Husky Herald

It's December already! It is hard to believe that the school year is half over, and Christmas is just around the corner. Of course, there is a buzz of excitement throughout the building surrounding the upcoming winter break; however, please know that our Little Huskies are still hard at work! From the youngest to the oldest, Huskies are busy little people. Take a minute to check out what is going on across the building as students learn and grow.

Keep in mind that students will be dismissed at 11:30 am on December 20 to kick off winter break. Holidays will be December 23 - January 3, with Monday, January 6 being an eLearning Day for students in YSD 1. (This will make up for September 30 which was missed due to Hurrican Helene.) Students will bring home assignments on December 19 or 20 to complete on January 6. Please return the assignments with students as they return to school on January 7.

From our family to yours, Hunter Street wishes you a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year. Thank you for the opportunity to serve you and provide your child with the best education possible. May your holidays be filled with joy, laughter, and fun!

Morning drop off: Please be reminded that traffic should enter Hunter Street's campus via the Alexander Love Highway. The Hunter Street entrance is for buses and staff only. Please do not use the staff parking lot to bypass the car line in the mornings. This practice is causing safety issues and is not considerate of those who are following procedures. Please help us keep our traffic flowing as smoothly as possible and keep everyone safe during drop off.

Afternoon pick up: Please keep your car signs displayed in your window until you have your child in the car with you. There are several check points where staff need to see the child's name to assure he/she is waiting for you in the correct area when you stop. If you need additional car signs, please let us know. We will be happy to deliver to your car!

Congratulations to this month's Hunter's Heroes! In November, students were challenged to demonstrate ways in which Huskies are GRATEFUL. These students were selected as Hunter's Heros for being interested in learning new things. Each child was rewarded with a book from our vending machine! We are very proud of our Little Huskies!!

The word for December will be CHEERFUL. We can't wait to see how our boys and girls meet this challenge as they live the Husky Way!

Winter break is right around the corner, and holidays can get pretty hectic! Routines can fly out the window with celebrations, travel and out-of-town guests. As your family prepares for the holidays, use these tips for keeping kids engaged in learning and reading over winter break.

1. Read for fun! Whether your child is in the mood for holiday stories or the newest installment from a favorite series, winter break provides the perfect opportunity to set aside school books and read for fun. Make time for bedtime stories to create the routine and enjoy books on a daily basis.

2. Stock up on books at the local library. Help your child pick out books they’re interested in reading over the winter break. Libraries may also have fun, free holiday activities throughout the break.

3. Make the most of travel time. Turn travel time to or from a holiday get-together into an opportunity to practice reading. You can look for license plates from different states, try to find the alphabet on the license plates, or count the number of red (or white or green) cars you see. Read street signs and billboards you see along the way.

4. Create a new tradition. A little predictability is comforting for kids. Starting a special Winter Break Story Time can be a new tradition that links reading with happy memories. Hot cocoa and your favorite stories will have the whole family feeling comfy and cozy, while creating memories that will last a lifetime.

Remember, you don’t have to be an expert to help your child with reading. By simply interacting with children around books, you can show them that books are important and worthy of our attention.

It’s a winter wonderland in the art room!

First graders read The Mitten and have been busy creating their own. Students got to decorate with oil pastel, watercolor paint, add a bit of snow, and are looking forward to practicing some yarn lacing to finish up.

Second graders have been learning all about polar bears. Did you know their fur is actually clear rather than white? Did you know they also wear super colorful scarves? They do now! Students had a blast revealing their snowflake designs using an oil resist method. We can’t wait to finish these up after break.

What goes perfectly with chilly weather? Hot chocolate of course! Third grade has been busy creating mugs that literally pop out of the paper. They were sure to add lots of colorful patterns and designs. Later they will study the element of art, form, and turn their paintings into 3d masterpieces.

Fourth graders have been working hard creating landscapes inspired by artist Jen Aryani. This awesome artist creates her landscapes in unusual shapes such as triangles, diamonds, jars, and even bottles. Students enjoyed getting to choose the shape for their artwork and then having the freedom to add whatever they liked as long as the main focus of the piece was nature.

September is Attendance Awareness Month, a nationwide recognition of the connection between regular school attendance and academic achievement. Did you know that starting as early as preschool and kindergarten, regular attendance is essential for students gaining the academic and social skills they need to thrive? Research shows that when students are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of the school year or 18 days over an entire school year), they are less likely to read proficiently by third grade, achieve in middle school, and graduate from high school.

Let's take a look at what happens when students miss one day of school at Hunter Street:

• Socially: They are truly missed! Staff and fellow classmates notice when your child is not at school. We take a personal interest in the well-being of our students. We want them here so that they can learn the social skills, along with the academic skills, that lead to productive lives. Practicing those skills begins early.
• Academically: In the typical school day, a student receives between 90 and 120 minutes of language arts instruction, 60-75 minutes of math instruction, and 30-45 minutes of science and social studies instruction. Students miss out on discussion, collaboration with peers, and assistance from their teacher; all of which are so crucial for a deep understanding and application of skills. When they come back the next day, they have a gap in their learning and are not ready to move to the next step with their classmates.

