Calendar
| Feb 17 |
7-11 Choir & Chimes @ Boulder Church |
| Feb 19 |
No School |
| Feb 23 |
Gymnastics clinic @ Campion |
| Feb 26 |
Gr 3 & 4 Tumblers program starts |
| Feb 28 |
Europe Trip meeting @ 7 p.m. |
Hot Lunch
| Feb 14 |
BBQ Chicken |
| Feb 15 |
Grillers |
| Feb 19 |
No School |
| Feb 20 |
Haystacks |
| Feb 21 |
Burritos |
| Feb 22 |
Corn Dogs |
Classroom News
Kindergarten
Mrs. Tusken
Tomorrow is Valentines Day. Remember to bring your Valentines Day cards to exchange. Our class has a Valentine poem to share:
Roses are red
Violets are blue
(the kindergarten class says)
Jesus loves you
And we do too!
Happy Valentines Day everyone!
Grades 1-2
Mrs. Gaines
Book reports and dioramas are due on Thursday for 2nd grade readers. The form is in today’s folder.
Tomorrow we’ll celebrate Valentine’s Day. A list of students in our class was sent home last week.
Grades 3-4
Mrs. Hansen
On March 29th all projects are due. All science fair projects are to be done at home but the research paper will be written at school.
We will have a Valentines Day party in the afternoon tomorrow.
On April 16th we will be participating in a Spelling Bee at Mile High Academy.
Grades 5-6
Mrs. Hodgson
Did you see the mummy and sarcophagus? Please be aware that the mummy is a real (but dead) chicken. Parents have the final say in how long your child gets to keep their mummy!
Tomorrow we will be having a Valentine Party in the afternoon. Students wishing to bring Valentines for classmates are encouraged to include all students in the classroom. Thanks!
New book orders are due by Friday. Please pay by cash or check made payable to Sandy Hodgson. I will fill the order online for a speedier delivery and use my credit card for payment.
There will be another Math test this Friday. We are still working on fractions. Please continue to work with your children on their Science Fair projects.
Grades 7-10
Mr. Wuerfel, Ms. Schneider,
Mr. Force and Mr. Pauls
Mr. Wuerfel
The week has begun and students are having fun, on the run, we’re praying for sun, while the snow weighs a ton! As you may have guessed, we are still working on our poetry unit.
The student’s are learning the fundamentals of blank verse and rhyme schemes from some of the classic poets such as Emily Dickenson and Robert Frost.
The 9th and 10th Bible class is working on our new unit revolving around Spiritual Disciplines. They just finished studying the importance of meditation and prayer and how they fit with Biblical study.
To the Basketball Team: Yesterday I was deeply touched by the boy’s basketball team. After the first two quarters of the game it became apparent that we were not going to win this one. When half time arrived we got into our huddle. I was expecting sorrowful faces and angry words to come spewing from their mouths but what I got was something far from it. They looked at me with smiles on their faces and said, “Mr. W. we have a goal. We want to score 22 points this game.” My heart stopped and tears started forming. These boys were receiving a beating and instead of losing hope, they decided to make the best of it and do their best. We decided to meet our goal. The game ended with us scoring 21 points and even then the boys were ecstatic! We came close to our goal and gave it our all! The real winners were the boys that came in this morning with smiles still on their faces. Thank you boys for showing us the real importance of sports!
Mr. Force
February 16: No game scheduled
February 22: VRA vs. Chariot home game (Thurs.)
March 3: All day tournament at VRA
Flying Eagles will be on the winter schedule until March 6th.They will be meeting from 3:35-4:30 Mon-Thurs. Please pick your students up on time.
Starting Feb. 26, Grade 3&4 Tumblers will be meeting at 3:35 on Monday’s.
Feb. 23rd 12:00- 4:00 Our gymnastics team will be attending a clinic at Campion Academy with students from Union College! We are looking for parent volunteers to drive that day. If you are available please contact the office or Mr. Force. Please look for the permission form next week.
Social Studies
7th and 8th grade Social Studies project due date is April 6th which includes a final presentation. We will also be finishing this project with a special lunch where we would like each student to prepare a food that originates from the country they’ve researched, to share with the class.
Fine Arts
Mrs. Carlisle & Mrs. Force
Art Class: Your student will need to bring to class a 100% cotton T-shirt for our fabric painting section. They will need it by next Tuesday.
7-11 Choir Performance: This Sabbath, Feb. 17 the upper grades choir sings for the church service at Boulder SDA Church. Please have your student to the church no later than 10:15 am to warm up. They need to be dressed in their music outfits. We have had some changes in our chimes group and we are not ready to perform so they will not need to be there as previously announced. Thank you.
We almost have all the music outfits paid for. We only have about 4 or 5 more to collect. Please try to get that in as soon as possible. It was due November 30 and the school has had to pay this bill for us. |
Please Note
The date for our school’s Open House for prospective students has been changed from Feb. 27th to Mar. 22nd.
