EARLY RELEASE!!!
June 2 – 12:35 p.m.
All Students
May/June 2015
Lynch Pride Newsletter
Johnnie Crawford III, Principal
Julie Jones, Assistant Principal
Lynch Elementary School
www.pcsb.org/lynch-es
1901 71st Street North, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
Phone 727-570-3170
The Mission of Lynch Elementary School Community is to prepare every student for college, career and citizenship by
providing quality educational experiences and integrating literacy through all disciplines.
Vision: 100% Student Success
Welcome to Lynch Elementary School
Assistant Principal
Johnnie Crawford III, Principal
Julie Jones, Assistant Principal
Greetings Parents & Guardians,
It has been another great year at Lynch Elementary - full of
fun, activities, challenges, and growth. The academic year
has flown by but the learning continues. To ensure a strong
finish I want to encourage every student to be here every day
for the rest of the year. Traditionally, school attendance
declines from 98% early in the school year to 95% by the end
of the school year. This year we want to finish strong, exceed
the district goal of 95%, and maintain our student attendance
at 97%. So please make sure your student is here every day.
Wow! I can’t believe we are at the end of another school
year. We have worked so hard this year and the students have
grown so much.
I remember when our in-coming kindergarten students were
excited about learning their letters and now they are excited
about reading books. Our older students were wondering
what this new state test would be like and now they’ve taken
the FSA and thought, “why were we worried?”
Our work is not finished though. We urge you to continue the
learning over the summer through Summer Bridge, reading
calendars (coming your way), taking opportunities to talk to
your children and go places you haven’t gone before.
Building background and experiences is such an asset to the
development of a child.
Conversations are key! Does your 5th grader
know the different fruits that are in the produce
aisle? Trust me, I’ve seen some that I’m not
quite sure about. How about a visit to the local
library? If you visit the beach, talk about the waves and how
the moon affects the tides. What’s in your backyard? Science,
that’s what. Try talking in the car instead of playing
music…my children hated it at first, but sometimes we have
the best conversations and see so much more.
Enjoy your summer, enjoy your children and we’ll see you
all either at Summer Bridge, or in August. Good luck to our
5th graders -- you are more than prepared for 6th grade.
I want to make a special appeal for parents to join our School
Advisory Council (SAC). This year we fully implemented
our modified closed campus. Next year we will continue to
monitor school achievement, develop a school-wide Health
& Wellness and Environmental Sciences Focus and increase
parent involvement. We need your input and support to make
all of this happen. If you are interested, please contact me at
727-570-3170 or crawfordjo@pcsb.org.
I would like to take this opportunity to say “well done” to all
of our students. They have worked very hard throughout the
year. They have tried to do their best at all times and have
impressed teachers and parents alike with their efforts and
achievements. We are all very proud of them and look
forward to even greater accomplishments next year.
Thank you to our parents, families and partners for your
support to the school over the year. We are blessed with a
caring and supportive community that is willing to partner
with us to help us realize the educational goals we have for
all children. We really appreciate such a positive partnership
between home, school, and the entire community.
Thank you to our wonderful teachers for the stimulating
learning opportunities you have presented to our children and
for the individual care you have taken with each child in your
class. Thank you to our entire staff for your hard work and
dedication – a school cannot operate without everyone doing
their part. As I always say, “It’s better together”.
Thank you to all our staff members who are retiring: Sandra
Kravitz, EBD/STEPS teacher, who has been at Lynch for 27
1/2 years with a total of 37 1/2 years of service to children, and
Mary Baker, 2nd grade teacher, who has been at Lynch for 10
years and 33 years of service to children. We wish each of
you the very best as you begin a new journey in life and truly
appreciate your years of dedicated service.
Best wishes for the parents and children leaving us. We have
loved having each and every one of you at Lynch Elementary
and I hope that you all leave our school with fond memories.
Finally, I want to thank the entire Lynch Pride for making
this year a blessing and an honor.
Have a safe, fun and productive summer.
PE News
Margie Werly, Melissa Doyle,
Beth Cadmus, Robert Bates, PE Coaches
It's okay to have fun in the sun, but remember to apply
sunscreen. The Center for Disease Control recommends
applying sunscreen 30 minutes before being in the sun and
reapplying sunscreen after swimming or sweating. An SPF
(sun protection factor) of 15 or higher is recommended. Visit
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/sun-safety.htm for
more information. Have a safe and fun summer!!
Fling News
Jennifer Bigler, Heidi Colbeck, Co-Chairpersons
Join us for our annual Spring Fling Thursday, May 21, from
5:00-7:00 p.m. The 4th and 5th grade chorus concert will kick
off this event at 5:00 p.m. in the cafeteria. The Melting Pot
activities will follow and will showcase activities around
campus highlighting Lynch families’ many different cultures.
Teachers and students are excited to share what they have
learned about people from around the world. Please come
and join the fun!
Thanks a billion ~ Target Campaign
Visit: https://thanksabillion.target.com/
Say thanks to a Lynch teacher and Target will donate $25 to
our school! Your message
will help Target reach their
goal of giving $1 billion to
education. How to Participate:
Visit www.Target.com/ThanksABillion and log in using your
Facebook account. Follow the links and instructions to select
a K-12 school from the provided list of eligible schools and
create and submit a thank you message to a teacher at your
selected school. The Sponsor will donate $25 to the school
selected by the participant for each eligible message
submitted, up to $25,000 per School. Donations will be
fulfilled to each School in the form of a check mailed to the
school approximately 4-6 weeks after the end of the
promotion.
