Sanders Memorial Stallion News

I hope you're doing well! This is the time to really get your reading in and I wanted to reach out and share some tips on how you can help your child with their reading at home. Reading is such an important skill—it opens up a world of knowledge and imagination for our kids. Plus, it's a great way to spend quality time together. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Why Reading Matters:

Reading isn't just about recognizing words on a page. It's about understanding stories, expanding vocabulary, and developing critical thinking skills. Kids who read regularly tend to do better in school and are more curious about the world. Plus, reading can be a lot of fun!

How You Can Help:

1. Set a Reading Routine: Try to carve out a specific time each day for reading. Whether it's before bed or after dinner, having a routine can make reading a regular part of your child's day.
2. Read Together: Spend some time reading with your child. Take turns reading aloud and talk about the story. It's a wonderful way to bond and improve their reading skills.
3. Mix It Up: Offer a variety of reading materials—books, magazines, comics, whatever interests your child. The key is to keep it fun and engaging.
4. Library Visits: Make trips to the library a regular outing, especially during the summer. Libraries have a fantastic selection of books and often host reading programs and activities.
5. Storytelling: Encourage your child to tell you stories. This helps with their creativity and narrative skills. You can even make up stories together!
6. Be a Role Model: Let your child see you reading. When they see you enjoying a book, they'll be more likely to pick one up themselves.
7. Talk About Books: After reading, have a chat about the book. Ask questions about the plot, characters, and what they liked or didn't like. This helps with comprehension and critical thinking.
8. Balance Screen Time: Encourage reading as an alternative to screen time. While some screen time is okay, it's important to balance it with other activities like reading.
9. Celebrate Success: Praise your child's reading efforts and celebrate their achievements. Positive reinforcement can boost their confidence and motivation.
10. Stay Connected: Keep in touch with your child's teacher to stay updated on their progress and any areas where they might need extra support.

And now, for a little fun:

• Why did the book join the police? Because it wanted to go undercover!
• Why don't readers get lost? Because they always follow the plot!

Thank you for being such a vital part of your child's education. Together, we can help them develop a love for reading that will last a lifetime.

Warm regards,

Best regards,

Warm Regards,

Mr. Petry and Mrs. Hedgspeth

We are thrilled to officially launch our PTA Fundraiser on Wednesday, February 26th! To celebrate, we will be hosting a Pep Rally at the school. During the rally, they will receive their fundraising packets and get to learn all about our exciting Color Run event!

The funds raised from this event will support special events like the Someone Special Dance, our Carnival, and much more! Plus, your generous contributions help keep Sanders Memorial a safe, clean, and engaging environment for both students and staff.

Your support makes it all happen! Want to get a head start? You can register online today! Check out the attached flyer for all the details, and let's reach our GOAL together!

Thank you for your support! Let’s make this fundraiser a success!

Session 2 begins next week! You should have received an email from Mrs. Simmons to confirm your child's enrollment in this session. We are excited for another great session of creativity and ingenuity!

Any questions, please contact Erika Simmons at earellan@pasco.k12.fl.us

Field Day is on Friday! Wear your field day shirt or a green shirt!

- Please dress in weather appropriate clothing (sneakers, shorts, etc.)

- hats, sunscreens, and labeled disposable water bottles

- only volunteers that signed up previously are allowed out at Field Day.

Our Spring Book Fair is coming from March 10-13th. When you spend money at our school book fair, you help our school earn money to add books to our library! Support our school library and literacy at home by shopping our book fair!

Our Family Book Fair Night is Monday, March 10th from 4-6pm. Please come with your child during this time to shop for books! Kona Ice will be in the bus loop so you can shop for books and enjoy a sweet treat on your way in or out. We can't wait to see everyone there!

Add money to your child's ewallet when the window opens at www.scholastic.com/bf/sandersmemorial

Every Wednesday, we are encouraging students and staff to wear pink and donate a dollar or more in support of a one of SMES's own. We have been personally touched at SMES with a member of our school community who is being affected by breast cancer. To show solidarity and support every Wednesday we will be collecting donations. Wednesdays we wear pink and bring in cash!

