HORACE MANN EDUCATOR

From our perspective, the 2016-17 school year is off to a great start. We hope our stu-dents and their families are settling into the learning routine, too. It is our goal for every student’s parent to meet with his/her teacher. If you have not yet signed up for a conference, please contact your child’s teacher (rather than the main of-fice as in years past) to schedule (or to be reminded of the appointment you made during Meet the Teacher Night). Conferences will be scheduled on November 2nd—4th. It is high-ly preferred that there be one conference for each student, even if parents are living in sepa-rate households. If there are special circumstances, please contact Dr. Waters at (216) 529-4257. In Lakewood City Schools, we are committed to offering intervention for students who need additional instruction to meet grade level standards. If your child has an Individual Ed-ucation Program (IEP), his/her case manager will also be in attendance at the conference. Furthermore, if your child is “not on track” in reading (to use the terminology of Ohio’s Third Grade Reading Guarantee), the intervention provider will join the meeting and will re-view the Reading Improvement & Monitoring Plan (or RIMP) in place for your child as well as answer any questions you may have about the intervention. Thank you for attending parent-teacher conferences. We appreciate the opportunity to hear your perspective and goals for your child’s learning!

Principal’s Message

OCTOBER 2016

Horace Mann Elementary School

1215 West Clifton Blvd. Lakewood, Ohio 44107

(216) 529-4257 Attendance line (216) 529

-4307 Merritt F. Waters, Ph.D.,

Principal http://

lakewoodcityschools.org/

3-7 Spirit Week (see details inside newsletter)

4 Personal Safety/Assault Assembly

11 PTA Meeting, 7 pm, Library

12 All Pro Dad breakfast, 7:45 am, Art Room

14 NEOEA Day, NO SCHOOL

17 Board of Education Meeting at Horace Mann— 7 pm cafetorium

19-21 Book Fair, 3-8 pm

21 Family Dance, 7-8 pm

26 End of First Quarter

27 Wheelchair CAVS Assembly 1:45—2:45 pm—Families Welcome!

28 Fall Fun during lunch/recess (see PTA information in newsletter)

31 Free eye exams

2-4 Parent-Teacher Conferences, NO SCHOOL

on Nov 3 and Nov 4

HORACE MANN …… ALL IN, ALL THE TIME!

SUPERINTENDENT’S MESSAGE: What a great first month of school we have had! Our students at our new elementary schools are enjoying learning in beautiful new schools with ample space and up-to-date technology. We also celebrated in September the announcement of our National Merit Scholars. I would like to congratulate our Class of 2017 academic stars who have been recognized as National Merit Semifinal-ists: Ian Bell, Rachel Daso and William Horschke. These three outstanding seniors were among the top 1% of scorers in the state of Ohio for the PSAT test they took as juniors. Just behind them in scoring are our Commended Scholars: Evan Suttell and Rhianna Zuby. They scored in the top 5%. Congratulations to all! Last month, we also celebrated an amazing partnership with our longtime community partner, First Federal of Lake-wood. First Federal has committed to provide nearly $700,000 to help build an indoor elevated track at Lakewood High. The bank will also match $1 for every $3 raised up to $150,000 to help fund a Community Recreation Facility at LHS. We can’t ask for a better partner than First Federal and we are grateful that they chose to invest in our community and our youth. Finally, I am kicking off my series of Superintendent Chats this month. The first Chat will be in tandem with our Treas-urer, Kent Zeman, and will focus on the impact of school financing on our District and students. The Chat will be at the Ranger Café at Lakewood High on Oct. 11 at 6:00 p.m. Join me if you can and “Go Rangers!” Jeffrey W. Patterson Superintendent

October 2016, Page 2

Board of Education Tom Einhouse, President

Betsy Bergen Shaughnessy, Vice President Linda Beebe

Edward Favre Emma Petrie Barcelona

Horace Mann Elementary School Website

While reading our monthly newsletter, the Horace Mann Educator, be sure the check out the other entries on our webpage. It is filled with information to help you and your stu-dent make each school day the best you can. Here’s what you can find on our site using the tabs on the left side of the webpage:

A School Calendar under School Events

The Breakfast and Lunch Menus

A monthly Principal’s Message

Links galore on the Library page to help with reading and research

A Photo Gallery of various school events and subjects

Individual Teacher Web Sites including special Music and Orchestra pages

The current Educator Newsletter

A link to the Horace Mann PTA

Nurse and Health Center information

The Supply List and much more!

