Picture Day !!!!!!!!!Don’t  forget!  Spring  Pictures  will  be  on  

Thursday,  March  10.  We  will  be  taking  both  individual  and  class  pictures  at  this  time.

URSA MINOR

WENDY BRONS, PRINCIPAL/ 336 HOONAH AVE, JBER, AK 99505/ 907-428-1311

A Message from the Principal Dear Ursa Minor School Community, It was great seeing many of you at Parent/Teacher Conferences. If you have not completed the School Climate and Connectedness Survey, you still have time! Log on to http://www.asdk12.org/ae/surveys/climateandconnectedness/ and take a moment to complete the survey. We use the information we receive from parents, students, and staff to develop school goals and to improve our school. It is helpful to know our strengths and our challenges. Student safety is one of our main concerns. Our parking lot is a very busy place, especially at the beginning of the day and even more so at dismissal time. We want students to use the cross walk versus going down the parking lot sidewalk and in between cars. Parents should drop off and pick up students using the passenger side even though it may be a hassle for your car set up. We want to avoid students getting out into oncoming traffic and keep traffic flowing safely through the parking lot.

Continued on Page 3…

SEL Star Winners Week of February 12: K Kennedy Davis 1 Lucas Schatz 2 Ryan Barker 3 Dominic Humphrey 4 Shaun Johnson 5 Kyra Burruss 6 Riley Wallum Week of February 19: K Zaylee Helton 1 Hannah Hampton 2 Gabriel Ortiz 3 Sophia Baranoski 4 Isaia Faga 5 Abigail Hampton 6 Caleb Cash

!!

ASD SCHOOL BOARD

President: Kameron Perez-Verdia

Vice President: Kathleen Plunkett

Clerk: Tam Agosti-Gisler

Treasurer: Bettye Davis

Eric Croft

Pat Higgins

Elisa Snelling

Superintendent: Ed Graff

February 25, 2016

Kids in the KitchenThere’s still time to sign up for Kids in the Kitchen! 5th and 6th grade students, along with a parent, are invited to this free, fun, family time! The classes will be held on 3 Wednesdays, March 9,23, and 30 from 5-7 pm at Ursa Minor. • Watch healthy food demos by our

own guest chefs! • Taste new recipes! • Learn about kitchen safety • Learn about inexpensive meals

using fresh food, beans, and fiber-filled pastas!

• Take home all the groceries to make these recipes at home!

• Free cookbooks, free crockpot, and free utensils!

• Drawings for kitchen gadgets! Families who eat together tend to become more invested in each other! This leads to talking about school, planning activities together, and spending more time together as a family. The deadline to register is Friday, February 26. This project is funded by the Alaska Kidney Foundation, in conjunction with the United Way.

We hope that you all will join us in supporting our Fur Rondy Pet Drive! The drive will be held February 29-March 4 and all pet supplies donated will be given to a local animal shelter. Some ideas for pet supply donations are dog or cat food, toys, pet beds, pet brushes, and leashes. All items should be placed in the box located in front of Ursa Minor’s main office. With your help, I’m sure we can make a difference in the lives of many deserving animals!

Student Council Fur Rondy Pet Drive

URSA MINOR PTA FUN FRIDAYS! !February 26 & March 25 !Bring in $0.50 for a

delicious popcorn treat!

!

Dates to remember…

Mar. 1 - PTA Meeting 3:45 pm

Mar. 4 - Minions Movie Night

6-8 pm

Mar. 10 - Spring Picture Day

Apr. 1 - Daddy/Daughter

Dance 6-8 pm

KEEP COLLECTING

Parents,  Guardians  and  Grandparents,  !When  entering  our  building,  you  will  notice  when  you  Airst  come  in,  our  “Lift  Up  Ursa  Minor  with  Kindness”  board.    This  board  is  Ailled  with  paper  balloons.    On  the  balloons  the  teachers  have  written  student  names  when  they  have  witnessed  students  performing  random  acts  of  kindness.  I  would  like  to  thank  Alex  Troxtell,  UAA  counseling  intern,  for  implementing  this  idea.  !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sixth  grade  students  will  be  receiving  a  visit  from  the  Gruening  Middle  School  counselor,  Mrs.  Sloan,  on  Friday,  April  22nd.    Mrs.  Sloan  will  be  passing  out  electives  sheets  that  need  to  be  completed  and  turned  in  as  soon  as  possible.    If  there  is  a  possibility  that  you  may  be  moving  over  the  summer,  we  suggest  that  your  student  still  completes  this  form  so  that,  in  the  case  you  don’t  move,  your  child  will  get  the  electives  they  want  for  their  Airst  year  in  middle  school.    Also  on  Wednesday,  April  20th,  Colt  Round-­‐Up  will  be  held  at  Gruening  Middle  School  from  6:30-­‐8:30.    This  is  a  great  opportunity  to  take  your  child  and  become  familiar  with  the  school  and  some  of  the  wonderful  staff  who  work  there.  !Wishing  you  well,  !Tina  Victory,  Guidance  Counselor  Alex  Troxtell,  Counseling  Intern

