South Fayette Elementary School

Building Report

November 2012

On Monday, November 5 our generous students and

staff donated 648 pounds of their unwanted „trick or

treat‟ candy to support Operation Gratitude; an

organization that sends care packages to our troops

stationed in harm‟s way. Once again, the South

Fayette community rose above and beyond, putting

smiles on the faces of service men and women all over

the world. Thank you to all who participated in this heartfelt cause.

This month Jeff Smith, “The Geode Guy,” visited the third grade classrooms. The third

graders learned important facts related to rocks and minerals. Jeff presented the students

with an excellent introduction to the science unit. He discussed the differences between

sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous rocks. He also showed a video describing the process of

mining for geodes and geologic rock formations that can occur in certain volcanic rocks. At the

conclusion of the presentation, the students were able to watch Jeff break open their very own

geodes. Each student was able to purchase their own geode as a keepsake. This was a fun and

exciting way to jump-start our exploration of rocks and minerals in the third grade. Submitted

by Third Grade Teacher, Mrs. Brosk

The year is flying by, and we have been busy in kindergarten. We began to write in our

journals and blend sounds to make words. We also started word building and reading sentences!

The children were so excited to receive their very first report card. We had a wonderful time

at the trolley museum and we even got to pick a pumpkin. At parent teacher conferences, the

teachers showed the parents how to word build. Submitted by Kindergarten Teacher, Mrs.

Brentin

November is an exciting month as first graders learn about Election Day, Veterans‟ Day, and

Thanksgiving. Students will be Thanksgiving experts as they learn what life was like for the

Pilgrims on board the Mayflower and at Plymouth Plantation. Students will put themselves in the

place of the Pilgrims as they decide what they would take on the voyage to the New World.

First graders will also enjoy the annual Short Vowel Breakfast where each part of the meal

represents one of the short vowels. We have focused on four of the “Thirty Tips of Dignity and

Respect” so far this year. Students have taken part in lessons designed to promote dignity and

respect in the classroom and school. The lessons include: Break the Ice (getting to know one

another), Join the Team (teamwork), Communicate Respectfully, and Be Open. Submitted by

First Grade Teacher, Mrs. Sisk-Frey

Our focus this fall in physical education class continues to be on improving overall health and

physical fitness, and also utilizing throwing stations and other concepts. Students have been

developing muscular strength, agility, and cardiovascular endurance while rotating through the

circuit training centers. Using new resistance bands in class has helped our students tone their

triceps, biceps, back, and shoulders. During

class, students then rotate to push-ups, sit-ups,

and planks to develop their core muscle

strength. An agility ladder and jumping rope

helped with increased lateral movement, and

finally the students had the opportunity to scale

the rock wall to develop upper body strength.

The students also concentrated on throwing

stations aimed at developing proper form with an

emphasis on stepping with the correct foot,

keeping elbows up, eyes on the target, hip rotation, and a follow through. Along with throwing

overhand for accuracy, students also practiced the overhand lob throw and underhand throw.

Students did an excellent job trying to master their throwing skills at each station. As the unit

progressed, the students began to understand the importance

of a proper follow through when throwing. This is

especially true with the overhand lob and underhand

throw in which the trajectory of the ball is much

higher because it travels “over the rainbow” to reach

the intended target. Once the students had the

opportunity to practice throwing, they began to

participate in various high energy games that elevate

the heart rate and reinforce throwing skills. One of

their favorites, “pin tipper,” is an action packed game

that requires quick, accurate throws as teams attempt

to knock down their opponents‟ bowling pins while

protecting their own. Students are never standing still

while playing cone ball, a fast paced high energy game that

teaches accuracy, dodging, agility and teamwork. During cone ball, students use offensive and

defensive game strategies while they attempt to throw a ball past their opponents‟ goalie,

knocking over a wiffle ball that is placed on top of a cone. Through these activities, students

have impressed us with great enthusiasm, strength, and determination during physical education

class this fall. Submitted by Physical Education Teacher, Mr. Chappel

My name is Emily Bigley and I am one of the new faces

on the first grade team this year. I am a proud

graduate of Bethany College, where I earned my

Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. I began

working on my masters degree this past spring at

Waynesburg University. I worked as an everyday

building substitute teacher here at South Fayette

Elementary last school year. I am so excited and

honored to be a part of the South Fayette team! My

hobbies include reading, running, and spending time

with my mother. I am looking forward to a wonderful

year with my first graders!

On October 6 many South

Fayette families enjoyed

cutting corn stalks at

Providence Farms, compliments

of owners Bill and Sue Sray.

Mrs. Gray is pictured with

Tyler Cooney, 6th grade, Shea

Cooney, 1st grade, and Brenden

Cooney, 4th grade.

A special „thank you‟ to

the SFEPTA for providing

the funds for the 10

plump pumpkins

Thank you to everyone that contributed to the success of the

pumpkin contest. Here are a few of the amazing statistics:

5 grade levels of generous students enjoyed the fun

48 classrooms of caring students participated in the contest

One very generous PTA that provided the funds for the pumpkins

7 days of the contest

Over 1,200 guesses were made by students and staff

9 plump pumpkins, 1 medium sized hand painted pumpkin, and two handcrafted, quilted

table runners went home with winners

Number of families helped = Priceless

The winners of the pumpkins are:

1. Ben Pirain (Detar)

2. Jessica Anderson (Schooley)

3. Tyler Dremsek (Rossi)

4. Reese Schooley (Gagliardino)

5. Delaney Duchess(Main)

6. Jackson Lotinski (Nickolas)

7. Marissa Malosh (Bergman)

8. Raven Mozick (English)

9. Samantha Weir (Leroux)

10. Connor Delaney (Fornella)

Thank you to Mrs. Willy for painting the “Ernie” pumpkin. Mrs. Sisk-

Frey was the closest to guessing the cumulative weight of all 10

pumpkins and won a handmade, quilted table runner made by Mrs. Kuntz.

