S.O.A.R. Newsletter
March 28, 2008
by Debbie Fischgrabe
March 28, 2008
S.O.A.R. Program
Putnam Co. R-I School District
Newsletter – March 28, 2008
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS WEEK
I trust you all had an enjoyable Spring Break with your families. After third quarter Parent/Teacher conferences I hope each of you have a clear picture of your child’s academic accomplishments and any areas that may need additional work. The S.O.A.R. staff is dedicated to helping your children accomplish their academic goals. Please feel free to contact us if there are specific concerns or if you need additional information.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Miss Ferry will continue a unit on Photography for the 3-8th grade students next week. During their first class Miss Ferry taught them the basics of taking good pictures which included composition, focusing, capturing action and the rule of thirds. I’m sure the students will enjoy her presentation which will prepare them to be expert photographers.
April 2, Mrs. Kertz will conduct a cooking class for K-2nd graders. I’m sure this will be an educational and yummy activity!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
The Revolution Health website reminds us that cooking dinner sometimes might seem like drudgery to parents especially after a long day at work. They suggest that it would be best for us to look at this opportunity as a time when we can have quality family time with learning activities for our children.
The article continued by stating that most parents do not need to be convinced about the importance of family mealtime, they just need to find the extra preparation time that it takes to plan and prepare nutritious meals for their families.
Family mealtime should be an enjoyable experience for the whole family. There are many ways that parents can engage their children in planning out meal menus, working on recipes together so that the mealtime experience can be a positive and enjoyable experience for all.
Family mealtime is also a wonderful opportunity for parents to teach manners and the art of interactive conversation. Teaching children to stay seated, how to pass food items around the table, the use of napkins and not chewing with their mouths full is manners that others will certainly appreciate. Mealtime conversation is a wonderful opportunity to chat about the events that took place during your child’s day and a great time to share interesting stories with your children.
The older I get I realize more and more the importance of setting traditions and one of the easiest, yet most important, is finding time in our busy world to enjoy the family mealtime with our children. Yes, we all look forward to the big Thanksgiving or Christmas dinners with food galore and all of the relatives; however, the simple day to day time with our families will have a far greater impact on the lifelong lessons and traditions that we leave them with.
FINAL THOUGHTS
In case you can’t tell by the “fickled” weather that we have in northern Missouri, Spring has officially arrived, and along with it comes many more opportunities and activities that we can encourage our children to get involved in. Springtime activities do not need to cost a lot of money in order to be enjoyable. Blowing bubbles, flying kites, stargazing or dusting off the grill for hamburgers are activities that we all look forward to at the time of year. Outdoor activities seem to bring families together, and soon there will be baseball, softball and other team sports for our children to be involved in. Springtime activities are a wonderful way for us as parents to enjoy watching our children grow and mature. Have a great weekend.
Flying High
by Heidi Roemer
My kite darts high up in the sky;
I tightly hold the string.
Kites in flight are oh-so-nice
and one fun sign of Spring!
Ms. Debbie, Ms. LeAnn, Mr. Reed, Ms. Nellie and Ms. Elladean
