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The Fillmore Flyer Volume 4, Issue 4 January 2013
Letter from the Principal…
MARK YOUR
CALENDAR FOR
THESE UPCOMING
EVENTS:
Jan 21 – No school MLK day
Jan 25th
WatchDOGS
“Donuts with Dads”
7:15-7:45 AM
Feb 4-8 IOWA
ASSESSMENT TESTING
Feb 12 – PTO meeting 6:30-
7:30 pm (childcare provided)
Fillmore Elementary School 7307 Pacific Street
Davenport, Iowa 52806 (563) 391-1740
Check us out on the web:
www.davenportschools.org.fillmore
Like us on Facebook!!
Students will take the Iowa Assessments (formerly known as Iowa
Test of Basic Skills –ITBS) the first and second weeks of
February. These are important assessments and give us good
information about how students are doing and how we are doing
as a school. I want to share two important ideas about the Iowa
Assessments – 1) they are just one piece of the puzzle of teaching
and learning and 2) how we prepare students for them.
We all know by now that Iowa Assessments are “high stakes.”
The results from these tests are used by the state and federal
government to determine whether we are a School in Need of
Assistance (SINA) and whether we are improving overall student
achievement (last year, while we were still a SINA school, we
saw a little bit of improvement). That’s important and we pay
attention to it, but Iowa Assessments are just one small part of the
puzzle of teaching and learning at Fillmore. We need information
more often and about more skills than Iowa Assessments offers.
We conduct multiple assessments through the year that provide
information more directly connected with what students know and
are able to do. The information from these assessments inform our day-to-day instruction.
There are several things we do to help your child get ready for Iowa Assessments. Here are two of them:
• Either Mrs. Dohrn or I will have a test talk with every 2nd-5th grade student this month to discuss
how they are doing in math, science and reading, the goals they have for themselves, and develop a plan
for reaching that goal. The student and we will sign off on that plan.
• We work from the idea that students who know how to read, do math, and do science well will
generally do well on Iowa Assessments. To that end, our teachers work hard every day to teach each child
as best they can, ensuring students know how to read, as well as do math and science well.
Elsewhere in this newsletter you will read about things your child and you can do to get ready for Iowa
Assessments. Please take a moment to read it. As always, if you have any questions, please call your
child’s teacher or me. Our number is 391-1740.
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Fillmore’s Anti-Bullying Rules:
1. We will not bully others.
2. We will help students who are bullied.
3. We will include others who are left out.
4. If we know someone is being bullied,
we will tell an adult at home and an adult
at school and expect them to do
something about it.
What’s new in Physical Education…
All grades will continue to work on exercise activities to help them with strengthening, flexibility and building cardiovascular endurance. Kindergarten-2nd grade is working on tumbling skills and grades 3rd-5th are finishing up our unit on basketball. Coming up soon, all grades will be working on jumping rope. Jump Rope for Heart is coming in mid Feb to beginning of March.
Mr. Miranda 391-1740
Like us on
Facebook!
February is National Children’s Dental Health
Month (NCDHM). Fillmore reminds parents that
they can help their children avoid cavities. A
balanced diet, limiting snacks, brushing and flossing each
day and regular dental check-ups are the keys to a lifetime
of healthy teeth and gums.
A HEALTHY SMILE? IT’S EASY TO FIND!
Please let the Nurse know if you need financial assistance
with Dental Care.
From the Nurse…
Does your student have an endangered species project to complete, need to make
a poster about a country or want a photo of George Washington?
Iowa Area Education Agencies are providing eleven dynamic online resources for
grades preK-6 to all Iowa accredited schools. Iowa students have access at school and at home (Internet access
required), 24 hours a day, seven days a week. These online resources give your child access to a wealth of
information for assignments, classroom projects, and personal interest.
Your student can access these online resources at www.iowaaeaonline.org using the following username and
password. Remember, the license for these resources limits use to school related activities.
Username: 1611files
Password: mbaea9
We are excited about the learning opportunities that access to these online resources will
provide students!
Please contact Mrs. Whitman at 391-1740 or [email protected] for additional information.
Order your 2012-13
year book now!
Cost - $7.50
Deadline for orders is
Thurs, February 7th
If paying by check, make it out to Fillmore School
Library News Mrs. Whitman Teacher Librarian
The football camp for Jan. 19th is now re-scheduled
for March 9 & 23 12-3:30 at North High School.
