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NEU Field Club Family Newsletter
November 2023
A message from Mrs. Griger
Hello, NEU Field Club Families!
It was great seeing so many families at Parent/Teacher Conferences last week. These are important conversations and necessary to the academic growth of our students. As a school, we had over 90% participation rate!
We want to give a big shout out to our PTO for providing a potluck dinner for staff on Wednesday for teachers, running our bake sale, and pumpkin voting contest! We also want to share our thanks to our Thursday Volunteers who sold chicharonnes and donated the profits to the PTO. We appreciate the energy, time, skills, food, and generosity!
Now that we are entering the cold months of the year, please have your student(s) bring the necessary outwear to school daily. We all know how much the temperature in Nebraska can fluctuate throughout the day and want all students prepared for outdoor recess in the morning, midday, or afternoon. Students will be going outside for recess unless it is below 20 degrees. If your child needs a coat, hat, or gloves be call the school and ask to speak with Cari Kenney.
Please be reminded that our doors do not open in the morning until 8:30. The majority of our staff is not on duty until that time and we are not able to provide supervision until that time. With the weather turning colder, we do not want students standing outside longer than necessary and also be unsupervised. But we still want to beat the bell at 8:50. We appreciate your support with this.
Also, if your student plans on eating at school, please try to have your students at school between 8:30-8:40 so they can make it through the breakfast line and get to their room by 8:50. When it comes to attendance, every minute counts.
Dismissal procedures are improving but we are still receiving some complaints about vehicles parking in the alleys and blocking neighbors from being able to access the alley and their personal driveways and garages. Please review the map below of all of the no parking zones to keep the traffic moving. In addition, please remain in your vehicles while in line to pick up students.
Thank you for partnering with NEU Field Club to help all students learn and grow every day.
Let's keep learning and growing, NEU Field Club!
As always, reach out with any questions or concerns.
With NEU Pride,
Mrs. Griger
School Hours
8:50 a.m. – 4:05 p.m. .. student hours
8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. ... office hours
8:30 a.m. 9:00 a.m. ..... free breakfast is served for all students
8:50 a.m. ...................... school starts
Please come to school on time every day
4:05 p.m...... departure time
Recommended Traffic Directions - Please do not block alleys and driveways.
Students of the Month
Upcoming Events
11/03: Parent University
11/06: Picture Make-Up Day
11/16: Reading Family Night
11/20-11/24: Thanksgiving Break - No School
12/01: Parent University
Inclement Weather Days
ATTENDANCE - STRIVE FOR 95
Understanding the importance of attendance. The idea behind Strive for 95 and the importance of attending every day breaks down in the following way.
Based on the percentage of 180 days of school
Not Chronic - 5%: Students in this category do not miss more than 9 days per school year.
At Risk - 5-10%: Students in this category miss between 9 and 18 days per school year.
Moderate - 10-20%: Students in this category miss between 18 and 36 days per school year.
Severe 20% +: Severe. Students in this category miss more than 36 days per school year.
The bar graph below shows percentages of the Field Club population who are Not Chronic to Severely Chronic.
The table represents the number of students in each category.
Our goal is to decrease the numbers in the yellow, orange and red zones. Parents are our greatest resource in making this happen by getting students to school every day, on time!
- If your student is going to be absent, please communicate that with the office every day of the absence. 531-299-1380
- If your student has an appointment, please be sure they are only absent for the necessary amount of time need to attend the appointment. Please be sure to bring a Doctor's note to the office so we can account for the missed minutes.
Academic Support & Tutoring Available for All Students
In the 2022-23 school year, our district introduced a three-part approach to Academic Support and Tutoring. We continue our focus on academic support with:
- Tutoring at schools before and after school
- Online tutoring platform available on-demand for all students
- Partnerships with our community-based after-school network
Families with questions regarding tutoring at school or with our partners should reach out to their child’s school.
We are partnering with Paper for online tutoring services for students and families.
Through online tutoring with Paper, students in grades 3-12 have access to:
- 1:1 live chat tutoring sessions with experts
- Support in 200 subjects
- Available in English, Spanish, French and Mandarin
- Expert review of written work (essays, creative writing, poetry, lab reports)
- Hundreds of resources and activities for families support students at home
- Interactive shows and activities to expand learning beyond the classroom
Students can access online tutoring seven days a week via the Clever dashboard on their iPad until 11 p.m.
Best of all, there is no cost to students or families. This is one of many ways Omaha Public Schools is using federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds for student achievement.
Learn more at: https://www.ops.org/tutoring
Class DoJo
If you need assistance with Class DoJo, please schedule an appointment in the office.
Student Handbooks
In addition to viewing the handbook/code of conduct on the student iPads, you may also access the 2023-2024 Field Club Student Handbook in this newsletter (below). You may also find it on our website at: https://www.ops.org/domain/2453 (Spanish versions are currently in production).
This newsletter allows us to confirm that a copy has been shared with all families.
Arrival and Dismissal Updates
We want to thank you all for your patience with our new arrival and dismissal procedures.
Doors open at: 08:30AM
Students must be in classrooms by 08:50AM
Dismissal time is: 4:05 PM.
