Please be reminded of our student clear bag guidelines for the 2024-2025 school year. Have a great school year! Be inspired. Be determined. Be unstoppable!
Include writing in your regular summer routine
It takes practice to write well. Consider establishing a writing "ritual" for your family. Pick a special time period, such as the duration of summer vacation. Get everyone a notebook (a thin one won't overwhelm your child). Choose a regular time of day you'll all write, and stick with it. To get started, let your child pick a family photo or other picture to write a story about.
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Show your child that the dictionary is interesting reading
One way to support vocabulary growth is by encouraging your child to browse in the dictionary. Get a children's dictionary with lots of pictures. Leaf through it together and look for new and interesting words. Read the definitions. Talk about the pictures. Ask what your child thinks a new word might mean. Does your student know any similar words?
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At this time, Meet and Greet has not been scheduled due to the construction and drainage projects that are ongoing on campus. If one is scheduled, it will be a last minute decision based on completion of projects. More information will be forthcoming toward the latter part of this week.
The Spirit Store has reopened until Sunday, August 4th at midnight. These orders WILL NOT be included with the first round of orders that will be delivered prior to school. Please click the link to order. https://stores.inksoft.com/port_barre_elementary_24-25
Point out the useful ways you read
Children learn by watching the adults around them. And when you talk about what you are doing, you make it easier for your child to learn from you. If you are cooking, for example, you might say, "I'm looking for a cake recipe. I don't have time to read all the recipes in this cookbook, so I'm going to turn to the index in the back. Here under the letter C is a recipe for chocolate cake." Now your child understands more about how an index works.
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Balance negativity by pointing out the positive
Is your child a "glass half-empty" kind of kid? Some people are more pessimistic than others by nature. But that doesn't mean you can't help your child recognize the sunnier side of life. Remind your elementary schooler of past good times and successes. And if you hear "I'll never understand this!" sit down and offer support as your child figures it out. Show that your child can solve "impossible" problems by continuing to try.
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Commercials are prime time for conversation
Don't let screen media shut down family conversations. Instead, use it to start them. "Half-hour" TV shows are typically 22 minutes of program and eight minutes of commercials. Use those eight minutes to ask your child to think critically about the program. Does your child think the characters and settings are realistic, or not? Does the plot make sense? What other choices could the characters have made?
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Promote a healthy body image
Some self-criticism is normal, but kids who obsess about their weight or their looks may be on the road to trouble that can affect their health and their schoolwork. To set a healthy example, avoid criticizing your body or anyone else's. Teach your child to make nutritious food choices, but don't allow dieting without a doctor's approval. Then, promote wellness by making fitness into fun for the whole family. Hike, ride bikes or play sports together.
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Go hunting for treasures at a museum
Are you planning a family museum visit? To keep your child interested and sharpen observation skills, describe a detail of an artifact or painting and ask your child to find it. Or, ask your elementary schooler to find a work of art with favorite colors, shapes or objects in it. You might also ask your child to find things that are very old, new, strong, shiny or rough. Your child will enjoy the search and take a closer look at the collection.
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Steer your child clear of problem-solving pitfalls
Learning how to solve problems is as important in life as it is in the classroom. But learning how NOT to solve them is also critical. Teach your child not to deny or ignore problems (they often get worse!). Getting mad won't help either, and the sooner your child gets over being angry about a problem, the more time there is to solve it. Tell your child not to worry too much about making a mistake, either. Success is often built on them.
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Choose learning activities that interest your child
One way to encourage reading, writing and learning over the summer is to make those things part of activities that are meaningful to your child. Let your elementary schooler pick a book for you to take turns reading to each other. If your child likes contests, post a "word of the week" and see who can use it correctly in a sentence most often. Or, ask your child to plan a family event, including the budget and the menu. Then, carry out the plan!
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Take your child on a learning safari
Visiting a zoo or nature center is a fun way to excite your child about learning. Bring along some paper and pencils and have family members draw an animal that interests them. Later, visit the library and help your child check out books on the animals you all drew, and a book that can help identify wildlife in your area.
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Are your priorities on your schedule?
It sounds odd, but it's true: It takes time to find time. Spend some time reviewing your family's schedule. Does it reflect your priorities? If family comes first, for example, are you spending more time with family than anywhere else? Can you cut back on activities that interfere with your goals? This can be a challenge, but remember that kids would rather have time with their parents than material things.
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New experiences build reading skills
Reading involves more than sounding out words. Children use their prior knowledge and experiences to understand what they read. A sentence such as "Sam touched a prickly cactus," will mean much more to a child who has seen and felt a cactus. Fill your child's life with new experiences, and introduce the words for things you see together. The more vocabulary and concepts your child experiences, the more knowledge your child can apply to understanding reading.
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We will be following a staggered entry schedule for the first two days students return to school. The schedule is as follows:
August 8th - Last names beginning with A-I; August 9th - Last names beginning with J-Z; August 12th - All students report. We are looking forward to our students returning to school for a successful school year!
Add an element of fun to chore time
Doing chores at home reinforces your child's sense of responsibility, and that will pay off in school. But nothing says that chores can't be fun! Try writing all the chores that need to be done during chore time on slips of paper and putting them in a jar. Then, add several fun ones, such as "Kiss Mom on her elbow," or "Eat a cookie." Take turns drawing slips and doing the tasks. You'll all have fun pitching in.
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To encourage creative thinking, just look up
Relax with your child and encourage creative thinking at the same time by considering the clouds. Sit together outside or by a window. Take turns using your imaginations to describe what the clouds look like to you. A llama? A pair of pants? Great Aunt Martha? No idea is too silly.
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Acting helps your child remember reading
Teachers often follow up a story with a fun activity to help children remember what they've read. You can do the same thing at home. After you finish reading a story, act it out with your child. Duplicate the order in which the events occurred, the characters' names and other details so that your child will remember the book correctly.
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Your child's success in school starts with you
Your actions are more important to your child's success in school than your income or your education. To help your child achieve, talk often and openly together. Listen and help your child solve problems. Explain, then set an example of the values and behavior you want your child to show. When school resumes, stay aware of your student's progress. And seek out community resources and assistance if needed.
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