P ATRIOT P RESS The

It is amazing to me that we are at the end of January. Where has the month

gone? We are working hard at learning and love being with your children each

day!

I want to offer a bit of clarification for our families that are being re-zoned to Fruit

Cove Middle School and Durbin Creek Elementary. Our school’s rezoning picture

has many pieces and can be confusing so I hope this helps. Our rezoned chil-

dren in current grades K-3 and grade 5 are expected to attend their new school

this coming year. The only exception for them would be accomplished through a

hardship waiver that needs to be submitted and approved through the district

Student Services department. Our rezoned students currently in grades 4, 6 and

7 have the option to stay at POA if they would like. If you are those families, you

have received a letter stating that you have a choice for the coming year. Please

allow me to clarify the letter that you received regarding transportation as there

was an error. If your child currently receives district transportation and you have

the option to stay, the transportation will continue to be provided next year. New

letters that have been corrected to state that have been mailed to you. However,

you do not have to wait for the new letter to mark your choice and notify us of

your decision on your child’s placement for the coming year. We appreciate

knowing as soon as possible so that we can begin our budgeting and planning

processes for the coming year. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate

to reach out to me.

A quick reminder regarding picking students up from the front office. Please have

your photo ID with you. Safety for your child is our first priority and we ask that

you follow the guidelines of showing your ID before we release a child to you or

prior to entering our hallways. I sincerely appreciate your help with keeping your

children safe.

A big thank you to our PTO for the planning and preparation that went into the

Winter Dance for our middle school. The students had a great time! We are

grateful for all who volunteered on a Friday night to allow us to provide a fun ex-

perience for our students.

We have Our PTO Movie night coming up along with our Spring Book Fair.

Please come and join us! We love these community events for our families.

As always, thank you for your trust in us. We love serving you and your children.

Patriot Oaks is a great place to be!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Olson

Patriot Oaks Academy Newsletter January 26, 2018

IN THIS EDITION:

Important Dates

Good Chargers

Media Center News

8th Grade Gradventure

Summer Marine Science Program

8th Grade Gradventure

FDOH Flu Advisory

MS History Fair Winners

Clinic Corner

BTHS 8th Grade Night

Early K Registration

District News

Yearbook Orders

ESE Parent Advisory Meeting

Café News

Art News

Shoe Drive Ending

After School Enrichment/Club News

PTO Family Movie Night

Character Counts Six Pil-lars 6K/3K Run/Walk

Creeks Lacrosse

Building a Tradition of Excellence, Together! GO CHARGERS!

Principal’s Post

Monday, 1/29: Teacher Inservice, No School for Students

Thursday, 2/8: NJHS Induction, 6:30 pm

Friday, 2/9: Book Fair Begins

Interims Issued

PTO Movie Night, 6 pm

Monday, 2/19: President’s Day, Student/Teacher Holiday

IMPORTANT DATES

Congratulations to the following good Chargers for the week of January

15: Suhail Akel, Garrett Alberts, Emily Anderson, Liz Cady, Caiden

Church, Jace Cobb, Cameron Colletti, Lindsey Danna, Casey Driggers,

Reagan Eisenstatt, Emily Fell, Patrick Michael, Peyton Murphy, Jackson

Palmer, Vishan Patel, Harrison Powell, Lauren Prangley, Emiily Rausch,

Logan Schneider, Jade Scully, Ruby Snyder, Landon Sorensen, Reed

Sutton, and Charlie Tickell

Congratulations to the following good Chargers for the week of January 22: Tristyn

Bailey, Easton Bowers, Abheek Gangasani, Giselle Guillaume, Henner Harvey, Atlas

Hilton, Emma Karim, Macey Karl, Ben Keeney, Kathryn King, Lindsay Leonard,

Cooper Maxwell, Cian McCarron, Nick Moeller, Nikhil Patel, Tia Patel, Harrison Pow-

ell, Mia Richter, Logan Schwinghammer, Dominik Skocic, Asher Williams,Liam Walsh,

Richie White, and Conner Wright.

GOOD CHARGERS

Our Battle of the Books third through fifth grade team is assembled. Thank you

to the more than thirty-five students who tried out. Our team will compete in the

county competition in May. This year’s team is Sutton Hooker, Thanmayi Lolla,

Nihal Konduborolu, Eliana Mailloux, Emily Rausch, Halle Williams, and Trace

Williams.

Congratulations to the newest third through fifth grade students to have finished

reading all 15 of the Sunshine State Books: Samantha Davies, Sam Franklin,

Abigail Lee, Logan Searcy and Julia Titus. Upper elementary and middle

school students can still collect book tags for reading the Sunshine State books.

When you have read at least three, stop by the media center and get your col-

lection started!

For more information on all that our media center sponsors, go to our school website and click on the Media Center tab at the top of the page.

MEDIA CENTER NEWS

Applications for the summer Marine Science Program will be

passed out by science teachers at all schools during the

week of February 12th. Applications will be due back to sci-

ence teachers by March 5th. Applications can also be down-

loaded at any time from the website prior to April 13th at

http://www-grms.stjohns.k12.fl.us/ and click on the Marine

Science link. The link also will have a complete day by day

curriculum for each grade level, parent information, and a video from last year’s

program.

This summer program is available to all students currently in grades five

through seven and has been sponsored by the school district since 1982.

Three eight day sessions are held at Gamble Rogers Middle School with bus

transportation provided. The dates for the three sessions this summer will be

May 29st through June 7th, June 11th through June 21st , and June 25th

through July 6th. Small classes of 12-14 students are separated by grade level.

All instructors in the program are St. Johns County School District teachers.

