Kindergarten News

We had a great time visiting the fire station last month and learning about fire safety. This month Kindergarten is studying people from long ago.  We are looking forward to our Thanksgiving  feast with first grade! In Math we are learning about geometric shapes and space.  Don’t forget to keep studying the Kindergarten sight words with your child.

First Grade News

First graders have been working very hard and we can't believe how quickly the first marking period has gone!  We have had a very successful first marking period and are looking to continue with great success!  In reading, students are continuing to read more and more each day and taking A.R. tests to help them with their comprehension.  Students have finished place value in math and are now learning their addition and subtraction facts. In science, we have been learning about living and nonliving things and what people/animals need to survive.  Various modes of transportation have been the topic in social studies.  Thank you for your continued support daily!

Second Grade News

Second graders have been working very hard and are excited to have completed our first 9-weeks already!  The first round of FAIR testing, which is a comprehensive diagnostic on specific reading skills, has come and gone. In Reading, we are learning more about the various genres of stories, with the focus currently being folktales, fairy tales, and fables.  We have finished  place value and comparing numbers in Math, and have begun studying multiple digit addition and subtraction with regrouping.  In Science, we are answering questions, such as “What is matter?” and “How can matter be changed?” In Social Studies we will focus on Patriotism, and what that means to the citizens of our Nation.  As always, don’t forget to check your child’s agenda and read with them every night!  Thanks for all your support!

Third Grade News

The third grade students are having a great time learning to use and interact with the SMART Boards. We have started learning our multiplication facts. Please practice with your children. It is very important that they memorize these facts. You can go to the website multiplication.com for many fun interactive multiplication games. Continue to have your children read for at least 15 minutes each evening. They are expected to earn at least 4 AR points with 80% or better comprehension each month. The reading homework that the children get on Monday should be done together. The point of this homework is for you to help them one on one, practice some of the strategies that they will need when they take the FCAT in March. Please be sure to check your child’s HCE folder each Monday for their graded papers and notes about things going on at school. Thanks for all you do.

Fourth Grade News

Fourth graders are busy learning to be skilled readers and writers.  In science we are doing a unit on Matter. To illustrate how matter can change, classes are making ice cream or enjoying freezies.  Students are busy learning about the different genres in Literature.  Fourth graders are taking a part in helping the environment by getting the other classes to recycle. Each week the students, wearing their greenie t-shirts, are seen roaming the campus collecting the recycle bins and taking them to the back of the school to the larger bins for pick up. Please remember to read with your child each evening.

Fifth Grade News

Fifth graders are working super hard this month.  In Science, each student will be conducting his/her own experiment.  These projects will eventually go to Highland City’s Science Fair.  The best three will progress to the Polk County Science Fair.  Your child’s teacher will be filling you in on all of this.  In Social Studies, we will be entering the Revolutionary War.  Fractions and percents are on top of the list in Math this month. As for Reading, keep diving into AR books!  Have a great holiday week at the end of the month, and remember to read, read, read, read!

American Girl Club

The American Girls club has gotten off to a great start. To begin with, we are studying Josefina, a girl who lives in New Mexico. Her story took place while much of the southwest was still a province of Mexico. We will be learning about her life and how the changes taking place in America affected her. At the end of our study, we will have a birthday party like the one that was given for Josefina to find out how people in that time and place celebrated. We are looking forward to another exciting year learning about all of the American Girls.

VISTE

Highland City Elementary is partnering with VISTE (Volunteers in Service to The Elderly) to collect items for personal care baskets. Your help is needed in this great undertaking.  If each family could choose one item from the list and send it in, then our project will be a success!

Items needed:

4 pack of toilet paper, individually wrapped paper towels, shampoo and conditioner, comb and brush, cotton balls, q-tips, baby powder, band-aids, lotion, bar soap, toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, first aid cream

Thank you in advance for your help.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Avera, Mrs. Hall and Mrs. Blackwelder

Mark your calendars to salute our veterans

Make plans to join us Wednesday, November 11^th for our annual Veterans Day program where we will salute all of the women and men who selflessly served our country. We especially invite family members who are veterans to join us for the program so our students and school community can say, “Thank you!”

