
Welcome back from Thanksgiving Break!
This week we held a surprise assembly to recognize our middle school teacher, Mr. Raman, as he was awarded “Teacher of the Year” in the Chicagoland area by the CRFC. We were thrilled that Mr. Raman’s family was able to join him for this special recognition. The foundation provides “Lawyers in the Classroom” experiences for the students on a regular basis. We thank Tiffani Watson, Education Director for joining us in the presentation of this special award. Congratulations Mr. Raman!! The standing ovation you received this morning was indicative of our staff and students pride in you!
This year we have had the “luxury” of increasing our paraprofessional support staff from 2 to 6. With this increase in staff comes additional benefits. Our support staff have specialty areas in arts, music, yoga, and physical education. I am happy to announce that during our Early Birds program, students will be engaged in music, arts, yoga and physical activity in addition to their daily reading time. The Early Birds program is available from 7:15 am-8:15 am. If you are interested in this fee based program, please visit our school website; waterselementary.org under the Extra Curriculars tab.
Highlights from our LSC meeting:
Ms. Rivadeneira, 5th grade science teacher, presented on STEAM, a priority in our CIWP. This thought provoking activity left the audience wondering…….which is exactyly the intent. This presentation was a snapshot of the work that teachers are engaged in during our weekly Grade Level Team Meetings (GLTM). This Professional Learning Cycle(PLC) which is inclusive of Next Generation Science Standards(NGSS) focused on thinking “inside the box”. This presentation is a replica of instructional lessons and activities that students engage in the classrooms.
Additional topics included the proposed Dress Code and established protocols at Waters.
⅔ of the school community were in favor of the proposed dress code. The LSC voted and the results are 5 Yes, 2 No and 1 Abstention. The school dress code and established protocols can be found on our school website. As a reminder, if you have a concern regarding your child, the first step is to reach out to your child’s teacher. You will find additional steps listed on the school website. All staff’s emails are posted on the website.
As our fall sports season draws to a close, we are preparing for our Winter season of Basketball. Our 5th/6th and 7th/8th boys and girls basketball teams are in the midst of having tryouts. Several other programs are getting underway such as Battle of the Books teams, Science Gaming, Chess, Yearbook Club, Leonardo’s Workshop, Choir and CAPE classes. In addition, Right at School(RAS) has many additional electives for afterschool enjoyment.
Thank you to everyone who has supported “One for Books” promotion at the Scholastic book fair to ensure that all students are able to get a book. Did you know that the school is able to use “Scholastic Rewards” to purchase items for our classrooms with up to 50% of our book fair sales? When you send your child in to spend $10 at the the book fair, the school receives $5 towards the rewards. In the past, these rewards have been used to purchase new carpets, Dash and Dot robots for Digital Media, and easels for teachers. Thanks for your continued support and thanks to Hillary Prosser for organizing the annual Book Fair. The Book Fair will be open on Saturday from 10 am - 1 pm as well.
Have you begun your holiday shopping??? You still have time!!!
This Saturday, December 1, 2018, from 10 am - 2 pm, WatersToday(WT) is hosting our annual Artisan Fair at Waters. This is a great way to support local artisans and check off your holiday list. Thank you to WT, Saskia Hoffman, Pinal Aral, and Clara Roccaforte for coordinating this event.
Sincerely,
Ms. Kipp
School Principal