Mr. Petry is challenging us to hit 1,100,000 minutes by March 10th! If we hit our goal as a school, Mr. Petry will dye his hair green in honor of Spring Break!

Let’s take him up on his challenge! We will randomly select 3 students each week of the challenge who read at least 60 minutes to earn a spin ticket. Our top 5 readers per grade level will also receive a spin ticket!

Our amazing PTA recognized the following students for their participation in this year's Reflections Contest with the theme "Accepting Imperfections": Lila Benson, Jaxon Kennedy, Hayden Crider, Penelope Lozada-Roman, Emmett Martin, Carmella Gifford, Jack Fierro, Sophia Kriess, Delaney, Armstrong, Colette Cornell, Isabella Whitman, Carlie Rowles, Nora Duffy, Natalia Gonzalez, Sreenidhi Padala, Rowan Kearley, Alandria Garcia, Defne Benson, Ella Zachry, Aashi Patel, Theodore Kearley, Ayan Anderson Diaz, Lily Boe, Aliyah Vargas, Elliott Leung, and Emma Cornell. These students submitted entries in Visual Arts, Music Composition, Literature, Photography, and Dance. We had more participants this year in the Reflections program than we ever have!

The following students will move on to represent our school and county at the state level with their entries: Lila Benson (Visual Arts 3-5), Lily Boe (Photography K-2), Natalia Gonzalez (Music Composition 3-5th), Theodore Kearley (Visual Arts K-2), Rowan Kearley (Literature 3-5th), and Elliott Leung (Literature K-2). Congratulations to all of our Stallions!

We are thrilled to announce the annual Sanders Got Talent show! We are looking for dedicated, hard-working, and creative individuals or groups to participate. Sanders Got Talent is limited to your creativity and school appropriateness of course! Please limit your act to two minutes or less.

It is the intention to include anyone, Kindergarten through 5th Grade, who wants to participate, however, you MUST have a well-rehearsed act at the time of auditions that can be clearly heard and understood. The actual date of the show will be Friday, March 28th beginning at 7:00 PM. Participating in the show will require sending in an audition tape by March 23rd @ 11:59PM.

Submissions will be uploaded by going to the Sanders Memorial school website, clicking on the Students tab, scrolling down and clicking on the Specials tab, then click on the specials canvas under general. Enroll in specials then click go to course. On the main page, click the Talent Show picture. There you will find the Sanders Got Talent audition submission tab. Finally, click Reply and the record/upload media tab and upload your content. It’s that simple!

5th Grade students will vote on their favorite submissions during the week of March 24th. Results will be posted the day before the show on March 27th. By auditioning for the show, you are acknowledging that you can be at the show on Friday.

Please email Mr. Coyne or Mr. McCorkle if you have any questions!­

We currently have 966,667 minutes READ!

Our goal for the end of the year is 1,000,000! Let's blow it out of the water!

When you log your minutes, please be sure to honestly log your minutes. Bulk adding minutes will be flagged entries. We want to encourage the habit of daily reading and logging your minutes with actual book titles is important.

Be on the look out for our next reading challenge. Word on the street is that Mr. Petry really wants to break 1,000,000 minutes before spring break!

📖Reading in the car? Log the minutes!

📖Reading in class? Log the minutes!

📖Reading with a sibling? Log those minutes!

If your student is participating in this challenge, they need to log their actual minutes reading from the SSYRA reading list AND pass the quizzes. Thank you!

Please remember to return your library books so all Stallions can enjoy our collection!

They can return the books when they are finished but they will go to the library at their assigned class time every other week. We want all Stallions to have a chance to check out our library books, so please make sure you return your books on time. For Sunshine State books, they need to be returned in one week.

🖐🏻We are in need of volunteers! 🖐🏻

We need 3 volunteers every Friday to help reshelve, check in return books, organize books, and any other things that might be needed for the library. Please sign up if you are available every Friday for the remainder of the year.

Sign Up to Volunteer for the Library

✨️Our Spring Fundraiser is in full swing! Thank you to all who have registered so far! All your generous contributions help keep Sanders Memorial a safe, clean, and engaging environment for both students and staff.

