The Paw Print Press

December 8th - December 12th - Merry Moose Holiday Shoppe (Information coming soon)

Monday, December 15th - Holiday Concert - 1:30 and 6:30 pm🎵🎶

December 15th - December 19th - Holiday Spirit Week

• 12/15 - Blizzard Day - Wear your black and white and keep warm with winter accessories
• 12/16 - Tree Top Tuesday - Wear green, gold, silver, trees, and stars
• 12/17 - Glow your Way into the Holidays - Wear bright glow colors to light up our assembly
• 12/18 - Holiday Character Day - Dress as your favorite holiday or winter character, or wear your craziest/tackiest holiday clothes
• 12/19 - Flannel & Fleece Friday - Wear your festive flannel, fleece, or plaid gear

Friday, December 17th - WIG Assembly - 1:15

Friday, December 19th - Snowball Fights and Hot Cocoa at Lunch

Monday, December 22nd - Sunday, January 4th - Winter Recess (School Closed)⛄⛄

Monday, January 5th - School Resumes; Little Ceasars Fundraising Sale Begins

Greetings Woodrow Wilson Families,

It was wonderful to see so many of you at Conferences! We hope you were able to learn more about your child’s progress for the 1st trimester and celebrate the areas where they are glowing and growing. A special thank you to everyone who completed a GLOW form—these are now displayed in the cafeteria hallway, and students will have the opportunity to take them down next week.

This week, we are excited to host our Merry Moose Shoppe! Thank you to our PTO and volunteers for setting it up for students to preview on Monday. Shopping will take place Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, with a make-up morning on Friday. This event gives students a chance to surprise their loved ones with thoughtful gifts. Staff will assist students in finding the perfect gift for each person on their list while staying within budget. This year, students will also use a calculator to track their spending, adding a fun, real-world math component to the activity.

Next week is our final week before break, which includes our Holiday Spirit Week! Please see the attached PDF or reference the Important Dates for details on each spirit day.

We also look forward to our Winter Concert on Monday, December 15th. The student-only performance is at 1:30 PM, and the evening performance for families and guests is at 6:30 PM (students should arrive at 6:00 PM, when doors open). We hope to see you there!

Our first trimester WIG celebration will take place on Wednesday, December 17th. This student-led assembly will celebrate our 1st trimester accomplishments and showcase how much our students are truly GLOWing. Please have your child wear bright, glow-inspired clothing to light up the assembly and the holidays!

The final day before break, Friday, December 19th, promises a fun-filled day for students and staff. The PTO will be serving hot cocoa and hosting “snowball fights” in the gym. Thank you to everyone who volunteered! If you didn’t have a chance to sign up, please reach out to your child’s teacher or the PTO to get involved.

In academics, our 4th graders will complete another science investigation this week, creating a circuit with a light in the library. This concludes their 4th grade investigations for the year.

We have noticed many students arriving after 7:45 AM. It is important for students to start their day on time in the classroom. If your child eats breakfast at school, arriving closer to 7:30 AM ensures they have time to finish and be ready for the day. We understand that exceptions happen, and we appreciate your efforts to get students here on time. Please reach out if you need support with your morning routine.

Additionally, we’ve seen many last-minute dismissal changes. Our office is extremely busy in the mornings and afternoons, and late changes can be challenging to manage. If possible, please send a note to your child’s teacher in advance so the office can be notified in a timely manner. We understand emergencies arise and will work with you as needed. Otherwise, we appreciate students remaining in school for the full day, which ends at 2:25 PM.

If you have any questions, please contact us during office hours (7:00 AM – 3:00 PM). You may also leave a message after hours, and we will respond as soon as possible. Please know that during busy times, calls may not be answered immediately, but messages are checked promptly.

We wish your family a safe, warm, and wonderful December and a restful holiday break.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Zaccarine

Fun in 3rd Grade

The third graders had a visit from the Genessee Country Village and Museum. The students were introduced to 19th century games that people played in the 1800’s. The students all had the opportunities to play with each game.The kids had so much fun. Who would have thought wooden games would be fun without electronics!!!!!

In reading, we have finished non-fiction books and have been studying biographies. We have been working on our science unit on Invisible Forces, learning about gravity, friction, magnets and forces. We will be traveling to Brazil and learning their customs and traditions then heading to Antarctica.

