LAWRENCE ACADEMY January 28, 2015 The Wired Warrior Volume 6 Number 7 From the Head of School What a crazy winter and we have a long way yet to go. Fog, Ice, Bridge Out, Snow, Cold Rain- so many adjustments we have all made to get to and from school each day. Ask Elaine Lancaster how long it takes to go around the HWY 45 Bridge through Williamston on a rainy afternoon on a school bus, and she will tell you 2 hours and 10 minutes. So many of you made sacrifices on those days we traveled around; let’s hope the repair holds. Mark your calendar for February 16, 17 for our annual Science Fair. Mr. Bradshaw plans to have all judging in by 1:00 PM on the 17th and to have a short assembly to honor those who will receive awards at 1:35 PM in gym. Projects are to be removed that afternoon at the end of the day. Winter Break starts February 18 and runs thru February 20 with students returning on February 23 at our regular time. Enrollment contracts were mailed out on Monday January 26, 2015 for the 2015-2016 school year. Parents are encouraged to respond by February 20, 2015 to take advantage of the discount offered during the enrollment period. Also note that if you recommend a new family (you can do more than one) and they enroll, you can receive a $500 credit on your yearly tuition- $250 each semester. This is a great way to offset your tuition and help the school increase in numbers which consequentially increases our family base for help on projects and fund raisers at the school. Our boys and girls basketball teams have participated well in the Tarheel Independent Conference and hope to win several championships at the close of the season and at the Conference Tournament to be held at Northeast Academy in a few weeks. Good luck to them as move into the NCISAA State Tournaments mid-February. Academics BLACKBAUD We are already half way through the 4th six weeks! Progress Reports are going out this week for students with low averages. Please don’t forget that you are always able to view your child’s progress in his/her classes via our new system. The website is https://53821netclass.blackbaudondemand.com. If you are not able to login for any reason, please contact Mrs. Chappell at [email protected] and she will be more than happy to help you! Business Office ENROLLMENT TIME The time has come to enroll your child for the 2015-16 academic year. Re-enrollment contracts were mailed out on Monday. Lawrence Academy is looking forward to an exciting and prosperous new year. The tuition fees for PreK - 12th grade will not change for the upcoming year. You will notice there has been a minor increase in the enrollment fee as well as other fees associated with your child’s educational experience at Lawrence. - The enrollment fee is $300 per student with a discounted rate of $250 per student if paid during the early enrollment period. - All students will be charged an activity fee of $125.00 from PreK – 12th grade. This activity fee will include a combination of the PE, Art, Music, Spanish, and Athletic fees. This will assist with the purchasing of equipment and materials needed to teach the extracurricular courses for your child(ren). - The students in grades PreK – 6th grade will now pay a flat book fee of $150.00 for curriculum textbooks, consumables and supplies. - The Technology Fee will remain as is at $75.00 per family. Please act promptly to take advantage of the early enrollment discount of $50 per student. The discount period will run from February 2, 2015 – February 20, 2015. Discounts will not be given after February 20th. NO EXCEPTIONS! Classroom News: WHAT IS SAXON MATH? Saxon Math is a hands-on, success-oriented series that emphasizes manipulatives and mental math. The series uses a multisensory approach to teaching and is designed for heterogeneously grouped children. Its use will enable all children to develop a solid foundation in the language and basic concepts of mathematics. Mastery of mathematical concepts does not occur quickly, but requires that the concepts be practiced over a long period of time. In each Saxon program, concepts are presented in carefully sequenced small pieces called increments. New objectives are introduced through carefully selected group activities, and all concepts are practiced in each succeeding lesson. All areas of mathematics are integrated so that children see the interrelationships. Thus, concepts are not presented in chapters, but are gently introduced over a considerable period of time. PRE-K : WHAT COLOR CAMOUFLAGE DO POLAR BEARS WEAR? KINDERGARTEN “THE VELVETEEN RABBITT” The Kindergarten class has been very busy in their academics. The students have learned how to count to 100. They can count money using pennies, nickels, and dimes. The students can also count by 10's and by 5's. The Kindergarteners use math manipulatives daily to learn various Math skills. In Reading, the children have already completed reading their 15 Pre-Decodable Books, and have started reading their Decodable Books. The students are very proficient in their high frequency word list and phonics skills. The class has begun working on their Kindergarten play, "The Velveteen Rabbit." This play will be presented on Thursday, April 30 at 7:00 PM and Friday, May 1 at 8:30 AM. Please plan to come out and watch them in this long honored Lawrence Academy tradition! First Grade Penguins Mrs. Saunders' First Grade class is learning about penguins. We have enjoyed doing an art project, reading stories and writing our own stories about penguins. SECOND GRADE Second graders are busy creating their own snowmen. After naming their snowmen, they will write an imaginative narrative using the story “Frosty the Snowman” as a model. They will use circle maps for brainstorming and flow maps to construct sequence and opening and closing sentences. Next they will extend their flow maps with details and select transition and time order words to tell the order. Then they will orally rehearse what they will write using their flow map. After they write, edit, and publish their story, they will read it to the class. THIRD GRADE Third graders at Lawrence have just finished book reports on their choice of The Magic Tree House books. These reports tell the setting, favorite character, summary, and their favorite part of the book. They also drew the front of their books; these decorate the tree in the hall. The class is also working diligently on their multiplication tables, division, fractions, elapsed time, and word problems. Saxon Math is a spiraling program that works with all skills, expanding them as the year progresses. This way it keeps the knowledge fresh in the student’s mind. We will be finishing up our unit on the Solar System with reports by the students on the Planets, Asteroid Belt, Sun, and Moon. FOURTH GRADE GRINCHES Our 4th grade has welcomed four new students this year! We are working hard on long division. We had a special visitor at Christmas. Thanks Steve Trowell! Development Activities ANNUAL DRIVE FOR THE GREEN, RUN FOR THE GOLD Mark your calendars ….Lawrence Academy’s Annual Golf Tournament and 5k/1 miler Fundraiser will be on Saturday, April 25, 2015 9:00AM till. There will be fun and games for the entire family so be sure to plan and spend the day with us. Last year we were able to triple our profits and this year we plan to do even better! You can help make this a HUGE Success by participating. More information will be out soon! Guidance SAT/ACT Testing Schedule SAT Test Date 3/14/15 5/2/15 6/6/15 2014 – 2015 SAT Testing Schedule: Late Late Registration Registration: Registration: Deadline Mail Phone/Online 2/13/15 2/27/15 3/3/15 4/6/15 4/17/15 4/21/15 5/8/15 5/22/15 5/27/15 2014 – 2015 ACT Testing Schedule: ACT Test Date Registration Deadline Late Registration 2/7/15 4/18/15 6/13/15 1/9/15 3/13/15 5/8/15 1/10/15 – 1/16/15 3/14/15 – 3/27/15 5/9/15 – 5/22/15 National Drug Facts Week (NDFW) is an annual health observance week for teens to shatter the myths about drugs and drug abuse. NDFW centers on community events for teens, NIDA’s Drug Facts Chat Day, and partnerships. January 26 – February 1. Drug Facts Chat Day – January 30, 2015 During this annual live online chat held between high school students and NIDA scientists, students from around the country ask the questions they most want answers to about drugs and drug abuse, including drug effects, how to help friends or family that are abusing drugs, and what causes addiction. Expert scientists give them facts. Visit the website http://teens.drugabuse.gov/national-drug-facts-week/learn-about-national-drug-facts-week for more information.