April 2012 Soaring to Excellence

Friday Harbor Elementary 95 Grover Street PO Box 458 Friday Harbor, WA 98250

Principal Connie Martin 360-378-5209

Dear Families, Happy Spring to all you! I imagine you are excited for spring break. I know I am. I have no special plans for the break, but I look forward to spending some time with my family and relaxing at home. I hope to get out on our boat a little and enjoy the beautiful San Juan Islands. As you may have heard by now I will be returning next year. The school board asked me to stay for another year, and I gladly accepted. I am enjoying my work here at Friday Harbor Elementary very much. I am getting to know the kids better and better each day which makes me a more effective leader. It takes a while to build trusting relationships, and when it happens a principals effectiveness is increased. The staff and I have accomplished a great deal this year as we have learned to work together. One of the projects that helped with strengthening our staff was the work we put into our School Improvement Plan (SIP). It is a requirement that Washington State schools develop or revise a SIP each school year. With my being new to FHES, the staff and I decided to develop a new SIP that will give us a unified vision and a clear path to success for our students. Our SIP focuses on four areas: Math, Reading, Writing and a Supportive Learning Environment. In each of these areas we established a goal, developed actions that will occur to meet the goal, decided on specific steps that will take place, designated who will be responsible for the work, the resources we will use, and how we will measure whether we have accomplished our goal. The SIP was presented by the SIP team and approved by the school board on March 28th. We are proud of the work we have done on this plan and would love to receive your input. The plan can be viewed at www.sjisd.wednet.edu/Page/1042 . Feel free to email me at conniemartin@sjisd.wednet.edu . As you read through this newsletter youll see that we have many fun activities coming up. Our wonderful PTA has put together a new fund raiser this year called Works Of HeART. This event will happen in May and will be held at the Mullis Center. You will have an opportunity to purchase local art and to help support our Art program for next year. See page 5 of this newsletter for more information.

April 9-13th Spring Break! April 16- 20 Lice Checks April 20th - Mr. San Juan Fundraiser - Cancelled April 25th - 6th Grade Marine Expert Day April 24th - Early Dismissal Day April 24th Living Lesson #1 April 25th School Board Meeting April 26th - Class Pictures

April 27th Be your Dream Day April 30th Reptile Man Assembly 1:45pm April 30th Reptile Man Evening Event 6:30pm

Have a wonderful, safe and restful Spring Break!!

~Connie

So Much Happening at FHES!!

Finally.4th Grade Salmon Release! Did you see us on KOMO News??

Artists Visit our Classrooms!

Avery explains the steps on how to draw your favorite pet

Talula and mom are ready to draw!

FHES Spring Art Enrichment Program Off to a Great Start. Discovering the mysteries of nature through hands on explorations of materials nurtures curiosity and enriches thinking in the developing mind. This kind of learning experience has been addressed nationally in the newly designed state education standards. Thanks to donations from the Washington State Arts Commission, Island Museum of Art, San Juan Island Community Foundation, and Friday Harbor Elementary PTA, a new art enrichment program is underway at FHES. Student in grades K, 1, 2, 3, and 4 will explore the arts in a six week art enrichment program taught by 5 talented artists from the island community. Annie Adams is working with first and second graders on designing their own collage book of island wildlife. Ms. Pasik, 1st and 2nd grade teacher, said, Annie showed the students a book she had made as a child and then really knew how to inspire their imaginations with special colorful papers. The creativity she brings out in these kids is totally amazing in their torn paper foxes, turtles, eagles, butterflies, and deer. Additional teaching artists included in the Spring Enrichment Program are Avery Adams (K) Jennifer Armstrong (2nd) Amy Plant (1st) and Dan Lobue (4th). Student artwork will be exhibited May 29-June 10 in Friday Harbor Elementary School. For questions contact Leisha Holmes leishaholmes@sjisd.wednet.edu Art Enrichment Coordinator

Math Tips of the Month

Spend time with kids on simple board games, puzzles, and activities that encourage better count attitudes and strong mathematical skills. Even everyday activities such as play with toys in a sandbox or in a tub at bath time can teach children mathematic concepts such as weight, density, and volume. Check your television listings for shows that reinforce mathematics skills in a practical and fun way. A fun site to visit: www.coolmath.com

