A Letter from the Health Office - Thankful for November 

Susan Martin LPN/Health Assistant and Liz Lynch, BSN, RN, NCSN

• Cold and Flu Season
  • Washing your hands is the first and best defense to protect yourself against germs.  Use Hand Sanitizer to help stop the spread of germs.  Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.  Clean and disinfect common surfaces that are frequently touched that may carry germs.  School age children should get between 9 to 12 hours of sleep a night.  Drink lots of water to keep your body healthy and safe.  Talk to your Pediatrician about yearly vaccinations to protect against diseases.
• Dry Hands/Skin
  • As we all know the changes of the season can bring dry hands and skin.  It is important to use lotion to keep our hands and skin moist.  Wearing a hat and gloves can help keep our skin protected.  Drinking lots of water will also help our dry hands, skin and body stay healthy and strong.
• Lip Balm/Chapstick
  • Is it the time of the year again when your lips can get dry, red and cracked.  It is important to use lip balm/chapstick to keep your lips moist and hydrated.  Avoid licking your lips as this will only exacerbate the problem.
• Warm Clothes for Cold Weather
  • Brrrr….the weather is changing please have your children dress in the appropriate warm clothes.  Children should come to school with a winter jacket, hat, gloves and possibly boots on rainy days.
• Bucket List Inspiration

If your student will need to take medication during the school day, please have your child’s provider fill out and sign the appropriate form below. These can then be returned to the office or faxed by the provider to: 920-424-7583.

• Over the Counter Medication Form *parent signature only required*
• Prescribed Medication Form 
• Inhaler/Asthma Action Plan  
• Epipen/Allergy & Anaphylaxis Form

REMINDERS:

Directions on the medication bottle/box must match the written order on the medication request form.

• Stock Epi-pens do NOT go on field trips. 
• Please fill out an Emergency Epi-Pen/Anaphylaxis Plan even if you don’t have a personal Epi at school.
• PRN medications (Ibuprofen, Tylenol, Tums etc.) must come in a new and unopened bottle.
• Is your child up to date with their immunizations? Please contact the doctor for physicals and immunizations! All students at Jefferson are required to have their Tdap, Polio, MMR, Varicella and Hep B! Please check with your doctor to see what wellness requirements are needed for your child.

Phy-Ed Update from Mr. Schneider 

This November, our PE classes are filled with fun, seasonal activities that focus on important physical skills. Our kindergarten and first-grade students are enjoying Thanksgiving-themed games that reinforce foundational skills like locomotor movements, such as walking, running, hopping, and skipping, as well as directional travel, including moving forward, backward, sideways, and changing directions. These engaging activities help build coordination, body awareness, and agility, all while celebrating the spirit of the season.

In grades 2-5, students are diving into jump rope and paddle work. Jumping rope is a fantastic way for students to build cardiovascular fitness, rhythm, and coordination as they practice different jumping styles and work on increasing stamina and skills. They are also working with lollipop paddles to develop key skills for racket and paddle sports, focusing on hitting, returning, and serving mechanics. These exercises strengthen hand-eye coordination and introduce concepts like aim, force, and follow-through, which are useful across many sports.

Music Update from Mr. Flaugher 

Concert season is upon us!

This year, all Jefferson students will not be performing a holiday themed concert, instead opting for a theme of celebration for the amazing music making we’ve done during this first quarter. The songs, dances, and games you will hear were all chosen from in class activities that the students enjoyed and wanted to perform. This is the plan:

• Kindergarten will be singing, doing a movement game, and, if we can get the materials in time, an instrumental piece.

• 1st Grade will be doing a singing and beat keeping game and demonstrating their understanding of musical vocabulary through artistic ribbon dancing.

• 2nd Grade will be doing a cup game to a world famous piece of music, some rhythm activities, and a rhythmic piece of music.

• 3rd Grade will be doing a singing game and will have their class compositions played for the first time for them.

• 4th Grade will also be doing a halloween -themed singing game and having their class compositions performed as well.

• 5th Grade will be playing a steady beat game, a boomwhacker song, and, for select students, a recorder song. 

More details about arrival times, concert wear, etc. will be coming in the next few weeks. Can’t wait to see you all at Alberta Kimball Auditorium on December 16!

Musically yours,

Mr. Willem Flaugher

Art Update from Ms. Keefe 

Happy November! In art we are working on art show pieces and a special 5th grade project! K-2 are finishing up our bee projects, getting ready to move onto our flower projects for the art show. Understanding how bees and flowers are connected are a vital part of these projects. We are also learning about mixed media art and layering different materials. 3rd graders are working on paper mache bees, learning how to work with layering paper and paste to create a strong base.
4th graders are starting on making their large scale bees, learning how to draw large scale. Last but not least, 5th graders are working on their yearbook covers, that will later be voted on by the entire school, the winning cover will be the actual yearbook cover for this years book!