The bonus is that it’s in too! Take a look!

Superintendent/Treasurer Chat Lakewood City Schools’ first Superintendent Chat of the school year will be a special

presentation by Superintendent Jeff Patterson and Treasurer Kent Zeman on the District’s

current financial condition and how school funding impacts our students, community, and

the District. The event will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 6 pm in the Ranger Café at

Lakewood High School. This is a great opportunity to hear how your investment in our

schools is at work!

Assume that your children will have studying to do every night. Ask your children to show you their homework after the teacher returns it, to learn

where they’re having trouble and where they’re doing well. See if your children did the work correctly. Stay in touch with your children’s teachers. Ask about their classes and what they are studying. Ask their teachers how you can support what they are studying (flash cards, reading at home, etc.). Remember, you and their teachers want the same thing – to help your children learn. Contact the teacher if you or your children don’t understand an assignment or if your children are having a great deal of trouble. Many parents run into these problems, and teachers are glad to help. Don’t do your children’s work for them. Help them learn how to do it themselves. Show your children that you think homework is im-portant. If you are at work during homework time, ask to see their work when you get home. Especially praise your children for effort. Make praise a habit. Maintain a portfolio of “best pieces.” Ask your school about tips or guides for helping your children develop good study habits. Help older students organize their assignments by recording them on calendars or planners, along with due dates, dates turned in, etc. National PTA National Education Assoc 330 N. Wabash Ave. #2100 1201 16th Street N.W. Chicago, IL 60611-3690 Washington, DC 20036 (800) 307-4782 (202) 833-4000 www.pta.org www.nea.org

October 2016, Page 3 HOMEWORK

HINTS

Playground Horace Mann stu-dents enjoy our play-ground daily at re-cess. Students have been instructed in Playground expecta-tions. The guidelines are:

1. Keep hands and feet to yourself. 2. Use both hands and feet when climbing on

equipment. 3. Use games, equipment and materials properly. 4. Use appropriate and positive language. 5. Follow directions the first time. 6. Report problems to a staff member. 7. Enter and exit in orderly lines.

LUNCH/RECESS SUBSTITUTES We could use your help! If you are interested in or know someone who might be interested in being a classified substitute for our lunch and recess program which runs from 11:15 am to 1:30 pm, the first step is to fill out the online application at our website.

You can locate that form at www.lakewoodcityschools.org, under the Departments tab choose Human Resources and click on Job Opportunities in the left-hand column. Thank you!

October 2016, Page 4

WHEN TO KEEP YOUR ILL CHILD HOME

In order to prevent the spread of illness to others, it is suggested that your child stay home for 24 hours from the onset of:

● Vomiting ● Diarrhea (three or more watery bowel movements in a 24 hour period) ● Fever (temperature over 100.4°)

If your child is ill before school, keep him/her at home until your child is symptom free for at least 24hours. These guidelines are suggested for the good of all students. A child who returns to school before being completely well runs a greater risk of infecting others. Exposure to common illnesses could be life threatening to immunocompromised students. We strive to keep all children healthy. With your help school can be a healthy place for all.