✨️Have questions....check out our Q&A and Flyer to register today!

✨️Link to register: https://www.fundsrus.net/organizations/sanders-memorial-es-pta/

✨️Thank you for your support! Let’s make this fundraiser a BIG success! #SMESPTA #SMES #STALLIONS 🐎💚💙🖤❤️

If you haven't already, please join our amazing PTA! Our PTA is always looking for new ideas to serve our school community.

March 10- End of Spring Fundraiser

March 24-27- Pass out prizes for fundraiser (all our required to help)

March 25 - PTA meeting 8:30am CDI & ZOOM

March 28- Spring Carnival 3:30pm-8:30pm (all our required to help)

April 22 - PTA Meeting 8:30am CDI & ZOOM

April 27 - May 2- Teacher appreciation week one day we will serve lunch

May 22- End of the year celebration ? (all required to take a shift)

To join click Join the PTA

If you are interested becoming a PTA business partner please fill out

Become a SMES PTA Business Partner

3/7 SMES Field Day

3/10-3/13 SMES Spring Book Fair

3/10 Book Fair Night with Kona Ice from 4pm-6pm.

3/11 SMES Schoolwide Pasco Students Speak Event (4th and 5th grade only)

3/12 Last Day to collect Spring Fundraiser Donations

3/14 Teacher Planning Day- No School for Students

3/17-3/21 No School Spring Break

3/25 1st Grade Field Trip to Cracker Country

3/28 SMES Spring Carnival and Color Run

3/28 Sanders Got Talent Show

4/2 5th Grade BEST Writing Assessment

4/3 4th Grade BEST Writing Assessment

4/4 Assistant Principal's Day

4/17 Showcase of Learning

4/18 and 4/21 No School

4/21 SSYRA 15 Book Due Date for K-2 and 3-5 to qualify for 15 Book Celebration

4/28-5/2 Teacher Appreciation Week

5/1 Principal's Day

5/1 Art and Music Spring Showcase

5/1-5/30 Testing Window for Progress Monitoring 3

ll students will be able to receive breakfast and lunch from the cafeteria free of charge. To help expedite the breakfast and lunch lines, as well as, to ensure your student wants the lunch of the day, please view the Sanders Meal Calendar for breakfast and lunch options.

Lunch with your child: Parents are welcome to have lunch with their child by making a reservation at 813-794-1500 ahead of time to check for availability. Lunch reservations are only for the current month and are only available Tuesday-Friday.

Parents must sign in, with an ID at the office to receive a visitor badge. To ensure the safety and supervision of all children, parents may only have lunch with their child(ren). We ask that you limit your visit to once a month. Lunchtime is one of the few times of the day where children can socialize with their classmates.

Sanders Meal Calendar

📱Wireless Communication Devices (WCDs) 📱

Policy Overview: Students in grades Pre-K through 5 are encouraged to leave their WCDs at home. If students do bring WCDs to school, they must ensure that the devices remain on silent mode and completely out of view for the entire school day. Classroom teachers may provide a designated cell phone storage area in their classrooms for students to use. This includes cellphones, watches and other communicative devices.

Why This Policy Matters at school:

1. Minimizing Distractions: Keeping WCDs out of sight helps minimize distractions, allowing students to focus better on their studies and classroom activities.
2. Promoting Social Interaction: Without the presence of WCDs, students are more likely to engage in face-to-face interactions, fostering better social skills and relationships.
3. Ensuring Safety and Security: By adhering to this policy, we can better ensure the safety and security of all students, as WCDs can sometimes be a source of disruption or misuse.

How You Can Help:

• Encourage Compliance: Please encourage your child to leave their WCDs at home or ensure they understand the importance of keeping them on silent and out of view during school hours.
• Discuss the Policy: Take a moment to discuss this policy with your child and explain why it is important for their learning and the overall school environment.
• Support Teachers: Reinforce the idea that teachers may provide a cell phone storage area in the classroom and that it is a safe place for their devices during the day.

