AES Eagle Eye Tribune

.

Dear Antrim Elementary School Families,

As we soar into spring, I want to take a moment to recognize some of the most talented and essential members of our Antrim Elementary School team—our paraprofessionals!

Para Professional Appreciation Day is April 2nd, and I hope you’ll join me in celebrating the incredible impact these team members have on our students, staff, and school community every day.

Paraprofessionals—often called paras, teaching assistants, or instructional assistants—truly do a little bit of everything. They support classrooms, provide 1:1 or small group instruction, assist students in special education, step in as substitute teachers, help with transitions, cover duties, and keep our school running smoothly and safely.

Their work is often behind the scenes, but their presence is deeply felt. Whether they're helping a child learn to read, supporting positive behavior strategies, or simply offering a smile and encouragement, paras help create the caring, connected community that makes Antrim Elementary so special.

Please take a moment to thank a paraprofessional this week. A kind word, a note, or even just a high-five can go a long way.

With gratitude,
Beth Gibney
Principal, Antrim Elementary School

#ParaprofessionalAppreciationDay

4/2 - Paraprofessional Appreciation Day

4/8 - PTO meeting at 3:30 pm

4/12 - Skate Night 6 pm - 9 pm

4/28-5/2 - No School (Spring vacation)

5/3 - PTO's First Annual AES Clean-Up Cook-Out

5/5-5/9 - Staff Appreciation Week

5/23 - No school for students (staff professional day)

5/26 - No school (Memorial Day holiday)

Our Read Across America spirit week was a huge success! Thank you to Ms. Brett for planning fun themes to help students remember the importance of reading.

Thank you to our AES staff and families for making Literacy Night a success!

Free Carbon Monoxide Detectors & Smoke Detector Safety Checks

The Antrim Fire Department has a number of carbon monoxide (CO) detectors available free of cost to families. If you are interested, please contact the Fire Department or the school.

Why Are CO Detectors Important?

A carbon monoxide detector can save lives by warning you of dangerous CO levels in your home. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that can cause serious illness or even death.

Why You Should Have a CO Detector

• Protect Your Family: CO can be produced by common household appliances, including furnaces, stoves, water heaters, and dryers.
• Avoid Life-Threatening Situations: CO poisoning can be fatal, with symptoms that can progress quickly from mild to severe.
• Detect Appliance Issues: A CO detector can alert you to problems with fuel-burning appliances.

How to Protect Your Home

• Install a CO detector in every home.
• Place at least one detector on each floor and outside each bedroom.
• Regularly inspect and maintain fuel-burning appliances.
• Ensure all appliances are properly installed and ventilated.
• Even if your home is all-electric, consider installing a CO detector, as CO can seep in from an attached garage or backup generator.

Smoke Detector Safety

It is also important to have working smoke detectors in your home. The Antrim Fire Department is available to inspect your smoke detectors to ensure they are functioning properly and keeping your family safe. If you would like a safety check, please contact the Fire Department.

Stay safe and take advantage of these important resources!

Your AES PTO is gearing up for an exciting spring, full of opportunities for families to come together to support our AES children! Here are a few of the events that we have planned:

• April 12- Roller Skating to benefit the PTO! We will receive all entry fees. Last year this was a major source of support for us.

• May 3- Community Clean up and Cookout for AES! Join us for a day of sprucing up the gardens and grounds and then join friends and family for a cookout lunch!

• Staff Appreciation Week- We have many fun things planned to show our appreciation for the amazing staff at AES! There will be a chance to sign up to donate items for this week-long event.

• May 17- Children And The Arts in Peterborough- The PTO will be selling popcorn, water and snacks. Stop by our tent as you stroll around the festival!

If you are interested in volunteering for any of these events, please email: antrimelementarypto@gmail.com

⭐NEXT MEETING: APRIL 8, 3:45-4:45 IN THE AES MULTIPURPOSE ROOM⭐

Eren Pils-Martin and Emily Hartshorne had a chance to attend the national PTO Today Expo this week, and have come back with some exciting ideas to help fund the programs and opportunities for our students.