According to the Ohio Department of Health, a physician must evaluate a suspected Communicable disease:

● Bacterial conjunctivitis (pink eye) ● Staphylococcus infections (impetigo, MRSA) ● Streptococcal infections (strep throat) ● Tinea (ringworm)

If prescribed, your child must complete at least 24 hours of appropriate prescription therapy prior to returning to school. A physician's note must be provided for reentry to school. Please see the Health Center web site for more information on communicable diseases: http://www.lakewoodcityschools.org/content_page.aspx?cid=774 If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your school nurse. *Emerson, Grant, Harrison, Hayes, Lincoln, Roosevelt Peggy Brown, RN, BSN, MEd, LSN 216-227-5129 *LHS, Garfield, Harding, LCA, HMES, Kathleen Corrigan, RN, BSN, BSED, MS, LSN 216-227-5395

Arrival and Dismissal – For the safety of ALL our students, please travel very slowly in the parking lot and be sure to observe entrance and exit STOP signs. Many cars ar r ive each morn-ing and afternoon to transport many children to and from school – for everyone’s safety - please be patient! The West Clifton driveway is reserved for students with significant special needs and childcare transportation only – please use the Webb Road parking lot for arrival and dismissal. Please note there is no left turn out of the Webb driveway during peak hours.

Morning Arrival Please pull all the way up along the curb to drop off students. Please keep the car line moving - Do not wait in the car with your child and do not park in that lane. Please time your arrival for no earlier than 8:45, since there is no supervision before school.

Afternoon Dismissal Please pull up along the curb and remain in your car. Staff will assist your child into the vehicle. Please do not block the Webb Road parking lot entrance and exit driveways. AT THE ENTRANCE AND EXIT, WATCH FOR STUDENTS WALKING ON WEBB ROAD SIDEWALKS. Please do not block the side streets off Webb Road and do not park on Webb Road.

Dismissal begins at 3:05 and is usually completed by 3:15. Timing your arrival in the car line for 3:05 will ensure a very short wait in the line.

North Clifton Drive is a private street and traffic is limited to residents only. PLEASE DO NOT USE NORTH CLIFTON DRIVE AS A ROUTE TO HORACE MANN. Many children live on the street and non-resident traffic creates a significant safety concern. Thank you.

October 2016, Page 5

2015-16 Ohio School Report Card for Horace Mann

The Ohio Department of Education recently released the 2015-16 School Report Cards. School report cards include various indicators designed to show achievement levels and measure growth, both for the student body as a whole and for particular populations. Most ratings are based on state AIR tests given in grades 3-5. The brightest highlight is that our students with the lowest 20% achievement made more than expected growth last year (a letter grade of B). Other positives are that our overall student body made a year’s growth (earning a C) and we had many students who performed in the accelerated and advanced ranges (this is called Performance Index, and we earned a C). We have, however, some areas that require our collective attention. We met the state requirement for the percentage of students passing each test on only four of eight possible tests, which is an F. Fewer than 50% of our most vulnerable students (based on income, race, and disability) passed the tests, earning us an F in that area (called Gap Closing). Finally, we earned a D in K-3 Literacy. This indicator takes into account not only scores on the 3rd Grade AIR test, but also how many students in grades K-2 go from being “not on track” to “on track” based on diag-nostic testing. I chose to share these mixed results with families in order to ask for your help. We are proud of our school, and we know there are countless amazing things happening here every day. At the same time, I bet we all agree we can do better on the items our state believes are a way to judge the success of a school. By building on our strengths, examining and addressing our shortfalls and being present with a spirit of teamwork, I have every confidence next year’s report card will show the results of our efforts! For more information about Ohio School Report Cards, please visit the Ohio Department of Education web-site and or view the Ohio Guide to 2016 Report Cards at https://goo.gl/TGl5hi.

Horace Mann Student Report Cards

Report cards provide an important opportunity for teachers to communi-cate with families about their child’s performance in academics, work habits and social skills. We know families look forward to viewing student report cards, es-pecially the initial one in a new school year. The first grading period ends on Wednesday, October 26th, and the important information below will help you nav-igate the report card.

All seven Lakewood elementary schools will continue to use the same form and grades as last year. As a reminder, here is what the marks signify about your child’s achievement in any sub-ject area (please note: this may be different from information provided at Meet the Teacher Night): E = Met grade level standards AND

worked successfully in above grade level standards throughout the quarter M = Met grade level standards with 80 – 100% accuracy P = Progressed toward grade level standards with 79 – 65% accuracy I = Insufficient progress on grade level standards with 0 – 64% accuracy We recognize receiving the report card during your child’s parent-teacher conference can be overwhelming. So much to take in! With this in mind, we hope to provide families with the report card in advance of the conferences. Depending on timing, they either will come home in backpacks a day before or will be available as you wait for your turn to talk to your child’s teacher(s). Thank you for your flexibility as we try this new process for the first time.

