February News at SPMA

THINGS TO REMEMBER

• Update Contact Info: If you have moved or changed your phone number recently, please let the office know! It is vital that we have your current address and contact information on file for both daily updates and emergencies.

• Dismissal Changes: If there is a change to your child’s regular dismissal plan, please call the office before 1:00 PM. This gives us enough time to notify teachers and ensure your child gets to where they need to go safely.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our school day running smoothly!

Influenza A (Flu A) infection rates are very high in Minnesota currently, meaning lots of people are getting sick. Symptoms of the Flu include sudden onset of high fever, chills, bodyaches, cough, runny nose, sore throat, headaches, and in children can cause nausea and vomiting. The Flu season will last through April/May.

Recommendations:

• Stay home if you are sick

• Wash your hands after sneezing/coughing and before eating,

• Disinfect surfaces to prevent the spread of the Flu virus if someone in your household has the Flu

• Wear a mask. Flu virus is spread through coughing/sneezing/sharing foods and drinks.

• It’s not too late to get a Flu shot. Getting a Flu shot can prevent serious illness or hospitalization

Due to Community Safety Issues at this time, the health office at SPMA will help families needing medical care or medications, but are too scared to leave their home. Please reach out to us so we can better understand how to help your family with medical care, medication or medical supplies. We are able to use Google Translate or language interpreters to discuss your needs.

• Call or text 651-888-7663, Hoa Trinh school nurse.

• For Karen, please call or text 651-724-9530 to speak to Maya Tmoo, health assistant.

*Rescheduled to Tuesday, February 17th

Attention Pre-K and Kindergarten Families!

Tuesday, February 17th is SPMA CollegeBound Deposit Day!

Students in Pre-K and Kindergarten will participate in a fun activity with their teachers and school counselors where they will learn about saving money. Students will practice saving for a classroom toy. Your child will bring home a worksheet with questions you can ask them about their experience.

Those students who have signed an SPPS consent form will have $20.00 deposited into their CollegeBound accounts at the end of the school year. Not sure if you’ve completed the form? Ask your school counselor.

Questions about CollegeBound? Reach out to your school counselor or

Sue Arvidson, Counselor on Special Assignment at sue.arvidson@spps.org

In January, Pre-K started the year off by reviewing the routines and rituals. We started a new unit on being healthy in body and mind. We learned about our bodies and how our five senses help us learn and be aware of our world. In math, we worked on subitizing and making numeral sets. In literacy, we are working on letter names and sounds, identifying beginning sounds of words, and rhyming words. Our IGDI’s assessment has taken a big chunk of our time, but it has shown that there has been growth since the fall! Even with all the changes in January, our students are still showing up and learning.

January in Kindergarten has been a month of changes…

Getting back into our routines and rituals,

practicing saying 2026 (not 2025!),

showing what we know during our Literacy and Math assessments,

and learning together while having fun— whether virtually or in person! 📚✏️😊❤️

We have been busy learning in the first month of 2026. In phonics we are learning long vowels and the power of magic “e”. In reading we are reading non-fiction books in the question and answer style. We are beginning an informational writing unit in writing. In math we are continuing to work with addition and subtraction of basic facts as well as wondrous word problems.

January has been full of changes in second grade with many of our students having the chance to be in a new classroom. As we battle the freezing temperatures outside everyone is getting to know their new classmates and their new classroom routines. Academically, we are working on building addition and subtraction skills in math. Learning many different vowel teams in phonics. Last but not least, we are starting a nonfiction writing unit where each of the students will choose a topic to learn about and then report their findings in a written report.

As the new year began, third graders did an amazing job embracing some changes. Some students switched to a new classroom and teacher and some went virtual. Ms. Priester is the virtual learning teacher and Ms. James and Ms. Stromstad are supporting students with their in-person learning for now. In the month of January, third graders researched animals in writing and continued to practice writing paragraphs with a topic and conclusion sentence. Third graders also finished up their math unit on in and out boxes and finding missing numbers and have begun to launch into fractions. As always, the third grade students continue to reflect on their learning and make goals for their future and each third grader created a snow globe to showcase their goals and focus words for the new year!

Fourth Grade traveled to the University of Minnesota in mid-January to take in the eye-popping spectacle of the Physics Force, which is dedicated to inspiring students with the wonder and excitement of the physical sciences with entertaining demonstrations on the power of motion and forces. Highlights of this past month also included visits by the Department of Natural Resources Bird by Bird program and the Minneapolis Institute of Arts Creativity Academy. Fourth Graders have also been working hard to become more proficient readers, more expressive writers and more capable mathematicians!

In mid February, we will transition to art projects for all grade levels. 4th and 5th grade classes will do an artist study and create a painting using acrylics on canvas inspired by the artists we study. 3rd grade will be learning about Aboriginal Dot art and will also create a painting using the technique. 2nd grade will learn about warm and cool colors and make an art project using tissue paper. 1st grade and Kindergarten will focus on friendship and do an art project for the book, Rainbow Fish.

Our 3rd Grade Violin Concert is coming up this month! At 9 AM on Thursday, February 19th, our 3rd Grade Violin players will take the stage for their first instrumental performance of the year! Also, our 4th and 5th Graders have started preparing music for their Lunchtime Chamber Concerts in March as well as their Spring Concert on May 8th. If your student is enrolled in online learning, they still get to participate in their small group lessons and large group rehearsals! Students should use this link to attend their meetings with Mr. Englin.

5th grade, 4th grade, and 3rd grade just wrapped up our Volleyball unit. We learned 3 different volleyball skills, and played some mini group-volleyball games. We are moving onto Floor hockey as we continue to explore different types of sports and team activities.

For PreK, K, 1st grade, and 2nd grade we are finishing our team activities unit where students learned how to work with each other in different ways. We did partner games and team games where everyone was challenged to help one another. Learning the importance of teamwork will help them in every class. The next unit will be a combination of dance & introduction to gymnastics!

All grade levels have started new units. If your child is in grades 1 through 5 I hope you were able to see the science assessment we took in class. This is a good way to see what your child has been working on and how they are doing academically.

Students also practice using and developing many other very important skills in science that you won’t see on a standards-based test. Students spend a lot of time working in groups, figuring out different job roles and being leaders. They also work on taking turns, sharing material, and completing projects, They practice taking notes about their observations and using sketch drawings to help explain the concept they learned about. In the next coming months the older grade levels will start incorporating technology into their learning to help build meaning in the new concepts and standards we will start to cover.

This month, the MLL team will be giving the ACCESS tests to students in our program. Students will be tested on their proficiency in Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking in English. Please click on the link to learn more about the test. Some language translations are available.