Circle Towanda Elementary

Mrs. Terri Turner, Principal ~ tturner@usd375.org

Towanda Primary ~ Early Childhood - 2nd grade

316-536-2728

Towanda Intermediate ~ 3rd - 6th grade

316-536-2281

Wow! I cannot believe it is already time for March! Time does fly when you are having fun! I enjoy this position so much due to all of your children, the teachers and staff and due to your support as parents. It does make a tremendous difference in a school. I feel blessed to continue to call Circle Towanda Elementary my home!

February kicked off an exciting time for our sixth graders at CTE! We had a visit from the administrators at Circle Middle School. They came to meet with our sixth grade students. Our sixth graders were so nervous yet excited about the meeting. We also began the planning for our next Career Fair at the end of the month. We have many amazing professions in our area. It is exciting for 5th and 6th graders to be exposed to their potential future paths!

A big event that is coming this month is conferences. It is crazy that we finished the third quarter on February 28th!! What a great year it has been so far. We will be hosting all the conferences at the Primary School again. This was very successful in the past. I think we have found a solution to the problem of having parents run back and forth between buildings. Our 3-6 teachers will be in the gym/lunchroom and the Primary Teachers will be in their classrooms.

We will be sharing a google form through email again on March 4th. This is a parent survey about our school. It will take 5-10 minutes to complete. We are required to offer the survey each year as we work to improve our schools. I shared it back at the end of January but we only had 30 responses. I am hoping to get a few more. You do not need to complete the survey again if you are one of the 30, yay for you!!! This survey will be used as part of our Kansas Education Systems Accreditation (KESA). Our school has set our goals to improve relationships and relevance. I hope that you will take the time to complete this survey prior to conferences. Please keep watching for it on March 4th.

March 3rd will be the kick-off for a brief fundraiser we are doing for the Tyler Robinson Foundation. This organization raises funds for the out-of-pocket expenses parents face when they have a child with cancer. We feel like it is a worthwhile cause that requires little more than sharing any change you may have in your pocket. Please watch our FB page for more information. This is the second year to host this fundraiser. Last year we were able to raise $2000 for this wonderful foundation.

We will also be asking parents of students who are in the Title 1 program to complete a brief survey on the program. We need your input to make sure we are meeting the needs of the students in our school. We strive to help students make the growth they need in order to be successful adults in the future. I’ll thank you in advance for completing the survey.

Now, back to conferences...please try to set a reminder on your phone with your scheduled time for the meeting with your child’s teacher. I know they have been working hard to get your child prepared to move on to the next grade. It is always sad to think that this is the last time a couple grades will be in their current building after conferences. Our second graders will move on to the “big” Intermediate School and our sixth graders are moving on to CMS! I am always somber when I think of the upcoming changes. Our kids mean so much to us at the school. They are our children and we share the very same desire that you do at home…SUCCESS! That is why conferences are so important. We want to share your child’s successes with you and any concerns we may have. We would also need to hear any concerns you may have about your child’s progress. You were their first teachers and you have a much better picture over the years than a classroom teacher would. We have the snapshot for the time they are in our rooms. Please share anything you believe may be beneficial for your child’s teacher to know.

We will also share the many upcoming events with you. We have state testing that will occur with our 3-6th grade students in April. We can share the results of our NWEA tests as well. Our teachers put a great deal of time preparing information that they believe is important for you to know. We all look forward to seeing your smiling faces come through the doors.

I do have a few reminders about conferences for you…

• If you find that you are running late for your child’s conference, please call to reschedule. If you are late, it can throw all the conferences after yours off as well. Time is so important for everyone. No one likes to have to wait.

• Be considerate of the time. If you need to speak with your child’s teacher longer, set up a follow-up time with them. We don’t want to rush anyone but we also don’t want to shortchange the next parent.

• Listen with an open mind. Sometimes we do have to tell you tough things. Trust me, no teacher looks forward to sharing concerns. It is difficult for us as well. We also have our own children who sometimes need reminders. We do get it. Please just don’t blame us if there is a concern. Again, we just want the same thing all of you do, success for your child.

• Finally, know that we love your child and think they are pretty darn special as well. Come with your questions and we will do our best to answer them or let you know that we will find the answer for you. Don’t hesitate to come see me if you have any concerns that I can help with!

See you all soon! Happy March everyone!