Arrival
At arrival, parents/guardians are asked to say goodbye to students at the building doors. We are building student confidence and independence and have many staff members that can guide students through the breakfast line and to the appropriate classroom. We also want to ensure we maintain a safe and secure learning environment for all all of our students. If a parent/guardian has to enter the building during arrival time, they will be asked to head to the office to sign in.
Flow of traffic:
We have found that this year's traffic flow is working quite well in minimizing the amount of traffic on 36th street which was our goal. We will continue to adjust as needed. See the map below for student pick up locations by grade level.
Early Checkout
If a student needs to be picked up from school early, they must be signed out prior to 3:45. At 3:45, we begin preparing for dismissal and the office becomes quite busy. If you arrive to pick up your student between 3:45-4:05 we ask that you wait until all students are dismissed via the normal school dismissal process.
Families picking up students by car are asked to keep traffic moving along Hickory and 35th Streets. Staff members will be available and ready to help students safely get into their cars. Please do not park or exit your vehicle while in the pick up line. We will make sure your students get to their car. This will help create a safe and efficient dismissal plan.
As we continue to refine our dismissal practices, please help us be good neighbors to those who live nearby the school by doing the following:
Please:
· Obey all NO PARKING signs throughout the neighborhood
· Do not block driveways or alleys
· When traffic stops, please stay in your vehicle. Abandoned vehicles block traffic.
· If you use Hickory Street, please stay close to the curb so buses and daycare vans can pass.
· Choose the best route based on the recommended traffic directions in the attached map.
Here Comes the Bus: A School Bus Tracking App for Families
GPS school bus tracking technology is available to all parents and guardians of district students who ride Student Transportation of America buses with bus stops. This free service provides families with the ability to track the location of their students’ buses in real-time, either on a computer or a mobile device. Participation is optional. Tracking of short buses is not available.
Tracking Features:
- Shows the real-time location of your child’s bus on a map
- Gives scheduled and actual arrival times at home and school for bus routes
- Provides push and email notifications when the bus is near
Sign Up Instructions for Parents/Guardians:
Download the "Here Comes the Bus" app or visit herecomesthebus.com
- Click the "Sign Up" button.
- Enter school code 73916 and click "Next" followed by "Confirm."
- Complete the "User Profile" box.
- Under "My Students" click "Add." Enter your child's last name (up to 14 characters including a hyphen or a space) and student ID number.
- Once you confirm your information, you're ready to begin.
District Calendar
Make sure you stay up to date with important calendar events.
Click here for all district calendars: CLICK HERE
To view the Field Club calendar click here: PARENT INFO PAGE
Additionally, we use the Class DoJo app as our primary means of communication. Do you want to know more? Check with your student's teacher to connect after downloading the FREE app.
JOB/WORK OPPORTUNITIES
Student iPads
Some of the reasons for iPads remaining at school include:
1. Improve home routines and procedures (without iPad distractions)
2. Health - Students receive plenty of screen time throughout the day and on the weekends. iPads at school do not become a hinderance to a good night of sleep.
3. Attendance and attentiveness - When students are on devices for the better part of the evening (or all night), it affects student attentiveness and attendance because they are too tired to focus or to come to school.
4. No need to worry about charing the iPad every night. Students will place iPads on classroom chargers before leaving each day to be ready for the next.
As the weather turns colder and the white stuff begins to fly, routines and procedures with iPads will change. We will keep you posted.
In addition to procedural changes, please note the iPad agreement button below. If you are interested in paying the annual insurance (highly recommended), please visit the office.
PARENTS, PARENTS, PARENTS!
Parent University
Please join us at 9:15AM on the first Friday of each month for in person conversation about technology, school/community events, and general education topics. We value you your input for topics as well. Have an idea or want to talk about a specific topic? Please email Principal Griger at mary.griger@ops.org. We look forward to having you join us for coffee, pastries, and conversation. Friday, November 3rd, will be our next Parent University.
Parent Portal - Infinite Campus
Infinite Campus is used by Omaha Public Schools to safely and securely store student information and data. Information like parent contact information, grades, attendance are all stored here. Parents can log in to the Infinite Campus Parent Portal to access this information. For specific questions about Infinite Campus Parent Portal, please contact the Field Club Office.
Parent Teacher Oganization
PTO Meetings for 2023-2024 will be held on the 1st Tuesday of each month at 4:30PM
Are you interested in becoming an active supporter of the school environment? Are you interested in working more closely with the teachers at Field Club?
Being a member of the PTO allows parents and teachers the opportunity to work together to enhance and improve the educational experience. Whether it's through fund-raising efforts, volunteering time, or skills, every member can help our school become more successful than it already is.
If you're interested in joining our Parent Teacher Organization, please reach out to Principal Mary Griger via the office phone at: 531-299-1380, or via email: jeffrey.rotherham@ops.org
Tuesday, November 7 at 4:30PM is the next PTO meeting.
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NEU Field Club Elementary
Email: mary.griger@ops.org
Website: fieldclub.ops.org
Location: 3512 Walnut Street, Omaha, NE, USA
Phone: 531-299-1380
Facebook: facebook.com/OPSFieldClubElementary
Twitter: @OPSFieldClub