This Saturday 3/24 10:00 a.m -2:00 p.m.
In the Cafeteria, Gym and track, Rain or Shine!

The PTSA's Frey Fit Fest is this weekend… It’s going to be AWESOME!  50
vendors from around the county… even the Acworth City Mayor… will be there
to help our kids and the whole community get fit from our teeth to our
toes!  There will be a rock climbing wall… an obstacle course… health
screenings… martial arts demonstrations and group exercise classes… chair
massages… and get this… except for food and a healthy version of the cake
walk to enter… it’s all FUH-REE!!  Yep, *FREE*!  It’s going to be a great
event for the whole family to enjoy.  Visit www.freyptsa.com for more
information.  See you there!




March 24^th from 10:00 to 2:00

 PTSA is hosting Frey Fit Fest, a FREE health fair for families in our community! Join us in the Frey gym, cafeteria, and around the track… rain or shine!

There’ll be fun things to do for every age… a rock climbing wall, an obstacle course and a bounce house to burn some calories! You can get free blood pressure checks and spinal screenings… and learn about dental and orthodontic health. Find out how to stay safe in a car, on your bike, or in the water. You can watch martial arts, exercise and dance demonstrations… or grab a map, make some trail mix and take a hike on the Frey nature trails!

There will be food for sale from Roly Poly sandwiches and Yogli Mogli yogurt. So bring your mom, your dad, your neighbors, your soccer team… don’t miss the Frey Fit Fest!

 

Are you having problems motivating your child

to do their best at home and in school?

If so, join us for an informative breakfast seminar

hosted by the Frey Elementary School Counselors.

Wednesday March 7, 2012 from 7:30 - 8:00 a.m. 

 Please read the attached flyer for more

information or to make reservations.

 

Monday,  Feb. 20 
 President's Day  *** No School ***
   

Wednesday, Feb. 22
Due today:  GameTruck reservations for the night of the Dance!  Any remaining time slots will be sold the night of the Dance.

Support Relay for Life and purchase your Chick-fil-A chicken biscuit for $2.50 in car line or bus port from 7:50am until they are gone.

 

Thursday, Feb. 23
 Bring donated dessert items (for the Dance Cake walk) to the PTSA room.  Thank you!  The students really appreciate it!!!
  

Friday, Feb. 24
Bring donated dessert items (for the Dance for the Cake walk) to the PTSA room.

Science Fair Registrations due today, Feb 24!!! 
Download registration/info HERE.   For the Frey Science Fair webpage, please visit www.freyptsa.com. 

 

* CALENDARS *   Monthly event calendars for Feb, Mar, Apr & May are now online at www.freyptsa.com!!  Enjoy!! 

 

 

 

 

Save the Dates!

Mon   Feb 20 - no school, President's Day

 

Fri     Feb 24 - Frey 80's Dance!!  Radical!! 

                             Science Fair Registration due

 

Wed  Mar 7  Breakfast Seminar "Motivating your Child"  7:30 - 8:00am

Tue/Wed   Mar 13-14 - Frey Science Fair 

Thu   Mar 15 - Boosterthon Fun Run

Fri      Mar 16  Science Fair Reception 8am in Cafeteria

Tue    March 20 - Spring Pictures

Sat    March 24 - Frey Fit Fest  10am-2pm

Congratulations Frey

Each year the Governor's Office recognizes schools throughout the state for performance and improvements in academic achievements.  This year it was announced that Frey has been awarded the Bronze Star for academic achievements.  We are very proud and honored to have been named among the top performing schools in the District and the State.

