Principal's News
Homyak Happenings April 2021 EditionHomyak Happenings
| Principal Post |
Principal: Julie Garcia
Spring has sprung! It is hard to believe, but we are down to the last two months of the school year! The week of April 12th is the start of state testing. The Colorado Department of Education requested a partial waiver of federal test requirements due to COVID conditions. Based on the waiver, spring assessments have essentially been cut in half! Students in 3rd, 5th, and 7th grade will do the English Language Arts assessments. Students in 4th and 6th will do Math and 8th graders will do Math and Science. If you would prefer your child take BOTH the English Language Arts and the Math assessment, you may opt in for additional testing. Based on the amount of instructional time lost as well as the variety of transitions throughout the year, I am grateful for less testing so we can continue to focus on the grade level standards. Included is our CMAS schedule, please try schedule appointments and non-emergency absences outside of the testing window.
Springtime has traditionally been an exciting time of year. Of course, we still have some restrictions in place, but normal seems to be lurking around the corner. My hope is that we can begin to host some of our events; such as NJHS Induction, 8th Grade Continuation, and Fun Run. I want you to know that we are starting to have these conversations and I am advocating for our students. We will have to make accommodations for it to work. For example, we will need to limit the guests allowed for the 8th Grade Continuation and NJHS Induction. Perhaps limiting it to two guests per student instead of all community members. Field Day might be more difficult due to the sharing of equipment and the physical contact for many of the activities. However, we are hoping to host our annual Fun Run. I will keep you updated as we finalize dates and plans.
A few gentle reminders, please send a water bottle with your child. Now that the weather is warming up, kids are hot and sweaty after recess! We still have the drinking fountains turned off, so it is crucial that they have a water bottle at school. Also, we are giving out several masks everyday. We would appreciate your support in having your child wear a mask to school every day, fingers crossed that we will not have to do this too much longer!
Happy Easter, enjoy the warm weekend ahead!
Julie
Pre-K: Ellie Walters and Stacie Austin
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN Pre- K
Math: Children are learning concepts of one to one correspondence, as well as concepts of addition and subtraction.
Science: We have now wrapped up our unit on transportation and are transitioning to learning about animals.
Writing: Children are learning and reinforcing best practices in pencil grip, posture, and letter formation.
Reading: We are reading stories connected to our animal unit. Children are learning and reinforcing letter sounds. With this we are understanding concepts of words, beginning sounds, and rhyme.
Kindergarten: Meaghan Page and Megan Hiatt
We have a fun month of learning ahead in Kindergarten! We will continue to explore the world around us through hands-on experiments and engaging investigations! Kinder friends will be exploring magnetism and learning about plants. We will be enjoying the spring weather and watch our very own plants grow! Kindergarteners are continuing to work hard and grow into emergent readers; we are continuing to learn and practice phonics skills such as digraphs, blends, and r-controlled vowels. Kindergartners are also continuing to practice their addition and subtraction skills, identification of 3D shapes, and overall number sense. We are so proud of all the growth and learning that is happening in Kindergarten and can't believe it is already April!
First Grade: Andrea Hart
Spring is in the air! This is a fun time of year as we are nearing the end. In 1st grade we will be Learning about Mexico in Social Studies, then we will switch to Science to learn about the sun, moon and stars. We will follow that up with our Reduce, Reuse, Recycle unit surrounding Earth Day. In Math we will be starting our unit on Geometry. We will continue to work hard in literacy, and have fun while doing it!
Second Grade: Alexis Fehringer and Danielle Kumaus
The wind told the grass and the grass told the trees. The trees told the bushes and the bushes told the bees. The bees told the robin and the robin sang out clear. Wake up! Wake up! Spring is here! - That's right it's POETRY month in second grade! Second grade will use poetry for continued practice in fluency, to learn different types of figurative language, and to stretch themselves as writers, In addition to poetry, students will explore 2 dimensional and 3 dimensional shapes in math and learn about the various habitats in our world for science.
