September Newsletter

Hello Holmes' Families,

We are off to an incredible start of the 2025-2026 school year at Holmes. Students are engaged in learning and joyful throughout their days!

We are thrilled to recognize the substantial growth of last year’s 3rd and 4th grade students on the NYS Math and ELA Assessments. Holmes 3rd Grade improved from 25% proficiency to 47% proficiency on the Math Assessment and from 27% proficiency to 36% proficiency on the ELA assessment. Holmes 4th grade improved from 9% to 18% proficiency on the Math assessment and 13% to 31% on the ELA assessment. We are extremely proud of our students and staff for their hard work and grit! We also know that this is only the beginning of our progress.

Please take note of a few action items to ensure you and your student have a great school year:

• Take note of our calendar which indicates special events during and after school
• Sign up for SeeSaw with your child’s teacher to easily communicate
• Read any ShoutPoints that come through email from Holmes or Ken-Ton
• Ensure your child gets enough sleep each night

Thank you for being amazing partners in your children’s education!

Sincerely,

Heather McCarthy, Ed.D.

Principal

Holmes Elementary

HMcCarthy@ktufsd.org

Positive attendance starts in September! Remember missing 2 days a month will result in your child being chronically absent. Please continue to send your children when they are feeling healthy so they can keep working hard and growing their brains! We love seeing our students every day!

Please review the following dismissal reminders to ensure a safe and smooth dismissal for all of our students:

• Dismissal begins at 3:25pm. All students must be picked up by 3:45pm.
• The bus loop is closed to vehicles 3:15-3:45pm. We need our bus loop for buses.
• If you are picking your student up for the day, please send a note or call the Main Office as soon as possible
• Please do not send teachers messages with changes to your student's dismissal plans. Please send a note or call the Main Office with any changes.

This month, our school-wide Social Emotional Learning (SEL) focus is on building a positive classroom community. Students will explore how their words and actions can help make their classroom a welcoming space for everyone. Together, they’ll work on making connections, creating something that reflects their new sense of community, and learning how to respect and celebrate each other’s differences. In addition, students will receive a short lesson on how to interact respectfully and safely with our therapy dog, Wonton!

In PE, we’ve started a new incentive called The Impossible Shot! When students have a great class or show grit, they earn a chance to toss a tennis ball at the target. So far, three students have accomplished this impressive challenge! The best part? Our students love cheering on and celebrating each other’s success!

Please welcome our new art teacher, Mr. Jindra! Mr. Jindra works with our students on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and has been a great addition to our school community. Each week, classes have the opportunity to earn the "Golden Paintbrush" for displaying positive choices during art. The winning class gets to display the golden paintbrush outside their classroom!

Students have been very excited to return to the library this Fall! And we are starting off the school year with some great new read alouds:

Click the link below to view a Back-to-School letter from our vocal music teacher, Mr. Snyder!

Grade Four Instrument Registration Information

All Students in 4th grade have the option of renting an instrument from the school district. Students will then be able to bring their instruments home to practice. Please register your child by visiting: Ken-Ton Community Education.

You may also scan the QR code!

If you have any questions or need help please contact Ms. Aurigema at: Maurigema@ktufsd.org

As we dive headfirst into apple-picking season and pumpkin-spice-everything, just a friendly nudge from your school nurse! If you haven’t already, please send in those health exam forms for our kindergarten, 1st, and 3rd graders—the nurse has a competition going for a treat for the classroom that gets all their forms in first!

At home, please give your kids a little extra training on the basics:

• washing hands for 20 seconds like a surgeon
• how to blow noses (not just wipe them)
• coughing into elbows instead of the air.

And remember, if your child wakes up looking like a character from a tissue commercial—fever, nonstop cough, or a runny nose that could rival Niagara Falls—it’s best to keep them home until they’re fever-free for 24 hours without the help of Tylenol or Motrin, and those symptoms are on the mend. Let’s keep our classrooms full of learning (and laughter), not sniffles and sneezes, as we march bravely into cold and flu season!

• At Holmes Elementary, our PBIS program, Stepping It Up, encourages positive behavior by teaching expectations and rewarding students who model safety, kindness, and responsibility. Students earn tickets for good behavior, which they can use to “shop” for prizes or special experiences like lunch with a favorite teacher or “Principal for the Day.” We also recognize students who show grit and stand up to bad behavior, with awards and VIP opportunities at assemblies. Talk with your child about our rules and what it means to be safe, kind, and a good listener!

Please review our Board of Education policy regarding important safety information. Additionally, check out the safety tips from our community partners!

Students, like Aras, have been enjoying outdoor recess on the playground! Please send students to school with appropriate clothing as the weather cools off!

Sawyer is selecting a book from the "dog neighborhood" in library! Mrs. Conrad teaches students to "tip and peek" at books before checking one out.

Second-grade student Christian is working on his graphing skills in math!

Did you know that Ms. Aurigema, our instrumental music teacher, greets students with a puppet during morning arrival? Nahiz is excited to meet Polly the Parrot!

Students in Mrs. Bergstrom's class filled their "compliment jar" with enough compliments to earn an apple dessert party! Students Joshxiel, Peyton, and Harrison proudly display their jar!

Check out our upcoming events at Holmes Elementary! Click the link below to access the Holmes Google Calendar and see scheduled events!