Media and Technology Update from Ms. Kese

Help Boost Kids’ Safety, Privacy, and Security

When kids start to go online, whether they're playing multiplayer games, using educational apps, or just following their curiosity on Google, it's important that they understand the basics of online privacy and safety. With some general guidelines around what information is and isn't OK to share, and some help from parents when they're unsure, kids can have fun and learn a lot in the digital world.

Check out these 5 tips:

• Discuss personal vs. private info. Talk about the difference between what's OK to share online (favorite color - personal) and what's not (home address - private).
•  Use privacy settings. Together, go through the settings on all new apps to make sure you both know what information your kids are sharing. Especially in the beginning, it's better to share very little. 
• Avoid location tracking. Location-aware apps can be super helpful. But apps that use a device's location to help people find your kid or offer them ads for nearby businesses should be used with caution. Turn them off if you can.
•  Power up passwords. Work together with kids to help them come up with complex passwords. Use phrases and special characters that make passwords hard to guess but easy to remember. Remind kids to keep passwords private and change them regularly. 
• Skip quizzes. Help kids identify and avoid clickbait, quizzes, special offers, and anything that asks for personal or private information. This helps keep information secure and devices safe.

K–5 family tips: Privacy & Security. Common Sense Education. (2021, January 5). Retrieved November 30, 2021, from https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-5-privacy-and-security. 

School Counselor Update from Mrs. Brown 

Hello families,

From KG-5th in Great People Skills Lessons with Mrs. Brown (GPS) we have been focusing on being peaceful problem solvers. Students have learned and reviewed the difference between small problems and big problems. Small problems can happen with other students. Small problems may make us feel sad, annoyed, frustrated, angry, etc. yet we can choose to be peaceful problem solvers.  When we are faced with a small problem we can use strategies from the wheel of choice, such as: Walk away and let it go, wait and cool off, ignore it, talk it out, use an I message (I feel… when you… could you please…), rock paper scissors go to/share and take turns, go to another activity, use a big voice and tell them to stop. We can also use the Time Machine to talk it out. If faced with a small problem students are encouraged to use at least two to three of the previous strategies to try to problem solve peacefully before asking for help from an adult. Big problems are when someone is physically and intentionally getting hurt, someone is in danger. When faced with a big problem students are asked to get away, report and get help from a safe keeper/a trusted adult right away. We are always reflecting on our motto that at Jefferson we are kind, helpful and safe!

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if there is something I can support you or your child with. You can reach me by calling our school office or emailing me directly at: jacqueline.brown@oshkosh.k12.wi.us.

Wishing you and your loved ones well,

Mrs. Brown

Math Update from Mrs. Bauer 

Each month our Jefferson mathematicians are exposed to a grade level “Number Corner Calendar Grid” from Bridges Third Edition, where each day a unique set of “markers” (cards for each day of the month) are revealed. Each day’s card connects to the next day and students are to make sense of the math they see on the cards, which could be patterns, number relationships, size/color, classifying, number solving, geometry, etc. The role of the teacher is to facilitate math talks and/or math solving through asking key questions such as: “What patterns do you see?” “What number/model/object will the next card show and how do you know?” “What mathematical language can you use to describe what you see or notice?” “How can you describe what you see with numbers/symbols/equations?” Ask your child about this week’s “Calendar Grid” cards and how they connect to last weeks? 

(example: Kindergarten Calendar Grid)

(example: Fourth Grade Calendar Grid)

Literacy Update from Mrs. Boettcher and Mrs. Vollbrecht

How to Encourage Writing at Home

1. Play "Fortunately/Unfortunately"

This turn-taking writing game is based on a class kids' book by Remy Charlip called Fortunately. In it, something lucky happens and then something unlucky happens. Each event is introduced by either the word "fortunately" or the word "unfortunately."

To play, take a piece of paper and write a sentence beginning with "Fortunately," such as "Fortunately it was a sunny day. I wanted to play outside." Pass the paper to the next player, who will add an "unfortunately" sentence, such as "Unfortunately, I had to clean my room." Keep going until the story is too silly to continue.

2. Make a journal jar

A journal doesn't have to be a diary. It can also be a book where your child writes about ideas or answers questions, like "if you could do anything next summer, what would you choose?" A journal jar is a place to keep all those ideas and questions.

Wash and decorate a wide-mouthed jar, like one that used to contain peanut butter. Then, write or print out journal prompts on slips of paper. Ask your child to pull out one prompt each day and write about it in her journal.

3. Create a family scrapbook

A family scrapbook is a great way to save memories and jump-start your child's writing. Use an inexpensive photo album to keep souvenirs of things you do together. This can include photos, ticket stubs, and found objects, like pretty leaves. 

Your child can begin by writing the date and a line about where you were and what you did. Then, you can work together to write a more detailed summary. Don't forget to include funny or even annoying moments! 

These are just a few suggestions from Reading Rockets. You can find more ideas for writing at home on the Reading Rockets Website.