Lake Forest South Elementary
On track for success ….
301 Dorman Street Harrington, Delaware 19952
302- 398-8011
http://www.lf.k12.de.us/south
Principal: Clifford S. Owens [email protected]
Assistant Principal: Nicole A. Wright [email protected]
Lake Forest School District
May 2017
Issue 8
UPCOMING DATES
Dear Lake Forest South Families,
As the end of the school year is quickly approaching and
with it the time to reflect on the past school year, plan for
the upcoming school year, and enjoy some much
needed rest and family time. Although, the summer is
celebrated as time off from school, there is never any
time off from learning. Make sure your child practices
reading and mathematics throughout the summer.
Learning is fun, particularly when it involves the whole
family!
Mr. Owens and Ms. Wright
Tuesday, May 2nd
Parent Informational Meeting-6:00pm
Wednesday, May 3rd
Interims sent Home
PAC Forum-Meet School Board
Candidates- 6:30pm-CBO
Friday, May 5th
Spring Picture Money Due
Saturday, May 6th
Mother/Son Dance- 6:00-8:00pm
Monday, May 8th
Child Find- 8:30am-7:00pm
by appointment
Tuesday, May 9th
Child Find- 8:30am-3:00pm
by appointment
School Board Election
Wednesday, May 17th
Kindergarten Field Trip- Fun Land
Friday, May 26th
PBS Event- Bounce into Summer (rain
date 5/30)
Monday, May 29th
No School- Memorial Day
Tuesday, May 30th
3rd Grade Field Trip- Washington, DC
Kindergarten News
Hello Families! It is so hard to believe that the home-stretch of the school year is here! Thank you
for a wonderful year…we have learned so much! As we gear up for the end of the year, here is
a list of some key skills to help your child be ready to move on to first grade:
* Your child must read a minimum of 40 sight words
* Add and subtract basic math facts
* Solve basic word problems
* Write his or her full name
* Write 3 (or more) complete sentences
* Sound out words when writing
* Read/blend CVC (3 letter) words
* Work independently and work well with others
* Please contact your child`s teacher if you are concerned that he or she is not reaching these
milestones.
Upcoming events:
* May 17th – Kindergarten Field Trip to Fun Land. Please return the permission slip with the $12.00
fee as soon as possible!
* Our End of Year Kindergarten Ceremony will be held on June 8th at 1:00 PM. Look for a flyer to
come home soon about End of Year T-shirts and other details about this exciting event. June 8th
will be the last day for Kindergarten students.
First Grade News
The end of the school year is rapidly approaching and we are still learning so much! Please continue to
practice sight words, math facts, and read the weekly passage each night. We still need families to
continue checking your child’s folder and signing the planner each night. There will be lots of important
information that will be sent home about our last 30 days of school!
Our final STAR Reading and Math tests will be during the first two weeks in May. While these are only one
measure that we use to see how much your child has grown over the course of the year, we certainly
want to encourage students to do their very best. You can help by making sure your child is well-rested
and discuss how they can “show what you know” on the test. We have been asking students to take their
time, carefully read and reread questions, eliminate “silly” answer choices, use scrap paper to help solve
math problems, etc. As always, if you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher. Thank you
for helping your student stay “On Track for Success” in First Grade at LF South!
Second Grade News
Can you believe that another school year has almost gone by! The second
grade teachers at Lake Forest South Elementary would like to thank all of
the parents for helping us make this a year to remember. After the April
showers we were able to see that not only the plants around us had grown
but so have our children!
Now that many of the soon to be third graders are coming in everyday, we
need to be reminded to not let this growth stops once the summer comes.
Please take you child to the library, continue to read with them and show
them you care about reading too! It has been proven that kids who can
read well by the third grade stand a much greater chance of graduating
high school and attending college.
So let’s give summer reading literacy a chance this year! Instead of the
summer slide that affects so many students and puts them behind the
academic 8 ball, let’s give them the summer surge and help them come
back next August even further along than they left off!
All the second grade teachers wish you and your family a happy and safe
summer and can’t wait to see everyone back again in August! Well maybe
we can wait just a little! Enjoy your summer! Please read with your child!
Third Grade News
We’re in the home stretch! Students have returned from Spring Break refreshed and ready to
knock out the remainder of our spring testing. So far we have been so impressed with and
proud of our students for their hard work on the SBAC. Classes will be finishing the SBAC in the
new few weeks, as well as the spring benchmark assessments for STAR Math and Reading.
As we make our way towards the end of the school year, we have several exciting things
happening! In addition to our big May PBS event (for which students will need THREE full train
tickets and be referral free to attend), we will have field day. Best of all, our annual
Washington, D.C. field trip for 3rd grade is scheduled for Tuesday, May 30. Teachers will be
sending information home soon with details regarding the cost and chaperones. This is a great
experience for students every year, and we know they are excited about it – many of them
have been asking about it since the beginning of the year! We have a few fundraisers planned
to help offset the cost of the trip for students, so please keep an eye out for information about
those soon. As always, we want to thank the families of our students for your support
throughout the year – we are able to share the students’ successes only because we all share
in helping them reach their goals!
