![page background](https://cdn.smore.com/_fr/handwritten04.4fddc70e.jpg)
![Logo](https://cdn.smore.com/u/thumbs/2aa2/thumb-73961897e63eea5a1924ee8936c31b42.jpeg)
Larson Elementary
News You Can Use for April 9, 2024
A Message from our Principal...
It's been a busy few months here at Larson as we transition from Winter to Spring. There are so many different things taking place this month! AK STAR testing starts April 10th ; please talk to your children about the importance of taking the tests seriously. We want to showcase how much each child has grown throughout the year and this test is one way to do that. On April 11th from 4:00-5:00pm we will have a Title I planning meeting in the library. It’s a time we get together to look at what we want to do next year regarding our Title I program. We have a number of field trips taking place over the next few weeks as well as concerts by our band and choir. Our FTA is planning a family dance in the gym on April 19th from 5:30-7:00pm; it will be a groovy time as we celebrate the 70’s. April 26th is our last professional development day for the year and there will be no school for students. We would love to have you volunteer at Larson. If you are interested, please reach out to the office and we will point you in the right direction.
Matt LaHue
Principal Larson Elementary
Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District
907-352-2300
State and District Testing Begins this Week!!
benefits students.
State Assessments
-AK Science Assessment; March 26th (Grade 5 Only) - COMPLETED!
-AK STAR Assessment; Apr 10th - 17th (Grades 3 to 5)
District Assessments
-MAP Tests; During the weeks of April 10th- April 17th (Grades K-2)
-Aimsweb - May 1st - 2nd (Grades K-3)
Spring 2023 AK Star Reports Available to Parents!
The results from the Spring 2023 AK STAR administration are now available for you to view in ParentVUE if your child tested in Mat-Su in spring 2023. Directions on how to view these reports are attached as well as the AK STAR Family Guide to Assessment Reports. If you child tested in another district in Alaska in spring 2023, you will need to contact the previous district for results.
Please review the attached AK STAR Results Flyer to see the timeline from the Department of Education and early Development to understand the delay in releasing these results. You may also view Commissioner Bishop’s short video on Adopting New AK STAR Cut Scores here.
Join us for Family Dance Night on Friday, April 19th!
Grab your bell bottoms and your tie dye and join us for our 2nd Annual Family Dance Night! We hope to see you at this fun-filled event!
Join us for Title I STEAM Night on Friday, May 10th!
Join us for a fun night filled with hands-on science, technology, engineering, art and math activities for students and families to complete together. Families will travel from classroom to classroom learning all about science. We hope you can make it to this fun event!
NO SCHOOL on Friday, April 26th!
There will be NO SCHOOL for students on Friday, April 26th due to a professional development day.
Dear Awesome Larson Families!
April is National Library Month and we are celebrating Library! Parents help your students celebrate by finding any long over-due or missing books. Our goal this year is to have all of our library accounts cleared so overdues don’t follow our 5th graders to middle school and so our younger students can have lots of practice so returning books becomes second nature. I will be sending out overdue notices as well as posting a short video on on-line access how to see what your child is missing. You’ll be able to find that on the Larson Library webpage next week!
Some important dates
May 6th is the last day for students to check out books for the year.
May 15th is the last day to turn in all books so I can prepare for this year’s inventory of the library
I will have Otter Pops for all students who have totally cleared records by May 16th and a pizza party for the first K-2 and 3-5 class to have turned in all their books! In the meantime, Keep Reading Eagles!
Sadly, we will not be having a Spring Book Fair this year. I’m negotiating with our representative for a Fall Fair. Stay tuned for further updates!
Chris Stegall
Larson Elementary Librarian
Important Library Dates!
May 6th: Last Day for Book Check Out
May 15th: Last Day to Turn in Library Books
Catch Spring Fever at Our End of the Year Concerts!
Catch Spring Fever at the Upcoming Spring Musical Performances!
4th/5th Grade Band and Choir Concert
When: Thursday, April 25th
Time: 6:00pm
Where: Larson Gymnasium
3rd-5th Grade Spring Concert:
When: Thursday, May 2nd
Time: 2:30pm
Where: Larson Gymnasium
Larson Places 3rd in Elementary Chess Tournament on 4/6/2024!
The Larson Chess Team came in third place in the MSBSD Elementary Chess Tournament held at Colony Middle School on Saturday, April 6th. Fifth grader, Gabriel C. placed 2nd in the district tournament. Great job, Gabe! Thank you to Mr. Hinds for all of his hard work and dedication to the Larson Chess Club.
Boundary Exemptions Available Through ParentVUE!
The Matanuska Susitna Borough School District is a district of choice with an “open enrollment” policy, which means that a school can accept boundary exemption requests from all MSBSD students who reside outside their boundaries, based on whether they have staffing and capacity. Since schools can receive over 200 boundary exemption requests each year, requests submitted before April 1st have the best chance of being accepted. However, students from out-of-boundary schools must provide their own transportation. If your student is currently attending Larson Elementary on a Boundary Exemption, a new online application must be completed for the 2024-2025 school year.
April 10th-17th- AK STAR 3rd - 5th Grade ELA and Math Testing
April 10th -17th - MAP Testing KG-2nd Grade
April 11th - Kindergarten Josh the Otter Water Safety Presentation at 2pm
April 17th - KG Zoo Field Trip
April 18th- Elementary Honor Music Festival - 9:30am–1:30pm - Palmer High School
April 19th- Family Teacher Association Spring Fling Dance 5:30pm-7pm
April 25th - 4th/5th Grade Band and Choir Concert at 6:00pm
May1st -2nd - AIMS Testing for KG-3rd Grade
May 2nd - 3rd Grade - Field Trip to Downtown Palmer
May 2nd - Grade 3-5 Spring Concert at 2:30pm
May 3rd- 5th Grade Field Trip
May 10th - Title I STEAM Night at Larson
May15th - Teeland Middle School Band/Choir Performance (9:30am - 10:00am)
May 15th - Kindergarten Bug Day!
May17th - 2nd Grade Field Trip to Reindeer Farm
May 17th - 5th Grade Lock -In Night at Larson
May 23rd- Field Day / Quarter 4 Ends / Last Day of School!