What's Happening at Rockwood Prep?

February 2024

Message from the Principals!

Time is flying by! We have officially completed half of the 23-24 school year. We would like to thank all of our families for your understanding and patience as we worked through the damages caused by the winter storm this past month. We truly appreciate the positivity and shout out to the Munoz Gonzalez family for providing us with snow plow services.

As Quarter 2 officially ends on February 7th this is a crucial time for our students to complete any outstanding assignments, and prepare for their end-of-quarter assessments. We encourage parents and guardians to actively monitor and support your child's academic growth by utilizing our school's parent portal ParentVue to keep track of your child’s grades, missing assignments and test scores. Regular check-ins on their progress can make a significant difference in their educational journey, providing timely interventions when necessary and open communication with the classroom teacher.

We would also like to remind families about the importance of our school's dress code requirements. The dress code is designed to promote a safe and respectful learning environment, free from distractions. Please ensure that your child comes to school dressed appropriately. We are seeing many students wearing sweats, leggings and non-school colored sweaters. If you have questions about what these guidelines are or need clarifications regarding the dress code, feel free to contact the school office or visit our website: https://www.rockwoodprep.org/dress-code.

In closing, we want to express our sincere appreciation for your continuous support and cooperation. Together, we can provide our students with the best possible environment for learning and growth. Should you have any concerns or require further information, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s teachers or the school administration.
Thank you,
Mrs. McCollum & Mrs. Barnard

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Important Dates Coming Up!

7 - End of 2nd Quarter

8 - Grading Day - NO SCHOOL

9 - Staff Professional Development Day - NO SCHOOL

12 - 3rd Quarter Starts

19 - Presidents Day - NO SCHOOL

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Kindergarten - Ms. Dudley, Mr. Montes, Mr. Nuziale

It wouldn't be the New Year if there weren't a few obstacles for us to overcome (i.e. inclement weather and broken pipes, just to name a few). We hope that the joy from literacy night carries over into February and you're continuing to read every single night. Reading logs for February will be sent home and we strongly encourage you to help your little ones fill them out and remind them to color in one heart for each book read as a fun way to stay engaged. At the end of the month students who turn in their reading logs will receive Dojo dollars. Ms. Dudley, Mr. Nuziale, and Mr. Montes' classes are all mastering the important skill of writing addition story problems in math. In addition we will continue to build on the following math skills: distinguishing between teen numbers and other two-digit numbers, write symbols for take-away problems, learn two-digit numbers 21-29 and 41-49, count by teens to 80, learn two-digit numbers 31-39, read non-teen two-digit numbers, and determine when to add and when to subtract. The kindergarten team wants to thank you for your continued support as we navigate the school year.

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First Grade - Ms. Carroll, Mrs. Caamal, Mrs. Nordmeier

Happy February! We are so excited to get the ball rolling again this month. We are hoping to make extra progress by working hard, and practicing those reading and math skills we so desperately missed the last few weeks! Please be sure to practice reading at home so students can show off their superstar knowledge and get some extra fluency practice in. We hope to see everyone's attendance at 90% or above this month!

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Second Grade - Mrs. Aguirre, Mrs. Hunter, Mrs. Dulos

Wow and Hello all! January came full of surprises, highs and lows, but we're ready to welcome February at full speed! It was lovely to get to meet and interact with so many of you at literacy night! As we approach the end of our 2nd quarter, we appreciate the continued support in keeping our attendance at a 90% or higher (help us win free dress)and reading with your student 20-30 minutes a night. We're officially starting multiplication, so this is the perfect time to start practicing at home!

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Third Grade - Mrs. Kenworthy, Mrs. Heineck, Ms. Cochrane

February: We have started our third grade language curriculum! We are currently working on pronouns, parts of speech, capitalization, apostrophes, and regular and irregular verb tenses. In math, we are learning fractions, estimation, area and perimeter, comparisons, and rounding as well as working on our multiplication math facts. Have your kiddos completed their Rocket Math worksheets or practiced with flashcards to strengthen their fast fact skills? Ms. Cochrane’s and Mrs. Kenworthy’s reading classes are continuing to read a story about inventions and learning about patents, manufacturers, and the process of product design. They are also working on new vocabulary words like responded, clever, solutions, patent, attorney, and agreement. In Mrs. Heineck’s reading class, the students will continue to learn about U.S. and world geography; read a new story about sinking sinks and whirlpools; and learn new vocabulary words, such as eager, announcement, lifeboats, disappeared, and whirlpool. Encourage your child to read 30 minutes a day to improve their comprehension and fluency.

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Fourth Grade - Mr. Morgan, Mr. Dykeman

4th grade is still rocking and rolling! We are finishing up reading The Adventures of the Rocky ridge. Mid February, We will get moving on reading the dirty 30's and talk about the Dust Bowl. In math, we are learning harder concepts every day. We just finished math test 4 and will be starting to expand on division, multiplication, and story problems. Make sure they do their home if given to practice any math concepts they are struggling with. Speaking of homework, spelling homework is given out every day when a lesson is done. It is important they finish their spelling homework to better practice their spelling words. Please encourage your child to read at least 20-30 minutes a day. What a wonderful group this is and we are both really excited to continue to teach and help grow these wonderful educators.

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Fifth Grade - Mr. Walker, Mr. Shahbodaghloo

Well, it's February and the traditional and contemporary truth is that kids and adults get ill around this time. We can't tell you anything you don't already know (hand washing, proper sleep, etc.) but we can hope that poor health misses you and yours. January was full of, let's call it "naturally enforced break time," which presents some scheduling and academic challenges but nothing insurmountable. We have a field trip coming up to the trades-to-work program at Reynolds Middle School (it's a high school program but their facilities are located on the RMS campus.) Mr. Shahbodaghloo's class will be going early this month and Mr. Walker's will go towards the end. Teachers are also going to start implementing some test prep lessons. These will be integrated into the normal day and won't interrupt the normal class schedule. Coming off of Literacy Night, we would like to encourage you to encourage your children to read independently for 20 - 30 minutes a day. This is often a time where a love of reading can be effectively fostered. As always, many thanks for your continued trust and support.

PE - Ms. Qutub, Mr. Foumal

Hello Families, cold and sickness has been going around A LOT. January didn't really go as planned. We've pushed back our Hockey until to start this month!! The kids love the hockey unit and I don't want to cut it short, so moving it to this month is a better move. Remember, if you have tennis shoes you can pack in your child's backpack or leave at school, this is ideal for PE class. We are really hoping to eliminate scuffs by wearing the appropriate shoes. Also, if you don't have the appropriate water bottle, don't worry!! The kids get tons of fountain water breaks during PE. We are 3/4 through winter!! Let's kick this month's butt!!

Title I

Title is currently conducting the winter round of Star testing to assess the progress of our students. The testing reports will be sent home at the end of the quarter for your review. We are thrilled to report that the testing is going amazingly well, and we are seeing significant growth in many of our students. This is a testament to their hard work and dedication, and we are incredibly proud of their achievements. We would like to encourage all parents to continue practicing reading at home with your children every day. Your support and involvement are invaluable in helping our students reach their full potential.

ELD - Mrs. Peoples, Ms. Mulch

Greetings, Mrs Peoples here! I am out on Leave until after Spring Break. I miss everyone! Ms Mulch is working diligently to make sure our ELL students continue to excel and demonstrate their Language growth through the English Language Proficiency Assessments. Let's do our best and be kind! Peace, Mrs Peoples