Is there a time you should keep your child at home? Absolutely! When your child is sick, we certainly do not expect him/her to come to school. To read more about when you should keep your child at home, take a look at page 17 of Hunter Street's Parent Handbook. We also have a full-time nurse on staff. She will be able to help you if you have questions.

Your child will be the most successful when we work together. Please help us by insuring your child attends school regularly, and we will deliver the best possible instruction while he/she is here! Three things to keep in mind:

• Even if the absence is "excused," your child still missed the instruction.
• Even if the absence is "excused," the days count toward "chronic absenteeism".
• Chronic absenteeism is tracked by the state.

Chronic absenteeism is legally defined as "any students who misses 50% or more of the instructional day for any reason for 10% of the enrollment period." For elementary students, that equates to being absent for 18 days - whether excused or not - during the school year. Again, all absence types contribute to this number - excused, unexcused, suspensions, tardy arrivals, and early dismissals.

Another consideration with absences is whether they meet the threshold of truancy, which then becomes a legal matter. Truancy is defined as "a student between the ages of 6-17 who has accumulated 3 consecutive or a total of 5 or more unexcused/unlawful absences during the academic year. Continued unexcused absences after the truancy intervention process begins may result in referral to family court and/or the involvement of the Department of Social Services."

We understand that circumstances at times can be challenging. If you are in need of some assistance, please reach out. It is our desire to work with you and help you if you are in need. We have access to resources that may be able to provide support for you and your family.

Bottom line: We want and need your child at school each and every day!

When your child must be absent, you have a maximum of 3 days to send an excuse. Excuses may be sent to the teacher, or you may click the button below for our convenient online form. Please note that per YSD 1 policy, excuses will no longer be accepted after the 3-days.

Lawton/Lemmons and Root/Anderson 4K classes participated in sorting activities. Students learned to sort based on size, shape, color, or other classification (animal, insect, etc). Sorting activities help our students understand how to put items into groups based on certian attributes. Our students will move on to learning about patterns. Focusing on sorting first helps students see similarities and differences between items, which allows them to understand the repitition of patterns later.

Montessori spent the month of November studying different ways to show gratitude. We started with our Earth and explored all of the different parts of North America. We learned about the Pilgrims and Native Americans and how they worked together to help each other. We even shared a salad bar together that we planted, grew, and harvested on our own! “The children of today will make all the discoveries of tomorrow. All the discoveries of mankind will be known to them and they will improve what has been done and make fresh discoveries. They must make all the improvements in houses, cities, communication, methods of production, etc. that are to be made. The future generation must not only know how to do what we can teach them, they must be able to go a step further.” -Maria Montessori

Our Kindergarten students have been learning about “then and now” by comparing the first Macy’s Parade to the Macy’s Parade we watch today. Students rotated among the three kindergarten classrooms to participate in various activities such as: creating a Cityscape, learning how the artists design and create the balloons, and coding robots to move along the parade route. Afterwards, students were able to design their own balloons and bring their creations to life using a variety of art materials. This was a great learning experience, and a fun time was had by all!

The Fabulous Firsties of Hunter Street Elementary School had an amazing time during the month of November. We started by participating in the voting process. Then, we celebrated our United States Veterans. During the career fair we learned about multiple opportunities for employment in the future. Collaborating using 3D shapes continued to expand our minds in the world of architecture. As we said goodbye to November, we did so with grateful hearts enjoying a yummy, "Friendsgiving."

2nd grade has been focusing on building our vocabulary! After studying our Power Words, groups took turns putting our Power Words into sentences to enhance understanding and practice using strong vocabulary in the correct context. After every group had a chance to create a sentence, students took a learning walk around the room to see how other students used our words.

In November, YSD1's elementary MERIT students embarked on an exciting field trip to The Schiele Museum of Natural History, where they engaged in a variety of enriching activities. Students had the opportunity to enhance their scientific skills by using dichotomous keys and keen observation to identify Piedmont mammals through skull examinations. The adventure continued with a captivating planetarium show that expanded their cosmic knowledge. Students also delved into the rich culture of the Catawba Nation through interactive classes and demonstrations, gaining valuable insights into local history. This field trip provided an exceptional hands-on learning experience, allowing our MERIT students to explore and engage with subjects beyond the traditional classroom setting. Thank you to all the chaperones who volunteered their time to help on the trip—we couldn’t do it without you!

Fourth graders have been busy as always putting science into action! A couple of weeks ago, students learned about pollution as well as using nonrenewable and renewable resources wisely. One activity involved dropping feathers into an oil spill and trying various items to clean up the spill as well as attempting to clean the feathers. We learned such incidents have a big impact on the environment. More recently, we learned about different modes of information transfer, such as Morse code, binary code, QR codes, barcodes, etc. Students enjoyed fun choice boards that included making name art, making bracelets, solving riddles, and labeling room items using some of these information systems! “To understand science is to experience it.”

December 2-6

PTO Hunter's Holiday Shop

December 6

Holiday Pictures

December 12

Music Program - "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" - 6:00 pm in the cafeteria

December 19

Class Holiday Parties

December 20

Students dismissed at 11:30

December 23 - January 3

Winter Break

January 6

eLearning Day for Students - make up for Sept. 30

January 7

Students return to school