Walker Butte K-8

29697 N. Desert Willow Blvd.

San Tan Valley, AZ 85143
Phone: (480) 987-5360
Fax: (480) 987-5369
Attendance: (480)987-5364
Website: http://wb.fusdaz.org
FUSD Website: http://fusdaz.org
Office Hours: 7:30am-4:00pm
School Hours- 8:05am-3:10pm
Early Release Dismissal:12:50pm
Principals Corner
O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
the
COYOTE CALLER
Whats Inside?
3-8 Grade Level News ......... pg. 8
Specials News ....................................... pg. 10
Athletics ......................................................... pg. 12
Student Council .............................. pg. 13
Walker Butte Tidbits ............. pg. 14
Principals Corner.................... pg. 1
October Calendars...........pg. 2
PreK-2 Grade Level News .... pg. 5
Title I ............pg. 5
Apollo/Resource............ pg 6
Governing Board Members
Bob Dailey- President
Denise Guenther- Vice President
Rose Marie MonksMember
Jim Thomas -Member
Janeane CandelariaMember
Dear Walker Butte Community,
The first quarter is now in the books! I would like to thank the entire WB community, students, parents and
staff for your warm and kind welcome. I feel blessed to be here and am excited about the future for our
school.
The first benchmark tests were conducted the week of September 9
th
and preliminary results look
promising. Now comes the real work of building upon these results and helping our students grow
academically to achieve the desired results as measured by the state assessments in the spring. We are
committed to helping all our students grow.
The state law known commonly asMove On When Reading takes full effect this year. Basically it addresses
the need for all students to be reading at or near grade level by the end of third grade. Students scoring
far below grade level must be retained unless certain interventions have taken place or unless certain
criteria which would qualify a student not to be retained has been met. Parent support in developing
readers is critical. Many studies have shown that students who see parents read to and with them are
better readers and perform better overall in school.
May I strongly suggest that the television gets turned off well before bedtime and that you take
at least 15 minutes nightly to read to your student? If your child is able to read, have him or her
read to you or take turns reading a page or a passage each. This will not only help your child in
school and to become a better reader, it will strengthen your relationship with your son or
daughter and provide wonderful memories and opportunities to communicate and create bonds
that will last a lifetime. It is never too early to begin this practice with pre-school age children. For
older children (grades3-8) encourage them to read on their own and model the behavior for them
by reading on your own.
We are looking forward to a great school year and appreciate your support and all you do in
behalf of your children!
Sincerely,
Paul Hatch
Principal
Walker Butte Upcoming Events
Walker Butte Mission Statement
The Walker Butte K-8 mission is to provide children with the knowledge, the skills, and the character to
be lifelong learners and responsible citizens. We will provide an educational foundation that allows each
student to reach his or her maximum potential.
4:30pm
Girls & Boys
Soccer
WB vs Anthem
5pm
Teachers vs.
Students
Volleyball Game
Early
Release Day
Fall Intersession
8:30am
Community Readers Day
Early Release
Day
School Resumes
8:30am
Battle of the Books
4:30pm
Boys & Girls Soccer
WB vs MR
4:30pm
Boys & Girls Soccer
WB vs CB
5pm-8pm
Walker Butte
Fall Festival


Preschool
Boo! This quarter preschool will be concentrating on the Themes Fall/Autumn
Harvest and Winter Celebrations. We want our students to know that the seasons
change and how we recognize this, even in Arizona. We want them to be safe and to
recognize fire dangers, which is especially troublesome during this season. Were going to virtually visit a farm and learn
about our farm animals; also, apples and pumpkins, our winter harvest. Were going to celebrate winter quarter holidays,
starting with HalloweenBoo!
Kindergarten
The month of September sure flew by in Kindergarten. We worked on the letters B, N and A. We
started blending letters together to make words. We learned some new sight words that we can
find in books now. We also talked about apples and how they grow. In
Math we have been working on recognizing and writing numbers to 20.
October will be a fun month in math as we are going to be working on
patterns, sorting and classifying things into groups. We will learn some
more letters and sounds of the alphabet and start working on blending
the letters together to form words. We will also start working on
writing simple sentences using our sight words that we are learning. In Science and Social Studies
we will be studying fire safety, animals (bats and spiders) and learning all about pumpkins.
