From the Principal

We’ve reached the end of the first semester, it’s amazing how quickly the time goes!!

We have felt enough cold weather to make us anticipate the warmer days of spring. February and March will continue to bring cold weather though, so please remember to send your children with appropriate clothing for outdoor recess. Generally, when the temperatures (below 20 ) or wind chills (below10 ) are extreme we will have indoor recess, but most days we try to get the children outside. Students are encouraged to wear boots, snow pants, Hats, & mittens/gloves, otherwise they are asked to play in areas that are not snow covered.

Student Council: Our community service project of collecting items for two families for the Westlake Assistance Center for the holidays was a huge success; thank you for all of your support. We also collected over 200 hats and mittens for the needy; we had tremendous support for this, Thank You! We recently decided on our next service project. We will be doing Hats-On day for Cancer. Students will have the opportunity to wear a hat during the day, and donations will be accepted for cancer research. More information will come home in a flyer as the date approaches.

Family Game Night: Mark your calendars! The Bassett staff is finalizing its plans for Family Game Night, Friday, March 12.  Our Family Game Night event is from 6:30 – 8pm, proceeds will be donated to help support the Crohns and Colitis Foundation.

AIMS Benchmarking: We have completed our second benchmarking for the year. AIMSweb is a benchmark and progress monitoring system based on direct, frequent and continuous student assessment. Because growth in reading and math is so important, on a regular basis, we are going to do a quick check on how well your child is performing in these areas. We assess, benchmark, each child three times per year on curriculum-based measures in reading and math. These brief assessments provide important information about your child's performance and progress. Teachers use these “checks” to help them plan their instruction. This information will also help them individualize for students who are above or below average in their reading abilities. Our teachers are in the learning stages of using this program. We are continuing to learn how to administer and use AIMSweb and the related data. We are looking forward to being able to share results with you and your child in a meaningful way. More detailed and specific information on your child’s progress will be coming home later in the year.

Helping your child be more successful: Although, as parents, we conscientiously send our children off to school every day and expect them to do well, we can add an important extra ingredient that will boost our children's success. Parent participation is the ingredient that makes the difference. Parents' active involvement with their child's education at home and in school brings great rewards and has a significant impact on their children's lives. The reality is that some parents have more time than others to become involved, but even the very busy parents can set their priorities and carve out some time, even if it's brief. The National Education Association recommends some specific things parents can do at home to become more involved in their child's education:

• Read to your child - reading aloud is the most important activity that parents can do to increase their child's chance of reading success
• Discuss the books and stories you read to your child
• Help your child organize his/her time
• Limit television viewing on school nights
• Talk to your child regularly about what's going on in school
• Check homework every night

Investing a few minutes of time at home has the potential for more success at school for your child.

Gifted referral: The Westlake City School District provides two opportunities each year for teachers and parents of students in grades K-12 to make referrals for possible gifted identification according to the criteria set forth in House Bill 282. The referral periods take place during the months of October and February. Packets of information and referral forms can be obtained from the main office in each building. For this semester’s testing period, referral forms need to be completed and returned to the building’s main office by February 19, 2010. Questions can be directed to the building principal or to the coordinator of gifted education, Susan Forbes (250-1269).

Tim Rickard

250-1435

rickard@wlake.org

February Dates:

2/4 7:00 PTA

2/9 7:20 a.m. Student Council meeting

2/12 1:30 Class Valentine’s Day parties

2/15 No School President’s Day

2/17 First Grade Concert 1:00 p.m.

2/18 Founders Day 7:00 p.m.

2/26 Taste of Westlake