Third Grade: Samantha Ciolino and Sarah Jacobs
Third grade has been hard at work. We finished our unit on Weather and Climate and are currently working on a research project on extreme weather. The students will be creating a virtual museum or a brochure to showcase their research. We will be taking a small break from Science and will be talking about the Earliest Americans and Explorers in Social Studies. We have also been working on identifying fractions using number lines, as well as using multiplication and division strategies. In the upcoming weeks, we will be creating a Boot Camp Room Transformation to help prepare for CMAS.
Fourth Grade: Shelley Brenner and Teresa Ryley
Fourth Grade has been busy discovering the many different types of story problems one person can learn how to solve. There are single step story problems, multi step story problems, division, multiplication, fractions, decimals, and measurement conversion story problems. You name it, we do it during Unit 8 of Everyday Math.
Our Science unit is being concluded with a research paper on a specific structure on a living organism and its function. Students have been researching and learning all kinds of information on how structure functions help an organism grow and survive.
Social Studies is introducing the Fourth Graders to economics. They have made connections to positive and negative incentives found at home, in school, and around the world. They also discovered the interconnectedness of goods and services, and how it creates an economic web. This was done in a real life scenario where students made a huge yarn web in searching for the goods and services they needed.
Students have started reading King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. They have focused on values in their own life and why they are important to them as they relate to King Arthur and the Knights in living and honoring the Code of Chivalry.
Fifth Grade: Sheri Lohmann
Math: The class will be working on Unit 6, covering measurement and working more in-depth with decimals. We will then head into Unit 7 , which includes multiplication of mixed numbers and graphs. You can find information and support at: https://everydaymath.uchicago.edu/parents/5th-grade/em4-at-home/
Core Knowledge Literature: We will be reading literature with connections to the Civil War and slaver. These texts include Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass and will be starting The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Science: 5th Grade will be learning about protecting Earth’s resources and starting our unit on Astronomy.
Social Studies: The class will be learning about the Civil War, including the events that led up to it and what happened after.
5th Graders are also working on cursive, social-emotional learning, and how to have opinionated discussions appropriately and respectfully.
MS Team: Sara Jakobsen, Tatum Fjelstad, Jason Pflaum Ben Whetsell
Spring conferences went great-- it was refreshing to see families and celebrate student successes. Thank you to all who participated! In ELA, students will be finishing off the year reciting plays from a variety of legendary authors. In social studies, students have been exploring the physical and human geography of Canada. Eighth grade is beginning to explore the foundation and governing document of our country; the Constitution. Science has been out of this world for sixth graders as they have been exploring galaxies and stars while seventh graders are testing pH levels and learning about cells and mitosis. Eighth grade scientists are using their new knowledge about magnets and electricity to create their own circuits. Our sixth and seventh grade mathematicians have been connecting the dots while exploring decimals and linear equations. Eighth graders have been creating and using equations.
As we come to a close, it is anticipated that students finish the year strong. Students should continue to ask questions, check their grades, and stay on top of their schoolwork. We look forward to reflecting on our year together and celebrating new learning and continued success!
Physical Education Happenings: Nicole Stead
With the warmer weather, please make sure to pack gym shoes on the week that you have P.E. It is very difficult to participate in class when you are wearing scandals. Please bring a water bottle as well.
Below is a little snapshot of what will be going on this month on our blue floor:
MIDDLE SCHOOL: We are starting two new PE rotations with a different group of students in the morning and afternoon.
4TH AND 5TH GRADE: We will be finishing the hockey unit with tournaments.
KINDER - 3rd GRADE: We will be finishing their throwing unit and starting their unit on catching
Mrs. Stead
Learning Center Updates: Candace Uvalle
In the Learning Center, students are polishing up their reading and math skills by taking risks and trying new strategies! Students continue to grow in self-confidence as learners and community members, who are setting goals and working to meet them!
