Christmas Party With Gift Exchange

On December 23rd Room 212 will have a Christmas Party. The party will include food, games, and a gift exchange. Every student is to bring an exchange gift worth $5.00. (girls bring for girls, boys bring for boys) Your child may also bring a food treat for each student if they wish. What a great way to enjoy Christmas together!

Busy

The last few weeks have been very busy. Special thanks to the Beal family for inviting us to spend an afternoon pressing cider and learning about wildlife. For Veteran's Day we made american flag pins for the visiting veterans. We also enjoyed making "Zeps" to celebrate finishing the novel Maniac Magee. The students have been working very hard, and are enjoying celebrating the season.

Thanks

Thanks for your patience while my site was not working correctly. We are up and running again in 212. Details of the important happenings in 212 will be posted this week. Have a great day!

Red Ribbon Week

The Red Ribbon Week Fairy visited our classroom during the night. Today's lucky winner was Amber. She is pictured with the items the fairy left for her.

Tomorrow we will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week with fitness stations. All students will be participating in physical fitness activities at stations surrounding the building. Students will visit 7 stations. Please remind your child to dress appropriately for these activities. While avoiding drugs, alcohol, and tobacco we want to instill some healthy habits in our students.

Red Ribbon Week

Kierstie and Logan are members of the 6th Grade Red Ribbon Committee. The committee has been working very hard in conjunction with Miss Myers and Mrs. Wingard to plan activities for next week. Remember, each day next week has been designated as a theme day for Red Ribbon Week. Please encourage your child to participate in the activities. If we all work together we can take a stand against drugs!

Monday - Rally in Red and Sock it to Drugs! - wear red clothing and crazy socks

Tuesday - You Won't SEE ME Using Drugs! - wear camo

Wednesday - Put a Cap on Drugs! - wear a hat

Thursday - Drugs Will Make You Crazy - crazy hair day

Friday - Team Up Against Drugs and Alcohol - wear your favorite sport's team jersey/uniform/shirt

Theme

Students in 212 have been working on identifying Theme when reading a novel or short story. To practice this skill students created SS Thematic ships this week. The ships identified various themes in the story The Brand New Kid as well as summarized the story.

Guest Speaker

Today Mr. Larry Bowser talked to 6th grade students about the dangers of drugs and alcohol. Mr. Bowser is a Juvenile Probation Officer for Clarion County. His presentation was wonderful. He shared a great deal of important information with our students. Please be sure to ask your son or daughter what they learned from Mr. Bowser. Also, if you see him in the community give him a big Thank You from Keystone Elementary.

Unit Test And A New Novel

Wow! It is week 6 of school already. It is unit test time. This week you child will have a unit test in Language, Reading and Spelling. The Reading and Language test will test the skills from Unit 1. The Spelling test will have 25 words previously taught during the first 5 weeks of school. Additionally, we will be starting a novel this week. The novel is Maniac Magee. Watch for you child to bring it home.

Newbery Book Reports

Students from 212 are currently working on book reports. All students chose a Newbery Medal book, or a Newbery Honor book last week. After students read their chosen books they will complete a book report. The final book reports will be in the shape of the Newbery Medal. All students have received the requirements for the report. Reports are due on October 11th. Please ask your child to see their chosen book. Encourage them to create a timeline for completing the report. This will help your child to pace themselves to complete the assignment. Also, feel free to take turns reading the book aloud. What a great way to spend time togther.

The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.

C.A.T.S. Food Fundraiser

It's food fundraiser time! Your son or daughter should have brought home a food fundraiser packet this week. Please remember that C.A.T.S. provides us with some very valuable resources. Those resources include field trip transportation, partial payment for field trip t-shirts, and help with the academic banquet. All the profit from the sale benefit the students and their education. Orders are due on October 12th.

Olweus Bullying Prevention Program

Keystone Elementary held their Olweus Bullying Prevention Program assembly today. The students from 212 were happy to be a part of the assembly. Students performed a skit for the entire school. In addition to performing, students in 212 also painted a cardboard school bus to be used during the skit. GREAT JOB KIDS!

Math Facts

We have been reviewing multiplication facts in 212 Math. We will soon begin our 100 fact test. My goal for the class is to complete the 100 facts within three minutes with 93% accuracy. Your child will bring home a letter today (September 10th) with all the details. Your child will also bring home flash cards that we made in class. If they spend just a little time practicing each day, that time will really pay off. Thank you for your continued parent support.

Ecosystems

We are now studying ecosystems in Science class. Dawn, David and Tuesday are pictured dissecting an owl pellet. This activity was a great hands-on exploration of a food web. Watch for your child to bring home a food web assignment soon.

Beautiful Statue

On September 8th Artist Dave returned to Keystone Elementary. He returned to unveil the statue in front of our building. The statue is a statue of Kelly flying a kite. Kelly won this honor by winning an essay contest in 4th grade.

CONGRATULATIONS KELLY!

Welcome Back

A Great Week

Wow! What a great first week! I can't believe the first week is over already. It was busy and wonderful. The students are slowly getting back into the swing of things. Parents, don't forget your son or daughter has an assignment book. Assignment books should be used daily. Also, your child will have a weekly Reading, Spelling and Language test. Please encourage your child to review for these tests. I am looking forward to a great year.

Sixth Grade Graduation

Sixth Grade Graduation will be held on May 28th at 9:30. Following the graduation, 6th grade students will be excused to their parents. Make plans and enjoy your day with your special 6th grade student.

