A Piece From The Principal's Puzzle

September

1 - Labor Day (No School)

4 - Curriculum Night @ 6 pm - Blossomwood Cafeteria

• ALL GRADES

10 - Progress Reports Sent Home

October

6-10 - FALL BREAK

Knowing just the right word to use can give an elementary schooler real power. A strong vocabulary improves your child’s thinking and communication skills, and there is a clear connection between a strong vocabulary and academic success.

Answer yes or no to the questions below to see if you are expanding your child’s word knowledge:

1. Do you talk about words? When reading books together, discuss the meanings of unfamiliar words.
2. Do you use new words for familiar ideas? “Let’s tidy your room by categorizing your toys.”
3. Do you play word games as a family, such as Scrabble?
4. Do you pick a Word of the Day that family members try to use at least three times during that day?
5. Do you encourage your child to use a notebook to write down new words and their meanings?

How well are you doing?

More yes answers mean you are helping your child learn and use words. For no answers, try the ideas from the quiz.

Reprinted with permission from the January 2025 issue of Parents make the difference!® (Elementary School Edition) newsletter. Copyright © 2025 The Parent Institute®, a division of PaperClip Media, Inc.

Don't forget ALL students at Blossomwood are welcome to a FREE breakfast and lunch from our cafeteria.

• If your child would like a breakfast, please remind them to come directly to the cafeteria upon arrival. We serve breakfast from 7:30 to 7:50 am which allows students to be in their classroom ready to learn at 8:00 am.
• If you have questions about your child’s lunch account, please email our cafeteria manager Mirtha Petty at mirtha.petty@hsv-k12.org.

Join us for a special evening where parents and families can connect and learn more about your child's curriculum. You can expect to learn helpful information from your child's teacher, meet our Parent Coordinator, and pick up previously purchased BES merchandise.

If you have any questions, please contact Avery Murphree - Avery.Murphree@hsv-k12.org.

If you would like to volunteer and become more involved at Blossomwood, please reach out to our parent coordinator, Ms. Chelsea Clay. She will be glad to help find a role just for you! In fact, part of her role as parent coordinator includes establishing a parent advisory committee, hosting parent events, leading parent trainings, building relationships with all parents in our school, and acting as a liaison between the parent community and the school.

Email - Chelsea.Clay@hsv-k12.org

The main function of the house system is to develop a sense of identity or belonging and to celebrate achievements. Schools with a structure or system like this cite the positive impact it has on the educational experience and school culture. Students report how it helps them form friendships and closer bonds with peers, and teachers share that students seem to enjoy seeing a connection with students in other classrooms as well as other grade levels. As a school, we also believe our new House System supports our school mission statement and vision.

During the first week of school or upon enrollment, all of our students and staff have the opportunity to digitally "spin" the wheel to randomly sort each student into one of four groups or houses — Emerald, Garnet, Onyx, or Sapphire.

Our House System is designed to:

1. Create school-wide community by creating opportunities for students to connect to staff and students in other classes and grades that share their house. Older students become natural leaders by mentoring and supporting younger students. Mentoring also extends to teachers and school staff members who are also assigned to a house.
2. Create a culture of belonging as students are recognized for accomplishments both academically as well as their choices related to behavior.
3. Emphasize building character through a reward system that goes beyond earning a piece of candy for doing something good. Each individual achievement adds to the collective house/group, making the reward hopefully more meaningful and social.
   
4. Provide opportunities to praise and accentuate positives for both individual students and collective groups of students.