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PAGE 1 NOVEMBER 2013

Notes from the Principal

Riffenburgh Newsletter

Happy Thanksgiving The staff at Riffenburgh wishes our students and families an enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday and break. We hope that everyone can find many things to reflect on and be grateful for at Thanksgiving, and that we all spend time with family or friends who are special to us. There will be no school from Wednesday, November 27 through Friday, November 29, and we will look forward to seeing Riffenburgh students ready to resume school on Tuesday, December 3.

Collaboration Day On Monday, December 2, the Riffenburgh staff will be involved in Collaboration Day activities designed to improve our abilities to help students learn. December 2 is a non-attendance day for all elementary and middle school students in the Poudre School District. At Riffenburgh we will be working on assessments for IB units at all grade levels and developing instructional strategies related to Writing and Science for our School Improvement Plan.

Congratulations Barbara Carr, third grade teacher at Riffenburgh Elementary School, wrote a proposal which earned a $4,820 grant from the Poudre School District Foundation in November. Miss Carr identified our school’s need for books to create a leveled-reader book room to help students develop their reading skills. We look forward to selecting and purchasing new books that will make a difference in the reading progress of Riffenburgh students. Thanks, Miss Carr!

Riffenburgh Elementary School

PAGE 2 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Riffenburgh Attendance Line

Riffenburgh Attendance Line: 488-7936. This line is open 24 hours a day. Please call in absences and tardies before 8:45 am even if you have let the teacher know.

Fourth Grade News

Our current unit in our language series asks the big question, “How do people make a difference in their community?” In this unit, students are listening, reading, and writing about how people can make a difference in their communities. They will also develop and apply key comprehension skills that good readers use as they read. Each week, a letter is sent home entitled “Home–School Connection” with a short synopsis of the weekly story along with the skills being taught. Also included are the vocabulary and spelling words for the weekly test.

Work is being done on the IB Transdisciplinary Theme of Where We Are in Place and Time. We are exploring the Central Idea of how exploration and discovery have changed the way people think about our world and its place in space. The stu-dents are thrilled about the research they are doing. Thank you to Mrs. Radman for volunteering to come teach the fourth grade Kinesthetic Astronomy. She taught the concepts of year, orbit vs. rotate, day/night and what's visible when, the tilted axis of the earth and why that causes the seasons.

We would like to take this time to thank all of our volunteers, many of them doing things behind the scenes. We could not have the successes we have without you! We truly appreciate you.

Kealy DeHaan and Jasi Ungeheuer

Candy Grams

By Dylan W. and Emerson W. Like candy? Come to in the main pod by the office after lunch for candy grams and buy candy grams. We will donate all the money we make in candy grams to the Larimer Humane Society! The Larimer Humane

Society is a company that helps animals without homes. All candy grams only 25 cents! We are trying to raise $1000! You can buy candy grams for anyone including your parents, your friends, your teachers, and anyone else you can think of. Good luck Riffenburgh.

PAGE 3 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Caps4Cash

Caps4Cash is a Morning Fresh Dairy Program where schools earn 5¢ per cap collected. ALL Morning Fresh Caps from glass bottles are eligible (Milk, O.J. Egg Nog, etc.). How you can start earning money for your school:

Drink your Milk Save your bottle caps Collect caps from family and friends Bring the caps to school Drop them in the collection can in the entryway!

Important Dates

Nov. 27-29 Thanksgiving Break Dec. 2 Collaboration Day /K-8 students No School Dec. 10 Winter Concert “Snow Jam”Grades K-1 10:40 AM & 6:30 PM Little Kids Rock & Rockin’ Roadrunner Choir Dec. 11-13 Santa’s Secret Shop Dec. 20 Class Holiday Parties Dec. 23-Jan 3 Winter Break Jan. 6 K-12 Teacher Work Day No school Jan. 20 Martin Luther King Day No School Jan 27 PTO Meeting at Noon in the Media Center Jan. 30 Kindergarten Information Meeting 6:30 PM for incoming Kindergarten parents for 2014/2015 Jan. 31 Riffenburgh Skate Party at Rollerland 5-7 PM

Lost and Found

We have some miscellaneous jewelry and eyeglasses in the office. Please stop by to identify any items that may be yours.

PAGE 4 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

When to Keep Your Child Home

Recommendations from PSD Health Services

General Guidelines:

If your child is contagious to other children

f your child is too uncomfortable to learn or participate in learning.

