Horizon Headlines
May 2024- Parent Newsletter
MAP Testing
We have completed our 1st week of MAP Testing at Horizon. Next week we will take the math portion of the Missouri Assessment Program Testing. Thank you very much for making sure your child is here on time, has gotten a good night's sleep, eaten a healthy breakfast and is ready to test! This assessment that all students in 3rd-6th grade take, allows Horizon to show our Rock Star Student compared to every other school in the State of Missouri!
Next Week is TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK!
Horizon Families,
Teacher Appreciation Week is next week, May 6-10. PTO would like to inform you of a few ways you can participate in supporting and encouraging our Horizon Teachers and Staff. These ideas are completely optional so please participate in whatever capacity best suits your family.
Throughout the week, PTO will be providing meals, treats and drinks. We have created a signup here for anyone interested in donating money, items and/or time.
If you are considering gifting something to a teacher/staff, we have compiled a list of their favorite things as well as their Amazon wish lists here. We ask that you please consider our encore/reading/SPED/IA and other teachers/staff who are involved in your child's weekly education.
Throughout the week there are several opportunities for students to show their love and appreciation. Please encourage them to participate in the following ways:
Monday, May 6th - Bring a note to your teacher
Tuesday, May 7th- Bring your teacher a snack (see favorite things list)
Wednesday, May 8th - Make or draw your teacher an art project
Thursday, May 9th - Wear your teacher's favorite color (see favorite things list)
Friday, May 10th - Bring your teacher a gift or Amazon Wish List item
*Check backpacks for a participation flier and favorite things list that came home on Friday.
Lastly, we want to thank you for ALL the support and encouragement you have provided to our teachers, staff and school this last year. Your generous involvement, donations and support have helped us provide things for our students and staff that otherwise wouldn't have been possible. We really do have the BEST parents and families and it's all because of YOU!
Thanks again!
Horizon PTO Hospitality Co-Chairs
Erin Vernon - Erinnicholevernon@gmail.com
Karla Gallegos-Ross - kgallegosross@gmail.com
Events at Horizon:
April 29th- May 10th Grades 3-6 will participate in the Statewide MAP Testing. In addition, 5th grade will also test May 13th-14th. This scheduled testing effects the building schedule for all grades regarding encore and recess. Thank you for your flexibility and patience during testing.
May:
May 1: National School Principal’s Day
May 1: Late Start Wednesday, K-6 students may arrive at 8:50 am, School begins at 9:05 am, No EC Classes
May 2: Kindergarten & 1st Grade Musical 6 pm PAC
May 3: May Parent Newsletter Emailed Home
May 3: School Lunch Hero Day!
May 6-10: Teacher Appreciation Week
May 7-9: MAP Math
May 7: Spring Choir Festival 6 pm PAC
May 8: Late Start Wednesday, K-6 students may arrive at 8:50 am, School begins at 9:05 am, No EC Classes
May 8: National School Nurse Day
May 10: School Communicators Day
May 13: National Apple Pie Day!
May 13-14: 5th Grade Science MAP
May 14: 4th Grade Wax Museum 2-3pm
May 15: Late Start Wednesday, K-6 students may arrive at 8:50 am, School begins at 9:05 am, No EC Classes
May 15: School Foam Party (students prepare for a water day!) Bring a change of clothes and a towel
May 15: Smithville School Board Meeting- Open Session 7 pm
May 16: 4th & 5th Grade Field Trips
May 16: Kindergarten Fun in the Sun 9-11
May 17: K-4 Field Day (K-2) 9:15-11:40 & (3-4) 12:15-2:40
May 17: MAP Test BBQ all staff & all 3-6 students
May 17: 6th Water Day 2-3:15
May 17: HS Graduation
May 17: National speech pathologist day!
May 18: National Speech & Language Pathology Day (observed May 17th)
May 20: 2nd Grade Field Trip
May 20: 5th-6th Field Day (HS)- 9:40-11:10 & 11:45-1:45
May 21: Warrior Winner Lunch April/May (3,K,6)
May 21: 6th Step Up Day 9-11:30 MS
May 21: 5th & 6th Water Play (soccer field) 1:30-3:30
May 22: Warrior Winner Lunch April/May (2,5)
May 22: 4th Behavior Incentive HS Football Field (K-2) 9:30-10:30, (3-4) 1-2, (5-6) 2:15-3:15
May 22: Late Start Wednesday, K-6 students may arrive at 8:50 am, School begins at 9:05 am, No EC Classes
May 23: Warrior Winner Lunch April/May (1,4)
May 23: Tribe Ticket Frenzie
May 23: 6th Celebration 2-3
May 24: Last Day of School, Early Dismissal at 1:15 pm
May 24: Grade cards come home
May 29-June 28: Summer School
From the Horizon Library:
Library checkout will end on May 10th, we are doing our 2nd annual summer library book swap the week of May 13th-17th to continue to get books in our kiddo's hands.
