Longfellow Elementary School
Monthly Newsletter
February 2024
February Advice
February is one of the most important months in the school year. By this time, teachers have taught expectations and routines. They have reviewed the necessary skills from previous learning. Now, it is time to learn a great many new and exciting things. For the important learning to happen in the most effective way, we need our students to be at school every day. They should have enough rest to use their energy during important learning. That is why it is crucial for kids to have enough sleep at night. This is where we ask parents to help us by making sure our students go to bed early and get at least 8-10 hours of sleep. We appreciate your help in this important matter.
During the winter season, children spend much time indoors because of the cold temperatures and shortened daytime. Many children’s favorite activity has become screen time, but researchers noticed that technology habits impact their ability to learn. Studies show that when children have screen time limited to less than 2 hours a day, they perform better on cognitive tests. Here are some suggestions for a healthy screen diet for children:
• Decide on what you want to do before getting on technology
• Talk to children about the impact of technology use
• Create screen-free spaces and times
• Put your phone away while having a conversation with your child (These suggestions are from Mindful Schools).
Parent teacher conferences are coming up in February. This year we hold them on February 8 and February 20. It is always wonderful to connect with our parents and to share about their students’ strengths and areas for growth. Having clear and consistent communication is very important in our attempts to achieve success for each student. Please make every attempt to connect with your child’s teacher during our winter conferences. We need your support.
Longfellow Elementary School
February 2024
Important Announcements
Reminders
Breakfast begins at 7:30 am. Serving breakfast stops at 8 am. Please bring your child before 8 am for breakfast, so he/she can eat. Morning supervision starts at 7:50 am.
Please do not drop students off before 7:30 am. There are no adults in the building before this time. Please help us to keep our students safe.
Students will not have school on February 9 and February 12. Please make arrangements accordingly.
9th Street Parking
There are two parking spots in front of the Longfellow on 9th Street. These parking spots are most often used by our students who need mobility assistance for drop-off and pick-up. Please keep these parking spots open for our parents and families who need them most. This is even more true when we have snow and ice on sidewalks and streets.
Classroom Guidance with Mrs. Simmons
What is my child learning in Guidance?
Our students will be learning about recognizing and understanding feelings of self and others. We will show our students what specific feelings look like on faces and what feelings sound like with words. This is the beginning to understanding feelings in others. Classroom guidance lessons will then focus on understanding others’ perspectives and showing care and concern for each other. These skills help our students show empathy, which is the ability to recognize and understand the thoughts and feelings of another person. Understanding similarities and differences between their own feelings and other people’s feelings also helps children develop empathy. Empathy makes it possible for us to show kindness and compassion to others. One of our school rules is, “Practice Compassion”. As adults, it is important for us to model these skills when we interact with our children. I encourage parents to notice when their children are showing compassion at home and praise them for their efforts.
Kindly,
Mrs. Simmons – Longfellow School Counselor
Longfellow Elementary School
February 2024
Restaurant Night
Taco John's - Feb 26
Restaurant night is a monthly activity organized by the Longfellow Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). During the event, part of the income generated is donated back to Longfellow!
On February 26 Taco John's has agreed to partner with Longfellow to help raise funds from the hours of 5:00pm - 8:00pm.
Parent Teacher Conferences
Longfellow Parent Teacher Conferences are on February 8 and February 20 from 4:00pm-8:00pm. Please be in contact with your classroom teachers to set up times to meet. We are excited to share how well your children are doing at Longfellow!
Popcorn! February 16
Popcorn sales will continue on February 16. Our PTO has partnered with Russ's and helps organize this event as we raise additional funds for Longfellow, one quarter at a time! Students can buy a bag of popcorn by giving their teacher 25 cents and a completed form with their name. Letters and forms will go out in February 7th's Wednesday folder.
The next PTO meeting is February 6th at 6:00pm in the Longfellow Library
Longfellow Elementary School
February 2024
National Assessment of Educational Progress
Longfellow's 4th graders were selected to take NAEP, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, on February 13. The purpose of this assessment is to assess the educational achievement of U.S. Students and monitor changes in those achievements.
