February 2012 Soaring to Excellence

Friday Harbor Elementary 95 Grover St. Friday Harbor, WA 98250

Interim Principal Connie Martin 360-378-5209

Dear Friday Harbor Families, Happy February! I hope you all have been able to enjoy the lovely weather we have been experiencing on our beautiful island. Welcome to our new families who have moved to the island over the last couple of weeks. We are excited to have you here! With snow days, semester break, and our upcoming winter break, our students are experiencing many transitions. This can be difficult for them. As the staff and I help our students to settle back into their routines after these breaks, we look forward to and anticipate a great second half of the year ahead of us! We have a lot of fun activities in Februarythey are all listed on the right. You should have received your ballot in the mail recently for our upcoming Capital and Technology Levy. You may have seen the information in our island newspapers about the details of the levy. If you would like more information feel free to give me a call or go to: http://www.sjisd.wednet.edu/Page/1009 This month our theme at FHES is being a Good Citizen. This theme fits well with our current food drive as well as our upcoming assembly, Rachels Challenge. This assembly is tomorrow, Wednesday, at 9:45 in the gym, and you are invited to attend. Rachels Challenge will help students learn how to start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion at FHES as well as throughout the community. The staff and I are very excited that this nationally recognized event is coming to Friday Harbor, and we look forward to seeing you at the assembly or at the evening dinner and presentation which is at the middle school at 5:15pm also on Feb. 8th. I hope you enjoy the rest of the newsletter, and I hope you find the pieces on attendance and keeping your child bully free helpful. Heres to being kind and compassionate! ~Connie

We have many fun and exciting events in February

Food Drive Going on now!!please send in your nonperishable items to help those in need Early Dismissal Tuesday, Feb. 7 Rachels Challenge Come and help us start a Chain Reaction of Kindness and Compassion Assembly Feb. 8th FHES 9:45am Evening Dinner and Presentation Feb. 8th FHMS 5:15pm K-1 Math Night Feb. 9th 6:00pm Feb. 14th Valentines Day Parties: K am 9:30 K pm 1:15 1st Grade 12:50 2nd Grade 1:50 3rd 1:50pm 4th 12:30pm 5th 2:00pm 6th - none Team ET 2:00pm Capital and Technology Levy Feb. 14th Spirit Day Twin Day!! Feb. 15th Olympic View MS Band Assembly Feb, 15th 2:00pm Winter Break Feb. 16 - 20th 6th Grade goes to IMA - Feb. 27

FHES Spelling Bee Feb. 28th

Mrs. Minkes class Celebrates Martin Luther King Day

Tell me and Ill forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and Ill understand. ~Chinese proverb
Dear Families, Recently, we have had some questions about excused and unexcused absences and school attendance in general. At Friday Harbor Elementary we genuinely care about our children. We miss them when they are not in class. Their presence makes a positive difference in the teaching and learning environment. It is very difficult to see a child struggle when he or she comes back lost because of missed school or late arrival. Daily attendance at school is very important. Children have a right to an education, and parents have a legal responsibility to see that they attend. The importance of regular school attendance isn't about following the rules; it's about giving our children the best chance for success. Missing school puts our children at a big disadvantage. If they miss the class where a key idea or lesson is delivered, they quickly fall behind. And sometimes, children who are behind get discouraged and give up, something none of us wants for our children. Of course children should stay at home if they are sick. And of course we should all be sure our children eat well and get plenty of sleep so they stay as healthy as possible. We should always try to schedule dentist, doctor, or other appointments for our children at times that don't conflict with school. Nearly all schools also have an attendance policy that requires a written note or a phone call from the parent or guardian explaining why a student is absent, whether it's because of illness or for some other reason. Some of us have important holidays or traditional celebrations that aren't recognized by the school calendar. This can be a problem for families from many different faiths and cultures. When it's really important to us to keep our children home for a religious, cultural, or family event, we need to contact our children's teachers in advance and let them know about our plans. They will want to know what day or days our children will miss. We should ask them if there are assignments our children can do at home to make up for the class time they will miss and whether there are any other ways to make up the missed class time. Washington state law requires children from age 8 to 17 to attend a public school, private school, or districtapproved home school program. Children who are 6- or 7-years-old are not required to be enrolled in school. However, if parents enroll their 6- or 7-year-old, the student must attend full-time. Youth who are 16 or older may be excused from attending public school if they meet certain requirements. For more information, visit the link below. (This information was brought to you by the Washington State Public Education: A Guide for Students and Families)

Washington State Parents Guide to Truancy and Attendance

The Mitten Project

Community member and devoted volunteer, Georgia Forbes, knitted 45 pairs of mittens for the kindergarteners in Ms. Muellers morning and afternoon classes.
Thank you for the warm hands and happy hearts!

