Eagle Heights Family Newsletter

Daily Times:

Breakfast 8:30 Daily

Arrival 8:30-8:45 Daily

Student hours: 8:45 a.m.-3:45 p.m.

Early Release Days:

End Time: 1:15 pm

At Eagle Heights Elementary, I am a respectful, in control and safe, and responsible leader.

Health Screens (vision and hearing screening) will be completed on ALL 1st, 3rd, 5th graders.

Health Screens (vision and hearing screening) will be completed on ONLY NEW students in Kindergarten, 2nd, 4th, 6th grades.

If your student does NOT pass a screening, you will be notified.

Want to let an Eagle Heights staff member know they are appreciated, send them a shoutout!

Click the picture to submit a shout out!

If you still need to sign up for Chromebook Insurance, here is the link:

https://www.smithvilleschooldistrict.net/o/ssd/page/technology-insurance-registration

Can you believe the first quarter is already over? Wow, it always seems to go so fast! The art room has been abuzz with artists creating in several different media!

Mrs. Smith’s PreK PM students made orange pumpkins and yellow pencil collages. The AM students art day fell on a Wednesday so they didn’t have art in Oct. K-1 students are choosing to work in drawing, or collage studios now. Watercolor painting is coming up next! 2nd grade learned how to do paper weaving with the addition of hole punches and yarn along the edge. 3-5th graders have been using drawing and collage studios. Sixth grade 3D art has begun for the second quarter and they are starting out with the 3D art game in Google Slides. Several have started on clay, others recycled art sculpture, and others perler bead creations.

We are using Artsonia again this year for PK - 6th grade students’ portfolios. We have 95% of parents connected! Don’t miss out on seeing your students work!

Here is a direct link if you need to connect to your students portfolio and have not yet: https://www.artsonia.com/connect/CF8WKBZ4

You can click or type in the link (or just go to the website and put in the code).

Eagle Heights code is: CF8WKBZ4

You will then enter your child's name and grade, along with an email address. It really is that easy! It will send your request to me and I will then finish connecting you on my end.

I have an Amazon wish list for EHE because the yearly budget only affords me the very basics in art supplies. If you would like to help support our art studio and the EHE artists, go to my wishlist here: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/TAO5QQQYZRM2?ref_=wl_share

THANK YOU so much for all of your support! It’s a GREAT day to be a WARRIOR!

Calling all Parents, EHE Staff & Teachers, & Community Members of Eagle Heights! You’re invited to participate in our upcoming EHE Community Art Exhibit! If you create art in any capacity: photography, wood working, sewing, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, etc. then we would like to invite you to submit 1 piece of your work to our upcoming exhibit to be held on our Passport to Learning Night November 14! More information can be found here:

https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1AuJI8Yk7eOYuew_RvY__VDxy4i6OejSWXGR-t9V0ozY/edit?usp=sharing

Email Miss Aeschliman at aeschlia@smithville.k12.mo.us with any questions you may have! We look forward to seeing your creative endeavors on display for students to see.

Sincerely,

Ms. Aeschliman

Eagle Heights Elementary

PreK - 6th grade Art Educator

Greetings from the tech and innovation lab!

• Kindergarten is doing a great job with their stations in my class. Our favorite station is the creation station where we just finished designing and building our monster traps after we read How to Catch a Monster!

• First graders are nearing the end of their marble maze project. Your students have studied how mazes work and are creating their own marble maze with straw bumpers, tricky paths and dead ends.

• Second graders are officially programmers! We are working on code.org to practice coding with loops. They have even practiced debugging programs and fixing mistakes in codes!

• 3rd graders and 4th graders are in some big build projects. They are building mini skateparks (third) and also getting ready to create their Battlebot armor (fourth). We will be building these projects in the next couple of weeks.

• The 5th graders are wrapping up their tiny house projects. Their tiny homes will be on display at our Passport to Learning Night. Be sure to stop by and check to see if your student has a house on display!

• My 2nd quarter 6th grade encore class is graphic design. This is my first time offering this class for 6th grade encore. They are learning about the principles of multimedia design. Many students have selected their first project - designing a shirt for a school club. We are excited to see their designs come to life. You may even see that design on a shirt coming soon!

If you are a family that tends to save their cardboard boxes, toilet paper rolls, or plastic bottles - I would love to collect your recycling! We go through a lot of cardboard items in the innovation lab and we are always looking to replenish our supply closet. Tissue boxes and cereal boxes are good for my little engineers as it’s easy to cut. Amazon boxes are perfect for my older students to use! As always, if you ever need to reach me or simply have questions about how your student is doing in the technology and innovation classroom, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! My email is thompsoa@smithville.k12.mo.us or you can reach me by phone at extension 7628.

