FEBRUARY FULL OF EVENTS
   February is loaded with fun-filled events for students at Morrison.  Some of these special activities include:
Week of Feb. 5, 6th Grade Science Fair
Feb. 6, 6th Grade Spelling Bee
Feb. 7-9, Student Council Lollipop Sales
Feb. 9, Honors Assembly for K-3
Feb. 12, Dr. Magic presents two Math Magic Shows
Feb. 13, Math Fair for K-6
Feb 14, Magic Carpet Time Tour for P-2 and Valentine's Day parties
Feb 22, Johnny Magic Safety Show- K-3
Feb. 26, 4th grade Proficiency Test Rally
   It's a great time to be a student at Morrison.

EARLY DISMISSAL FOR STAFF DEVELOPMENT SET
     Staff development will occur on Thursday, February 15.  On that day, elementary students will be dismissed at 1:30 and most should be home by 2:05   Parents are  requested to make  the necessary child  care arrangements.

NO SCHOOL
   There will be NO school in the district on Friday, February 16, and Monday, February 19.  Classes will resume at their regular times on Tuesday, February, 20.

P.T.O. TO MEET
   The next meeting of the Morrison P.T.O. will occur on Wednesday, February 21, at 7:00 in the library conference room.  All interested P.T.O. members are invited.
   We again want to thank the P.T.O. for the 18 fantastic printers which the organization purchased for each of our classrooms.

OPEN ENROLLMENT SET
     If you live outside of the Morrison attendance area and would like to continue your son/daughter in the open enrollment program for 2001-2002, you need to visit the Morrison office and obtain the open enrollment forms.  Intra-District forms may be obtained between March 1-15.  Inter- District forms may be acquired in the school office during the period April 1-15.

KINDERGARTEN  REGISTRATION/ SCREENING
     Kindergarten registration and health screening will occur at Morrison on
Tuesday, April 24, between the hours of 8:15 - 11:00 a.m.  Pre-registration packetswill be available in March for parents to help expedite this process.
     Parents are requested to attend the kindergarten registration on Tuesday,
April 24, with their youngsters and plan to stay for about 1 hour.  Children will be screened for vision, hearing, and gross motor development.  In addition, their immunizations, height/weight, and birth certificates will be checked.
   NOTE: Each new  kindergartner will  need a physical  examination from a  doctor.  Parents are  encouraged to begin  making  appointments now  with a family physician so that their paperwork is complete by the time of registration.

CONFERENCE ATTENDANCE APPRECIATED
     Follow up sessions to our fall goal setting conferences for students in grades 4-6concluded on February 7.  Kindergartenconferences also occurred during the same time frame.
     We greatly appreciate the interest parents displayed in their children's education through attendance at these conference sessions.
     Grades 1, 2, and 3 will be holding their
goal setting follow up conferences in mid- April.  Watch for materials coming home and make plans to attend.

WEATHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
     Due to inclement weather, there are times during the academic year when it is necessary to delay the opening of school, dismiss school early, change bus schedules, or cancel classes..  Keep your radios and televisions turned on for weather-related announcements.
   NOTE: If school starting times are delayed by 2 hours on a day that early dismissal is scheduled, we will NOT have early dismissal that day.  On the other hand, early dismissal will occur if we are on a 1 hour delay.

FIFTH GRADE READIES FOR WOODLAND ALTARS
   A meeting for fifth grade parentsinterested in obtaining more information regarding the outdoor education experience for their son/daughters at  Woodland Altars will occur  on February 21, at 6:30  p.m. in Room 127 at  Morrison. This informative  session will give parents an  opportunity to get their  questions answered prior to  the trip which is scheduled  for May 23-25, 2001.

MUSTANG YEARBOOK
   Work is progressing on the Morrison Mustang Yearbook.  Our student staff and their advisors are meeting twice weekly as we count down to the publication deadline.
This year's edition may be even better than the superb publication that many of our families greatly enjoyed last year.  Fantastic!

 HONOR ROLL ANNOUNCED
   We are extremely pleased to announce that the following students made the Morrison Honor Roll for the second grading period. (An*denotes all "As" in grades 5-6.)
 SIXTH GRADE:
Courtney Allen               Michael Malesick*
Dylan Armstrong            Chris Marcum
Drake Bolin*                  Abby Mathews
Kat Carpenter                Mackey Newman
Kevin Chen*                  Dana Peck
Madison Cooley*
Arie Frame                     Ian Robinson
Leslei Gilfert                  David Rothwell
Carolyn Grippa             Andrea Schey*
Kathy Gulino                 Jessica Schlabach
Yosha Gunasekera*      Jacquie Showalter*
Patrick Hale                  Cassie Snell
Erin Herpy*                  Laura Snoddy*
Joey Ipacs                    Olivia Sole*
Claire Lew*                 Emily Thatcher
Ga-Jen Lin                  Angela Wince
Harrison Xue
Bryan Young

