Home&School

CONNECTION

Working Together for School Success

March 2015

South Newton Elementary School

Mr. Pluta, School Counselor

SHORT
NOTES

Thats a record!

Suggest that your

youngster start a notebook of personal records to keep track of her
accomplishments. For instance,
maybe she did five pull-ups in PE
or got 100 on her spelling test two
weeks in a row. Challenge her to beat
her own records, and shell learn to
set and work toward goals.
Backpack safety

To avoid straining his back, encourage your child to bend his knees (not
his waist) when he picks up his backpack. Also, the weight of his backpack should be less than 15 percent
of his body weight. Hint: Have him
pack items so the weight is evenly
distributed.
Celebrate spring

Spring begins March 20. As a family,

plan a mini celebration to ring in the
new season. Your youngster could
make invitations (Meet in the living
room on Friday after dinner) and
check out library books of spring crafts
to do together. You might bake cookies
or cupcakes that family members can
decorate with flowers or raindrops.
Worth quoting
Use the talents you possess, for the
woods would be a very silent place
if no birds sang except the best.
Henry van Dyke

JUST FOR FUN

Respect at home, respect

at school
A child who treats people
with respect at home is more
likely to be respectful in
school. These tips can
help your youngster
learn what respect is and
inspire him to show it.
Define

Explain that respect

includes valuing others
needs and wishes, showing
consideration for people,
being tolerant of differences,
and using good manners. Then, have
your youngster write his own recipe for
respect. Example: Mix together 41 cup
caring, 41 cup good manners, 41 cup selfcontrol, and 41 cup tolerance. Makes as
many servings as you need and stays
good forever!
Spot

I spyrespect. Together, look and

listen for people showing respect. Your
child may notice students listening quietly
as the media specialist reads a book or
classmates speaking politely to each other.
Have him name someone he respects at

school, like a teacher or classmatewhy

does he respect that person? Also, as he
reads or watches movies, he could be on
the lookout for characters he thinks are
worthy of respect.
Show

Can your youngster think of instances

where he was or wasnt respectful this
week? Encourage him to come up with
three ways he will behave respectfully
at home and at school next week. For
example, he could ask his sister before
touching her guitar or wait patiently for
smaller kids who need more time to
cross the playground monkey bars.

Test-week success
How can you help your youngster stay focused yet relaxed
during standardized test week? Share these strategies:

Dad: Really?
What is it?

Suggest that she pack a test kit the night before

each day of testing. She should put in everything that
shell need, such as sharpened pencils, a calculator, a
water bottle, and a snack. Tip: Make sure she gets 1011
hours of sleep so shell be alert.

Tyler: Zero

Let your child plan enjoyable activities for after school. She may not have home-

Tyler: I can tell you the score of

tonights big game before it starts.

to zero!
2015 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated

work during test week, so she could use that time to unwind by playing board
games, reading comic books, or visiting a park.

Home & School CONNECTION

March 2015 Page 2

When I grow up

someday. Or if shed like

to be a fashion designer,
the measurement unit
shes doing in math can
help her measure fabric correctly.

Help your youngster see the connection

between what shes learning in school and the
future career she dreams of with these ideas.
Think about jobs. How could your child use

reading, math, or science in a future career?

Ask her to name a job she might enjoy and
match it with a skill she learned in class. For
example, reading with expression will come
in handy if she becomes a TV news anchor

ACTIVITY
CORNER

Put salad on the map

What does your childs dinner salad
have to do with geography? Make one
together, and he can find out.
1. Ask your

youngster to
write a shopping list for
salad ingredients.
2. At the grocery

store, have him

read stickers to learn
where each ingredient
comes from (tomatoes from Mexico,
cucumbers from California). Can he
find anything grown in your area?
3. At home, encourage him to look at a
world map and locate the state or country
where each ingredient was grown. He
could sketch each food on a sticky note
and place it where it belongs on a globe,
an atlas, or a map.
4. Let your child help you wash the

vegetables, slice them, and toss with his

favorite dressing. Now its time to eat!
Idea: Next time, let him make and
map a fruit salad.
O U R

P U R P O S E

To provide busy parents with practical ideas

that promote school success, parent involvement,
and more effective parenting.
Resources for Educators,
a division of CCH Incorporated
128 N. Royal Avenue Front Royal, VA 22630
540-636-4280 [email protected]
www.rfeonline.com
ISSN 1540-5621
2015 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated

Talk to workers.

Let your youngster

interview people about
their jobs. Maybe your
neighbor is an electrician or your sister is an
orthopedist. Encourage
her to ask how they use
school subjects at work.
She may discover that electricians read manuals and diagrams
and that orthopedists need science to understand patients
bones and to diagnose and treat injuries.

Q Keeping track of papers

&
My sons room is a mess which wasnt a big
A Q:
problem until he started losing schoolwork and

getting frustrated when he couldnt find things. How

can I help?
A: The good news is that even if your sons room is
cluttered, he wont lose papers if he keeps them in
his backpack.
He should take homework assignments out of his
s finbag when hes ready to work on them and put them right back in after he
hand it
him
have
sign,
to
you
for
slip
sion
permis
a
or
ished. If he has a graded test
ked.
overloo
get
may
it
where
pile
a
in
it
directly to you instead of putting
needs
You could also help your son develop a system for organizing work that he
.
subject
each
for
one
folders
file
or
trays
plastic
to keep. He might use stacked
to
ready
be
may
just
he
papers,
find
to
is
it
easier
Once he sees how much
tackle the rest of his room so its organized, too!

A co-parenting team
If youre divorced, you may worry
about how the situation will affect your
childs schoolwork. Youngsters tend to
adjust better if they see their parents
working as a team, so try these suggestions for building a good co-parenting
relationship:
Find a way to communicate about

your childs schooling. For example, some parents feel email

works best. Tip: Mention your
conversations to your youngster. (I told your dad about
your citizenship award.
Were both proud of you!)

Attend school events. Your child will

probably want to hang out with both of
you during a math night or an art fair.
Focus on her, and avoid bringing up difficult subjects (finances, custody).
Be sure to both look over report cards

and other important papers that come

home. You might
make a copy for the
other parent or ask
if the school will
send home duplicates. Try to agree
on a plan for handling grades.