Wow, how the school year is flying by!  Third quarter is in the books and hopefully spring is on its way! I am really getting tired of hauling all my winter gear to school.

The classroom carnival will take place on April 11.  This is such a fun night!  Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend since I will be at my son’s lacrosse jamboree.  Since I am unable to be there, I am looking for volunteers who would be willing to work a carnival game.  Mrs. Martin’s class is in charge of the “Sucker Pull”.  It is a really easy one to manage.  30 minutes or a one-hour shift would work best.  Let me know if you are interested.  It is really fun to see all the kids.

The PTA is asking for donations for the baskets that are raffled off during the spring classroom carnival.  The profits of the baskets are split among the teachers who participate in the carnival. The first grade teachers use this money for field trips, classroom supplies, etc.  Last year I was able to buy cases for 3 classroom iPads. The first grade basket theme is Cat/Griz. If you would rather donate money and have the PTA do the shopping that is also an option.  Be sure to note that it is for the Classroom Carnival.  All items and/or money need to be in by Friday, April 6.  We appreciate your help.


From Mr. English

Hello Bitterroot Families,

It is springtime already and time to begin planning for next school year. If you have a kindergarten student starting in the fall it is time to get them registered with Christy in the main office. This year we were out of classrooms for kindergarten and had to send 18 students to Bench for their kindergarten year. We are still figuring out if we will have enough space for all our kindergartners here  next fall so please get them registered early to insure your place in the building here at Bitterroot.

If you would like to have input in the process we use to make classroom placements we need your letter by May 1st. A short note indicating the educationally significant reason(s) you are making a request for a particular teacher will be taken into consideration by the team making those decisions.

Spring testing is underway. Please encourage your students to do their best. Remember to ask them how they did, and encourage good brain performance with outdoor activities, a good night's rest and thoughtful nutrition.

Sixth graders moving to middle school must have their booster shots, and any records requested, (updated parenting plans, contact information, birth certificates etc.) to Christy before May 20th.  They will have orientation day at Castle Rock and class registration coming up in April and May.

Out of area attendance requests should also be in by the end of the school year. I will make decisions on those requests the second week of August.


Contact information for Bitterroot and Bench schools can be found below.

Please feel free to call if you need more information.


Sincerely,

John English
Principal
Bitterroot School
englishj@billingsschools.org
406-281-6205

We get to go to the new library!

Congratulations to Mrs. Strecker for winning the Q2 and First Interstate Bank's One Class at a Time grant.  Be sure to watch the Q2 news on Monday.  I think we might be on there too!  Mrs. Strecker is going to use her money for a field trip to the new library and she is taking all of the first graders!!!  We will send home permission slips and more information once we get it planned.  If you see Mrs. Strecker, be sure to congratulate her and tell her thanks!

We had a great week celebrating Dr. Seuss's birthday.  The kids were adorable in their costumes.  Look for the pictures on the blog.  

The read-a-thon came to end and I can't believe how much our school read.  The mystery of who stole the library books was solved.  Ask you child about it.   If you have sent back your read-a-thon pledges, please do so ASAP.  These funds help fund many of your PTA projects.  

There will not be a spelling test this week.  We will be working on the 25 high frequency words.  They are: the, of, and, a, to, is, in, you, that, it, he, for, was, on, are, as, with, his, they, at, be, this, from, I & have.

Make sure your kids look cute on Friday.  We have our class pictures!

Have a great week!

It's March already! Oh my!

Does anyone know where the month of February went? Wait, I think we were all out shoveling snow and trying to stay warm! I cannot believe it is already March.  We have one more month and another report card will be coming home.

A few things for next week...

I will be at a training all day Monday, March 3.  Mrs. P, will be our guest teacher.

The read-a-thon is over and we will be having the awards assembly on Friday.  We had quite a few pledges and some kiddos who put in some serious reading time! Please send your envelope to school with your pledges.  Thanks!

We will be celebrating Dr. Seuss' birthday with many fun activities, an all school drop everything and read time in the hallway, and a spirit day.  On Tuesday the students can dress as their favorite Seuss character.  For example, Fox in Socks-wear silly socks, The Cat in the Hat-wear a hat and/or red and white, The Lorax-wear a mustache.  On Wacky Wednesday, the entire school will spend 15 minutes reading silently in the hallway.  It should be a fun week.

In math, we are working on greater than, less than, and equal.  We also started adding 1 more, 1 less, 10 more and 10 less to any number less than 100.  In reading, we are focusing on fluency and being able to read sight words without sounding them out.  

I posted a Smilebox with some pictures from the 100th day of school.  It makes me laugh every time I watched it.  I was surprised at how many students actually dressed up.  Adorable!

Have a great week!  I can't wait for the warm weather.  

Wishing you well!