Who Rocks the House?

The 4th grade MAP All-Stars, that's who! KES honored the current 4th grade class for their awesome performance last spring on the 3rd grade MAP tests Friday morning. The 4th graders started their day at KES for a special breakfast in honor of them. In addition to the usual school breakfast choices, each student was presented with an elephant cookie that represented the figurative term "eating an elephant."

Then they entered the gym for morning assembly in a victorious fashion behind the third grade teachers who crashed through a "MAP All-Stars" banner to the tune of "All Star," which was their "MAP song."

The students sat facing the crowd of elementary students and their parents as Mrs. Gaines explained their accomplishments: 55.2% of students scoring proficient or advanced on communication arts and 65.5% of students scoring proficient or advanced in mathematics. She commented that this was the best any Kirbyville third grade class had ever done on the MAP! She asked the students what they thought contributed to their success. Many fourth grade hands went up to answer. One student diplomatically thanked the teachers for teaching them what they needed to know and all the other students in the school for supporting them and keeping the halls quiet so that they had a good testing environment. Another student said, "Everyday, I got up and told myself, 'I can,' and I did!"

One of the motivational themes last year was that MAP was like "eating an elephant." A student explained that was taking a big thing and doing it a little at a time.

Mr. Osbourn addressed the fourth graders and congratulated them for their accomplishments. He encouraged them to keep up the good work. They had set an example for the elementary students and could show the rest of the middle schoolers what could be done. He complimented the elementary school for preparing them well. The third grade teachers passed out silver all-star necklaces and the students stood to receive them. Finally the entire elementary school celebrated with a rousing "Who Rocks the House?" .

The "All-Star" music played once again and the students were dismissed to a free recess on the elementary playground!

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Stay Today and Read coming soon...

KES wants to celebrate and enjoy reading as well as continually supporting students to grow in their reading skills and strategies. One important event that KES holds quarterly is Stay Today and Read (STAR) time. Once a quarter, students are invited to stay at school for themed reading related activities. At 5:00, parents join their children for 30 minutes of family reading time. The activities vary from one time to another. Sometimes the students put on a performance or share a project they have completed. Sometimes parents and students use reading and complete a project together. Sometimes parents and children can read and record titles/minutes towards WILD About Reading. Sometimes we provide information of ways you can enhance your child’s reading development. We always serve healthy treats to all who attend. We also give away door prizes at the end of the evening. You must be present to win!

The first STAR time is Wednesday, October 7. Forms went home in Friday Folders last week or check with your child's teacher if you need another.

Telephone Pioneers give dictionaries to 3rd graders

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McTeachers Night coming soon!

Mark your calendars and join KES for McTeachers Night on Tuesday, October 6. Stop by McDonald's in downtown Branson for fun, family and food between 4:00 and 8:00 p.m. and 20% of the sales will be donated back to the school.

Grandparents read in the library

KES celebrated "Grandparents Day" for an entire week by inviting grandparents to read to classes in the library. Each day during library time and during our Buddy Reading times on Friday, grandparents of Kirbyville students read stories to the students. It was a great time for everyone!

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We shouldn't limit all this fun to one week per year. Are you a parent or grandparent that would like to join us in the library and read aloud to a class? Please contact librarian, Terry Miller, at 334-2757 if you would like to be a guest reader in our library.

Rockin' and Rollin'

Join us this Monday night, September 14th, for the very first 2009-10 Kirbyville Skate Night! The event is from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Skateworld in Branson. Admission is only $3.00 with $1.00 from each admission donated back to the schools. The profits from the monthly skate parties are shared between the elementary and middle schools. Good music, good friends and an opportunity for some fun exercise. See you there!

WILD About Reading

What do singing beetles, storytelling, a Chinese praying mantis, free books, snakes, reading, snapping turtles, Ben and Jerry's and Predator World have in common?

Give up? They are all related to our new WILD About Reading at-home reading program!

Students received new green folders to keep track of their reading progress about a week ago along with a free book from last year's Target Store Grant and a letter explaining the rules and procedures of the program. Hopefully all of our students have started reading to meet the program goal for kindergarten and first grade of reading 100 books by April 23 or to reach the second and third grade program goal of reading 2000 minutes by April 23. Students who meet the reading goal will be invited to attend a special field trip to Predator World in Branson West and a trip to the Landing for ice cream donated by Ben and Jerry's. Last year we had two classrooms with 100% participation. Wouldn't it be something if we had 100% participation schoolwide?

What about the singing beetles, Chinese praying mantis, snakes and snapping turtles? Watch this quick Smilebox show of our WILD About Reading kickoff assembly featuring guest speaker, Randy Dietz and a few of his WILD friends.