Please! Pick your students up by 3:45 M-Thurs and 12:30 on Fridays. Be prompt!
Parents: Please do not park in the fire or bus lane! In order to keep traffic flowing and the bus on schedule, we need to allow room.
Remember! Hoodies are not a part of the VRA dress code! We have been somewhat lenient but it is time to tighten up on this!
Please check the monthly calendar online for any changes. We are trying to conserve paper.
Our school would love to have its own video camera! If you are updating your camera equipment this year and would like to donate your old equipment please remember our school!!
Talent Show Auditions
The talent show is coming up on Saturday night, February 24th, at 7:00 p.m. here at Vista Ridge Academy. This is a super fun family evening. Please plan to come out and support the students who have worked so hard to share their talents with us.
The 2nd auditions for the talent show are tomorrow, Wednesday, February 14th. They will start at 8:30 a.m. and continue until the last person has auditioned. There will be make-up auditions on Friday for students who are sick. If you are at school tomorrow and are not prepared to audition, you will not be considered for the talent show.
Aspen Leaf by E-mail?
In an effort to save printing and paper costs we are wondering how many families are interested in receiving the weekly Aspen Leaf via e-mail. If you are interested e-mail the school at vraoffice@mesanetworks.net or come in to the office to sign up for this. Please note: if you receive the e-mailed copy this means we will not be sending a copy of the Aspen Leaf home with your child. You can also read the Aspen Leaf on our Web site at www.vistaridgeacademy.org.
Attendance/Sick List
Since the cold and flu season is upon us, please note this reminder: Please call the school office to advise us if your student is sick by 8:30 am. All the teachers are required to put their attendance reports on the computer by that time. If you haven’t called and let us know that Susie or Johnnie is sick, then the teacher has to go back in and change the attendance report. Your calling by 8:30 am helps us be more accurate and efficient. We appreciate your help on this matter. Note: If your student has the sniffles, cough, sneezing, fever, etc., please DO NOT send him/her to school. If medication is needed for fever or other contagious symptoms this is a good indicator your child should stay home.
Mandatory Europe Trip
Meeting
There will be a mandatory meeting Feb.28th at 7:00 p.m. for everyone going on the school Europe trip. We will be going over all the final trip details including how to pack, student rules, etc. There will also be time for questions and answers.
Help Wanted!
Note: The Cecil family has come to us from Michigan.
The Cecils are seeking a responsible 15-18 year old female VRA student, or a parent, to provide after-school care to their 8 and 11 year old VRA students. Supervision of homework will be required. The hours are 3:30-6:00 pm Mon-Thurs and noon until 4 pm on Fridays. The pay will be $65 per week plus bonuses for great work done. The hours can be extended during days-off, Spring break, and Summer break. You must provide the kids transportation from the school to our home at Blue Sky condos in Erie, or to your home not too far away. Please contact us via e-mail to set up an interview: emilycecil@mac.com or you can call me at 269-512-2640. This position can begin as soon as I check your references.
Special Education
We would like to welcome Elaine Huot M.Ed. D. Child Study, to our school.
Elaine is working with several students on the VRA campus. Elaine has 28 years of teaching experience as a language/literacy specialist and she is a certified Sped. Teacher in Colorado. She does educational assessments/testing for students from K through 12 who are concerned with any learning issues especially in their language development. All tests are approved by the Colorado Dept. of Education. Elaine has supported teachers with curriculum materials and language support for their students at VRA.
She offers a wide variety of research based, “best practice” language programs and methodologies for Dyslexic, LD and language challenged students of all ages. These multi-sensory programs teach phonological awareness,decoding, encoding, vocabulary reading, writing, research skills and organizational study skills using hands on materials and the most recent "state of the art" assistive technology.
Students receive 1 on 1 teaching that is individualized to meet their own learning style and challenges. Follow-up written work, CD's, games and teaching software is provided to help students master concepts taught. Elaine has many excellent references that are available upon request. Students have access to assistive technology and she offers training on these excellent programs at all levels. If you are interested Elaine can be contacted at: elhuot@mac.com and 303-579-4496.
Box Tops for Education & Campbell's Labels |
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 Save every Box Top for Education and Campbell's Label for our school! The Campbell's "Labels for Education" program is similar -- save the UPC codes of most products (not the front labels as in the past). On most Campbell's products, a tiny inscription beside the "Labels for Education" logo will describe what to save. Vista Ridge Academy benefits from every "Box Tops for Education" and "Campbell's Labels for Education" turned in. Don't throw away these treasures! Our school has received a free huge play parachute from redeeming the Campbell's labels, and we have received over $500 cash from redeeming the Box Tops for Education.
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School Store!
Hours:
Mon. – Thurs. 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
& Fri. 9 a.m. - noon
Case orders will be in Feb. 21.
We have vegetarian canned and frozen products, and seasonings from several companies. Come browse and help our school. Buy by case or individually. |