Breakfast & Lunch Information: In order to close the fiscal year in good standing, meal charges that create a negative meal balance are highly discouraged. Current meal balances may be viewed in the parent portal in PowerSchool. Any excess funds left on the account after the school year can be used during summer school or the next school year. Thank you in advance for cooperation ensuring all meal balances are zeroed out.
Frozen Fridays:
We will only offer Frozen Friday ice cream once a month. OPAA will offer ice cream for $1.00 with student's lunch the last Friday of each month.
May 24th will be Frozen Friday this month!
2024-2025 KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!
We are excited to welcome the Class of 2037! If you have a child that is turning five on or before July 31, 2024, they are eligible to enroll in Kindergarten for the 2024-2025 school year. Click HERE for information on how to get started.
Families of current students who will be returning to the Smithville School District for the 2024-25 school year can register their students today! Updates to demographics and other information will be made online following the directions below.
The 4 steps to enroll your child are provided below:
Step 1: Returning Student Registration can be completed by parents logging into their Powerschool Parent Portal Account.
Step 2: Gather the following documents needed for online enrollment
Proof of Residency (utility bill, lease, or real estate contract within 30 days of the start of school) Grades: Incoming Kindergarten, 4th, 7th, and 9th
Updated Immunizations - Grades: Incoming Kindergarten, 8th, and 12th
Step 3: Once logged into the Powerschool Parent Portal Account, click Forms in the left-hand menu. Complete the forms under sub-heading Smithville Returning Student Forms. Be sure to click "submit" after each form.
Step 4: Watch your email in late-summer for "Back to School" forms that will need to be completed at that time.
**An update for the 2024-25 school year - Chromebook Insurance is now included in the registration process and can be purchased in RevTrak as an optional fee.
For more information regarding Returning Student Registration, visit the Returning Student Registration page
New students to the district, please go to the New Student Registration page
Quarterly Incentives for Behaviors:
Again this year we are recognizing students for proactively making good choices. Students who do not have to go to the office for a Tier 3 behavior earn the quarterly incentive.
1st Quarter Incentive: Cotton Candy (kids loved it)!
2nd Quarter Incentive: Kringle Kart (Dec 18th)
3rd Quarter Mad Science Assembly (March 14th)
4th Quarter HS Track & Field Time (May 22nd)
Thank You to our amazing supportive families for stocking the staff lounge:
September - Kirkpatrick Family
October - The Campbell and Green Families
November- Farrissa Talley Family
November 15- Marcy Richardson Family, Melissa Johnson Family and Ashley Mitchell Family
December - Valerie Partch with Jackson Animal Clinic
January- Jamie Talley
February- Horizon PTO
March- Horizon PTO
April 1- Cali Maxfield/ Kids Kloset
April 15- Sara Svehla
***All staff Starbucks from Sara Svehla
May 10- Jonnelle Gentry, Gentry Trucking & Events by Elle
What's going on in the classrooms:
Early Childhood:
We have had an amazing year of learning, fun and growth! We will finish the year with our vets and pets unit. We will transform our classroom into a veterinarian's office, learn about different animals, and have an “adoption” day for our stuffed animal pets.
We are counting down the days of the year with a special letter and fun activity each day. Please refer to the weekly newsletter for more information.
Please join us on Thursday, May 23rd for our end of the year luau celebration. Morning class will celebrate from 11:00 - 11:45 and our afternoon class will celebrate from 2:45 - 3:30. More detailed information is in the weekly classroom newsletter.
Kindergarten:
First Grade:
We are so excited to see how far our first graders have come this year. They all have worked so hard and it shows!
This month we will work on adding and subtracting two digit numbers with and without regrouping. That’s a huge skill but we are ready for it! We will also learn about shapes and counting money.
In reading we will continue our author study and we will work on building up our independent reading stamina before we move onto second grade.
We will finish up our poetry unit in writing and then work on opinion writing and how-to writing.
We will complete an economics unit in social studies and a unit on the rotation of the Earth in Science.
We are also so excited to go on our field trip to LegoLand and Sea Life on May 10.
2nd Grade:
3rd Grade:
4th Grade:
The first two weeks of May will be spent working hard showing what we know on the MAP Test! While we are working on the MAP Test we will also be working on writing and memorizing speeches! Once MAP is done we will start Using Illustrations and Text to Create Meaning in writing. In Math, we will be reviewing and testing the geometry unit. In reading, we will be wrapping up the year with reviews on multiple topics. Social Studies will be the Wax Museum while science will be Earthquakes! Feel the rumble 4th grade is ALMOST ready to be 5th Graders!
