


Valerius Weekly
January 15 - 19
Reminder: NO SCHOOL on Monday, January 15th
- Monday, January 15: No school in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. School resumes for all UCSD students on Tuesday, January 16.
- Monday, January 15: District Administration Office closed in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
First Snow Fun at the New Building
Snow Ducks
Ms. Lerch spreading adding some extra joy as students wait for school to start.
Chorus & Band Concert on January 16th
January is here and we have our first chorus concert (4th & 5th grade) & band concert (5th grade) of the year coming up soon! As a reminder, our concert is on Tuesday, January 16th at 7:00 PM. This will be our first ever concert in the commons, at Valerius. Students need to meet in the hallway outside the music room at 6:45pm to line up. 5th grade students who are in band will go to the band room. Band students will need their instrument, music book and green band folder.
Dress Attire
- Chorus students dress attire - There is no required dress code for the chorus portion of the concert, but students are encouraged to wear dress clothes.
- Band students dress attire - Students need to dress in their "dress up" clothes for the concert. Dress or skirts, and/or pants and a shirt with a collar are recommended. Please avoid blue jeans.
This concert will be live streamed at https://j-hawks.com/live.
As always, please feel free to email Mrs. Irvin or Mrs. Wells if you have any questions. We are looking forward to a great concert!
Joelle Irvin, K-5 Music Teacher
Emily Wells, 5th Grade BandTeacher
Register for the 2024-25 School Year!
Preschool Pre-Registration begins January 30; K-12 Registration begins March 1
The Urbandale Community School District (UCSD) welcomes your preschool and kindergarten through 12th grade student(s) for the 2024–25 school year! We take great care in creating a culture of learning in our classrooms to help make the transition to school a positive experience for your child(ren) and family. Our focus is to help each child learn, grow, and achieve success on the pathway of lifelong learning. We’re looking forward to welcoming your child(ren) and family this fall!
View Preschool Pre-Registration & K-12 Registration Flyers
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration English
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration Bosnian
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration Burmese
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration Hakha Chin
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration Spanish
- UCSD Preschool PreRegistration and K-12 Registration Swahili
For more information visit the UCSD Website HERE.
ParentSquare
ParentSquare Launching Later This Month
Toward the end of this month, staff, parents/guardians, and UHS students will receive an email invitation to login to ParentSquare. With ParentSquare, we’ll be able to consolidate numerous communication tools in use throughout the district in order to streamline school-to-home communications. We’re planning a phased implementation of ParentSquare beginning January 2024, with full implementation July/August 2024 (next school year).
PHASE 1
Toward the end of January, you’ll be able to do the following in ParentSquare:
Activate your account and download the app
Select your preferred language
Select notification preferences (either ‘instant’ or a ‘daily digest’ summary at 6pm)
Receive communications from your school’s main office and district office via email, text, and/or app; voice for alerts (note: UHS students will receive email and/or app notifications—not text/voice)
If participating in the upcoming Softball or Baseball season, you’ll receive communications from Softball and/or Baseball Coaches
In-app direct messaging with limited staff
Access various district resources linked in the app
Important: Teachers and Coaches will NOT be using ParentSquare in Phase 1 (with the exception of Softball and Baseball Coaches). They will continue using their existing methods of communication. Thus, you will NOT receive communication in ParentSquare from Teachers and Coaches at this time.
PHASE 2
Beginning in the 2024-25 school year, you’ll be able to do the following in ParentSquare:
Receive communications from your teachers, coaches, school, and district via email, text, and/or app; voice for alerts (note: UHS students will receive email and/or app notifications—not text/voice)
Direct message teachers and coaches
Adjust notification preferences (instant or digest at 6pm)
Access various district resources linked in the app
Beginning next school year (2024-25), our entire district will be using one communications platform which means all teacher, coach, school-office, and district-office communications will be distributed using this one centralized tool. Learn More
Download a 1-page overview:
What can I do in ParentSquare? (English)
What can I do in ParentSquare? (Bosnian)
What can I do in ParentSquare?(Burmese)
What can I do in ParentSquare? (Hakha Chin)
What can I do in ParentSquare? (Spanish)
What can I do in ParentSquare? (Swahili)
Monday Dress Up Themes
1/16: Rockstar/Musician Day
Outside Recess
Recess will be held outside unless the temperature (including windchill) falls below 10 degrees. Temperature checks will be made 15 minutes before all recesses at www.weather.gov
Junior Jaywalkers Clinic
Cookie Dough Fundraiser - Order Forms & Payment DUE Thursday!
Our Valerius PTO Cookie Dough fundraiser began on January 5th! Funds raised will help purchase classroom materials and support the work of the Valerius PTO. Coming home in your student’s bag on January 5th is a flyer with all of the information about the seven types of cookie dough available for purchase, plus an order form on the back side.
Please keep careful track on the order form of requested purchases. Order forms are due back to school on January 18th. Please make sure your student’s name and a parent contact phone number are on the form.
All payments will be made online using this link: https://valeriuspto.square.site/ . We request ONE payment per order form.
Pick Up will be Saturday, February 10th from 10:30-11:30. Sign up here to Volunteer with pick up: SignUpGenius
Uplifting Urbandale Newsletter
Archived Information
Pikmykid Dismissal App Registration Information
Reporting Absences using Powerschool
Menus/ Payments
To access menus and make meal payments, you will need to visit LINQConnect.com and/or download the app in your app store.
Visit the UCSD Website for more information.
Free & Reduced Meal ApplicationSchool Fees
Beginning in the 2023–24 school year, we will be collecting payment for books, materials, and bus transportation fees via PowerSchool. We have created the following step-by-step instructions for this new process.
Translated instructions: Bosanski , မြန်မာဘာသာ, Laiholh (ဟားခါး-ချင်း) , Español , Kiswahili
Visitors - ID Required!
VALERIUS ELEMENTARY
Dean: Derek Wilkins; wilkinsd@urbandaleschools.com
Principal Secretary: Angie Jones; jonesa1@urbandaleschools.com
Office Secretary: Caley Jo Schroeder; schroederc@urbandaleachools.com
Nurse: Katie Scandrett; scandrettk@urbandaleschools.com
Guidance Counselor: Liz Donner; donnere@urbandaleschools.com
FFO: Maddy Punsalan; punsalanm@urbandaleschools.com
Website: https://www.urbandaleschools.com/schools/valerius-elementary/
Location: 3305 92nd St, Urbandale, IA, USA
Phone: 515-457-6500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/valeriuselementary