Hello Eagle Heights Families,

Fitness Testing for 3rd-6th Grade

We’re about to kick off our fitness testing for our 3rd through 6th graders! These assessments help us track each student’s progress, set goals, and encourage lifelong healthy habits. We’re excited to see all the hard work and dedication our students are showing! Please remind your child to wear the appropriate PE shoes.

Mega Soccer, Kicking Off Ultimate Football

Our students have been doing a fantastic job in our Mega Soccer unit, showing great teamwork and energy! As we wrap up soccer, we’re getting ready to introduce Ultimate Football, where students will learn new skills in throwing, catching, and team strategy. It’s going to be a blast!

Kindergarten Fun with the Rock Wall, Scooters, and Tag Games

Our Kindergarteners have been busy exploring the rock wall, scooters, and learning new games like Lightning Tag and other fun tag games. It’s been a joy watching them develop their coordination, balance, and teamwork through these activities!

Important Reminders

• Please remind your child to wear tennis shoes to PE instead of Crocs or sandals to keep them safe and comfortable while participating in activities.

• Our lost and found is filling up with jackets, water bottles, and other items! Please have your child check for any missing items next time they’re at school.

Thank you for supporting your child’s PE journey here at Eagle Heights. We’re looking forward to an active, healthy season ahead!

Warm regards,

Coach Parker

EHE Library Update:

During October, the library was busy. The pumpkin book contest has been great so far!!! We had over 75 pumpkins entered in! It made the library look very festive through the Halloween/Fall season! In addition, the EHE Book Fair has just started and has been in full swing! Be sure to stop by on November 4th/5th after school for the last chance to shop!

What are we learning in Library Class:

PreK: Spent time in the library learning about Fall and creating crafts to go along with reading! As well as brain breaks and checking out our very own library book!

Kinder: Focused on the season of Fall!!! (One of Mrs. Rice's favorites!) In each library class, we have been working on stations involving tracing, coloring, building, and choosing library books! Kinder has learned two ways to choose their books: Sneak Peek and Buddy Book! This way students can browse the picture book section and choose their very own book without creating a messy library bookshelf!

1st: Students have been working on telling the difference between Nonfiction and Fiction books! In addition to telling the difference between the two, first grade also participated in scavenger hunts to find those books and learned about the way the library is set up to find those books without the scavenger hunt!

2nd: Second grade has also been working on the difference between Nonfiction and fiction books but at a higher level, building on their prior knowledge from first grade! Review of Nonfiction and Fiction books have been reviewed using Seesaw with a mix of a scavenger hunt or two!

3rd: Third-grade dove deeper into Nonfiction and Fiction books by learning what Call Numbers are. After learning Call Numbers through games, we ventured to the school's Destiny site where you can search any books that are in the library! It was cool to have students see their favorites and be able to find them in the library without help!

4th: Fourth grade took what they had learned in first, second, and third grade and applied it to be able to use Destiny to create a private collection of their own To Be Read books! An easy way to track one's reading and to see what books the library offers!

5th: Fifth grade worked on identifying different call numbers within the library as well! But they did a scavenger hunt using chromes to find a certain book or genre that the task was asking for. It was cool to see years of knowledge on this topic come full swing and see students able to navigate the library all on their own!

6th Grade Encore: The second quarter is just now in full swing and the 6th grade class this semester is focused on Podcasting and Book Trailers. This class started with listening to different narrative podcasts and noticing all the different elements that make the podcast what it is. We are currently working on developing a narrative podcast outline to get ready to record our first mini-series!

November Happenings: The month of November is cut short by Thanksgiving break! But it is full of excitement! Learning about all things Fall, what it means to be grateful, and starting/ending some pretty neat projects. Keep an eye out for a new library competition that will take place in the month of December: Disguise a Gingerbread Man!

Thank you for ALWAYS supporting the library! If you would like to purchase items for the EHE Library, the Amazon Wish List is here. As always feel free to reach out with any questions ricel@smithville.k12.mo.us.

Happy Reading!

Eagle Heights Music Notes

Welcome back, Eagle Heights families! We are thrilled to share some exciting music adventures happening this season in our music room!

Mallet Madness

This month, we’re diving into Mallet Madness! Students will play a collection of percussion instruments and xylophones, coming together to form a small orchestra. It’s an exciting way for our young musicians to explore rhythm, melody, and ensemble performance.