Fever:

Temperature of 100 degrees or higher

Must be fever free for 24 hours without fever reducing medicines, such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen (i.e., Advil, Motrin)

Diarrhea:

Frequent watery stools

Appearance/Behavior:

Unusually tired, pale, or irritable, fever

Ear:

Ear pain and/or drainage from ear, fever

Eyes:

Eye drainage, redness and/or itching

Rash:

Body or local rash especially with itching, red bumps, discharge

Sore Throat:

Especially with fever, swollen neck glands and/or white areas on throat

Continued

PAGE 5 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Vomiting:

Especially if your child vomits before leaving for school in the morning

Upper Respiratory Infections/Colds:

If your child has a fever, large amounts of nasal drainage, a productive or dry cough that would be disruptive to your child and/or class, and/or significantly uncomforta-ble and unable to participate in class.

Burns:

Burn is on your child’s eye or eyelid

The center of the burn is white or charred

Burn starts to look infected with pus, red streaks, and/or increased tenderness

Blisters that are greater than ½ inch in size

If burn was caused by acid, alkali or electrical burn

Cuts and Scrapes and Puncture Wounds:

If you think your child has a serious injury or a cut that is split open or gaping, con-sult with your health care provider.

Cuts longer than ½ inch may need stitches

On the face, cuts, longer than ¼ inch may need stitches

Open wound that may need stitches should be checked and closed within 6 hours

Wound looks infected with redness, red streaks, swelling, fever and/or tenderness

Your child may need a tetanus booster

Head Injury: Call your health care provider if:

Your child is knocked unconscious Continued

PAGE 6 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Headache

Nausea/vomiting

Unequal pupils/blurred vision, double vision

Slurred speech/confusion/excessive drowsiness

Loss of muscle coordination, such as falling down, dizzy, walking strangely or staggering

Convulsions/seizures

Bleeding or discharge from ear/nose

This information is for educational purposes. The Poudre School District Nurses and Health Technicians do not diagnose medical conditions. Please consult with your primary health care provider for questions about diagnosis, treatment or concerns. Our goal is to promote healthy environments for all students and staff.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Third Grade Studies How the World Works

Third grade has been studying about all kinds of life forms and systems on our planet. We have sprouted seeds and experimented with different variables of soil and light. Thank you Mr. Faris for spending time to talk about soil, water, and bugs. Mrs. Rice and leaders from her classroom have organized the Journey North Tulip Experiment, so that we can observe different stages of a life cycle over time. We have been studying the life cycles of different animals and how they

compare and contrast with each other. Thank you to Mr. Broderick for sharing about the unique characteristics of bears and Mr. Cryan for giving us an up close exploration bats and the tools you use to study these living organisms. The kids are working on their summative projects, studying South American animals, and discovering the importance of our roles as humans to protect and conserve these valuable living resources. We are having a wonderful time discovering all of these elements about how our world works.

PAGE 7 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Three Simple Strategies Can Boost Reading

Comprehension

As your child gets older, he will be expected to read and understand more complex text. He will transition from learning to read to reading to learn. You can help by sharing these three reading comprehension strategies with your child:

1. See the big picture. Before starting to read an assignment, have your child think about what he will be reading. What is the title of the chapter or assignment? Does it offer any clues about the reading? Look for other clues, such as subheadings, words in boldface or italics, pictures or graphs.

2. Take notes. Most good students take notes on what they read. Taking notes while reading will make it easier for your child to comprehend and remember information. It will also make reading active and engaging. Your child should write down the most important ideas in the reading assignment. He should also write down any words he doesn't know and the answers to the questions at the end of the chapter.

3. Make connections. The best way to remember new information is by relating it to something you have already learned. When your child finishes a reading assignment, have him answer questions such as: How is this topic similar to something else I have learned? What key ideas did I already know? What new information did I learn?

Reprinted with permission from the November 2013 issue of Parents make the difference!® (Elementary School Edition) newsletter. Copyright © 2013 The Parent Institute®, a division of NIS, Inc.

Little Kids Rock!

By Tristan, Lydia, and Ryan The best thing about little kid’s rock is that we get to play guitar, the drums, and the teacher is the best! The best thing about guitar is that it has the best sound. It also is so cool to play. The drums are even more fun to play becauset has an awesome rhythm. It is also fun to play because you get to hit something without getting in trouble. Mrs. Turner is the best little kid’s rock / music teacher ever because she is really nice and cool. She is also really funny.

