was part of their mission to convert the native population, they didn’t go about it as we’d like to think WE would have.  God, Guns, and Germs seem to win.  I’m certainly glad we have different ideas about conversion NOW.
Mr. Reisenbichler (7-8)
In religion we are studying how we fit in God’s plan.  In 7th grade math the students are subtracting mixed numbers and reducing fractions.  In 8th grade math we are studying the distributive property and multiplying and dividing fractions.  The students are learning to write directions in communicating a project in STEM.

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Principal's Epistle



www.stmarksmilford.org            http://stmarksmilford.blogspot.com            
Calendar                   
23 Chapel at 9:15 AM
24 Runners’ Club until 4 PM, Family Fun Night 6:30-7:30 PM
25 Principal’s mt. in Dayton
27 St. Mark’s has worship services at 8AM, 10:30AM, and 6PM with Sunday Sch. at 9:15AM
29 Runners’ Club until 4PM
30 Chapel at 9:15AM
1  Runner’s Club until 4 PM, School Bd. mt. at 7PM
Prayer Families
Makayla J. (P4), Liam D. (P4), Claire F. (P4)
Saint Salute
A big Saint Salute to those students reading up the AR Wall of Fame
            Aaron A. (6)               600 points
            Maggie S. (5)            900 points
Notes
            How important is technology to your child’s life?  What your child does on a school computer, iPad, phone, etc. is the parent’s business.  Children should be unequivocally informed that the computer (or iPad, or phone) does NOT belong to them. It is the property of the adult that pays for it. They are to use it within very strict parameters and anything outside of those parameters is not tolerated and will result in loss of use. Period.  A child can get into trouble real quick if not monitored.  As children get older, they will become more and more involved with technology and social media. As such, parents need to be vigilant and set limits and constraints that are to be strictly followed. All screens should be used in a family area and NO ONE should be allowed to be on a computer or any similar device without an adult present and nearby. No exception, even if that makes life tough for the parents. Employ any parental safeguards available.  If your kids play video games - set time limits and stick to them. 30 minutes means 30 minutes - and if you return in 35 minutes and the game is not shut down - the privilege is revoked and screen time is lost for a week (or more). Make your children responsible for their time. If they are old enough to play the game, they are old enough to watch the clock. With any privilege, including video games, comes responsibility. Same goes for the TV. 
Important Dates to Know
24 Family Fun Night 6:30-7:30
14 Half day of school, Dismiss at noon for K-8
15-16 No school – Teachers’ Conference
23    Walk-a-thon
Nov. 5-6   Picture Day
Lunch orders for October due Thursday, Sept. 24
September tuition is now due
Family Fun Night
St. Mark’s has a family fun night every two months in place of a PTA meeting.  All families and their members, whether students or not, are invited for a one hour presentation starting at 6:30 PM in the Fellowship Hall on Thursday, September 24.  We will be having a special guest that night.  A beekeeper will bring a live bee colony and explain it to the families.  A snack will also be part of the night.
Box Tops for Education
BOX TOPS NEWS – We have had a wonderful response to the BOX TOPS collection!  Keep them coming!  Today, Sept. 23rd, marks the end of our first contest to see which classroom will collect the most per student.  At this writing 7th & 8th grade room is in the lead with 43 BOX TOPS per student.  Way to go 7th & 8th grades!  The 5th & 6th grade room follows with 21 per student, with Kindergarten in 3rd place closely followed by 1st grade.  The winner will be announced in next weeks PRINCIPAL’S EPISTLE.
Thanks to everyone who has been trimming the BOX TOPS.  We appreciate your help.  Watch the Epistle for the next contest deadline.
School Sweatshirt Order
St. Mark’s will again this year offer sweatshirts for sale at our cost.  All youth sizes are $15 each while adult sizes are $19 each.  An XXL costs $22.  Order forms are being sent home and are also available in the school hallway.  Orders are due Oct. 9.  These make great presents.
Happy Birthday
26        Paul P. (2), Reece A. (P2)
27        Mrs. Sherman, Gus H. (P4), Hailey D. (P4)
29        Kaitlyn B. (1)
30        Jack H. (4)
Classroom information
Mrs. Frey (P-3 & P-4)
Preschool will have fun with Letter A for Apples this week! We are excited to taste-test apples, graph our results, and use apples as stamps. We will fill our sensory table with apple pie scented mix and pie tins to create our own apple pies. We will also enjoy playdough scented with Apple Pie spice at Table Time. One of our story time books is Dr. Seuss’ Ten Apples Up On Top, which will help us learn to count apples. At Bible Time we will hear the account of Abraham and Sarah and learn how they trusted God and moved to their new home in Canaan. They were blessed by God, and so are we!