March 2 - NO SCHOOL ~ Staff Development

March 3 - Deadline for yearbook orders

March 8 - Daylight Savings Time Begins

March 9 - PTO/Site Council @CTP 4:15pm ~ BOE meeting @6pm

March 11 - Career Day for 5th & 6th grades @CTI

March 11 - Parent/Teacher Conferences at the Primary school for ALL GRADES ~ 4:30-8pm

March 12 - NO SCHOOL ~ 8am-3pm Parent/Teacher Conferences at the Primary for ALL GRADES

March 13 - NO SCHOOL

March 16-20 ~ SPRING BREAK ~ NO SCHOOL

March 25 - Honor Roll Recognition @CTI ~ 2:30pm

March 28 - MOM'S Pantry - CTP @8:30am

March 30 - CTE Book Fair 6-8pm ~Family Night Supper 5:30-7pm @CTP

PTO Meeting 3/9 @ 4:15 pm in the Primary Library

Keep sending in those BOXTOPS!! Send them to school however is easiest for you! There are fewer things to CLIP but there is now an APP that all you have to do is link to our school and scan your receipt. It'll count the BOXTOPS for you and they'll send us a check at certain times of the school year. This school year, we've raised $402.90 on just the APP! BOXTOPS really do add up and help us out!

PTO finished up our Smelly Gel Crayon Sale! They were a hit! The Primary is all SOLD OUT. There are some left at the Intermediate. We will provide a total of $$ made in next month's newsletter.

Parent/Teacher Conferences will be March 11 and 12. PTO is providing a dinner for our hard-working teachers. Please see the sign-up genius link on our PTO's Facebook page to see what we need help providing.

The Spring Book Fair Family Night supper will be on Monday, March 30 from 5:30 to 7:00. More information will be coming when it gets closer to time. Be on the lookout!!

Thank you for your support! Your support MAKES A DIFFERENCE!

THE SPRING BOOK FAIR IS COMING!!! It will be the week of March 30th-April 3rd. Book Fair Jungle - Elephants, Tigers, and Books, Oh My! is the theme.

Monday evening, March 30th, is Book Fair Family Night!! It will be open in the library at the primary building from 5:30-8:00 pm, so you can accompany your child and help with his/her selections. For your convenience, PTO will also be hosting a hamburger supper with ice cream floats from 5:30-7:00 pm in the primary gym. The cost for the meal is $5.

Classroom teachers will be submitting wish lists of books they would enjoy using with their students, so you may want to consider purchasing a book for your child’s classroom as a gift or purchasing “Book Fair Bucks” for your teacher to spend on books. A Teacher Wish List display for books will be set up at the fair.

If your child comes to either of the family events (Monday’s Family Night or Thursday’s Grand Muffin Breakfast), he/she may sign up to come to the library the next school day to draw for a prize. The prizes include pencils, candy/tattoos, erasers, bookmarks, books, posters, etc. There will be a sign-up sheet for each classroom located at the checkout area.

We are also doing the All for Books donation program. You may donate money to the book fair that will allow us to purchase books for our libraries as well as have Scholastic match our dollar amount in books to such organizations as Reader to Reader, Inc. and the National Center for Families Learning. Our goal is to collect $600 in donations. Three levels will be set--$200, $400 & $600. When each level is met, a minute-to-win-it-style challenge will be earned for selected staff to do at an all-school assembly. Three challenges will be earned if $600 is raised. Also, if we reach the $600 level, Mrs. Turner will spend a day on the roof!

Please make checks payable to Towanda PTO. Credit/debit cards will also be accepted from adults. Another option offered this book fair, is eWallet--parents may visit the Scholastic Book Fairs website to load money into an account for their child to shop at the fair. To set up an eWallet account, please visit one of the following sites:

Towanda Intermediate-

http://www.scholastic.com/bf/towandaintermediateschool

Towanda Primary-

http://www.scholastic.com/bf/towandaprimaryschool1

You may also visit the above sites to shop online. The Online Book Fair allows you to:

• Send wish lists to family and friends

• Browse an expanded book selection

• Have orders shipped to school with no shipping fee

Online orders will be shipped after the book fair closes. Sales tax is charged when shopping online.

The book fair will be open for business the following days and times:

• INTERMEDIATE LIBRARY

Monday-Friday: 8:30 am-3:00 pm

• PRIMARY LIBRARY

Monday-Friday: 8:30 am-3:00 pm

Monday’s Family Night: 5:30-8:00 pm (for BOTH buildings)

Thursday’s Grand Muffin Breakfast: 7:30-8:15 am (for BOTH

buildings)

We hope you will be able to visit us during the book fair!