5th Grade:
May is busy, busy, busy. 5th Grade has more MAP Testing than any other grade level in the elementary school. We have 7 separate mornings of testing. It's super important that students are here on time, well rested, have a charged chromebook, and ready to rock and roll to show what they have learned all year long! What’s nice is after a busy start to May, we end with lots of busy FUN! 5th Grade has Water Day for 5th/6th Grade Incentive Party on the Horizon Soccer Field, 5th/6th Grade Field Day at the HS Track/Football Field, Field Trip to the Conservation Discovery Center, Playtime at the HS Field for Building Incentive, and time to relax and enjoy ourselves with classmates and teachers. May is busy but it's also rewarding. We’ve got this!
Science: May is MAP MAP MADNESS! As we finish our last bit of understanding over Earth’s Spheres and Water on Earth, we then turn to review review REVIEW! It's time to show what we know in a week-long game of Jeopardy, and then really show what we know on the Science MAP Test. I know students are going to do GREAT! I'm SO proud of what they have gained, how they have grown, and what they have learned. Let’s finish strong!
SS: Since 4th Quarter began, we have been focused on Science alone to prepare for the MAP Test.
Mathematics: May has arrived!! May Mathematics here in fifth grade is usually a hodgepodge of decimal computations…plus lots of MAP testing! We will finish up our school year discussing multiplying and dividing decimals. Generally, what we discover is that we already understand these decimal operations (especially if we have a firm understanding of fraction/mixed number multiplication). The year has flown by and I can’t be more pleased with these fine fifth grade mathematicians! What growth we have made…in so many ways.
ELA: We did it! We have successfully prepped, studied and worked towards the big MAP testing week. I am very proud of our students and their determination as we prepare for not only the end of year testing, but also their culminating 5th grade projects. In May we will complete our final book project, present our TED talks and will complete the Spring NWEA test. Along with our fun filled days, we will have a very busy month! Thank you for sharing your students with me this year! I have loved getting to know each of them and wish them luck as they continue to learn and grow.6th Grade:
We will be MAP testing from April 29 to May 10. Week 1 will be ELA testing and Week 2 will be MATH. Field Day is Monday, May 20th. “Step-Up Day” to SMS is Tuesday, May 21 at 9:00 am. Our Water Games DoJo point turn-in is May 21st, in the afternoon (please send a towel, change of clothes and wear shoes that can tie!). Please join us on Thursday, May 23rd at 2:30 for our Sixth Grade Celebration! Families are invited to clap our sixth graders out and enjoy a short reception outside. Yearbook signing and picture taking with friends and family will be allowed.
DURING MAP, ENCORE WILL BE FROM 11:10-12:00; RECESS WILL BE FROM 1:30-2:00. IF POSSIBLE, PLEASE DO NOT SCHEDULE APPOINTMENTS DURING THE TESTING WINDOW.
04/30 - MAP testing begins (Week 1 - ELA) - Testing Tuesday, Wed, Thurs.
05/6 - MAP testing (Week 2 - MATH) - Testing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thurs.
05/13 - NWEA testing - Math, Science, and ELA (all week)
05/15 - Foam Parties - during Encore (10:20-11:10) PTO sponsored - Please send a full change of clothing, tie shoes that can get wet, and a towel!
05/20 - Fifth and Sixth Grade Field Day at SHS Football Field (all day)
05/21 - Sixth Grade Step-Up Day at SMS - 9:00-11:30 am
05/21 - Fifth and Sixth grade Water Play - 2:00-3:15 pm (125 DoJos)
Please send your student(s) with a full change of clothes and a towel!
05/22 - Fourth Quarter Behavior Incentive - at SHS Football Field
05/22 - 5th & 6th Grade - End of Year Dance - sponsored by Dazzlers - 6:45-8:30 at HES
05/23 - Tribe Ticket Turn In - morning
05/23 - Sixth Grade Celebration - 2:00-3:00 -Families welcome outside at the bus circle
05/24 - Last day of school - 1:15 dismissal
Encore:
Music:
Hello Horizon families! As our school year comes to an end, here’s a little bit about what will be happening in the music room in May:
Kindergarten & 1st Grade: Kindergarten and 1st Grade are preparing for their upcoming music program! Their program will take place on May 2nd at 6pm at the Smithville High School Performing Arts Center. Please make sure to mark this date in your calendars, I’m so excited for you to see what we have been working on this year in music!
2nd Grade: Students are continuing to practice everything they know about rhythm. They are also learning about more families that live on music street, a magical street that lives on our music staff! While learning about our new family, the do family, students will learn the song Rocky Mountain. In this process we will learn a fun dance to accompany the song and about the history behind this folk song.
