1.26.18

Hello Hoover Rockets,

On Monday and Wednesday, Mrs. Lipinski facilitated the Star Lab in the Multi-purpose room.  Each class in first through fourth grade had an opportunity to visit the Star Lab to learn about our galaxy.  This is a portable planetarium provided by Wayne County RESA.  Thank you Mrs. Lipinski for sharing your love for Science with our Hoover Rockets.

IREADY Diagnostic Window (1/29-2/16)
Students will be taking the Second Round of the I-READY Diagnostics in reading and math. Students will be taking these assessments on Chromebooks or in the Computer Lab between January 29th and February 16th. It is important for students to be in school during these dates so they can complete the assessments. Thanks for your support.

Reflections 

Congratulations to Corinne Christensen for her Reflections Entry.  Corrine represented Hoover Elementary at the January 11th district Reflections Celebration.  She won the Award of Excellence for Photography and the Merit Award for Literature and will be going to States.

Did you know that February 1 begins Kindergarten registration for the 2018-2019 school year? If you have a future kindergartner in your home or have neighbors who have a child who will be ready for Kindergarten, please pass the word to register early.  Registration information can be found at Kindergarten Registration.  The school district is offering this year a special Saturday registration as well at Riley Upper Elementary School.

We look forward to welcoming parents of incoming kindergarten students on March 7, 2018 at our Kindergarten Parent Information Night and incoming kindergarten students and their parents at our Kindergarten Roundup/Orientation on May 31, 2018. 

  

WINTER BLAST INFORMATION

Hoover’s Winter Blast is NEXT, February 2^nd from 6-8:30pm. We hope you will save the date for an evening of family fun. Activities will include, but not limited to:  carnival type games, food, and raffling off the themed baskets. Games will be open until 8:10pm to give your family time regroup and redeem their token punch cards for prizes in the token room before 8:30pm. 

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES: Winter Blast is a fantastic event and we would love you to join us. We are going to have so much fun! Please consider signing up for at least one, but not limited to one, shift to help out with this HUGE event for our Hoover Rockets.  They have so much fun and it is so great to see their smiling faces all night!

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0b44afa92ca4fb6-winter

**Also if you have older children (middle school aged or older) please consider sharing this information with them to earn volunteer credit for their organizations or just to return to their alma mater to help out!

ADVANCE TICKET SALES: A great way to avoid lines the night of Winter Blast is to buy advance tickets for food/games and also raffle tickets for the themed baskets. Advance ticket orders are due Wednesday, January 31st.

Raffle Basket Themes:

Neville: All About Girls

Poteracki: All About Boys

Hawker: Sweet and Salty Treats

Charochak: Family Game Night

Eckerle: Cooking

Flak: Money Tree

Skibinski: Snow Day

Moritz: Sundae Fixings

Cannell: Mexican Themed

Horgan: Gift Card

Peer: Arts and Crafts

Fortier: Mystery

Cowher: UofM and MSU

Lipinski: Made in Michigan

Janis: Tailgating Supplies

Mayne: Italian Themed

**PLEASE REMEMBER TO DONATE FAMILY FRIENDLY ITEMS. Alcohol is not to be included in the baskets.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at any time should you have questions or concerns. THANK YOU so much for your time and consideration in serving our AMAZING kiddos! They sure do appreciate your help!!!

Feb. 1                   Kindergarten Registration 2018/19, Nuts About Science
Feb. 2                   ACAT Applications Due
Feb. 2                  WINTERBLAST 6-8:30 p.m.
Feb. 6                   Hoover Highlights
Feb. 9                   Spirit Day Career Day
Feb. 12-16             Box Top Contest
Feb. 13                 PTA Meeting 6:00 p.m.
Feb. 13                 Family Fitness Night 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Feb. 14                 Count Day (A portion of our funding is based on our attendance on this day.
                             You can help Hoover by sending your Hoover Rockets to school today).
Feb. 19                No School Midwinter Break 
Feb. 28                1/2 Day Dismissal 12:10 Professional Development in the PM for staff
March 1               Book Bingo Night 6-7:00 p.m.
March 2               Spirit Day Book Character Day
March 7               KG Parent Information Night for new families
March 9              1/2 Day Dismissal 12:10 End of 2nd Trimester Work Day in the PM for staff
March 13             PTA Meeting 1:00 p.m.
March 16             Guest Reader Day
March 16             Report Cards Go Home
March 23             YMAD Project Due

1.20.18

Hello Hoover Rockets,

Eco-Action Assembly

On Wednesday, January 17th, our partnership with General Motors kicked off with an assembly.  The GM team helped our students learn the importance of recycling plastic water bottles.  The students learned how long it takes a plastic water bottle to decompose in a landfill (450-1000 years)!  We learned how we can measure the amount of bottles that we are recycling at Hoover and who will benefit from our efforts.  The sleeping bag coat is made from water bottles at a facility that employs homeless folks that live in a shelter. After they work for 4 weeks, they move out of the shelter. Our Hoover recycled water bottles will be keeping folks warm on these cold days. The General Motors team shared the use of recycled materials in automobiles.  We are excited to get our plastic water bottle recycling program underway.  Ask your Hoover Rocket how long it takes for a water bottle to decompose? Did you know that 152 GM facilities have a 0 waste program? That means they send nothing to the landfill. 70% of the water bottles used today are NOT recycled.  Out students learned that they can make a difference in any environment!