Link to the article in the Marietta Daily Journal:

http://mdjonline.com/view/full_story/17277245/article-37-Cobb-County-Schools-recognized-for-achievement--4-for-greatest-gain?instance=home_news_special_coverage

  

Last year, we adopted Lt. Cameron West's platoon and began to send care packages to his platoon in Afghanistan.  Shortly after, Lt. Cameron West was wounded and had to come home; however, Frey continued to send care packages to his platoon in Afghanistan until the end of the school year. On Friday, 12/16/11 Lt. Cameron West will be visiting our school to thank all of the students.  We are holding a "Coins for Cameron" drive on this Tuesday and Wednesday.  We are planning to present Lt. Cameron West with a check for the Wounded War Foundation on Friday, 12/16th.  At 10:00 AM, our students will line the hallways for our "Hero's Welcome Walk of Honor".  The students will stand in the hallways, holding the American Flag, as Lt. Cameron takes the "Walk of Honor" at Frey.  He will walk down each hallway so that each student will be able to see him and thank him for his service to our Country.  Our staff and students are asked to wear their Lt. Cameron shirt from last year, the Patriotic Frey Shirt, or red, white, and blue on this day. The presentation of the check will be broadcasted from the Media Center to the classrooms and Lt. Cameron will take a moment to speak to the students from this broadcast.

 

This won't be the first time Lt. Cameron West has walked the halls of Frey.  He took his first "Walk of Honor" as a 5th grader in May of 1997, when he graduated from Frey Elementary School.  Lt. Cameron West is very special to us because he was a former Frey student.  It is an honor to have him come and visit us and we are so proud of this Marine.

 

In addition, each student that sends in a donation on this Tuesday and Wednesday will receive a link to add to our Rachel's Challenge Chain of Kindness.

 

Thank you so much for your support!

Dear Parents,
When devising our school supply list for the current year, we tried to be very cautious in asking for supplies.   Each school year all grade levels combine a few supplies to one central storage area.  With the rapid change in weather, we are finding ourselves in need of a few community school supplies.  It would be greatly appreciated if each family could send in some Kleenex, Clorox Wipes, Ziploc Sandwich and Snack size bags.

Rachel’s Challenge/Save It Forward Food Drive

 

So far we have had a wonderful response to our food collection for needy families here in Cobb County. We will continue to collect boxed and canned food until the 100^th day of school (Jan. 27^th), so please keep those donations coming! For each donation a student brings in, they receive a link to add to our Rachel’s Challenge Chain for their act of kindness. Thank you for your generosity!

 

*************************************************************
Online Books

My Capstone Library   login: rep    password: digital

Magnetic Word Families

Vowels-a,i,o

Short/Long Vowels

Monkey Business (Sentences) 

Sequencing (2) 

Plural Nouns 

Nouns (common/proper) 

Proofreading 

Sentence Clubhouse (2nd/3rd) 

Comparatives (2nd/3rd) 

Punctuation Paintball (2nd/3rd)  

Thanksgiving Feast Dates:

K-2 Feast-Tuesday, November 15th
3-5 Feast-Wednesday, November 16th

 

Rachel's Challenge

Parents, don't forget that tonight is a Parent Night for Rachel's Challenge at 6:00 in the cafeteria. This meeting is for parents only. We understand if you need to bring your children with you so, we will provide a movie room for them during the meeting with teachers as monitors. This is due to the intense information of the events that surround the initiative of Rachel's Challenge. We hope you can make it! The contents of the program and the initiative behind it is very moving! You don't want to miss it!

The students will have their assembly during the school day today that is more age appropriate. It solely focuses on Rachel's life, character, and acts of kindness towards others and not the tragic events in which she was involved. I personally can't wait to see the influence that Rachel's challenge will have on my students. One of my favorite quotes is about kindness.

"Kindness, like a boomerang, always returns."  ~Author Unknown

 

 

 

Frey Calendar

• Sept. 30th- School Pictures
  
• Sept. 26th - Reflections Due
  
• Sept. 29th - Rachel's Challenge Assembly 6:00pm
  
• Oct. 7th - Fall Festival 5:30-8:30
  

Helpful Websites

Pre-Reading and Writing Strategies

Salt Box – Line a small box with black paper and add a thin layer of salt. Your child can write letters in the salt. Shake the box to "clean the slate."

Sandpaper Letters – Cut the letters of your child’s name out of sandpaper. Glue these onto a piece of cardboard. Your child can trace his/her name with his/her finger.