We have been learning multiplication and division in math. It is important to study multiplication facts nightly.

The students worked really hard on reaching their math and reading WIG goals. We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoyed seeing all those who came to conferences!

4th Grade was Nonstop in November

Can you believe it’s already December? November has been such an amazing month for the 4th graders at Woodrow Wilson Elementary. We continued to work hard and pushed ourselves to learn about many different topics. In reading, we finished our first unit which was mostly focused on the genre of fiction. We learned about how characters change in a story from the beginning to the end, and why that change might happen. We learned about the different types of connections there are (text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world) and about how to find a theme of a story. We used the problem and the solution in a story to understand what the author was trying to teach us about in real life. In writing, we spent time looking at how we can use conjunctions to expand our sentences. We also used the question words of who, what, where, when, why, and how to help generate more complex sentences. We focused on making complete sentences throughout our writing that had correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. In math, we learned how to multiply a multi-digit number times a one-digit number. Then, we shifted our focus to division of a multi-digit number divided by a one-digit number. In science, we learned about fossils, sedimentary rocks, weathering, erosion, and glaciers. We completed a lot of hands-on activities to help us learn more about these concepts.

In December, we will continue to work hard in each subject area. In reading, we will conduct research about different types of extreme weather. We will find important information about each topic and use that information to write summaries. In writing, we will start by learning about how different places around the world celebrate different events. We will continue to focus on making stronger sentences that form a proper paragraph. In math, we will continue to learn about multiplication and division. In science, we will finish learning about “Earth’s Surfaces” in our science kit. Then, we will start to learn about Colonial America in social studies. The 4th graders will work hard in every subject area while enjoying the adventure of learning.

We thank each of you for your ongoing support at home! Everything you do at home continues to help us here in school. Please remind your child to read for at least 20 minutes every night and practice their multiplication facts.

News From The 5th Grade Wing

The fifth graders are in full swing and thriving!! With one trimester under their belts, they are ready and excited to take on another.

In Reading, students have just wrapped up their informational text unit. Throughout this unit, they practiced identifying central ideas and key details, summarizing text, analyzing relationships and interactions between individuals, events, and ideas, and supporting inferences with text evidence. We are now moving into our next unit, Key Ideas and Details in Literature, where students will begin focusing on comparing and contrasting characters, settings, and events in a variety of plays and stories.

In Math, students are finishing their work with multiplying multi-digit whole numbers and will soon begin multiplying decimals. Please continue encouraging your child to practice their math facts, it plays an important role in preparing them for the units ahead.

In Science, the fifth graders really enjoyed our “Toys Matter” unit. They especially enjoyed the final project, where they created a toy (a bouncy ball) using all the science concepts they learned throughout the unit. Next up is our new unit, “Got Water,” where students will investigate Earth’s systems.

Please continue to encourage your child to read at home for at least 20 minutes each night. It was great seeing everyone at our upcoming Parent/Teacher Conferences on Thursday, December 4th. Thank you for your continued support!

Woodrow Wilson’s Student Lighthouse Shines Through Service and Leadership

Woodrow Wilson’s Student Lighthouse team has been busy serving the community by creating bookmarks and writing letters to members of the Military, National Guard, and Reserves. These heartfelt items will be sent to the Blue Star Mothers of America, Inc., where they will be included in care packages for troops overseas.

This remarkable group has been demonstrating leadership in many ways. Each student took the initiative to teach their classmates what a leader looks like and how everyone can demonstrate leadership qualities. They also explained how classmates can earn the opportunity to hang a lighthouse on the hallway WW Leadership Display when they show leadership in action.

In addition, the Lighthouse leaders guided a special activity for their grade level in which students created “Thankful Books” to show their teachers how much they are appreciated.

Woodrow Wilson’s Student Lighthouse continues to shine brightly—serving others, inspiring their peers, and leading by example.

See What’s Happening in the Music Room…

Students in the music room have been hard at work. In fifth grade, students explored the connection to history with songs entitled The Cumberland Gap, where they learned about the actual Cumberland gap in which people moved from Virginia to the west. In fourth grade students explored a nursery rhyme Peter Piper where they learned about sixteenth notes. Finally, in third grade students have been playing their recorders.

