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Hikers' Headlines
Alamo Elementary - February 19, 2024
School Resource Officer Day
Camp Alamo would like to send a huge THANK YOU out to our School Resource Officer, Mr. Phil Arnsman. February 15th was National School Resource Appreciation Day. Alamo students took this opportunity to create a bulletin board to thank Officer Phil, as well as write him letters of appreciation. Officer Phil has become a trusted and stable person for our students at Alamo. They look forward to his attendance during morning drop off, at our assemblies and most of all for our Fun Fridays! Otsego Public Schools is so fortunate to have officer Phil. Some of his primary responsibilities at Alamo include building and maintaining positive student relationships to deter crime and trespassing, responding to non-emergency safety concerns on campus and helping to patrol campus to help with truancy and security. Thank you Officer Phil!
Spring Conferences
Parent/Teacher Conferences are around the corner! Please click below to sign up for a conference time for each of your students. After signing up, you will receive a confirmation email for your child's conference. We are striving for 100% participation.
All classroom teachers are in order by grade level. If you would also like to conference with a Specials teacher, they are included at the bottom.
Please let our office know if you have any questions, we would be happy to assist you in scheduling your conference.
Important Dates
- 19 - PAWS
- 20 - Mileage Club
- 20 - Destination Imagination
- 21 - Delayed Start, school starts at 10:00 a.m.
- 22 - National School Bus Driver Day
- 22 - PAWS
- 22 - Destination Imagination
- 23 - Mileage Club
Congratulations February Students of the Month
Natalie Maxwell
Kindergarten
Jackson VanderMeer
1st Grade
Blake Sparks
2nd Grade
Bentlee Rupe
3rd Grade
Bryer Hatten
4th Grade
Ford VanOrder
5th Grade
How Will You Show Your P.R.I.D.E. Today?
P - Positive Attitude
- Ashley Webber
- June Gall
- Harper Smith
- Joseph Zimmermann
- Luke Tuohy
- Isabelle Kalkman
- Brooklynn Pintarelli
- Easton Goodman
- Lucy Martin
- Joseph Chaivre
Have you filled out your Free/Reduced Lunch App?
Have you filled out the Free/Reduced Meal Application yet? Another round of PEBT cards will be coming out, you must qualify for free or reduced meals to receive this benefit. Applying is easy! It takes less than 10 minutes and you only need one form per family. Click here to get started: https://www.otsegops.org/departments/food-service
Story walk Volunteers Needed
We are excited to be able to offer Story Walk during recess once a month to the students! In order to do so we need parent volunteers to come in and help us monitor the back trail! This will take place the last Thursday of each month during the lunch recesses. The time slot is from 11:30AM-1:15PM. If this is something you would be interested in helping with please sign up below!
If you have any questions please reach out to Annie at alamo.pto.volunteersignup@gmail.com
Grandparents Day - Save the Date
Grandparents Day is coming up this year! It will be held on Friday, May 10th during the school day. Please feel free to invite your Grandparents to this special day. More information will be available shortly.
Leadworthy Character Trait - KINDNESS
Social Work Scoop
Tips From Mrs. Maxwell
Social media can be such a blessing. It is a great way to keep up with friends and family we may not see often and a way to share what is going on in our lives and family. While it can be a good tool for us as adults, it comes with many dangers for our children. Research shows that social media and screen time can lead to an increase in childhood anxiety and depression. Other dangers of social media for children include cyberbullying, lack of self-esteem, online predators, exposure to inappropriate content, negative changes in behavior, participation in dangerous trends, and an overall decrease in mental health.
Many social media sites have age limits for usage. Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Tik Tok, Youtube, Twitter, Discord, and other major social media platforms age limit is at minimum 13 years old. Others such as Whatsapp have an age limit of 16. I urge you as a parent or guardian to consider these age limits and the dangers of social media when your child gets a smartphone. Wait Until 8th is an initiative challenging families to wait until at least 8th grade for the smartphone and recommends waiting until age 16 for social media. While I know FOMO “Fear of Missing Out” is a real deal for our children(and ourselves), their safety is most important. Other things to consider are parental controls on any device your child may use not only for social media but for gaming. Parental controls such as Bark, Eyezy, Kaspersky Safe Kids, and Google Family Link are all great options to consider when your child is online. Please consider checking out the helpful resources below. As always, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or concerns you may have!
