First Lutheran Church Sunday Services: 9:00 Sunday School: 10:15 a.m. Church: 580-762-1111 www.flcspc.com
11:20 Dismissal THURSDAY April 1!
David Birnbaum, Principal School: 580-762-9950 website: flcspc.com E-mail: lutheransecretary@yahoo.com Child Care: 580-762-1124 No School FastDirect: fastdir.com/flcspc
Good Friday or Easter Monday, April 2 & 5!
March 24, 2021
CARDINAL CHATTER 4/8 Pawnee Track Meet; 5th & 6th 4/9 Pawnee Track Meet; 7th & 8th 4/12 Medford Track Meet; 7th & 8th 4/12-15 Cheer Clinic; 6th & 7th Grade 4/16 3:30 FLCS Cheer Tryouts for 2021-2022 4/19-23 ITBS Testing Week 4/24 FLCS “Best Friend Happening” (see following) 5/1 2nd Annual Paul Schatte Memorial Cook-Off, 9-4; watch for more details soon
3/28 3/29 3/31
Palm Sunday MONDAY! Picture Day! Flyers are attached! ECE P3-1st Field Trip to New Life Trails
4/1 4/2 4/5 4/6
Maundy Thursday – 11:20 Dismissal Good Friday – No School Easter Monday – No School Mandatory FLCS Cheer Parent Meeting, 5:30, Youth House (see below) Newkirk Track Meet Covid Update - Happy Anniversary! We have made it beyond our shut down last year and haven't had any threats in the past couple of weeks. We pray that we will continue safely. Perfect Attendance on Monday from PK-8th grade.
COVID UPDATE
4/6
PICTURE DAY — Spring Portraits, Class Pictures, & 8th Grade Graduation pictures are scheduled for THIS COMING MONDAY, MARCH 29 (all pictures in one day). Flyers attached to this Chatter. If you want to order online, follow the instructions on the forms. 5TH – 8TH GRADE TRACK – Coach Amanda: Track practice is 3:30 – 4:30; Boys on Tuesday’s & Thursday’s and girls on Monday’s & Wednesday’s. Meet by the outdoor court by the cafeteria. I encourage athletes to do this in their off season! If you would like your student to participate, please message Coach Amanda on FastDirect. SUMMER DAYCARE PACKETS are available in the office and in daycare. IF you want your child to attend summer daycare, you must sign up with Ms. Heidi in daycare. PS3 and under, if you didn’t return the blue sheet with your choice, please confirm with Ms. Heidi or Connie in the office to make sure you are on the list. CHEER TRYOUTS FOR 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR! A MANDATORY cheer parent meeting, for parents of current 6th and 7th Graders who want to try out for Cheer, will be Tuesday, April 6 at 5:30 p.m. in the Youth House. The tryout clinic will be April 12 – 15, and tryouts will be Friday, April 16 at 3:30 p.m. ITBS TESTING WEEK is April 19-23; Students will be testing in the mornings during this week. Please make arrangements now so that students do not have morning appointments this week. Students who arrive late will not be admitted into a classroom until the class finishes any testing in progress. SCHOOL OFFICE—TAX STATEMENTS: If you would like a printout of your payments to First Lutheran during 2020 for tax purposes, you can print them off by logging into your FastDirect account, click on the “finances” button on the top, click on “tax report” on the left-hand side, then choose the year you want and click on “Tax Year Printout”. It will bring up a page to print with your payments to First Lutheran categorized and totaled, and it will have our Federal Tax I.D. number on the top (it’s 73-6083110). Alternatively, you can request a tax statement from the office by calling 580-762-9950 or sending a FastDirect email to Connie Erickson. This will include school-related expenses only; summer daycare tax statements must be requested from daycare by sending a FastDirect email to Heidi Daley or calling daycare at 580-762-1124. Not all payments to FLS are tax deductible, and you should contact a tax advisor to find out what can be written off, and what cannot. (1)
RE-ENROLLMENT REMINDER: Are you coming back in August?! We need to know! Enrollment is now open to the public for next school year! Attached to a prior Chatter were your enrollment papers for the 2021/2022 school year; you can print an additional copy from the “links” tab on FastDirect, or stop by the office to get a new one. To hold your students’ spot for next school year, be sure to return your enrollment forms and 1/3 of the enrollment fee (if applicable). We are still limiting class sizes due to COVID, and some classes were already full this year, so please don’t wait until the last minute to let us know if you plan to return next year. If you know a family new to First Lutheran School that is interested in enrolling, have them call the school office for enrollment information. If they have a student in 1st – 6th grades, make sure to ask them to list you as a referring family on their enrollment sheet. If they remain enrolled through the first semester, in January of 2022 you will receive a $200 credit towards your tuition account! ELEVEN families earned credit last month just by referring friends! A BEST FRIEND HAPPENING is scheduled for Saturday, April 24, 2021, 8am-11:30am for all the mothers, grandmothers, daughters, & friends. This event is sponsored by LWML. Mark your calendars and see details below. LOCAL NEWS: Do you take the newspaper? If there are pictures/articles about First Lutheran Students, & you aren’t keeping them for yourself, would you send