Updates in Choir and Drama…

Choral Students continue to prepare for our upcoming performance on Monday, December 15th at 6:30pm. Students should arrive at 6:00pm in black bottoms and white tops. This concert is only for students participating in Grade 3 Choir, ⅘ Choir, and 5th Grade Band. Meanwhile, Drama continues to practice their lines and learn their songs.

November/December Highlights in the Library

Hello Woodrow Wilson families! Here’s a fun look at what our students have been up to this month in the library:

Honoring Veterans Day

Students listened to the powerful story 21 Steps and learned why Veterans Day is so important. We explored videos, read books, and talked about the brave men and women who serve our country.

Native American Heritage and Thanksgiving

Throughout November, classes explored Native American traditions and cultures. Students listened to stories, read nonfiction texts, and watched videos to deepen their understanding of Native American history and the origins and meaning of Thanksgiving.

Reading, Keyboarding & Coding

Students continued working hard on their individual reading goals and practiced keyboarding and coding skills. Their confidence and creativity are really growing!

Scholastic Book Fair Fun

Students are having a blast exploring new books and finding exciting reads to take home. The book fair ends December 5th. It will be open during Parent-teacher conferences on December 4th, so stop on down to the library after meeting with your teacher.

We’re proud of all the learning and curiosity happening in the Woodrow Wilson Library. Looking forward to another great month of reading, exploring, and discovering!

Updates in Physical Education

This month in Physical Education, our students have been working on the fundamental skills of throwing and catching. We've been practicing a variety of activities that focus on coordination, accuracy, and teamwork. Through games and drills, students have been refining their ability to throw with precision and catch with confidence, while also learning how to support one another in group activities. It's been amazing to watch their teamwork grow as they cheer each other on and collaborate to improve.

Nutcrackers Nutcrackers Everywhere!

Nutcrackers are decorative figurines most commonly made to resemble a toy soldier. According to German folklore, nutcrackers were given as keepsakes to bring luck to the family and protect the home. It is said that they represent strength and power and watch over the family keeping evil spirits and danger away.

In art class WW artists learned about the German made figurine and its long, thin, wooden shape. They observed tall nutcrackers on each table along with pictures of many with different looks and themes. Artists then used a template to start their drawings. This gave artists the basic elongated shape of the figure as a starting point that they could alter and add details to. Some made the traditional look of a nutcracker soldier while others transformed theirs to resemble a favorite sport, hobby or look. One of their goals was to add a personal touch to their drawings. It could be as simple as adding glasses like they wear, drawing their own hairstyle on, copying the logo that is their favorite or going all out and making it a self portrait! After their drawings were finished artists put lots of thought into what medium they would use for color. We talked about choosing something they would give them the most success and the least frustration. Crayons, markers, colored pencils and watercolor paints were available in as many colors as we could find!

These nutcrackers will look awesome lining the halls of WW when finished. Make sure to wander around to find the one that belongs to your family member during conference day!

As a reminder, if your child has a fever over 100, has a wet, frequent cough and/or a continuously runny nose they should remain home until symptoms are improving. For mild cold symptoms with no fever, they may attend school. If your child tests positive for Covid, they should remain home until their fever has remained down without Tylenol or Ibuprofen for 24 hours and all symptoms are

improving (please call the Health Office for questions about when to return).

Continue to teach your child good healthy hygiene:

- Cough or sneeze into your elbow or a tissue, not into your hand

- Wash hands frequently, (*with good sudsing for 20 seconds with NO

water, THEN rinse hands*), especially after blowing nose

- Consider wearing a mask when returning from a Covid infection (NOT

mandatory)

Please contact Mrs. Sobota in the Health Office for any questions or concerns at

716-891-6420 or csobota@cheektowagasloan.org

Dismissal Changes - Thank you for sending in notes if your child is dismissing differently that day. We find our students do best when they have routines at dismissal. Thank you for doing your best to stick with these routines.

Absent from School? - If your child is going to be out from school, please call to let us know. Thank you for sending in the excuse (note) when your child returns.

Office Hours - The office closes at 3 pm each day. If your child is staying after, please reach out to a club leader for any communication.