It seems as if Fall is finally here! We had a wonderful time in September with many back to school events that brought our community together. Thank you to Sandy

Najarian for planning another delicious Mitchell's Ice Cream Social and to all of the volunteers who helped on such a beautiful evening. Thanks also to Kristy Gibbons, Danielle Catteau, and Anne Babson for two great days of Doughnuts with Dad, as well as the many parents who volunteered to help make this event a success. Thanks also to Kate McBride, Kristy Gibbons, Amanda Whaples, JoAnn Mahmoud and Amy Lardi for their help with smoothing hair and straightening collars on Picture Day! The Horace Mann PTA is working hard on many fun events for October. First up is the Lakewood Mom & Son Dance, hosted by Horace Mann PTA at Harding Middle School on October 8 from 6pm to 8pm. We promise a rockin' good time! Tickets and t-shirts are still available at http://www.lakewoodmomandsondance.com/ We're looking forward to another fun Book Fair from October 19 through October 21. Our goal is to use the proceeds to stock the Horace Mann school library with new books! On Oc-tober 21, the Horace Mann gang will gather together in the gym for our annual Family Dance from 7:00 to 8:00 pm,You'll be able to browse the Book Fair before and during the dance. We are helping to plan the PBIS First Quarter Reward Event on October 27 at 1:30 pm, when we welcome families to join their kids as we enjoy the Wheelchair Cavs! We will also have a Halloween event during the school day on Friday, October 28, including a fun activity in the library during recess and a sweet treat in the cafeteria during lunch. Kids will be able to wear a festive t-shirts and/or accessories to show their spooky spirit! Our Parent Helper group meets in Room 202 every Wednesday morning after drop off to help prepare classroom materials for our busy teachers, prepare Box Tops for Education, and label classroom books with the reading levels to help students to choose the right books. We've had as many as 15 volunteers come to help -- join us! Do you want to enjoy these events even more? Sign up to volunteer! Helping out with PTA activities helps you to meet other par-ents, learn more about what is going on at school, and show your kids the importance of community service. If you are interested in helping, email PTAHoraceMannElementary@gmail.com and we'll help you find a volunteer opportunity that fits your sched-ule. Thank you to the 28 people who attended our September PTA meeting! We were happy to have some new members join us. Mark your calendar for our next meeting on October 11th at 7:00 p.m. in the school library. Babysitting available for free in Room 009, and snacks will be provided. If you have not already sent in your PTA membership, please do! Forms are available in the front office. We currently have nearly 100 members, and we would love to welcome even more parents, teachers, and staff members to our ranks! Mark your calendar for the following PTA Events in October: 10/8 -- Lakewood Mom & Son Dance, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, Harding Middle School 10/11 -- PTA Meeting 7:00 p.m. School Library 10/12 -- All Pro Dad's Breakfast 7:45 a.m. Art Room 10/19 - 10/21 -- Book Fair 10/21 -- Family Dance, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm, Gym 10/27 -- PBIS First Quarter Reward Event 10/28 -- Halloween Celebration, Lunch & Recess, Cafetorium & Library

Nora Katzenberger

PTA President, Horace Mann Elementary, PTAHoraceMannElementary@gmail.com

October 2016, Page 6

Lunch Reminders: Horace Mann’s lunch monitors are a dedicated team who work to be sure our students eat their lunches and stay safe during this more-relaxed time of day. Please support them by 1) not sending items such as toothpicks, knives (including butter and plastic knives), skewers, and toothpicks in lunches, 2) sending lunch money to school in a sealed envelope with the student’s name on it, and 3) reminding your child that sharing food and money is not permitted at school. Thank you for your support as we strive to keep the cafeteria running smoothly!

