Westmeade News
April 2014
News at a Glance
Volume 13 Number 3
From the Principal
April brings renewal and tests. The new PARCC assessments will
be April 4th – 11th and our students will demonstrate what they
have been learning this year in TCAP tests April 28th – May 2nd.
Be sure your student has plenty of rest and a good healthy
breakfast on test weeks. Help them have a sense of confidence
and be sure to offer encouragement and demonstrate your belief
in their ability to think and reason well.
Remember Dates
 April 7th Report Cards &
PARCC assessment
begins
 April 11th Dragon Dash
 April 12th – Volunteer
Garden Day 9:00-3:30
 April 18th – Spring
Holiday no school
 April 19th Centennial
Park – Earth Day
Celebration 11:006:00pm
Our focus in April is on Science and Sustainability both in the garden and in our
lessons about caring for the earth. Our first graders are leading the way this year
with lessons focused on conserving energy and our website focuses on Earth Care.
Our garden will be a focal point and we hope many of you will contact Ms. McIntyre
and come with your students on Saturdays to share in the joy of nature. We have set
Sustainable Saturdays with activities focused around the garden, healthy eating,
cooking, preserving, and other fun activities to get us out and moving about in healthy
ways. Please note the dates for exciting learning opportunities in this newsletter as
well. Remember there is a correlation between your enthusiasm for learning new
things and involvement and student success.
Continue to encourage students to use Study Island and AR as ways to help
students practice skills they will use on tests. There is also a great site on our
student links page to help students learn the keyboard under the TECHNOLOGY
section as Absolutely Painless Keyboarding. This helps students in 3rd and 4th grades
in testing online, but it is an important skill to have for life as well.
1st Grade goes GREEN with Lil’G
 Lunch Bunch April 24th –
Hugo Cabret --April
28th –– Inkheart --- May
5th – Horrible Harry
 TCAP April 29th – May
2nd
The Library and 1st grade partnered to bring a unified approach to learning about the
science of energy and how important conserving it is. The library purchased the
See helpful sites at
http://westmeade.net/Library/
ParentPage.htm
This includes many things to
do with your children
See Student Links Page
http://www.westmeade.net
classroom set of three books focused on saving energy. Each book deals with a
different phase of saving energy. The first looks at the basics of energy, both nonrenewable and renewable forms of energy. The second in the series is Building Green
which focuses on how to conserve energy as the kids construct a clubhouse, and the
final in the series is on recycling as a means of saving energy. Help your child has
s/he looks at how you can conserve energy at home, and help us preserve and protect
the earth for the next generation.
Girl Scout GREENHOUSE coming soon
Girl Scouts will be building our new greenhouse this month! They have already
assembled part of the walls which are living in the library for now. are offering a Girl
Scout Cookie Party to the class that collects the most 2 liter drink bottles for their
greenhouse project! Our Girl Scout troop hopes to build the greenhouse this April,
but need a little help from all of us. They need a total of 1200 bottles and have
currently collected around 600. The picture at left shows what the finished project
looks like. We are excited to have a greenhouse where students will be able to
explore science first-hand.
EARTH Month- Green Deeds earn Laser Tag @ Pizza Perfect
Check out our Highly
Qualified Staff!
View information about the
qualifications of each
Westmeade faculty member
and educational assistant by
clicking on this website:
http://www.k12.state.tn.us/tcertinf/sear
ch.asp
All month students are working on the Green DEED Challenge. They do one Green
Deed a Day and then put it in their journal. At the end of the month, we will tabulate
all the Green Deeds. The class with the most Green Deeds will win individual passes
to Pizza Perfect and Laser Tag! All children who participate will get a great surprise
at the end! April 19th at Centennial Park is a great opportunity to connect with lots
of groups that support environmental causes. You can follow the Green Deeds at
http:// Dragonlibrary.blogspot.com
We’ll be fledging bluebirds again this year as well as working in the garden. If you
would like to build your own bird box, send Ms. McIntyre an email and she’ll send you
directions and if there are enough we’ll do it together! Karen.mcintyre@mnps.org
Just type in the teacher’s
last name and first name to
look at their qualifications.