First Grade
Our first graders have accomplished and learned so much in the first 9 weeks of school. Our first graders continue to
learn new phonemes weekly. Also they are improving the ability to read fluently from both library and classroom books.
Writing in complete simple sentences and using correct punctuation is no match for our 1
st
Graders. Math concepts include
writing numbers from 0-200, recognizing and counting money, and place values up to the hundreds place. We have also
been comparing numbers using greater than, less than or equal to. In October we will be learning how to count on and
count back to solve an addition or subtraction problem as well as using fact families to add and subtract. In reading we will
be learning how to put words in ABC order. We would like to thank all of our parents for their awesome support! Happy
October!!!!!
Grade Level News
K-2 Campus
Second Grade
Reading-2
nd
grade is currently focused on breaking basic words into syllables. We are working with the VCV and
VCCV patterns. Syllabication was introduced this week and will continue through the first few weeks after Fall
Break. Later in the 2
nd
quarter, we will discover spelling patterns and also focus on the key details of text. In
reading, 2
nd
grade begins our theme 3, Around Town. Students will learn about citizenship within a community. While most of these stories
are fiction, still there are realistic qualities that enable students to activate their prior knowledge. This helps them relate to the community
they personally live in.
Math- The majority of the 2
nd
quarter encompasses subtraction with regrouping, with and without money. Mastering subtraction with
regrouping is imperative to foundational learning. Thus, we will spend considerable time on the fundamentals as well as the reasons why.
Once students master subtraction, we will move to counting coins and bills to 100. You can assist your child by asking them to count your
pocket change, regularly. Students will also work with polygons (geometry). Finally, they will be able to compare numbers using symbols
(greater than, less than, equal to, inequalities, etc.).
Writing- Fun activities make up the 2
nd
quarter in writing. Students learn how to write a descriptive paragraph by describing a special treat
(using their 5 senses). As well, students embark in various creative writing pieces. As well, in the 2
nd
quarter, Christmas around the World
is introduced. Thus, a persuasive letter to Santa must be perfected for obvious reasons!
Science- In Science, we study the Human Body for many weeks. We discuss our 3 basic systems including our skeletal, respiratory, and
digestive systems. Students engage in many hands on activities throughout this unit. They love discussing the Human Body. It is highly
intriguing to the majority!
Social Studies-2
nd
grade spends the last 3 weeks of the quarter studying Christmas around the World. A total of 12 countries are studied
with hands on activities to accompany each country. During this time, the classroom is a very busy place. Stop by and experience all the
fun! Youll more than likely be asked to volunteer.
Title I News
In kindergarten we are working on identifying letters and learning the sounds they make. This month we will
be covering the rest of the letters we havent covered in the first quarter . We are also focusing on initial
sounds that we hear in the beginning of words, rhyming words and introducing sight words.
Our first grade students are working on reading fluency and blending short vowel words. We will also be
covering ways to correctly decode difficult words.
Second grade is focusing on improving their oral reading fluency and overall comprehension of stories. The
students are concentrating on decoding and reading words with specific vowel pairs. Second grade has also begun working
with our Reading Assist program on the computers. It is a wonderful program and if you would like to know more about it
please feel free to contact me anytime.
Third grade is working on improving their reading fluency and accuracy. We are working on reading words with specific vowel
pairs. We are also working on strategies to help us decode difficult words.
Walker Butte is holding its first annual Community Readers Day!
Check out the flyer towards the end of the newsletter!
Apollo Program
Youthful 4
th
graders comb the internet for a PowerPoint presentation project on Animals of the World, a
joint project of the 4
th
grade general educators and special education teacher.
Mr. Verdugos Class:
Benchmarks The students were diligent and worked hard on their benchmark testing. All were quiet and focused.
After each benchmark test the students enjoyed a fun activity and some goodies from Mr. Verdugo!
Book Fair Students are excited about going to the book fair. Kids say they like all the colorful books and neat
things they see at the book fair. Some realize they might not get to buy anything but all are looking forward to
seeing what is available.
Public Etiquette Along with Common Core objectives in reading, writing, and math, students were involved in
strengthening their skills in public etiquette. Role playing, peer examples, and teacher capers all added to the unique
way of teaching and learning social skills in a fun way.
Two Week Break Although the students love to learn, all are looking forward to the break. The kids have
promised to share some of the fun things they did over the break!
Mr. Verdugo says, Get plenty of rest and fun so we can work hard after break!