Adopt-a-Classroom

Did you ever wonder how you might be able to help support learning within the classroom?  Maybe you’d like to donate, but you just don’t know where to begin.  Perhaps you work for a company that is interested in being involved with public education through tax-deductible classroom donations. We are reaching out to the Highland City Community to help us inspire our students to reach their highest potential. Adopt-A-Classroom (www.adoptaclassroom.org) is a non-profit organization that offers an easy and accountable way for you to donate funds to classrooms and help make a real difference for teachers and students.

All donations are tax-deductible. 100% of the donation goes to the classroom. Adopt-A-Classroom takes $0 out for administration. Teachers use online catalogs to purchase classroom materials and you receive an itemized list of exactly how your donation was spent.  Many of our teachers have already registered with Adopt-a-Classroom.  We encourage you to check out the website and become involved.  If you have any questions, please feel free to speak with Mrs. Keyes regarding how you can help make a difference! 

 Snack Store-Fridays

          The  Snack Store will be open again this school year.  It will be open each Friday.  All of the profits from this store will be donated to the: American Cancer Society-Relay for Life

Each item will cost 50 cents.  The items to be purchased will vary. There will be chips, bottled water, freezies, fruit snacks & Little Debbie Oatmeal Cookies.  Encourage your child/children to help you with chores around the house to earn money to donate to this important cause.  Thank you for your help.

Music News

• Hispanic Heritage month: Students celebrated Hispanic Heritage month by learning Spanish words posted throughout the music room as well as dancing the basic mambo steps.
• Field Trip: 5^th grade has been invited to attend an Imperial Symphony Orchestra performance on Tuesday, December 15^th. More details to follow.
• Composers: We have studied John Williams (Star Wars), Leonard Bernstein (Mambo) from West Side Story” and Franz Joseph Haydn (Surprise Symphony).
• Integrating the arts and academics: The 4^th grade classes are working on a Constitution project. Students will research amendments and gather information in their homeroom. In art class with Miss Schmiz, each student will create a hat, representing an amendment. In music class they will compose a short song and rhythm accompaniment about an amendment. Students will share their art with the class and perform their songs. We will video and air their performances for the news show.
• Chorus: upcoming performances—Veteran’s Day Wednesday, November 11^th   1:45-2:30 p.m., Winter Bazaar Tuesday, December 8^th 5:00 p.m. festivities begin, 6:30 p.m. meeting/concert begins; and Highland City Community Christmas Thursday, December 17^th  (time and location TBA).  Please remember the appropriate uniform is long black pants, a black belt, closed-toe black dress shoes, and the chorus uniform polo shirt.

Art  News

Thank you to everyone who purchased Tag Art from a 5th grader or put in an order for an Original Work created by your child.  All proceeds are used to buy art supplies for the wonderfully talented students here at HCE.  Your orders will be sent home with your child just in time for the Holidays!

If you would like to make special arrangements to pick your order up from school, please email me at aundrea.schmiz@polk-fl.net

Teacher of the Year

Mrs. Horvatin

We are pleased to announce that first grade teacher Mrs. Horvatin has been selected as Highland City Elementary’s Teacher of the Year for 2009-2010. Mrs. Horvatin believes that the best way to grasp on to a concept and learn it is by doing it.  This is very evident when you enter her classroom and her students are engaged in learning by not “sitting and getting”, but by actively doing.  They are allowed to use the SMART board during center time, they touch and make words, and they do experiments that are real world and hands on!   Mrs Horvatin reports, “I don’t think it has ever been a question about doing anything else but being a teacher.  There are numerous pictures of me when I was younger using a chalkboard and pretending to teach my friends.  I have always enjoyed school and helping my teachers.” We are honored to have Mrs. Horvatin represent Highland City Elementary as our Teacher of the Year!