Farmers Bank Presentation

Cindy Jack and Laura Cristman

Zach, Rhys, and Alex

Special thanks to Farmers Bank for presenting a banking lesson to sixth grade students. Laura Cristman and Cindy Jack did an excellent job presenting a lesson on needs and wants. The lesson focused on what we really do need to survive. It stressed the importance of earning and saving money. Additionally, Farmers Bank gave each student a piggy bank with a 2009 Presidential Gold Coin in it.

What A Great Novel

The Cay

This week we started reading The Cay. The book tells the story of a young boy, Phillip, and an old West Indian man, Timothy. They end up on a raft together after the boat they are on is torpedoed. As time goes by the castaways arrive on a small island. Phillip has a head injury that has made him blind and dependent on Timothy. This is the story of their struggle, to survive, and of Phillip's efforts to adapt to his blindness and to understand the dignified, wise, and loving old man who is his companion.

The book is absolutely wonderful. Be sure to ask your child what is happening in the book. Hopefully, your family can enjoy reading this book together.

Orientation

Just a reminder!

Sixth Grade Orientation is May 14th. Your child will eat lunch at the high school during orientation. You need not send money. The money for their lunch will be deducted from their lunch account at the elementary. Also, don't forget you child will be arriving home early that day. The students will be following the high school dismissal schedule. It will be a great day for the kids.

Peanut Park

On Friday, May 22nd we will be walking to the park for an afternoon of fun. Students will leave school at 11:30 and return by dismissal. Please be sure your child wears good walking shoes. While at Peanut Park we will have a picnic and enjoy playing kick ball, riffle ball, and various playground games. Let's hope for a beautiful sunny day!

Special Presentation

Marlene Austin

On April 23rd Marlene Austin from Passages spoke to 6th grade about bullying and sexual harassment. The presentation was excellent. Please ask your son or daughter to see the very informative pamphlet they received.

Technology

On April 14th Mrs. Witkowski gave 212 Science classes a lesson on using Microsoft Publisher. Students are using the information they learned to create volcano brochures. Special thanks to Mrs. Witkowski for her great lesson.

Dates Confirmed

Track Meet and Orientation

Yeah! The final days for the track meet and orientation have been confirmed. The track meet will be held the afternoon of May8th, and high school orientation will take place on May 14th. Your child will bring home information about both events soon.

Tentative Dates

Sixth Grade Track Meet and High School Orientation

Many parents and students have been asking about the Sixth Grade Track Meet and High School Orientation. At this time some tentative dates have been set. As soon as the dates are finalized I will post the final dates on this site. The tentative dates are as follows:

May 8th - Track Meet

May 14th - High School Orientation.

Chaperones

The chaperone lottery was held on Thursday in Room 212. The chaperones for Niagara Falls are Betty Servey, Shanelle Shick and Kim Riley. Students will be bringing more information about Niagara Falls home soon. Thanks to all the parents who volunteered to go along.

Niagara Falls

On May 26th sixth grade will be going to Niagara Falls. Watch for more information about the trip to come home with your child toward the end of April. Room 212 is looking for chaperones. Chaperones will be picked by using a lottery system. Students will receive a flyer on April 7th. Those interested in chaperoning should return the flyer by April 9th. The chaperone lottery will take place on April 9th.

Kindergarten Buddies

Calen and Jeremiah

One of our favorite things to do is to spend time with our Kindergarten Buddies. Friday, March 13th we enjoyed playing games with our buddies. This was a culminating activity for Kindergarten. They have been working with letter g.

Americanism Essay Contest

Timmy, Lanie, and Molly are the winners of the 2009 Americanism Essay Contest. This contest is sponsored by the Ladies Auxiliary of the Dehart-Rossman-Wenner American Legion Post in Salem. This year students wrote an essay entitled Soldiers, Past and Present . . . America Honor Your Veterans. The essays were judged on content, grammar, originality, neatness and spelling. The students will be honored at a dinner in April.

Special thanks to the auxiliary for giving the students such a wonderful opportunity.

Go For The Greens

March 17th is Go For The Greens day. This day is designed to help remind students of the importance of eating healthy. If you wish to donate vegetables to our classroom for this event please send them in on March 16th. Vegetables will be used for class activities as well as for some healthy snacking.

Parents: Please watch for some important papers about this activity to come your way.

PSSA Tests

PSSA test will be given the week of March 16th. Students in 212 have been working hard all year to prepare for these very important test. To help relieve test anxiety and encourage students to do their best on the test, Mrs. Wingard as established a PSSA student committee. These students have created encouraging posters, and will provide us with a fun filled assembly on Tuesday, March 10th. McKenna is the 212 representative on the committee. Thanks for all your hard work McKenna.

REMEMBER it is very important that students get enough rest, and eat a good breakfast during this week.

New Friends

New Friends

Room 212 recently finished reading the novel Number the Stars. The novel is a wonderful story of a Jewish family,the Rosens, that must be relocated during the war. The family is best friends with the Johansen family. The Johansen's are instrumental in helping the Rosen family escape from the Nazi forces. During the reading of this book the theme of friendship is evident.

For a final activity the students were given a partner that would be their new friend. The student collected information about their new friend and completed a information sheet. Students were amazed to find out how much they didn't know about their classmate.

Save Those Box Tops & Labels

Keystone Elementary saves Campbell's Soup labels for Education & Boxtops for Education. We would appreciate it if you, and all extended family members, save these labels for our school. . Boxtops for Education coupons are small rectangular shapes usually found on the box top or bottom area.Keystone's CATS organization collects and counts the labels & redeems them for educational supplies.Please help support our school with these labels! For more information on the CATS organization visit the KES Home Page & click on the CATS link.