September 15, 2015
Dear Champlain Families,
The year is off to a great start. Students are being safe, respectful, and responsible; they have the Champ
cards to show it. Ms. Paige’s Kindergarten class, Ms. Haslam’s/Ms. McGrath’s 1st grade class, and Ms.
Roesch’s 4th grade class have all reached 100 Champ cards. Looking around, I see other classes are well
on their way.
Thursday, 9/17, is picture day, and Thursday evening is our curriculum night. A few of our teachers were
offered the opportunity to attend training on new literacy units on Thursday and Friday, so they had to
schedule their nights separately. Childcare will be available on Thursday in the Learning Center.
Each year, the PTO publishes a directory of family contact information. This directory is strictly
voluntary and used to help students and families connect outside of school. Families are asked to provide
their contact details for the directory at the start of the year. Submit your information
at http://tinyurl.com/champlain2015. There is an option in the online form to re-use your information
from last year, without the need to re-enter your data. The deadline for submission is October 4.
If you do not have access to the Internet, please fill out the below and send back to the office.
Student Name(s) ____________________________ Teacher __________________________
Parent/Guardian name(s)__________________________________
Please enter contact information you would like to be included in the PTO Directory for your student.
You decide how much information you want to share. Examples of contact information are home phone
number, mobile phone number(s), email address(es), physical address, and mailing address.
Last week we sent home district opt-out media forms. As part of the normal operations of schools within
our district, we collect samples of student work and take pictures/videos of students engaged in school
related activities. We use these materials to improve teaching/learning practice, demonstrate what we do,
and celebrate student success. If we post pictures to the Champlain website, use them in
newsletters/brochures, or other promotion/demonstration materials, or teachers use them on their
classroom sites, we maintain confidentiality by removing names and other identifying information. If you
opt NOT to have your child(ren)'s photo or works used, please sign and return the form by Friday,
Sept 18. Otherwise, you do not need to return the form. As of Monday, Sept 21, teachers would like to
start doing projects which may use photos. The blue forms will determine which photos not to use.
Our teachers do so many creative and engaging activities with our students. Last year, they wrote short
summaries with a few highlights from the year. I would like to share notes from the 2014-2015 First
Grade class with you.
From First Grade
Students used iPads during Reading and Math intervention blocks to enrich their lessons. We wrote a
PTO mini-grant and got 3 iPad minis for our grade level to share. Each week, one of our classes
incorporated iPads to increase student engagement and differentiate our intervention. Students were
motivated to work collaboratively and looked forward to our intervention times in Reading and
Math. Our access to 21st century technology benefited all of us this year. We hope to acquire additional
iPads next year so each class can access them more frequently.
Morning Champion Program (A Partnership between Champlain Elementary and King Street
Center)
Champlain Elementary School is looking for some "Champions" to come in once or more a week from
7:30am - 8:10am. The Morning Champions program provides Champlain Elementary students with an
opportunity to meet with a caring adult before the start of the school day. While the program started off as
a tutoring program, we have learned over the past few years that children need time with a caring adult to
engage in academics or other areas of interest. 30 minutes in the morning can make all the difference in a
child's outlook for the entire day. The impact is powerful! Simply by showing an interest in a child’s life,
homework, ideas and concerns, you can make all the difference. In addition, we are looking for people to
come in and share their talents. It can be coming in one time, multiple times, or weekly to share a skill
(yoga, art, computers, reading, teaching a language, etc.)
If interested please contact Gabriella Tufo Strouse at gabriella@kingstreetcenter.org or Deena Murphy at
dmurphy@bsdvt.org.
Thank you for an excellent start to the school year. We appreciate the efforts of our students, faculty,
families, and friends who work so hard to make our school community such a special place.
Coming Events:
First Assembly – Wednesday, September 16, 8:20 AM
School Pictures – Thursday, September 17
Curriculum Night – Thursday evening, September 17 (5:30 – 6:35)
No School, Yom Kippur and Eid Ul Adha – Wednesday, September 23
Harvest Fest – 5-7 PM Friday, September 25
Sincerely,
Maria Horton
Interim Principal