Mustang Express

Halloween this year is a half day with dismissal at 12:35 PM. Students at MBE are welcome to wear a school-appropriate costume. Please note the following:

• Students may not wear costumes, make-up or masks with blood or gore

• Halloween scary masks are not permitted. Students’ faces must be visible during transportation and throughout the remainder of the school day.

• Students may not bring any type of weapons or look-alike weapons

• All accessories should be left at home

• Students who ride the bus will need to bring their costume in a bag and change while at school. Please help your child choose a costume he/she can put on independently.

At 11:00 AM, we will host our outdoor parade*. Parents/guardians and younger siblings are invited to view the parade in front of the building along the bus loop. There is no need to check-in at the main office because visitors will be outside and will not be entering the school. Parents are encouraged to carpool to alleviate congestion in the parking lot.

*In case of rain, students will parade through the building, into the gym. Parents may enter through the gym entrance, door 18, and wait for the parade there.

After the parade, students will return to the classroom. Some classrooms have requested parent volunteers to assist with the party following the parade. If your classroom requests volunteers, and your child’s teacher confirms that you have been selected, please sign-in at the main office and get a visitor’s badge. Only pre-arranged volunteers will be permitted.

**We kindly ask that you make arrangements for any younger siblings if you plan to volunteer in your child’s classroom.**

Most importantly, we ask for your cooperation and patience, as it will be a very busy day here at school. Student safety is our top priority.

#mustangproud

Cheers,

Jennifer VanWagnen, Principal

October

10/20: PTA Sponsored Halloween Fun Fest, 6:30-8 PM

10/20: TOY Nomination Forms Due to the Building

10/25: Flu Clinic @ 2-5 PM in MBE Staff Lounge

10/31: Half Day of School (Staff Professional Development))

This is an important reminder that Tuesday, October 31st is a half day of school with a dismissal at 12:35 PM.

Please refer to our tiered dismissal times below:

12:20- Saddle Up Pick-Up and Walkers

12:25- Prime Time Care

12:30- Begin loading busses

12:35-Official Dismissal

12:37-12:40 – Departure

Meadowbrook is looking for another Playground Paraeducator and Medical Paraeducator. Please review the attached document below and submit an application if interested. Thank you!

As a result of increasing high demand and not having enough room in our fridge/freezers/kitchens/ovens, the elementary school menu will change to the menu below starting October 16. Light lunch and turkey sandwiches will be offered as a second option.

Light Lunch is served with yogurt, one cheese stick, a grain (Gold fish crackers, graham crackers, Chat Graham or Giant Gold Fish) ½ cup of fruit or a ½ cup of vegetable and choice of milk, if they want milk

Meadowbrook Elementary Families,

The Walled Lake Consolidated Schools is again participating in a program to honor exemplary teachers/educators. We hope you will join us in an effort that will result in the selection of the Teacher/Educator of the Year for the Walled Lake Consolidated School District at the elementary, middle school, and high school levels. This honor will be bestowed at our Thursday, January 11, 2024 school board meeting.

Please use the attached fillable nomination form to nominate a deserving Meadowbrook Elementary educator and return to Walled Lake Elementary NO later than Friday, October 20, 2023. Nominations can be emailed directly to JenniferVanWagnen@wlcsd.org or turned into the front office. Any full time, certified, tenured teacher/educator who spends 50% of his/her time in a classroom with a minimum of five (5) full years of classroom teaching experience is eligible to receive this award. Any person in the school community may nominate any teacher/educator in the District for this honor.

It can be tricky to nominate a teacher so early in the year, as you are just getting to know them. Some nominations are based on a family’s experience thus far this school year, some are based on a teacher they had on the past, and some are based on a family’s experience with a teacher through the years with multiple children from their family.

Teacher of the Year Nomination Form

For families that have a primary language other than English, if it is easier to complete a nomination in your first language, please do and we will work to have it translated to English for consideration.

I will also send home a paper copy with each student, in case you or your child would like to fill it out. Thank you for helping to acknowledge the great staff at Meadowbrook Elementary!

• Children must exit their car on the driver's side unassisted. They must be able to unbuckle their seat belt/car booster and open and close the passenger door independently. This may mean that you need to disable child safety locks and/or practice learning these skills at home.

• Staff will monitor the drop-off line each morning and there will be staff to help your child (both outside the building and in the halls as they find their classroom).

• Your Saddle Up Pick-Up name sign must be clearly visible in the driver's side window to the staff member on duty. The staff member will alert the classroom that you have arrived for pick-up at the end of the day.

• Your student will then be dismissed and will exit the doors through the gymnasium. Under the direction of a staff member, your child will be permitted to enter your vehicle on the driver's side. Please do not get out of your vehicle to assist. We will have staff members on site who are able to assist if needed.