Counselor’s Corner
Welcome to the home stretch of the school year! It is about that time when students are ready for summer break but it is still
time to buckle down to finish the school year out strong! Character Education classes have been put on hold in order for me
to assist with proctoring the state assessments for the third grade students. However, I am still available for individual
counseling needs.
In order to help keep your student focused and motivated while impatiently waiting for summer break, here are a few tips
from www.parentingsquad.com to help your child be successful.
1. Support the Teacher
Spring is tough for teachers too. The best educators know that keeping content fresh and engaging is one of the best ways
to hold student interest, so many plan special end-of-the-year projects and activities. Be enthusiastic about these (and insist
that they be completed), and your attitude will rub off on your offspring.
2. Allow for Plenty of Active Time Outdoors
It isn't easy to sit still in a classroom all day, especially in beautiful spring weather. But since many schools are limiting recess
time — against the advice of the American Academy of Pediatrics — it's up to parents to ensure that kids are getting the
necessary time to play outside.
If you let your kids play in the backyard or at the local park for an hour or so after school, they'll be able to better
concentrate when it's time to sit down and study. And if you spend time outdoors over the weekends, they'll be able to better
focus in the classroom during the week.
3. Stick to Your Rhythm Though Daylight Savings and spring sports practices may alter your bedtime and homework routine to
some extent, keep the general rhythm of your household intact through the end of the year. If we give the signal that study
time no longer matters since school is almost over, our children will be only too happy to follow our lead.
4. Create a Visual
Purchase a large wall or desk calendar, and then get your kids to help fill it with important end-of-the-year dates. Include the
last day of school, of course, but also be sure to mark test dates, project deadlines, and fun activities like ice cream socials,
school carnivals, and dance recitals.
Why does this work? Because students are usually more motivated to complete the tough stuff when they can see that there
really is a lot of fun stuff mixed in too.
5. Look Ahead to Summer
When you can see your kids starting to lose focus, take a break from anything school-related and start making plans for the
summer. Talk about summer camps or family vacations or the lazy days you'll spend at the local pool. Then, get back to work.
Your children will slowly learn that, while it's normal to be excited for summer vacation, it's essential to prioritize education as
well.
Source: How to Keep Your Kids Motivated Through the End of the Year by Alysa Chirco
http://parentingsquad.com/losing-focus-how-to-keep-kids-motivated-through-the-end-of-the-school-year
From the Reading Specialist
The end of the school year is right around the corner! Our students have come so far since August.
In the month of May students will be completing some assessments that will show us how much
growth they have made since the beginning. Below is just a little information about those
assessments.
All students in the school take a computerized assessment called STAR. Kindergartners take STAR
Early Literacy while 1st through 3rd graders take STAR Reading and STAR math.
Kindergarteners are also given an assessment called DIBELS. There are three parts to the assessment.
Part one they are asked to say as many letter names as they can in one minute. The second part
they are told a word and they have to say all of the sounds they hear in the word. For the final part
they are asked to read nonsense (make-believe) words.
1st graders are also given the DIBELS assessment but their subtests are different. In part one they are
asked to read nonsense (make-believe) words. In part two they are asked to read three passages.
While reading their oral reading fluency is assessed and then they are asked to retell what they read
about.
Please be mindful that your students are working hard on these assessments, and their classwork, as
the year winds down. Make sure they are well fed, hydrated, and rested so that they can do their
very best.
April
First Grade
Kindergarten
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Deonte Bleen
Dylan Walls
Tiyanna Hardy
Easton Robinson
Audriana Irizarry
Mikaela Dixon
Gabrielle Wartman
Tyler Grace
Lindsay Shorts
Nicolas Sample
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Third Grade
Second Grade
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Elizabeth Semrau
Milton Lofland
Savannah Messick
Chrissy Brode
La’Ciera Smith
Kyle Thompson
Eylian Martinez
Donna Mumford
Laila Johnson
Lexi Hay
Liam Duffy
Alivia Sunnekalb
Kristifer Whaley
Bradley Stratton
Breana Carey
Teagan Callaghan
Kortney Brown
Joralynn Walker
Nijlaijia Bradley
Ja’mere Mitchell
Kyleek Batson
Alisha Anthony
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Matthew Yerkes
Shane Roberts
Larrasia Stewart
Kayleigh Wills
Jasmine Swauger
Jason Tucker
Marissa Allaband
Mason Henderson
Kanani Saldana
Orlivia-Jo Bland
Italia Rodriguez