4th Grade Parents - "Gear Up For Greene" and "Greene 101"

Click here for the online flyer

GOTR

It has been a great kick off to the Girls on the Run season! We look forward to the run on May 7th - awesome job so far girls, keep it up!

Back Row:
Lyndsey Stephenson, Dove Hellmann, Lia Jaffe, Elizabeth Nizhnik, Annalise Vanover, Charlotte Knowles, Anika Nattamai, Dakota Loder, Annie Schaewe, Stella Ceddia
Front Row: Jade Blevins, Mackenzie Cook, Nina Heath, Allison Moore, Olivia Lung

Kindergarten Readiness Assessment Information

Preschool parents, are you interested in learning about new ways you can support your upcoming Kindergarten student? Please find detailed information about the Kindergarten Readiness Assessemnt, including resources and handouts, available at education.ohio.gov/KRA.

Notes from our Nurse

The late winter and early spring months are typical times for seeing increased cases of Strep Throat. There have been an increased number of Strep Throat cases identified in our school community.  Here is some information that may help you understand this illness, treatment and prevention.

What causes Strep Throat?

The Streptococcal Group A bacteria that causes this infection is spread by direct person-to person contact through droplets of saliva or nasal secretions.

What are the signs of illness?

• Oral temperature of 101 degrees Fahrenheit or greater (some people do NOT run fevers)
• Sore throat with severe pain on swallowing
• A beefy red colored throat
• Headache, nausea or stomach pain
• Swollen tonsils and uvula with white streaks or pus
• Swollen glands along the jawline
• Generalized body aches and fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Sometimes a “Sandpaper” type rash is present

How do I know if my child has Strep?

Just looking at the throat does not always indicate that a Strep infection is present. Strep Throat may be diagnosed only by a Rapid Strep Test or throat culture. Strep  Throat symptoms generally subside in 3-5 days.  In rare cases, the bacteria may spread and cause arthritis, heart problems, meningitis, bone infections or liver problems.

What is the treatment?

• Prescribed antibiotic medication
• Rest
• Drinking plenty of fluids
• Isolation from others for 24 hours once antibiotic treatment begins
• Finish the full prescription and do not skip doses,even if your child feels better
• Serious infections of the kidney, liver and heart can occur if the medicine is stopped before all the bacteria causing the infection are gone

When can my child return to school?

• Notify the school nurse if your child has Strep Throat

• No child with a diagnosed Strep infection should return to school until 24 hours of prescribed antibiotic therapy

How do I prevent my child and family from getting Strep Throat?

• Frequent handwashing
• Respiratory etiquette (cough in sleeves or elbow not hands)
• Tissues should be used and quickly thrown away

If you child has had repeated Strep Infections, talk with your primary care provider about repeating a throat culture after the antibiotic treatment.  This will confirm the Strep infection was successfully treated. For more information about Strep Throat infection click on the following links:

http://www.cdc.gov/features/strepthroat/

http://www.cdc.gov/getsmart/community/for-patients/common-illnesses/sore-throat.html

Please contact the school nurse at wyrickd@sycamoreschools.org or 513-686-1713 for further questions.

Carton2Garden Painting

Miss Bush and Mrs. Miller are looking for volunteers to help students paint milk cartons for our Carton2Garden contest.  If you are interested in assisting students with painting this project, please click here to sign up. All painting will take place in the Art Room. If you have any questions, you may contact Tami Miller at millert@sycamoreschools.org or Gina Bush at bushg@sycamoreschools.org.  Thank you!

Parenting Partners

Sycamore Community Schools is proud to present this exciting and rewarding opportunity for our parents…

Are you interested in building skills to help your child become more successful in school and resist negative influences?  Learning more about family literacy activities, how to create a strong home learning environment and positive ways to communicate with teachers and staff in your child’s school?  If so, Parenting Partners may be for you!

