Vic Pitre February 2016 Newsletter

The Pirate
Picayune
February 2016
Vic A. Pitre Elementary School
1525 Spruce Street
Westwego, Louisiana 70094
From the Principal’s Desk
Greetings Pitre Families,
Phone: (504) 341 – 6517
Fax: (504) 341 – 9527
We are in high gear to ensure that all
Mr. Wesley P. Taylor, Jr.
Principal
top priorities are reading fluency and
School Website:
http://pitre.jpschools.org
of our students are really experiencing
success, but we need your help. Our
reading comprehension. You can help
by reading to and with your child as
often as possible. The public library is
a great place to spend quality family
time while getting immersed in a good
book! Also, engaging your child in
conversations that involve them
listening and speaking can increase
their ability to think critically.
MISSION STATEMENT
Encourage them to ask questions and
justify their thinking in everyday
Vic A Pitre seeks to create a
culture of learning that
promotes high expectations
and mastery of academic
content through effective
instructional practices that
engage and challenge the
learner.
conversations. By becoming actively
involved in the learning process outside
of school, you can play a key role in
knowing that students will experience
a greater level of success in school!
Have a safe and fun-filled Mardi Gras!
~Mr. Taylor
1
The Pirate Picayune
Page 2
CLASSROOM NEWS & NOTES
Pre K
Ms. Francis & Ms. Elaine, Ms. Kizzy & Ms. Chrystal
Pre-K celebrated 100 days of school on January 29th. We made a 100 day collage, counted 100 fruit loops
and raisins, and sang songs. Our celebration was awesome.
Kindergarten
Mrs. Berry, Ms. Cantelli:
In Kindergarten, we are continuing to learn many new things! We had a blast celebrating our 100th day of
school! Thank you to all the parents who helped their child with their 100th Day projects. They look
beautiful hanging in our rooms. Our list of sight words is growing quickly, so make sure your child is
practicing every night. We are very proud to announce that some of our kindergartners have begun to read
leveled books on their own. Way to go! In math, we have begun to learn all about addition. We hope
everyone has a safe and wonderful Mardi Gras!
3rd Grade
Ms. Stewart:
We are currently working on Equivalent Fractions. We continue to use I-Ready to prepare for upcoming
testing. AWESOME JOB to Thaij Rothschild for always having a great attitude!
PE
Coach Auzout, Coach Dana:
PE is ready to kick off some awesome activities. Elmwood Fitness Center and Ochsner will be coming to
our school to teach the importance of physical fitness and health. 4th and 5th graders will have the
opportunity to exercise on fitness equipment and participate in cardio activities twice a week. Please
make sure to turn in your permission form. 1st thru 5th grade will also be led through nutrition courses
once a week. Our American Heart Association – Jump Rope for Hearts fundraiser is well on its way.
This fundraiser runs through February 29. In PE we are also focused around testing that is coming up in
April. We utilize the computer lab during PE once a week. The students work on I-Ready and Lexia. On
off days, we continue to get some drills and games of basketball in.
The Pirate Picayune
Page 3
CLASSROOM NEWS & NOTES
5th Grade
Ms Bay:
Ms. Bay’s Social Studies classes participated in Vic A. Pitre’s first Social Studies Fair in December! The
students presented their projects to their class and at Science and Social Studies Night. Ms. Bay is so
proud of the variety of topics and obvious effort that the students put into their projects. ALL of the
students benefitted from the individual work done as we learned about so many different topics in history,
economics, political science, anthropology, and geography. Tom Gregory from WYES, as well as Mr.
Taylor, Ms. Larche, Mr. Rhoden, and Ms. Caiton were the judges of the fair projects. The following
students placed in the competition:
First Place
JhaNiya Jones- The Great Plains Indian Tribe
Jerome Victor- The Boston Tea Party
Cadince Vincent- Test Anxiety
Brent Taylor- The Golden Gridiron
Second Place
Terrell Luke- The History of Music
Madeline Biggers- The History of Lucy
Madison Moser- New Orleans
Truc Bui- What do you really know about Egyptians?
Third Place
Bryant Price- New York
Brian Riggins- Isis
Eric Hill- The Holocaust
Dante’ Leyva- The Manhattan Project
The Grand Prize Winner that will continue on to the Jefferson Parish
Regional fair is Brent Taylor.
The winners of the Social Studies Fair were photographed and interviewed by the Times Picayune.
This month, the classes will continue test prep for the upcoming state testing as well as continuing to
study early exploration and the establishment of The English Colonies in America.
The Pirate Picayune
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Pirate Corner
Smoothie Days
$ 3.00
February 5 & 19
Share news of encouragement,
thanks, compliments, friendly
messages, etc.
 Thaij … Awesome job for
always having a great attitude!
~ B. Stewart
 Happy Birthday Ka’Lyn and
Nathaniel!
~ Ms. Francis &Ms. Elaine
February Birthdays
What It Means to Me
By: Colton Volkert
Ken’dric Williams, Ka’Lyn Joseph,
Saniya Caffrey, Hashia Dotson,
Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man
Davon Banks, Nathaniel Wilson,
helped initiate the Civil Rights Movement in the United
England Green, Moses Charles,
Trayvon Toliver, R’Aiona Edmond,
Layla Robinson, Theron Sonia, Sinai
Caceres-Ruiz, Kaylynn Williams,
Antoine Turner, Markayla Moore,
Kamryn Foucher, Jamel Nash,
Hasham Diaz, Eriyol Hill, Dante’
Leyva, Emile Kirk
on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus in 1955. She
States. The leaders of the black community
organized a Bus Boycott that began the day Parks was
convicted of violating the segregation laws. The Bus
Boycott was led by a young Pastor named Martin
Luther King Jr. The boycott lasted 381 days. The U.S.
Supreme Court ruled that bus segregation was over. In
the struggle to end segregation, I thought Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. was a hero. He ended segregation
without making war. He was awarded with Nobel
Peace Prize.
The Pirate Picayune
Page 5

