Notes from the North Park Hive

Dear Families,

This week we will have a high attendance day (Wednesday) to celebrate our ROCK STAR students! Students are encouraged to dress like a rock star, wear a guitar shirt, wear a shirt with their favorite band, etc. If they don't have anything "rock star," students could wear neon colors, blue (for Trojans!) or anything fun!

Our handwriting challenge (kindergarten) will be coming home THIS WEEK! See more information below regarding this challenge.

Kindergarten families - report cards went home on Friday with our students. Please take a moment to read through your child's report card and look for any areas where your child is progressing or where your child may be struggling. At this point in the school year, students should be mastering many of their skills. After our mid-year testing, nearly 28% of our students have already met their end-of-year standards (we started with 4%). That is fantastic! However, we have many students who are not quite on target where they should be for this point in the year. The report card and mid-terms are a great tool to use to better understand where your child is struggling so that you can provide more support at home. Teachers are always willing and eager to help send materials/resources you can use!

Don't forget that there is NO SCHOOL on Monday due to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and no PRESCHOOL on Tuesday, January 20th.

Please call the NPES office at 270-351-4464 or email laurabeth.hayes@hardin.kyschools.us

Sincerely,

Mrs. Hayes (principal)

If your student earned the limo ride to Freddy's (fundraiser from November/December), those rides will take place on January 23rd. Permission slips will be coming home from the office.

The 100th Day of School is January 26th. We are celebrating in both grade levels (even though many of our preschoolers do not come 5 days a week). Each teacher will communicate their 100th day plans. MANY students wear a special shirt, dress like a 100-year old person, etc. Some teachers do activities and may send out a wishlist for grocery supplies. Be sure to check Rooms to stay updated on each teacher's plans!

This week we will send home a HANDWRITING CHALLENGE packet to all kindergarten students (it is not developmentally appropriate for our preschoolers just yet). This packet will include practice pages for writing uppercase/lowercase letters, numbers, your child's name AND some of our frequently used red words (sight words). Handwriting is a VERY important skill that we do focus on each day in kindergarten. However, it takes muscle memory and PRACTICE to become better at fine motor activities, like handwriting. Many of our students simply do not get enough practice at school and need the extra practice at home. Handwriting is a core foundational skill that students use throughout all of school, so it is important to learn to form the letters correctly and not develop bad habits. Once your student completes the packet, he or she will earn a plush ocean animal bracelet!! Thank you for helping us give our students some extra support on this skill.

Help NPES receive money to help our students at no extra expense to you. You are already purchasing the items. Just scan your receipt and if there are any Box Top items NPES will receive $0.10 per qualifying item. Download the app and help us help your children!

In the month of December we earned $20.90 with your help. Let's see how much we can earn in January!

Kinder Families -

Students are finishing up our mid-year iReady testing this week and next. We will send home score reports with you soon. This is just ONE measure of progress and success for your student. We utilize many forms of assessment to monitor your child's progress. It is a great way for you to see how your child is progressing - especially compared to other students across the nation. We are always happy to help you interpret these scores and help you make a plan to assist your child toward mastery of all kindergarten skills.

Please note that our lunch menu will sometimes differ from what is listed due to availability of items and delivery dates to our school sometimes being different. All students may eat breakfast and lunch for FREE.

We LOVE seeing students reading at home with their families!!!! The January reading tree leaves should be coming home ASAP, and you can print out from the link below as well! If you need more, just let your teacher know. READ TOGETHER AS A FAMILY! Your student earns a cool winter-themed sticker. Reading at home is one of the BEST things you can do to support your child's literacy growth!