Lawrenceville Elementary School

Happy February!

It is a short and busy month at LES. We are celebrating the 100th day of school, Valentine's Day, World Read Aloud Day, Global School Play Day, Presidents' Day, and Black History Month!

February 5-9 is National School Counseling Week! In honor of this, I'd like to take a moment to thank our amazing School Counselor & ESP of the Year, Mrs. Wall! We are so appreciative of her kindness and caring nature. She helps us to do our BEST by teaching us mindfulness, social skills, respect, kindness and empathy. Just take a look below at all the fun we had this month celebrating the Great Kindness Challenge! Thank you Mrs. Wall! 🥰

A few quick reminders for families...

-Please be sure to send your child with coats, gloves, hats and any other winter weather gear. We try to have the students outside for recess as much as possible. Make sure they are ready for outdoor play.

-Please remember to send your child with a refillable water bottle. We do not have water fountains, only filling stations at school. Label your child's water bottle with his or her name. Be sure it has a tight seal to avoid spills.

-Students are off 2/16 & 2/19

Thank you,

Melissa N. Lockett

This month, one of our 2nd grade students, Noah Orapeza, offered to create a special section of the newsletter focused on our specials at LES. He did a wonderful job of gathering information and organizing it for you in the picture below! Therefore, our Specials are our Family Engagement focus this month. Please enjoy some useful information shared by our specialists; Ms. Raimondo, Mr. Schlomann, and Mr. Francis.

Art Resources recommended by Ms. Raimondo.

https://artforkidshub.com

https://www.crayola.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Qwi0l29ppY

Music Resources recommended by Mr. Schlomann

I would recommend attending performances at local theaters such as McCarter Theater in Princeton, Kelsey Theater in West Windsor, and The Kimmel Center or Academy of Music (both located in Center City Philadelphia).

In general, I would just recommend listening to music at home. It's no secret, but Ms. Rachel is a great resource for young students, and a great way to bring music into the home while supporting development for younger children and toddlers.

These websites are all great options for sound exploration, music/science connection, and general music knowledge:

Chrome Music Lab

Blob Opera

PBS Kids Music Games

Classics for Kids

PE resources recommended by Mr. Francis

We have recently been learning more about nutrition, developing healthy eating habits and promoting a healthy lifestyle. This website is one I've been using with the students. It provides games and apps the students can do at home.

https://www.myplate.gov/life-stages/kids

Here is another good resource. It's a fitness calendar for the month of February. It includes daily challenges that students can do at home. It is football themed in February since it is Super Bowl month.

https://www.ssww.com/blog/february-printable-fitness-challenge-calendar/

February is also American Heart Month so our 3rd graders will be participating in the Kids Heart Challenge during PE. Here is a site that helps parents understand the importance of physical activity and provides tips on how to get your child to be more physically active.

https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/fitness-basics/aha-recs-for-physical-activity-in-children

During the last week of January, LES students participated in The Great Kindness Challenge, an initiative presented by Kids for Peace that promotes kindness in schools. Lawrenceville Elementary students, staff and families joined together with over 20 million students in over 41,000 schools in 115 countries to be part of this global kindness movement. In honor of LES' 100th Birthday, the week's theme was #100 Ways To Be Kind.

Highlights from our week included:

• A special welcome to school as teachers, parents and LTPS administrators shared cheers and messages of kindness to start the week off with a smile.
• 3rd grade CARE (Children Acting Responsibly Everyday) Kids visited classrooms and shared a read aloud of Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller.
• Students created a number line throughout the hallway depicting 100 Ways to Be Kind at school, at home and in the community.
• Students met with their Buddy Classes and created Valentine's Day cards and decorations to be hung at Morris Hall, brightening the day for their residents and healthcare workers.
• The LES community also came together to support a diaper drive for Homefront NJ.
• One of the most exciting events of the week was the distribution of our Kindness Buttons. Over 75 students entered the contest to create the winning button design, which would then be made into a button for all the students to wear. With so many great entries, 10 winners were selected!
• The PTO supported the week as well, sponsoring Hot Cocoa with Lester: Sprinkled with Kindness, an event for families to enjoy time together while completing community service projects.
• Please enjoy LES' Great Kindness Challenge slideshow by clicking the title or the photo below. #100WaysToBeKind

This month our Second Step unit focuses on emotional regulation. We'll develop your child's ability to identify his/her own feelings, and then practice strategies to manage these feelings, especially the "big feelings" like anger, frustration, worry and sadness. Big feelings cannot (and should not) be avoided; our goal is to help your child develop healthy and effective coping skills for dealing with them. Some favorite LES student coping skills include deep breathing, taking a walk, listening to music, talking to a trusted adult, drawing and reading. Keep an eye out for Second Step Homelinks which reinforce these skills.

Our student also enjoy our Second Step songs. Click below to hear the songs about regulating our emotions:

"The Calm Down Song" (Kindergarten/First Grade)

"The Calm It Down Song and Dance" (Second/Third Grade)