Thank you to students, parents, and community partnerships………for 14 great years at Meadowbrook Elementary School. Feel free to connect with my at 662-7825 as the Director of Teaching and Learning for Elementary Education. kathhopp@hssd.k12.wi.us

Parents, hold on to your hats! Spring is the time when children do unexpected things………hurt someone’s property when that is totally not typical, talk back more often, and resist doing their daily schoolwork. Remaining firm and dealing with the unexpected calmly knowing that we all have done some foolish things in our life — not allowing ourselves to become over embarrassed by these events is critical. Handle the situation, affirm that the event was not typical of your child, give a consequence that meets the offense….and continue to love them just because they are your precious child.

Parents, students,……..what is the best part of Spring for you or for when you were a child. As for me, I lived on a farm in the country and I loved riding my bike with my sisters or Dad. Now days, I love to garden and take pictures of nature. I am always learning more about these topics when I find time. Finding websites or reading materials on what your child loves will help them enjoy reading.

When you receive your child’s report card………….take some time to look it over. Although our official parent-teacher conferences are completed for the year……….if you have questions always feel free to contact your child’s teacher(s) through e-mail or phone to chat. If you would like we can meet with you to answer questions, provide suggestions of ways to improve student learning and to share resources for summer opportunities. We are here to partner with you to insure success for your child. Thanks for letting us work with you.

Hope your Spring Break was relaxing and allowed for more family time. Get ready to gear up for the end of the year. If you are new in the area there are many village sport opportunities to consider and the information about our extensive district summer school program was sent home before the break. Any questions?

Miss Block is powering her students up for the Spring Concerts. Traditionally 1st grade is a concert to show what students are learning in class, 2nd and 3rd are more traditional concerts and 4th grade is a Farewell Concert. Watch for details in the weekly newsletter. It is exciting to see all the instruments, dances, and song variations that the student are able to perform at such a young age. Also our “Night of the Arts” is coming up in late April which highlights all of our fine arts programs at Meadowbrook — both musical and also art classes with Mr. Zwicker.

As we finish with our official parent-teacher conference night…….how well did we do on……
1. Sharing progress made in reading and math related to current district testing, individual student goals………..and other subject areas
2. Sharing a parent strategy for working with your child on a strategy that meets his/her needs
3. Answering your questions
How well did we do? Please share your thoughts about our conferences! Thanks so much……the feedback helps us grow stronger every year!

Join in meeting other parents, link in with the principal, connect to the Meadowbrook Parent Club….get connected in the Meadowbrook learning community……go to the Meadowbrook website…..principal’s page ……..and get connected.

http://Meadowbrook.hssd.k12.wi.us/cms/page_view?d=x&piid=&vpid=1266997218249

During a visit to Mrs. Short’s class this morning I listened to kids tell about someone they enjoyed spending time with over the holidays. The students spoke of grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles and parents. It was neat to hear about how neat it was for them to play with their family members near and far. I hope every child was fortunate to spend time with someone special.

In chatting with students as the day began we should be very thankful if we had a blessed vacation as some students were not so happy about the boring time they had. Impressing upon your children that it is not the things is so key! It helps other students who are not as blessed too.

As 2010 draws to a close and we begin 2011 it is always good to reflect on the hardest role of all…….being a parent. Rest assured that every parent struggles from time to time as each child is unique and training, coaching and nurturing a child takes a lot of patience and love. Celebrate what you have done a great job on and decide how tomorrow will look even better. As a mom of a senior in high school I can always look back on a lot of good memories and also times when I could have done better. For the coming year, I am going to spend more time encouraging my son so he knows that I believe in him and am proud of the choices he is making to live strong. What is your mission for the coming year?