East Side January News

🦅Eagle Families!

Happy New Year to the best Kindergarten and First Grade Kiddos! 🎉🙌🥳

We hope your break has been restful. We are eager to start 2026 with a bang! As a XC coach, I help athletes set GOALS all the time! Research says that stating a goal gives purpose and meaning to push to do hard things.

As we return we will challenge our kids to have GOALS to become stronger in reading, math, and also to be better humans!

Your kiddos are always watching. The biggest role model they have is YOU! We encourage you to model setting a goal and working toward it. When you struggle, verbalize that it's hard and you have to keep working.

The students know that I enjoy RUNNING & RACING. I continue to set my own goals, but with age becomes challenges 🤣😆. I try to model to my kids that setting a goal takes dedication and sometimes it's not easy. NOBODY loves running when it's cold outside, there is ice on the ground, it's dark, and your body is sore! But, when you are goal driven....it helps you lace up your shoes anyway! Check out some ideas to challenge you and your family to set new goals.

1. Have a weekly family game night.

Play Uno or Crazy Eights or teach the kids a game you used to play. Take a trip to the local bowling alley for a game. Or pile up the board games on the dining room table and have a tournament. It will help you connect as a family and help your kids learn how to take turns, socialize, and win/lose.

2. Commit to one healthy eating change.

Trying to make your diet healthy overnight isn’t realistic or smart. Make small steps, like adding a veggie to your diet once a day. Cut out pop and add water! As your small changes become habits, you can continue to add more healthy choices to your diet.

3. Turn off the TV.

Television is a wonderful invention and not bad in and of itself, but in many homes, we use the TV as a buffer from communication. So, turn it off when you’re eating. Have one day a week without phones/TV (NO TECH TUESDAY).

4. Eat dinner as a family.

Sharing a meal together—breakfast, lunch, or dinner— teaches the importance of listening, sharing, and compromise. According to Time Magazine, the statistics are clear: Kids who eat meals with their parents are healthier, happier, and better students.

5. Be quick to apologize and forgive.

We sometimes do and say things that hurt the people closest to us. It’s best to try to avoid causing pain, but when you mess up, be quick to apologize.

6. Exercise together.

Get outside and do something you and your family will enjoy. Go for a walk or toss a football. Cold outside? No worries- take turns giving exercises that everyone can do in the living room- push ups, jumping jacks, squats, sit-ups.

7. Revisit your childhood.

Go outside and build a snowman or roll down a hill. Build a fort in the family room with couch cushions and sheets.

8. Do something new as a family.

Write a book together. Send a postcard to an aunt. Go bowling. Go watch a Warrior basketball event. Have a carpet picnic. Bake cookies together or try to bake bread. Turn on music and jam out and dance. The goal is to make memories doing something new together!

You don't want to miss out on this fun event! Please download the APP ahead of time. The class who has the most kids come to this event gets to throw a pie in Mrs. Kienlen's face!

IT'S GOING TO BE A BLAST! See you all this Tuesday!

Jan 5th- School Resumes

Jan 6th- Family Engagement GOOSE CHASE event

Jan 7th- Elementary PTO (All parents welcome) at South Side 5:30

Jan. 9th- Report Cards come home

Jan 19th- No School MLK day

Jan 26th- 100th Day (Kindergarten celebrates- details to come)

Feb. 4th- Elementary PTO at South Side 5:30

Feb. 19th- First Grade Program @ 6:30

Feb. 25th- 120th Day (First Grade celebrates, details to come)

Please make sure hats, gloves, and coats have names written in them!

First Bell rings at 8:00 and the Day ends at 3:15!

Help your child be here on time so they don't miss important instruction.

Lunch begins at 11:30. You are welcome to join your child. The cost for an adult to eat is $6.

Music updates at East Side

In December, kindergartners entered into the festive world of music by studying Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, listening closely to identify what sounds the same and what sounds different in its famous themes. They practice singing on pitch and build confidence in matching musical patterns with their voices with a little tennis ball named Bobo. Students also play simple rhythms on classroom instruments, learning to keep a steady beat while experiencing the joy of making music together and how to fight germs! Throughout the month, they rounded out their learning by singing classic Christmas carols, celebrating the season with familiar tunes that bring the classroom to life.

Ask your Kinder:

• Ask your child if they can pronounce Tchaikovsky?
• How about speaking a chant about The Chubby Little Snowman or singing Jingle Bells?
• Ask them to sing a song about how to “get those germs!”
• Can they describe what Bobo looks like?

First grade students worked on developing a strong musical foundation by reading, singing, and playing simple rhythms, using instruments and movement. They are beginning to explore two-part songs, practicing how to keep their own part while listening to others. They prepared for the season, by enjoying Christmas songs from around the world. In addition, they are identifying musical form—such as sections labeled A and B—by listening for patterns and repeated ideas. Throughout all activities, students continue to strengthen their ability to sing on pitch with clear, confident voices.

Ask your 1st Grader:

• Ask your child if they could sing the song, I Saw an Elf.
• Can they sing you a few animal sounds from Bought Me A Cat and clap the rhythms to the sounds?