Reading tips of the month

Brought to you by www.ReadingRockets.org Write a fan letter. If your child has a favorite author, help your child write a letter to send to the publisher wholl send it along. Start a book club. If your child likes structure and doing everything with friends, consider joining or starting a parent/child book club. Another fun site to visit: www.vocabulary.com

Friday Harbor Elementary Garden Project Thank you all for coming out to help get our garden started!!
Vicki Hebert Meghan Hoffman Maggie Zehner Donna Dyer Keegan Hebert Tori Zehner Ben Zehner Scott Zehner Charlie Zehner Jasper Williamson Laurie Paul

Tanja Williamson Val Curtis

Thank you FHES gardeners.or all your hard work!!

FHES hits their goal of 500!!

Golden Eagle Feathers winners for the month of March!

Abril Ignacio
Fallon Taylor Yaritza Plaza Chelsey Campbell Hank Erickson Jordyn McCutcheon Clarissa Felix

Congratulations all Golden Eagle Feather Winners!

Heading to the food bank!!

Getting a much needed roof.thanks to YOU! Due to your generosity, our school will have some much needed repairs over Spring Break and in the summer months. Soon we will have our heat pumps replaced, a new air flow system, and, if all goes well this summer, a new roof over our heads. I think we need it dont you??

The Trails Passport Adventure Continues.Dont miss the fun!

Sat. April 28, 2012, 1-4:00pm. Meet Doug McCutcheon, Land Steward for the San Juan County Land Bank, and Boyd Pratt, local historian and author. "They clear-cut all the forests to feed the lime kilns...or did they?" Learn history, mystery, and myths about the lime mining and production on San Juan Island and how our unique natural history played an important role in its success. Meet and park at Lime Kiln State Park. Length is 1.5 mi. RT. Terrain is wooded trail. Rating is easy-to-moderate. Dogs on leashes welcome.

Works of HeART:
Calling all artists: seeking works of 'heart' for elementary school art Parents and teachers hope to enlist the help of local artists to bring art classes back to Friday Harbor Elementary School for the next school year. To off-set budget cuts, the elementary school PTA will host a fundraiser May 18th, the Work of HeART Event, and seeks contributions from local artists for a silent auction on the evening of the event.

With a written description of its intent, art work of any medium will be accepted. A heart must be included within the frame of the work. Contributors will be paid a percentage of the purchase price that each work of art earns at the fundraiser.
To contribute, submit your name, phone number, email address, medium and photo of a work of art or previous works to roxanneiangel@gmail.com Deadline to apply is May 1st.

MSP is coming in MAY

Washington State Public Education: Washington has academic standards and tests that measure whether students meet them. The tests are given every spring to students in grades 3-8 and in 10th grade of high school. Students in grades 3-8 take the Measurements of Student Progress (MSP). The state tests not only help schools assess how well they are teaching our state learning standards, but they also help identify strengths and weaknesses of our students so they can receive extra assistance if needed. If your child's state testing scores show that he or she isn't meeting the state's academic standards, you should ask the school to provide extra help and be sure your student understands what he or she needs to do to improve. You should also take into account your child's entire academic record when looking at the achievement level. The Measurements of Student Progress (MSP) is the states exam for students in grades 3-8. The MSP name conveys the goal of the test: to measure student progress. State testing should never be the sole judge of a students academic skills and knowledge. A students entire performance should always be considered. The MSP reading, math and science exams take one day. The writing exam takes two days. The MSP is also available in an online format. In spring 2012, grade 3 will be added. Below is our schedule for the MSP in May. Be sure your children are rested, well fed, on time and ready to learn. All assessments, except writing will be done online this year. 3rd Grade May 3 Reading May 10th Math 4th Grade May 4th Reading May 8th Math May 19th Writing 5th Grade May 15th Reading May 17th Math May 22nd Science 6th Grade May 2nd Reading May 16th Math Here is a link that you might find helpful. English: http://www.k12.wa.us/Parents/default.aspx Espanol: http://www.k12.wa.us/Parents/Espanol/default.aspx