Mrs. Terri Turner, Principal & Mrs. Lynne Smith, Librarian

Thursday, April 9th in the CHS Auditorium

Kdg - 2nd grades begin at 6:30pm with "Animal Antics!" 3rd - 6th grades (including band) begin at 7:15pm with "Schoolhouse Rock!" We will send more details soon about when your student should arrive and what they should wear. Hope to see you there!

A BIG THANK YOU to PTO for the dancing ribbons they provided for the music rooms! We are excited to use them very soon in class.

Did you know, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, each day in the United States, over 300 children ages 0-19 are treated in an emergency room for poisoning? What’s even more alarming, is that two of those children die. March is National Poison Prevention Month so to bring some awareness to the topic, I’ll go over some tips for prevention as well as what to do if your child gets into something poisonous.

Some tips include:

Lock it up! If there is any question about being potentially hazardous, it should be in a locked cabinet and up away from where your children can get to it.

E-Cigarettes- Keep all liquid nicotine or vaping products away from children. In 2014 alone, the poison control center received approximately 7 calls a day due to vaping liquid. As little as a ½ teaspoon of the liquid nicotine can be deadly!

Medications- Nine out of 10 poisonings in children under the age of 12 are related to medications errors or children taking medications on their own. Every 8 minutes a child is seen in the emergency room due to a medication-related incident. One way to help prevent these accidents is to get rid of any expired or unused medications. You can call the local health department to find a drug take back event near you.

Batteries- Ingesting batteries can cause serious damage and even be fatal in as little as 2 hours.

Poisonous plants- Some indoor houseplants are actually poisonous to children if ingested. The following link provides help identifying poisonous plants: https://www.bhg.com/gardening/houseplants/projects/poisonous-houseplants/

Invisible poison- Carbon monoxide poisoning can be caused by small amounts over a long period of time, or a large amount over a small amount of time. Since it is invisible and odorless, it is important to know the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning. Children and pets are often affected first. Symptoms include headache, nausea, dizziness, and unconsciousness.

In the event of poisoning, call 911, then the Mayo Clinic says to take the following actions until help arrives:

• Swallowed poison. Remove anything remaining in the person's mouth. If the suspected poison is a household cleaner or other chemical, read the container's label and follow instructions for accidental poisoning.

• Poison on the skin. Remove any contaminated clothing using gloves. Rinse the skin for 15 to 20 minutes in a shower or with a hose.

• Poison in the eye. Gently flush the eye with cool or lukewarm water for at least 15 minutes or until help arrives.

• Inhaled poison. Get the person into fresh air as soon as possible.

• If the person vomits, turn his or her head to the side to prevent choking.

• Begin CPR if the person shows no signs of life, such as moving, breathing or coughing.

• Call Poison Help at 800-222-1222 in the United States or your regional poison control for additional instructions.

• Have somebody gather pill bottles, packages or containers with labels, and any other information about the poison to send along with the ambulance team.

This month your child will be bringing home a home poison safety checklist to help identify and safeguard poisons in your home. The important thing to remember is poisoning can be prevented!

FEBRUARY STUDENTS OF THE MONTH

Alexis Lowry, Adelyn Marley, Lilyann Stack, Sam Sabala, Wyatt Jimenez, Brooks Lechien, Payton Gladfelter, Titus Henke, Riley Hocker, Colten Weaver, Chord Gooding, Kasen Lane, Alicia Gibson, Marisa Ward, Andrew Steward, Morgan Harvey, Layden Deloach, Aubrey Marley, Bentley Winters, Hunter Spence, Kahlan Isbill, Alexis Carr, Madilynn Wellner, Lennon Farner, Bodie Janzen, Alexus Poole, Kyndal Lee, Haivynn Cundell

As the calendar flips to March, teachers are busily preparing for parent-teacher conferences. As a parent, here are some tips as to how you can also prepare for a highly successful meeting time:

*Get your child’s input before you go. Ask, “What do you like best about school and why?” “What are some things you would like me to discuss with your teacher?” This tells you a bit about your child’s feelings toward school. It also gives your child an opportunity to feel invested in the conference.

*Make a list of questions, ideas, and concerns to share. Along with grades, you may think about such areas as friends, attitude, and study habits. Time will fly by, so this list keeps you from walking out thinking, “Oh! I meant to talk about that!”

*Find out what you can be doing at home to reiterate the skills your child is learning at school. Ask about general concepts the class is working on as well as areas of need that are specific to your child.

*Pass on teacher compliments and discuss areas to work on, if your child does not attend the conference. You may even use this information to help your child formulate one or two goals for the last nine-weeks of school!

Your input is so incredibly valuable to your child’s education!

Lee LaMunyon, CTE Counselor llamunyon@usd375.org