on Tuesday, October 15th - Mad River Local Schools

Virginia Stevenson
Elementary
Mad River
A Title I School
Local Schools
October 1, 2013
Cory Miller, Principal
Darlene Miller, Secretary
Phone
937-259-6630
A Note from the Principal….
Special points of
interest:
he week of October 7th is called October count week. This is very important to the
schools because Mad River receives funding from the state for the total number of students in attendance each day this week. If your child should be out sick, please make sure
you call the school office to notify us, and send a written note with him/her when they return to
school.
 District Events pg. 2
O
 3rd Grade Guarantee 5
T
P
 Calendar pg 3
 Community Update pg 2
 School News pg 4
 Counselors Corner pg 4
ur third graders will be taking the Ohio Reading Achievement Test Tuesday, Oct. 8.
Students have up to 2 1/2 hours to take this test. It is very important that they have a good nights sleep and a
good breakfast before the test.
arents you will continue to hear about the 3rd Grade Guarantee from the Ohio Department of Education.
The law states if a student is struggling in Reading they will be placed on a RIMP plan, Please read page 5 for
more information.
S
tevenson uses student data and differentiates to meet each child's need. Teachers do this in their own classroom, during intervention and during flexible Reading and Math groups. The term flexible groups might be
new for some parents but it is a model that has been used successfully for years in education. If you have
questions about flexible grouping or want more information please ask your child's teacher.
Fall Weather Again!
Again a reminder about the cool weather. Please make sure your child is wearing or
bringing a jacket to school. If it gets warm, they can always put it in their book bag.
Important Dates:
OCTOBER 2nd - SCHOOL PICTURES
Thursday, October 17th
1:10 Early Dismissal
Friday October 18th
No School
Stevenson Math Committee is
hosting a “Monster Math” on
Tuesday, October 15th
Learn About the District’s Schools & Programs
WHAT: A unique opportunity for parents and members of the Riverside Community to come
and learn more about the district’s schools and programs
Over thirty booths and stations, which will allow parents to experience the everyday
education their children receive. Some of these booths include:
● Career Technology
● Athletics
● Military Family Information
● Food Services
● Special Education Resources
● Community Resources
At 6:30 p.m. parents and community members are invited to attend a special information
session in the auditorium from Sgt. Jones of the Riverside Police Department on bullying.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The event is free and open to the public. Hot dogs and refreshments
will be served. For additional information, call 937-259-6609.
LOCATION: Stebbins High School – Hall of Fame/Auditorium
Drop Off &Pick-Up Procedures
Due to an increase of drop offs and pick-ups, it is important to remember the following procedures in order for our students to safely enter and leave the building:
No student shall be dropped off prior to 7:45 am
Please pull up to the curb and let your child/children out of the car on the curb side when
dropping them off.
If you need to come into the building with your child/children, pull into a parking space so
you do not cause a backup of traffic flow.
When picking up your child:
It is important we are patient and join the line of cars who are waiting for their child
Please do not pull in a parking spot and wait for your child, this creates a back up as well as
multiple safety concerns (only use the parking spots if you are entering office)
If your child is a walker please wait on the steps near the board office. Students will be escorted across the parking lot
Stevenson Status
Page 3
Calendar of Events
October
2
Fall School Picture Day
4
PBS reward Day (kickball)
4
Bush, Hearns & Ottmar Field Trip to Boonshoft
9
PTO Meeting 5:30 pm (Library)
10
Gr 2 Music Performance at 6:30 pm
15
Family Math Night at 6 pm
17
Early Release at 1:10 pm (end of 1st qtr)
18
No School
31– 11/8 Book Fair
November
1
PBS reward Day (WII dance party)
6
PTO Meeting 5:30 pm (Library)
7
Parent/Teacher Conferences 5-9 pm
8
NO SCHOOL for Students—Parent/Teacher
Conferences
11 NO SCHOOL for Students—Prof. Dev.
14 Parent/Teacher Conferences 5-8:30 pm
20 Fall picture re-take day
26 PBS reward Day (gym)
27-29 NO SCHOOL—Thanksgiving
MORNING: Erin Kavanagh, Jeremiah Parton,
Mackenzie Shirk, Nikki Huber , Kyan Thorton
AFTERNOON: Aniyah Gregory, Chanya
Spratt, Stephanie Likens, Jesirae Yarbrough
Stevenson held fourth graders audition for 10
spots to become the new voice of Stevenson Elementary. The top ten candidates for the new
voice of Stevenson were selected Friday, September 20th. The staff at Stevenson would like
to thank the candidates who chose to participate.
Congratulations Morning Announcers
Neya Ames-Ravenel
Day’Shaun Elijiah
Jesirae Yarbrough
Shaunna Hasty
Xander Cullum
Stacey Jones
Isaris Walters
Justin Lovette
Kadience Roberts
Connor Kaufmann
Nikki Huber
Stevenson Status
Page 4
SCHOOL BUSINESS— What’s Been Happening?
