School News Wow! What a great week! The

students and teachers have really

enjoyed the weather this week.

Even though the temperature has

been getting up into the 70s,

remember that most grade levels

have a morning recess and it is still

rather chilly that time of day.

Please remember to dress your child

appropriately as it is easier to

remove layers then be cold all day.

Remember there is NO SCHOOL on

this Friday because of the Malcolm

Music Contest.

Have a fun and relaxing weekend!!!

Westfall Elementary Newsletter March 15, 2012

Important Dates:

March 1st Early Dismissal

2nd No School

8th Early Dismissal

End of 3rd Quarter

9th No School

12th 4th Grade Fieldtrip (Kopecky)

MPTO Meeting @ 6:30

13th 4th Grade Fieldtrip (Beach)

14th Strategic Planning Meeting

15th Report Cards

Malcolm Music Contest

16th No School

Malcolm Music Contest

19th School Board Meeting 7:00

19th-23rd Jump Rope for Heart

27th-29th NeSA Science Testing

28th Strategic Planning Meeting

Westfall Elementary School

Grades K-6

10000 NW 112th St

Malcolm, NE 68402

Phone: 402-796-2151

Amber Dolliver ext. 520 Dianne Kubicek ext. 521

Chris Bolte ext. 523

Fax: 402-796-2186

Nebraska State

Accountability Assessment

(NeSA)

March 27th-29th Science

(5th, 8th, & 11th grade)

April

3rd-5th Reading

(3rd-8th & 11th grade)

11th-13th Math

(3rd-8th & 11th grade)

Backpack Program Malcolm Public Schools Student Council is excited to

announce sponsorship and participation in a Backpack program. The Backpack program directly serves students that

attend Malcolm Public Schools to provide food for the weekends. MPS Student Council is conducting a food

donation drive during the week of March 19-23. Please donate non-perishable items such as: pancake mix, syrup,

Ramen noodles, canned fruits and/or veggies, macaroni and cheese, pop tarts, spaghetti noodles and sauce, canned soup and/or meats, peanut butter, or oatmeal. For questions or to

discuss how you can assist, please contact a member of Student Council or Mrs. Piening.

Heritage

School The 4th Grade

student

attended the

Heritage

School on

March 12th and

13th.

Congratulations to Torin Lynn for

completing 100 multiplication

problems in 2 minutes.

App of the Week

Standardized Tests Choose to Do Well

True or False: standardized tests are taught. The answer depends on how prepared your child is. Here are four ways to help them handle test week:

1. Explain that the tests will show how much they have learned. Encourage them to try their best, but don’t put so much emphasis on them that they feel stressed.

2. Practice the test format. For example, your child might have to read a paragraph and answer questions. Using one of their textbooks, have them look at the questions at the end of a section first and then read the passage. That will help them know what to read for and how to find the answers.

3. Limit activities the night before tests. You may want to avoid having guests for dinner or skip a late night activity. Be sure your child gets to bed on time and sets an alarm for the next morning.

4. On test day, give them an energy-boosting breakfast. Try to include both protein (eggs, yogurt, milk) and carbohydrates (fruit, oatmeal, toast).

Kindergarten Roundup will be on Monday,

April 2nd at 4PM. Please contact the

school at 796-2151 if you are new to the

district.

Google Earth Hold the world in the palm

of your hand. With Google

Earth for iPhone, iPad, and

iPod touch, you can fly to

far corners of the planet

with just the swipe of a

finger. Explore the same

global satellite and aerial

imagery available in the

desktop version of Google

Earth, including high-

resolution imagery for over

half of the world's

population and a third of

the world's land mass.

Counting Fish for Kids Lite

Counting Fish is a cute and

entertaining way to teach

your child how to count to

20. Children count the

number of fish they see

swimming and then tap

the pearl with the

corresponding answer.

Successive, more difficult

levels will gradually

challenge your child.

Congratulations to Mr. Michael Beach for receiving the A+

Educator of the Week in the Lincoln Journal Star on March 5th.

“I would like to nominate a fantastic teacher whom both of my kids

have at Westfall Elementary in Malcolm, NE. I would like to recognize

Mr. Beach who is the music and choir teacher with the elementary,

middle, and high school with the Malcolm School District,” wrote

Heather Teut.

Heather said, “Mr. Beach makes music so much fun and really keeps

the kids involved. He puts forth a big effort to put on music programs

with all the grades, which are so entertaining. You can really tell he

loves his job. When he is in front of the class directing them you can

tell it is his passion. Mr. Beach has helped several kids gain recognition

with their accomplishments through music. Mr. Beach definitely

should be recognized for his hard work and compassion he puts in for

the kids at Malcolm. I hope you will take this nomination into

consideration for a great teacher that really deserves to be

recognized.”

Mr. Beach has been teaching for 10 years. He taught 9-12 vocal

music in North Platte for two years and has been teaching K-5 General

Music and 6-12 Vocal Music at Malcolm Public Schools for 8 years.

Mr. Beach said he became a teacher because his parents were both

teachers. Michael said, “They have been great role models for me. I

also became an educator because I enjoy working with students and

watching them unlock hidden potential. My goal is engage every

student, to give them confidence to do their best.”

Congratulations Mr. Michael Beach, this week’s A+ Educator!

Nominated by Heather, Hadley & Bryce Teut

March Box Tops Challenge!!!

