Sunset Express

Sunset Lake Elementary

Principal Amie McCaw

Together we are Building Leaders!

Email: amccaw@vicksburgschools.org
Website: Vicksburgcommunityschools.org
Location: 201 N Boulevard St, Vicksburg, MI, United States
Phone: (269)321-1500
Twitter: @TLIMPrincipal

Hello Sunset Lake Families,

I can't believe it's here, but we are officially into our Summer Break!

We have worked hard all year long and feel proud of the accomplishments our staff and students have made. We hope you have found our year focus on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People has brought some growth and independence for your child(ren). We do believe that we are here to teach the whole child and helping our students gain skills that will help them be successful citizens in the 21st Century is important to us.

We thank you for your support this year and we look forward to strengthening our school-home communication as we look towards next school year. We believe you are your child's first and most important teacher so our partnership means a lot to us.

Speaking of partnerships... we hope to be partners in your child's summer reading.

We have a big goal this year that ALL of our students spend time this summer...READING! Our SUMMER READING goal was kicked off with grade level assemblies and students selecting books to take home. We hope to have every child read through out the summer break and we encourage our students to find the JOY in reading. PLEASE take some time during this summer break to help your child read and explore their learning with books. We are not collecting reading logs or counting minutes---we just want our students to READ and ENJOY!

**Please be sure to use our I LOVE BOOKS bag to keep your child's books in one place and have your child return them in the fall. We hope to make this an annual event and recycling the books is important for us to sustain the program.

We thank you in advance for your support!

Yours in Learning,

Amie McCaw

Sunset Lake Elementary Principal

• August 30th Back to School Open House- 6-7pm
• September 5th- First Day of School 2017-2018

Our Kindergarten Enrollment is in full force. If you need to register or have any questions, please call our district's central office 21-1000.

Attention 5th grade families:

Mark your calendars! The Beginning Band meeting is on August 30 at 7pm in the Middle School Band room.

There is a multitude of research about the benefits of learning to play an instrument. To name a few it increases the capacity of memory, teaches time management and organizational skills, improves math and reading comprehension, fosters self expression and relieves stress, promotes social skills, reduces stage fright, and promotes happiness. Read more about the benefits of playing and instrument by following this link:

18 Benefits of Playing a Musical Instrument

Students who were not able to be fitted for instruments during school can be fitted on that evening. If you would like your student to be fitted sooner, please go to Meyer Music on Staduim Dr. in Kalamazoo. There is no fee to be fitted.

You can add band to your child's schedule any time by calling the Middle School office at 269.321.1350

If you have further questions about band, please contact Mrs. Stoll at 269.321.1354 or send her an email at pstoll@vicksburgschools.org.

http://www.theleaderinmeblog.org/?utm_campaign=EDUTLIM_NWS_EM_28042017_CommunityNewsletter_April&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

In order to help us better understand student behavior and the incidents of our building we have added a new student monitoring system called SWIS. SWIS stands for School Wide Information System. This will be a data warehouse for us to track and review our student incidents during each school day. We have changed from a detention form to a new record called Office Referral Form. This form is on a full pink page and has more items on it to track time, location and possible causes as well as the type of incident. If a child goes home with an Office Referral Form it needs to be signed by a parent and sent back the next day. As always many of the incidents will warrant a phone call home to let parents know that the form will be coming home for a signature and the consequence will be shared with the parents. Our data shows that this change will only affect about 20% of our student population; however, I wanted to inform all parents for a clear communication about our discipline tracking. Please do not hesitate to call Mrs. McCaw at 321-1550 if you have any questions.

Playground Safety & Broken Bones

Most parents and caregivers may not think of a playground as being a dangerous place for their children. However, last year more than 120 emergency room visits at Bronson Methodist Hospital were due to accidents that occurred on playground equipment. The majority of these injuries are due to falls. According to safekids.org, falls account for 75 percent of all playground-related injuries.

“Playground injuries range from scrapes and bruises to fractures, dislocations and concussions. We often begin to see more fractures of the forearm and around the elbow as the weather improves and more children are playing outside,” says Karen Bovid, MD, assistant professor in the department of orthopaedic surgery at Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, who serves as the pediatric orthopaedic surgeon for Bronson Children’s Hospital.

Below is some advice from Dr. Bovid and Safe Kids Worldwide:

Supervise children using playground equipment – According to safekids.org, lack of supervision is associated with about 45 percent of playground-related injuries.

· Teach children that pushing, shoving or crowding while on the playground can be dangerous.

· Check the playground and equipment for rusted or broken equipment and dangerous surfaces.

Make sure surfaces are safe –

· Avoid playgrounds with non-impact absorbing surfaces, such as asphalt, concrete, glass, dirt or gravel.

· Recommended surface materials include: sand, pea gravel, wood chips, mulch and shredded rubber.

· Surfacing should be at least 12 inches deep and extend at least six feet in all directions around stationary equipment. Depending on the height of the equipment, surfacing may need to extend farther than six feet.

· For swings, make sure that the surfacing extends, in the back and front, twice the height of the suspending bar. So if the top of the swing set is 10 feet high, the surfacing should extend 20 feet.

· Equipment should be dry to avoid slipping. Use caution as metal equipment can become very hot in direct sunlight.

“Encourage your kids to have fun safely outside and at the playground,” says Bovid. “Active play is a great way to build muscles, social relationships, and healthy habits for the future. Choose age appropriate activities and supervise your children while they play.”

Dress smart – Steer clear of loose clothing, scarves, necklaces and drawstrings. This apparel can easily get snagged on playground equipment, which can cause trips and falls. It’s also a choking and strangulation hazard. Choose supportive shoes that will stay on and protect your child’s feet.

Be cautious – “Avoid taking toddlers down the slide on an adult’s lap,” Bovid warns. “Tibia (shinbone) fractures frequently occur when the child’s foot gets caught or twisted during the ride.”

Set ground rules – Falls are the most common type of playground injury. Because of this, pushing, shoving or any type of physical contact can be dangerous when playing on playground equipment. Remind your child to be courteous and cautious.

Source: Safe Kids Worldwide. For more information visit safekids.org.

This article is brought to you by Bronson Children’s Hospital, southwest Michigan’s only children’s hospital. For more information about children’s health, visit bronsonhealth.com/children

We like to thank everyone that help out or contribute to the Walk a thon. We raised over $30,000 dollars for our school. Thanks to Mrs. G, who did such a great job with minute to win games.

Please be sure to check out our Sunset Lake Elementary PTSO Facebook Page. This is a great place for updates and the most recent news that affect our school. Here is the new web site for our PTSO.

http://sunsetlakeptso.weebly.com/