The sleeping bag coat is made from 31 recycled pastic water bottles.  

Here are the Internet links to videos and other educational resources that support the ideas from the GM Recycling Assembly.  Your Hoover Rocket might enjoy watching them again and sharing with you the importance of recycling. 

The amount of time it takes for trash to break down is staggering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS4VDu98Qa8

General Motors turns water bottles into car parts, air filters and coat insulation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqnBFQm0dTM

Plastics in the Ocean Infographic

by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Debris Program

https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/OR%26R_Plastic_In_the_Ocean_Infographic_FINAL.pdf

How Plastic Bottles Are Recycled Into Polyester – great overview of the entire process from National Geographic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyF9MxlcItw

Plastic to Polyester - How Our Recycled Fleece is Made by Craghoppers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQypFiOh5aI

Plastic Resin Identification Codes

http://www.plasticsrecycling.org/recycling-beyond-bottles/non-bottle-containers/remanufacturing

Material Decomposition – How Long it Takes for Trash to Decompose

https://www.saveonenergy.com/material-decomposition/

How Long Does it Take Plastic Bottles to Decompose?

https://www.postconsumers.com/2011/10/31/how-long-does-it-take-a-plastic-bottle-to-biodegrade/

and

http://www.waste2wear.com/single-post/2015/07/22/So-Long-Does-it-Really-Take-500-Years-for-Plastic-to-Disappear

What's an Engineer? Crash Course Kids #12.1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owHF9iLyxic

How Are Plastics Recycled – a well done and short video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apOgE88Q8fs

Did you know that while listening to your child read you can try some other options besides giving them the word or saying "sound it out"?

Instead of simply telling him to “sound it out,” try these tricks:

• Say nothing. Give him a chance to figure it out.
• Say, “Look at the picture.”
• Say, “Let’s get the first sound.” 
• Say, “What would make sense?” Even if he gets the wrong word, you can say “Yes, it’s a kind of house, but the author chose a different word. Look at the first letter and see if you can get it now.” 
• Say, “Chunk it.” Are there smaller words in the bigger ones (e.g., ‘going’ has the word ‘go’ in it)?
• Say, “Let’s reread.” Before you tell your child the word, see if he can re-read the sentence and get it with a “running start.”
• Say, “Close your eyes. Now look again.” Have him close his eyes, open them, and see if his brain can just “get” the word as a sight word, without trying to sound it out.
• Say, “Say it like a word.” Decoding will only take you so far. If you know how to make the sounds come together like a word you know, it makes reading so much easier. It’s not about saying the sounds faster; it’s about saying them like a word. Country can be sounded out as “cow-n-try” or “count” “try.” But if they “say it like a word,” they are more likely to get to country. You can use a slinky to help them literally “see” what it looks like when they say stretched out sounds. Have them collapse the slinky as they “say it like a word.”
• Skip the word and come back when they have the context of the sentence (be sure they do). 
• Look at word families. If your child knows ‘at’, they will more easily be able to identify ‘hat.’ 
• Get the main word first, then add on prefixes or suffixes. You can use your finger to cover up parts of the word while your child gets the main word. 
• Tell them the word. You do not want to hinder the comprehension of a story by belaboring a single word. Instead, give your child the word and have her re-read the sentence so that the word sticks in her mind for the next time she encounters it! 

If your child misreads a word:
Ask yourself:

• Does it matter? Saying ‘house’ instead of ‘home’ or misreading a character’s name won’t change the meaning of the story. Let it go. 

Tell her to:

• “Check it:” Does it look right, sound right, make sense? 
• “Make a picture in your head.” What word doesn’t fit?”
• “Flex it.” This is the way to tell your child to try the other sound the letter makes (e.g., long vs short a, or ‘j’ for g, as in giraffe).

Ask him:

• “Does it fit the picture/story?”
• “Does that sound like a word you know? Say it like a word.”
• “What is happening here and how does this sentence fit in?”

Taken from:  Comprehension and Decoding Strategies

Learn how to support your developing reader during this exciting learning period by Michelle Anthony.

