Morford Monthly Memo

This week marks the last week of March and shortly Spring Break will begin at end of day Friday. When we return from break it will be a race as we enter the track of testing and end of year activities with field trips and celebrations. Please ensure that your child is getting plenty of rest and a good meal to start their day. We do offer breakfast for every student. Doors open at 8am for those students who wish to come and have breakfast.

I want to remind you that if you want to participate in future activities and volunteer you must have a new I-Chat completed (as beginning of second semester, January 19th). Please see the info below and make sure that you get the form to the office. I know that your eagle looks forward to you being a part of activities. If you do not have a current I-Chat on file you will not be able to stay and participate, so please get these forms in.

No matter where you might be headed for the break the staff at Central wish you a restful and rejuvenating Spring Break! We look forward to seeing our eagles back to learning Monday, April 6th.

In partnership with you,

Mrs. Morford

The office is a busy place at the end of the day. If you would like to sign your student out at the end of the day please be sure to stop by the office prior to 3:15pm. As the end of day dismissal is happening, students are packing up, and teachers and students are moving throughout the building. It makes it very difficult to locate students. It takes a village and we appreciate your understanding.

The bell rings at 3:26pm. We may ask you to wait outside to collect your student as they are released through the main doors.

Student Council is collecting money for Dimes for Diapers during the month of April. This starts on April 6th and runs through May 1st. The class that raises the most money will win a pizza party. Second place will win donuts and third will win popsicles.

We will also have special themed days throughout the month of April to help raise money for the cause. If your child brings in a $1 they can participate in these themed days:

Friday, April 10th - Crazy Sock Day

Friday, April 17th - Crazy Hair Day

Friday, April 24th - PJ Day

Friday, May 1st - Hat Day

Happy 250th Birthday, USA!. Jaimee Jordan, Music teacher, and the students have been working hard to prepare for their upcoming Spring Concert. Mark your calendar for the following dates:

April 22- 4th Grade

April 23rd- 5th Grade

When we return from Spring Break time will begin to fly by!

Here’s what you need to know about the book fair. It will take place from April 20th through

April 24th from 8:30 to 3:00 in the Media Center. The fair will close at noon on Friday the 24th. Students will visit the book Fair during their library time and parents may shop at our school’s Book Fair online. All orders ship directly to your home, and shipping is free for book orders over $25.00. Every online purchase will also benefit our school.

Be on the lookout for a flyer coming home soon!

5th grade students will be visiting Linden Middle School in May to see what a typical day is like for a middle school student. Students along with their homeroom teacher will be walking to the middle school for this event after lunch. See below the dates for your student's homeroom teacher.

May 18th

Edwards

Mize

Sinn

May 19th

Elmer

Wolosiewicz

Perkins

Spring is always the time when we spend some time on the state standardized testing. M-Step this year will be given mid April to early May at Central Elementary.

M-Step testing will be as follows for Central Elementary. Please help your child prepare by getting plenty of rest and eating a healthy breakfast to get their brains ready to roll!

4th grade

April 28th - ELA day 1

April 29th - ELA day 2

May 5th - Math

5th grade

April 21st - Math

April 28th - ELA day 1

April 29th - ELA day 2

May 5th - Social Studies

May 6th - Science

Important info regarding Electronic Device Policy while taking M-Step

To help us prepare I wanted to share with you some info ahead of time pertaining to the Electronic Device Policy. If one of the below mentioned items is found to be on a student, in a pocket, etc. your child's test will need to be coded as invalid with the state of Michigan. According to the state of Michigan the following Electronic Devices will NOT be allowed:

**any electronic device that can be used to record, to transmit, or to receive information not used for testing

**computer tablets, iPads, e-readers (for example: kindle)

**smart watches (for examples: FitBits; Apple, Garmin, Samsung watches, any watch with access to other applications or the internet)

**smart phones and cell phones

**headphones with advanced technology, including voice command, texting, app connection, and connection to the internet

**smart glasses

I am sharing this info ahead of time as any of the above devices will not be allowed into the room during testing.

Please have your eagle check the lost and found! We will be donating items that are not claimed very soon to a local charity.

It is that time of the year to purchase yearbooks. Utilize the QR code or click here to access the order page.

We are finding that more and more items from home that are not necessary to the learning environment are making the trip here to Central. Please have conversations with your student that stuffed animals, toys, games, etc. need to stay at home.