Attention Future Wildcats!
Thank you,
Nurse Susie
Please make sure you keep the
office updated with any changes
of phone numbers or address.
This is very important information
that we need to contact you about
your child.
Spotlight on Staff
Rachel Allbee
1st Grade Teacher
Room 6
Birthday: October 27th
Hometown: Eldridge, Iowa Although I graduated from North Scott I did
attend Davenport Schools (Garfield) until 5th grade.
What do you do at Fillmore, and how long have you been here? I teach
1st grade. This is my first year at Fillmore but 12th year teaching.
Tell us about your family/pets: My husband’s name is Worm. He got the
name the day he came home from the hospital because he was a squiggly
and wiggly like a worm! We have a daughter that is 17 months old named
Avid Rae. Avid after David (Worm’s real name) and Rae for Rachel, my
first name.
What do you like to do in your time off? Read, cook, spending time with
my family playing cards or games, watching my nephews wrestle or
playing baseball or my nieces playing soccer or softball.
What is your favorite food? Hot wings, pizza, or pasta - YUM!
Who is your role model? My mom, she is a strong woman that has always
been there for me. She is a great leader and has taught me many values that
I try to live daily. I still go to her for advice and love spending time with her
on our weekly visits.
Upcoming Public Forums on Proposed Budget Reductions
and Boundary Changes
The Davenport Community Schools is seeking public input on both proposed budget reductions and proposed
school boundary changes for the 2013-2014 school year.
We encourage parents and interested community members to attend any or all of these forums. The forums will provide an excellent opportunity to learn more about these proposals, ask questions, and offer input to the Superintendent and our Board Members.
The dates and locations of the public forums are listed below. Please also feel free to offer feedback via email at [email protected] . All emails received will be shared with the Superintendent and our Board Members.
Public Forum #1 Buffalo Elementary School cafeteria January 17 6-7:30 p.m.
Public Forum #2 Central High School auditorium January 22 6-7:30 p.m.
Public Forum #3 Harrison Elementary School cafeteria January 23 6-7:30 p.m.
Public Forum #4 North High School auditorium January 24 6-7:30 p.m.
Public Forum #5 Walcott Elementary/Intermediate cafeteria January 30 6-7:30 p.m.
Public Forum #6 West High School auditorium February 12 6-7:30 p.m.
Doing Spring Cleaning?
Get those closets cleaned
out and help Fillmore at the
same time!
When you donate your gently used
clothing, household items or furniture
to the Stuff Etc., store under the
Fillmore Elementary account, a
portion of the sale price of those items
will be given to Fillmore! This is an
ongoing PTO fundraiser.
Stuff, Etc.
3568 Brady Street
Davenport, Iowa
391-1000
No appointment is needed and your
donation is also tax deductible.
Put the test in perspective…Tell your student that the test is just one of
many ways the school evaluates student progress.
Reassure your student…Pre-test jitters are normal. They get the adrenaline flowing. Everyone gets a little nervous before a test.
Tell your child what to expect…Explain that even though some questions will be difficult and they won’t know all the answers. It’s important not to leave an answer blank. It’s better to take your best guess rather than leave a question blank.
Give them a head start…Help your student start test day well rested and with a healthy breakfast. Dressing in layers is a good idea since room temperatures can vary.
A positive attitude is contagious…Let your student know that you believe they will do their best. Keep the morning before the test as stress-free as possible. Help them get to school on time.
Listen carefully to all the directions and take a few deep breaths to relax before you start the test.
Don’t get distracted by what other students are doing. Some may finish early, others take longer. Focus on your own test.
Read the whole question and all the answers.
Do not make extra marks on the answer sheet.
Look for key words in the test directions and questions such as; choose, describe, compare, similar, except, not and but.
If you get stuck, move on. Try not to take too much time on one answer. Frequently, you can eliminate answers you know are wrong and then choose the one that is your best informed/educated answer from those that remain.
Be careful about filling in the answer sheet. If you skip a question, make sure you leave a blank on the matching number on the answer sheet. Check occasionally to be sure your answer sheet number matches the question number.
If you have time, you can go back and check your work.
In most cases your first choice is the best one. If you do go back and change an answer, be sure to erase completely.