The School Board of Pinellas County, Florida, prohibits any and all forms of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, sex, religion,
national origin, marital status, age, sexual orientation or disability in any of its programs, services or activities. www.pinellas.k12.fl.us
News from the Art Room
Scholastic Book Fair – Under the Sea
Esta Levine, Art Educator
Sherri Magill, Library Information Specialist
Excitement is building at Lynch Elementary as we prepare
for our annual Spring Fling/Melting Pot event coming
Thursday, May 21, from 5-7 p.m. One of the highlights of
this event is the Art Show that will be on display in the Art
room. Every student in the school will be represented in this
art show. You don’t want to miss it!!!
Additionally, Lynch Elementary has the pleasure of honoring
the following 10 students, whose art will be on exhibit at the
Pinellas County Schools Administration Building:
Kindergarten- Sharelle Jenkins, Rada Petrovic-Todic
Grade 1- Arianna Calef, Bryanna Wathen
Grade 2- Mikenna Bertholomey, Christina Luu
Grade 3- June Drees, Emilee Traina
Grade 4- Linoshka Suarez and Noah Wargo
A reception will be held for the opening in October, 2015.
These artworks will be on display for the school year 201516. More information will be available at the start of the new
school year.
Thank you for your support. Have a wonderful summer!
The Book Fair will be open during Spring
Fling. Supporting the Book Fair is a great
way to model to your child that reading
matters and you are supporting your school at
the same time! This year you can shop online at:
Title I News
Denise Malone, MTSS Coach
View our School, District and State Accountability Report on
our Title 1 page from the Lynch website, or from this link:
http://bookfairs.scholastic.com/homepage/lynchelementaryschool
Books will be delivered to your child in his/her classroom
before the end of the school year. You can even thank your
student’s teacher by sending a book or two
their way! What a nice and easy way to say
thank you to your child’s teacher.
DVD Reflection of the 2014-2015 School Year
For the first time, Lynch will be offering parents, students,
and teachers a DVD that highlights special school events
from the 2014-2015 school year. It will
include such memorable videos as Enterprise
Village, the Skating Party, Spring Jam, the
Walk-a-Thon, our Winter Holiday Program,
and much more. You can pick up one up at
our Spring Fling, or the Fifth Grade
Graduation. There will be a limited number
available on a first come basis by making a donation to our
technology fund.
http://doewebprd.doe.state.fl.us/eds/nclbspar/year1314/nclb1314.cfm?dist_schl=52_1421
What can families do to keep children reading during the
summer?
Some suggestions from RIF (Reading is Fundamental)
Combine activities with books- summer leaves lots of time
for kids to enjoy fun activities, such as going to the park,
seeing a movie, or going to the beach. Why not also
encourage them to read a book about the activity? If you're
going to a baseball game, suggest that your child read a book
about a favorite player beforehand. In the car or over a hot
dog, you'll have lots of time to talk about the book and the
game.
Visit the library- If your
child doesn't have a library
card, summer is a great time to
sign up for one. In addition to a wide selection of books to
borrow, many libraries have fun, child-friendly summer
reading programs.
Help kids find time to read- summer camp, music lessons,
baseball games, and videos are all fun things kids like to do
during the summer. However, by the end of the day, children
may be too tired to pick up a book. When planning your
summer activities with children remember to leave some time
in the schedule for reading. Some convenient times may be
before bedtime or over breakfast.
Have plenty of reading material aroundStorybooks aren't the only thing that kids can
read for fun. Be sure to have newspapers,
magazines, and informational material
on hand that might spark the interest
of a young reader.
Use books to break the boredomWithout the regular school regimen, adults and kids need
more
activities to fill the hours. Books that teach kids
how to make or do something are a great
way to get kids reading and keep them
occupied. Don't forget to take your kids'
favorite reading series along on long road
trips.
Read aloud with kids- Take your children to see a local
storyteller or be one yourself. The summer months leave
extra time for enthusiastic read-alouds with children, no
matter what their age. Don't forget to improvise different
voices or wear a silly hat to make the story that much more
interesting!
2014-2015 ~ Lynch Calendar
May 18-22
May 21, Thursday
May 25, Monday
June 2, Tuesday
Scholastic Book Fair, Media Center
5:00 p.m. 4th & 5th Grade Chorus Concert
5:00 -7:00 p.m. Spring Fling - Academic
Adventure-“The Melting Pot”
Memorial Day Holiday - Schools closed
Last Day of School
9:00 a.m.- 5th Grade Moving Up Ceremony
12:35 p.m. EARLY DISMISSAL
Report Cards Distributed
2015-2016 - Elementary Student Calendar
August 20, Thurs
Back to School Night & Registration
August 24, Mon
First day for all students
September 7, Mon
Labor Day Holiday- School closed
October 19, Mon
Non-student day- School closed
November 23-27
Thanksgiving Holidays- School closed
Dec 21-Jan 1
Winter Holidays- School closed
January 4, 2016, Mon
Non-student day- School closed
January 18, Mon
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day- School closed
February 15, Mon
Non-student day- School closed
March 14, Mon
Non-student day- School closed
March 21-25
Spring Holidays- School closed
March 28, Mon
Schools reopen- Classes resume
May 30, Mon
Memorial Day Holiday- School closed
June 7, Tue
Happy Summer- Last day for students
Hurricane make-up days: October19 & November 23