Happy New Year! I hope you all had a restful and joyful holiday season with your loved ones. As we welcome 2025, I am excited and honored to serve as your acting principal. I am looking forward to working with you to make this a successful and inspiring year for all our students.

A Look Ahead: January Highlights

· Winter Assessment: This month students will participate in mid-year assessments. These help us measure progress and adjust our teaching to meet each child’s needs.

· Parent Teacher Conferences: Parent-Teacher Conferences will take place on January 28th, 5:00-7:00pm. This is a great opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, goals, and how we can work together for their success.

· Character Focus: This month, our focus is on Courage. We’ll be teaching students about being brave in trying new things, standing for what’s right, and working hard even with things feel tough.

· Basket Raffle Update: We are excited to announce that our Basket Raffle will now take place during our Health and Wellness Night on February 12th! Join us for an evening of fun, learning, and the chance to win fantastic baskets while supporting our school.

New Year, New Goals

As we step into the new year, we encourage students to set goals both at school and home. Whether it’s reading more books, showing kindness to others, or practicing good habits, every effort counts!

Thank you for your continued support. I look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events and conferences as we work together to help every child succeed.

Warm regards,

Chelsea Bush

Acting Principal

(716) 816-3400

Already published on Class Dojo, here are the pics from the Pre-K Santa visit, in case you missed them!

Courage is “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear.” On January 20th we will celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday. Martin Luther King Jr. showed great courage and great faith in change.

How can you show courage at Home?

• Saying sorry- It takes courage to admit when we are wrong.
• Try new things like food and games. Take responsibility.

How can you show courage at School?

• Stand up for a friend in need.
• Raise your hand in class to ask a question.
• Do the right thing, even if others are not.

Having courage helps children to persevere against challenges, and in the process it raises their self-esteem. When children feel good about themselves and see that they have the personal power to make courageous choices, they are more likely to lead personally satisfying and successful lives.

Congratulations🎉 to Mrs. Balzer's 1st Grade student, Marshall Miles!

We are very proud of the fact that you were nominated as a student in your grade level who has demonstrated Fairness during the month of December. You will now be a key student in helping us uphold quality “CHARACTER” within our school. Congratulations on being selected as the Student of the Month. You will be honored and acknowledged in the morning announcements and on our announcements board all month long! Keep up the great work and continue to strive for greatness!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Bush, Acting Principal

In Holly Robinson Peete's My Brother Charlie, Callie is very proud of her brother Charlie. He's good at so many things — swimming, playing the piano, running fast. And Charlie has a special way with animals, especially their dog, Harriett. But sometimes Charlie gets very quiet. His words get locked inside him, and he seems far away. Then, when Callie and Charlie start to play, Charlie is back to laughing, holding hands, having fun. Charlie is like any other boy — except he has autism.

In this story, told from a sister's point of view, we meet a family whose oldest son teaches them important lessons about togetherness, hope, tolerance, and love. -www.goodreads.com

Parents and caregivers: Here is the Arts Integration theme for January. How can you support this integration at home? Sometimes, it's as simple as starting a conversation about your child/ren's school project. What product are they creating? Then, keep a look-out for them in February's newsletter!

Happy New Year, Families!

This month our Pre-K students will be going to Explore & More. It will be our first field trip of the year. Our new ELA unit is called Taking Care. During this month the kids will learn how to take care of themselves and the importance of taking care of our world. In Math, we will continue with single-digit number recognition, introducing double-digit numbers, AABB patterns and making equal groups.

~Mrs. McGarvey, Ms. Ortner, & Mrs. Roberts

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Happy New Year! The Kindergarten Team hopes that everyone had a well-rested break and got to spend time together as a family. Sometimes when we come back to school it is hard to remember rules and expectations. With that being said, over the next few days we will be revisiting classroom rules and reminding students what is expected.

During ELA, in the month of January, we will be working on the letters K, P, U, and B. We will be forming the letters out of playdough, sand, whipped cream and other sensory experience materials. Please help practice these letters at home.

Lastly, during Math we will be starting on Unit 6, which focuses on basic addition and vocabulary. We will use pictures and manipulatives to solve addition problems. Closer to the end of January we will focus on basic subtraction and vocabulary. If you have any questions or concerns please let us know.

