LOVE YOUR PLAYGROUND rewards were given to our students today. We had to modify the prizes that were earned because we are not able to mix cohorts of students. Your child will be bringing home a yellow envelope with their rewards enclosed. We asked them to wait until they are home with an adult before opening their prizes. Students who are virtual learners can pick up their prize envelope in their child's mailbox in the preschool lobby. Depending on your child's reward level, they will receive sludge slime, a multi-colored pen, light up heart glasses and gift cards to Wesco, Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Subway, McDonalds and Village Peddler. Thank you to our community for supporting our playground! If your child is a virtual learner and they helped raise money for the playground, please feel free to add a photo to our Facebook post so we can acknowledge them for their efforts.

Do you remember encyclopedias as a kid? If you are a Michigan resident, your child has free access to an online World Book encyclopedia. https://www.worldbookonline.com/kids/home?subacct=O6106

Picture Day is tomorrow at Columbia Elementary School. Order your perfect package online today and don't worry about returning anything on Picture Day!

Please note this important change beginning October 12, 2020 to our arrival and dismissal times. The kids are getting the routine down so we don't need as much time to transition. The arrival window will take place from 7:45 - 8:05 a.m. and the dismissal window will take place from 2:40-3:00 p.m. Students who arrive after 8:05 should check in at the elementary office. Preschool students can continue to check in at the outside classroom door.

We had a great spirit week! The kids love wearing school shirts and sporting their Blue & Gold.

Please click on the link to read the October edition of Little Eagles, the Columbia Elementary School monthly newsletter. https://www.smore.com/47ghm-little-eagles

Our littlest Golden Eagles wore class colors today to show their school spirit! Tomorrow, we are all out Blue & Gold. Wear your Eagle gear because #itsagreatdaytobealittleeagle.

CES TEACHERS AND STAFF LOVE TO BE SILLY! Please click on Mr. Clanton's picture and turn your volume up if you need a smile today! https://photos.app.goo.gl/aXAT8cS8qQb3BTAZ6

Our little eagles love pajama day! Tomorrow we will be wearing class colors to celebrate spirit week. 2nd grade students will wear pink. 1st grade students wear grey. Kindergarten students wear red. And preschool students wear green.

Aloha! Our little eagles are spending some time at the beach today as part of our spirit week activities. Tomorrow is pajama day!

Spirit Week is under way at CES. Take a look at our little country clubbers and country folk. Either way, there was a whole lot of country cuteness at Columbia Elementary School today. Don't forget to wear your Luau/Beach Day apparel Tuesday, Sept. 29th.

Has a teacher in Columbia made a difference in your child's life? Please consider nominating them for the Jackson County Top Teacher Award! Each year, Jackson Magazine recognizes deserving K-12 Jackson County teachers, honoring those innovative educators who go above and beyond to make a difference in their students' lives. Thanks to a partnership with the Jackson Community Foundation and the Hurst Foundation, the Teacher of the Year receives $7,500; the four Top Teachers each receive a $1,500 grant for classroom use and/or professional development. Top Teachers will be announced in the May issue of the magazine. http://www.jacksonmagazine.com/teacher-nomination

Beginning Monday, Oct. 5th all Little Eagles K-2 will wear masks during class. We have the best group of teachers, staff and students in the land. We will use a positive approach with our Little Eagles who will do their best with this new Executive Order. https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/MIEOG/2020/09/25/file_attachments/1556015/EO%202020-185%20Emerg%20order%20-%20Education%20order%20amendment.pdf

Please join us in cheering on our Varsity teams by participating in Spirit Week dress up days next week.

Reading is the essential skill all children need in order to learn other subjects in school. Having fun while learning to read is a focus in every classroom at CES. Students work daily to increase their skills in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, accuracy, decoding, comprehension, sight words and expanding their vocabulary. Mrs. Knaup, Mrs. Coughlin, Mrs. White and Mrs. Kouba offer reading interventions at Columbia Elementary School. Some of the interventions include: Reading Recovery - a one-on-one daily, intensive reading intervention. Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) - 30 minute sessions in a small group to strengthen a child’s reading and writing skills. Guided Reading Groups - 30 minute sessions to improve a student's fluency, accuracy, comprehension, sight word recognition and decoding skills. We are grateful to our aides, classroom teachers, special education teacher and Reading Interventionists for keeping reading a top priority at CES! 💙💛📘

Constitution.Day is September 17th! You are invited to wear red, white, and blue.

All students at CES & CUES have school Wednesday, Sept. 9. Jr./Sr. High students learn from home on Wednesdays.

Columbia Preschool is starting! Tuition Paid Preschool begins Tuesday, September 8th. GSRP Preschool begins Monday, October 5th. Our Preschool Team is excited to start teaching our Littlest Eagles! Just a reminder there is no school tomorrow or Monday in honor of Labor Day.

Meet Officer Breijak! He is the Columbia Liason Police Officer. He helps our students learn about safety. Our Little Eagles were happy to meet with him today and learn more about what a police officer does. There is a smile behind his mask!

Reminder: Columbia School District meal pickup for virtual learners is tomorrow from 10 to 11 right in front of the high school office. This is for all distance learners Pk through 12th grade.