Use our webpage for tips that families can do together.
http://ecologywithlilg.weebly.com/
If you receive this online you can simply
Royal Readers Recycle AR Party April 17th
Hold down the Ctrl key
and click on the links in
green!
Our Royal Readers celebrated their success in Accelerated Reader at a party fit
for recycling kings or queens. We had some amazing reading this 9 weeks with Kousei
Takeda-Mays leading the way with 147 points, Justin Maxwell was right behind with
144, Emilie Davies had 81 points, Eliana Reizer had 73, Tatyana Steinbeck had 60,
Ellie Ruben had 59, Mirza Baig had 56, Rachael Ferguson had 53, Jai Parker and Diego
Hoagland tied at 51 with Elijah Gatzimos closing out the top 10 at 49 points. Kousei
Takeda-Mays is the first member of the 200 point club.
100 point club members are Emillie Davies, Megan Weems, Elijah Gatzimos, Diego
Hoagland. Ellie Ruben, Justin Maxwell, Marina Shamoun, Tatyana Steinback, Rachael
Ferguson, Sam Allen, and Ariyong Hong.
For corrections or
75 point club members are Emmie Budd, Baron Martin, Parker Denton, Jai Parker,
comments about the Eliana Reizer, Samantha Mullins,Michael Freeman, Jann Carlo Mena, Jane Chung,
newsletter contact:
Karen.McIntyre@mnps.org
Westmeade Elm
6641 Clearbrook Dr.
Nashville, TN 37205
(615)353-2066
ext. 3
50 point club members areTristan Hebb, Liam Harrell, Moriah Adane, Joseph
Holmquist, Maya Zuo-Yu, Allen Smith, Celina Miller, Ava Willoughby, Shawn Harrold,
Angela Nde, Donovan Forsyth, Kamry Lamonte, Mirza Baig, Isabelle Sohnlein, Gavin
Varner, Charlie Gilkeson, Keira Ickes, William Kumar, Owen Gray, Isabella Smith,and
William Comey,
25 point club members are Mariah Hickman, Evan Jakobik, Eli Bylund, Mackenzie
Steele, Alexa Davilla Aguilar, Isabelle Kailing, Isabel Ellis, Leonardo Sanchez, Tony
Clifford, Acacia Smith, Keely Alonso-Arciniega, Caitlin Pimentel, Race Smith, Rebecca
Stroud, Chloe Johnson, Caleb Sloan, Isabella Blakeman, Za’Mychal Rivers, Ximena
Nunez, Gillyan Ibarra, Sarah Desouki, Navid Mehran, Vidhi Patel, Julian Jeter,
Chandler Kirkham, Camrin Miller, Nalliah Harley, Trinity Sauls, Greer Jeffiers, Zoe
Cowan, William church, Erin Grant, Taylor Thormod, Adonijah Wallace, Paige Smith,
Hailey Boyd, Julissa Castillo, Aryan Peecharaagadi, Katherine Mena, Jacob Ellis,
Makyia Williams, Brooke Donnelly, Noah Potash, Da’Nivea Mostella, Henry Ruben, Ava
Shaw, JaMia Thomas, Adrian Zachery, Ethan Dobbs, Jaime Hernandez, Jack
Schwarcz, Zyshawn Lewis, Savannah Horner, Malaika Khan, Quinn Zahn, Bella
Sisombath, Marisela Baker, Christina Ii, Chris Emilios, Shaianne Miller, Eli
Weickenand, Yefim Bulygin, Joey Zhu, Zanieya Rivers, Aubrey Anderson, Tyvarius
Patillo, Miguel De Dios Espinoza, Gabriel Burrus, Fisher Maddox, Paige Walker,
Jeffrey Farmer, Viviana Hernandez-Espinoza, Imanol Hernandez-Espinoza, Dylan
Brown, Sarah Prebus, Cannon Nicholson, Anika Saar, Yahya Alghandi, and Sam Rosten.
Fun Learning opportunities in April abound
Fossil Hunting Opportunity April 5th at Fort Negley
April 5th at Fort Negley from 10-2 paleontologists
from Vanderbilt will help Children hunt fossils and
they will be allowed to bring some of them
home. This is very unusual for a park. Nancy
Stetten, who manages the garden at Park Avenue and
who taught me to hunt for fossils will be there with
students from her school as well. Let me know
(Karen.mcintyre@mnps.org) if you are going to go and
we can meet in the parking lot or I can provide you directions. This address takes you
to a brochure which outlines where you can hunt for fossils in Nashville. Attending an
event such as this and then going with an experienced hunter is of course encouraged.