~Mrs. Gentzler, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Simson, & Mrs. Vangelista

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The First Graders are starting off 2025 learning many new skills! In Math, we are beginning Unit 6. This unit covers shapes and solids. Students will learn how to identify two- and three-dimensional shapes. They will also learn how to build new shapes and composite figures. Please continue to practice addition and subtraction facts to 20 at home to build fluency.

In ELA, we will be reviewing beginning blends and moving our way into ending blends. Some of the Red Words we will be cover include: onto, people, saw, both, should, could, would, over, love, live, and out. Please remember, students need to be able to read and spell Red Words. Please practice these at home for extra support. For our stories this month, we will be learning about the culture and celebrations of Mexico and continue to write our personal narratives.

~Mrs. Balzer, Mrs. Janas, Miss McLaughlin, & Mrs. Pritchard

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Wow we have made it to a new year! Second Grade had a great December being the star performers in the Winter Festival! In Math, they have been working hard on multiple-step word problems: identifying what operation to use and how many steps they need to take to solve the problem. We are always working on addition and subtraction fluency while starting to add in multiplication. In ELA, students are always working on reading with fluency and answering comprehension questions. Literacy skills we have been working on and will continue to strengthen are diphthongs, Bossy r, and long vowels. We encourage daily reading at home.

~Ms. Graves, Mrs. Kwiatek, & Ms. Zywar

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Grade 3

Math: We are in the beginning Unit 7. This will focus on fractions. This unit is all about division. This is a difficult concept, so please make sure students are completing homework, and, as always, practicing their facts daily. Division flashcards will be sent home as well.

ELA: We are starting Unit 3 in Reading! Stories and vocabulary become harder so make sure students are reading at home and doing their homework!

Science: We are working through Topic 3. In Topic 3, we are learning about weather and climate.

Social Studies: In Social Studies, students are learning about natural resources and natural disasters.

In 114, our students are getting back into our routines and are working hard. In Math, we are starting a new unit working with fractions. Look for the family letter to get more information on what students are being exposed to using fractions. We are finishing up our unit in reading informational texts. As always, we continuously work on appropriate social skills and building independence. If anyone would like to come in and read a story or to help with an Art project, please let me know your availability by way of Class Dojo.

~Mrs. Barrett, Ms. Bryant, & Mrs. Rosa

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In Fourth Grade ELA, we are wrapping up Unit 2, which focuses on the theme of “Adaptations.” We are currently reading two informational texts about monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs. Next we will be moving onto Unit 3, which focuses on the theme of “Diversity.”

In Social Studies, we are reading about new inventions that helped people and goods move more easily as well as the growth of cities near roads, canals, and railways in New York State.

In Math, the 4th graders have been working on multiplication and various multiplication strategies to help us be successful solving a range of types of problems. We are preparing to move onto the operation of division next.

In Science, we have just finished our study of energy. We are currently exploring Earth’s features.

Our differentiated homework continues to be successful. Students have assignments Monday-Thursday. Thank you for continuing to help them complete and return these assignments on time.

~Mrs. Fischer, Mrs. Gilmartin, & Mr. Robson

🎨Artists of the Month: Eric Nam and Jenn Freeman (scroll to 'Artists of the Month')

📝Author of the Month: Holly Robinson Peete

Happy New Year!

January brings more than just a new year! In ENL class we will be exploring the use of new language through the analysis of various artists' pictures and paintings. Students will use oral and written language to describe what they observe. Students will be learning personal pronouns by describing individuals in pictures and art using pronouns in place of their names.

Students are continuing to practice the skill of blending sounds to form words. This is important for learning to read and spell.

Continue to support your ELL with their language development by spending time speaking, reading, and singing to your child each day in both your native language and English to help them develop a love of language.

Parent Tip

Are you seeking a place to learn more English? Erie1Boces is offering free English classes! All information can be found on their website at: https://www.e1b.org/en/adult-career-training/english-classes.aspx

Our English Language classes are designed to teach those whose primary language is not English. In our classes, students will learn listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. Classes help students build self-confidence, explore career potential and develop job-readiness skills.

New Student Registration Form

I am here to offer support to all ELL and their families, feel free to reach out if you need assistance.

Ms. Baldwin

lbaldwin@buffaloschools.org

Happy New Year! Each grade level wrapped up the year with a lot of hard work. Kindergarten students learned about patters. First grade also completed a patterns unit, expanding their knowledge learning about radial patterns and creating their own snowflake using pattern blocks. Second and Third grade students completed their research units. Research is the most time-consuming unit in our GT curriculum. Fourth graders made their own escape room by creating logic puzzles. I'm looking forward to the starting new units in January.