the articles in to the office? We would like them for our scrapbook. Thanks! PRINCIPAL – Mr. Birnbaum: It is the final quarter and a lot of activities are coming up. We are NOT having a full track meet this year but, Lord willing, we will do a smaller scale with just our students. Please keep sending us teacher suggestions for the Middle School Science and History positions. THANKS for ALL YOUR PRAYERS and ENCOURAGEMENT! PRE-SCHOOL – Mrs. Colvin: I hope everyone is having a great week so far! Our field trip to New Life Trails will be on March 31st. If you haven't already please return the permission slip as soon as possible. This week we are learning all about the letter Q and the sound it makes. Blessings to all! PRE-KINDERGARTEN – Mrs. Kelly: Welcome back! I hope you had a wonderful spring break! Our field trip forms and money were due today. If you didn't return yours please send it tomorrow. There is a reminder note with more details in folders today. Report cards are in folders today. Please sign and return it by next Wednesday, and I will send a copy for you to keep. Our Bible words this week are, Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." John 15:12 We have started over on the alphabet and are reviewing a letter a day in order. Thank you for working hard at home on recognizing the alphabet and sounds! Have a Blessed week! KINDERGARTEN – Mrs. Miller: If you have not sent your child's Easter Egg field trip form back with $4.00, please do so because it is past due (Wed. 24th). Also, the children's 12 filled plastic eggs are due by next week on Tuesday, March 30th. Our class would like to wish Knox a happy birthday this week (Mon. 22nd)! I hope everyone had an awesome Spring Break last week and I hope you have a great time this week too! FIRST GRADE – Mrs. Birnbaum: I hope everyone had a wonderful Spring Break! We are ready to take on the 4th Quarter and getting closer to being 2nd graders! Memory for Friday is the 4th Commandment - Honor you father and your mother. Report cards were sent home today. Please sign and return one of the copies. Please turn in your field trip form and money if you have not done so yet. Also, you may bring your 12 stuffed plastic eggs at any time. I will need them by Tuesday, March 30. Book orders are due online or with a check to me by tomorrow (25 th). If you are able, please bring in a small container of Clorox wipes - thank you! We will have show and tell on Friday. Bring something that starts with the first letter of your name! Let me know if you have any questions or concerns! Remember picture day on Monday! Blessings on your week! SECOND GRADE – Mrs. Powell: HAPPY SPRING! In only nine quick weeks these amazing second graders will be third graders. We're working hard and will be ready. The children all shared wonderful stories about their spring breaks and seem eager to be back. We've completed the 10 commandments! Our memory work for the next two weeks is Psalm 23. I recommend that you help your child with a verse each evening so that we are ready to recite on April 1. Picture Day is quickly approaching. Watch for envelopes and additional information. Report cards are coming home today. Let me know if you have questions or concerns. Please sign and return the report card. Blessings! THIRD GRADE – Mrs. Steichen: Welcome back!! It sounds like everyone had a wonderful break. Also, they were all dragging yesterday. Remember this is a new quarter with a new start. The only thing that does not change are A.R. goals. We have till May to reach these goals. This week: Memory: Luke 24: 2-3 due on Friday. We will have a longer verse for the next two weeks. Reading Test and Spelling Test on Friday. Math: 4s multiplication quiz on Friday. For the next two weeks we will work on our 8 facts. Quiz will be in April for 8s. Test Prep: IOWA tests are the third week in April. We are working our way though review and testing strategies. If you have a question please let me know. Report Cards: (2)
Your child brought home their report card today. Please sign those and get them back to me as soon as possible. Here’s to a great fourth quarter and becoming 4th Graders!! FOURTH GRADE – Mrs. Sibley: We are back in school for the 4th quarter! AMEN, such a joyous thought. We ARE here together to finish up a strong 4th grade year to be prepared for the future with Christ fully armored! I am so thankful that we get to focus on Jesus’ love for us on the cross as He gave the ultimate sacrifice so we may follow Him. It is only through this love that we are able to live with each other. Continue to read for AR. Many are working very hard to make their AR goal. It is a brand new quarter, and a new fresh start for grades. Continue to use Fast Direct to keep track of grades from the beginning. Kids took the West State & Cap test today. School pictures are on the 29th, smile pretty! Blessings as we stay warm! FIFTH GRADE – Mrs. Schatte: It's great to be back after Spring Break! It sounds like everyone had a delightful time! Now it's time to focus on the last quarter of the school year. It's hard to believe it's here. This is a normal week with only a spelling and reading test on Friday. Memory due tomorrow is Ephesians 5:8. Blessings!
