News

Tiger Talk Update: Clubs, Math Night and More

Thank you for the strong interest in After School Enrichment Clubs.  In just 3 days, 24 students have signed up for Chess Club, 12 students have signed up for Dance Club and Robotics Club is fully booked.  There are 16 spots left in Chess Club and 8 spots left in Dance Club.  

Mr. Jack Fahle, Supervisor of Elementary Math for the school district, gave a fantastic presentation on Florida’s Math Standards for Elementary Students on Monday night.  Thanks to all of you who came out.  Nearly every seat was filled and the program itself was invaluable.  Mr. Fahle explained each of the 8 new math practice standards (to see them, click here: http://gradytigers.org/standards-for-mathematical-practice) and gave us problems to solve so that we could understand why the new math standards teach critical thinking.  Mr. Fahle also gave us a very helpful card with the Math Standards explained in a way that elementary students can understand (to see this, click here: http://gradytigers.org/math-standards).  The Student Friendly version is perfect for posting on your refrigerator or elsewhere where your child can see it often.  Mr. Fahle also gave us copies of the grade-specific math standards for grades K to 5 (to see these, click here: http://gradytigers.org/math-guides-for-parents).  Finally, Mr. Fahle gave us a list of resources, including a link to the online component of the GOMath textbook (to see this, click here: http://gradytigers.org/math-parent-resources).  Thanks to Grady for arranging this great presentation.  

On Thursday, March 19, Smoothie King will have smoothies for sale in front of the school from 7:30 am to 8 am.  12 ounce smoothies will be $3.00 each (cash/check) and come in 3 flavors:  Strawberry Extreme, Mango-Fest and Angel Food (a blend of strawberries and bananas).  Please help support the Fifth Grade by buying a smoothie for yourself or your child.

It will soon be time for the PTA to consider board and committee positions for the next academic year.  To that end, the board is seeking members of a nominating committee who will look at all school participants and consider them for board and committee chair positions for next year.  Having a nominating committee ensures that people outside the board of the PTA are involved in the board selection process and encourages diversity and inclusiveness, two of our core values.  The 2015 Nominating Committee’s job will be to find candidates for PTA board and committee positions by the time of the general election on May 13, 2015.  For questions about the nominating committee or to volunteer for it, please email [email protected], 

Smoothie King Comes March 19

On Thursday, March 19, in lieu of doughnut sales, Smoothie King will have smoothies for sale in front of the school from 7:30 am to 8 am.  12 ounce smoothies will be $3.00 each and come in 3 flavors:  Strawberry Extreme, Mango-Fest and Angel Food (a blend of strawberries and bananas).  Please help support the Fifth Grade by buying a smoothie for yourself or your child. 

Sign-up for an After School Enrichment Program!

Grady Elementary PTA is offering After School Enrichment Clubs for the 9 week period beginning the week of March 23 and ending the week of May 18. Each club will meet once a week on campus from 2:30 pm until 3:30 pm. The clubs offered are: Robotics Club for 3rd and 4th Graders, Chess Club for K to 4th Graders, and Dance Club for K to 5th Graders.

Math Night At Grady - Monday March 2

Have you wondered how you can support your children in mathematics?  This interactive 75 minute program (60 minutes of presentation and 15 minutes of questions) will help K-5 parents understand:

1.  Why Today's Math Class Looks Different?

2.  How Today's Math Class is substantively different?

3.  How can parents support their children as they learn mathematics?

The program will take place Monday, March 2, from 6 pm to 7:15 pm in the Kathryn Hance Media Center.  It is an excellent program and a must for parents who want more information about how to help their children thrive while learning mathematics.

To RSVP for this event, please call (813) 872-5325 or email the Principal's Secretary, Sandra Richmond at [email protected].  

Information About Jump Rope For Heart

Grady Elementary is partnering with American Heart Association to bring you Jump Rope For Heart on February 27, 2015.  This event, which features exercise, information, and fun, will take place on campus.  Students will learn about how to make choices that lead to a healthy lifestyle and get to exercise by jumping rope.  The school will also benefit from this event because we will receive additional physical education equipment due to our participation.

You and your child can help promote heart health and Jump Rope For Heart by registering online to participate in the event. 

Once you register online you can tell your friends about your participation via social media and email.   If you wish, you can donate to the cause and collect prizes.  If you raise $5 for heart health, please send in a coupon from the JRFH materials (sent home in backpacks) to Coach Murrell, and your child will receive a Splatter Duck and a lanyard.  There are various prizes for additional donations, and if your child raises $50 or more, your child will receive a JRFH t-shirt.  Please return the JRFH materials or complete the online donations by February 27. If you have any questions about this great event, please email Coach Michelle Murrell at [email protected].