The second annual skate night AES PTO fundraiser will be held Saturday, April 12th at GBS from 6PM-9PM. The theme is "Spring Fling" or best dressed. Admission is $5 and skate rental is $6. Come have fun and support our school.

The Community Engagement Committee is also looking for a family member and a community member to join the committee. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Beth Gibney at bgibney@conval.edu or call the main office.

You should have received the Fisher Cats Reading Challenge information in take-home folders this week. This challenge allows students to earn tickets to a baseball game by reading books! With all of these reading challenges happening, you might wonder—how do we keep track? Some are short-term goals, others last all year, and in many cases, students can "double dip" and count their reading for multiple challenges. The biggest goal? Just keep reading! If you prefer a digital copy, here is the link to the Fisher Cats Reading Challenge information: Fisher Cats Reading Challenge.

Last week we had quite the surprise when we came into our classroom and a leprechaun had been in the room and made a big mess. We were lucky though he had hidden some gold coins for us to find. The children were super excited that he visited.

The rest of the week's theme focused on the story of The Three Little Pigs. They have really enjoyed using puppets to reenact the story in our puppet theater. They even made their own puppets to bring home to share with their families and put on The Three Little Pigs show.

Practicing Consequences

As much as we want positive behavior all of the time, sometimes kids will act out. You can address unpleasant behavior without yelling or threats. How? By communicating and implementing consequences. This can seem overwhelming, but we can help!

Ms. Lawler's Class: In this week’s lesson, your child learned that taking time to feel calm before reacting is a helpful first step to solving a problem. Let your child see you taking a moment to feel calm at home when things are busy or stressful. For example, say, “Today was a really busy day. I’m going to take a few slow breaths to help me feel calm.” Invite your child to join you.

Mrs. Phaneuf's Class: In this week’s lesson, your child learned that apologizing is one way to begin to solve problems. They practiced using the phrases, “I’m sorry. Are you okay? How can I help?” as a way to help solve problems. Ask your child to teach you the three parts of the apology they learned. Encourage them to apologize when the opportunity arises at home.

1st Grade: In this week’s lesson, your child role-played doing kinds acts in response to different scenarios. Ask your child to tell you about the kind acts they and their classmates have been learning about at school this week.

Ms. Del Rossi's Class: In this week’s lesson, your child practiced having empathy to come up with kind acts they could do for others in different situations. Ask your child how having empathy can help them know how to be kind.

Ms. Revaz's Class: In this week’s lesson, your child used empathy to come up with a kind act they could do for a person in their school community. Ask your child what member of their school community they had empathy for and what kind act they chose to do for that person.

3rd Grade: In this week’s lesson, your child practiced asking questions to help them understand how someone else is feeling and what they can do to help. Ask your child what questions they can ask to find out how someone feels and what they may want or need. Discuss how checking in on someone’s feelings is a great way to show you care about them.

4th Grade: In this week’s lesson, your child learned that asking questions, listening, and observing can help them learn more about someone’s point of view when they don’t understand it. Tell your child about a time when learning more about a different point of view helped you have empathy. Encourage your child to think of future situations where it might be helpful to learn more about a different point of view in order to get along and show they care.

Vanessa Lofstedt

School Counselor

vlofstedt@conval.edu

https://sites.google.com/conval.edu/lofstedt/home

Remember families, Bikes for Books program continues all year long. Sponsored by the Masons, this program motivates students to read by offering an exciting incentive. For every ten books a student reads (or has read to them), they earn a raffle ticket. At the end of the year, four lucky students will win a new bike and helmet! Students can also earn tickets by receiving Lexia and Wilson certificates. Keep reading, filling those punch cards, and turning them in to Ms. Brett or Mrs. Gibney for a chance to win! Raffle tickets will be pulled in June.

Email: bgibney@conval.edu
Website: https://aes.conval.edu/

Location: 10 School Street, Antrim, NH, USA
Phone: (603)588-6371