Stevenson 4th grade
Stevenson 3rd grade
Fourth Grade went on a field trip to Sunwatch Indian
Village. The students are learning about Ohio's early
people and we got to see first hand how they might
have lived. We were able to walk through what their
homes would have been like, play
musical instruments that were made
out of gourds and learn dance steps.
We enjoyed our visit and it has made
our learning of their way of life more
understandable.
Third grade students, teachers, and parents had a
great day at Carillon Historical Park. We learned
many things about the history of the Miami Valley
from its founding in 1796. We saw many important
contributions made in Dayton through the Park’s
historical buildings, artifacts, and exhibits. A favorite was seeing the 1905 Wright Flyer III, invented
and flown in Dayton by Orville and Wilbur Wright.
Each class spent an hour in an 1896 one-room
schoolhouse. We experienced the same type of
classroom that a 1st – 8th grader would have experienced long ago, including oil lamps for light, wood
for heat, and chalk slates to write on. The environment was realistic right down to the strict teacher
carrying a paddle! Each student had an opportunity to write with a pen dipped in an ink well. We
found it more messy and challenging than our pens
and pencils of today. It was an exciting adventure to
see how Dayton’s own inventors and inventions
Counseling Corner (Mr. Ward)
Playing… and Learning!
Weaving lessons into everyday life, especially fun activities like a
game that your child chose to play with you, is a very effective
means of education. Here are some ideas to turn an ordinary
game into a springboard to impart timeless values for your children. Remember that often actions speak louder than words.
Integrity: The urge to win a game can become so powerful that
we are moved to cheating. You can discuss the benefits of honesty
and the detriments of cheating, while playing a board game with
your kids.
Here are some winning points:
Winning: It is human nature to feel good when you win, but how
did you make your opponent feel? Did you gloat in arrogance or
handle the winning with modesty?
Taking advantage of the weak: While playing a game with your
child, there are abundant opportunities to take advantage of other
players who are younger, less experienced, or not as attentive to
the rules. This is a good time to talk about fairness versus aggression.
Be happy with what you have: There is a fine line between striving to become better and being content with who you are and
what you have now. Share insights with your children that oftentimes when looking back the bad things were blessings in disguise.
The glass is half full: Whether you won or lost, you as the parent
can use the game as an opportunity to complement your child on
a smart move, or getting along with another player amicably. No
matter how well or poorly the game was played; you can always
find a way to praise an aspect of how your child played.
Here’s to your success!
Mark.ward@madriverschools.org
BOX TOPS!!
Please remember that Stevenson is continuing to collect Box
Tops for Education this year. Last year Stevenson students
brought in 21, 234 box tops which brought in over $2, 100 for
our PTO. Our goal is to have every student bring in at least 10
Box Tops per month. If your student brings in at least 10 (or
more) his/her name will be put into a drawing for a $10 gift
card to Barnes and Noble. The class with the highest Box Tops
per month will get to display the golden scissors and have
bragging rights for that month. We will be keeping track to see
which class is “blowing by the competition” with yearly totals
in the main hallway. Happy collecting!
WHEN: Tuesday, October 22rd—5:30 p.m. 7:30 p.m.
Beginning in the 2013-2014 school year, any child that scores in the low Basic range (below a
392) on the 3rd Grade Ohio Achievement Assessment (OAA) will not move on to 4th grade.
To help us prepare for this and intervene earlier, the State has said that every child in grades
K-3 must take a reading assessment by September 30, 2012, to determine if they are “on
track” to be reading at a proficient level by the end of the third grade.
Having students participate in multiple assessments is not something new to students attending Mad River Local Schools. Teachers use this data to provide more tailored instruction to your child. All students within Mad River Local Schools participate in some level of
academic intervention throughout the year. This could be a small group, a large group, or
even a specific goal within the classroom. Mad River has taken pride in its student achievement growth throughout the past decade.
What is new this school year is the level of accountability this law brings. Regardless of
what growth a student has made, they will be retained in the 3rd grade if they don’t meet the
minimum cut score.
The law requires us to communicate to parents when a child is “not on track.” The district
will be doing this in the next few weeks. Further, if your child is “not on track” your child’s
teacher will review a Reading Instruction & Monitoring Plan (RIMP) during conferences or
before.
As a parent, this means you should continue to do what teachers have long advocated for:
1. Be involved with your child’s school.
2. Ensure you know if your child is performing on grade level or not.
3. Continue to read, practice math facts, and provide an environment for homework at
home.
Please, ask your child’s teacher if you have questions about his/her progress.
Throughout the coming year, the district will strive to keep you informed about the impact of this
law.
Taking Care of Freddy the Freeloader
Prevention and early detection are the best ways to deal with lice. Unfortunately, no one can know when or where a child will be exposed to
these pesky critters; and your child’s school can’t know every child
who’s had lice. As parents, you can play a key role in preventing the
spread of head lice. We recommend that parents check their child’s
head once a week.
Friday is a great day to check your child’s head…
Before she goes to a friend’s house to spend the night
Before he visits Grandma for dinner
Before you and your child snuggle up to watch a movie
Before school starts Monday morning
Before Freddy the Freeloader has the chance to invite his whole
family
So make Every Friday
Finding Freddy the Freeloader Day!