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Tires to Tiles

KES students had the opportunity to learn more about the process of making our new playground tiles from guest speaker, Ernie Knight of the National Playground Compliance Group. The students learned that scrap tires are a hazard as they can catch fire creating pollution and can be a breeding ground for rodents, reptiles and insects. To make the tiles, the tires are ground into small pieces, the metal is removed with powerful magnets and the tire pieces are mixed with an adhesive and pigment and poured into molds to make the tile shape.

During the presentation, the students had the opportunity to share information that they knew that related to recycling, helping them connect their prior knowledge with this new learning. Students at all grade levels understood that recycling items helped reduce the amount of trash we produce and could help save money. I was especially impressed that we had a first grader who was able to explain how pollution affected the ozone layer and the function of the ozone layer and a third grader who related information that she had learned during the electrical safety presentation (that it was the law that electric companies have to replant trees to replace the ones they cut down to allow for power lines) to this new presentation.

To learn more about the environment, recycling, health and much, much more with your child visit the EPA Environmental Kids Club.

Electrical Safety

KES 3rd grade students recently learned about electrical safety with Louie the Lightning Bug and Mert Bancroft, Director of Information from Sho-Me Power Electric Cooperative. The presentation included an entertaining video and hands-on demonstrations.

To learn more about electrical safety and renewable energy with your child visit the Touchstone Energy Kids Zone.

First PTO Meeting

The Kirbyville Parent-Teacher Organiziation (PTO) will hold its first meeting of the year at 3:45 on Thursday, September 10 in the elementary cafeteria. The PTO serves both schools in the district by providing the "extras" that make our schools an even better place to learn! Come and join us! We can use lots of volunteers!

Kirbyville School District Receives DNR Grant

The Kirbyville School District recently completed playground upgrades that were financed in part by a grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in the amount of $10,000. The Scrap Tire Surfacing Material Grant awarded from the Solid Waste Management Fund, was used towards the purchase of rubber tiles that are used as a safe, resilient playground surface.

The district replaced the former loose fill surfacing with over 2,300 square feet of DuroMat Extended Life Rubber Playground Safety Tiles under a new piece of equipment and an existing piece that met the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The total cost of the playground-surfacing product including delivery and installation was just over $26,000. With these playground improvements and others completed during the previous school year, the elementary playground is completely accessible with the exception of one playground area and much safer than it was with its previous pea-gravel surfacing. The future goal is to continue improving the playground until it is completely accessible.

Besides providing complete handicapped accessibility to the playground equipment, research shows that these safety tiles reduce serious injuries on the playground by 75%. The surface does not freeze, dries quickly and stays cleaner increasing the number of days the playground is usable by the students. Finally, the DuroMat Extended Life Rubber Playground Safety Tiles are made through a patented process using 100% Missouri scrap tires, which turns an environmental problem into a useful product.

Elementary principal, Addie Gaines, commented that the district has been pleased with the tile surfacing, adding, “While careful adult supervision and appropriate use of playground equipment are always key components to keeping students safe on a playground, this surfacing has added another dimension of safety to protect our kids from injury when the inevitable slips and falls that are a part of childhood happen.” No students were seriously injured on the Kirbyville Elementary playground last school year.

Gaines stated, “Each year we train our students about appropriate playground equipment use on the first day of school. Last year I told the students about how our new tiles were made from recycled tires that no one could use anymore. I was pleased when we toured our new areas and I asked students that were here last year if anyone remembered what the tiles were made of and the students who volunteered to answer the question recalled the fact they were made of recycled tires. I think it is great that they can personally experience the benefits of recycling through the daily use of this product.”

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112 K-5 Students Complete Summer Reading Program by reading over 112,000 minutes total

112 students X 1000 minutes of reading equals a summer of literary fun and maintenance or increasing of student reading levels! It also equals an afternoon of wet, wet fun known as the Splash Bash for those 112 summer readers! Students spent an extra week of anticipation after a disappointing rainout on the original date, but the beautiful day on Thursday, Aug. 27 was worth the wait!


This could not have happened without our summer readers, but it also could not have happened without our sponsors that paid for 4 books in each summer reading packet and the equipment for the Splash Bash! KES thanks: Target Stores, J.J. Marketing (Star-Walk Entertainment), Scholastic, Inc. Ozark Mountain Bank, The Presley’s and The Track Family Fun Parks for their grants, donations and discounts! Also, the Splash Into Summer Reading Event is now part of the Center for Summer Learning’s National Summer Learning Day!

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