3rd Grade: Students are hard at work with Recorder Karate, a competition that challenges students to learn songs and earn Karate belts and prizes. Students have a few weeks left of this competition and then will be reviewing what we learned this school year in music.
4th Grade: Our 4th graders are working on their end of year project in music class. In this project students will work with a group to create a company and a product that they are trying to sell. As part of this project students will also use their composition skills to create a commercial jingle to help them sell this product.
5th Grade: Our 5th graders are working on their end of year project in music class. In this project students will be researching different careers in the music field. They will look at different careers and look up facts such as salary, lifestyle, etc. Students will learn about what these careers entail and see if it is something they may want to pursue one day!
6th Grade: In our 6th grade Intro to instruments class, students are refreshing their knowledge of pitch. They will be reviewing how to identify pitch and transfer this skill to barred instruments. After this unit students will be learning about chords and applying this to playing the ukulele and the piano.
Choir: The Sunset Singers just had an amazing performance at our Choir Field Trip! We will be continuing rehearsals on Tuesday mornings until our Choir Festival on May 7th! Please check your email for detailed information about this day!Library It is crazy to think that May is already here. This year has flown by but we still have a lot going on in the library! Important Dates to Remember: Friday, May 10th: Last day to check out books. Tuesday, May 14th: MCPL will visit to talk about the Summer Reading Program. Friday, May 17th: All books due to the library. Monday, May 20th: Fines for missing books will be sent home. Last week of School - Summer reading logs sent home with students. I will be sending home reminder slips to any student who has a missing book so that you know what you are looking for. We will also be doing some activities in the library to sharpen our detective skills and make finding those missing books easier! Thank you to everyone who visited our Spring book fair! It was a great success. We were able to purchase 46 books for teachers’ classrooms with the proceeds from the Wheel of Prizes. All remaining “Sale” books were purchased to replenish the books for library rewards and incentives. 77 books were added to the library inventory for students to check out. With the remaining profits from the fair we had enough money to renew our membership in the BookBreak Author Consortium, which brought virtual author presentations to the students each month. I am excited to continue this experience for them. These experiences would not be possible without your help. Thank you for helping spread the love of reading to your children. Technology and Innovation: We are quickly wrapping up another exciting year in the innovation lab. Students continue to work on their projects in between all the excitement that the end of the year brings. We will be wrapping up the year with some final reflections and some goal-setting before we head off into the summer. As always, we are looking for cleaned recyclables like toilet paper rolls, egg cartons, cardboard, leftover arts and crafts supplies, and honestly whatever random things you may have lying around. If you are curious if we could use it, please email me. Thanks for another year of plentiful supplies and wonderful innovators! PE It has been a very good year and has gone by fast! Field Days are coming up quickly. K-4 field day will be on Friday May 17 at the Horizon soccer field. K-2nd grade will be on the field from approximately 9:15-11:45. 3rd-4th grade will be on the field from approximately 12:15-2:45. Some of the 6th grade students will be helping, but I will still be taking parent volunteers. If you would like to help, a sign-up will be coming very soon. 5th-6th grade Field Day will be on Monday May 20 at the SHS Field. We will be combining our field day with Maple and Eagle Heights. Half of the day will be a track meet, and half filled with field activities. From 9:40-11:10 5th grade will be doing track events and 6th grade will be doing field stations. From 11:40-1:10 6th grade will be doing their track events and 5th grade will be doing field stations. We will need volunteers for this as well. Anyone interested should look out for the sign-up that is coming out very soon.
Counselor Corner:
Counselor Corner
May, my my… This spring has come so fast. Around the testing there are so many fun things and celebrations happening between now and the end of the year. Spring can be a time for joy, renewal and growth.
Each day we turn the page and summer will be here before we know it. May is a month filled with testing, assessments, celebrations and closure. Classroom lessons last month were focused on resiliency, our brain, calming strategies and how to not stress on that big MAP test that was looming for 3rd through 6th graders. There are many mixed feelings around taking that test. I hope students came away with more tools to manage difficult situations they may experience in life.
Testing is a staple throughout all academic environments, like it or not. I thought an article that talks about the ‘why’ of standardized testing might be helpful to better understand the bigger picture.
Because of testing there are limited classroom lessons from the counselors. We are here supporting all of our students in other ways. School counselors wear many hats and they do look different at different times of the year. Please reach out if you have any questions or wonders about ANYTHING! We are helpers.
Ms. Pawlcyn
District Calendar 2023-2024
Mrs. Kristi Mellon
Horizon Elementary School Principal
Email: Mellonk@smithville.k12.mo.us
Website: https://www.smithvilleschooldistrict.net/o/he
Location: 695 South Commercial Avenue, Smithville, MO, USA
Phone: 816-532-4566
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hrznwarriors