Purple House 5 2023-2024

Dear Purple Families,

This week’s Learner-Led Conferences were a wonderful celebration of hard work, reflection, and growth! Our fifth graders proudly shared their learning journeys, goals, and accomplishments from our first nine weeks of school. It was inspiring to see their confidence as they explained their projects, reflections, and academic progress.

We also wrapped up the quarter by tackling our first big Math Exemplar, where learners applied their problem-solving skills, perseverance, and mathematical reasoning to real-world challenges. What an incredible way to close out our first nine weeks—showing just how much we’ve learned and grown together!

Our Global Read Aloud is officially underway! We’re diving into Will’s Race for Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes, a beautifully told story that brings the Oklahoma Land Rush to life. Through Will and his family’s journey as sharecroppers in the late 1800s, we’re exploring themes of perseverance, hope, and the pursuit of freedom. Learners are already making meaningful connections as we discuss what “home” means and how courage and determination can shape a family’s future.

Warmly,
Ms. May Voltz
Purple Fifth Grade Teacher

Thanks to technology we could share our learning and growth with family on the other side of the world! Priceless!

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Exciting news—our strawberry plants have been ordered, and planting begins next week! Today, our young gardeners tested the soil pH and added organic fertilizer to prepare the beds for our new plants. We can’t wait to see our research, teamwork, and care come to life in the garden! 🌱🍓

Out-of-This-World Learning! 🚀

Our fifth graders are exploring the transfer of energy in motion through virtual learning adventures using PHET and Gizmos! These interactive simulations let us test real-world physics at a virtual skate park or roller coaster, observing how potential and kinetic energy transform as objects move.

Watch Comet the Cat zoom through loops and jumps while experimenting with the effects of friction and gravity on energy transfer. From virtual ramps to real-world connections, our learners are discovering that science and motion truly go hand in hand!

Wednesday our counselor, Mrs. Garvin, led an engaging discussion about influencers—the people and things that can shape our choices and behaviors. Learners explored examples of both positive influencers (like role models, friends who encourage good decisions, and inspiring community leaders) and negative influencers (such as peer pressure, online trends, or voices that push unsafe or unkind choices).

We practiced recognizing when someone is influencing us and reflected on how to stay true to our own values, even when faced with pressure. What a powerful lesson in self-awareness and decision-making!

2025-2026 | Math Olympiad

Richard J. Lee Elementary School - Coppell Independent School District

October 10th, 2025.

Dear Parent of a 4th or 5th Grade Student,

I am excited to announce that Richard J. Lee Elementary will be participating in “Math Olympiad” for the 11th year! This team is for students who are not only interested in Math but show an advanced level of problem solving skills in the classroom. Math Olympiad allows students to explore mathematical problem-solving strategies that are not a part of the regular elementary math curriculum. Our meetings will be during the school day on Fridays beginning on November 8th. The team will practice in small groups weekly, preparing for the five monthly contests (November – March) using Creative Problem Solving in School Mathematics by George Lenchner and Math Olympiad Contest Problems Volume 2. The students WILL have weekly problems to complete at home. In the past 150,000 students from 5,000 teams worldwide participated in the Olympiads.

The goals of the program are:

• To stimulate enthusiasm and a love for mathematics

• To introduce important mathematical concepts

• To teach major strategies for problem solving

• To develop mathematical flexibility in solving problems

• To strengthen mathematical intuition

• To foster mathematical creativity and ingenuity

• To provide for the satisfaction, thrill, and joy of meeting challenges

It is highly recommended that your child has a love for mathematics and will be willing and able to complete assignments within and outside of class. If you would like your child to participate, please complete the attached Google Form by Sunday, October 19th, 2025. Due to the high interest in this club, late permissions will NOT be accepted. A maximum combined total of 35 fourth and fifth grade students can compete on a team. The selection process will be a timed test that will be administered and the highest scoring students in each grade level will be chosen. NO make ups will be offered if a learner is absent. Our first meeting will be on November 7th during the school day. If you have questions regarding Math Olympiad please contact me via email at akhan@coppellisd.com . The testing will be administered in the Lee Cafeteria and will begin at 8:00 a.m. This will be a 20-minute timed test. The testing for 4th grade will take place on Thursday, October 23rd and 5th grade will be on Friday, October 24th. A letter will be sent home on Wednesday, November 29th, 2025 notifying you about your child’s placement. Please submit the Google Form by 10/19/2025 Midnight at the latest, LATE permission slips will NOT be accepted. Please click on the Google Form Link to submit your permission to test.

Sincerely,

Mrs. A. Khan

October is National Dyslexia Awareness Month. CISD will raise awareness on each campus with a variety of events and activities. On Wednesday, Oct. 8, all CISD students and staff are encouraged to "Light It RED for Dyslexia" by wearing red to school. Learn more about CISD Intervention Services/Dyslexia HERE. Additional resources include the Texas Dyslexia Handbook, and the International Dyslexia Association Handbook.

October is National Bullying Prevention Month and the first Monday of every October is World Day of Bullying Prevention. On this day students, schools, and communities all over the world go BLUE together against bullying. We want you and your learners to join us to stop bullying and cyberbullying by wearing a blue shirt on Monday, October 6.

Our next PTO Spirit Night is coming up on Tuesday, Oct 14th at Chipotle at 8445 N Belt Line Rd. This is always one of our most successful spirit nights of the year! Join your Spur FamiLEE for dinner - dine in or take out - from 4-8pm. Remember to use code VTF62NA to send 25% of your purchase back to RJL PTO!

Let’s light up our library together! Families are invited to create festive crafts: diyas, lanterns, rangoli, and more for our Diwali display in the library, Oct 16–22. Check out the QR codes for fun craft ideas and join us in celebrating the color and spirit of Diwali!

