Mount Mahogany Rams
Mount Mahogany Elementary

Frequently Asked Questions and General InfoCurriculumClass SitesParentsPTAContact InformationAlpine DistrictPower School

 

March 2004 Newsletter

Principal's Message | Kindergarten | First Grade | Second Grade
Third Grade | Fourth Grade | Fifth Grade | Sixth Grade
Computer Lab

Principal's Message

There are three areas I would like to discuss with you this month.

First, I would like to inform you of a tool you might find helpful in giving your child extra practice in concepts they will be tested on at the end of the year. The state has complied questions similar with those used on the state core test and have made them available on a web site for students to use at home or at school. Questions are available to review language, math, and science concepts at each grade level. As a child attempts to answer the questions, they are given multiple tries if they answer incorrectly, and are provided with immediate feedback. The system is not perfect, but overall it can be very useful. 

The web site is http://tips.usoe.k12.ut.us and can be accessed from any computer with Internet capabilities.

Secondly, a reminder of our dress standards. With spring time and good weather approaching I would like to remind all students and parents of what appropriate dress should be for school. Clothing should be neat and in good repair and we would like all students to comply with the Alpine School District personal grooming standards. Students should wear appropriate footwear at all times. Clothing which is ragged, tattered, or deliberately distracting in appearance must be avoided. "Short" shorts, very short skirts, halters, spaghetti straps, halters, bare midriffs are not acceptable. Vulgar words, profane or obscene slogans and pictures or advertisements for alcohol, tobacco, and drugs on clothing will not be tolerated. Head wear should not be worn in the building. Students may wear ball caps outside during recess, during other outside activities and on certain school sponsored designated days. The bottom line is if an item of clothing is questionable before the student leaves home for school, it is probably going to be questionable when the student arrives.

Finally, a reminder to register for kindergarten. If you were unable to attend our kindergarten registration you can still come to the office and register for next year. You need to bring your child's birth certificate and immunization record. The student must be five years of age on or before September 1, 2004. We are trying to establish our kindergarten numbers for next year and we would appreciate it if you could register as soon as possible.

<back to top>

Kindergarten

Thanks to all those parents who went on our field trip to the Bean Museum. Although there were some last minute changes, it was a great success. This month we will be reaviewingn the alphabet and working on the short vowel sounds. We will also be working on addition and counting to 100. As always the Kindergarteners will be brushing up on their reading skills. It should be a great month.

<back to top>

First Grade

We will be having our last reading test this month. We are having fun singing songs about spring. Please keep reading with your child during the last two months of school. Wow, it's amazing to be able to say that! We appreciate the ongoing parent support we are still receiving. We will be going to the zoo on Friday, April 30th. There will be a note sent home later with details. Sometimes jackets are needed. Please watch the weather before sending kids to school and please help your student follow the s chool dress code for the rest of the school year.
Thanks again.
First Grade

<back to top>

Second Grade

The upcoming April events for second grade are as follows:

FARM FIELD TRIP
The second-grade children will visit Harward Farms in Springville on Wednesday, April 7. Utah State University Extension Service provides a farm tour that teaches the children about different types of farm animals and their purpose on the farm, what plants are raised on the farm and why, and how the farm serves society. Each class will need three parent volunteers. Please contact the room mother or your child's teacher if you would like to volunteer for this fun adventure. No young children are allowed on the field trip.

EASTER PARTY
Directly after the farm field trip on April 7, the children will celebrate the coming of the Easter bunny. On that day, please send with your child two decorated hard-boiled eggs to be used in the Easter egg hunt.

<back to top>

Third Grade

This month Mrs. Broughton's and Mrs. Rutland's classes went to Smith's in Orem and learned about healthy eating habits through the 5-A-Day program. They enjoyed a fun storytime at the Orem Library and a nice picnic lunch in the park with the beautiful spring weather.

