Muscatine Community School District Important Dates!
March 1st-Send home letters for conference invites March 1st- PTO at 6:00 in the Teachers’ Lounge March 2nd- Spring Picture Day from 8:1511:15 March 2nd-Music Makers 3:15-4:10 March 4th- Harry Potter Club Quidditch 3:104:30 in the gym March 4th-Conference letters due to the Madison Office March 8th-Dean Jacobs Presentation-A Journey with Mountain Gorillas 10:00-11:00 March 9th- Music Makers 3:15-4:10 March 11th-Madison Movie Night March 15th & 16th -Parent Teacher Conference Days 4:00-7:30 pm
Madison School March 2016 A Language Rich Home The good news is that strong language skills can make your student a better reader, writer, and all around student. You as a parent can build those skills each and every day by just talking to your child. Here are some ideas to try, narrate everyday activities like driving to the store or running an errand. Hearing unfamiliar words in conversation will help your child understand words in books. “Please hand me the colander so that I can drain the spaghetti.” If your child doesn’t know a word, explain: “This is a colander. Water drains through the holes and the spaghetti stays in the colander.” Encourage your child to join in family conversations. Ask questions to help your student explore language and then expand his/her answers. “Why do you think that?” “What else happened?” will help your child to learn to talk about events and give her/his opinions.
March 17th- 2 hour early dismissal due to conferences March 18th-No School conference make-up date March 21st-25th No School Spring Break March 28th-School Resumes/first day of 3rd quarter March 30th-Music Makers 3:15-4:10
March 24th-PTO Meeting 6:00pm (this may
Kindergarten Round Up Wednesday, April 7th 2900 Mulberry Ave. 8:00 AM-7:00 PM Bring your child’s state issued birth certificate, immunization card, and the Iowa Department of Public Health dental screening form. A dental hygienist from Trinity Muscatine Public Health will be on site to perform the required dental screening.
Friday, April 29th is Kindergarten Visit All new Kindergartners and their parents at their own home school.
Title 1 at Madison School Madison Elementary is a Muscatine School that has a Title 1 school wide reading program. This is a federal program to help support student learning, specifically literacy in grades K-2 and meet academic standards. The Title 1 teachers at Madison are highly qualified. Mrs. Donna Godden-Alloway is a full time reading teacher at Madison. Her undergraduate degree is from Buena Vista University. She is qualified for K-8 reading and has a Masters as a professional educator from Morningside College. Her endorsements include reading and English as a Second Language. Mrs. Godden-Alloway maintains an Iowa Teaching License. Savannah Skidmore is a part time Title teacher at Madison School. Ms. Skidmore is at Madison in the afternoons and Franklin each morning. She too has an Iowa teacher’s license. Ms. Skidmore has an undergraduate classroom teaching degree for the general classroom for grades K-6, an English/Language Arts endorsement for grades K-8, as well as a reading endorsement for K-8. Muscatine Community School District Elementary Schools’ Title I teachers are highly qualified for the grade levels and content areas taught. However, if the occasion arises that there is an unqualified substitute teacher in a Title position for the period of four or more consecutive weeks, the district will notify parents as required by the state.
News from the Nurse During the months of March through May, the school nurse will be presenting updated health information to grades 2-5. Second graders will view the video, “Happy, Healthy, Drug-Free Me.” This video talks about behaviors and feelings that promote good self-esteem as well as the health consequences of alcohol and tobacco. “My Plate” will be presented to the third graders. Information will be presented to students about the Food Groups and the importance of exercise. School Nurses want students to get excited about exercising and developing healthy habits. The focus of fourth grade is “Blood Borne Pathogens and Other Traveling Germs.” This video reinforces good hand washing habits and teaches safety in situations where blood may be involved. (i.e. sports or playground injuries, nosebleeds, etc.) Fifth graders will view a brief video entitled, “Immune System: Doing Its Part.” Information will be provided to students about how our body fights off viruses and disease, and what causes allergies. Any parent/guardian desiring more information on the content of any health teaching may contact the school nurse.
Staying Healthy is the Blue Zone Way!!! Madison School is challenging all the students at Madison to get healthy. Instead of bringing sugary calorie laden drinks to school, consider the reasons for drinking more water: 1. More Energy-a major cause of fatigue and weakness is dehydration. Proper hydration helps maintain clear thinking and better concentration. 2. Healthy Skin-consuming enough water hydrates your skin and flushes the toxins out of your body! 3. Weight Loss-Staying hydrated ensures that your organs work optimally. This increases your metabolism, allowing you to burn more fat. Plus water has NO calories! 4. You Need It- Water allows nutrients and oxygen to travel to organs and cells. Water also regulates our body temperature, removes waste and protects your child’s joints and organs.
Healthy Eating for the Blue Zones and Madison Students Madison is a school that continues to support healthy Blue Zone choices. As parents, you can support this endevor from home in a very easy way. Parents traditionally send snacks to school once or twice a year at Madison. Please take a look at the snack that you are sending for the class and make a healthy choice. Cookies and cupcakes, while just fine for a special occasion, are full of sugar and empty calories. Please consider sending a treat that is both fun and healthy for kids!
Madison Families, Just a reminder at midyear from the first of the school year that we do not want toys and games from home brought to school during the school day. The classrooms have games and items for students to play with during inside recess when that occurs, but students should not be bringing toys, stuffed animals, ipod’s, etc. to school for use during the school day. The following is from the letter sent out during the first week of school: “Personal Property. Personal property may not be brought to school, please remember that the school’s function is student learning, toys and games should be left at home.”