PAGE 8 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Regular Exercise Is Connected To School

Success For Children

Research shows that physical fitness leads to many benefits for kids. Regular activity is linked to higher self-esteem and attentiveness in school. It also lowers the chance of health problems such as type 2 diabetes.

To motivate your child to get--and stay--active:

Limit screen time. When your child watches TV or plays video games, encourage her to take active breaks. Remember that TV, computer and video game use should not exceed two hours a day.

Offer suggestions. When your child has a friend over, suggest they play games that involve movement, such as tag, soccer and jumping rope. Indoors, try games such as "Simon Says" and "Red Light, Green Light."

Plan family outings. Pick activities your family enjoys and create new healthy traditions. You might go for a walk after dinner or head to a park every Sunday afternoon.

Be creative. You can find lots of ways to sneak in exercise. During chore time, play music or race to finish a job. While doing errands, park away from a store and walk. Or stop at a playground on the way home.

Set an example. If your child sees you staying fit (stretching, biking, walking with a neighbor, etc.), you'll be a good role model.

Reprinted with permission from the November 2013 issue of Parents make the difference!® (Elementary School Edition) newsletter. Copyright © 2013 The Parent Institute®, a division of NIS, Inc. Source: A. Singh, Ph.D. and others, "Physical Activity and Performance at School," JAMA Pediatrics, http://archpedi.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1107683

What Is Going On In 5th Grade?!

By Branden, Krysta, and Jason

Math: In math we are working on order of operations, factor trees, and prime factorization.

Reading: In reading we are reading a story about astronauts in space and how they work together. The story tells us about how they are being trained and how it will help them in space.

Writing: In writing we learned how to use a writing diamond. Our writing prompt this week is: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

PAGE 9 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

International Baccalaureate Authorization

Update

International Baccalaureate Authorization Update

I’m excited to announce that Riffenburgh will have its IB verification visit on February 6th & 7th. This visit is the final step in becoming an authorized IB World School. The students and staff of Riffenburgh have been working hard over the past three years in preparation, training, and practice. The visiting IB team will be here for two days visiting classrooms, interviewing grade level teams, meeting with district administration, and talking with some parents to get a clear understanding of the incredible educational foundations and practices we provide the students with.

While the verification visit will confirm what we know and believe, it will not be the end of our IB journey. We will continue to develop a program that promotes well-rounded learners and global citizens. A continued emphasis on assessment and student engagement is already in place. Student growth, achievement, and academic understanding will always be at the forefront of the education we provide to all the families of Riffenburgh Elementary.

If you have any questions about the IB program, or the verification visit; please don’t hesitate to ask.

Judson Rhoads - judsonr@psdschools.org IB Coordinator

Unicef: Helping Kids Around The World!

By: Braeden, Briery, Sydney

Hi, our names are Braeden, Briery, and Sydney. We are here to talk to you all about UNICEF, just in case you missed the assembly. We also have some excited news! We will tell you about that in a second. UNICEF is a nonprofit organiza-tion. It helps kids around the world. For instance, if a kid catches malaria, UNICEF will donate funds so that kids can

get healed if they get such a disease. We collected money when we Trick-or-Treated for UNICEF. Thank you all who did! As a school, we collected $851.10! That is amazing! Great job Riffenburgh! We chose to buy one water pump, three vaccines, one mosquito net, fifty-five protein biscuits, and eight soccer balls. This was ex-tremely hard to choose, but this is what we came up with! Thanks, Riffenburgh! Bye!

PAGE 10 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Updates from Mr. Seeber’s Class

Book Buddies Written by Emma Batson and Sofia Oberhansly Sofia: In fifth grade there are many fun things to do! Book Buddies is very fun. We each get assigned a book buddy. They are Kindergarteners from Mrs. Brey’s classroom. Typically, we do crafts and read with our book buddies. It is very fun to be able to do crafts with my Kindergarten buddy, Daisy.

Emma: In Mr. Seeber’s class there are lots of fun things to do. But the fun thing I’m telling you about is … our Kindergarten Book Buddies! Every 2 weeks we get to see our book buddies. Some of the things we do with them are make crafts and read stories to them. My book buddy’s name is Mia. Some of the things we already have done with them is making frog hats and making a book. I think that is a really fun experience for both grades.

What is going on in Mr. Seeber’s Class

Written by Eli Moloney What is going on in Mr. Seeber’s class? Learning of course! In math, the class is learning about factors and prime numbers. During language arts, we are working on main idea and details, procedural texts, and writing. In Social Studies, the class is learning about the Native Americans. The class is very hard-working, focused, and hilarious! Overall, Mr. Seeber’s class is learning a lot.