We had a lot of fun with our storytelling festival this month. Each third grade class held their own festival where two winners were chosen. These 10 finalists went on to compete in the third grade competition. The top two third grade finalists then went on to the 1st-3rd grade school competition. We are proud to announce that the first and second place winners came from third grade! Kendrick Gines is our second place winner, and Melanie Andersen is our first place winner. She will go on to compete at the district level. Congragualtions students!

We celebrated St. Patrick's Day with a delicious baked potato bar. We really appreciate all of our students and parents who donated baked potatoes and toppings that made the potato bar so yummy.

Coming up this month we are planning to make Easter baskets. Each student needs to bring to school a 1 lb. washed cottage cheese or sour cream container.

Attention third graders, how many of you would like a free pass to Seven Peaks this summer? Here's your chance to earn one. All you have to do is read 250 pages during the month of April. Keep track of your pages on the reading log your teacher gives you, have your parent sign your log, and return it to your teacher. It's that easy. We hope to see many "Peak Readers" in third grade this year.

We hope everyone has a fun and safe Spring Break.

<back to top>

Fourth Grade

We are so happy it's Spring!! We're really enjoying the lovely weather and can hardly believe we have only two months of school left. We have a lot to accomplish, so we will continue to work hard and prepare for the end of the year testing.

Here are a few of the things we have been doing and learning this month. This month's reading genre has been fairy tales, fables, and tall tales. It's been fun reading these short folk tales. April's reading category is humor. (We can all use a little more humor in our lives.)

In math, we have been mulitplying and dividing larger numbers. We have learned many ways to solve multiplication and division problems.

All of the classes have now completed keyboarding practice. We feel our keyboarding skills have improved with the use of Alpha-Smart.

Music has been a lot of fun as we have been learning songs for our spring programs. Parents, circle your calendars for the Fourth Grade Utah Program to be held on April 20. We will soon be puttin gour Utah books together. They will include material we have been working on all year. Again, we would like to thank you, our parents, for your help, encouragement, and support. You make all the difference.

<back to top>

Fifth Grade

Fifth graders had a wonderful time at the Utah Symphony this past March. They viewed the orchestra as they listened to scores from Aaron Copeland and John Philip Sousa. Many of the students were awed by the brass, gold leaf, and oak interior. The six beautiful chandeliers with 18,000 beads of crystal also dazzled them.

Students have been encouraged to take part in dancing and singing positions for the Traveling Show. Mr. Spencer's class and the 5th grade classes are practicing 2-3 times a week at the day's end to learn the musical numbers. The show will have a "Broadway" and television theme while incorporating important historical events. We are still looking for parent volunteers to help with coaching narrators, assisting with costumes and props, and other tasks. The "big show" will be April 29th! Hope you can all come!

Fifth graders are encouraged to practice their times tables at home. Having knowledge of multiples (skip counting) and factor pairs really help students with fractions.

<back to top>

Sixth Grade

As this is being written the 6th grade class is having a wonderful World Fair. We've seen some of the best costumes ever and the displays are excellent. Congratulations to all the students and parents for all the hard work that's been done. As the year draws to a close it's time to turn our attention to end of year testing. 6th grade includes the Direct Writing Assessment. This is a persuasive paper where the students must take a stand on a position and defend it. We've been practicing all year. We encourage good rest, and good breakfasts on test days. We're in the middle of our second fraction unit in math. We've learned a lot about percents, decimals and fractions. Next time you take your student out to dinner let them figure out the tip. They're all experts now. In science we're studying microbes and other microscopic creatures, and as usual, read, read, read. Thanks for all you do.

<back to top>

Computer Lab

In April we will be sending home the Summer Vacation work books and software for you to look at. This is a great opportunity to get activities for your child to do during the summer. If you have any questions about it, please let me know.

<back to top>

 

Disclaimer: The availability of information from other organizations indirectly via this page does not constitute and endorsement by the Alpine School District. If you are concerned about the accuracy or appropriateness of any information, we recommend that you contact the original publisher or distributor of that information. You may also wish to review the Alpine School District Acceptable Use Policy.