December 10
Muskrat News
Upcoming events:
December 13 OSU Wave Lab Field Trip 4/5 Class 1pm
December 15 Student Stewardship Project Field Trip 4/5 Class
December 16 ICP Board Meeting (all welcome) 7pm
December 17 Winter Read-a-Thon 9-9:45am
December 20-31 Winter Break, NO SCHOOL
From our Executive Director
We had an incident with head lice this week. Each child was brought to the office for a head check, and thankfully none were found. Here is what we know about lice:
They are most easily transferred through hats, scarves, or coats. Any fabric can also harbor the little critters.
They live for up to 30 days or about 2 weeks in the egg form.
They look like dandruff, but stick tightly to the hair shaft.
They are not the result of poor hygiene or socio-economic status as some have tried to claim. They do get transferred in crowded situations.
You can help us by teaching your children not to share any clothing. And, call us immediately as we have found that moving quickly can save the school and families a lot of grief.
Then there is the weather – the forecast is ominous about a lot of rain and potential for flooding. Roads around our school go under water at times like these. First Greenberry, then Llewellyn, followed by Airport Road. Bellfountain is the last road to go under. Please be careful about high water. I have seen a car swept off of Greenberry in the past. It is far better to be late to school than to have your car start to slide sideways under you. The Corvallis 509J website will carry whether or not we have school.
-Dan
Classroom News
Room 1 – We have been investigating the sun and energy. We have learned that energy is part of a cycle a lot like the water cycle we studied last year. – Miss Bridget
Room 2 – This week we have been finishing up our projects. We are looking forward to next week’s CRAFT DAY. Craft Day is Thursday, December 16th. Every student will have a chance to make several crafts to take home for the holidays. – Ms. Gorman
Kindergarten – Inspired by the cold snowy weather that happened several weeks ago and the wonderful story, Snowflake Bently, the Kinders have been making their own snowstorm. Little hands have been busy folding and cutting square paper to make snowflakes to decorate our room and the office window. All of that folding and cutting adds strength to those growing fine motor muscles. One cannot ignore the creative thoughts that are in a flurry around the room. – Miss Jenny
Room 4 – This week the kids did watercolor and origami projects. Their keyboarding skills are increasing at a good rate. They also learned about the Oregon Coast Tourism Industry and how many people visit the coast because of its beauty. We have two fun field trips this coming week. – Mr. Day
Winter Read-a-Thon
We will be having the first Read-a-Thon of the year on Friday, December 17th, from 9 to 9:45am. This is a community event to encourage love of reading and to celebrate the winter season. Staff and volunteers each choose a children’s book to share with students. They also each select a craft that connects to the book and bring materials to do the craft with a small group of 4-7 students. If you would like more information, please contact Leah Gorman.
From the Board
The homework policy committee will begin their work this month. If you have any input, please pass it along to kriste.york@gmail.com.
Music Class Update
Music classes will be humming along this next month – literally! Thanks to the PTO and an anonymous donor, we now have a kazoo for every student in the school and will start having some fun with them in January. We’re continuing to learn new and enjoy old familiar songs. Students are learning note values, and becoming familiar with the “music alphabet” (A through G). In providing an enriched program aimed at music literacy, we’re honing listening skills through appreciation of several genres of music with many more to enjoy. Recently, students listened to 4 selections from “Pictures at an Exhibition” by Mussorgsky, and drew pictures prompted by what they heard.
Muddy Creek Writing Club
In January, Cedar Dunn (aka Miss Cedar in the office) will be forming a Writing Club for 4th and 5th graders. The club will meet once a week right after school on Wednesdays. We will have an awesome time writing non-fiction, short stories, plays, poetry, and songs. If your child is interested please let me know. You can email me at cedar.dunn@muddycreekcharterschool.org or stop by the office. Thanks!
Muddy Creek Scratch Club
Would you and/or your child like to learn to make videogames? Join the Scratch Club! We will be meeting at Muddy Creek once a week, right after school, to create games, learn programming, animation, art and more.
My name is Bill Pfeil (Casey’s dad). I’m a full-time programmer and part-time video game designer, and I’ll be helping everyone learn how to use Scratch. If you’re interested in the Scratch Club, please contact me directly: bill@dropdstudios.com .
New to Scratch? Download Scratch for free and give it a spin: http://scratch.mit.edu
Volunteer Needed
We need a volunteer to help us pick up the school’s milk order at Dairy Mart on 3rd and Western on Wednesday mornings. We are looking for someone to help us with this for the next two months. Please let Cedar know if you are able to help. Thank you!
ESCRIP
Safeway’s 10% Goes Back to Schools Program is coming back! MCCS can earn 10% of your purchase amounts on thousands of participating products from January 2nd through January 25th, 2011. Sign up and enter your Safeway and debit cards at www.escrip.com. Our Group Name is Muddy Creek Charter School and our Group ID Number is 500020320. If you don’t have your card on file or don’t have a card, you can also enter in your receipts from January 2nd – 25th at www.escrip.com or give them to Cedar in the office and we can do it for you. Thanks ahead of time!
Cafeteria Reminder:
Please remember to put silverware in your child’s lunchbox if their lunch requires it. We have plastic silverware if they forget, but we are running low and need your help to reduce the waste and expense that comes with plastic silverware. Thank you!
Box Tops
If you are doing your holiday shopping online please consider going through www.btfe.com/marketplace for purchases you make at over 100 popular retailers (such as Target, Best Buy and Lands’ End). You will earn box tops for your school. Go to www.btfe.com to become a member and start earning box tops for Muddy Creek.