The month of May is filled with many fun and exciting things for our students! 🌞The 26 Day Countdown to Summer has started and the kids are having a great time! We have much to look forward to this month! Field trips, field day, our annual spelling bee, Lunch on the Lawn, talent show, 5th grade graduation, award ceremonies, pajama day and much much more!

Next week all HLA families will be receiving a parent climate survey via email. Please take the time to complete the survey on school quality. Your feedback is important toward improving outcomes for students and families as we come to the close of this school year and prepare for next year. Thank you in advance!

As the school year comes to an end, I want to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to all of our families! I am grateful for your continued support and believing in our school's mission! Your dedication to our school surpassed expectations and contributed to our great success! Thank you also for trusting us to provide a quality education to your child. I am confident that your child will leave us this academic year more knowledgeable and more independent.

In closing, I would like to congratulate our graduating fifth graders whom I will miss immensely. Please come back and visit when you can! To those of you who are leaving us for new places, I wish you all the best! Have a wonderful summer!!

Big Hugs,

Mrs. B.

HLA Reminders

~Don't forget to show your HLA pride and order a school t-shirt and a year book!

~Congrats to Ms. Karen for receiving the "Golden Apple" award in April!

~Staff Appreciation Week is May 6-10, 2024!

~Please join us for "Lunch on the Lawn" Friday May 10th from 11:45-12:30!

~Summer Camp enrollment is underway. Enrollment forms are available at the front desk!

~We still have several 4th & 5th grade enrollment openings if you would like to refer a friend.

~The last 3 days of school (May 29, 30,31) are early release days! Dismissal is at 12:45pm.

All grades will be completing Progress Monitoring 3 FAST testing in May. All tests will be done on tablets or Chromebooks. Please check out the FAST resources for 3rd-5th grade practice tests. If you have any questions please contact Mrs. Carr or your child's teacher.

Hello HLA families!

May is upon us and with it comes new opportunities for growth, learning, and fun. As we wrap up this successful school year, let's take a moment to reflect on all the wonderful experiences we've had this year.

I feel extremely grateful to have joined HLA’s school community this year. I look forward to seeing everyone in August! To our 5th grade families, I wish you and your family all the best as your students transition to middle school. I am excited to celebrate the accomplishments of our 5th graders at their graduation later this month!

As we embark on the final stretch of the school year, I encourage you to approach each day with a spirit of gratitude and appreciation. Let's take time to thank our teachers, our classmates, and all those who have supported us along the way.

Please note: I will be periodically checking my email over the summer. However, please expect a delayed response time from me, as I will be traveling and unavailable for various weeks in June and July. If you have acute concerns about your child’s mental health over the summer months, I encourage you to utilize the Alachua County Crisis Center, which is available 24/7. Their phone number is (352-264-6789).

Thank you for your continued partnership, and here's to a great month ahead! As always, feel free to reach out to me if I can be of assistance for your child or your family.

Below are some summer activity ideas for your family:

• Gratitude Journals: Encourage your child to keep a gratitude journal, where they can write down three things they're grateful for each day. This simple practice can help cultivate a positive mindset and increase happiness.

• Acts of Kindness Challenge: Acts of Kindness Challenge: Challenge your family members to spread kindness throughout the summer. Whether it's assisting a friend, tidying up a local park, or sharing a smile, every act of kindness makes a difference.

• Read with Purpose: I encourage you to engage your child in reading books with Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) themes. Alternatively, consider reading with your child! Exploring stories that delve into topics such as empathy, resilience, and self-awareness can ignite meaningful conversations and facilitate the development of crucial social and emotional skills. For our older students, sharing the experience of reading the same book as their parents can be a simple yet effective way to connect and foster meaningful conversations.

Gratefully,

Ms. Bowser