Shark Scoop
December 2023
Dear Naples Park Families,
December has arrived at Naples Park Elementary School. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and break. This month is once again filled with academic opportunities to shine, and a lot of fun in learning.
Academically, all grade levels will show off their reading success with our second iReady Diagnostic and PM2 assessments. These assessments help us see how our students are learning and how we are teaching. We are then able to tailor their learning moving forward to each student’s individual needs. It is important that each student tries their best ensuring our results are accurate, and any support from home, helping your child prepare for these assessments would be appreciated.
NPE’s annual Winter Wonderland/Breakfast with Santa leads the fun in learning events, coming up on Saturday, December 9th from 8am – 12pm. Our amazing PTO has transformed the school into a true Winter Wonderland in preparation for this celebration. I hope to see you here to enjoy the Magic of the Season, Shark style! We also have upcoming our annual Field Day on December 14th. We are excited for this season and look forward to seeing many of you on campus in the upcoming weeks.
As always, it is good to be at Naples Park Elementary School…Home of the Sharks.
Stephanie Jonas
Principal
Hello Amazing Families,
We will begin our second round of testing (mid-year) this week and testing will take place over the next two weeks before Winter Break. The two assessments students will be taking are the FAST State Assessment and the i-Ready Diagnostic Assessment. Naples Park Elementary will observe a closed campus on state and district testing days. Visitors and Volunteers will not be able to visit on these dates. This includes visiting your child for lunch. Thank you in advance for your cooperation and understanding.
Dates for Closed Campus: December 5th, 6th, 7th, 11th, 12th and 13th.
Testing Schedule
December 5th- KG, 1st and 2nd Grade FAST Reading
December 6th- 3rd, 4th and 5th Grade FAST Reading
December 7th- 1st and 2nd Grade i-Ready Diagnostic
December 11th- KG, 3rd, 4th and 5th Grade i-Ready Diagnostic
December 12th- KG, 1st and 2nd Grade FAST Math
December 13th- 3rd, 4th and 5th Grade FAST Math
On Testing Days:
1. Make sure your child is on time for school. They should be well rested and have eaten a good breakfast or arrive with time to eat breakfast at school. Testing starts promptly at 8:30am.
2. If your child is feeling ill, please keep him/her home.
3. It is important that all students be at school all day. Please avoid doctors appointments and picking up your child early on these days.
Below, you will find the letters that were sent home last week in your child's blue folder.
Thank you and as always, please reach out if you have any questions.
Mrs. Summers
NPE Winter Festival
NPE’s Winter Festival (featuring Breakfast with Santa) is finally here!! Saturday, December 9th, 2023 from 8:00am-12:00pm. Please come join us for breakfast, games, activities, crafts, and the big guy himself- SANTA! Pre-Sale for tickets is over. It will be $10.00 per person at the at door. Tickets for events are $1.00 each and ALL proceeds benefit the students at Naples Park Elementary School! Grade-level carnival games will help team funding. There will be a silent auction on baskets that each student grade level has put together among other baskets donated. Hope to see everyone and have lots of fun on Saturday December 9th!!!
It is important that students are at school, on time, every day! Every moment of learning is important to your child’s development and progress.
*Please note- If your child is absent for any reason, please call the front office at 377-7700 to let us know why your child is absent so we can properly notate that. In addition, all absences are unexcused unless a doctor’s note is provided. Per Florida Statute (1003.26(1)(b), students with 5 unexcused [or validated] absences within a calendar month, or 15 unexcused [or validated] within a 90 day period are considered truant and an attendance meeting may be scheduled with the school and district personnel.
To access and/or update emergency forms (emergency and health information) throughout the year, parents should login to the CCPS Portal to access FOCUS. This is very important as we need the most current and updated information every year. https://origin.collierschools.com/app/Portal
All volunteers, new and returning must reapply every year
o Apply to volunteer by clicking "Apply to Volunteer” - https://www.collierschools.com/volunteer
Contact Naples Park Elementary when you have completed your application
o Candace Johnson – johnsc10@collierschools.com, 377-7706
o Laura Serrano- serral1@collierschools.com, 377-7710
Please come to our front office to sign into our Volunteer Portal
o Please bring a valid US-issued photo identification which will complete your background check.
o Please visit our front office from 8:30am–10:00 am or by appointment.
I hope you had a relaxing Fall Break and a wonderful Thanksgiving. For many of us, these little breaks give us much needed time to spend with our families and friends. We would like to give a special THANK YOU to the Ladies of Charity for their generosity this holiday season. They donated a Thanksgiving Meal to some of our families at NPE. We are very grateful for their continued support and generosity.