School Related Employee of the Year

Ms.McCoy

“Patience is waiting.  Not passively waiting.  That is laziness.  But to keep going when the going is hard and slow – that is patience.”  This quote summarizes our nominee for the School-Related Employee of the Year, Juanita McCoy. Ms. McCoy has been at Highland City Elementary for 1 ½ years as a paraprofessional working in our ASD unit. Every day she comes to school with a smile on her face and love in her heart for the children she works with. When asked how she is able to work every day in such a challenging position she says, “While working with children diagnosed with Autism can be challenging at times and has its staggering moments, it also has great rewards. In the case of dealing with children with Autism, one can only accept these children for who they are and help to make their  lives as normal as  possible. They work hard to be normal.  Normalcy to them is the ability to express oneself verbally.” We appreciate her hard work and dedication and are proud to have her represent our school as the School Related Employee of the Year for Highland City Elementary.

Media News

Thank you to everyone who made a purchase at the HCE Book Fair. A big thank you to Sheila Thomas who coordinated our volunteer moms, dads and grandparents who helped with student purchases. We appreciate your support!

                                                                                Changes in the Media Center

We would like to welcome a new face to the Highland City Elementary media center….please welcome Mrs. Stacy Davis our new media specialist. Mrs. Davis is coming to us from Caldwell Elementary in Auburndale where she has been a third grade teacher. Please stop by the media center to welcome the newest addition to the Highland City family!

*******The clinic is still in need of shorts and belts.

PTA Corner

It was nice to see everyone at the open house and general PTA meeting.  The PTA approved our PTA budget for the year and reviewed our by-laws for renewal.  A copy of each are always available in the office.  The kids are always proud to show their parents their classroom and the work they have accomplished so far.  Thank you for DISCOVERING YOUR CHILD’S POTENTIAL by attending that evening and thank you to all of our staff and teachers who help our children grow each day.

                Our volunteers have been busy at Highland City so far this year.  We have a very active calendar and without the help of our volunteers we would not be able to accomplish so many goals set for the current school year.  It was a pleasure seeing you at the volunteer luncheon.  Remember, if you are not yet an approved volunteer and would like to be, please do so at the front office by February 1^st.  You cannot chaperone at your child’s upcoming field trips unless you are an approved volunteer.  If you would like to consider becoming a member of the PTA and a voice for your child, you may do so any time during the school year.  Membership is just $4.00.  Being a member gives you special discounts.  Check out the websites at www.pta.org or www.floridapta.org.

Thank you to all of our families who helped support the Fall Fundraiser.  Rebecca Lofton has been busy this year as our Fundraiser Coordinator helping our school raise funds for the benefit of our children.  We will be having a Santa’s Workshop at our next general meeting in conjunction with our BBQ dinner and Winter Bazaar on December 8^th and I hope we can count on your continued support.  Each grade level will be raffling off gift baskets as well as the PTA.  This is always a fun family event.  Our Spirit Nights are in full swing again.  Our September Spirit nights have raised $300 for Chick-Fil-A and Gators Dockside combined.  Thank you for supporting our school while dining out with your family.  Mrs. Samples’ class won the most sales for Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night and Mrs. Prosser’s class won the most sales for the first Gators Dockside Spirit Night.  Each winning class will be recognized with a special treat.  A special thanks to Bridget Carlisle who takes time out of her busy work schedule to organize these Spirit Night events.  Upcoming dates for future Spirit Nights are: November 13^th, Chick-Fil-A and November 16^th for Gators Dockside. 

Cindy Farmer has been busy counting all of the boxtops and labels each child has sent in.  One lucky class received an ice-cream party.  You may continue to send in your boxtops and labels throughout the school year.