Mrs. Reynolds (PK & P-2)
In Pre-K we are learning about the letter H. The theme of the week is Homes/Houses. We will be drawing a picture of our homes and describing what we like about our homes. We will be counting the number of people that live in our homes and seeing who has the most family members at home. In Bible we will continue to look at the story of creation and how God made us, people and animals.
In Pre-2 our theme is turtles. We will be playing with green items in our sensory table. We are learning to recognize our names at circle time. We will be completing peg puzzles to work on our fine motor skills. In Bible we will continue to talk about the Creation story and start working on creation posters.
Mrs. Sherman (K)
At Bible time, Kindergarten begins a new unit, "God Blesses Families."  They will begin with the account of the family of Abraham, Sarah and hear about the special plans that God had for them.  During reading workshop, the class will hear realistic fiction and informational text as they learn to care for pets.  They will finish the alphabet review, match beginning sounds and name nouns for animals and things. The boys and girls will explore shapes and use 10 frames in math.  They continue studying weather as they identify types of clouds, observe a rain demonstration and sort clothing for different types of weather.  In the afternoon, the full day students will work in their math journals, create geo trees using shapes and play grab, count and graph with leaves.  They will illustrate and read the emergent reader "Our Colorful Fall."
Mrs. Reisenbichler (1)
This week in Jesus Time we learned about Moses.  Moses was God's chosen leader for the people of Israel.  We learned that following our leaders like parents, teachers, coaches, etc. is not always easy, but with God's help we can honor our leaders.  In math, we learned about analog clocks and the hundreds chart.  We played board games and online games to help us practice these skills.  Our science mammal was the opossum this week.  We learned many facts about the opossum, learned a song about it, and learned to draw the opossum.  Adjectives were the part of speech of the week.  We learned that adjectives add sparkle to our writing.
Ms. Rhonemus (2)
This week in second grade we made mosaic bookmarks to help keep our place in our books while keeping our books in good shape.  We also continued to work on addition and subtraction with a special focus on double facts and our +/- 9 facts.  In Social Studies we took a look at the United States geography and measurement.  We also continued to look at families and compare families we read about to our own families.  Seventh and Eighth grade science finished looking at the cardiovascular system and the lymphatic system and took at test over chapter 3.
Mrs. Mayo (3-4)
In religion, we'll be continuing learning about Jesus's first miracle.  We finished reading Helen Keller.  This week we'll watch The Miracle Worker and a documentary about Helen's later life in reading.  We'll also explore braille and sign language and make a time line about of Helen's life.  Our state to explore this week is New York.  In science, we'll learn how matter changes and do an experiment to make a polymer.  In math, the 3rd graders will be working on word problems.  The 4th graders will work on adding and subtracting multi-digit numbers.
Mr. Postenrieder (5-6)
In our Bible time this week we continued our discussion of the relationship of Isaac and Rebekah and the role God played in their relationship. We also studied Isaac blessing his sons. In 5th grade math we worked with chance events, estimating products, and the lattice method to multiplication.  In 6th grade math we took our 2nd test. We also worked with rounding, estimating, mixed numbers, average, and prime numbers. In our Language Arts time we continued reading Summer of the Monkeys and taking character notes and writing conclusion-proof paragraphs based on those notes. In Social Studies we looked at different climates in various parts of the Western Hemisphere. We will also work with climate graphs. In Science we completed our first test on Science basics.  In Spelling we worked through our fifth lesson with a theme from Proverbs 3:12.
Mr. Mayo (7,8)
We’re well into The Red Pony, and we’re picking up Steinbeck’s themes of life and death on a farm.   Some of the students have more experience with farm life than others.  Their insights are valuable as we discuss this book.  In History we’re learning why Europeans were looking for a faster way to get to the Indies, and a way to avoid the merchants, as well.  We’re learning of the Christian emphasis on telling other people the Good News as well.  It wasn’t ALL about money.
Mr. Reisenbichler (7-8)
In religion we are studying how we fit in God’s plan.  In 7th grade math the students are finding perimeter and calculating square root.  In 8th grade math we are studying polygons and triangles.  The students are learning to writie directions in communicating a project in STEM.