Negative Effects of Social Media (clevelandclinic.org)
Teaching Kids to Be Smart About Social Media (for Parents) - Nemours KidsHealth
Best Parental Control Apps: Keep Kids Safe With Online Monitoring | TIME Stamped
Late Registration Is Now Open
Register for Girls On The Run!
It’s time to start thinking spring! Girls on the Run late registration runs through Monday, February 26th.
If you have a daughter in 3rd-5th grade, you definitely want to look into this wonderful opportunity! The girls will be meeting on M/W from 4-5:30 p.m. Girls on the Run is a curriculum-based, after-school character development program designed for 3rd-5th grade girls of ALL fitness levels. The 10-week curriculum attempts to help each girl find and stay true to her REAL self. Groups of 8 to 15 girls meet twice a week with their trained, volunteer coaches to discuss important life lessons while playing fun running games. Girls on the Run emphasizes independent thinking, making healthy choices, healthy group dynamics, and problem-solving. The curriculum stresses peer support and doing your best. The program finishes with the girls running or walking in a non-competitive 5K. The program runs from March 4th -May 21st after school. The registration fee is $170. Scholarships are available on a sliding scale.
Alamo Little League - Sign Up NOW!
2024 season registration is OPEN! Make sure to complete your child's registration before 3/1.
Learn N' Grow Early Childhood Education Center
Is your little one ready to LEARN and GROW?
- Applications will be accepted in the LNG main office
- Returning families will have the opportunity to register early starting on January 22nd
Alamo WatchD.O.G.S.
Our WatchD.O.G.S. program is in full swing. “Dads” (or dad-like figures) who are interested in signing up to volunteer for a full or half day should contact Natalie Trumley (ntrumley@otsegops.org) or Nicole Knight-Lucas (nknight-lucas@otsegops.org) via email to schedule a date.
When you volunteer, you will receive a schedule for the day that allows you to help out in different classrooms doing a wide range of activities (reading a story, working with a child 1:1 on work, playing a game with a small group). You will also have scheduled time on the playground and lunchroom to interact with students and be a positive role model for them. We need a current background check on file before you are able to volunteer.
Winter Wear
Please please make sure your child dresses for the weather. Coats, gloves, and hats are pretty much a given from now on and before you know it your child will also need snow pants and boots.
Whatever you send to school with your child, please LABEL!! There could potentially be 23 pairs of black snow pants in your child's classroom and finding their items will be easier if they are labeled.
Alamo PTO - Make A Difference
Alamo PTO needs you! The PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) is a wonderful way to become involved in your child's education and to get to know other parents and teachers. The PTO has many activities throughout the school year that you can help with by volunteering. The PTO meets once a month at 4:00 p.m. in the Alamo Media Center. Listed below are the dates for this year's meetings. We would love for you to attend!
Meeting Dates
March 11th
April 8th
May 13th
June 10th
Mileage Club
Here are the recess times for each grade level.
- K @ 11:35 a.m.
- 1st @ 11:45 a.m.
- 2nd @ 12:05 p.m.
- 4th @12:15 p.m.
- 3rd @ 12:35 p.m.
- 5th @ 12:45 p.m.
Attendance Matters
Emergency Contact
It is extremely important to have up-to-date contact information available for each student. When emergencies arise, we need to be able to contact parents/guardians. This is also the contact information that is used for school closures and district updates.
Please log in to the Infinite Campus Parent Portal to check that your contact information is current and to make any necessary changes. All families received a letter with parent login information and instructions from the technology department soon. If you need assistance or login information for the Parent Portal, please contact the Alamo Elementary Office. Thank You!
Alamo Elementary
Email: nknight-lucas@otsegops.org
Website: https://alamo.otsegops.org/
Location: 8184 North 6th Street, Kalamazoo, MI, United States
Phone: (269) 694-7600
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/415538888654020
Twitter: @otsegoschools