Heights Happenings

Heights Mission: Heights Elementary IB World School is dedicated to developing balanced, lifelong learners through educational excellence, a global perspective, reflection and action.

Heights Vision: To Be A World Class School.

Heights PBIS Statement:

We strive to be a school that models positive behaviors which develop the whole child and social skills. We have a common culture and language which supports student growth and high expectations to empower our students to become well-rounded global citizens through teaching and recognizing positive behavior.

Happy New Year, and welcome back! We hope your holiday season was filled with joy and time well spent with family and friends. As we step into 2025, we are energized and ready to kick off the second semester with a focus on continued academic growth for all our students.

This is a pivotal time in the school year, as we build on the foundation of learning established in the first semester and strive toward reaching new goals. Teachers and students will dive deeper into their studies, set new personal and academic goals, and celebrate progress along the way.

At Heights Elementary, we are committed to ensuring that every student achieves success academically, socially, and emotionally. Your support at home plays an essential role in this process. Whether it’s encouraging good study habits, reading together, or discussing the day’s learning, your involvement strengthens the bridge between home and school.

Let’s make the second half of this school year one filled with growth, engagement, and excitement for learning. Thank you for being a vital part of the Heights Elementary family. Together, we will ensure 2025 is a remarkable year for our students.

Jan. 6th: First day back from the holiday break

Jan. 8th: House Color Day

Jan. 9th: Kg & 1st grade ELA FAST Progress Monitoring 2

Jan. 10th: End of 2nd quarter

Jan. 13th: 2nd grade ELA FAST Progress Monitoring 2

Jan. 14th: Heights SAC Meeting (6:00pm Media Center)

Jan. 14th: Kg, 1st, & 2nd grade MATH FAST Progress Monitoring 2

Jan. 15th: House Color Day

Jan. 17th: Ice Cream on sale during lunch

Jan. 17th: Make up Picture Day

Jan. 20th: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day (schools closed)

Jan. 22nd: District Event: District 6 - Jada Langford-Fleming School Board Member will be hosting a Town Hall Meeting at Heights (5:30-6:30).

Jan. 23rd: Student Assignment Open House for 2025-2026 families

Jan. 25th: Run Club: Kiwanis Bug Run 5K (Calusa Nature Center)

Jan. 27th-Feb. 7th: 5th grade fundraiser - Valentine Candy Bouquet

Jan. 27th: Heights Read-a-thon kicks off

At Heights Elementary, we are committed to creating a supportive and engaging environment where students can excel academically, socially, and emotionally. One of the most important factors in student success is regular, on-time attendance.

Why Attendance Matters: When students attend school consistently and arrive on time, they have more opportunities to learn, connect with peers, and participate in classroom activities. Studies show that regular attendance leads to better academic outcomes, greater social connections, and an increased sense of responsibility.

Did You Know?

• Missing even just two days per month can significantly impact a student's ability to stay on track in reading and math.
• Being 10 minutes late every day adds up to nearly a week of lost learning time over the course of the school year!

How You Can Help:

• Set a routine: Establish a consistent bedtime and morning routine to make getting to school on time easier.
• Plan ahead: Lay out clothes, pack backpacks, and prepare lunches the night before.
• Communicate: If there are challenges impacting attendance, please reach out to our office. We’re here to support your family!

We appreciate your partnership in helping every student arrive at school on time and ready to learn. Together, we can make sure each student has the best chance to succeed every day!

As IB learners we strive to be open-minded. We who are open-minded understand and appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities. We are accustomed to seeking and evaluating a range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience.

This IB learner profile is one of 10 attributes recognized and valued by IB World Schools. We believe these attributes, and others like them, can help individuals and groups become responsible members of local, national and global communities.

• Nurture respect and love for all living things
• Expose your child to a variety of cultural experiences
• Visit Explore and More Children's Museum to "travel" around the world
• Read and tell stories from around the world
• Watch movies that show other countries cultures
• Listen to a variety of types of music
• Read and write different forms of poetry
• Learn about how different cultures celebrate holidays
• Prepare and taste foods from other countries

Sometimes spills, accidents, or falls happen and it helps to have cloths available for students. Your gently used donations are greatly appreciated. We are in need of boys shorts and shirts sizes 5 to 12. Items can be dropped of at the Heights office or clinic. Thank you for your help.

• Our Kindergarten Students finished up their second action project of the year that connected to their Sharing the Planet Unit of Inquiry. Students collected donations for animal shelters and learned about the needs of animals.
• Our Fourth Grade students completed their first action project for the year in which they made Birthday Boxes to donate to local food pantries to distribute to families. Boxes included all of the items to make a birthday cake as well as decorations. They were able to make 38 boxes. Great Job Fourth Grade!
• Fifth Grade is finishing their research for their Exhibition Project and moving on to their action piece of the project when they come back from the Winter Break.

The Heights Elementary Read-A-Thon is coming soon!

Read-A-Thons get your reader excited about reading and it gives friends and family the opportunity to encourage your child to read even more.

Our Read-A-Thon starts Monday January 27, 2025.

About one week before our Read-A-Thon starts we will send home instructions on how to activate your reader's personal page. This is where you will be able to view and record their progress.

We encourage you to activate your reader’s account today by clicking on https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/323334393739/1 and following the simple instructions.

The Heights Read-A-Thon gives your child a reason to read and develop stronger reading skills.

We hope EVERYONE participates.

Ice cream cups will be on sale Jan. 17th during lunch time. Each student will be limited to one ice cream cup during their lunch. The cost is $1 per cup. Money collected from ice cream sales goes to the Principal's Discretionary Fund. This fund is used to celebrate a variety of events and activities for our students and staff throughout the school year.

All campus visitors will need to show their ID at the door and also to receive a visitor pass. Based on the School District of Lee County safety procedures, we are ONLY allowed to accept physical forms of ID when you show up on campus. Unfortunately, we are unable to accept picture IDs on a cell phone or from the Florida Real ID website. Thank you for your understanding and helping to keep our campus safe.

Florida State Statute 1012.42 recognizes that teachers at times must be assigned duties in a class outside the field in which the teacher is certified. The following teachers at Heights Elementary are certified, but may be assigned one or more classes outside their areas of certification and are required to take appropriate steps to comply with the statutory regulation: Madison Barker (ESE)

In addition, the following teachers are engaged in training to add the endorsement, English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), to their certificates: Nicole Berry, Nicole Driscoll, Courtney Sleeper, Jennifer Kee, Gina Celej, Melinda Melendez, Stephanie Bovinett, Reagan Potter, Jamie Leach, & Libby Davis.

District 1 - Samuel Fisher, Board Chair

District 2 - Melisa W. Giovannelli

District 3 - William F. Ribble Jr.

District 4 - Debbie Jordan

District 5 - Armor Persons

District 6 - Jada Langford-Fleming, Board Vice Chair

District 7 - Vanessa M. Chaviano

Superintendent:

Denise M. Carlin, Ed.D