The month of December always goes by quickly. Our 1st graders will be participating in the “Hands are for Helping Not Hurting” presentation. We will also be celebrating our Shark Leaders of the Month on December 15th. This month’s Character Traits are Hopefulness and Perseverance. I’m looking forward to a FINtastic month at NPE!
Thanks,
Candace Johnson
School Counselor
239-377-7706
Nurturing Reading at Home to Help Children Become Better Readers
Dear parents and guardians, as we embrace the holiday season, I would like to express my deep appreciation for the role you play in your children’s education. Thank you for your dedication and support. You are an integral part of our cohesive and warm school culture and community. I am fortunate to be at NPE, where your children fill our school with joy. They light up our days with their smiles, their ‘aha’ moments, their kindness, and their unique personalities.
I hope the break in our schedule will bring you well deserved opportunities to rest, explore, and spend valuable time with family and friends.
Reading Doesn’t Have to be a Chore or a Solo Activity
Everyday activities offer engaging opportunities for reading. Try incorporating reading into some fun activities.
For example:
- Visit local sites of interest, then read a book about area history to find out more. What additional information can your child learn about your town?
- Talk about foods you love. What would be fun to make? Let your child pick a recipe from a cookbook to follow together.
- Watch or play sports together. Then visit the library together to find books about famous athletes, statistics, and training tips.
- Go for a walk and bring a nature guide. How many flowers, animals, bugs, or trees can you both identify?
- Start a craft project that requires following instructions. Let your child read the directions and take charge of the craft.
Enjoy the adventures! Wishing you and your family a happy new year filled with hope, health, and happiness – along with a generous sprinkle of fun!
This month third graders are continuing their study of multiplication and reviewing addition and subtraction. A great place to practice facts with your child is in the car at a red light. They proudly enjoy showing you what they know! In Science they are learning about matter, its properties, and changes. In Social Studies we are focusing on Geography this month. Does your child know where the continents and oceans are? For reading we have concluded our study of dramas and plays, and we are now exploring the theme of Teamwork. Please ask your child questions about whichever library book they are reading or ask them to read aloud a page or two for you. During Winter Break please consider having a family DEAR time. Everyone in the family can Drop Everything And Read at the same time
The Fifth Graders are looking forward to our very busy month of events! This month we will be graduating from the LEAD program with Deputy Barraco. We will also be participating in the Panther ZooCon with the Naples Zoo. We are looking forward to learning more about animal adaptations in science and hearing from the zookeepers. In math, we are working on dividing multi-digit whole numbers using different strategies. In reading, we have been exploring different genres of stories and identifying relevant details that support the central idea. Fifth graders will also be taking their second iReady Diagnostic and Progress Monitoring Assessments. We can’t wait to see how much they have already grown this year!
Holiday Field Day Fun
Let’s celebrate the upcoming Holidays and Winter break with some physical activity and fun games. On Thursday, December 14th NPE will be having our annual Field Day. Field Day 2023 plans to be one of the best P.E. days of the school year! Students, please wear activity type clothing, tennis/athletic shoes (Please No Crocs or Sandals) and bring a water bottle so you can participate safely and have loads of fun!
Happy Holidays from your Related Arts Team!!!
If your child has a fever of 100.0 or higher, they are not permitted to return to school until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications (Tylenol/Motrin, etc.). In addition, please do not medicate your child for a fever and send them to school. If they are fever free, but have a runny nose they are permitted to come to school, but we ask that you encourage them to blow their nose, use good hand washing and drink lots of water! In addition, if your child has diarrhea or vomiting, please keep them home until these symptoms have resolved.
Happy Holidays Sharks!
Holiday Break is fast approaching. The Café staff wishes you all a very Blessed Holiday Season.
December 14th is our WINTER CELEBRATION! We will be serving sliced turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and fresh green beans with a special holiday dessert!
Should your little Shark have any special dietary needs, please contact me. The system must be marked accordingly to avoid any errors in service.
Should your Shark require a special dietary need, please contact me or Nurse Angela.
Lactose free milk is available.
FUN FACT:
Santa’s sleigh is the fastest vehicle ever
Santa’s sleigh is the fastest vehicle ever! On Christmas Eve, Santa has to travel around the world to deliver presents to all the children on the nice list. There about 2.5 billion children in the world – so Santa’s sleigh has to move at a speed of around 1,800 miles per second, wow!
Why are there 9 lights on a menorah?
As the story goes, one day's worth of oil miraculously lasted for eight days. That's why the Hanukkah menorah has nine candles: one for each of the eight days, and one to light the rest.
Rose Scarisbrick, NS Mgr
239-377-7712
