News from the Principal

As our morning drop-off volunteers will contest, “Winter weather is upon us!” As the days shorten and the temperature drops it is imperative that all Hanawalt students come to school with appropriate clothing. Hats, gloves, and a winter jacket are essential as it will be our goal to allow students to get as much outdoor exercise as possible.

Over the last several weeks the staff at Hanawalt has collaborated to originate a collective vision statement that is unique to our community. An effective vision statement motivates, energizes, and provides a sense of shared ownership and collegiality. It is a proactive strategy that emphasizes the need for an entire organization to focus on expectations of the future. Staff members have been intrinsically motivated to create, revise, and promote the work of the entire school body. The below statement will be used as a guiding directive when making decisions that have a substantial impact on the overall community. One example of the immediate impact of the statement with regard to the use of 21^st century skills is reflected in a joint PTA/Hanawalt commitment to provide systematic word processing instruction to all 3^rd grade students. Software to enable this effort will be loaded into the computer lab and students will be provided keyboarding instruction with the goal to have accurate and fluent electronic communication skills upon exiting Hanawalt in fifth grade.

Letter from the PTA Co-Presidents

It is hard to believe the 2010 part of the school year is almost over, but there is still plenty of fun left!
And, because we know that we are in the most wonderful time – and busiest – time of the year, here are just few things we wanted to communicate.

• We have had several parents ask if the Non-Fundraiser Fundraiser was still open. Of course it is! If your flyer got lost in a stack of paper or you simply didn’t have time to think about it, you can still drop your contribution in the PTA mailbox. If you need a receipt for tax purposes, please indicate that as well.


• The Poinsettia Sale brought in almost $200 for the general fund.


• We are recycling used Christmas lights now through the first week of January. Have your student drop the lights in the barrels near the office.


• The directories are in. If you did not pre-order a directory, there are a few available in the office on a first-come, first-serve basis for $5 a book.


• Mark your calendar for Friday, February 4. We’ll be hosting a Movie Night and Book Fair. We are looking for volunteers to help coordinate, so if you are interested contact Martha Miller Johnson at 480-1583.


• Parent patrol is looking for additional volunteers. As the weather begins to get, um, interesting, we could use one more volunteer for each shift. If you are interested, please contact Lisa Russell at 210.3052.


• Spirit wear is on display near the office. If you need a form, there are extras at the office.


• Planning has begun for Day in the Arts, which is scheduled for April 15. If you or someone you know would be interested in being a guest artist, please contact either Sally McKenzie at sally.mckenzie@dmps.k12.ia.us or Carol Looney at carol.looney@dmps.k12.ia.us.


• The PTA has helped make two significant purchases to be used by all Hanawalt students. We purchased a Rigby testing kit, which teachers of all grade levels use to evaluate reading progress throughout the school year. Also, we contributed $400 towards the purchase of word processing software for use in the new computer lab.

As always, if you have any questions or suggestions for PTA, please feel free to contact either Martha (marthamillerjohnson@gmail.com) or Lisa (lisa@scubacreative.com). You may also just drop us a note in the PTA mailbox.

I am happy to report that our building is staying fairly healthy. We continue to encourage good hand washing and covering their cough. Thank you for keeping your student home when they are sick. Students need to stay home if they have a fever over 100 degrees, vomiting or diarrhea, an unexplained rash, or a bad cold that would make it difficult for them to concentrate and learn. Please be sure to notify the office if your student will be absent for any reason.

Cold weather is on the way. We will be having outdoor recess as much as possible. Please be sure your student comes to school ready to go outside to play. They will need a warm coat, hat, and mittens. When we do get snow, they will need boots and snow pants to be allowed to go on the field and enjoy all that winter has to offer. If you have any health concerns or questions please call or stop in and see me any time.

Sandy Willett – School Nurse

Third Grade News

Hanawalt Third Graders are learning about Veteran’s Day. One of our students has a cousin over in Afghanistan, so we wrote letters to his troop and collected items to send them for the holidays. We asked other students in the building to help us as well and we received many great donations! Miss Vikki contacted a dentist who had paid children for their Halloween candy. The office gave us over 40 pounds of candy to send to the soldiers as well!

We are learning about family and traditions in our reading unit. Each student did a family history project by collecting information about each family member, learning where their ancestors were from and creating a family tree. The students learned and shared lot of great things about their family!

Fourth Grade News

Fourth Grade Social Studies students at Hanawalt Elementary have been busy creating Economy Quilts to support their study of the East Region of the United States. Each student selected one of the eleven states in the region, read about the resources in the state then designed a colorful quilt to enhance their research. The students were also very thrilled to use the new computer lab as part of this project.

Fifth Grade News

During Science students are studying Food and Nutrient which teaches students how to read food labels and about healthy food choices. Students used hands on investigations to test foods for fat, sugar, acid and vitamin C. Using information from the investigations students were able to create a nutritious lunch menu.

In History class students researched and then created presentations about Colonial Life. They created plays, games, posters and dioramas. Topics included food, games, music, medicine and clothing during the colonial period.

Students have just completed the first unit in the new “Being a Writer” curriculum in Language Arts class. Students are now choosing one of their writing pieces to take through the writing process. This will culminate with a publishing party on Friday, December 17^th. We also had our second video conference with our German pen pals and are preparing for our first video conference with Italy.