Pitre Café
Important Dates & Events
Have an adult help you make this fun snack!
to
On the menu this month:
Remember
Nutty Cheese Ball
Ingredients:
February
1-5 : Interim Reports issued
8 – 12 : Mardi Gras Break
22 : Early Release Day
22 : Parent Conference Day

1 3-ounce package cream cheese, softened

Worcestershire sauce

1 lb Colby or cheddar cheese

1/2 lb. Velveeta Cheese

l dash garlic powder
Preparation:
1. Grate Velveeta and Colby cheese in a bowl.
2. Mix in cream cheese.
3. Add other ingredients and form in a roll or
ball.
4. Sprinkle paprika on wax paper evenly and roll
cheese in it.
5. Finely chop pecans and roll in nuts.
6. Serve with crackers.
Parents, please sign and return this bottom portion to your child’s teacher for
them to receive 2 Tickets !!!
Child’s Name ________________________________________________________
Parent’s Signature ____________________________________________________
The Pirate Picayune
Page 6
PBIS
Student of the Month
Pre K - 2nd Grade
3rd - 5th Grade
Anthony Johnson
Myli Price
PBIS RULES
1. Be Safe
2. Be Respectful
3. Be Responsible
4. Be a Problem Solver
The Pirate Picayune
Page 7
http://pitre.jpschools.org
Fun Interesting Facts for Kids
Clip those box
1. Teachers will receive the most
Valentine’s Day cards.
tops and turn

them in to
Lots of information
~ District events
~ Useful resources
2. Over $1 billion worth of chocolate
Ms. B. Stewart
Happy Clipping !!!
is purchased for Valentine’s Day in
the United States.
3. 189 million stems of roses are sold
in the United States on Valentine’s
~ Faculty directory
Day.
~ Important phone
www.sheknows.com
numbers
Something to think about……
Something to talk about……
Something to research………
Have you ever wondered about this ????
1.
Can
metal
pieces
get
stuck
together in space?
2. Why do balloons run out of air?
3. Why do babies grab fingers?
www.highlightskids.com
The Pirate Picayune
Page 8
Fun
Days for
Pirates
Upcoming events
February 3 - PBIS Meeting 7:45 am
February 4 – Gold Coin Event:
Computer Time
February 5 – Gold Coin Event: King
Cake Party
February 16
February 18 – Gold Coin Event: Art
Day
February 24 - Gold Coin Day
February 25 – Gold Coin Event: Movie
Time
PTO CORNER
Elected officers:
Ms. Sholana Frazier-Johnson : President, Treasurer
Ms. Theresa Wiley : Vice President
Ms. Tori Hoffman : Secretary
vicpitrepto@gmail.com
PTO is looking
for parent
volunteers!
The Pirate Picayune
Page 9
A Piece of New Orleans History Comes to Pitre
On January 14, the New Orleans Society of Dance, New Orleans Baby Doll Ladies
featuring Musical Ambassador, DJ Hektik visited Pitre. What was so special about this
visit? The NOSD Baby Doll Ladies bring—not only a fabulous performance, but the 104
year old history of doll masquerading and parading in New Orleans. The Baby Doll
Ladies is a masking, music, and dance group committed to preserving and promoting
women’s arts in New Orleans and the surrounding areas. They are the only Baby Doll
group that, not only continues the Mardi Gras tradition of masking, but is a professional
dance company as well, and are dedicated to teaching others about the history of Baby
Doll organizations. In 2014, they were one of eight Performance Groups selected to
participate in the 88th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Currently, they are
making history once again. This year, on Mardi Gras Day, the ladies will be the first
Baby Doll group, in history, to have an official walking parade, in cooperation with the
City Of New Orleans’ Economic Preservation Office.
Ms. Ricky is a part of the NOSD Baby Doll Ladies. Her name is Baby Doll Lady Fun Size.
After the presentation, students were selected to participate in activities that included
dance, music, and mask making. Check out the fun activities!
The Pirate Picayune
Page 10
The Garden Club
Ms. Cobb, Ms. Cobb….How does your garden grow?
Ms. Cobb wrote a grant for Pitre to
receive a garden in our yard. Pitre
was granted the funds. Ms. Cobb
and the Garden Club has been
working very hard and step by step
to get this garden up and running.
Just look at the progress! Having
this garden opens many learning
opportunities for our students. There
is so much more behind a garden
than flowers. Our students will learn
how to grow food. This garden will
teach our students how to harvest
food and cook meals from the land.
There are many lessons that we can
teach from this garden. Our students
can learn about sequence, cause and
effect, many science experiments,
math lessons, and even health. This
is a great experience for our
students. Thanks to the students,
parents, grandparents, teachers,
and Ms. Cobb for the endless efforts!
We are excited and looking forward
to the end results!