We will need volunteers to cheer the kids on, to turn ropes and provide water for Jump Rope For Heart!  Please consider volunteering.  Your time commitment can be as little as 55 minutes.  To see the full event schedule, the class times, and to volunteer for a specific duty and time, please click here: http://gradytigers.org/jump-rope-for-heart#.VNwjG_UNwA0.gmail.  Thanks to all of you who volunteer.  You make our school's events run very smoothly.

District Science Fair, 2015

The Hillsborough County District Science Fair was held on February 4 and 5, 2015.  Grady students Erin Eslick, Josh Sears, Olivia Matos, Hudson Beachy, and Chase Fenske each received an Award of Merit at the District Science Fair.  Grady Student Faith House received an Outstanding Award and won Third Place in the District Science Fair.  Congratulations to all of these students and their families for these terrific honors.   Pictured are Ms. Dosal, Ms. Campbell and Faith House wearing her Third Place medal. 

Time To Send In Box Tops!

Grady Elementary is having a Winter Box Tops Competition that ends on February 18, 2015.  Please start sending in clipped Box Tops in clear Ziploc-style bags with a maximum of 50 per bag.  In each bag, please include a slip of paper with your child’s name, grade level, teacher’s name, and the number of box tops.  Please send bags of box tops to school in homework folders or bring them to the front office.  Each clipped box top is worth 10 cents to our school.  The classroom that collects the most box tops wins a popsicle party.  

The Happy Story Of The Painting of Ms. Adams' Class

During the Winter Concert, many people were amazed by detailed painting of Ms. Adams' class.  The painting of each student and of Ms. Adams was an immediate hit and several people asked about who made it.  The painting was painted by Alicia Campos Masso, an artist who got her start as a professional artist in New York City and now works in Tampa.  In addition to painting, she teaches children's art classes and Spanish classes.  If you are interested in learning more about her, seeing her other works or participating in the children's art classes or Spanish classes that she teaches in the Westshore area, please click here:  www.happy-industries.com.  You can also find her on facebook.com/happyindustrieshappyindustries or on her blog at happyindustriesartstudio.blogspot.com.

Tiger Trek Results

Thank you to all of the teachers, parents and students who made Tiger Trek a smashing success.  The kids enjoyed the beautiful weather, walked many laps and enjoyed giveaway items from the Tiger Trek sponsors. Tiger Trek made over $18,000.00 for Grady Elementary PTA.  This is a huge boost to our school and ensures that the enrichment programs, book programs and beautification programs that Grady Elementary PTA sponsors will all continue.  All of this money will be spent on enhancing the educational experience at Grady Elementary.  So, thank you very much! 

Thank you very much to all of you who volunteered for Tiger Trek.  It was your help that made the event fun and well organized.  We hope that the online volunteer registration service made it easy for you to sign up and participate in Tiger Trek.

The Tiger Trek individual winners and amounts raised are:  First Place:  Drew Bresnahan ($610.00); Second Place:  Daniel Kumm ($500.00); Third Place:  Kennedy Gilbert ($475.00); and Fourth Place:  Sydney Jackson ($300.00).  Congratulations, Drew, Daniel, Kennedy, and Sydney!

The top fundraising classes in each grade are:  Ms. Driggers ($294.00); Mr. Morrow ($536.00); Ms. Warren ($685.00); Ms. Oliva ($890.00); Ms. Trupp ($551.00); Ms. Webber ($1,217.00) and Mr. Lanier ($246.00).  All of these classes win a Sally O’Neal’s pizza party and Ms. Webber’s class wins Yogurtology Party.  Ms. Webber, as the teacher of the class with the most donations overall, wins a Crave Spa pedicure.

The top fundraising students in each grade are:  Kindergarten and Pre-K: Ethan Medoro; First Grade: Reese McCambridge; Second Grade: Drew Bresnahan; Third Grade: Sydney Jackson; Fourth Grade: Daniel Kumm; and Fifth Grade: Logan Pawelek.  Each top student wins a $25 Whole Foods gift card and a sports or art class from The Prep of South Tampa.

Congratulations to all Tiger Trek participants and winners!  To see the full list of prizes, please click here:  Tiger Trek Prizes.  All Tiger Trek prizes will come home with students in the next week or so.  The class parties have to be arranged with the teachers, so the dates of those parties are not yet determined.

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