Hawks' Highlights

January Greetings! Hope you all had a safe and fun holiday break. We are looking forward to a great New Year of learning and of course fun!

There is a lot of information in this newsletter including information from about screen time from our Library Media Specialist Mrs. Clark, the Kid's Heart Challenge from Mr. Jacobs, and some nurse information from Nurse Dana and Nurse Jenny.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Beiswenger

January-Happy New Year!!

2nd - School Resumes

7th - PTO Meeting

9th - Lego Robotics

17th - 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

27th - 5th Grade Parent Info Meeting at Horizon 6:00 PM

30th - Lego Robotics

31st -Hawks Happenings Assembly

February

1st- Kindergarten Registration begins for 2025-2026

4th - PTO Meeting

6th - Lego Robotics

10th - Parent Teacher Conferences

11th - Parent Teacher Conferences

7th - PTO Meeting

13th - Lego Robotics

17th - No School-Presidents' Day

28th - Hawks Happening Assembly

Wondering how much screen time is too much for kids age 3 to 8? Check out these five easy tips that can help you support your child's healthy development and make the best choices for your family.

Managing Screen Time

Counselor Connection:

Kindergarten: Our lessons this month focused on fair ways to play, such as sharing, trading, and taking turns. We also talked about the importance of generosity. The kids made friendship bracelets to give to others.

1st: We discussed the difference between tattling and reporting, as well as the different ways to handle a conflict- a bug and a wish! We also listened to the story “The Giving Snowman” and talked about the importance of generosity.

2nd: We focused on the size of the problem compared to the size of the reaction and the difference between tattling and reporting. We listened to the story “How the Grinch Got so Grinchy” and discussed ways to show kindness to others, even though we are all different.

3rd: Our focus this month was on the size of the problem and learning about different ways to deal with conflict. We also listened to the story “A Wish for Christmas” and talked about ways to be a good friend to others.

4th: We defined gossip and rumors, how they affect others, and what we can do to stop the spread of them.

5th: We discussed different strategies to deal with conflict, such as walking away and talking peacefully and respectfully with others by using I-messages.

Schoolwide Team Update:

Even though they only had 3 weeks to meet their usual goal of 1500 stickers, our HAWKS students worked hard by earning 1669 stickers in December. The Wisdom Team contributed the most stickers with 480 stickers earned. Our prize for meeting our goal will be playing BINGO as a whole school on 1/3/25.

The upcoming life skill for the month of January is integrity. Beth Kaylor and Salimata Mbaye with Global Neighbors attended our HAWKS Happenings Assembly on 12/20/24 to talk about integrity and the African culture.

Monthly Expectations Connected to Home:

While we work on integrity this month at school, we encourage families to also emphasize this life skill at home. Here is an article with some ideas on how you can work on the skill of integrity with your child at home.

Kindergarten- Owen, Hewitt, Parker

First- Krystal, Leo, Taylor

Second- Brek, Max, Nevaeh

Third- Beckham, Julia

Fourth- David, Nora, Priya

Fifth-Carrie, Madden, Vaughan

This month's recipients will eat lunch with Mrs. Beiswenger in the office on Tuesday, January 7th!

Highland Acres Families,

Kids Heart Challenge™ is Coming!

It's time to CELEBRATE heart health with the Heart Heroes!

Our school is kicking off our annual community service program, Kids Heart Challenge next week.

Watch for your student to be excited about our school goals, lifesaver ducks, and being a HERO when they bring their packet home.

OUR WEBSITE IS OPEN NOW, SO IF YOU WANT TO GET AN EARLY START, CLICK HERE

https://www2.heart.org/goto/highlandacres

Last year, our district had record-setting participation with Kids Heart Challenge and was honored with a prestigious impact award! We look forward to another great year helping save lives with heart pumping fun along the way!

Thank you so much for supporting our school
and the American Heart Association!

© Copyright 2023 American Heart Association, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) not-for­profit. All rights reserved.
Kids Heart Challenge is a trademark of the Association. Unauthorized use prohibited.

Current guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics, CDC, and the ND Department of Health recommend children NOT be excluded immediately from school when head lice are found. We must remember that head lice are a nuisance, but not harmful. They do not carry disease.

If the school finds a student with head lice or nits (head lice eggs), the parents of the child with lice will be notified. If parents of the affected student are not able to come and get their child, the student will be allowed to stay in school and return to the classroom until the end of the school day.

Head lice is transmitted through prolonged close head-to-head contact. Transmission is more likely to occur between family members, overnight guests, and playmates who spend a lot of time together. Due to the low risk of transmitting head lice at school and to maintain confidentiality, letters will NOT be sent to parents of classmates and classrooms will NOT be checked.

Parents are encouraged to check their child periodically for head lice. If you are concerned your child may have head lice or need help identifying it, please contact a health care professional, school nurse or public health department.

Please contact your school nurse with any questions. Jenny_heustis@bismarckschools.org or Dana_Splonskowski@bismarckschools.org

For an excellent resource click here.

1st Meeting of the New Year on Tuesday, January 7th at 7:00pm-School Library. All parents and guardians are welcome to attend.

BINGO Night on Friday, January 24th at 6:00-7:00 pm

Upcoming: Movie Night and STEM Night

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.