Newton’s Laws of Motion in Our Everyday Lives

Sir Isaac Newton came up with three laws that explain how and why things move. You see these laws every single day—at home, in the park, and all around your world!

1️⃣ Newton’s First Law: The Law of Inertia

An object will keep doing what it’s doing—stay still or keep moving—until something else makes it stop or change direction.

• In your world:

  • A soccer ball won’t roll until you kick it.

  • Your backpack won’t slide off the desk unless something pushes or pulls it.

  • When the car suddenly stops, your body leans forward—that’s inertia!

🕵️‍♀️ Challenge: Find three examples of things that only start, stop, or change motion when another force acts on them.

2️⃣ Newton’s Second Law: Force = Mass × Acceleration

The bigger the force, the faster something moves. The heavier the object, the more force you need to move it.

• In your world:

  • It’s easier to push an empty shopping cart than a full one.

  • A kick sends a tennis ball farther than a bowling ball.

  • Riding your bike uphill takes more force than coasting down!

🧮 Challenge: Find one example of how changing the amount of force or mass changes motion—like pushing a swing, rolling a ball, or pedaling your bike.

3️⃣ Newton’s Third Law: For Every Action, There’s an Equal and Opposite Reaction

When you push on something, it pushes back on you with the same strength in the opposite direction.

• In your world:

  • When you jump off a skateboard, the board rolls backward.

  • A balloon zooms forward as air rushes out the back.

  • When you swim, your hands push the water backward, and the water pushes you forward.

🚀 Challenge: Find two examples where a push or pull creates an equal and opposite reaction—try it in the playground, in the kitchen, or even with your pet’s toys!

Explore Around You!

🧭 At Home: Watch how doors swing open, how your pets run and stop, or how balls roll across the floor.
🌳 At the Park: Notice swings, slides, and seesaws—where are the forces?
🌎 In the World: Think about cars starting and stopping, planes taking off, or rockets launching into space!

The Child Nutrition Department is excited to announce that National School Lunch Week (NSLW) is next week, October 14-17th. Paper copies of the lunch menu went home this week. This year’s NSLW theme is “Taste the World: Your School Lunch Passport!” Come join the adventure across multiple countries as we try new flavors and explore the important aspects of a healthy school lunch. This year, a local vendor, Oak Farms Dairy, has donated two bikes to be raffled off to those who eat with us throughout the week. Each day a student purchases a complete school meal, their name will be entered into the bike drawing (up to 5 entries!)! #CISDNSLW25

Our September campus attendance rate has increased from 97.35% for last year to 97.61% this year! That’s a great start! All of our houses are hovering right around the district’s 97% goal, with Purple House leading for September and fourth grade currently at the top by grade level. Everyday counts! Even a small increase in attendance adds up to more learning and growth for our learners. Thank you for helping us keep up the momentum by scheduling appointments outside of school hours, submitting absences promptly, and encouraging students to come even on those “I’m tired” mornings. Let’s keep making attendance something worth celebrating!

Our RJL PTO annual Write-A-Check fundraising campaign is officially underway! This is our main source of funding for the FamiLEE PTO, and this year’s goal is $31,000.

Every dollar raised goes right back into our school—supporting programs like Red Ribbon Week, Author Visits, enrichment programs, field trip transportation, and much more.Please consider making your donation today at rjlpto.org/wac

We will celebrate the 50th day of school on October 24!

We will participate in these Spirit Days, the last full week in October, in celebration of Red Ribbon Week. Here are the theme days, now, so you and your families can prepare

Class Spelling Bee ~ Week of November 3 - 7 (To determine learners who will advance to fifth-grade Spelling Bee)

Fifth Grade Spelling Bee ~ Thursday, November 20 (Determines winner who will advance to District Spelling Bee)

• RJL WRITE A CHECK CAMPAIGN
• NATIONAL DYSLEXIA AWARENESS MONTH
• STOMP OUT BULLYING MONTH
• BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
• NATIONAL PRINCIPAL MONTH
• HINDU HERITAGE MONTH
• NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH WEEK

Oct 13 - NO SCHOOL

Oct 14 - Chipotle Spirit Night

Oct 15 - Report Card Grades DUE (8:00 AM)

Fall Picture Day

Flex Learning (3:30-4:30)

Oct 16 - 5th Grade TX Wildlife Visit

Oct 17 - FamiLEE Lunches begin

Report Card Day / Grades Posted in HAC

Zoey the Therapy Dog @ Lee today

Oct 18 - Diwali starts through Oct 22

RED RIBBON WEEK IS TWO WEEKS AWAY!

Mrs. Stout would love library helpers to help shelve books and with other small projects. Please sign up and consider becoming a regular volunteer for the library! rjlpto.org/library

New this year, for anyone shelving books, we’ve worked with Mrs. Stout to create a quick training video you can watch before your volunteer slot!

The Annual Richard J. Lee Trunk or Treat on October 28th at 5:30pm is one of our favorite community events of the year, but we can't do it without our FamiLEE! To help support the work our designer teams put into their fabulous trunks, we will be gathering candy donations for them to hand out on the big night! Please sign up to send in a bag of 150+ pieces of candy/prizes with your learner by Wednesday, October 22nd. rjlpto.org/candy

Fifth-grade designer of learning experiences at RJ Lee Elementary a Net Zero school in Coppell, Texas.

Our Guiding Purpose: We empower learners to positively impact the world by designing learning experiences that promote relationships, risk-taking, and collaboration in a flexible learning environment.

Apple Teacher

HEB Excellence in Education State Finalist 2018

Twitter X: @MayV1