Magnetic Letters – Buy several sets of magnetic letters (upper & lowercase letters.) On the fridge or a cookie sheet, help your child find and group together all of the capital and lowercase B/b, then all of the D/d, etc. Talk about the letter’s name and the sound it makes. Then, find all the letters that make a "mmm" sound (M) or an "ssss" sound (C & S), etc.

Alphabet Books – Cut a piece of paper into fourths, staple them together on the side, and write an alphabet letter on the cover. Your child can cut pictures out of magazines that begin with the letter on the cover and glue them on the following pages. Label the pictures.

Finger Paints – Your child can smear finger paints on a piece of paper. Help him/her write his/her name or various letters with his/her finger. Wipe the slate clean, then try some more.

Play-dough – Draw a letter, and have your child roll out pieces of play-dough and fit and mold them together to make that letter’s shape. Try lots of letters!

Spaghetti – Do the same as above with cooked spaghetti. Color small batches with food coloring to make it more fun.

Letter Hunt – Look for letters. Pick a letter of the day and see how many everyone in the family can find. Look on street signs, in books, etc. Make it a game!

Body Letters – Help your child make letter shapes with his/her body. Some letters, like L, your child will be able to make with his/her own body. Some, like M, will require two bodies.

Fine Motor Control Practice – Draw curly lines, shapes, mazes, and have your child trace them with a pencil. Then see if s/he can duplicate these shapes/lines/etc. by him/herself.

Word Wall – Put up separate alphabet letters on pieces of paper on the wall. Write new words the child has mastered, cut them out and put them under the alphabet letter that has the same beginning sound.

Computer Software – Look for software that incorporate phonics into reading activities.

Post-its & Pens – Write single letters on small post-its and have your child stick the post-its on items around the house that begin with the same letter.

Magna doodle – This is great for the car when practicing fine motor skills, writing letters, words, word families, spelling words, etc.

Alphabet Bingo – This game is wonderful for practicing letter names and sounds.

Rhyming Words – Look for rhyming words in books, poetry, writing, etc. Practice making rhyming words with magnetic letters, pens and paper, on the computer, etc.

Poetry – Read lots of poetry to your child. Go back and look for words that start and/or end with the same letter, words that rhyme, capital letters, same endings, etc.

Read! Read! Read! - Read to your child often and discuss what you are reading! Model and encourage as much language as possible.

Strategies for Letter Recognition 

from Hubbard's Cupboard

•        Letters are Everywhere --Draw your child's attention to letters and words in his/her environment (signs, cereal boxes, toy boxes, menus, etc.)

•        Letter Writer--Have your child trace letters on/in different surfaces (sand, rice, cloth, etc.) Say the name of the letter with your child as they form the letter. Try using bath crayons. You can use them in the tub and they erase right off!

•        Letter Builder --Build letters with different materials such as macaroni, pipe cleaners, playdough, etc.

•        Print the Letters -- Practice printing upper and lower case letters. (one time each week)

•        Tactile Letters – Make a tactile letter for finger tracing. Write a letter on large paper. Trace with glue. Sprinkle with sand, salt, or rice. When dry, have your child trace the letter with his/her finger and say the name of the letter.

•        Rainbow Letters -- Write one letter on a large sheet of paper. Have your child rainbow write the letter by tracing over it with 4 or more colors of crayons or markers.

•        Letter Search -- Name a letter and ask your child to find as many different sizes, colors, and styles of that letter as possible to cut and glue onto a sheet of paper.

•        Which Letter? -- Write a row of different letters for your child. Say one of those letters and ask him/her to circle the letter you said.

•        Highlights -- Give some of your junk mail to your child and ask him/her to use a marker or crayon to highlight or circle certain letters. (exp. Highlight all of the Kk's orange, all oePp's purple, all of the Yy's blue, etc.)

Strategies for Letter Sounds

from Hubbard's Cupboard

•        Flashcards/ABC Picture Chart—Daily do a quick review of letters and sounds. Show the card and have your child either…say the letter name and the picture name; say the letter name and the sound; say the sound and the picture name; or say the letter name, picture name, and another word that would start with that same letter.