Reading Intervention/English Language Development Teacher: Bobbi Baeza
Happy Spring Homyak Families!! Life in the intervention/ELD room is busy as usual! Third-grade Huskies are practicing reading fluency and comprehension, and they are also reading about Humphrey the Hamster’s adventures at Camp Happy Hollow in Summer According to Humphrey. First-grade Huskies are learning about the th and sh sounds, and will be learning about the FLOSS rule, which is double the last consonant of a word that ends with f, l, s, or z. This week they were the illustrators of a story about Beth the Pig and Tom the Duck. Kinder Huskies have started the first lesson of the Orton Gillingham sequence in Unit 1. They have been exploring using realia to learn about letters and sounds. Second-grade Huskies are wrapping up Unit 1 in the OG sequence, and they will soon start learning about glued sounds like -am and -an. My other second-grade Husky group has been practicing and applying the silent e or magic e concept to change short vowel words into long vowel words. Middle school Huskies, including my ELD kiddos, started reading new novels: Nightbird, Lawn Boy, and Tuck Everlasting, and practiced new vocabulary using the Flocabulary program. All my Huskies are doing great things in intervention and ELD! Have a wonderful spring!
Music Happenings: Kara Spitler-Job
Kindergarten & 1st Grade
In music we are learning about steady beat and rhythm. We began playing basic rhythm patterns using body percussion, shakers, and rhythm sticks. We are also learning how to match pitch and sing simple melodies to familiar nursery rhymes. In the upcoming weeks we will be doing movement activities, singing, and dramatic read alouds about the changing seasons.
2nd-5th Grade
We recently reviewed the instrument families and discussed the musical element of timbre. Students have done a great job of identifying instruments by listening to the sound they produce. We are also practicing singing technique by learning solfege and singing canons and rounds. Each grade level is working on song, instrument ensemble, or dance that we will record and share with other grade levels. My hope is to also create a virtual showcase of each number and share as a link that is viewable by families.
6th-8th Grade
Instrumentalists have spent their time learning basic technique and preparing a song to share at the end of the seven week elective. The drama students are working hard to complete recordings of their scenes from Cinderella. My hope is to create a video performance to share with other grade levels and also create a private link that families can view. Middle school students will begin new electives on Monday April 5th that they will finish out the year with.
Art: Krystina Sanders
Hello Homyak Families,
With the end of the year inching closer I am trying my best to keep out students as engaged as possible. Fourth and Fifth grade have started or will start a stitching unit that has blown my mind. Keep a lookout on their artsonia accounts or my instagram @sanders_art_room. Third through 1st are learning about all kinds of fun artists like Jeff Koons and James Rizzie. I will be puting Pre-K into my rotation so they get used to my fun madness and get to create fun things. Middle school will start all new specials starting Monday and I can't wait to see what they come up with. As always check your students artsonia emails that come in to see their wonderful work.
Mrs. Sanders
NJHS Historian:
NJHS has been busy with the sock drive and boy have things been looking good. So far we have collected over 400 pairs of socks. That is way more than we anticipated. A big, "Thank You", goes out to all of those who have helped make this happen. The Fort Lupton Food and Clothing Bank will surely be pleased when they stop by next week to pick everything up!
PTSA:
Hello Homyak Families!
The Homyak PTSA is looking forward to the warmer weather and additional opportunities to support our students, teachers and staff! Keep scanning your receipts for BoxTops and swiping your KingSoopers card to take advantage of our community partners programs. The PTSA is looking for additional board members to help in running the PTSA and working on events for the school. If you are interested in joining please reach out with questions!
Thank you!
Homyak PTSA
December Student of the Month
Upcoming Dates
April 13th, 14th, 15th CMAS Testing 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th
April 20th, 21st, 22nd CMAS Testing 8th
April 26th No School for Student’s/Staff Work Day