Dear Arrowhead Families,
It is hard to believe that April is already nearing an end and just over six weeks from now the 2012-13 school year will draw to a close. We have a very busy month and a half ahead and many things to do with your student(s) in our classrooms before that date occurs.
Our Nature Zone is truly a unique and wonderful place! The programming and learning opportunities that occur weekly are like none that I have ever seen in a school setting. Add in the fact that everything that happens is the result of the dedication of PTA, our Nature Zone Committee and our Nature Zone volunteers makes it even more amazing. We have been very fortunate over the past ten years to receive grants and funding for the Nature Zone through PTA as a result of their fundraising efforts. These funds allowed us to create the Nature Zone, add features like the Chicken Coop, and pay for materials, plants, maintenance, and operating costs.
In order to help with these costs and to help establish a fund that will preserve the Nature Zone for years to come, the Nature Zone Committee has decided to create an endowment with the Akron Community Foundation. The fund will be established this summer and will provide an opportunity for community and businesses to financially support our program. To kick off our initial funding drive we will be holding “A Walk for The Nature Zone” on May 24th from 1-3:30 p.m. During that time, each class will walk around our school property for about 45 minutes. The goal is to raise $5,000.00 through pledges. These pledges are being matched dollar for dollar through the generosity of an Arrowhead family. I hope that you will consider making a contribution to this very worthy cause and that like me you see the value in creating this layer of support for the Nature Zone. Be on the lookout for more information coming home in the coming weeks.
Upcoming Events:
5/3: Mid Terms
5/6-10: Teacher Appreciation Week
5/9-10: Muffins with Mom
5/15: 3rd and 4th Grade Concert – 7:00 p.m. CHS
5/21: Kindergarten Registration
5/24: A Walk for the Nature Zone
5/29: PTA’s Family Picnic
5/31: Field Day
Finally, it is with very mixed emotions that I will leave Arrowhead Primary School at the conclusion of this year. I have decided to relocate to Seattle this summer and try life on the west coast. I have tremendously enjoyed my four years as Arrowhead’s Principal and it will always have a special place in my heart. We truly are fortunate to have such an amazing school with excellent teachers, amazing kids, and dedicated families. I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to get to know all of you and appreciate the level of support that you have given your child and our school. I look forward to seeing you at some of our upcoming events!
February continues to be a very special and busy month at Arrowhead Primary School. We have begun the second semester and are hard at work in all of our classrooms. I would like to take a moment to recognize Mrs. DiGiacobbe and the First and Second Grade students for their recent performance of “Snoozy Snowflake” at Copley High School. I am sure you will all agree that it was a great show!
We also celebrated Kindergarten Grandparent’s Day on February 12 where our amazing kindergarten students put on a show for their special guests. Students and guests enjoyed time at the book fair, crafts, reading and a snack. We had a large turn and I would like to thank all of the teachers and parents who helped make the day memorable. Our book fair was also a big success last week! As a result of all of the sales, each teacher was given $130.00 to spend on books for their classroom library. Thanks to Ann McCord and her volunteers for all of the time spent bringing the book fair to our school.
As we head in to March, we have a lot to prepare for! Our annual Right to Read Week will be held March 4-8. This year our theme is “Arrowhead Readers are Sun-sational.” Please look for information coming home soon about the daily spirit days, nightly reading raffle and more. March also brings our Science Fair on March 28. Please remember that science fair packets must be turned in by 3/21 in order for your child to participate in the fair.
Arrowhead was nominated and applied for the OAESA Hall of Fame School award which is given out each year by the Ohio Association of Elementary School Administrators. I am pleased to say that we are honored to have been nominated and even more honored to find out that we have been selected as a finalist. Representatives from OAESA will visit our school on March 12 for the next phase of the process. We will keep you posted!
Finally, as you know, we are very fortunate to have the area behind our school known as “The Nature Zone.” The Nature Zone committee, which meets monthly and is made up of parents and staff members, have decided to work to create an endowment fund that would support this treasure. In preparation for launching this endowment, we are in the process of planning several events for the spring. The first is “A Night in The Nature Zone” which will be held on Earth Day and is designed to bring non-Arrowhead community members, lawmakers, and other officials to the school to get a look at our property and programming. Second, more information will be coming soon about a school-wide walk that will be held to help raise the initial funds to start the endowment. This event will be held in
May. Finally, we will graduate our first official class of “Jr. Master Gardeners” at the end of the school year. All students in grades 2-4 will be recognized as graduates of this program in May.
Stay warm! Spring is around the corner!
It is astonishing to me that we are already at the start of the second semester and that the 2012-13 school year is halfway over! As we move into the second half of the year, I would just like to thank our amazing teachers and parents for all that they do to support our Arrowhead students. We have had a great year thus far, and I know that with the many events and activities that we have planned, the second half of the year will be equally as exciting.