Miss Gruntorads Class: Our room is going to work on fun fall crafts integrating sensory and learning to tell time and
understand the concept of money. We plan on taking a field trip to Schnepf farms!
Mrs. Kirklands Class: We are working on patterns, ordering by size, and fall vocabulary! We are excited to keep
working hard after break. We have done our first ITV televised sharing activity with Mrs. Goodens multi-age,
project based class at Anthem. The Anthem students learned about our need for visual supports and wrote visual
books to share with our students. We are excited to keep learning with friends across the district!
Miss James Class: The Coyote Pups in Room 11 have taken off in the Apollo program this year. Our biggest goal is
learning to express our wants and needs in a calm and predictable manner. Successes are celebrated with cheers,
verbal praise and positive notes home. We are learning the importance of being safe in our environment, shapes,
colors, letters and their sounds. Keep it up K-2 Apollo Pups!!
Resource
Third Grade
3rd grade had a wonderful first quarter. Thank you to all of the parents who showed up for
parent/teacher conferences. We hope you enjoyed seeing your children's successes. We will be
learning about the scientific method in the 2nd quarter. We will also be learning map skills
culminating in a continent report. Look for information coming soon from your child's teacher.
Benchmarks are complete and we are excited! We are looking forward to the Fall Festival coming
up at the end of October. The 3rd grade booth will be a ring toss and the money we collect
goes towards field trips.
Fourth Grade
I hope you all had a fun and relaxing break. We are so happy to see your smiling faces back at school. We are going to kick
off our second quarter by diving into more fractions and decimals for math. We love the fractions.
For reading we are going to journey across the globe to learn about different types of cultural literature.
We are putting our science caps on and exploring the world of electricity in science. We cant wait to do some exciting
experiments.
For Fall Festival fourth grade will be hosting the fish toss booth. We are asking for candy donations from parents for those
students that do not win a fish. Please send them with your student to give to their teacher. The date of the Fall is October
25
th
from 5-8. Hope you see you there.
Fifth Grade
Reading - The students will be learning about the elements of a story (components of plot: conflict, rising actions, climax, falling actions, and
resolutions. They will also pretend to be screen writers. They will work in groups to produce a play.
Writing - The students will put their proofreading skills to work while using components of plot: conflict, rising actions, climax, falling actions, and
resolutions. This will also tie in with their play production assignment. All screenplays need to be proofread and then they will turn in the final copy.
Math - The students will be solving word problems with fractions and determining how to double and triple recipes for more than one person. The
students will also be giving their own examples of real life situations that require using fractions.
Science - The students will be acting as wildlife researchers to determine how intense the impact of natural disasters are on animals and their
habitats.
Social Studies - The students will be researching explorers and the effects of exploration, trade and how the American
Indians readjusted. Students will also be making telescopes, compasses and maps to act out the times of the explorers
and the colonists.
Grade Level News
3-8 Campus
Sixth Grade
October is here and 6
th
grade is ready to start the 2
nd
quarter. This first month of the 2
nd
quarter and throughout the entire
quarter, we will be working across curriculum in Writing and Social Studies. Social Studies will begin the first part of a 3 part
project culminating in a Living Wax Museum spanning the time of Mesopotamia through the Renaissance period. Students will
be choosing their historical figure of interest and will complete a research paper in writing class for this first part of their project.
In writing they will be working on the outline to prepare for research, completing research, taking notes, using their notes and
outline to write their research paper. The students are excited to begin this first part of their long term project. The focus on
writing this month and quarter is on expository texts and student will be completing an advertisement piece selling a haunted
house. Combining their creative writing with an expository format will make an interesting Want Ad.
Science and Math will be working across the curriculums combining the Scientific Method of problem solving with the 8
Mathematical Practices of problem solving. Students will begin researching ideas for their
science fair projects while in math their learning will focus on creating, solving algebraic
equations and inequalities from word problems, and justifying their answers.
Seventh Grade
7th grade Language Arts- will beginning a science fiction unit. We will have our traditional alien
day and our feature author for the month is Ray Bradbury. Two books will be assigned for
second quarter. Book lists will be sent home before the fall break, so students can get a head start on their AR points.
Towards the end of October, we will read some stories and poems by Edgar Allan Poe.
