At the Creek.....

January 31st-Skiing in PE starts-see below

February 15th-Rabbit Creek Spelling Bee

February 17th-Winter Fun Night with our PTA-Information to follow

February 21-PTA meeting 7pm in library

March 8th-Science Fair-Packets coming out soon

March 9-19-Spring Break

Welcome back to school to all of our Rabbit Creek families! It's great to have everyone back in school as we begin our second semester.

We started our week with a "Restart" in classrooms and around the school. Teachers in every setting, our cafeteria manager, Mr. Short and myself all spent time with students reviewing our school wide expectations. Our Guidelines for Success are that students should "Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible and Be Friendly and Caring." We have specific behaviors throughout the school that explain what it looks like to behave in these manners within the setting. Grade bands met with me to review our playground rules and those riding the bus did so as well. We are looking to have a GREAT semester!!

I spoke with our PTA last week about student attendance and the importance of students being in school and wanted to share that same message with our families. We have had many days out of school this year due to weather and the last few due to COVID. Our staff is working very hard to support students in building skills that were missed for these reasons, with the foundational skills in elementary school being critical for success in the years that follow. Our district keeps data on the percentage of students who have ninety percent attendance within each month. Rabbit Creek's data fell throughout the first four months from 84% of our students with 90% or higher in August, to 77% in September, 64% in the month of October, to only 51% in November. We did raise back up to 77% of our students attending 90% of the days in December and hope to keep this high number as the year continues. As I reviewed report cards I saw many students who were noted to have grades that were impacted by missing assignments or skills missed due to high absenteeism. The sending home of school assignments doesn't provide the lessons needed for mastery of skills for success. We look forward to seeing all of our students a great deal in the months to come. We miss them when they're gone!

As you have surely heard, we need to make up three days of school due to those that were missed in December due to snow. We will begin adding 30 minutes to each school day starting on January 30th and will continue this schedule until March 9th. Busing will continue to be available during these days, with the arrival at home at the end of the day being 30-minutes later than the current time. Additionally, there will not be Parent Teacher Conferences in February as previously scheduled, with these and Friday, February 24th now becoming full instructional days. I anticipate more information on this topic to be shared at my meeting with the district team this coming week and will share anything learned with you.

This past week was a wonderful one at school. Students were smiling as they entered the building on Monday, with many doing so despite being tired. When I visited a first grade class and asked for thumbs up if they were excited to be back, one sweet girl raised two thumbs and had both arms straight up in the air. Students love school and it makes my heart happy to know that they spend their days with such a wonderful school team. We sure are lucky at Rabbit Creek!

Kristina Peterson

If you did not see your child's second quarter report card, please check your child's backpack, as they went home on Thursday. We started a new quarter on Monday and are looking forward to watching all of our students continue to grow and achieve! Families also have access to our Winter Benchmark data on the district's Parent Connect system. Be sure to reach out to teachers if you have any questions about either of these.

Have you noticed how cold it is outside? Pass the hat and mittens, please!

Anchorage School District Elementary guidelines state: All children are expected to have appropriate winter clothing to include warm headgear, insulated footgear, and gloves or mittens. Adding a face covering is an added bonus to help reduce frostnip to your child cheeks.

WHAT IS IT? Frostnip is a cold injury to the skin that happens when skin gets very cold—almost cold enough to freeze. The skin turns white, waxy looking, and feels firm to the touch. It starts as a white spot and is often seen on the cheeks, ears, nose and chin. It is very noticeable especially on the cheeks where an almost perfectly round white spot develops with an obvious ridge around the edge of the spot. The area might get a little puffy and the puffiness and ridge can remain even after the skin warms up and normal color returns.

Think of it like a minor sunburn. The skin needs to be protected until it has completely healed. Your child should wear a mask or scarf over the areas whenever s/he is out in the cold weather. If the area does get frost nipped, it needs to be rewarmed using warm hands or a warm (not hot) pack. The ears can be especially sensitive to rewarming causing a lot of pain and swelling. This usually heals quickly. However, if blisters develop, the skin turns black or blue, or the feeling does not return, then your child should be seen by your healthcare provider for evaluation.

Warm wishes sent your way,

Nurse Debbie

We are getting close to our cross country skiing and snowshoe unit in Physical Education class. We would like to start on Monday, January 31st with students in grades K-6 participating in cross country skiing. This will depend on the weather and snow conditions. Students will be skiing during their regular PE class and will ski either once a week or twice a week. When Mr. Pemble and Mr. Nees have a class at the same time, one class will ski and one class may snowshoe or do an alternate indoor activity.

Equipment:

We have skis/boots and snowshoes for all students at Rabbit Creek. If students want to bring their own equipment they may store it in their classroom or store it in the PE office and it should be clearly marked with their name. Skis are not allowed on the bus.

Clothing:

Students should be prepared to be outside for 30-40 minutes on the day their PE class is skiing or snowshoeing. They must have appropriate clothing: Jacket, hat, gloves and long socks are especially important. Short cotton socks/no socks equal cold feet and snow on the ankles.