Parenting Partners workshops bring parents the best practices in youth development. Each week you will gain more manageable, effective parenting skills, including effective discipline.  Classes will be taught by Sycamore teachers and parents and will cover several topics:

Positive Parenting: Building on Strengths and Practical Tools

Creating Confident Kids: Building Grit, Curiosity and Resilience

Communication that Works: Listening and Setting Expectations

Deflecting Arguments and Setting Boundaries: Avoiding Power Struggles

The Discipline Difference: Effective Consequences and Consistency

What Kids Need to Succeed: Helping Our Students Maximize School Opportunities

Parenting Partners believes that every parent is a leader and can make a profound contribution in the life of their child. We look forward to working with you and hope you can join us for this interactive and fun class!

Parenting Partners will meet, in the UC wing of Blue Ash Elementary School, from 4:00-6:00 p.m.

Our class will meet on a series of four Thursday nights:

April 7, April 14, April 21, April 28

Childcare for school-aged children will be available.  Participants will be served dinner at 6:00 p.m.

Please RSVP by March 31, 2016 to: Monya Jones, Assistant Principal at Blue Ash Elementary, at 686-1710 ext. 1151, or by email at:  jonesm@sycamoreschools.org

Thank you for signing up for the Parenting Partners class! We are excited to have you join us!

Parenting Partners™ is a university-affiliated program bringing parents the best practices in youth development. Our research partner, the Search Institute, has identified 40 Developmental Assets through their research on more than two million youth – these are the real life practices of youth who succeed in school and resist negative influences such as drugs.

Parenting Partners™ gives parents the skills to build these 40 Assets in their children. Parents are empowered by this research and the practical power of the assets to promote their children’s success.

The Search Institute has selected Parenting Partners™ as its training resource across North America for parent engagement with the 40 Assets.

To learn more about The Search Institute visit www.search-institute.org

Sycamore GEAR

COSI on Wheels

COSI on WHEELS @ BAE paid for and sponsored by PTO

It’s Simply Chemistry

Hold on tight and let the fun begin as COSI on Wheels brings the program It’s Simply Chemistry to Blue Ash Elementary on February 25 & 26, 2016. It’s Simply Chemistry is designed to enhance students’ knowledge of the chemistry in their daily lives. The hands-on activities will allow the student to discover more about solving mysteries with chemistry. Nine fascinating activities like, “It’s a Secret” and “Super Slime”, will engage the students in chemistry as they explore how to create secret messages and how to mix two chemicals to create super slime they can take home!

Thank you to our PTO for sponsoring this wonderful event, and to our volunteers for helping us facilitate.  We are all looking forward to a great time while we learn about chemistry!

OELPA Testing

Dear Parents,

During the period of Feb. 29 through Mar. 11, we will be administering the required annual test for English language proficiency to our ESL students.  This year the state has changed the test from the OTELA (Ohio Test of English Language Acquisition) to the OELPA, the Ohio English Language Proficiency Assessment.   This test assesses all four language domains:  speaking, listening, reading, and writing.

A practice test is available on the Ohio Department of Education website.  The link to this test site is:

https://ohpt.tds.airast.org/student

We ask that you access the practice test site with your child at home. This will allow him or her to become familiar with the navigation tools and the test format.  The more familiar your child becomes with the format and tools, the more comfortable he or she will be when taking the test.  We would like your help to insure that your child does his or her best during this test.  We appreciate your cooperation.  

Sincerely,

The ESOL Team

Lindsy Sansone, Dale Hirotsu, and Jean Brotherton

COSI Volunteer Request

BAE Parents,

The COSI on Wheels event is quickly approaching; February 25th and 26th.  We are still in need of volunteers and we are particularly short volunteers for the afternoon of Friday, February 26th.  If there are not enough volunteers to cover each station, the COSI Educator will have to shut down activities based on the number of volunteers.  We want our students to enjoy all of the activities.  Please take another look at your schedules to find time to volunteer for this awesome program.  

You and sign up directly on SignUp Genius.  Click the link below, click "Find a Sign Up" at the top of the page and you can search my email dana.byrd@gmail.com...it will pull up BAE COSI.  http://www.signupgenius.com/

Thank you for you help!

