Central Elementary School will have Kindergarten Registration on Thurday, February 17 from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
This is for children who will be attending school in the fall of 2011.
Eligible students must be five years of age on or before August 31, 2011. Upon entering kindergarten, we need verification that all immunizations are up-to-date and a copy of your child’s birth certificate. In addition, Minnesota law requires a child to receive pre-school screening before they may enter kindergarten. This means that a student cannot enter school until a pre-school screening has been documented. If your child has not attended a pre-school screening, please contact our Community Ed. Office at 467-7390 for the next available screening date.
Kindergarten teachers, the principal, the school nurse, and the bus supervisor will be on hand to meet parents and students. Bring the whole family! Childcare will be available for siblings. Plan to attend this important event. If you are unable to attend, contact the school at (952) 467-7300 and a registration packet will be sent to you.
The staff at Central Elementary looks forward to meeting you and your child. We believe that you will find our building atmosphere to be warm and inviting for students and parents. It is a safe and secure learning environment for children K through 5th grade. In addition, the welfare of every child is our top priority necessitating ongoing curriculum development, a positive school climate, and continuous communication with parents. The elementary teachers are dedicated individuals who are student oriented. They encourage parents to actively participate in their children’s education.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Students Are Not Allowed to Talk During Lunch?
The answer is yes and no. The students go outside for recess before lunch which is 20 minutes in length. Then they come inside and get their lunches. When they sit down there is a red cup at the end of the table and the cup stays there for 5 minutes, usually less, and this means they can not talk and should focus on eating. Once the cup is removed they are allowed to converse as a normal. If it gets too loud the cup goes back down on the loud table for a set amount of time and then is removed again. The results are kids eat their lunch and the noise level has dropped tremendously. Nobody has said they can not talk, they just need to be reasonable with it. If they are yelling across the lunchroom repeatedly they may be told they can not talk because they have chosen to not follow the rules. Noise becomes an issue because we have classes going on around the lunchroom and the noise funnels through the halls. I hope you see the method to the madness.
Opportunity Snap
It’s hard to believe that the holiday season has come and gone. Where does the time gone?
As a district, we are always assessing how our students are doing academically. In addition to the informal assessments done on a daily basis we do formal assessments such as unit tests, quizzes, and we provide our students with research based and nationally normed assessments. During the month of January we will be assessing most students with our DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) reading assessment and students in grades 1-5 will take the NWEA assessment in reading, math and language. The DIBELS assessments take approximately 1 minute and the NWEA tests typically take 50-60 minutes per test. All of these assessments, when used in conjunction with each other, help to give us an accurate picture of where a student is at and how we can meet their needs.
January is the perfect time to check in on students' progress and see what type of gains they have made. Additionally, this will be a good time for teachers to look at their curriculum and instruction to determine if they are meeting the students' needs in their rooms. Teachers will also be able to look at their SMART gaols to see if they are reaching their goals or to see if adjustments need to be made.
Our teachers continue to meet two times per month as a PLC (Professional Learning Community) to look at data and to collaborate on how to best meet the needs of our students. This PLC time will also allow us to look at the various initiatives we have been working on since the beginning of the school year.
Our teachers continue to do some amazing things with our students. We are fortunate to have great students and parents to help support us in this endeavor.
As a district, we are always assessing how our students are doing academically. In addition to the informal assessments done on a daily basis we do formal assessments such as unit tests, quizzes, and we provide our students with research based and nationally normed assessments. During the month of January we will be assessing most students with our DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) reading assessment and students in grades 1-5 will take the NWEA assessment in reading, math and language. The DIBELS assessments take approximately 1 minute and the NWEA tests typically take 50-60 minutes per test. All of these assessments, when used in conjunction with each other, help to give us an accurate picture of where a student is at and how we can meet their needs.
January is the perfect time to check in on students' progress and see what type of gains they have made. Additionally, this will be a good time for teachers to look at their curriculum and instruction to determine if they are meeting the students' needs in their rooms. Teachers will also be able to look at their SMART gaols to see if they are reaching their goals or to see if adjustments need to be made.
Our teachers continue to meet two times per month as a PLC (Professional Learning Community) to look at data and to collaborate on how to best meet the needs of our students. This PLC time will also allow us to look at the various initiatives we have been working on since the beginning of the school year.
Our teachers continue to do some amazing things with our students. We are fortunate to have great students and parents to help support us in this endeavor.
Bullying from November 2010 Newsletter
Dear Central Families,
Kidding, teasing, bullying, and harassing have been happening at schools, on the ball fields, and in the backyards since who knows when. In other words, these behaviors aren’t new. Nor are these behaviors ok. And these behaviors need to be addressed when they happen.