MIDDLE SCHOOL F.L.Y. – Mrs. Heitman: FLY (First Lutheran Youth) Wednesday night in the gym! All students 6th grade and older are invited to join us for devotions, food, and fellowship! During Lent, F.L.Y. will run from 5:30 – 7:15 p.m. Mrs. Scott: Welcome back! I can’t believe it is already the 4th Quarter! Time flies! ALL students are well aware that our math classes have homework almost every day and the math homework is due the next day when they come to class. I have 7th and 8th graders for their study hall periods. The majority of the classes have become very lax and unmotivated to get their homework done during study hall. Please help me encourage them to use their time wisely and complete their homework on time. Going forward, there will be NO EXCEPTIONS for late work. If the student's homework is not in the turn-in bin by the time I collect papers, the student will receive a 0 and there will be no “make-ups” allowed. Our student-athletes are now in track season. The students are well aware that their assignments are still due the next day when they come back from a meet. *This policy does not apply if the student is gone from school due to a sickness.* 5th Grade Math started the fourth quarter with Lesson 66. We will work through Lesson 69 this week and will take our next test early next week. 6R Math started the fourth quarter with Chapter 9. We will be working with units of measure this chapter. 6A/7R Math started the fourth quarter with Chapter 10. 8R Math is continuing to work with linear functions. We will take our next test mid-week next week. 8A Math started the fourth quarter with Chapter 8. Mrs. Hanson: Starting off the new quarter with new content for most of the classes. 6th grade is bonding with chemical reactions and 8th grade is adopting knowledge about genetics. Introductory vocab quizzes will happen on Friday. 7th grade is wrapping up the Big Idea project; they will be doing formal visual/oral presentations next week. Things to keep in mind for this last quarter: ITBS (standardized testing) in April, tentative school track meet in May (possible fundraiser), and graduation dinner/ceremony (7th graders are involved) in May. Ms. Kester: History students hit it out of the park with their oral presentations over Chapter 7 yesterday! And I caught it all on tape. I am so proud of them. All but two across all grade levels were prepared and on track for a successful testing session over the chapter at the end of next week. In the interim, they will work with vocabulary, lesson reviews, and notes to prepare for their essay test. Religion students are gearing up for our special guest speaker Sean McDowell Friday. All middle-school students will gather in my room after lunch that day to interact with the Los Angeles-based Christian apologist on the book we've been reading by him. Just like his dad Josh McDowell, Sean knows his stuff! And, he is great with youth; so, your child is in for a treat. In the interim, we are snuggling up with the remaining chapters of his book to get everything out of Friday's event that we can. We praise God for connecting him with the students. Our Scripture of the Week, Mark 16:56, will be due next week on Thursday April 1st as to not conflict with our guest speaker. And salut to the new - new students, that is. This quarter in French class welcomes new students Jolyssa, Berlin, and Holly to the course! Monday, we started off with some French greetings and common phrases to get to know each (3)
other better. Friday, we will count our way into financial success then learn how to apply those numbers in a different way. So, hold on to your berets as we encounter new lessons and add bigger things this quarter. Enthousiaste! Mrs. Harbeson: Hello, Everyone! I hope you had a marvelous Spring Break and are ready to finish up the year with your best effort! All middle schoolers and I had a discussion on the importance of trying your best and focusing on school. We decided that the effort and attention they put towards their grades in middle school is practice for what kind of students they will be in high school. We also discussed what a high school transcript is and how it will be used during their senior year. Ask them about what we discussed on Tuesday! In language, all classes have begun their new novels for fourth quarter. 6th grade is reading Freak the Mighty, 7th is reading Gentle Annie, and 8th is reading "Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl." Our first quizzes on these books will be this Friday, March 26. That's all I have for now! Blessings on the rest of your week!
First Lutheran Church & School—Growing up into Jesus, Reaching out with Jesus, Walking together in Jesus * - * - * - * - * - * - * -* - * - * - * - * -* - * - * - * - * -* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * -* - * - * - * - * - *
DUE TO COVID, we will NOT be awarding Perfect Attendance Awards this semester. Palm Sunday is the final Sunday of Lent, the beginning of Holy Week, and commemorates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem, days before he was crucified. Palm Sunday is known as such because the faithful will often receive palm fronds which they use to participate in the reenactment of Christ's arrival in Jerusalem. In the Gospels, Jesus entered Jerusalem riding a young donkey, and to the lavish praise of the townspeople who threw clothes, or possibly palms or small branches, in front of him as a sign of homage. This was a customary practice for people of great respect. Palm branches are widely recognized symbol of peace and victory, hence their preferred use on Palm Sunday. The use of a donkey instead of a horse is highly symbolic, it represents the humble arrival of someone in peace, as opposed to arriving on a steed in war. A week later, Christ would rise from the dead on the first Easter.
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