The Principal's Corner:
Growing up I had the pleasure of playing on some great soccer teams with some outstanding players. I remember vividly going down to Tennessee for indoor nationals at 13 years old and getting the chance to play against some of the top teams in the country with my teammates. When I look back at the teams I played on and the teams that I have coached I am always amazed at one fact. The teams with the most talent rarely won, however, the teams with the best chemistry always won.
This past summer I had the opportunity to travel down to Frisco, Texas and watch our U14 girls’ team win the National Championship for US Youth Soccer. This was pretty special because I was their first coach from U5-U7 and to watch them grow and learn over their career has been an honor. When I asked one of the girls I coached what she was thinking about after she won she said, “I don’t know. I’m just so happy to win because we weren’t the best team ever but we believed in each other and worked together.”
Teamwork. Chemistry. The ability to work through problems together in order to overcome insurmountable odds. When I talk to students who are having disagreements or an issue in school, I always try to frame the discussion as: it is you and me vs the problem not you vs me or you vs your friend. This is a difficult skill for adults to master let alone kids! The ability to take a step back, identify the problem, and work with another individual who might see things differently is not easy. However, this is an essential skill that we would like our students to have before they leave us at the end of 5th grade.
This year at Hutchings, we are kicking off our PBIS program (Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports) and our staff is all in. Our specials teachers (Adam, Schippers, Cain, Shultz) as well as our support team (Baldwin, R. Moore, Starkey, Holewinski, and more) have really put time into creating a program that will benefit the academic and social success of all students here at Hutchings. Please see the following link to read more about this program. http://helpfulhuskies.blogspot.com/
School Store:
Anyone looking to help out with school store please connect with Erika Perry. You can email her directly or connect with her via Facebook on the Hutchings Elementary PTO page. You can also find great infromation from our PTO on this page.
Color Run:
You may noticed some signs going up around the school from our PTO about the Hutchings Color run. If you haven't gotten a chance to see them be on the look out for packets to come home with your child about this event. The Color Run is on October 19th during the school day. The Color Run will replace the Hustle this year so please take a look at this link for more information. If you have any questions please connect with our PTO via e-mail or the facebook page. http://shop.schoolathon.org/EventIndex.asp?EID=190213
MacGregor's Message:
Fifth Grade Cross Country Meet
All Howell Public Schools fifth grade students are invited to take part in a one-mile cross county race on Wednesday, September 26 at 5 p.m. The race will be held at Three Fires Elementary school prior to the start of the Highlander Way versus Parker cross county meet. There will be both a boys and a girls race with the top finishers in each race receiving a medal. To learn more about the race, please visit https://goo.gl/KhN7tm
Highlander Reading Express Book Returns
There are still some students who have not returned books that were checked out from The Highlander Reading Express this summer. If your child still has books that were checked out over the summer from the Highlander Reading Express, please have them return the books to our main office, and we will get the books returned to the bus.
Counselor’s Corner
Welcome to the first “Counselor’s Corner” article for the 2018-2019 school year! My name is Jennifer Starkey, and I am your School Counselor! I am so happy to be back at your school this year. I work with parents, students, and teachers in different ways through a program of many services. Each service is aimed at helping students learn and develop to their highest potential. Examples of services, based on student need, include the following: (a) groups to help students adjust to school (b) classroom lessons to help children learn how to get along with peers, (c) conferences for parents to understand their child’s social/personal progress, and (d) individual sessions (on a limited basis) to work with students on specific skills.
I will be at Voyager on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and odd-numbered Fridays. I will be at Hutchings on Mondays, Wednesdays, and even-numbered Fridays. Regardless of the building I am at on a particular day, I am always available for you at [email protected] Please reach out with any questions, comments, or concerns!
In the meantime, here are a couple quick tips to support your child’s transition:
- Encourage your kids to talk about their day by asking specific questions. Try social questions (“Whom do you sit next to in class?”), best/worst questions (“What’s the best/worst thing that happened today at school?”), what you learned questions (“What are some of the rules you have to follow at school?”), and school function questions (How did you celebrate Valentine’s Day?”).
- Use the WIN strategy to help them develop solutions to any jitters or concerns.
- Step 1: W: What happened? Describe the dilemma.
- Step 2: I: What ideas can we come up with to solve the problem?
- Step 3: N: Now move into action! Pick a strategy and give it a try!
I look forward to sharing more “Counselor’s Corner” articles with you in the coming months. These articles will cover a variety of topics whose goal it will be to help your child attain social, emotional, and academic success at school!
Your Partner in Education,
Jennifer Starkey, LPC