Our students continue to reach out to others. A number of our fifth grade students have recently been awarded grants from the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation’s Youth Council.  We were quite proud to receive a check in the amount of $700.00 from this organization which will fund the following student identified projects: Haisley First Aid, Project OHI, Non-Boring Board Games, Helping Hands for Haisley, The Boo-Boo Bandits, Operation Green Thumb and Art Supplies for Art. We thank fifth grade teachers, Maria DeRosia and Susan Haines for their efforts in our students’ receiving these important grants. There will be a district reception honoring all grant recipients later this spring and we are honored that due to our students’ strong interest in this program, Haisley was chosen to be the location of this special reception!

Additionally, when you are a Husky, you like to have fun while you are learning! Again, our fifth grade leaders entertained us, as our fifth grade band marched through our halls, under the direction of Band Teacher Doug Horn, in full Mardi Gras costume playing “When the Saints Go Marching In” on February 16, the official day of Mardi Gras this year. We look forward to our fifth grade orchestra performing for us during our upcoming Culture Day this week, under the direction of Orchestra Teacher, Linda Carter.

Speaking of Culture Day, by the time you read this, we will have all enjoyed this experience. Our students were able to view both live student performances and student media/technology projects. All of this, while they further investigated African themed artwork in our hallways. We pride ourselves in supporting our students as they demonstrate their learning in a variety of modes.  This freedom allows them to truly demonstrate their knowledge, as we know that all of our students are unique and benefit from varied strategies to meet their different styles of learning.

Our fourth graders learned further about different learning styles and how each of our unique needs may impact our learning. They accomplished this through their DAW (Disability Awareness Workshop). We thank parent leaders Martha Stange and Nancy Burns who coordinated numerous parent and community volunteers who made this experience possible for our fourth graders this week. These are the kinds of memories that remain with our students for years to come, as they help build increased understanding and tolerance for those who may face learning challenges on a daily basis.

Another recent experience included all of our Haisley Huskies. Maria Dismondy, local children’s author and educator, presented an assembly to both our (K-2) and (3-5) students. She did a wonderful job incorporating and connecting the skills of both reading and writing for our students. While our students truly enjoyed her presentation, their principal was quite proud, when the presenter Maria, exclaimed to yours truly, that in all of her years presenting, she had never seen such an engaged and respectful student audience!

Academic Strengths

We wish to welcome yet another pre-student teacher to our Haisley School family.  EMU student, Katelyn McInchak, has joined the classrooms of Kristi McKenna and Jenifer Elliott. Additionally, a number of Pioneer High School Health Science students are joining these classrooms and our OHI classroom taught by Jennifer Mallory. We are pleased that the general community is interested in learning more about the specialized instruction we offer here at Haisley. 

On another note, we also wish to welcome Ms. Claudia Tull, as our long-term substitute for Mr. Doug Horn, our fifth grade Band Teacher. Ms. Tull comes to us with over 30 years of experience as a Band Teacher.  As many of you, Mr. Horn needs to be at his wife’s side at this time, as she has just received a bone marrow transplant and is looking forward to healing with her husband’s support. We are proud of our Haisley family, who has supported the Horn family during these trying times. 

There are three important academic markers in the school year, when the academic achievement of our students is formally shared with our students’ families.  It is already that time of year when your child’s report card is being sent home, in the form of the March Report Card, which you will receive on March 15^th.  This report card informs you of your child’s current instructional reading level and the progress he/she is making toward reaching the end-of-year benchmarks in language arts and math. It is wise to know and understand where your child is currently reading. The K-2 report cards do include the specific reading level, however, the 3-5 report cards do not report the exact level.  I have asked our teachers to include your child’s reading level, within their helpful comments if in fact the child is not currently reading at or beyond the expected target. Please note the following reading benchmark targets for the March reporting period:

Kindergarten Level A

First Grade Level G

Second Grade Level L

Third Grade Level O

Fourth Grade Level Q

Fifth Grade Level S

Regarding the reporting of your child’s writing progress, please know that in the (K-2) Report Card, B-Beginning, D-Developing, and S-Secure at November, March and June intervals reflect writing progress.  Each child is unique and may master a specific outcome at a different time during the school year.  When a student masters the expected outcome, it will be marked S-Secure.  Students are expected to master the grade level outcomes by the end of the year.  Please notice the shaded boxes, which indicate the time of the year that the outcome will usually be assessed. In regards to the (3-5) Report Cards, progress in writing is reflected by B-Beginning, D-Developing and S-Secure in November, March and June.  These outcomes should also be secure by the June marking period.  If you have any questions regarding your child’s report card, please do not hesitate to ask your child’s teacher.  They stand ready to support both your child and you in identifying and understanding the specific areas of your child’s achievement.

We are happy to also share another way you can support your child’s achievement as they move towards in the 21^st century.  Ann Arbor Public School students “Type to Learn 4” accounts can now be accessed from home!  Families must have a computer, which meets the minimum requirements with an Internet connection and ability to load the “Type to Learn 4” software.  The software is free.  Student login information is available from our school media specialist, Kristin Stoops. The login allows your child to use the program. While there is not AAPS technical support for home computers, this remains a helpful resource.  Check out: http://www.aaps.k12.mi.us/ins.technology/type to learn, to better understand the process.

Important Reminders

We model for our children every day.  We appreciate your efforts to get our students to school on time, by 8:45 a.m.!  There are only a few students who continue to be challenged regarding their school arrival time.  It can embarrass them, as they enter the building, as they are required to sign in at the office.  Did you know that a student who is ten minutes late every day will miss 30 hours of instruction during the year?  It is also disruptive to the rest of the class when students enter late because teachers begin instruction at 8:48 a.m.  The student who is late also misses the information that the teacher shares at the beginning of the school day.  This information sets the tone for the day and helps to prepare the students for their daily schedule and expectations.  Promptness is an important life skill that can only be learned by consistent practice.  You will see below the actual number of instructional days a child loses by being tardy:

• Five min. a day = 3 days a year
• Fifteen min. a day = 9 days a year
• Thirty min. a day = 18 days a year
• Sixty min. a day = 36 days a year

As we think about our upcoming school year, it is very important that we have the most accurate information as possible. This is critical in the area of student counts per grade level.  While we hope to not lose any of our precious Haisley Huskies, if you will not be returning to Haisley in the fall, and have not already notified the school office, please do so as soon as possible.   If you know of families who are deciding to come to Haisley, please encourage them to contact me so we can talk with them about our program and answer any questions they may have on their mind.

Get ready for DOME Day on April 13^th!  Our supportive PTO has secured a very cool science experience for all of our students.  A large inflatable DOME will be blown up right here at Haisley, where grade levels of students will enter and be presented a lesson specific to their current Science studies.  We will have our own planetarium right here at Haisley on April 13^th!

Spring Break will be here before you know it. Break begins following the school day on Thursday April 1st and school resumes on Monday April 12^th.

Think Spring!