It seems as if many people have their own definition of kidding, teasing, bullying, and harassing. I believe, before we can address these behaviors, involved parties need to agree upon a common definition. My simple definitions are:
• Kidding – When I think the joke about me is funny. In other words I can laugh at myself.
• Teasing – I don’t like what is being said about me. My feelings are hurt.
• Bullying – I’m afraid and feel intimidated. I try to avoid you, but you seek me out. A bully is a person that uses their power to intentionally (physical or psychosocial), intimidate, mistreat or hurt someone in a group that is weaker.
• Harassing – I am teased or bullied because of my race, my religion, my disability, or my gender.
I could focus on the laws and policies that govern this matter, but it really comes down to RESPECT and treating others the way we would want to be treated. I wish I could tell you that schools can fix the problem of bullying and harassment, but we can’t do it by ourselves. In my opinion the real fix has to come from the home. I encourage parents to
teach their children at an early age to respect and treat others the way they would want to be treated. It’s very important for parents to teach their children that it isn’t ok to make fun of someone different from them. I also encourage parents to teach their children how to clearly tell someone to stop teasing them before the teasing becomes bullying. I further encourage parents to help their children know when to ask for help if the teasing has turned to bullying or
harassment so it can be addressed and stopped.
With the advent of students having cell phones and using the inter-net, the problem of cyber bullying has arisen throughout our country. Cyber bullying typically is more of a middle school and high school problem, but I was made aware that this is a problem at the elementary as well. Here are a few things parents can do to keep their child safe from cyber bullying:
• Keeping the house computer in a common area of the house like your kitchen. This way you are more likely to see what your children are viewing.
• Check the websites that were visited on your home computer weekly.
• Limit cell phone use, including text messaging, for your children.
• Don’t permit cell phone use by your children in their bedrooms. You really should know whom your elementary child is talking with.
• Only have cell phones charged in a common area of your home so you know if the cell phone is being used or not.
• And finally, remember you are the adult and your child is the child. You really do know what is best. They just think they do.
Our school will continue doing our best to have a bully free and a harassment free environment. Rest assured that when bullying and harassing allegations are brought to my attention the allegations will be investigated immediately. I have always strictly followed our school district policy guidelines to stop any bullying and harassing behaviors at Central to the best of my ability. I take this part of my responsibility as your child’s principal very seriously.
Kidding, teasing, bullying, and harassing have been happening at schools, on the ball fields, and in the backyards since who knows when. In other words, these behaviors aren’t new. Nor are these behaviors ok. And these behaviors need to be addressed when they happen.
It seems as if many people have their own definition of kidding, teasing, bullying, and harassing. I believe, before we can address these behaviors, involved parties need to agree upon a common definition. My simple definitions are:
• Kidding – When I think the joke about me is funny. In other words I can laugh at myself.
• Teasing – I don’t like what is being said about me. My feelings are hurt.
• Bullying – I’m afraid and feel intimidated. I try to avoid you, but you seek me out. A bully is a person that uses their power to intentionally (physical or psychosocial), intimidate, mistreat or hurt someone in a group that is weaker.
• Harassing – I am teased or bullied because of my race, my religion, my disability, or my gender.
I could focus on the laws and policies that govern this matter, but it really comes down to RESPECT and treating others the way we would want to be treated. I wish I could tell you that schools can fix the problem of bullying and harassment, but we can’t do it by ourselves. In my opinion the real fix has to come from the home. I encourage parents to
teach their children at an early age to respect and treat others the way they would want to be treated. It’s very important for parents to teach their children that it isn’t ok to make fun of someone different from them. I also encourage parents to teach their children how to clearly tell someone to stop teasing them before the teasing becomes bullying. I further encourage parents to help their children know when to ask for help if the teasing has turned to bullying or
harassment so it can be addressed and stopped.
With the advent of students having cell phones and using the inter-net, the problem of cyber bullying has arisen throughout our country. Cyber bullying typically is more of a middle school and high school problem, but I was made aware that this is a problem at the elementary as well. Here are a few things parents can do to keep their child safe from cyber bullying:
• Keeping the house computer in a common area of the house like your kitchen. This way you are more likely to see what your children are viewing.
• Check the websites that were visited on your home computer weekly.
• Limit cell phone use, including text messaging, for your children.
• Don’t permit cell phone use by your children in their bedrooms. You really should know whom your elementary child is talking with.
• Only have cell phones charged in a common area of your home so you know if the cell phone is being used or not.
• And finally, remember you are the adult and your child is the child. You really do know what is best. They just think they do.
Our school will continue doing our best to have a bully free and a harassment free environment. Rest assured that when bullying and harassing allegations are brought to my attention the allegations will be investigated immediately. I have always strictly followed our school district policy guidelines to stop any bullying and harassing behaviors at Central to the best of my ability. I take this part of my responsibility as your child’s principal very seriously.
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