•        Sticky Letter --Make 3x5 letter cards. Make several of the same letter. Work on one sound at a time. Have your child find an object in the house that begins with that sound and tape the card to it. Keep it up for a few days so that your child can be reminded of the sound each time they see the letter card.

•        "I Spy" letter sounds -- "I spy something that begins with the sound of b." Or, say, "I spy a ____. What letter do you hear at the beginning of that word." This is great for waiting in line or driving in the car.

•        Brainstorm--Give your child a sound and ask him/her to think of as many words as they can that start with that same sound.

•        ABC tub games--Get a butter dish or small bowl. Gather several household objects that begin with the same letter sound and a few that don't. Your child must figure out which items begin with the same sound and put them in the bowl.

•        Search the House -- Your child can search around the house for objects whose names begin with a certain letter. (exp. B- bananas, brush, band-aid, belt, etc.)

•        Picture Sound Collage -- Ask your child to search through magazines, etc. for pictures that start with a certain letter. Have them glue all the pictures they find onto one sheet of paper to form a letter collage.

•        Tongue Twisters -- Play with tongue twisters-traditional or made up! They are fun and emphasize the initial consonant. (exp. Pink pigs play with purple pegs.)

•        ABC Memory—Find 1 picture that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Also, make flashcards, 1 for each letter. Play memory by asking your child to match each letter to it's corresponding picture. (exp. An apple with the letter Aa)

Here is a list of strategies for Kindergarten & 1st Grade

1. Use magnet Letters- order from A to Z, spell words, pick out certain letters, match magnet to a picture

2. Play letter concentration/memory game

3. Use pipe cleaners to form letters

4. Use play dough to form letters

5. Reread stories from letter books and review various skills taught

6. Play with bathtub foam letters/bathtub crayons

7. Make a journal at home-have your child write to you and you respond back

8. Play Boggle Jr.

9. Use letter stamps or letter markers

10. Let child write letters or words using shaving cream

11. Create an ABC book using pictures from magazines

12. Take slime and use a finger to draw letters and words

13. Play “I Spy” in the car (I spy something that starts with f)

14. Play spotlight game-use a flashlight to shine on letters or words

15. Highlights - give some of your junk mail to your child and ask him/her to use a marker or crayon to highlight or circle certain letters. (exp. Highlight all of the Kk's orange, all of the Pp's purple, all of the Yy's blue, etc.)

16. Sticky Letter –Write letters on post-it notes. Make several of the same letter. Work on only a couple sounds at a time (or just one). Have your child find an object in the house that begins with that sound and stick the post-it to it. Keep it up for a few days so that your child can be reminded of the sound each time they see the post-it. You can also do this by having your child sounding out the object and sticking it to it.

17. Write letters to friends and family

What to do if your child gets "stuck"

Studies have shown that reading at home is the most important thing you can do to ensure your child's reading success. Now that your child is beginning to read, they might get stuck on a hard word. Here are some hints you can give to help your child read a hard word on their own.

1. Give time and encouragement. ("You give it a try.")

2. Suggest checking the picture if it will help. ("That word is in the picture.")

3. Ask if it looks like the right word. (If the word is crocodile: "You said alligator. Does that word look like alligator?")

4. Ask if it makes sense. (Does it sound right to say, "We go the to store?")

5. Rerun the sentence. ("Go back to the start of the sentence and try it again.")

6. Be patient, encouraging, and positive about all the attempts your child makes.

7. This is a very slow process at first. But remember to ENJOY IT!

10 Reasons to Read Aloud to Children

by Susan Nixon, MA Ed.

Children will:

1. Hear new words;
2. Develop sentence sense and an ear for rhythm;
3. Enjoy and compare diverse writing styles;
4. Create common connections to ideas (as a class);
5. Use reading as a springboard to discussion and writing;
6. Gain new knowledge and understanding;
7. Hear standard forms of English;
8. Learn about a variety of writing genres;
9. Feel things they've never felt before;
10. Share a wonderful time with you and your favorite read-aloud books!