WELCOME TO HORACE MANN ELEMENTARY from Mrs. Schwind

My name is Therese Schwind and I am the Family Resource Coordinator. Here at Horace Mann we understand the importance of working together with students, families and the community to help your child thrive not only academically, but socially, emotionally and physically. My role is to support students & families, help problem solve concerns and advocate for them in the school and/or with outside resources. Please contact me at any time with questions or concerns that you may have during the year. I can be reached at 216-529-4110. ***Don’t forget Parent Teacher conferences are coming up in November. Look for “Tips for Successful Parent/Teacher conferences” to come home in backpacks.

October 2016, Page 7

Meet the NEW Members of the Horace Mann Lunchroom Staff—Mrs. Simpson, Mrs. Tamunday and Mrs. Ibrisagic

Hello everyone! I am enjoying my new position at HMES. I am also enjoying getting to know the students and staff better. And I am working with a great bunch of gals. Outside of work I enjoy spending time with family especially my daughter and three grandkids. I also Love nature and working on my col-lages and other projects. I also love to sing anywhere anyone will let me.—Mrs. Simpson Hi everyone, I am enjoying getting to know all the children on the playground during recess. I live in Lakewood and like traveling and experiencing different cultures. - Mrs. Tamunday Students at Horace Mann may recognize Mrs. Ibrisagic because she was a substitute helper in the cafeteria last spring. She started as a regular staff member in the lunchroom this fall. She has a son in third grade here at HMES and loves her job! Welcome Mrs. Ibrisagic!

Time to get excited for

the first Spirit Week of

the school year at Horace

Mann Elementary,

October 3-7.

October 2016, Page 8

QUIET ACTIVITIES NEEDED! Our recess program is

in need of new or gently-used tabletop activities

for days when the weather will not allow us to go

outside for recess. We would greatly appreciate

donations of games such as Sorry, Connect Four,

Legos, or other quiet sit-down games. Thank you

again!

This month we are spotlighting self-portrait art created by Mrs. Carney’s class.

Each student in this 2nd grade class makes the puzzle complete!

October 2016, Page 9

As we begin the second quarter of the school year, students at Horace Mann will have Art class with Mr. Vargas instead of Physical Education class. There are sev-eral ways to keep kids moving and active even as we approach the cold winter months. Using the YMCA, city parks, and/or getting involved in the recreation de-partment are wonderful resources. Working around the house, raking leaves, shov-eling snow, or going on a brisk walk are activities that incorporate exercise and can be done as a family activity. As always, feel free to visit my website. I have posted a couple of websites that offer several more ideas to stay active!! One of my favor-ites is kidshealth.org.

Brad Karabaic Lakewood City Schools Physical Education Visit my website!

NOTES FROM THE GYMNASIUM

Horace Mann music classes are off to a great start this year! Students are actively creating music every day. The beginning of the school year brings many music activities.

Kindergarten and First Graders are learning about changes in music and ways to show those changes visually. Second and third grad-ers are learning about multi-beat notes, mixed-beat groups, and dynamics (the louds and softs of music). Fourth graders are just getting start-ed playing recorder. This week they are learn-ing to play their first song, Hot Cross Buns. Once they can play that song they will earn their first Recorder Karate belt. Fifth graders are off to a great start in Band with Mr. Blasko and Orchestra with Ms. Mallchok. The fifth grade students who are not in band or orches-tra are learning piano skills in general music.

In addition to music during the school day, 54 fourth and fifth grade students have joined the Horace Mann Choir for this school year! We are starting off the singing season with some spooky music for Pumpkin Palooza on October 29th. After that you can join the choir at Light Up Lakewood for some holiday tunes on December 3rd. I hope you’ll join us for some of our musical activities throughout the year! The Horace Mann Winter Concert with all grades performing will be December 16th at 1:30pm in the HMES Gym. See you then!

-Mr. Aaron Waryk

Music Teacher Horace Mann Elementary School Follow HMES Music on Twitter! @HMESMusic

https://twitter.com/HMESMusic

MUSIC NEWS