Of course the only pass on this is if teachers have a scheduled reading day that students might be able to bring a blanket or stuffed animal. Otherwise, all "home" items must stay at home. If your student continues to be warned, we will place a phone call for you to pick up the item in the office.

Thank you for your support with this!

We love having visitors in the building! Of course we have special procedures that must be followed to ensure safety. Those include: a valid i-Chat on file and all visitors must sign into the office prior to moving throughout the building.

Each month we like to a recognize a staff member at Central that goes above and beyond.

This month staff nominated Scarlett Oden, Secretary, at Central. Mrs. Oden is the glue holding the school together. Oftentimes she is talking on the phone and you don’t even know with her fancy headphones. Nonetheless, Mrs. Oden goes above and beyond to communicate clearly with all stakeholders. She sometimes has to enforce rules and help keep things safe in the building which isn’t always easy. Most days you will see students coming in to have lunch because they need extra love or they just want to hang out with Mrs. Oden! We so appreciate all that you bring to the building Mrs. Oden. For that we would like to congratulate you as the staff of the month for March.

Congrats on this much deserved award!

Students often need a reminder of SOAR expectations after a break, especially like Spring Break. When we return from break each grade will rotate around the school following a schedule to focus on the SOAR expectations in the following areas: playground, bathrooms, hallways, cafeteria, office, end of day dismissal, assemblies and classrooms. While rotating they will work through lessons on what is the expected behavior with each of the letters representing SOAR.

While we talk about the importance of SOARing each day as a student and/or a staff member in Linden it is important we also revisit what it means to be a kind human. Continue to have those conversations with your Central Eagle so that our school remains safe for all students to learn. We appreciate your support!

Our SOAR expectations:
S – Stay Safe
O – Offer Kindness
A – Act Responsibly
R – Remember Respect

Help reinforce the expectations at home by asking:

• “How did you follow the SOAR expectations today?”

Access the school wide Behavior Expectations Matrix here.

When picking up your student from school early, please be prepared to show your ID. This is for safety and security of our students. Know that while we are working to build relationships with our families we don't always have the same people working in the office nor do we often see you each day. Thank you for being patient to ensure our Eagles are safe!

Some of our students have been diagnosed with Tree Nut/Peanut Allergies and have had severe reactions after contact. Please be cognizant of any allergy in your child’s classroom.

A few students are diabetic and have food restrictions. If planning for birthday treats please take the above info into consideration and plan for store bought pre-packaged items. Check with your child’s teacher for ideas.

New semester means new I-chat form is needed for the second half of the school year. Visitors are welcome in our building. In order to chaperone on trips, assist in classroom parties, help at field day, etc. You must have completed an I-Chat form to have a background check done prior to you helping. The application must be turned into the school at least 5 school days prior to the activity occurring. The form must be completed and is a non-negotiable for student safety. If you do not have one on file the day of the event, you will not be able to attend. As a parent myself, I hope that you understand the importance of the background check and will trust this process.

The best way to avoid hiccups and issues is to complete the form now! Please make sure you have a scheduled appointment time with your child’s teacher if coming in. Upon arrival, please sign in at the office.

Access the I-Chat form here. Complete the form and return to the office.

The students really enjoyed the sucker sale. Huge thank you to those parents that helped make it possible.

Next up is the Shamrock Shuffle! Be on the look out for a sign up genius which will be going out to the PALs email list first. If you would like to be added to the email list please send us an email using the email central.el.pals@gmail.com Be sure to have a new I-Chat on file for the second semester.

PALs meetings are on the calendar. We hope that you can join us each month. Meetings start at 9am right at Central Elementary.

April 10

May 1

Questions contact our Central Elementary PALs via email at central.el.pals@gmail.com

March 30 -April 3 - Spring Break

April 22 - 4th Grade Spring Concert at LHS

April 23 - 5th Grade Spring Concert at LHS

May 20 - SOAR day

May 21 - 5th grade field trip to Greenfield Village (Elmer and Wolosiewicz HOMEROOM)

May 25 - No School - Memorial Day

May 27 - 5th grade field trip to Greenfield Village (Edwards and Mize HOMEROOM)

May 28 - 5th grade field trip to Greenfield Village (Perkins and Sinn HOMEROOM)

May 29 - 4th Grade field trip to Mackinaw

June 2 - 5th Grade field trip to Splash Village

June 4 - 4th Grade field trip to Rollerhaven

June 5 - Last Day of School - Half Day for Students and Teachers