Welcome to the new school year! Our classroom is full of excitement and we are happy to see each other again! There are lots of new procedures to learn and follow. We can always know that Jesus is with us through all the “new stuff” and all of our anxious moments!
Our theme for this school year is “Connected” based on John 15: 1-5 – “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. “
Where to Find Important Information
Our weekly newsletter is where you will find information for our classroom including announcements, upcoming projects or events, spelling lists, and memory work for the following week. Please be sure to check out the information in Hope’s Happenings each week for school news too. Both of these are sent to you through e-mail on Thursdays, but they are always available on our website as well. Also on Thursdays, the students will be bringing home a large manilla envelope that we often refer to as the “Thursday envelope”. Generally, it will contain completed work from the week. It may also contain important items like permission slips for events, or information/papers from the school office. Note that only one copy of the information flyers will be sent home to each family. It will be in the envelope of the youngest student in the family, so be sure to check theirs each week!
Breakfast, Lunch, Snack, and Water Bottles
Hot lunches are available beginning tomorrow but breakfast does not begin until Monday morning. Students are welcome to bring home lunch. 3rd graders may also bring a healthy snack each day. Lunch cost is $4.25 and breakfast cost is $3.00. Students may purchase a drink for $0.75 with lunch if they bring lunch from home. Snack drinks will also cost $0.75.
Keeping bodies and brains hydrated is very important! I would like students to keep a water bottle in the classroom. The water bottle must be the same type that can be used in public libraries. (Ones with the push/pull type lids work better than twist-off lids as they are more spill-proof.) Please do not send metal ones as they tend to make a great deal of noise which is distracting. They should not be more than 24 oz. size or they will not fit in their bottle holders. We can refill them throughout the day. Many of the kids like to bring them in the morning with ice to keep them cold. Water bottles should be coming home regularly for washing/sanitizing.ice
Room Parents
Our classroom is still in need of room parents. One of the volunteer opportunities at HLS is to be a room parent. The assistance the room parents give to the classroom teacher is very helpful and greatly appreciated. Thank you for being willing to volunteer and be part of the children’s life. Sign Up to be a Room Parent: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508084BAEA72FA0F85-room3
Upcoming Events
Tomorrow, Friday, August 18th we will celebrate back-to-school by hosting an Ice Cream Social at 6:00 pm at Hope. The teachers will be serving everyone ice cream. Come meet the new teachers and say hi to your friends. Hope to see you all there.
Sunday, August 20, Hope will have installation/blessing of teachers during our 10:30 service. This year we are also including a “blessing of the backpacks”.
Our Back-to-School Open Houses are coming up quickly! The third-grade open house is scheduled for August 28 at 6:30 PM. That evening I will have a folder of information to share with you. It will also be another opportunity to meet other parents and ask any questions.
Weekly Assignments
Memory work is recited each Wednesday. Your child needs to know the assigned memory selection before he/she arrives at school in the morning. This week we reviewed Luther’s Morning Prayer. This prayer was used regularly at Hope, so most of the kids already have it memorized.
Memory for August 23 is the first part of this year’s theme verses:
John 15: 1-3 – “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.”
Spelling– This week we will be taking a practice spelling test that will not count as a grade but will help me assess general strengths and weaknesses. We will take our spelling tests on Friday each week (unless we do not have school, in which case we will adjust to a different day that week.) I will send the new list home each Thursday for the following week. Each week’s spelling list will include a sentence that will be dictated to them. Proper capitalization and punctuation count as well as the spelling in the sentence.
Spelling words for next week: Syllable Pattern VC/CV
| basket | subject | lesson | traffic | mustard |
| compact | absent | cosmic | disgust | fantastic |
I am looking forward to our new school year with all of its excitement, challenges, and blessings!
Important Upcoming Dates:
8/18 – Ice Cream Social
8/20– Installation and Blessing of the Backpack
8/28 – Back to School Night
9/4 – Labor Day (no school)
9/9 – 40th Anniversary Bash & Pie Auction
9/21 – Parent/Teacher Conferences (early dismissal)
9/22 – Parent/Teacher Conferences (no school)