I would like to take a moment to recognize two people. First, Mrs. Janet Okruch. Mrs. Okruch has been chosen as this year’s PTA Outstanding Educator of the Year. Mrs. Okruch received several nominations and is recognized by both parents and staff for her dedication to teaching, her ability to make students feel special and experience success as well as her efforts to making learning new and exciting each day. She is an outstanding teacher and well deserving of this recognition. The second person is Mrs. Stephanie O’Connor. Mrs. O’Connor is PTA’s Helping Hands Volunteer winner and I would be hard pressed to think of anyone more deserving. Mrs. O’Connor is an amazing volunteer who goes out of her way to help make Arrowhead a great place. She has organized many events in the years that I have known her including Holiday Shop, COSI, Donuts for Dads, and much more! She is extremely friendly, reliable and I am very appreciative of her positive attitude and willingness to help out wherever needed. Please join me in congratulating both of these ladies on a job well done!
We have many exciting things coming up in the next month at Arrowhead. These include:
· 1st and 2nd Grade Concert at 7 p.m. on 1/29: Snoozy Snowflake
· A visit from the UA Opera on 1/31
· Transition to Sanese as our new lunch program on 2/4
· The Arrowhead Book Fair 2/11-15
· Kindergarten Grandparent’s Day 2/12
· Parent-Teacher Conferences 2/14
· And the kickoff of our annual Science Fair
As we begin the second semester, we will also be taking time to celebrate our successes! Our “Arrowhead Store” program will recognize many students this month who earned a gift certificate for reaching a goal set by themselves and their classroom teacher. Students who reach their goal have the opportunity to select an item from the store as well as enter themselves in a drawing for three big monthly prizes that have included movie tickets, bowling passes, LaserQuest passes, and more. The program which has been running since November has already recognized almost one hundred students.
We are very pleased with positive impact goal setting is having across the building and how excited students are when they meet their goals.
Have a great week!
Mr. LaBadie
Dear Arrowhead Families,
Like me, I am sure that the events of this past Friday have left you with many feelings and questions. Additionally, I am sure that your thoughts are with the community of Newtown, Connecticut as we all try to make sense of such a horrible tragedy.
I want all of you to know that the safety of our Arrowhead children is and will continue to be of the highest priority. The Copley-Fairlawn City Schools have very specific safety procedures in place. We run regular drills and reviews with the cooperation of the Copley Police Department and are very fortunate to have a very strong partnership with local law enforcement and community services.
School personal will be working very closely together to provide support for students, staff and families where needed over the next few weeks. Should you need anything or have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.
As we head in to the winter break, I would like to thank PTA and all of the Holiday Shoppe volunteers for their efforts last week. We had a very successful three days and I know that the children had a wonderful experience. Our visit from COSI on 12/7 was also a huge hit! Thank you to all of you who helped with that event.
Lastly, our annual canned food drive and collection of hats, gloves, toys and clothing for Copley Outreach generated a lobby full of donations. It never ceases to amaze how generous our Arrowhead families are with their support. I feel truly lucky to have the fortune of leading this amazing school and for the opportunity to work with you and your children.
Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season,
Mr. LaBadie
We have had a fantastic start to the school year! Thank you for all of your help and support so far this year! We have record numbers of parents volunteering to serve on PTA committees and be involved in the Nature Zone this school year. It is this level of parent support that helps our school and district to be so successful.
This is shaping up to be a very busy year in the Copley-Fairlawn City Schools. As many of you are aware, the State of Ohio is in a process of transition in many areas related to education. Most importantly, would be our transition to a new set of learning standards known as the “Common Core.” These nationally developed standards will replace the current Ohio Academic Content Standards that we currently teach. Our district is currently working on transitioning to these standards in preparation for 2014, when students will be assessed on these new standards. Additionally, we are in the process of revising our report cards to reflect these standards as well as implementing procedures for Ohio’s Third Grade Reading Guarantee.
I hope you have had a chance to look at the school’s website. Please use this tool to keep informed of all activities and the latest news from Arrowhead. Please know that I maintain an “Arrowhead” Twitter feed for reminders of coming events. A link to this is posted on the school website. If you are not signed up for “CFCS Connect”(http://www.copley-fairlawn.org/connect), I would encourage you to do so. This will allow you to receive e-updates from the school and district. In our continuing effort to be green, beginning in November, Arrowheadlines will be distributed through this service rather than be printed. It will also be posted on the website.
So far things are shaping up for a busy month! Here are some of the highlights:
· Student Council elections will be held in Grades 3 and 4 on September 28.
· Mid-Terms come home September 21.
· PTA’s Fall Fundraiser kicks off September 21.
· 12 chicks have hatched and are residing in our chicken coop. Just like in years past, every class and students will have the opportunity several times
this year to care for our school chickens.
· Picture Day is coming up on September 25.
· Our first round of conferences will be on September 27.
· The 3rdGrade Fall Reading Achievement Assessment will be given on October 2.
Finally, I would like to encourage you to come out and be a part of our amazing Nature Zone. There are many family activities coming up in the next month along with our annual clean-ups. We are very fortunate to able to have this amazing land lab.
Thank you again for being our partner in education!
Mr. La BadieDear Arrowhead Families –
The 2012-2013 school year is upon us! Your teachers, custodians and all of the rest of the staff and I have been eagerly preparing for your upcoming arrival. The building looks great and we cannot wait to see you at Open House!
A few notes on the start of the year:
We are looking forward to an exciting school year!
See you soon!
Mr. La Badie