~Mrs. K. Fischer

Here at AOE we're developing leaders in all sorts of ways. One most important way is through our student ambassador programs, where students are selected to take on leadership roles helping in areas such as morning greeting, assisting Pre-K rooms with arrival activities, and recycling! This month, we're introducing ambassadors helping with our school gardens! These are 3rd and 4th Grade students selected for both their interest in flower and produce gardening, and the promise they show as leaders. In the coming months, ambassadors will attend Garden Committee meetings, train in care and tending of gardens and produce, brainstorm and contribute ideas for projects, work with crews of students, and more! Congratulations to our new ambassadors! From left: Garden Committee Chair Ms. Zilbauer, Dakari Walker, Nasahni Hall, Tawheeda Seraj and Maya Dudek!

Every student should be reading for 15 minutes, nightly. For our youngest learners in Pre-K and Kindergarten, we ask that parents read to them. Each month, any student who reads at least 10 books or 10 chapters will receive a “golden” coin and be able to select a book from our school’s Book Vending Machine. Students must complete The Principal’s Reading Challenge Log and return it to their classroom to qualify.

*Remember that students can read books on myOn to complete each month's log! Students can access myON through Clever on their district device!*

Please find our January Health & Wellness Tip which ties in with our character trait of the month, Courage. Please click the link to read the full article.

"Courage makes us feel good. It allows us to have some control over how we react to our fears. Courage gives us the bravery to stand up to our fears, again and again, whether we conquer those fears or not. Perhaps then, we should appreciate that courage can also have a beneficial effect on our mental and physical health. Staying healthy can allow us to be more courageous.

Courage is one of those intangible powers inside all of us that need to be cultivated and strengthened. It’s that inner quality that allows us to tackle the obstacles and hardships we encounter. It starts with the small things like the courage to get out of bed and face another day that is not fully in our control. In time, courage blooms into bigger things like standing up for what we feel is right. You need courage to try new things, start new relationships, find meaningful work, or to persevere doing less meaningful work that allows your family to have food on the table."

Read the full article here!

Expressive language skills include being able to label objects in the environment, describe actions and events, put words together in sentences, use grammar correctly, retell a story, answer questions, and write a story. Speaking, gesturing (waving, pointing), writing (texting, emailing), facial expressions (crying, smiling), and vocalizations (crying, yelling) are all variations of expressive language.

Here are some tips to support and develop your child's expressive language skills: Read books out-loud; provide commentary on sights and sounds throughout the day; model correct grammar; introduce new phrases; offer a few choices to elicit requesting; and create fun activities.

~Mrs. Karen Miller, SLP

If you have any concerns regarding your child's academic, social-emotional, or behavioral skill development, please complete this Request for Assistance Form

Hello Families,

Parent Network of WNY is a not-for-profit agency that provides education and resources for families of individuals with special needs (birth through adulthood) and for professionals.

Parent Network of WNY provides 1-on-1 Support and education through resources, workshops, and support groups to assist families of individuals with disabilities to understand their disability and navigate the support service system.

The majority of Parent Network of WNY’s staff and board members are parents of children with disabilities, which provides a unique perspective, personal experience, and empathy to the families we reach. Since the reorganization in 2001, Parent Network of WNY has served around 10,000 people a year.

Below, please find a local Parent Network of WNY calendar of events and workshops.

~Student Support Team

💊*Medications Notification*: The clinic nurse needs a doctor's order for all medications children are using on school grounds - even over-the-counter.

DO NOT send inhalers, epi pens or other medications in your child's backpack! The nurse must see documentation for, and have record of, medical conditions requiring medicine needed during the school day, for the safety and well-being of all students. To this end, parents/guardians must bring medication to the clinic and sign the corresponding paperwork for our files.

Parents, take a moment to ensure we have a current phone number on file for you. In the event of an illness, we need a working number to call. (See the 'Update Your Contact Information' button below!)

Lastly, as we are in the thick of illness season, a reminder that if your child(ren) is sick, do not send them to school.

Thank you,

~Nurse Mary

716-816-3406

Jan. 17: Picture Re-take Day

Jan. 20: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (No School)

Jan. 22: Heart Gram Sale Begins

Jan. 28: Parent-Teacher Conferences

Jan. 29: Lunar New Year (No School)

You can view it on the Food Service Department website here. Select "translate" to view it in Spanish or Bengali.