Dana Byrd 

CogAT

In the spirit of proactive communication, we want to let you know that the CogAT parent reports arrived late yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, upon examination of these reports, we realized that the final, composite scores were inadvertently left off the reports. We are working with the testing company to find a quick resolution to this problem. As soon as we receive the corrected reports, they will be mailed home right away. Once again, we appreciate your patience and understanding in this matter. 

Notes From our Nurse:

February is Dental Health Month:

Dental cavities are the leading chronic health condition in children.  Brushing teeth at least twice daily, eating healthy food choices and decreasing sugary snacks and help prevent tooth decay. Here is a link on tooth decay prevention:

http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/OralHealth/OralHealthInformation/ChildrensOralHealth/ToothDecayProcess.htm?_ga=1.180812389.395054195.14043250

Lice 101 review: Lice cannot jump or fly.  They are transmitted by direct head to head contact with another person with lice or sharing items placed in the hair.  Children should be instructed against sharing hats, clothing or hair items with others.  Children should use their own pillows and sleeping bags when spending the night with a friend. Household pets do not transmit lice. Consult your school nurse and the Sycamore Student Health Handbook for more great  information about lice. Here is a link from the American Academy of Pediatrics regarding best practices with lice management https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/pages/AAP-Updates-Treatments-for-Head-Lice.aspx

Illness Reminders: If you child is ill, remember to call the school absence line at 513 686-1714. It can be difficult to decide when and how long to keep an ill child home from school. The timing of the absences is often important in order to decrease the spread of disease to others.

If your child has a fever, is vomiting or has diarrhea they must stay home until they no longer have the symptom for 24 hours without the use of medication to control the symptoms.

Check our school illness guidelines  at  http://www.sycamoreschools.org/Page/2309 .The school district health handbook has more information and found on the district website at http://www.sycamoreschools.org/Page/2268 .

Attention Fourth Grade Parents Hold the Date: Blue Ash Elementary will host a Growth and Development preview night on March 14, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. This is an information meeting for parents only to preview materials used for 4th grade Growth and Development class.

Please contact our School Nurse, Mrs. Wyrick, RN  at 513-686-1713 or wyrickd@sycamoreschools.org  if you have any questions.

CogAT Update:

If your child took the CogAT in December, please know that we encountered some technical difficulties and are now waiting for the parent reports to arrive from the company. As soon as the parent reports arrive, your child's results will be mailed home. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this matter.

Presentation on Bullying - Prevention, Communication, and Response

Please join us at our next PTO meeting, February 11 at 9:30 a.m. in the UC Wing, OR at our monthly Night Owls meeting, February 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the Blue Ash Elementary cafeteria.

Mrs. Combs and Ms. Jones will be presenting about Bullying - Prevention, Communication and Response.

We hope to see you there!

Show Your Spirit Friday!

Wear your spirit wear Friday February 4th! PTO will be here taking pictures of those showing their spirit for the yearbook!

Enhancing our Garden

Blue Ash Elementary has a beautiful garden, The Sweetwood Garden, that our students use for various curriculum lessons and real-world learning experiences. This was started by our PTO and is managed by our Garden Team.

Our school is asking for your help with donating paper milk and juice cartons to enhance our garden. We are entering the Carton2Garden contest to promote environmental stewardship and healthy living. The best use of cartons in a school garden gives a school a chance to win 1 of 14 prizes with a grand prize of $5,000!

For additional details please click this link:

https://www.smore.com/qmztx-calling-for-all-paper-cartons

Kindergarten Registration

Parents with children who will be 5 years old before September 30, 2016 are encouraged to attend Sycamore's upcoming Kindergarten registration. Blue Ash Elementary's will be held February 3rd from 4:30 - 6 pm. If you can't make this date please contact the school at (513) 686-1710 to schedule an appointment to come in and register. To download a registration packet or to find out if your child is ready visit: www.sycamoreschools.org