!!!Again, I want to be sure that I give 3rd – 6th grade parents information about the Alaska Measures of Progress. We will be following our planned AMP testing window. Therefore, third grade will be taking their computerized language arts and math tests starting on Tuesday, March 29. Fourth grade will be taking their computerized language arts, math, and science tests the week of April 4. Fifth grade and fifth/sixth grade classes will take their computerized language arts and math tests the week of April 11. Sixth grade (Ms. Bear’s class) will be taking the computerized language arts and math test the week of April 18. Please be sure that your child is here on time during their testing window. If you are planning on your child being absent during this time, please call the school at 428-1311. !March is right around the corner! We will be starting our Spring Break Monday, March 14th. There is no school Friday, March 11th as it is an in-service day for the end of 3rd quarter. Teachers will be using that day as a workday (assessments, collaboration, planning and organization). Students will resume school on Monday, March 21, and will be starting the fourth quarter of the 2015/2016 school year. It is hard to believe how fast this year has gone! I hope you have a lovely weekend!

Wendy Brons, Principal !!!!!!!Operation Purple Camp is a FREE WEEK of camp where military kids from all ranks and services (including National Guard and Reserve components) get to connect with other kids, just like them. They bond through an unique and memorable “purple” summer camp experience, which includes everything from kayaking and hiking to target sports and arts & crafts. This camp is for boys and girls, ages 9-17, and will be held on July 25-29, 2016 at Camp K on Kenai Lake (in Cooper Landing). You can apply online at www.militaryfamily.org. APPLICATION DEADLINE IS MARCH 11, 2016.

Health  Class  Update  This  month  in  Health  class,  students  have  been  learning  about  communicable  diseases  and  the  immune  system.    See  below  for  links  to  parent  letters  where  you  can  view  more  information  about  your  student’s  grade  level  speciAic  topic.  You  will  need  to  scroll  down  to  the  topic  of  the  month  listed  here.     Kindergarten:    Getting  Sick          http://goo.gl/c5OFvu First  Grade:    Get  Well  Soon        http://goo.gl/t1WR9r Second  Grade:    Germs!  They  Make  You  Sick        http://goo.gl/NuwBGW Third  Grade:  Things  You  Might  Catch      http://goo.gl/n4FWv9 Fourth  Grade:    HIV  and  the  Immune  System      http://goo.gl/62gLsC Fifth  Grade:  About  Blood  and  HIV          http://goo.gl/EFW6QJ Sixth  Grade:    HIV/AIDS        http://goo.gl/8tgu1T  Mrs.  Lay,  Health/SEL  

A Message from the Principal Continued… SEL Standard of the Week !!!

I will work on

having constructive

relationships.

Library Bytes !!!!!!!!!!Today  we  celebrated  being  chosen  to  receive  3  HUGE  boxes  of  books  ~  as  a  gift  from  Barnes  &  Noble  Bookstore  of  Anchorage.    As  I  opened  one  of  the  boxes  to  share  our  new  titles  during  one  library  period,  the  excitement  on  the  faces  of  the  students  made  my  day!  !The  gift  of  these  books  was  a  wonderful  surprise!    We  give  a  shout  out  to  Barnes  &  Nobel  for  their  extreme  generosity  and  also  to  the  family  that  worked  with  Barnes  &  Noble  to  make  this  possible  ~  a  thank  you  to  the  Andrysiak  family  who  recently  moved  from  Alaska,  but  not  before  coordinating  this  awesome  gift  of  books  for  our  library!  !Susanne  Wilkins,  Librarian

OPERATION PURPLE CAMP

URSA MINOR

WENDY BRONS, PRINCIPAL/ 336 HOONAH AVE, JBER, AK 99505/ 907-428-1311

SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL!

REMINDER: Students must have the following snow gear every day: hat, coat,

waterproof gloves, snow pants, and boots.

EVERY STUDENT, EVERY DAY.

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

Feb 28 29 March 1

PTA Meeting 3:45 pm

2 3 4

“Minions” Movie Night 6-8 pm

5

6 7 8 9

Kids in the Kitchen 5-7 pm

10

Spring Picture Day!

11

NO SCHOOL End of 3rd Quarter

12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23

Kids in the Kitchen 5-7 pm

24 25 26

27 28 29 30

Kids in the Kitchen 5-7 pm

31

Math & Science Night 6-7:30 pm

April 1

Daddy/Daughter Dance 6-8 pm

2