In 7
th
grade Math, we will begin to develop our understanding of ratios and proportions. This is a key concept in math this year
as well as future math. We will be using this to analyze and create scale drawings. We will then move on to our geometry unit,
discussing circumference and area of circles and the meaning and origin of Pi.
7
th
grade Science - 7th grade science will be learning about the space unit we will also be introducing the science fair.
7th Grade Social Studies- The 7th graders are learning about slavery and the Underground Railroad in Social Studies. The
students are excited to learn about this interesting subject which had so much impact on America's past. When we return we will
be studying the Civil War.
Eighth Grade
8th Grade Language Arts -
In 8th grade Language Arts we are kicking it up a notch for second quarter. We will be starting a literature study which will
include an author study and applying the skills obtained during quarter 1. We will also focus on persuasive text and how to
determine if there is relevant and effective information. We will also create our own persuasive texts focusing on voice and
sentence structure.
Art
The Art Classes are still finishing their school spirit banners and starting our tour of
Africa for our 3-5 grades. Our 6th graders and 7th and 8th graders will be started
their introduction to Australia where they will be starting Aboriginal Dream Paintings. The Kindergarden, First and
Second grades are finishing their banners and starting their Serengeti Silhouettes.
Library News
Accelerated Reader
The Accelerated Reader program is designed to increase students reading levels and promote
a love for reading. Parents can view their childs progress through Home Connect. Home
Connect letters can be obtained from your childs teacher. Each student has a set quarterly
goal to be achieved. Students who meet their quarterly goal will receive a small treat from
Mrs. Gates. Walker Buttes overall goal is to have 100% of the students who are enrolled in
the program take at least one AR quiz every thirty days! Be sure to check out the
Accelerated Reader 500 Car Race displayed in the 3-8 Library window and see which grade
level crosses the finishing line first!
8th Grade Math- In 8
th
grade math we just mastered scientific notation and the properties of exponents. We started our
first unit in pre-algebra and were learning how to solve equations for a given variable. We are having a lot of fun with this and
were getting excited to learn more algebra!
In Algebra 1 we learned about rate of change and all about functions and yesterday all of the students proved their knowledge
of domain and range on a weekly quiz, they all mastered it!
8th Grade Social Studies - During September students presented a memorial to the victims of 9/11by
creating a memorial chain throughout the hallway. They also continued studying economics and
explored how countries depend on each other. In October we will examine the events which led to
the American Revolution.
8
th
Grade Science- Were kicking off Quarter 2 with the Science Fair and Physical Science. Be on the
lookout for Science Fair materials to be coming home to look over. Physical Science will be kicking off with the Periodic Table and
States of Matter and well be investigating elements, compounds, mixtures, and pH levels in substances. Weve got a lot of
exciting labs coming up this quarter so be sure to ask your students about what they are learning.
Library News
Battle of the Books
Sixteen teams consisting of three students each will compete on Tuesday, October
22
nd
at 8:30am in the WB 3-8 Cafeteria for the Battle of the Books Semi-Finals.
The top two teams who emerge from the Semi-Finals will move on to the District
Finals which will be held at Anthem on Tuesday, October 29
th
at 6:30pm. The third
place team will serve as alternates. We are eager to bring the traveling Battle of
the Books trophy back to Walker Butte!
Music
In October, the General Music
classes will be working on
keeping time with music and
basic music reading. The bands
will begin working on new
music for their December
concert. The Choir will also be
preparing new music for their
December concert. An after
school Pep Band will be
starting. Pep Band will play at
some of our home sporting
events. The Pep Band will be
led by high school band
students from Poston Butte.
PE
K-2
nd
:
The focus for the month of
October is manipulative skills
and locomotor skills. Students
are also working on taking
turns, conflict resolution,
following directions, safety, and
will participate in modified game
play.

3
rd
8
th
Grade:
In the month of October the
focus of Physical Education will
be on increasing students
aerobic fitness, muscular
strength, muscular endurance,
flexibility, and body
composition. Students will
participate in game play: soccer
and basketball, and will be
working on their personal and
social behavior through the
games that they play.

Apollo PE:
Students will continue working
on their gross motor skills,
body control, teamwork, and
cooperation throughout the
month of October.
Nurses Office
It is that time of year
again. We need to
make sure all of our
immunizations are
current. Letters will be
going to parents for
those students who
are still in need of
immunizations.
Continued...
