Panther Post

• October 28th: Fall Fun Party- Sponsored by PTA 6-8pm
  
• November 1st-18th: Panorama Family Survey
• November 2nd: Parent Advisory via Zoom *UPDATE* 6:30-7:30
• November 7th and 8th: Morning Assemblies Dedicated to Veterans Day
• November 9th and 10th: Scholar-Led Conferences (no school)
• November 11th: Veterans Day (no school)
• November 23rd: Early Dismissal 1:40pm
• November 24th and 25th: No school

Hello wonderful Panther Lake families and community,

Spirit week was so much fun this week and we are so thankful for all our families for your creative participation! Check out the THIS WEEK AT PANTHER LAKE section for all the fun photos!

This week, we celebrated our Panther Spirit with:

Monday- Rainbow Celebration

Tuesday- Pink Out

Wednesday- Lift the Lid

Thursday- Orange Unity

Friday- Book Character Costume

Have you served in the military? Do you have a veteran family member?

We invite you to attend our morning assemblies on November 7th and 8th.

Scholar Led Conferences

Panther Lake continues to celebrate our families and the hard work our scholars are doing everyday! Our 100% SLC attendance history shows how committed our families are to school partnership and we cannot do this work without you! Teachers are reaching out to schedule conferences and if you have any specific needs, please let us know.

Below, you will find our Title Compact Link via Button: Panther Lake Elementary is a Title 1 school. Title 1 is a federal program that provides additional funding to school programs to meet the educational needs of at-risk students. School districts receive grant money based on several factors including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in each building. Each Title 1 School is required to have a Title Compact with families. The compact outlines the roles of the scholar, family, and the school. We annually collect feedback from scholars, parents, and staff in the creation of this compact.

Rainy Day Recess

Washington weather is pretty wet in the fall and winter months. At Panther Lake, we want our kids to have as much time playing outside as possible. This does mean we do not call for indoor recess when it is raining. We will only call for indoor recess when the weather is unsafe outside. Unsafe weather is lightening, thunder, or hail.

Please ensure your scholar is dressed for the weather to include waterproof shoes (if possible) and a waterproof jacket (if possible). We highly recommend dressing in layers if needed and packing an extra set of clothes, just in case. Umbrellas may be brought to school for arrival and dismissal. For safety reasons, umbrellas will not be allowed at recess.

Please reach out if you need anything as we have resources available if needed.

Thank you again for your continued partnership! We truly appreciate every one of our Panther Lake families!

Tabatha Ritch

(Principal)

tritch@fwps.org

253-945-3634

253-391-7444 (Cell - Text okay)

and

Emily Smith

(Assistant Principal)

emsmith@fwps.org

253-945-3608

Hello!

I am Marla Mo, Panther Lake's Reading Teacher.

I am here to offer all the support you need for your child's reading needs.

You can email me at mmo@fwps.org or call me at 253.945.3637 to ask questions, tell me your concerns, or find ways to help your child fall in love with reading and improve their literacy skills.

I love sharing my knowledge with parents to give you the tools and information you need.

Thank you for partnering with me to support your child's reading at home and at school!

President- Renee Metanoia

Vice President- Juliana Ha

Secretary- Jason O'Daniel

Treasurer- Kianna Hall

PTA is seeking members to support planning events for our school! Our board has our first event planned for October 28th! PTA is asking for candy donations and will be awarding the class with the most candy donations with a Pizza Party!

If you would like to join our PTA, please reach out to Mr. Sanchez or any of our board members.

Join our school day to support your child or all children in the classroom, outside at recess or during lunch. We love our Panther Lake V.I.P.'s and are so happy to welcome volunteers back at Panther Lake. Please come to the office to pick up your Washington State Patrol form to begin the process. All volunteers must have proof of vaccination.

Do you speak, read & write in another language? Do you enjoy helping advocate & connecting with other families that speak the same native language as you? Then you would be a great addition to our community to welcome, support and connect with other families at Panther Lake.

To report absences:

1. Call Mrs. Hagen at 253-945-3603 or office 253-945-3600, email: bhagen@fwps.org
2. Report on ParentVue, preferable before school starts at 9:10am (before teacher submit absences)

*If absences are not reported before 10:15am, parents will get a district automated absence callout* to remind them to call students absence in.

TIP: If students go to a medical appointment and misses school, you can provide a doctor's note so the absence can be excused as “medical” which will not count as an absent for BECCA.

**If you have a question about BECCA, our state school attendance law, please feel free to email or call me for more information.**

Prearranged absence: Form attached needs to be completed when student is out for more than 2 days BEFORE missing school. This applies for vacations or extended absences.

*parent will complete the top portion, then teacher will complete their section, parent and student will sign and final step will be completed from our principal, Mrs. Ritch.*

Tardy hours 9:15-9:40am

Absence is after 9:40am

If students are late and check in after 9:40am and it is under an unexcused reason, parents will get the auto absence callout.

• PLEASE put a reason down when students are coming in late or leaving early, if there is no reason written down, then the attendance code will not be accurate and it will be automatically coded as unexcused.

If you have any attendance questions, please contact Data Secretary Bonnie Hagen 253-945-3603 bhagen@fwps.org