This site shows you where you can readily discover fossils and gives you skills you
need to recognize what you find.
http://www.tn.gov/environment/geology/docs/fossil_hunt.pdf If you would like to
hunt fossils together let Ms. McIntyre know and we’ll arrange a group hunt!
LUNCH BUNCH –April 25th, 28th, and May 5th
Two challenging books for older Lunch Bunch enthusiasts (3rd & 4th readers only --who can read really long books)
Inkheart is the first in a series of books written by Carolyn Funke. An imaginative
tale about a villain from a story trading places with the other of the heroine of the
book is beautifully written and has deep messages about life and the power of
unconditional love.
The second book is Hugo Cabret Caldecott winner from
2009. This story also requires high level reading as well as
the ability to ”read” pictures. It
includes fascinating science and
historical information about Paris.
Students may sign up in the library
hoping to get a copy or they may secure
a copy from the Public Library at Red Caboose Park.
Finally, a third selection for early readers is
available this month as well. Horrible Harry and
the Kickball Wedding by Suzy Kline is the final selection. The library
will have 14 copies available. As always 1 st come, 1st serve – You can
order from NPL if your student misses out on the copies that we have
in-house. Students will need to sign up and choose their book early so
that we can adequately plan for lunch bunches this month!
CHECK YOUR STUDENT’S PROGRESS ON-LINE IN AR & Don’t forget
AR BOOKFINDER on our student links page at
http://www.westmeade.net
Music NotesThe Kindergarten Program will be April 15th. Please look for notes from
teachers in March. Piano classes are underway and there is lots of
excitement.
PTA Meeting: We need your HELP
PTA is ready for our biggest fundraiser of the year! We are meeting Thursday,
April 3rd at 6:00 pm.
We will need help with the following:



Promote parent, student, and donor participation
T-shirt production. The past two years, the PTA has provided t-shirts to
all students. Do you know someone that can give us a great deal on
more than 500 shirts? Could you help design our art work on the shirt?
Adult Supervisors on the day of the event. We need help passing out
water to the runners, encouraging kids to participate, and help with set
up and take down.
DRAGON DASH sponsored by The Kevin Carter Foundation
The Dragon Dash is Westmeade’s largest fundraiser of the year. Our goal is
to raise $50,000 for our school. Please help your student raise as much as
they can to help us reach our goal! If each student raises $100 (ask family,
friends, and neighbors to support you), we will meet our goal!
Funds are due Friday, April 4. The class that raises the most will lead our
parade on April 11 with Dr. Jesse Register as our Grand Marshal.
Box Tops and Labels for Education
Please continue to send these in as you collect them. We are almost to our
goal and it means so much for our school in equipment and MONEY!
School Nursing News – Food Allergies
Did you know about 3 million children have food allergies? Most are mild but
some can be life threatening. The eight foods that are most common are
peanuts, tree nuts, cow’s milk, soy, eggs, wheat, fish and shellfish.
An allergic reaction can be different for everyone and can change each time
the person is exposed. Common reactions are: hives, swelling of lip, tongue,
and throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramping, difficulty breathing,
wheezing, or coughing. Rarely, a reaction can turn deadly so these children
are advised to carry Epi-Pens with them at all times. We have trained staff at
Westmeade who can administer epinephrine if this serious, life threatening
reaction occurs. If your child has been diagnosed with a severe allergy, please
make this known on your child’s health history form you fill out at the
beginning of the year or let your school nurse know as soon as you find out. It
is recommended that you provide Benadryl for mild symptoms and Epi-Pens
for emergencies when your child has a serious allergy. You will need to have
the medication sheet filled out. You may come by the school clinic if you need
more information.
Please encourage your child to avoid sharing food at school and to wash hands
before and after eating lunch. If an area, such as your child’s classroom, is
designated as “peanut free” please be considerate of this request when
sending foods to school.
Feel free to contact Nurse Mary Anne O’Brien @353-2066 or email her at
MaryAnne.Obrien@nashville.gov