FIFTH GRADE:
Stephen Bartone         Conor Hartwick
Katherine Chen*         Hanna Hirst
Sophia Chen*             Maxwell Jahren
Doug Chik                  Mitchell Jeffers
Shannon Clary            Akela Jennings
Emily Climer*             Patrick Lew
David Edwards          Tabitha Peters
Trey Ford                  John Schriner
Mary Jane Giesey*    Ebony Smith*
Rebekah Grippi         Christina Wince

FOURTH GRADE:
Ellie Andrews          Megan McCoy
Jim Bruggeman        Bethany Miller
Shane Bugeja          Andrea Pierson
Ricky Frame           Daniel Rankin
Danielle Fultz          Jordon Scali
David Gilfert           Katie Selander
Robert Harrington   John Siemer
Lauren Herpy         Anthony Sylvester
Alissa Hyde            Tristen West
Ben Innis                Michele Wiggins
Chris Ipacs             Samantha Williams
Adriana Lein          Matthew Witten

MORRISON LOOKS GOOD AT 21
     Morrison School will be 21 years old on February 19.  Throughout its life span, our building has been an excellent learning facility.  Some significant improvements to the school during the 1990s and into the 21st century have included: creation of a six acre land lab, purchasing the new "miracle" playground equipment by the P.T.O.,  painting of the school's interior during the summer of 1999, installation of telephones and Internet access in every classroom, development of a technology lab,  implementation of a computer automated library with the capability now of accessing our total collection from either the media center or each classroom, a completely new concrete surface and improved drainage for our parking lot completed during the summer of 2000, and the acquisition of 100 computers and 18 printers within the past month. WOW!
     Many of these improvements were made possible through funds from the district's permanent improvement levy.  We have a very good school facility that should serve students well into the 21st century as long as we continue to properly maintain what we have and modernize where necessary.

SPELLING BEE WINNERS
Students put lots of thought into spelling their words correctly during the annual Sixth Grade Spelling Bee held at Morrison on February 6.  This year's winners were: Kathy Gulino-1st, Claire Lew-2nd and Laura Snoddy-3rd, and Keely Flaherty -alternate.. Our winners will represent Morrison during the district spelling bee held on February 20, at 7:00 p.m. in the Athens High School auditorium.   Parents and friends are invited.
   Co-President of the P.T.O. Traci Lawrence presented dictionaries to our three winners.  Thank you, P.T.O.
   Other participants in the bee were: Ian Robinson, Mackey Newman, Cassie Snell, Drake Bolon, Patrick Hale, Dana Peck, Angela Wince, Katlynd Full, Andrea Schey, Courtney Allen, Joey Ipacs, Carolyn Grippa, Arie Frame, Kevin Chen, Jacquie Showalter, Meghan Dunn, Michael Malesick, Emily Thatcher, Bryan Young, Erin Herpy, Jessica Schlabach, Chris Marcum, Yosha Gunasekera, Harrison Xue, Olivia Sole
   Directing this exciting bee were sixth grade teachers, Bev Mottl, Mike Brawley, and Lora Lavelle.  Pronouncer was former sixth grade teacher, Lillian Dinos.

TESTING SCHEDULE SET
   Throughout the week of March 5,students in all grades except kindergarten will participate in either Proficiency or CBE testing.  We appreciate your assistance in seeing that children get plenty of rest nightly and receive a good breakfast each morning.  Let's help our young people to "do their best on the tests."

WHAT HOURS SHOULD YOUR CHILD ATTEND SCHOOL?
   Coming SOON to your home will be a survey to gather parent opinions regarding  hours of the elementary and secondary school day.   We encourage you to read, complete  and return the questionnaire quickly.
   Our district is considering various starting and ending times for the school day.  Some research has revealed that adolescents (high school and middle school age) need more sleep and don't really perform well early in the mornings but do better later in the day.  Many elementary teachers believe that younger children are quite alert and full of energy when they arrive at school but tend to slow down in their performance levels later in the school day.  Because today's students are expected to learn great amounts of  information and perform increasingly complex tasks, we would like to have our young people attend school during their optimum learning hours. What are your experiences with these various age levels?
    As our district reviews its school starting and ending times, we hope to consider the research, parent, and staff opinions before making decisions regarding this important matter.  Watch for the forthcoming survey.

SPRING BREAK
   Spring break happens during the week of March 19-23, in the Athens City Schools.  Classes resume at their regular times on Monday, March 26.  School assignments will not be given in advance for people departing prior to the vacation.  Students may make the work up when they return.

Last updated on February 9, 2001