Next Principals Coffee Hour February 27 at 4pm Come Join Us!!

Child Care Provided

Coming to SJISD Feb 8th Assembly at FHES 9:45 Dinner and Presentation at FHMS 5:15pm All welcome!!

Stress Free Kids.com

Bully Proof Your Child
The bully gains power while crushing another human beings spirit. He or she increases his own self-value and satisfies his need to control others as he steals his victims self-esteem rendering them with feelings of worthlessness. But contrary to popular belief, the US Department of Health and Human Services states that children who bully actually have an average to above average self-esteem. This changes the old belief that bullies have low selfesteem and dont like themselves. Bullies are confident, have lots of friends, lack empathy and have a positive attitude toward violence. Children who are bullied face a complicated multifaceted dilemma that most adults are unable to unravel. Technology has introduced our children to a new age of bully and offers a 24 hour hotline to his or her victims. If you think your child is safe because he is not the class nerd and he plays football, think again. Technology desensitizes youth, and confident bullies often choose victims that are good looking, athletic, smart, caring and creative. Very often the bully chooses the person he or she wishes to be. So how do parents bully proof our children? Izzy Kahlman, author of Bullies2Buddies, believes that we as a society are doing a lousy job of promoting resilience. Rather than helping kids become people who can weather the sling and arrows of life, we are producing a generation of emotional marshmallows - kids who believe they are entitled to a life in which no one upsets them - and they cant tolerate any insult to their mind and bodies. Raising children who can be resilient is crucial to ward off a bully. The child who reacts emotionally distraught to a bully will only encourage the bully. So what can you do as parents to protect our children without turning them into marshmallows a bully will eat for dessert? Here are some tips: Raise confident children based on inner belief not false praise. Guide children but allow them to handle normal playground conflicts. Socialize your children, and seek social skills classes if needed. Expose your children to various groups and activities. Find groups or activities that support your childs uniqueness. Roleplay laughing remarks and banter, and create comebacks. Introduce coping skills to release anger and/or hurt feelings. Empower children to manage anxiety. Maintain strong family connections with parents and siblings. Talk to your children about how they feel or the challenges they face. Help your child to build relationships with peers by creating opportunities. Encourage your child to smile and laugh at their mistakes.

Math Tip of the Month

From: Explorations in Math.org When engaged in math games and activities, students dont even realize that they are strengthening math skills and problem solving. Whether playing in school or at home, games can enhance math fundamentals and, more importantly, can help students develop positive math attitudes. Some great math sites: www.mathcats.com www.funbrain.com/math www.factmonster.com www.mathplaygrouns.com/

Golden Eagle Feather Winners for the month of January

Madison Brown Kpm Baby Birds Chelsey Campbell 2nd Happy Birthday Moon Nicholas Al-Gattas 1st Grade The Dragonology Handbook Mrs. Wavras Class Kavick the Wolf Dog Audrey Allen 1st Grade The Butterfly Alphabet Congratulations Golden Eagle Book Winners!!

Reading tip of the month

Something to talk aboutReading doesnt have to stop when you put the book down. Talk to your child about books youve read and books you think he or she might enjoy! Brought to you by www.ReadingRockets.org

Support Dollars for Scholars By Dining for Scholars!

The following restaurants will be donating a percentage of their sales to the Dollars for Scholars Scholarship Fund February 2nd China Pearl/Kung Fu Pizza - lunch, Blue Water lunch, Lime Kiln Caf lunch, Roche Harbor & Cask & Schooner - dinner February 9th Kos Subs & Downriggers lunch, Downriggers & Banry Caf dinner, The Bluff @ Friday Harbor House - dinner February 23rd Bakery San Juan lunch, MiCasita & Coho Restaurant dinner February 29th Market Chef - lunch, Rumor Mill & Haleys Bait Shop dinner

Please support these local establishments Support Scholarships!