Volunteers:

Yes, we need help. Especially with our younger grades (K-2) to get their ski boots picked out and tied and snowshoes fastened to boots. If you can help for the first 10 minutes of your son/daughters PE class please email me at: Pemble_dan@asdk12.org

Depending on the weather, it’s a good idea to check with me first to make sure plans haven’t changed.

---You would need to be vetted through ASD before coming into the school to volunteer---

Equipment Donations:

We are always wearing out equipment and could use new (your old) skis or ski boots with NNN bindings. The skis we use range in size from 100 to 200 and we use boots in all sizes.

Plan going forward:

January 23-27 Boot sizing and indoor ski lesson

January 30-February 3 Outside skiing or snowshoeing

February 6-10 Outside skiing or snowshoeing

February 13-17 Outside skiing or snowshoeing

February 21-24 No school on Monday: Skiing/Snowshoeing Tuesday through Friday

February 27-March 3 Optional / Make up week: inside or outside depending on weather

Everyone should have their gear and be ready to be outside any day for the remaining portion of 3rd quarter as we will take advantage of the snow conditions and weather.

Thank you,

Mr. Pemble and Mr. Nees

Hello Rabbit Creek Families,

Happy 2023! I hope you all had a wonderful time with friends and family during the past holiday season.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Jog-a-thon. Your prizes went home yesterday!

Remember there is no school on Martin Lurther King day on January 16th.

Please follow information from ASD regarding the addition of 30 minutes to the school day, beginning soon on January 30th.

Our community VP has been hard at work planning the next fun activity. The Winter Fun Day will be on February 17th from 5-7pm. There will be hot cocoa, cross country skis, sleds and fun outdoor activities planned. Remember this event is outside, so dress warm. If you are interested in helping with the event, please make sure you're vetted and reach out to PTA to sign up.

The Battle of the Books has begun and will be held early March. The Rabbit Creek Science Fair will be coming up in the beginning of March. So, start thinking about the fun experiments you could do for your Science Fair project this year, if you’re interested. I

I wanted to give a big thank you to Hilcorp for their generous donation to Rabbit Creek. We recently received a check that will go towards activities planned for Rabbit Creek students. Many corporations match volunteer hours and/or have grants in which employees of these companies can receive these benefits, giving back to the community. I encourage everyone to look into any potential benefits your company may offer.

You can still purchase memory books at ybpay.com with the Yearbook ID code of 13268823. The books are $20 each and parents can decide to personalize the book with their child’s school photo on the front, if they wish.

Please join us Tuesday, February 21st at 7pm in the RC library for our next PTA meeting. To stay up to date with current PTA issues and activities, refer to our PTA website www.rabbitcreekpta.org and our closed PTA Facebook group "Rabbit Creek Elementary PTA".

Your wonderful PTA President,

Kelly Joy Quisenberry President,

Rabbit Creek PTA president@rabbitcreekpta.org

The Anchorage School District observes Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a school holiday on Jan. 16, but his teachings and lessons are remembered and practiced throughout the year.

We encourage families, students, staff, and community members to share some kindness and service to others by posting photos on Twitter or Facebook using the hashtag #ASDKindnessCounts, because together, we can accomplish great things.

Here are some ideas to get started!

Community Activities

• Thank our first responders for their tireless efforts by writing a letter, dropping off cookies, etc.
• Send a card to a service member.
• Donate to the Food Bank of Alaska.
• Make a video of yourself reading a favorite children's book and share with a teacher for virtual story time.
• Make a donation to a charity.
• Make activity bags for families of deployed soldiers.
• Say thank you when you see a service member or first responder.
• Make a candy gram for your local police department.
• Pay it forward (e.g., pay for coffee for the person behind you).
• Help a friend study.
• Pick up litter in your neighborhood.
• Hold the door open for someone.
• Bake dessert for a neighbor.
• Volunteer to walk dogs at a local animal shelter.
• Compliment a friend.

Family/Home Activities

• Do a chore for someone without them knowing.
• Write down a sibling or parents best qualities on a sticky note and leave it on their bedroom door or mirror.
• Set the table for dinner.
• Record a video message to a faraway friend or family member.
• Virtually read a book to someone in your family living in a different house.
• Make a homemade gift for someone.
• Clean up your room without being asked.
• Send a letter to your grandparents.
• Collect spare change to donate to a charity.
• Donate outgrown clothes.
• Help a parent prepare dinner or dessert.
• Write a poem to share.
• Reach out to a friend you haven’t talked to in a while.

Educational Activities

• Read Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
• Read a book about Dr. King's life.
• Learn more about the Civil Rights Movement.
• Learn about MLK historical places of relevance.

The best school EVER!!!

Email: peterson_kristina@asdk12.org
Website: www.asdk12.org/rabbitcreek
Location: 13650 Lake Otis Parkway, Anchorage, AK, USA
Phone: (907) 742-5700