From Mr. Seeber

We have spent several weeks on our “Explorers” IB unit. One of the enrichment opportunities we completed was research on various ships that were used by explorers not only of North America, but of other parts of the world. The students, either individually or as teams, completed presentations on these ships. It was a fun experience.

Part of our unit included discovering about the Native Americans and the geography of the United States. The students used a web program called Sheppard Software. There are many wonderful resources on Sheppard Software, not only for geography, but also for math and language arts. This is something your child can use at home. To access this website, simply go to www.sheppardsoftware.com and begin exploring!

In the next week or so, the students will begin their summative assessments on explorers. Look for notes home of any work that needs to be done to complete this unit.

PAGE 11 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Notes From P.E.

Hello all! Here in the gym we are continuing to review our parts of Fitness in 3rd-5th grades. They should be able to tell you about Aerobic Fitness, Muscular Strength and Endurance, as well as Flexibility. We just concluded a quick unit on soccer and are moving on to a few weeks of basketball. I have made the decision to do Fitness Testing with fourth and fifth graders in the spring so that we can spend time now focusing on other fun things! I will get dates out when we get closer to this.

We are working in all grades on making good choices as individuals as well as being able to work well with others. In upper grades we are working on choosing groups that one can work well with. We are also going to start working with the IB Action Cycle to emphasize the importance of thinking about our actions in the dynamic gym environment.

With winter weather right around the corner I’d like to extend a reminder to please make sure your son or daughter has appropriate PE attire when he or she has PE. Snow boots are not great PE shoes, so please have them pack a pair of tennis shoes in their bag so that they can change before class, having proper shoes helps to ensure that everyone can participate fully and, most importantly, safely in all PE activities.

Art Show

Hello Riffenburgh Families,

This December Riffenburgh Elementary, along with some other PSD schools, is participating in a small art show at the Front Range Village. Student art work is on display through the month of December in stores and windows along the main strip.

Congratulations to the following students for having their art work represent Riffenburgh at this show:

Lucas Roberts (5th grade) Lizard watercolor

Taya Brickner (5th grade) Lizard watercolor

Annie Jones (1st grade) Swinging in an Autumn Tree

Mira Pinnella (1st grade) Swinging in an Autumn Tree

Ana Zimbron-Leon (Kindergarten) Shape Robot

Justin Battaglia (Kindergarten) Shape Robot\

Mrs. Carpenter Riffenburgh Art Teacher

PAGE 12 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

More than 400 Confucius Institutes around the world partner with local communities to promote Chinese language and culture instruction and programming, as well as develop a dialogue on a variety of topics related to China.

Mission

The Confucius Institute at Colorado State University (CICSU) serves as a bridge between Colorado, China, and the world by actively:

Teaching Chinese language in Fort Collins and throughout Colorado

Providing cultural programming on China

Supporting researchers, scientists, faculty, and students to address the current global challenges of water and environmental sustainability

Engaging constituent communities in personal and professional enrichment through educational exchange

CICSU is an educational partnership between the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban), Hunan University and Colorado State University.

With the support of Riffenburgh Elementary School, CICSU would like to offer a Chinese language course in a specially designed after school program. The course would use a textbook that adheres to the Youth Learner Chinese Test (YCT)/Chinese Proficiency Test (HSK) standards. With sufficient enrollment, it could lead to a full series of courses that students could follow and learn to an advanced level of proficiency in Chinese. While details are still in development, the course would run for about one hour immediately after school beginning in January, 2014. The anticipated cost for this course would be approximately $5 dollars per instruction hour. Therefore, a 1-hour weekly course for 16 weeks would cost approximately $80 per student. Students with a CSU affiliation (parent is faculty, staff, or current student) could be eligible for an additional discount through the CSU Commitment to Campus program.

Parent’s Name: _______________________________________________________ Child’s Current Grade Level: ___________________________________________ Phone Number: ________________ Email Address: ________________________

Yes, I am very interested in this class. (Please circle which afternoons work best for you) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday I may be interested, please send me more information when details are finalized.

PAGE 13 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Snow Jam

A Rockin’ Winter Concert Featuring

The Rockin’ Roadrunner Choir

The Riff’n’Rockers

Kindergarten and 1st Grade Snow Bunnies

Tuesday, December 10 6:30pm in the Gym Students should arrive by 6:00pm Morning Performance at 10:40am for students

Childhood Biomechanics Study

“CSU researchers seeking children to participate in physical activity research study”

Musculoskeletal function and movements during physical activity in children and adolescents. Help make children more active!

