April - From the Desk of Mr. Barry

ITBS Week Is Here!
All students in grades 3rd through 8th will be taking the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) during the week of April 7-11. These tests are very important for giving parents and teachers feedback on the progress students make. During the first full week of April, I will be talking to every student about why we take this test, take a look at their scores from last year and set goals for this year’s test. To help us out, please make sure your child gets plenty of rest, eats a nutritious breakfast, and realizes that much information can be learned if he/she tries hard and does his/her best. We want our scores to reflect how hard we have worked and how much the students have learned. These tests are very important. Please avoid scheduling doctor and dentist appointments during the morning or early afternoon hours.

Snacks Needed April 7-11!!
Any parent or business interested in providing a class, grade level or all the students with a healthy snack during testing week should contact the school today. We also have a need for ‘brain-awakeners’ like lifesaver mints (spearmint, winter fresh, etc.). J Please call or email Stephanie Ehmke (ehmkes@roschools.com) today! Thanks!

Ten Tips to Help Your Child Before, During and After Testing Week!
To help children prepare adequately for tests, you can do several things to provide support and create a positive test-taking experience.

1. Make sure that your child is in school during the testing sessions. Please, do not plan any doctor or dental appointments on test dates.
2. Make sure that you are aware of your child's performance and that you can help interpret the results when they become available.
3. Remember to keep well-informed about your child's tests. Know how test results are used, and how they will affect your child's placement in school.
4. If there are major differences between standardized test scores and school grades, find out why.
5. Encourage your child to listen carefully to all test-taking directions given by the teacher and to ask questions about any directions that are unclear.
6. Encourage your child to read the directions carefully and to go back over the test if they have time.
7. See that your child gets his/her regular amount of sleep before the tests and is well-rested.
8. Make sure that your child eats his/her usual breakfast on the day of the test. Hunger can detract from a good test performance.
9. Encourage your child to do his/her best.
10. During testing week, ask your child how they did on that day’s test. Celebrate each night or at the end of the week by doing something special as a family (read a book, play a game, make a special dinner, etc.)
    

Keys to Success

As the 4th Quarter begins on March 24th, I wanted to take the opportunity to thank all the students, staff and parents who have consistently lived and modeled our "keys to success" at Washington, at home and in the community. We truly believe that we create a positive and welcoming environment for everyone when we live by these traits:

Respect - Responsibility - Pride - Trust - Fairness - Caring

Thank you! Mr. Barry

March - From the Desk of Mr. Barry

COME ONE, COME ALL!!

Our third Parent Advisory meeting of the year will be next Monday, March 3rd, at 7:00 PM. This meeting is open to all parents!! The meeting will held at the middle school as I will be showing parents a Smart Board located in Mr. Hardy’s room. We are considering purchasing one for our building next year and need your input. Mr. Hardy’s room is on the main floor at the northwest end of the hall. This is a great opportunity to see the Smart Board in action and there will be time for parents to interact with it too. Next, I wanted to take this time to introduce you to our website if you have not visited it yet! We continue to post current happenings, student work and student created videos on the site.

4TH Grade Field Trip a Success!
A HUGE thank you to the PTO for providing a wonderful opportunity to our 4th graders last week as they traveled to Omaha to visit the Holland Performing Arts Center. The students were treated to an interactive and engaging performance by the Omaha Symphony entitled, Concerts for Youth. We will have pictures posted soon, but to read more about what our students did on Friday, visit http://wistigers.blogspot.com/2008/02/margre-durham-concerts-for-youth.html.

Take Five…
“In five minutes, your kids could smoke a marijuana joint, have a reaction to meth, inhale from an aerosol can or have a talk with you that could save their lives.”

This is this first line of a helpful resource provided by Partnership for A Drug-Free Iowa your son or daughter will be bringing home from school the first week in March. We encourage you to take this and every teachable moment seriously to talk with your child about the dangers of non-prescription drug use.

Drug Awareness Education for Washington Intermediate students is an on-going commitment. Most of you heard about our Red Ribbon Week activities in October. These activities kick off additional teaching and activities in guidance classes related to the consequences of drug use and alternatives that contribute to start-prevention. Tobacco use and its effects will be emphasized during the third week in April.

In between those times we continue the conversation about healthy choices, being positive role models, and belonging to groups and activities that are life affirming. It is our sincere hope that you will participate in the conversation with your children at home, providing the team balance our mission statement declares as we: “work as a team of families, students, community, and staff in developing the emotional, social, and academic potential of each child.”

Ms. Jeannie Bates, School Counselor

Get Your Child Excited About Math

When you balance your checkbook, buy shoes, measure distance or check the time, you're using math. Use these tips to help get your child excited about math.

By Jesse James, GreatSchools.net Staff

Reprinted from: http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/showarticle/209/print/

Be an example. Many adults say they hated math in school, according to national polls. If you are one of them, be careful that you don't communicate that attitude to your child. Help him improve his attitude toward math by showing him that you are confident when completing routine tasks like counting money from a school fund-raiser, balancing your checkbook or completing your tax return. You can also point out the importance of math in different professions including architecture, medicine, fashion design, restaurant management and computer programming.

Help your child use math every day. Encourage your child to solve problems involving math outside of school. In the grocery store, ask her to figure out the price of four cans of tuna fish. In the car, ask her how long it will take to travel to your destination based on your speed. In the toy store, ask her to calculate the price of a discounted toy and how long it will take to save up her allowance to buy it.

Familiarize yourself with learning standards. It's important to know what math skills your child should learn in his current grade. You can access the learning standards for your child's grade on the Web site for your state department of education or ask your child's teacher to outline them for you. If you know what your child will be learning, it will be easier to complement those skills with activities at home.

Monitor your child's math homework. Do your child's math assignments only call for rote work or does the teacher include a creative "problem of the week" that tests students' understanding of mathematical concepts? Ask your child's teacher which techniques he uses to help students become more comfortable with math.

Pay attention to details. You can help your child with math homework by making sure she shows all her work when solving equations and checks for correct calculations and answers. It's a good idea to limit distractions and set aside the same time every day for homework.

Play math games at home. There are many games your child can play that involve math. Beginning in the elementary years, students can learn to enjoy math by playing games such as chess, dominoes, cribbage, checkers, Yahtzee and backgammon.

Read books that incorporate math. More and more schools are starting to integrate diverse subject areas in the curriculum so that students can make clearer connections. But how do you include math in a history or English class? One way is to read books in which the main characters solve a problem using math or logic. Examples include One Hundred Angry Ants by Ellinor J. Pinczes, The King's Commissioners by Aileen Friedman and Socrates and the Three Little Pigs by Tuyosi Mori.

The bottom line: We naturally encourage our children to read, write and speak outside of school, but often leave learning math skills to 45 minutes a day in the classroom. Like everything else, your child's skills and confidence in working with mathematical concepts will improve with daily practice, support and encouragement.

Learn what your child should learn in math each year:
Kindergarten First grade Second grade Third grade Fourth grade Fifth grade

Try these activities to build math skills:
Counting Coins Number Sense Beach Ball Math Reading Recipes

Related Links:
Math Literature

Children's literature that incorporates mathematical concepts:
Mrs. Glosser's Math Goodies: Resources for Parents

A parents' forum, homework tips and helpful newsletters

10 Ways to Improve Math Skills