The students have started bringing in handfuls of Box Tops, and the competition is getting good!!! Which

grade level will win??? The grade with the most Box Tops collected in March will earn a fun drink & popcorn

celebration in April! Continue clipping those Box Tops and earning some

GREEN for Malcolm Public Schools.

Thanks in advance to the parents for your help with this challenge.

MPTO

The Malcolm Parent Teacher Organization (MPTO) is thinking of bringing back the Fall Festival. We are looking

for parents and community members that would like to chair different aspects of the festival (examples: games,

booths, food, etc…). We are also looking for those creative minds out there that have fun and exciting ideas

and suggestions about games, booths, food, and activities.

Please plan on attending the next MPTO Meeting on Monday, April 2nd at 6:30 in the Westfall Commons Area if

you are interested in volunteering. We want to make this a FUN and ENJOYABLE day for all, so please let us

know if you have ideas, thoughts, and suggestions. If you cannot make the meeting but would like to help or

have ideas and suggestions, please contact Angela Beekman, MPTO President, or Mrs. Dolliver, Westfall

Principal.

Thank You for Supporting our School!!!

MPTO

A Language Rich Home

Good News: Strong language skills can

make your child a better reader, writer,

and all-around student. Great news: You

can build those skills just by talking to your

child. Here’s how:

Narrate everyday activities like driving

or cooking. Hearing new words in

conversation will help your child

understand words in books. If they

don’t know the word, explain it.

Encourage your child to join family

conversations. Ask them questions to

help them expand on their answers.

(“Why do you think so?” “What else

happened?”). They will learn to talk

about events and give their opinions.

Film Canisters

The kindergarten Classrooms are looking for

film canisters. If you have any around the

house and would like to donate them,

please send to school.

Thanks!!!

Book Fair Luau It’s a Reading Celebration

Luaus are shared celebrations that unite communities. And

bringing kids, parents, and teachers together to celebrate books

is the goal behind our featured theme for spring – Book Fair Luau:

It’s a Reading Celebration! The Book Fair is the perfect opportunity

to encourage reading practice because The Fair will be packed

with books children want to read.

Once again the book fair has gathered an exceptional selection

of books, including the multi-award-winning One Crazy Summer

by Rita Williams-Garcia and No Passengers Beyond This Point by

Newbery honoree Gennifer Choldenko. And to commemorate

the 100th anniversary of the Titanic disaster, we have books about

the ill-fated ship for readers of all ages.

It’s a Reading Celebration!!!

Book Fair April 10th-13th

Family Night:

Thursday, April 12th

Yearbook order forms are in the

envelope with your child’s Report Card. Orders must be returned by

March 31st with payment payable to MPTO.

Dear Parent/Guardian,

We Need You! Our school is participating in a very special community service program to raise funds for

the American Heart Association. We’re joining the fight against our nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers —

cardiovascular diseases and stroke. It affects 36,000 babies born each year with heart defects (third

leading fatal form of birth defect) causes a death every 34 seconds or 2,600 deaths each in the U.S. -- 1

out of 3 women have heart disease and are more likely to have a heart attack before a man. National

statistics show by 2013 – 75% of Americans will be obese.

With the money the American Heart raises goes to Health Education and Research. Families in

every Community benefit from research. We have funded many research projects nationwide that has

led to many lifesaving discoveries, including CPR, Pacemakers, bypass surgery, artificial heart values,

microsurgery, stints, AED’s and life-extending drugs. Our Advocacy works to change federal, state and

local laws/policies that affect our nation’s cardiovascular health: In Nebraska they have passed a state

wide No smoking ban in all restaurants and bars.

AHA is currently funding 100 diabetes-related research projects that total $15.9 Million!

On (March 19th – March 23rd), Malcolm students in grades 1-6 will participate in Jump/Hoops for

heart activities during their physical education class. These events are held at schools nationwide and not

only help students learn about the benefits of regular physical activity and heart health, but they also raise

funds to support vital heart and stroke research as well as educational programs.

The American Heart Association is dedicated to helping people live longer, healthier lives. The

money we raise helps people in our community learn how to prevent heart disease and stroke and also

helps our local patient care. Our school will qualify for gift certificates for free physical education

equipment based on the amount we raise, and students will qualify for individual thank-you gifts based on

the donations they collect.

Family and friends can support your child’s participation by making contributions. However, we ask

that children not go door-to-door or ask strangers for donations. If your child receives any cash donations,

please convert those to a check before turning in the collection envelope. All checks should be made

payable to the American Heart Association. The deadline for your student’s collection envelope to be

turned in is (March 26th).

To help your child raise money the fun and easy way, you are encouraged to use our online fund-

raising tool found at www.americanheart.org/jump and click the link “I Am Ready!” Your child can

customize a Web page with images and patterns from our library and include a message about why he

or she is participating in Jump Rope/Hoops for Heart. Next, send e-mails to friends and family to ask for

support. After you have completed raising money online, print your child’s online donation report and

include it inside the collection envelope. Refer to the collection envelope for more detailed instructions

on how easy online fund raising really is.

Also, don’t forget to ask your child’s donors if their employers have matching gift programs. This is an

easy way to increase the donations your child collects. To find out which companies will match donations

to the American Heart Association, please visit www.matchinggifts.com/aha. All matching gift forms

should include your child’s name and school name so the donations can be properly designated.

Jump Rope/Hoops for Heart is a fun event that helps our children understand the importance of

community service and physical activity while helping to save lives.

Dustin Tobey