Soccer
FUSD ATHLETICS
FUSD offers basketball, football,
baseball/softball, volleyball,
soccer, wrestling and
cheerleading to all 7th and 8th
grade students who meet the
athletic and disciplinary
guidelines set forth in the
Athletic handbook.
Please print a copy of the
handbook located on this page
for more information regarding
our athletic program. Only
students who have turned in all
of the necessary paperwork
will be allowed to tryout.
GAME ADMISSION
This year FUSD is charging
admission for all sporting
events. The funds raised will
go towards supporting our
athletic programs (new
equiptment, uniforms, etc).
The cost of admission is $2
for adults and $1 for
students and children 5 and
under are free.
Please come and root on
your Coyote athletes. Thank
you for understanding and
continued support.
PAY TO PARTICIPATE
FUSD is requiring all
atheletes to "Pay to
Participate". The fee is
$50.00 per student, per
sport.
Please contact Jaime Lopez
with any questions.
UPCOMING
EVENTS
OCT. 15TH
Teachers vs. Students
Volleyball Game
5:00pm
OCT. 22ND
Boys & Girls
Soccer Game
WB vs. Magma
4:30pm
OCT. 24TH
Boys & Girls
Soccer Game
WB vs. Copper Basin
4:30pm
OCT. 31ST
Boys & Girls
SoccerGame
WB vs. Anthem
4:30pm
Walker Butte Athletics just competed our baseball and softball season. Sadly, none of our
teams made it to the district championship but all teams played great, learned skills, and
displayed amazing sportsmanship.
Soccer tryouts begin Wednesday October 9
th
through Friday October 11
th
, final team rosters will
be posted on Monday October 14
th
. All 6
th
, 7
th
, and 8
th
grade students are eligible to tryout. In
order to tryout the student athlete must have a completed packet on file in the office with a
current physical. Please call Mrs. Lopez with any questions, 480-987-5360
Walker Butte will be hosting our first ever Students vs. Teachers Volleyball Game on Tuesday
October 15
th
at 5:00. Admission will be $1.00 per person and concessions will be sold.
Profits will benefit the student athletes at Walker Butte.
Student Council is VERY busy planning our annual Fall
Festival. This year Fall Festival will take place on October
25
th
. The Festival will run from 5:00-8:00. We encourage all
Walker Butte students to come and bring your family. There
will be games, bouncies, food, and live entertainment. There
will be more information to come, so check for flyers being
sent home with your child. Student Council is also looking
for outside vendors to sell their product at Fall Festival. If
you are interested please contact Sara Polina before October
16
th
at spolina@fusdaz.org.
Walker Butte Student Council
President: Quinn G. Treasurer: Shelby L.
Vice President: Jackie J. Secretary: Addison M.
Student Council Sponsor: Mrs. Polina
Community Readers Day
Join us!!
Walker Butte is holding its first annual Community Readers Day.
Come show your support by volunteering to read to one of our classes.
Anyone can volunteer to come read to one of our kinder through eighth
grade classes. This is a great opportunity to share in our students learning
and excitement of literature!!
If you would like to volunteer please contact Candace Campbell or Louise
Gates to let us know you are coming!!
Walker Butte Elementary
Thursday, October 24th
8:30am-10:30am
Contact Information:
(480) 987-5380
ccampbell@fusdaz.org
lgates@fusdaz.org
Please feel free
to bring your
favorite
childrens book
or even dress
up as a story
book
character!!
Walker Butte Tidbits
We are proud
to share
messages
from our
students
supporting
anti-bullying!
Our campus is in
full bloom!
Walker Butte Tidbits
(cont.)
Do you want a greater chance at rounding
decimals correctly? Here is Chances rounding rap.
5 and up, fire it up!
4 and down, stay on ground!
Chance Giannini, 5
th
Grade
Our students are
given a presentation
on the Explorers
Program.
Walker Butte K-8 Elementary School
Principal: Mr. Paul Hatch
TOSA as Assistant Principal-K-5: Mrs. Tara Walter
Truancy Officer: Mrs. Tara Walter
Assistant Principal 6-8: Mrs. Jaime Lopez
Athletic Director: Mrs. Jaime Lopez
Governing Board Members
Bob Dailey- President
Denise Guenther- Vice President
Rose Marie Monks- Member
Jim Thomas -Member
Janeane Candelaria- Member
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Get the facts about the FUSD
override on the ballot in November!!
http://fusdaz.org