Strumming Along with Ukuleles

We’ll also be learning ukulele this fall! This instrument offers a fun and accessible way for students to develop their musical skills while working on chord progressions, strumming, and singing. From beginner strummers to future ukulele stars, everyone will have a blast!

District Choir Opportunities

In late November, select 4th and 5th graders will have the chance to audition for the District Choir! The students will be chosen from our Eagle Heights Jubilee Choir, which has been working hard each week, building their vocal skills and learning new repertoire. We’re incredibly proud of all their dedication and enthusiasm!

Eagle Heights Jubilee Choir

The Eagle Heights Jubilee Choir will continue rehearsing through November to prepare for our December 3 concert at the PAC. Mark your calendars for what promises to be a wonderful evening of music and celebration!

Thank you for supporting the Eagle Heights music program! Looking forward to a season filled with joy, music, and creativity.

October was National Bully Prevention Month!

Dear Families,

We observed National Bully Prevention Month, it was an important time to talk about what bullying truly is and how we can all work together to prevent it. Bullying is intentional, repeated, and involves a power imbalance. Understanding these elements helps us recognize when a situation is bullying, rather than a single act of unkindness. By working together, we can help ensure that our school is a place where all students feel safe, valued, and respected.

Each grade level has been engaging in activities designed to foster empathy, kindness, and inclusivity:

• Kindergarten students identified their feelings and used playdough to express and name these feelings.
• First graders read The Square Pumpkin, where we celebrated how our unique traits can help others.
• Second grade enjoyed The Recess Queen and played a Kahoot game on kindness and looking out for one another.
• Third graders read The Invisible Boy, learning how to include others and make them feel seen.
• Fourth grade students read Dare and explored ways to be an Upstander, standing up for those who need support.
• Fifth and sixth graders continued with our POAC curriculum, discovering the importance of kindness and recognizing that we often have more in common than we have differences.

By reinforcing these lessons, we're building a supportive community where every student learns the importance of treating others with respect and kindness. We encourage families to discuss these themes at home and help children recognize how their actions can positively impact those around them.

Thank you for your continued support in making our school a safe and welcoming place for everyone!

Warm regards,
Mrs. Downey and Ms. Johnson

Joining PTO provides you with the opportunity to volunteer and contribute to your children’s educational experience! Our purpose is to support our teachers/staff and our children to make their school year experience successful!

There are many ways to help, so please consider joining! Online sign up and payment is available at this link: EHE PTO MEMBERSHIP FORM

All latest updates can be found on our Facebook page
Any additional questions, please email: eagleheightsptosmithville@gmail.com

With the revised calendar, 24-25, students will have one traditional snow day, followed by AMI Days in the case of school closure related to bad weather.

Student Expectations on AMI Days:

• Work will be loaded into Google Classroom by 8:00 a.m.

• PK-2 Students will have packets of work to complete during AMI days since they do not have 1:1 take home devices. These will be sent home at fall Parent/Teacher Conferences.

• Students will have a scheduled check in with their homeroom teacher as well as their encore teacher. Other staff may be reaching out to students on caseloads.

• Students will work independently when not scheduled for a Google Meet.

NOVEMBER

Nov. 1: No School

Nov. 3: Daylight Saving- Turn back your clocks 1 hour

Nov. 5: Intruder Drill

Nov. 8: Parent Educator Day

Nov. 11: Veterans Day- Free Breakfast for Veterans

Nov. 11-15: School Psychologist Week

Nov. 14: Passport to Learning

Nov. 20: Board Meeting 7pm

Nov. 20: Education Support Professionals Day (Security Monitor, RWL Coordinator, Vision Specialist, Recess Aides, Behavior Interventionist, Curriculum Facilitators, ISS Monitor, Reading Specialist)

Nov. 22: Substitute Educator Day

Nov. 23: All District Choir Performance @ Platte City High School

Nov. 27-29: No School- Thanksgiving Break

DECEMBER

Dec. 2: Special Education Appreciation Day

Dec. 3: Elementary Choir Winter Concert 6 pm PAC

Dec. 5: 12 Days of Christmas. Participate each day Dec 5- Dec 20

Dec. 11: Board Meeting 7 pm

Dec. 20: FLY Day–AM Assembly/Early Release- 1:15 pm

Dec. 20: End of 2nd Quarter/End of 1st Semester

Dec. 23: Winter Break Begins (Dec. 23-Jan 3.)