The Physical Activity Laboratory is seeking overweight but otherwise healthy child volunteers, aged 7-11, for a study to develop better physical activity guidelines for children and adolescents.

The project includes up to 2 visits: Performing a variety of physical activities in the Physical Activity Laboratory at CSU Measuring energy expenditure and motions during these activities Children should be able to participate in a variety of physical activities including walking, jogging, and playing outdoor games. If you are interested in having your child participate, please send an email to: palab@cahs.colostate.edu or call 970-492-4072.

The study will require approximately 2-4 hours total. Children will be compensated for their time. CSU Project title: Musculoskeletal function and movements during physical activity in children and adolescents. Principal Investigator: Ray Browning, PhD

PAGE 14 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

Contact: Deb Hooker, communications specialist at dhooker@psdschools.org

1.Stay informed - sign up for PSD E-mail alerts (visit the PSD website, www.psdschools.org, E-mail Alert Sign-up on the home page slideshow). You will receive school and district updates including: emergency/school closure information, district changes impacting your child, district news/accomplishments, Board of Education action and the PSD monthly enewsletter.

2. No school – Winter Break!

Pre-K – 12th grade, No School Dec. 23-Jan. 3, Winter Break

Pre-K – 12th grade, No School, Jan 6, 2014, Teacher Work Day

First day back after Winter Break is Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2014

3. Follow PSD on Facebook and Twitter!

Sign up to follow PSD on Facebook and Twitter. We post information and photos about the great things happening in our schools. Links are now located at the top of the new PSD home page at www.psdschools.org. Check it out!

4. Online School Choice application available for 2014-15

The online School Choice application is now available online under “School Registration on the PSD website.” The first consideration deadlines for 2014-15 are:

January 31, 2014, for secondary (grades 6-12)

February 14, 2014, for elementary (grades K-5) School Choice applications may also be

submitted after the first-consideration deadline until the first day of class at the beginning of the school year of requested enrollment. For more information, view the School Choice policy and timelines on the PSD website.

5. Parents must renew School Choice applications for waitlist students

Parents and guardians of children whose names are on a PSD school’s waitlist are encouraged to renew each child’s online application in order for the child’s name to remain on that school’s waitlist and be considered for admission for 2014-2015 school year.

Parents must renew school choice applications by the first consideration deadlines, which are Friday, Jan. 31, for secondary schools and Friday, Feb. 14, for elementary schools.

PSD policy concerning JFBA—Choice/Open Enrollment states that students shall remain on their respective waiting lists for each year they are eligible to attend the choice school or program to which they have applied, but only if parents provide written notice on or before the first consideration deadline each year that they wish to remain on the waiting list and want to be considered for admission the following school year.

Parents should receive a notice by email or letter from the school to remind them to renew their child’s school choice application. The email or letter explains the process and how to renew the application. For questions, please contact the school where your child is on the waitlist.

6. Gifted/Talented information session Dec. 4 A gifted and

School News Briefs

Continued

PAGE 15 NOVEMBER 2013 Riffenburgh Newsletter

talented parent information session will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 4, at Lincoln Middle School, 1600 W. Lancer Dr. Topics include Gifted Identification and Advanced Learning Plans. Any parent or educator interested in these topics is welcome to attend. A parent resource table will also be available. The session will not address specific GT services at each school. For more information about gifted and talented services at your school, contact your school’s GT Coordinator.

7. QPR Suicide Prevention training Dec. 4 Parents interested suicide prevention may want to sign up for the last QPR suicide prevention training offered by PSD. QPR is a 1 1/2 hour training that teaches participants the warning signs for suicide and the three-step QPR (Question, Persuade and Refer) method.

The next QPR training will be held 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 4, at Boltz Middle School Media Center, 720 Boltz Drive. There is no charge, but participants must register by Dec. 2 by calling 490-3264.

During the training, participants will learn how to recognize someone at risk for suicide, learn intervention skills and learn about referral resources within PSD and the Fort Collins community.

Participants will learn how to listen, how to identify at least three warning signs of suicide and how to ask someone about their potential suicide intent, as well as how to assist a person at risk of suicide. Participants will understand suicide as a national and local public health concern and learn myths and facts related to suicide.

School News Briefs: Continued