March 2008 

Dear Parents & Guardians:

Spring has sprung, and Mattison Avenue has been buzzing with excitement during the second trimester!  The students and teachers have been busily working in their academic subjects while also managing to have great fun! The second trimester has been packed with several activities to enhance our students’ learning.  These included assembly programs, guest presenters, and students practicing their knowledge in a variety of ways that extend beyond the regular classroom activities.

January was a month of performance for our second and third grade students.  Under the direction of Ms. Kathleen Gibson and Mr. David Morgan, students shared their talents vocally and instrumentally at our Winter Concert.   The children gave a wonderful performance of winter selections.  At this time, I would like to thank Ms. Gibson and Mr. Morgan for their hard work and dedication to the musical education of our Mattison Avenue students.  I would also like to wish Mr. Morgan well as he now teaches full time at Wissahickon Middle School.  Our students have learned so much from him, and I am sure they look forward to seeing him once they go on to the middle school.  Likewise, please join me in welcoming Mrs. Sonia St. Jules, who has been working with our third grade students since January.  We look forward to the Spring Concert performance in April.

Reading was celebrated in two special events at Mattison Avenue.  In February, students participated in a Buddy Reading activity to demonstrate their love for reading.  Students read to one another and participated in a brief activity to practice skills and strategies learned from their teachers. March is an exciting month, which focuses around Reading, and no one is better associated with a love of reading than Dr. Seuss.  As a school, we set a goal to have the students hear 100 Read Alouds by Dr. Seuss’s birthday.  Teachers read to students and recorded that book on a Dr. Seuss hat.  We met our school wide goal just in time to celebrate his birthday in March with another buddy reading activity.  Our students and staff enjoyed sharing their knowledge and love of reading.

Students at Mattison Avenue were also engaged in assembly programs that enhanced their learning.  In February, students were excited by a presentation about the life of Martin Luther King, Jr.  This look back at the life and work of Dr. King provided students with a prospective into his life beginning with his childhood and concluding with the tragic loss of this inspirational man.   This one-man production gave the students the opportunity to hear the words of Dr. King and comprehend at their young age the work that he did.  On a different note, our students also spent some time with Ronald McDonald who reinforced the importance of reading.  Students were invited to go onto our stage and assist Ronald McDonald during the performance as he delivered the message that reading is important.

As we begin our third trimester, Mattison Avenue will continue to be a very busy place.  On March 31, our third grade students will take PSSAs to assess their reading and math skills.  Please make sure that students get the proper rest, have a good breakfast, and arrive to school on time during this week and every day.  In April, we will have several events.  First and foremost, parent-teacher conferences will be held in April.  Please check your calendar or contact your child’s teacher to recall your scheduled meeting time. This is an important time to discuss your child’s academic and social progress. Our annual Science Night will be held in the month of April.  Due to a calendar change, it has been moved from April 22 to April 24.  As we get closer to the date,  more information will become available.  Also in April, our second and third grade students will have their spring concert performance.  Again, look for information about this event, as we get closer to the date of the concert.

As the students and staff move into the third trimester, we will be enjoying the arrival of spring but  also continuing to work hard each day.  I continue to appreciate parental efforts to get students to school on   time each day and follow school procedure for absences.  Although it is the final trimester, it is as vital that students attend school each day now as it was during the first two trimesters.  I look forward to the excitement of this final trimester, and I hope that you and your family enjoy the coming spring months!  As always, thank you for your continual support of your child’s learning and academic  progress.

                                                                          Sincerely,

                                                                          Ms.  Nicole West
                                                                          Mattison Avenue Elementary School                                                                                              

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