Youth Making a Difference project applications are due next Friday, January 26^th. This is a program that encourages and recognizes volunteer efforts by K-12 students. The purpose of the campaign is simply to help reinforce the importance of volunteerism. Encouraging our children to give back to our community at a young age will improve the community and help promote a lifelong service ethic. Service projects that students completed over the SUMMER can also count towards this project. 

The forms stating the student’s projects need to be turned in by Friday, January 26th. The projects need to be completed and turned in to Hoover by Friday, March 23rd. We hope to see many Hoover Rockets at Franklin High School on April 24th from 6-8pm for the celebration!

WINTER BLAST

Hoover’s Winter Blast is right around the corner on Friday, February 2^nd from 6-8:30pm. We hope you will save the date for an evening of family fun. Activities will include, but not limited to:  carnival type games, food, and raffling off the themed baskets. Information about the baskets went home last week with your child via backpack mail.

Winter Blast is a fantastic event and we would love you to join us. We are going to have so much fun! Please consider signing up for at least one, but not limited to one, shift to help out with this HUGE event for our Hoover Rockets.  They have so much fun and it is so great to see their smiling faces all night!

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0b44afa92ca4fb6-winter

**Also if you have older children (middle school aged or older) please consider sharing this information with them to earn volunteer credit for their organizations or just to return to their alma matter to help out!

A great way to avoid lines the night of Winter Blast is to buy advance tickets for food/games and also raffle tickets for the themed baskets. Ticket information will go home via backpack mail the week of January 22^nd.

Please do not hesitate to contact us at any time should you have questions or concerns. THANK YOU so much for your time and consideration in serving our AMAZING kiddos! They sure do appreciate your help!!!

Science Fair

Does your child ever wonder how things work? Are they curious about the world around them? Here is an opportunity for your child to test their curiosity! Hoover Elementary is having our First Annual ALL School Science Fair on Thursday, April 26^th. We will celebrate this along with our school Art Fair and Ice Cream Social. This science fair is optional for all students, but we are hopeful that our AMAZING Hoover Rockets will be excited to take on this challenge. Your interest and encouragement will help to make this a valuable learning experience for your child. Families with multiple Hoover students are welcome to work on a Hoover Science Fair project together. Please watch for more details to come home in the coming weeks. 

Jan. 22                  Star Lab
Jan. 24                  Star Lab
Jan. 25                  Nuts About Science
Jan. 26                  YMAD Form Due
Jan. 26                  Skatenight
Jan. 26                  Vision Rescreening KG, 1st, 3rd
Feb. 1                   Kindergarten Registration 2018/19, Nuts About Science
Feb. 2                  ACAT Applications Due
Feb. 2                  WINTERBLAST 6-8:30 p.m.
Feb. 6                   Hoover Highlights
Feb. 9                   Spirit Day Career Day
Feb. 12-16            Box Top Contest
Feb. 13                 PTA Meeting 6:00 p.m.
Feb. 13                 Family Fitness Night 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Feb. 14                 Count Day (A portion of our funding is based on our attendance on this day.
                             You can help Hoover by sending your Hoover Rockets to school today).
Feb. 19                No School Midwinter Break 
Feb. 20-26           WIDA Testing for ELL Students
Feb. 28                1/2 Day Dismissal 12:10 Professional Development in the PM for staff
March 1               Book Bingo Night 6-7:00 p.m.
March 2               Spirit Day Book Character Day
March 7               KG Parent Information Night for new families
March 9              1/2 Day Dismissal 12:10 End of 2nd Trimester Work Day in the PM for staff
March 23             YMAD Project Due

1.12.18

Hello Hoover Rockets,

It was great to see all of our Hoover Rockets back in the hallways this week.  We are focusing on our literacy instruction and encouraging students to use their reading strategies.  While you are listening to your child read stop and ask them a couple questions.  For example you could ask:
*Who is the main character?
*What is the problem?
*What is the solution?
*What words would describe the main character?
*Give an example of an act of kindness or confidence from the book.
It is just as important for students to be able to comprehend or understand what they are reading as it is for them to decode the words.

Energy Audit
As part of our Eco-Action Efforts we are performing an energy audit at Hoover.  A group of four fourth graders began counting our light bulbs, appliances and energy usage this week.  We will be looking for areas where we can reduce our energy consumption.  DTE and Consumers Power will be coming later in the year to do an assembly with our fourth graders.  They will share tips that you can do at home to reduce your energy usage.  Each fourth grader will be receiving a home energy kit.

Mrs. Skibinskis class in PJs

Mrs. Lipinski's class in PJs.

Spirit Day PJ Day
Our students always enjoy wearing their pajamas to school.  Thanks for supporting our efforts to adopt an animal at the Detroit Zoo.





Vision Screening
Next week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday our Kindergarten, First and Third grade students will get their vision screened by the Wayne County Health Department.  If you child is absent they will rescreen on Friday, January 26th.  Parents will receive communication from the Heath Department if their child fails the screening.