Test Tips for Parents
Test Tips for Students
Iowa Assessment testing will be February 4th-8th!
1st Grade News HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Fillmore First graders have a great motivation for learning! Every week they get so excited about our weekly themes in our Treasures reading book and participate in great discussions! Watch for the weekly focus in reading. Wow! Our writing skills are really coming along! They are becoming great writers using the 4 square strategies and working hard to get two paragraphs in their writing each week. They are also getting better at starting each paragraph with a topic sentence and remembering to indent this first sentence. Be sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. We’ve had lots of sniffles, coughs, sore throats, and flu bugs going around. Please make sure your child brings a coat, gloves, a hat, and a scarf. If there is snow on the ground, please send them in boots and snow pants. You might want to consider sending an extra pair of socks in his/her backpack! An afternoon in wet socks is no fun. Keep practicing the spelling words each week and completing either the fluency page or comprehension page. These kids love to read! Mark these minutes on their reading calendars as well.
As always, please feel free to contact us! Thanks for supporting your child’s learning! Happy 2013!
Mrs. Allbee, Mrs. Cutkomp, Mrs. Burchard & Mrs. Wilske
Donuts with Dads!
Friday, January 25th
7:15 AM – 7:45 AM
Students may bring their Dad or other male role model with them and enjoy breakfast in the library and learn a fun math activity. Dads will have the opportunity to learn about WatchDOGS and sign up for a day on our Watch D.O.G.S. calendar.
Please contact our Family Involvement Liaison, Christina Taylor if you have any questions about this event 391-1740.
Here are some of Fillmore’s current
Watch D.O.G.S. with their students.
We have busy little artists at work in Room #36!
Kindergarten classes are learning about the artist Wassily Kandinsky who used circles and squares to create abstract artwork. The students are learning how to blend oil pastels to create their own masterpieces. In first grade, they too are blending oil pastels and learning about the pop artist Jim Dine, who in many of his works used hearts in his artwork. Second graders are learning to draw from still life. They are also learning about warm and cool colors as well as how to use watercolors. Third grade right now is all about color. We learned about color value and now are working with oil pastels and blending. The third grade started with making their own sketchbooks and practiced drawing from still life, modeling after the Vincent Van Gogh. I think they are amazing themselves on how well they can draw. Fourth graders just finished making cultural masks and they have them displayed in the school hallway, stop and look when you are here. Fourth graders are starting to learn about cartoons and comic strips, they will create and develop their own cartoon character and use it in a comic strip. Fifth graders are studying the elements of art and creating a drawing using perspective. The students are just starting to design a sculpture made from recycled materials for Village in Bloom. This is a festival of the arts for families. One sculpture per school will be on display as well as fun activities for the family. More information about the 5th graders sculpture and Village in Bloom will come in future newsletter. Many have been asking of items that the art room would /could use so I have come up with a short list of items that we could use for projects.
If you happen to have any of the following items and are willing to donate we would greatly appreciate it.
old or broken CD’s
buttons
yarn
sea shells
pine cone
Thank you in advance for your donations!
Art Room Happenings
Mrs. Lopez
Art Teacher
scrap pieces of wood
old / broken crayons paper plates
marbles
puzzle pieces
Birthday: May 15, 1980
Hometown: Cedar Rapids, Iowa
What do you do at Fillmore, and
how long have you been here? 1st grade teacher (1 year at Fillmore)
What do you enjoy most about working at Fillmore? I love that Fillmore school has a great
family atmosphere. I also love that the students love to be at Fillmore and that teachers help to
empower all children to make learning fun. Each and every person goes above and beyond their
call of duty at Fillmore.
Michele Wilske
1st Grade Teacher
Room 8
Spotlight on
Staff
Tell us about your family/pets: I am married and have two beautiful twin daughters. We also have two Jack Russell Terriers, Piper
and Pacey
What do you like to do in your time off? I love to spend time with my husband and daughters. We like to travel and spend time
with friends and family. I love to cook (but not bake!!!) and create things! I enjoy running, boating, and swimming! I love to do
almost anything outdoors in the summer!
What is your favorite food? I love Tacos and HOT WINGS
Who is your role model? I have many role models especially many teachers and friends who have impacted my life but my #1 role
model is MOM! I think that Oprah is pretty cool also!