Student Council
Students in 3rd through 5th grade can serve on student council. Our student council members help fundraise, work on projects around the building, and represent their grade level peers. Our student council student members are: 3rd grade, Dalton Adam, Kamry Kuhlmann, Julia Boyd; 4th grade, Reggie Kenny, Peter Ratzlaff, Evelyn Bucknell; 5th grade, Stella Adam, Gerardo Medina, Talan Maggart, and Kendall Perez.
Quiz Bowl Participants
Our Quiz Bowl team has been practicing and is ready to compete! Quiz bowl is a team event where students need to answer questions as quickly as possible. Buzz in for the correct answer, but be sure to be correct or be penalized!
Our quiz bowl team participants are: 4th grade, Emma Buller, Roslyn Jones, Otto Kelley, Reggie Kenny, Peter Ratzlaff, Lincoln Welsch, Zach Zeisler; 5th grade, Stella Adam, Tantalus Carriker, Cooper Drake, Gavin Dye, Kennedy Kegley, Talan Maggart, and Gerardo Medina.
*Benjamin Franklin started the first lending library in 1731.
*Many early libraries were built with
an apartment on the top floor.
*The Lions outside most library doors
are named Patience and Fortitude.
Happy Birthday to these authors: *Jerry Spinelli born 1941
(Author of: Maniac Magee, Crash,
Loser, Jake and Lily)
*Judith Viorst
(Author of: Alexander and the
Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, If I
were in Charge of the World)
*Laura Ingalls Wilder 1867 (Little
House on the Prairie Series)
What are Chapter Books and how do I choose a series, or an author I might like? We have a section in our library that is labeled “Short Chapter Books.” These books are in baskets by the same author and are a series of books that children can begin with. They are usually under 100 pages! Great start!
We work hard to order books that students like to read. We have a “wish list” at our library to write down books that we want to add to our collection.
Longfellow Elementary School
November 2022
Longfellow Elementary School
February 2024
Additional Information
Every Wednesday students will be dismissed at 2:30 pm. Please make arrangements to have students picked up on time, as teachers will be participating in collaborative meetings.
Breakfast starts at 7:30 am. Students should enter the building through door number 5 (south side
on playground). Lunch and breakfast are no longer free for all students this school year. If you
believe you may qualify for free or reduced lunches, please fill out the request form immediately.
The form was mailed to families by the district office. If you need a new form, please call or stop by
our office. Longfellow's phone number is 402-461-7584.
We ask that you bring your child to school on time. Every morning students line up at their "paws"
and the playground staff members will begin morning supervision at 7:50 am. Please do not bring
your students directly into the building. If students' class has already gone in, your student must
enter the main doors (north side of building).
Please provide a doctor’s note every time your child stays at home sick.
A student handbook is available online or can be printed. Parents may request a paper copy. It is important to review this handbook with your child, so he/she is aware of school policies. Parents and students will sign the acknowledgement receipt that was sent in the mail to every student. If we haven’t received a signed receipt, we will continue sending a form in your student’s Wednesday folder. Please take time to read the handbook and sign the receipt with your student and return it to school.
Teachers will communicate with parents via communication app Remind. Principal’s emails are sent to parents once a week. The school newsletter is sent once a month. Our website will also help you stay informed about important events and information at Longfellow Elementary and Hastings Public Schools.
Parking is limited around Longfellow School. Please consider parking a block or two away and walk toward our building. We want to make sure that our children, staff, parents and community members feel safe at the drop off and pick up times. Please do not park in the parking lot of the dental office across from Longfellow School or in the parking lot of Mary Lanning Hospital.
Student Handbook QR
Longfellow Elementary School
February 2024
Breakfast and lunch menus can be found on our Longfellow page. https://hastingspublicschools.org/schools/longfellow-elementary/