January Climate Trait:  Confidence  On Monday, our students watched this short video explaining the meaning of Confidence.  Watch it with your Hoover Rocket and find out 3 tips to increase your confidence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_NYrWqUR40

Physical Education News

Some of the classes were able to go outside and Snow Shoe this week.  Mr. "O" shared that the students thought it would be just like walking.  They quickly realized that Snow Shoeing takes a lot of effort and energy.

Did you know you can help your child with their reading comprehension strategies by trying these ideas?

To facilitate comprehension/thinking strategies, have your child:

• Ask a question about what he has already read (to themselves, or to you).
• Infer what is going on or might happen, based on what they already know and what they have read. 
• Make a connection:
  • Make a text-to-text connection where he relates this book to another he has read.
  • Make a text-to-world connection where he relates the book to an experience going on in our world (e.g., truffula trees being chopped down and our own struggles with deforestation).
  • Make a text-to-self connection where he relates the book to himseld or an experience he has had (e.g., remembering a time he was not listened to, even when he knew better than the other person).
• Visualize: Encourage your child to create a mental image or play the scene like a movie in her head
• Evaluate: Determine the importance of characters, events, or details. 
• Synthesize information means taking information you learn along the way and combining it with the information you know. 
• Other tips:
  • Make a prediction.
  • Take the character’s perspective or relate to the character’s feeling.
  • Read it like a sentence. If your child reads haltingly, have them re-read the same sentence to get the fluency (and confidence!) aspect of reading. It’s hard to comprehend disjointed sentences. 

Taken from:  Comprehension and Decoding Strategies

Learn how to support your developing reader during this exciting learning period by Michelle Anthony.

PTA NEWS

Youth Making a Difference is a program that encourages and recognizes volunteer efforts by K-12 students. The purpose of the campaign is simply to help reinforce the importance of volunteerism. Encouraging our children to give back to our community at a young age will improve the community and help promote a lifelong service ethic. Service projects that students completed over the SUMMER can also count towards this project. 

Livonia PTSA Council will recognize the efforts of these students at the annual Youth Making a Difference celebration on April 24th. Some students have, among other things, visited senior citizens, helped collect money for the Livonia Goodfellows, raked leaves and picked up trash outside their schools or community, or packed meals for those in need. Volunteering is the perfect way for children to be welcomed as productive, active members of the community. 

The forms stating the student’s projects need to be turned in by Friday, January 26th. The projects need to be completed and turned in to Hoover by Friday, March 23rd. We hope to see many Hoover Rockets at Franklin High School on April 24th from 6-8pm for the celebration!

WINTER BLAST

Hoover’s Winter Blast is right around the corner on Friday, February 2^nd from 6-8:30pm. This is our biggest event of the year. We hope you will save the date for an evening of family fun. Activities will include, but not limited to:  carnival type games, food, and raffling off the themed baskets. Information about the baskets went home this week with your child via backpack mail. A great way to avoid lines the night of Winter Blast is to buy advance tickets for food/games and also raffle tickets for the themed baskets. Please look for more information to come home soon about Winter Blast and the opportunity to buy advance tickets.  

Nuts About Science

Registration for our 3^rd session of Nuts About Science is now open until January 22^nd. The session will start on February 8^th and last for 7 weeks. This is open to Hoover students in grades 1^st-4^th. Please visit www.nutsaboutscience.com for more information and to sign up for this great opportunity.

January FUNdraisers

January 23^rd Dining Event at California Pizza Kitchen.

January 26^th Skate Night at Riverside Arena from 6-8pm for a night of roller-skating.

**More details to come home as the dates approach. 

Jan. 15                 No School MLK
Jan. 16                  Hoover Highlights
Jan. 16-Jan. 18       Vision Screenings KG, 1st, 3rd
Jan. 18                  Lockdown Drill, Nuts About Science
Jan. 22                  Star Lab
Jan. 23                  California Pizza Kitchen FUNdraiser
Jan. 24                  Star Lab
Jan. 25                  Nuts About Science
Jan. 26                  YMAD Form Due
Jan. 26                  Skate night
Jan. 26                  Vision Rescreening KG, 1st, 3rd
Feb. 1                   Kindergarten Registration 2018/19, Nuts About Science
Feb. 2                   ACAT Applications Due
Feb. 2                  WINTERBLAST 6-8:30 p.m.
Feb. 6                   Hoover Highlights
Feb. 9                   Spirit Day Career Day
Feb. 12-16             Box Top Contest
Feb. 13                 PTA Meeting 6:00 p.m.
Feb. 13                 Family Fitness Night 7:00-8:00 p.m.
Feb. 19                No School Midwinter Break 

Mar. 23                YMAD Project Due