We are in the process of purchasing new technology equipment for our school.  Our school was one of five schools who were awarded a Gold Star at the Shining Star Recognition Awards, which is based on technology.  Our goal to improve technology continues.  The school board is matching our funds designated for technology.  Without PTA’s ongoing support, we would not have been able to be recognized as one of the top five schools successfully utilizing technology in our daily curriculum.

                Have a safe and healthy Thanksgiving break.

-Kim Vuolo

PTA President

HIGHLAND CITY ELEMENTARY

Volunteers Needed!!!

Now, more than ever before, a school volunteer has a tremendous impact on a student’s success in school. Any time invested is sure to yield high returns. We encourage each of you to check your schedules and see what day and time you would be able to render your services. There are many ways in which you could help. We need help with art projects, clerical work, science projects, the yearbook, mentoring, reading with students,  field trips, the P.E. Showcase, the Art & Music Showcase, our Spring Carnival, fundraisers and much more. You must be approved by the School Board before volunteering. Forms are in the front office if you have not gone through the approval process yet. Thank you in advance for all of your help!

FCAT Explorer

FCAT Explorer is now available online to all third, fourth and fifth grade students. The web address is http://www.fcatexplorer.com. This program allows your child to practice reading if he/she is in 3rd or 4th grade and math if he/she is in 5th grade.  Both are in the FCAT test format. See your child's teacher for login, username and password information.

WebGrades

The EleGrade Parent Viewer is not available to parents of students in grades K-2. Those grade levels  use the SBAR report card and that is not an averaging of grades. It is available to parents of students in grades 3-5.

To take advantage of this opportunity, you will need to complete a form for each child whose grades you wish to access. This form will need to be notarized and returned by the student, or the parent must return the form to the school personally and produce picture identification. Once the parent information has been entered into the system, a password will be automatically generated and emailed to the email address provided by the parent along with a link to the web site where the grades will be made available.

The school will not maintain a password list. To use the web site, the parent will enter the child’s student ID and the password.  If you have questions, please e-mail our network manager/technology specialist, Mary Pearce at mary.pearce@polk-fl.net.

Recycle Ink Jet Cartridges & Cell Phones

Please do not throw away your empty ink jet cartridges or cell phones; bring them to the office. Our school will recycle the cartridges and phones and earn extra money to go into our Highland City Elementary Scholarship Fund.

NOTICE TO BUILDING OCCUPANTS AND PARENTS

NOTIFICATION OF INSPECTION FOR ASBESTOS CONTAINING MATERIALS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a final rule, 40 CFR Part 763, Asbestos Containing Material in schools, commonly referred to as AHERA.  This rule requires all Local Education Agencies (LEA’s) to identify asbestos containing materials (ACM) in their school buildings and to take appropriate actions to control release of asbestos fibers.

All inspections for Highland City Elementary have been completed and a Management Plan describing the results of the inspection and the action plan to control any asbestos found during the inspection, where applicable, has been submitted to the Governor for approval.  A copy of this plan is located in the administrative office of this school and at the District School Board of Polk County Environmental and Safety Department and is available for review upon request.

Office Depot, Staples, Target

Every time you shop at Office Depot, our school receives credit equal to 5% of the qualifying purchase to use for free supplies. All you need to do is tell Office Depot to credit school # 70021614 and our school will be given credit for your purchase.

When shopping at Staples, give our Rewards # 0123861120, and our school will receive 5% back, up to $120.00 per school year, to be spent at Staples.

Target also rewards our school.  If you have a Target card or a Target Visa, please indicate to Target that you want your purchases to be credited toward Highland City Elementary.  Once you do this, it will automatically credit our school with every purchase.

Odyssey

Odyssey, the learning program used in our computer lab, is available to students online from home. The web address is http://odyssey.polk-fl.net   Once there, the student will log in with his/her student ID#, birth month and  birth day. The student ID is only the last six digits and will be used for the user name. The birthday requires two digits for month and two digits for day of month so June 6^th would be 0606 while December 6^th would be 1206.