Mustang Round-Up

**To view this newsletter in Spanish, click on "Translate Newsletter" and select language.

Para ver este boletín en español, haga clic en "Traducir boletín" y seleccione el idioma.**

Dear Howard Families,

Happy February! This month, we are celebrating Kindness Month, a wonderful time to focus on caring for others, showing gratitude, and making our school a warm and welcoming place for all. Small acts of kindness—like a smile, a kind word, or helping a friend—can make a big difference.

Mark your calendar for Wednesday, February 5th, when we are starting off the morning with Walk & Roll To School. Meet us at Joy Church at 7:00am, and we will all walk to school together. Then, you can warm up with Coffee with the Principals, followed by a Mustang Assembly. Hope to see you there!

Thank you for your continued support in building a community where kindness grows. We appreciate all you do to encourage kindness at home and at school!

With gratitude,

Ms. Pearson

Hello Families,

I can hardly believe that it’s almost February, and we are more than halfway through the school year! Each and every student has grown so much. We are incredibly proud of our Mustangs!

As we continue through the cold and flu season, please let the office know if your student will be absent. If you’re not sure your child can attend (they were sick or they still have some symptoms), please give us a call so that we can provide guidance.

We understand that sometimes it can be hard for students to return to school after spending a couple of extra days at home. If your child is reluctant to return, please contact their teacher or me. We want to work with you and your student so that they feel comfortable and confident returning to school.

Warmly,

Mrs. Elrod

• One parent or guardian of each household completes the survey on any device.

• Located: QR code or http://www.ytsurvey.org/medfordfamily25

• Complete by February 21st.

• Survey takes approximately 15 minutes.

Wednesday, February 5th - Coffee with the principals, starting at 7:40 a.m. in room 11

Wednesday, February 5th - School Assembly, starting at 8:15 a.m.

Monday, February 10th - PTO Meeting in the Media Center starting at 2:45 p.m.

Monday, February 17th - No School - Presidents Day

Monday, February 24th - No School - Mid Quarter

Phone: 541-842-3760

Email: howard@medford.k12.or.us

Location: 286 Mace Road, Medford, OR, 97501

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/howardmustangs549c/

Website: https://howard.medford.k12.or.us/

Part Two of our Safety and Security update is on our efforts to identify and prevent bullying. First we need to define what bullying is. The definition of bullying in our school is: Bullying is hurtful, repeated behavior that involves an imbalance of power.

Not all student conflict is bullying. We have situations when students are rude, and, as we all know, sometimes people can act just plain mean. We also have conflicts that involve two or more students. How do we know if a situation is actually a case of bullying? At Howard, we have a rubric to help us identify if a situation is bullying or something else. In our rubric, we have categories of: Conflict, Rude, Mean, Bullying.

Bullying is where it is repeated to the same student. It is planned, and it is targeted to that one student. The bully is trying to gain control by some means. A bully will blame the target, and the target wants bullying to stop, whereas the bully does not.

In Medford School District, we use Character Strong as our social-emotional learning curriculum. Character Strong has anti-bullying lessons that teach students how to be an upstander. Part of the curriculum teaches students how to identify bullying and to stop, support, and report to an adult. We also have our rubric that we walk through with staff and students to decide if a situation is a Conflict, Rude, Mean, or actually Bullying.

Whether it is bullying or something else, all situations are handled on a case-by-case basis. We follow the MSD elementary discipline continuum. Families of students involved in cases of bullying are contacted, so we can work together as a team to address it.

At Howard, we hold the care for your child close to our hearts. Our goal is that every child at Howard feels welcomed, safe, and cared for. Know we do everything we can to ensure this. If you have questions, please feel free to reach out.

Hurry! Come get your lost and found items before they are bagged up and donated. Located in the main office.

PTO Meetings: Our PTO meetings are held on the 2nd Monday monthly. We will now be rotating between a 5:15pm and 2:45pm meeting. Our next meeting will be Monday February 10th at 2:45pm!

Upcoming Events:

- POPCORN IS BACK!!!! We will be selling after school popcorn the 3rd Friday monthly; starting February 21st right after school is released. Popcorn and water will be $1 each (cash only).

- Bingo Night: The PTO will be hosting a Bingo night in the upcoming months. Please keep a look out on our Facebook page for more details.

Yearbook Sales: If you haven’t purchased your yearbook yet, now is the time! Visit the link below and enter in our school’s information: Howard Elementary School

Yearbook link: JOSTENS.COM/BUYYEARBK

We Need You! We are always looking for new members to join our team. If you are interested or have any questions, please reach out to the PTO Board via email at: MSDHowardPTO@gmail.com or by cell: Amber Fletcher (President) 541-973-8608 or Kaylee Fugate (Vice President) 541-621-3498.

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK: Follow up on Facebook to stay connected on upcoming events and fundraising.