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We are fortunate to have so many parents who want a good education for their children and that is what they get when they attend school here.

March 2018

I don’t know if we have had spring fever set in among our students, but the flu bug has definitely had an impact on attendance with students and staff! It seems that old bug comes around when its least expected, but does have a lasting effect. This too shall pass…as the old adage suggests! In the meantime, continue to dress appropriately and get plenty of rest.

We are down to three short months of school remaining and this time will fly by fast! We continue to count the days when the sun will shine its brightest and the snow will all melt so fun in the sun will begin to have a lasting impact on us. Human skin can make large amounts ofvitamin Dwhen lots of skin is exposed and thesunis high in the sky. Your body is designed to get thevitamin Dit needs by producing it when your bare skin is exposed tosunlight. The part of thesun'srays that is important is ultraviolet B (UVB).

BE CAREFUL!!! Sun poisoningdoesn't really mean you've been poisoned. It is often the term used for a severe case ofsunburn. This is usually a burn from ultraviolet (UV)radiationthat inflames yourskin.

Within just 15 minutes of being in the sun, you can be sunburned. But you might not know it right away. The redness and discomfort might not show up for a few hours.

You can become severely sunburned if you stay in the sun a long time and don't wear protection. You are more likely tosunburnif you have lightskinand fairhair. I know you are probably thinking that Dr. Azure is getting a little carried away…there is still snow on the ground! Just a word of caution that we can still suffer sunburn with snow on the ground

Calendar

March 1 - 31

With the weather changing and springtime just around the corner, we will again start going outside to take advantage of some of the warmer days. However, there is plenty of snow on the OES playground and water is going to be very prevalent in some areas. Please try and continue to wear your winter or water boots if at all possible. Also, while the sun is high in the sky and the blue sky shows most of the day, the wind still makes it brisk and colder than the temperature indicates…so, continue to wear clothing that keeps you warm!

Read Across America/Dr. Seuss Day

The teachers at OES are truly amazing and have come up with a way to have fun to kick off the month of March.

  • Tuesday – Spirit Day (wear blue and yellow if you can!)
  • Wednesday – Wacky Wednesday. Wear mismatched or backwards clothing, wacky hairdos, two different pairs of shoes etc.
  • Thursday – Dr. Seuss Day (wear stripes or clothing with Seuss characters) – Silent reading
  • Friday – Pajama day! (wear sweat pants, pajamas, trunks/with leggings)

March is reading month, so please take a few minutes after school, after supper, or before going to bed to have your child read to you.

Transportation

Some of the bus routes have changed slightly due to some of our students moving to different areas. This can sometimes cause a bus to arrive at your residence a little later than usual, but will not stop us from making sure your child has a safe bus trip to and from school. Please do your best to ensure your child is up and ready to go when the bus drives up to your stop. We do have bus monitors and rules to follow for ALL rider’s safety. Please make sure your child is adhering to the rules and listening to the bus driver and monitors. Continued defiance on the bus will result in loss of transportation privileges.

Below is a close estimate when your bus should be arriving at your location. While the bus does honk and stop for several minutes, please help us keep our route accurate by preparing your child early so they can meet the bus on time

6:45 – 7:00 am – Tokio and St. Michaels

7:00 – 7:15 am – IHS and Ft. Totten College

7:15 – 7:30 am – Old Circle Housing and Water Tower Road

7:30 – 7:45 am –Baptist Church Road, High Meadows and Circle Housing

7:45 – 8:00 am – Crow Hill

8:10 am – Arrive and Oberon Elementary School

ATTENDANCE

Making sure that your child is in attendance for school every day is vital. Please make sure you do everything possible to ensure your child comes to school rested and ready to learn! If your child must be absent, please provide the school with a note from home or a doctor indicating the reason why he or she could not be in school. Absenteeism at OES is currently very high. We have sent the buses back on numerous occasions to pick up your child(ren) to try and keep their absent rate low. PLEASE, see to it your child does not miss any more days this year.

OES will have a perfect attendance party for each child that has PERFECT attendance. On March 28, the Principal will release the list of names for those children that had perfect attendance so they can attend the awards ceremony. In addition, each teacher will select a “Student of the Quarter” for each grade! Prizes will be awarded for the children selected for these awards.

SCHOOL CALENDAR

March 8, 2018 – Early Out! School dismisses at 1:20 pm, buses load and depart at 1:30 pm.

March 9, 2018 – End of Quarter 3!

March 20 – Parent Teacher’s Conferences from 1:30 pm to 7:30 pm. School dismisses at 1:20 and parents will have a scheduled time to come to your child’s conference. We want to get 100% parent participation and by scheduling your conference, we believe we can accomplish this task. If you have multiple students in multiple grades, their teachers will be assigning your conference so you can attend all your children’s conferences.

March 23, 2018 – No School

March 29, 30, & April 2 – NO SHOOL

OES will begin an extended day during the Month of April to make up for the Snow Day we had in January. Additionally, March 29 will be a day all teachers will attend a Meeting in Bismarck on school accountability. This day (March 29) is not on OES Academic Calendar, so we will have to make up for this day. School will start at 8:00 am and end at 4:00 pm. Your child will be home slightly later than he/she has been getting home, but only for two weeks. This model is being used rather than using up a holiday or adding a day to the end of the school year.

Oberon Elementary School has 3 major goals for the school year. OES measures the progress of these goals through multiple assessment strategies! At OES, we make your child’s education and safety our priority!

  1. Increase attendance by at least 3%
  2. All students at Oberon Elementary School will increase math skills
  3. All students (100%) will improve reading comprehension