Martin Luther King Jr. Day
This year, we are going to introduce Martin Luther King Jr. day to students on January 9th at 2:00 PM during an all-school assembly in the gym. The assembly will be connected to our Second Step Social/Emotional learning curriculum by teaching through the theme of empathy. We will be working with students to learn more about empathy and think about how empathy connects to the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The day off from school will be held on the 21st. We are just trying to turn this into a month-long learning opportunity for students.
Every subsequent month through the remainder of the school year, we will feature a different Lifeskill (or word). The word of the month will be featured at an assembly at the beginning of the month. We will monitor successful application of the concept through the month and then recognize individual students who have stood out from the crowd in terms of their ability to bring the concept to life in their daily lives. Individual student recognitions will be delivered in each of the classrooms at the end of each month.
No School Days and Early Release in January
- January 21st: No School in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- January 9, 16, 23, and 30: Early Release days. School dismisses at 2:42 PM
- February 1st: Half Day. School dismisses at 12:15 PM.
Walk and Roll
It is almost time to Walk and Roll again. This month, we will host our 4th Walk and Roll event on Wednesday, January 9th. Choose from 2 meeting locations: Bigelow Park or the Olympia Little Theatre. Both locations will gather at 8:30 AM and begin walking at 8:35 AM. We will walk rain or shine. Hope to see you all there!
Upcoming Events
- January 9th Walk and Roll @ 8:25 AM
- January 9th Early Release @ 2:42 PM
- January 9th Lifeskill Assembly @ 2:00 PM
- January 11th Vision and Hearing Screening @ 12:30 PM
- January 11th Movie Night @ 6:15 PM
- January 14th PTA Meeting @ 6:30 PM
- January 16th Early Release @ 2:42 PM
- January 21st No School-MLK Jr. Day
- January 23rd Early Release @ 2:42 PM
- January 26th Winter Fest @ Roosevelt
- January 28th Read-a-thon Assembly @ 9:10 AM
- January 30th Early Release @ 2:42 PM
- February 1st Movie Night @ 6:15 PM
- February 1st Early Release @ 12:15 PM
- February 1st Read-a-thon Begins!
Attendance Celebration
In December we recognized and celebrated our students with excellent attendance for the first three months of school. Not only did we have 40 students with perfect attendance for the fall quarter, we had almost 200 additional students who missed less than 2 days each of those months. In looking at the data it was also noticed there are students who may have been sick or absent on vacation for an extended amount of time within a month, but have had little no absences otherwise; that means they are on track for the school year, and we celebrate that as well. A final celebratory note – improved attendance! There are several students who have struggled with attendance in previous years, but have shown significant improvement this year. To all of you we say, your effort is celebrated. Don’t forget, please let us know if you are struggling with barriers to good attendance. It is our goal to help and assist, not judge and punish. We know there are many challenges to regular attendance and want to work with you to problem-solve those situations.
Construction Update
Construction continues to make forward progress. We are still on schedule to complete the entire project by the end of August, 2019. Over winter break, we moved 7 classrooms to different locations. B pod is now open and has been fully renovated. The plan is to have all 2nd and 3rd grade classrooms in B pod and all kindergarten and 1at grade classrooms in C pod. This process is almost complete. Mrs. Retherford’s 3rd grade classroom will join everyone in B-pod during spring break.
Currently, A pod is under construction. Demolition started on the 3rd of January. This pod will be our special services pod. It will provide office spaces for our psychologist, counselor, ELL teacher, speech/language therapist, occupational therapist, and BHR therapist. A-pod will also have a classroom space for our resource room, LEAP classroom, and a new preschool. This phase is scheduled to be completed right before spring break. We will move everyone to their new spaces over spring break.
After spring break, the construction crew will take over the current cafeteria space. To make this happen, we are going to remove the carpet from the current gym and turn it into the cafeteria until the end of the year. The cafeteria will offer a cold lunch service until the end of the school year. PE will take place outside in the spring. As the weather improves, we hope to be able to eat outside a bit as well. The move to turn over the cafeteria will help keep the crew on schedule to complete by the end of summer. I can’t wait to see this beautiful new school be completed.
Library News
Battle Of The Books begins! Today Jan 7, kids will begin checking out books for the Battle of The Books (BOB). All 4th and 5th grade students will compete on teams to read books and answer questions. At our final battle in April (watch the newsletter and check the school website for date and time), there will be winning teams in both 4th grade and 5th grade. A letter will be going home in Monday folders with more details, including the book titles. Follow this link for a copy of the letter. This competition gets kids working together, reading lots of books, and having fun!
We are getting back to normal in our third month in our newly remodeled library space. While there are a few details left to finish, we are getting settled in and the library is operating at its normal pace with regular classes and checkouts. Stop in when you have a chance, look around, and say “Hi”.
PTA News
Welcome back and a Happy New Year! There are a lot of fun activities coming up:
January Movie Night Featuring My Neighbor Totoro, Friday, January 11th 6:30pm
Join us at PTA Family Movie Night on Friday, January 11th to see "My Neighbor Totoro." Doors open at 6:15 and the movie begins at 6:30. This free event is sponsored by the PTA. Bring cushions or blankets to sit on and enjoy free popcorn! Children must be accompanied by an adult throughout the movie. Please confirm that this movie is appropriate for your child. There are many good resources including commonsensemedia.org. Questions? Contact [email protected].
PTA Meeting, Monday January 14th 6:15pm to 7:30pm in Roosevelt’s Library
Come learn more about the upcoming and ongoing events at Roosevelt! Open discussion from 6:15 to 6:30, followed by PTA business from 6:30 to 7:30. There will be snacks! There will be childcare! There will be…no reason not to join us! We hope to see you there!
Winterfest, January 26th 1pm-3pm at Roosevelt
Join us for Winterfest on January 26th! From 1-3pm, Roosevelt will be transformed into a wintery carnival of fun! Chill out with snow inspired crafts and games and then warm up with the hot cocoa buffet. Keep an eye out in the Monday folders for more information about the activities. We still need a few volunteers to make this snowy spectacular happen, so please contact Katie Douglas at [email protected] if you’re available to help. We hope to see you there!
Read-a-thon, throughout the month of February
The 2019 Roosevelt Readathon is coming... in February! The last week of January, your children will attend an assembly on the rules and prizes, then they’ll bring home a packet for keeping track of their reading and fundraising. Spread the word among your relatives: this is a great way to encourage a love of reading AND help the PTA continue to bring fun activities to our school!
Roosevelt School Play, March 8th and 9th
Save the date for our School Play, Annie Jr! Tickets will go on sale soon for performances on March 8th and March 9th. You can bet your bottom dollar that it’s going to be a great show! More information to come.