Volunteer Hours

Parents: PLEASE, PLEASE make sure you check in at the office when you go in to volunteer for any type of project at the school (help in the classroom, fieldtrips, PTA help, Book Fair help, etc.) and sign in and out with how long your were there on the clipboard that is in the office. PTA is required to turn in volunteer hours to the state PTA so we would greatly appreciate your help in tracking this better. THANKS for you willingness to volunteer at McKinley. You are AMAZING!

100th Day of School Room Parent Activity

Room Parents: 100th Day will be celebrated on Wednesday, February 8th. Please come up with a short activity and a small treat to do in the classroom and check with the teacher to see what time would be best to come into the classroom to celebrate that day!

There will be a Boat Parade that day at 1:30 PM. Parents, watch for more information to come home regarding this event. You child may participate in the parade by making a boat with 100 things to decorate it with to display in the parade!

Parent Teacher Conferences & Book Fair

Parent Teacher Conferences will be held on Wednesday, February 1st from 2-6 PM and on Thursday, February 2nd from 3-6 PM. Kindergarten students will not have school on Friday, February 3rd for Parent Teacher Conferences to be held that day for KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS ONLY. Your student's teacher will send home a note requesting the date and time for you to come with your student to meet with him/her.

There will be a Book Fair on Wednesday, Feb. 1st from 2-6 PM and Thursday, Feb. 2nd from 3-6 PM during Parent Teacher Conferences. The book fair will also be ONLINE and you can order on our ONLINE BOOKFAIR as well and McKinley will receive credit for the books ordered. It will run from January 25th to February 7th. Check out the online Book Fair at: http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bookfairs/cptoolkit/homepage.do?method=homepage&url=tremontonmckinley

Yearbook Deadline

Just a reminder that the last day to order yearbooks is January 27th. The price is $11 per book. We will be ordering a limited amount of extra books so please get your orders in as soon as possible. Any orders accepted after the 27th of January will be $12. Please get your orders to Mrs. Spackman in the front office. THANKS!!!

School Board Meeting

Just a reminder that the School Board will be holding their monthly meeting at McKinley tomorrow, Wednesday, January 11th at 6:30 PM in the gym. The 4th grade students will be performing 4 musical numbers: 2 on the recorder, "Firework" and "Be A PRO". They need to wear a McKinley shirt or a blue shirt and meet in the Music Box at 6:10 PM. Anyone is welcome to attend this meeting.

2nd Grade Music Program Change

Please note:

In the January newsletter that came home with your students before Christmas break, the calendar listed the 2nd Grade Program on Friday, January 20th but it has needed to be changed to Friday, January 27th at 1:30 PM in the gym.

THANKS!

School Play Tryouts

Tryouts for the school play will be held on Tuesday, January 10th right after school for students 1st grade - 5th grade. Everyone that trys out will get to be in the play, but you must be willing to attend all required practices. The final performances will be in April.

If your student would like to tryout, please have them come ready to recite a short poem and a sing a song.

The play is a lot of fun, come join in!

January Calendars

Please click on images to view larger.

January Principal Message

What Makes a Quality School?

Quality public schools recognize that all students can learn and provide the tools, support, and connections students need to reach their full potential. Here at McKinley School, we take this very seriously. The following are some of the concepts we take seriously:

* Parent and community support: Parents and community members are actively engaged in supporting their schools in constructive ways. They hold school officials and themselves accountable for results. We feel extremely good about the support of the community. We have seen great improvement in our test scores and progress in our reading. We have many parents that volunteer in our classrooms and we are always open for more parent involvement and interaction.

* Public engagement: Educating all of our children to high standards is a collective responsibility and one that requires ongoing engagement and support of the community. Our teachers have incorporated the new language arts common core into their curriculum along with the new math concepts and have outlined the entire year with lessons and testing blocks to guide their curriculum in the correct direction. We have also added more aides in our classrooms to help in this effort.

* Qualified teachers in every classroom: Highly qualified teachers who benefit from continuous professional development strengthen teaching and learning. Every one of our teachers and aides are highly qualified and are also qualified under the No Child Left Behind Act. Many of our teachers have Master Degrees and many are currently working on higher degrees and attend extra training when it is offered. This is done on their own time and using their own money.

* Rigorous curriculum and fair assessments: A rigorous instructional program tied to high standards builds student knowledge and strengthens critical thinking skills, while fair assessments monitor progress and truly measure what students know and can do. Our teachers plan their time well and use their time well to teach what is required. We try our best to teach the whole child and appreciate any constructive criticism when it is needed.

* Safe, healthy and supportive learning environment: Safe, sound facilities and student enrichment activities create an environment where students can learn and grow. Our staff is very supportive of each other and our school has a sound learning environment that encourages student participation. All classes are active in whole group, small group, and partner instruction.

* Schools and classrooms equipped for teaching and learning: Students and staff have access to timely, relevant resources including up-to-date textbooks and current technology. All classrooms are equipped with SMARTboards and document cameras (ELMOs) and the teachers are using up-to-date information from the internet, workshops, and textbooks. Plus, 80% of our classrooms are equipped with mini computer labs and plans are in the works to have 100% of our classrooms equipped with computer labs by the end of the school year.

* Sufficient resources that help all students achieve: Student achievement is the measure of school success. Resources and teaching strategies are tied to this goal at quality public schools. Our Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are going great! Each grade level meets weekly to discuss student growth, and are asking themselves: 1. What do we want students to learn? 2. How will we know when they have learned it? 3. What will we do if they don’t learn it? 4. What will we do once they have learned it? All grade levels are conducting either daily or weekly assessments and then following up with detailed interventions (Cougar Time) to help all students achieve their best.

Even though it sounds like we are patting ourselves on the back, I feel good about what is happening at McKinley School. This is a great place to be and we deliver high quality education. True, there are things we need to work on but as a TEAM we can do it. This includes the teachers, aides, parents, and community. As our mission statement reads: “Together Everyone Achieves More.” We’re all in this together so please drop by my office anytime and share with me any concerns, suggestions, or celebrations you might have.

As always, thanks for your help and support!

Mr. Chadaz