Hawks' Highlights

December Greetings!

November felt like it flew by and December always seems to as well. While December can be a fun and exciting time of year for many students and families, this can also be a time of increased stress and anxiety. These difficult feelings can occur for a variety of reasons, including changes in routine, uncertainty about holiday plans, concerns for family finances, etc. We might not even recognize the reason for these feelings in ourselves or in our children. We as a staff will continue to stress the importance of the classroom routines during the day knowing this is one way we can support all students throughout this month. Ms. Jones, our school counselor, is available if and when a student may need a little extra support. Be sure to reach out to her or any staff member as needed.

I wish you all a happy and safe holiday!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Beiswenger

December

2nd - Chess Club

3rd - 4th and 5th Graders to Marketplace for Kids - Heritage Center

3rd - Good News Club

5th - Used Book Sale - Hosted by 5th Graders

5th - Lego Robotics

6th - Team Meetings

6th - Caroling by Horizon Husky Singers

9th - Chess Club

12th - 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Holiday Cheer Project

12th - Lego Robotics

13th - Team Meetings

13th - 2nd Grade to the Belle to See a Ballet (SIPS)

16th - Chess Club

17th - Good News Club

19th - 5th Grade to See a Band (SIPS)

20th - Hawks Happenings Assembly

23rd- January 1- No School- Christmas Break

January

2nd - School Resumes

7th - PTO Meeting

9th - Lego Robotics

16th - 5th Gr. Horizon Middle School Visit

16th - Lego Robotics

20th - No School - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

21st - No School - Staff Development

22nd-24th - Ronald McDonald CareMobile @ Roosevelt

23rd - Lego Robotics

24th - Bingo Night

30th - Lego Robotics

31st -Hawks Happenings Assembly

Monday - Fa la la la Flannel - Wear your favorite flannel

Tuesday - Tinsel Toes Tuesday - Wear your coziest holiday socks

Wednesday - Ho Ho Ho Hat Day - Wear your favorite festive hat

Thursday - Festive Attire - wear red and green or your favorite Holiday sweater or shirt

Friday - Dreaming of the Holidays - wear your pajamas to school.

Counselor Connection:

In K-3rd grades, we focused on Empathy (life skill focus for the month) as well as Kindness and Gratitude. We talked about the importance of each one of these as we navigate relationships and show care for one another.

For 4th & 5th grades, we started with lessons on Peer Pressure (positive and negative) and learned various refusal skills that can be helpful when we are in a negative peer pressure situation. We also focused on the life skill of Empathy as well as Kindness and Gratitude.

Schoolwide Team Update:

In November we earned 1575 stickers with the Strength Team leading the way with 419 stickers. Because we made our monthly goal of 1500 stickers, we will have an all-school reward of "Minute to Win It” games during our Team meetings on 12/6/24.

As we move into the holiday season, our life-skill expectation for December will be generosity. We learned more about generosity and the Guatemalan culture from Mr. San Jose during our HAWKS Happenings Assembly on 11/27/24, and will continue to work on this skill all month.

Monthly Expectations Connected to Home:

At this time of the year, a little generosity can go a long way. Here are a few tips to help teach your child about the importance of being generous and possibly even starting a tradition for your whole family during the holiday season.

Resource of the Month:

Heaven’s Helpers offers many resources for families. Their Soup Cafe is open Monday-Friday 11-5pm and Saturday from 11-3pm. Closet 701 provides free clothing and winter gear and is open Monday-Thursday 9-12pm (closed on no school days).

Not needing these resources? Heaven’s Helpers has many opportunities to volunteer and is open for clothing/winter gear donations (by appointment only). This would provide a great opportunity to share the life-skill of generosity with your children.

Kindergarten-Jack, Polly, Serenity

First- Bellamy, Ove, Everly

Second- Alma, Ranger

Third- Ellie, Roland

Fourth- Dylan, Tori, Koan

Fifth-Harley, Gloria

This month's recipients will eat lunch with Mrs. Beiswenger in the office on Friday, December 6th!

The PTO would like to thank all families that were able to sell raffle tickets this year. The next meeting will be held on January 7th at 7:00. Hope to see you there!

Raffle Prize Winners:

$50 Drawing: Stacy Krumwiede, Ashley Brawley, Ali Wald, Thomas Wheeling

$300 Grand Prize: Valerie Opdahl

Student Prize Winners:

Most Tickets Sold: Maude (K) sold 40 tickets!!

Winning Ticket Sold: Tegan (2)

Student Raffle: Kinley (K)

Kindergarten represented this year!! They sold 122 tickets as a class.

This year marks the 95th consecutive Open Your Heart food drive sponsored by the American Legion. You can help make a big difference for families in need this holiday season by donating a non-perishable food item. There are collection boxes in each of our classrooms that will be picked up on Thursday, December 19th.

* Please no expired, glass, or damaged items *

Our online store for school gear is available all year long. Now you can easily browse and purchase a variety of Highland Acres merchandise from the comfort of your home. Whether you’re looking for t-shirts, hoodies, hats, or other school spirit items, our online store has something for everyone. Show your school pride by sporting the latest Hawks gear. Orders can be placed by clicking on the button below.

The Backpack-for Kids program is designed to help children by assisting them with food over the weekend. Bags are filled with nutritional food items and delivered to the school. If your family qualifies for the free or reduced lunch program and you need additional food for the weekend, please contact our school social worker, Marisa Misek at marisa_misek@bismarckschools.org or call the school office.

MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES

Our Mission: "Empower every learner to thrive."

Our Vision: "Together, our strong relationships build inclusive, collaborative, and innovative environments that create agency and inspire a passion for learning, excellence, and discovery."

Our Values: Excellence, Innovation, Inclusion and Leadership.