Mrs. Lapinski won the table runner for helping with the contest in the

mornings. Thank you to all who helped in making our contest a HUGE

SUCCESS. We can always count on you to work together to make South

Fayette a better place.

As a culminating activity to a unit pertaining to

electrical circuits, our fantastic fourth grade

students had the opportunity to use their newly

gained knowledge to construct and wire a model

of a house. Classes were divided into groups, and

each group was responsible for bringing in

supplies, designing, decorating, and wiring one or

two rooms in the house. Each room contained one or more working lights that could be

controlled by switches that the students also created. Our little electricians truly did an

excellent job working together to design and complete this task. They were extremely proud of

their accomplishments, and the houses looked fabulous! If you ever need help with electrical

circuits, just ask a fourth grader! They are now expert troubleshooters! Between completing

this project and earning awesome grades in all subject areas throughout the first nine-week

period, South Fayette fourth graders really SHINED bright this month!!! Submitted by Fourth

Grade Teacher, Mrs. Nickolas

The SFEPTA wants to send out a great big „thank you‟ to the following

students in Mrs. Rossi's 4th grade class: Gavin Watkins, Krit Verma,

Tyler Evans, and Adam Helbling. These four outgoing and 'bright'

students, along with Mrs. Rossi, attended our October PTA meeting

and demonstrated to the attendees some of the things they have

been learning about in science these past few weeks, including the

differences between, and the importance of conductors and

insulators, series and parallel circuits, and their own classroom created flashlights. They are

'currently' working on building their own dollhouse-scale home out of small scraps of wallpaper,

cardboard boxes and carpet remnants. By the end of the project the goal is to have the whole

home wired for electricity. Way to go, kids! Submitted by SFEPTA Vice President, Leigh Anne

Lasker

Several fourth grade students had the honor of

representing South Fayette Elementary School at the

Allegheny County History Bowl Competition on Thursday,

November 1, 2012. The competition was held at the

Senator John Heinz Pittsburgh Regional History Center.

Fourth grade representatives included: Michael Brown,

Kyle Lynch, Alex Gates, Ben Wakim, Jake Dunay, Luke

Warchol, Adam Whiteside, and Noah Scheel. At the

History Center, teams of students were given a schedule

and assignments of four different activity centers

throughout the History Center to complete for the

competition. Points were awarded for each of the events. Awards were presented for the top

three team scores. Our fourth grade team did not place among the top three, but our students

had a rewarding educational experience. One of our fifth grade teams won first place! The

different activity centers were: Pittsburgh History Inventory, Sports A-Z, Object Match, and

Photo Scavenger Hunt. Mrs. Kuntz accompanied the students to the competition. The History

Center is housed in the renovated Chautauqua Lake Ice Company warehouse built in 1998. The

160,000 square foot building and the fascinating exhibits were a spectacular site for the

competition. Submitted by Third and Fourth Grade Enrichment Teacher, Mrs. Kuntz

As the second nine weeks begins, the second grade

students are diving into their school work. Several

students are memorizing their math facts along with

using Smartboard games and tools to become familiar

with a variety of math strategies taught with the

Envisions math curriculum. Others are turning their

classrooms into science labs and experimenting with

solids, liquids, and gasses. Ask them how to trap a gas in

a bag or make a volcano erupt, and our future scientists

will be sure to show you how! Hopefully you will welcome,

or at least be prepared for the curiosity of the young

scientists to carry over to your kitchens at home! While

the district celebrated a “Pink Out” day for cancer

awareness, some second graders put their “Helpful Hands” above the rest. These students

painted their hands pink and stamped their seal of support for positivity, optimism, strength,

perseverance, courage, and dedication to all families affected by cancer. Today these

handprints are tiny and hopeful; tomorrow they could play an enormous role in finding a cure for

cancer. Way to go kiddos! Submitted by Second Grade Teacher, Ms. Fauth

On November 6, elementary school students participated in a mock election set up via

Smartboard technology in the cafeteria. Students were able to choose their candidate by

choosing either A or B, and using the remote control to „click‟ their choice. Here is the

breakdown of results:

Grade

Romney

Obama

AM K

53

66

PM K

69

35

First Grade

141

98

Second Grade

111

90

Third Grade

140

105

Fourth Grade

121

104

Extra Students

8

3

Total Votes

643

501

Mrs. Nickolas and her fourth grade

class are decked out in pink gear as they

show their support on Pink Out Day

On October 25 South Fayette Elementary

staff and students joined the rest of the

district in wearing pink for „Pink Out Day.‟

Looking down the hallways, one could see a

sea of pink to honor breast cancer research

and breast cancer survivors. Many wore our

„Score for the Cure‟ t-shirts in support of

the Dr. Mary Ravita scholarship fund. Many

students were decked out in pink from head

to toe, including bows, socks, shoes, ribbons,

and jewelry.

Halloween Parties

Wednesday, October 31 found our students

participating in an array of activities during their

annual Halloween Party celebrations. Students

and teachers alike dressed up in creative

costumes, participated in games, and made crafts

while enjoying their treats. We would like to

extend a thank you to the PTA and all of the

homeroom representatives for making these

parties a great success!

Ms. Harmon‟s class playing fun games