National Parks Free for 4th Graders!

The White House has an initiative called Every Kid in a Park. The purpose is to get all fourth graders and their families to experience the places that are home to our country's national treasures, rich history, and vibrant culture FREE OF CHARGE! The United States is home to millions of acres of national parks, historic structures, cultural artifacts, ancient forests, snow-capped mountains, and clear blue lakes. You can get your Every Kid in a Park pass at www.everykidinapark.gov. That is the official website where parents, educators, and kids can learn more.

To help engage and create our next generation of park visitor, supporters and advocates, the White House, in partnership with the Federal Land Management agencies, launched the Every Kid in a Park initiative. The immediate goal is to provide an opportunity for each and every 4th grade student across the country to experience their federal public lands and waters in person throughout the 2015-2016 school year.

Beginning September 1st, all 4th grade students have access to their own pass which provides free access to national parks, national forests, national wildlife refuges, and more! The pass is good through August 31, 2016.

In support of Every Kid in a Park, the National Park Foundation, the official charity of American's national parks, is raising funds to help connect fourth graders to America's public lands and waters through transportation grants. As part of the Foundation's Open OutDoors for Kids program, the Every Kid in a Park transportation grants seek to remove barriers to accessing our nation's public lands and waters.

We sincerely hope our 4th grade families look into this exciting opportunity. If you and your family are able to take advantage of this pass, please send some exciting photos and a small blurb telling us about your experience.

Giving Tree Needs Help!

Each year at each Johnsburg School, a Giving Tree is placed in the commons area for families and staff to choose gift tags. Each gift tag represents a Johnsburg student whose family is in need of assistance to get through the winter holidays. The Giving Tree at JCB still has about 30 tags on it. If you would be interested in taking a tag, please stop by the school and choose a tag. If you can't make it in to the building but would still like to participate, please contact the office. We can select a tag and send it home in an envelope with your child. Purchase a new gift item and wrap the gift. Attach the tag from the tree to the gift. On the tag include all items in the gift. Return the wrapped gift to Miss Vent by 12/4/15.

We appreciate your help and your generosity at this time of year!

JCB Students at Work and Play!

Mrs. Arvanitis' class is hard at work and having a blast constructing a life size human body model for science. 

Here is a cute picture of Allena Noel from Mr. Smith's room enjoying a good book during reading group. 

What does room 13 do on a rainy recess day? Go Noodle's Indoor Recess (a fun combination of yoga, dance, and Zumba videos) and board games are some of our choices today!

  

3rd Grade Veteran's Day Concert a Success!

Thanks to Mrs. Mrazek for putting on a wonderful concert to honor our Veterans on this special day. The 3rd grade homeroom teachers were all very proud of their students as they sang their hearts out on Wednesday evening at Johnsburg High School. The students sang traditional songs honoring our country and military as well as a few contemporary pieces and performed short skits between the songs. It was an entertaining experience for everyone.

I'd also like to thank those on our Veteran's Day committee: Mrs. Nicole Mass, Miss Dawn Vent, Mrs. Mary Alice Stone, Mrs. Aschbacher, and Mrs. Allison Thompson for their invaluable assistance to the students and Mrs. Mrazek. We are also appreciative of the assistance from the JHS Theater Department as well as the custodial staff from both JHS and JCB. Finally, none of this can be pulled together without the help of Mrs. Crook and Mrs. Dudley in the JCB office. We are lucky to have such a supportive staff.

5th Grade Band Concert

Congratulations to our 5th Grade Band students as well as to Mrs. Beernink and Mr. Henning for putting on a wonderful concert this past Monday. Friends and family were treated to wonderful songs from the entire 5th grade band. Additionally, we were able to hear tunes that highlighted individual instruments and give us a real taste of those sounds. The concert ended with the song we all know and love "Go Team Go."

Mark your calendars to check out future music programs for JCB Students include the following:

11/11/15--3rd Grade Concert to celebrate Veteran's Day. 7 pm at JHS

12/9/15--5th Grade Concert. 7 pm at JHS

1/14/16--4th Grade Concert. 7 pm at JHS

2/24/16--5th Grade Band Concert. 7 pm at JJHS

Boxtop Winners for October

We had our first drawing of winner for Boxtops for Education. Congratulations to Stephen Desancic for winning the Scholastic Book Bundle; to Matthew Kurek for winning the $10 gift card to Five Below; and to Konrad Zapal for winning lunch with the principal and 5 friends with a dessert provided by Dr. Belcastro. Konrad chose chocolate cake with white frosting for his dessert. The kids loved chatting with me, and I had a great time with them. Lots of 3rd grade peers were very jealous.

We are already getting our raffle boxes filled with boxtops. If you want to participate, students need to put their first and last name on their boxtops and put them in the raffle boxes of their choice. The prizes are the same this month. Winners will be chosen the Monday after Thanksgiving Break.

The Boxtops for Education program helps to support our school and provide resources in our learning center, classrooms, assemblies, and incentives. We thank you for your continued support of our school and programs.

Certified Therapy Dog Visits Students at JCB

Today, a giant visited some classrooms at JCB. Okay, not really a giant--but close. Gator is an English Mastiff and is a certified therapy dog. Therapy dogs are trained to provide comfort and attention to people in all sorts of settings. They are often found in retirement homes, hospitals, schools, and disaster areas. In schools, students often read to the dogs. It provides the students with comfort as they practice and develop their reading skills. Reading out loud is sometimes stressful for students. The dogs give them comfort and confidence as they improve those skills.

Here are other benefits of using a therapy dog in the school. Interaction with the dogs provides tactile stimulation and assists with pain management. A visit with the dog provides a positive mutual topic for discussion, promotes self-esteem and well-being. Companionship with a dog stimulates memory, problem solving, and game playing. Therapy dogs improve acceptance from others and lifts mood.

Check out some pictures from our first visit today.