The Marine Science Program is a carefully designed experience for responsible

students who are interested in learning about our local marine environments.

Learning is “hands on” in the field with students kayaking, canoeing, boating,

hiking, snorkeling, sailing, windsurfing, surfing, SUP, (stand up paddleboarding),

etc. Specific grade level activities and curriculum are attached to the applica-

tions and are also available from the website.

More information about the program can be had by emailing Kristina Bransford

at marinescienceprogram@stjohns.k12.fl.us

SUMMER MARINE SCIENCE PROGRAM

8th GRADE GRADVENTURE

8th grade GradVenture forms and ticket money are due to

Mrs. Vaughn by February15th ($77), and the $48 bus money

is due by March 15th.

A MESSAGE FROM THE FL DEPT. OF HEALTH

MS HISTORY FAIR WINNERS

The following projects will move on to the regional competition in February.

Please plan on staying after school next Tuesday with Mrs. Vaughn or Mrs.

Brown for more details and to go over edits.

Exhibits:

The Ratification of the Constitution by Meredith McDade and Helen Do

(Grade 8)

The Irish Revolutionary War by Maddox Sutton (Grade 8)

Magic and Mayhem; The Salem Witch Trials by Gracie Bell and Kyra

Brenneman (Grade 8)

Clara Barton’s Fight for Women’s Rights by Molly Coolican (Grade 7)

Kathrine Switzer and the Boston Marathon: The Conflict and Compromise of

Women in the Boston Marathon by Taylor Worbington (Grade 7)

The Uprising of the 20,000 by Jules Levy (Grade 8)

You Can’t Stop Rock ‘n’ Roll by Grace Gappy (Grade 7)

Theodosia Burr Alston: Rebellion at its finest by Mack Jones (Grade 8)

Website:

Women in Military by Katherine Anderson (Grade 8)

Documentary:

The Great Depression by Mia Moore (Grade 8)

Honorary mentions (these projects will not move on to regionals, but deserve a

mention):

Exhibits:

Nelson Mandela: A man who changed the World by Jill Ursem (Grade 7)

Jackie Robinson: The Game Changer by Kaylee and Tyler Martineau

(Grade 7)

Clinic Corner

Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that all

individuals six months of age and older receive the

flu vaccine each year. Since infants under six

months of age are too young to get vaccinated

against influenza, it is important that family

members (including pregnant or breastfeeding

mothers) and other caregivers for these children be

vaccinated to help protect them from the disease.

It is important to keep sick children at home to prevent spreading the flu virus to

others. Additional flu prevention steps include staying away from people who

are sick, covering sneezes or coughs with a tissue or your elbow, avoid touch-

ing your eyes, nose and mouth, and frequent handwashing.

If your child becomes sick with flu-like illness, contact your health care provider

as soon after symptoms begin as possible. Symptoms of the flu often include

fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headaches, or fatigue. Antivi-

ral medication for flu has been shown to reduce severity and length of disease,

decrease the risk of complications from influenza, and reduce the risk of death

among hospitalized patients, particularly in those that start treatment early in

their illness. Health care providers can prescribe antiviral treatment if appropri-

ate. Treatment is most effective when started within 48 hours, so contacting

your health care provider as soon as your child becomes ill is important, espe-

cially if your child has underlying health conditions.

The best way to keep yourself and your family safe and healthy during flu sea-

son is to:

· Get vaccinated;

· Keep sick family members home;

· Contact your health care provider if you or your child are experiencing flu-

like symptoms; and

· Follow your doctor’s guidance on treatment.

SAVE THE DATE

Plans are underway to welcome your 8th grade students

who will attend Bartram Trail High School next year.

Save the Date: 8th Grade Night on Monday, March 5 from

6:30 to 8:00 PM. THIS IS A CHANGE IN THE DATE.

We will send you more detailed information as the date

gets closer but please note it on your calendars. BTHS

can’t wait to welcome their future Bears and are eager to

help them all make a smooth and exciting transition to high school!

EARLY KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION

Tues. March 13 – 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Tues. March 20 – 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Wed. April 4 – 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Wed. April 11 – 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Information on how to enroll your child in school can be found at the SJCSD

website: http://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/student/enrollment/. Registration packets

are also available there. Look for additional information on the SJCSD website

regarding ‘Early Registration’ as it becomes available.

Please note: Per SJCSD policy, we will be unable to take your registration if

any of the required documents are missing or incomplete. All registration

forms must be filled out; all proofs of residency must be provided; the

school-entry physical must be dated 8/11/17 or later; all shots must be on

a FL 680 form and must be complete for entry into school as of 8/10/18 (if

your child is not yet 5 yrs old and does not have all his/her shots, you

must wait to register until all shots are complete). Information regarding

Kindergarten immunization requirements can be found here: http://

www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/health/immunizations/. If you have further questions on

immunizations or physicals, please call the SJCSD Health Services Depart-

ment: 904-547-7693.

DISTRICT NEWS

YEARBOOK ORDER INFORMATION

FEBRUARY ESE PARENT ADVISORY MEETING

CAFÉ NEWS

ART NEWS

AFTER SCHOOL ENRICHMENT/CLUBS

The club meets in villa 820 from 3:00 to 4:00 pm on Tuesdays (1/30, 2/6, 2/13)

Students not attending extended day are to be picked up by an approved adult

in the blue lot (near the Cafeteria)

Contact Ms. Davis (Joan.davis@stjohns.k12.fl.us) with any questions.

SHOE DRIVE—ENDS THURSDAY DAY FEBRUARY 1

AFTER SCHOOL ENRICHMENT/CLUBS

PTO EVENT

6K RUN 3K WALK

CREEKS LACROSSE