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The Lion's Roar
September 2023
A Message from Mr. Mitchell:
Can you believe it's already September? I cannot thank you enough for a great first three weeks of school. The staff has worked very hard with putting expectations and routines in place that will help our lions be successful.
Communication is a vital part of a successful school-home partnership, so we encourage you to maintain open lines with our staff and administration if you have questions or concerns. Some of the communication channels that will help you through out the year is our monthly parent newsletter, school website, school Facebook page, and scheduling a parent-teacher conference. We want to ensure that you are prepared and well informed about our school events and your child's progress this year so please contact us as needed.
This month we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, Celebrate Freedom Week, Grandparents Lunch, and our very first campus Academic Night. We look forward to your participation in all of these events.
We will start targeted tutorials the week of September 18 from 3:45-4:45 (bus transportation provided). Permissions slips will go home the week of September 5th and need to be returned as soon as possible. If you have any questions regarding tutorials, please contact your child's teacher.
Parents are invited to eat lunch with their student every Monday starting September 11th. All visitors must follow the clear bag policy. Also, all visitors will be required to check-in with proper identification in the front office and obtain a visitors badge. The lunch times can be found below.
Students are expected to follow the dress code policy. A copy of the dress code can be found below. Also, students must have a clear or mesh backpack.
Be sure to read the newsletter in its entirety as we have some very important information to share with you.
With warm regards,
Mr. Lemond Mitchell
Principal, Shirley J. Williamson Elementary
Our Lions at Work
4th Grade students working on Writing!
Students in Art are creating beautiful masterpieces!
1st Grade students are learning about different types of sentences
Math Small Groups in 3rd Grade!
Kinder students using Osmo!
Math BINGO in 4th Grade!
Bell Schedule
PK- 5th Grade
7:35 AM -3:15 PM
Tardy Bell
7:35 AM
*Parents must walk the student in.
Dismissal
3:15 PM
September Campus Events
Celebrate Freedom Week
September 11-September 15, 2023
Grandparents Day
September 8, 2023
Hispanic Heritage Month
September 15-October 15 (every Wednesday)
Leading Ladies Fundraiser
September 15, 2023 from 4:00-7:00pm.
Attention 4th & 5th Grade Parents
The link below outlines the steps on how to access your child's STAAR results via Skyward. If you need assistance accessing your Skyward account, please contact the front office.
*See page 4
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RwTump37eURJd2nLN5poIrPl06Qe8fyBWtZBJ9JwgVY/edit?usp=sharing
Reporting an Absence
Parents are highly encouraged to email parents or doctor's note about your child's absence to AttendanceWILL@galenaparkisd.com
Be sure to include the following:
1. Student name
2. Date(s) of absences
3. Specific reason for the absence
4. Parent/guardian Signature
5. Parent/guardian phone number
6. Date note was written
Additionally, notes should be submitted no later than 3 school days after the student's absence. Only the first five parent notes will excuse the absence, according to the GPISD Student Handbook (p. 3). If you have any questions, please contact our data specialist, Ms. Sapp at 832-386-4004.
Transportation
Parents will not be allowed to walk up and pick up a student from the door at dismissal. Early pick up ends at 2:30 PM daily. We ask for patience as this is the first month of school and students will be learning new car tag numbers.
Bus Riders
Please check your bus route number on the Galena Park ISD transportation site. School personnel does not assign a student a bus route. Please communicate with the office by 2:30 pm if the students need a transportation change.
Walkers
Walking is reserved for students who reside in the subdivision surrounding the campus. Pre-K & Kinder students will only be released if with a sibling or if parent meets student. Thank you for helping us to keep students safe at dismissal.
Car Riders
Morning Drop Off-
- We ask that students be dropped off along the circle ramp to ensure the safety of all students.
Afternoon Pick Up-
- All car riders need a tag with a school assigned number for dismissal. An ID check is required if you do not have car tag at the time of pick up. Siblings will have the same car tag number if living in the same home. Practice car tag numbers with students. This will speed up the process.
Students should not be dropped off or picked up in the staff parking lot. This is for your safety. All parents must remain in their car and utilized the designated areas to safely drop- off and pick-up students. Thank you in advance for complying with our procedures. These procedures are in place to keep our students safe. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the office.
Theme Days
Fridays are Spirit Days or College Day at SJW and students are encouraged to wear a spirit shirt or a college/university shirt.
Spirit shirts will be delivered the first week in September. Please check your child's backpack.
Stay tuned for other special days when students can dress up or celebrate!
Student Grades
Student Birthdays at SJW
We know celebrating a birthday is very special, and we want to welcome you to send store bought cupcakes or goodie bags with your child or drop them off to the front office staff before 2:00 pm. The teacher will pass out the treats after 2 pm to the students in the class. Please get with the teacher about the number of students in the class.