We appreciate your cooperation and support in helping us maintain a focused and safe learning environment for all students. If you have any questions or concerns about this policy, please do not hesitate to contact the school office.

MyStudent Emergency Contact Information

Please make sure to log into MyStudent and update and acknowledge your contact information. This is essential so that we can get a hold of families and ensure you are receiving our communications weekly.

Signing Students out Early

We are requesting that students who need to be signed out early for the day, be signed out by 2:45 p.m. at the latest. after that point, they will not be called up to the office until they have arrived in their designated dismissal room. Unfortunately, we are not able to call students down to the office before parents arrive, as safety is our priority and ID's are required.

Carline Reminders

NO CELL PHONES IN THE CAR LINE!! Please put vehicles in "PARK" while children are loading and unloading. All children must remain in their seats while their vehicles are in motion for loading and unloading. For the purpose of safety, children cannot hang out of windows and sunroofs while cars are in motion.

Transportation Dismissal Changes: VERY IMPORTANT

Any changes in mode of transportation home must be entered in to the Transportation Change Request form on our SMES website by 2:45 p.m. EACH DAY to ensure a safe and smooth dismissal for all students.

Attendance Calls Reminder

Starting from the first day of school, we are enhancing our communication regarding your child's attendance. Keeping parents informed about their child’s attendance is vital for the safety and security of all students.

• Elementary School: If your child is absent, you will receive a notification (phone call and email) one hour after the start of school. Since school starts at 9:20, you will receive a call by 10:20.

Parking for events, arrival and dismissal:

We want to remind everyone about the importance of parking in designated areas only. Recently, there have been instances of vehicles being parked on the grass, over sidewalks and in non-marked parking spots along School Road and Lake Thomas Road.

Please be aware that these actions are ticketable offenses if a sheriff’s office deputy comes by. Additionally, parking in these areas is not conducive to being good neighbors to the residents along these roads and reflects poorly on our school community.

Parent Bill of Rights:

Parents, please ensure that you have completed all the Parent Bill of Rights information in your myStudent parent portal. These forms must be completed yearly.

Volunteer updates:

Volunteers (NEW REQUIREMENT): Sanders welcomes volunteers! Effective August 1, 2024, and every five years after, volunteers will need to pay a fee, currently $41.25 for a Level 2 Fingerprinting and Background Screening that will be monitored. Please visit the district volunteer website at https://www.pasco.k12.fl.us/hreq/page/volunteer to apply to be a volunteer. Volunteering includes any time an individual is around students other than their own.

Field Trip Reminders:

it is important to remember our field trip guidelines and to follow them. These guidelines are in place to ensure the safety and educational value of our field trips, which are an extension of the classroom.

Violation of Field Trip Guidelines

Failure to comply with these guidelines will result in either a reduction of field trip opportunities for all students in the next grade level or a limitation on opportunities for parents to serve as chaperones.

Importance of Compliance

It is crucial that these guidelines are followed to maintain a safe and productive environment for all students. Field trips are designed to enhance the learning experience, and your cooperation is essential in achieving this goal.

Tutoring Interest:

If you are looking for possible tutor services, please reach out to:

👩Caitlin Gryte

📧 cgryte@pasco.k12.fl.us

Pasco County Schools Calendar

Pasco County Student Code of Conduct

Student Quick Pay

School Spirit Shirts, School Fees, Field Trips, ID Badges, Car Tags

Houses:

🔴House of Friendship – Red Wolf

🔵House of Dreamers – Bobcat

🟢House of Courage – Alligator

⚫House of Givers – Rattlesnake

This Houses system will encourage “House” building and bonding between students in all grade levels. It will continue SMES’s path of positive culture and relationships with students and staff.

House Points: Throughout the year the houses will compete against each other in competitions and events to accumulate House points. Individual students can also continue to accumulate points for their House by demonstrating Stallion expectations and beyond.

Spin Tickets: Students can earn spin tickets from house leaders, and other random staff members. If a student earns a spin ticket, they will get to spin the wheel on Spinning Days.

House Champion: At the end of the year, the House with the most points wins the House Championship and all of the honor and glory that comes with it!