• Please arrive promptly to pick up your child. Students that are not picked up at dismissal (by 4:05 p.m.) will go to Prime Time Care and you will be billed accordingly

In an effort to keep the students safe and keep traffic moving, we ask that if you are driving your child to school, you utilize the drop-off loop rather than walking your child to the front door.

Failure to follow the established guidelines may warrant a special meeting with Principal VanWagnen.

As parents, you play an important role in ensuring strong attendance in school. Research has shown that excessive absences, tardies and early dismissals can negatively impact academic and social progress in school. As a reminder, the district attendance policy is as follows:

• 5 or more absences: 1st parent contact

• 7-10 absences: 2nd parent contact including meeting with principal

• 11-24 absences: Legal “Notice to Parents or Guardians with Non-Attendance of Children in School” sent to parent/guardian and referral to local agency

• 25 or more absences: School district takes legal action through the Juvenile Court system to return child to school

Our Building Secretary, Jennifer Schloegl, will begun reaching out to families with 7-10 or more absences or excessive tardies/early dismissals to schedule a meeting with Principal VanWagnen. The purpose of this meeting is to support families, provide support services as needed, and ensure consistent attendance in school. We sincerely appreciate your support and partnership in this matter.

As a friendly reminder, cell phones, Apple Watches, Gizmos and other personal electronic devices must be turned off and kept in backpacks throughout the school day. The use of these items are not permitted during the school day to include lunch, recess and class time. All communications between home and school can be made through the classroom teacher or main office. Misuse of these items will result in confiscation and held in the office for parent pick-up. Thank you for your support and cooperation in keeping our school safe!

It is very important that you take time to review the Meadowbrook Handbook which is filled with important information, policies and procedures.

The Meadowbrook Elementary PTA has partnered with Red Robin in Commerce Township for a fundraising event. Save the date for November 7, ALL DAY! 20% of food sales will be donated to the Meadowbrook PTA. Flyers will go home with students the day before and must be presented at time of purchase!

Acceptable for dine in or carry out.

Thank you so much for supporting our school and the PTA.

Meadowbrook is excited to participate in the National PTA Reflections Art Program. This year’s theme is “I am Hopeful Because...” Learn more about Reflections here.

We will be hosting a Create Night on Wednesday, November 8 beginning at 6pm for students to create their art showing “I am Hopeful Because...” Members will be on hand to help with questions about Reflections and to help submit applications. We can’t wait to see what students create!

Now Accepting Reflections Entries!

The 2023-24 PTA Reflections program has begun! All of our students are encouraged to participate in this free competition where they can submit entries in visual arts (2D/3D), literature, photography, film production, music composition, and dance choreography, along with as a special artist (for those needing accommodations) around our theme: “I am Hopeful Because…”

• PTA Reflections Website
• Rules at a Glance
• Paper Entry Form

All Reflections entries are due to the main office or on our electronic entry form by Friday, November 10.

October is national school bus awareness month, and this next week is national School Bus Safety week!

Do you know the rules of the road when it comes to school busses? Please take a moment to view this 30 second video clip below for a refresher.

In an effort to find additional ways to celebrate our staff, the WLCSD Community Relations department requests that families fill out the information below for staff who are rock stars in their classrooms and school communities. Please complete the form below and contact Dan Durkin (danieldurkin@wlcsd.org) with any questions you may have.

A sample of what these shout outs will look like on social media and in our District newsletters can be found below.

Good morning! The WLN Forensics Team is having a fundraiser at Walled Lake Northern High School on November 4th. We are inviting the community to sign up for a holiday photoshoot with their family.

Santa will be available upon request. The following is the link to the flyer:

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFwz5-xUIE/qENDy3WnUOtNcDNipZqXeQ/edit?utm_content=DAFwz5-xUIE&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton

Not receiving district and/or building communications?

If you are not receiving emails from Mrs. VanWagnen, including the Mustang Express, District Weekly Updates, please use the link below to double-check your preferences are correct.

Signing Up for SMS Messages via Skylert

In addition to receiving phone calls and email notifications from the school district in the event of a school closing or emergency, parents can also sign up to receive SMS Text messages.

Please find the helpful step-by-step instructions linked below as well as the video tutorial on signing up for SMS messages.

• Signing Up for SMS Messages via Skylert

Principal: jennifervanwagnen@wlcsd.org

Kellan Watkins

Principal's Secretary: kellanwatkins@wlcsd.org

Jennifer Schloegl

Building Secretary: jenniferschloegl@wlcsd.org

Important Phone Numbers:

Main Line: 248-956-2700

Attendance: 248-956-2790