2024-2025 WEVS Weekly Newsletter
Everything you need to know for the week ahead!
The important stuff:
Week of Nov 3
-->Character day was a hit! Some great characters showed up, including Nancy Drew, Rudy and Liesel from The Book Thief, and Fancy Nancy!
-->What a great Halloween celebration! Thanks to all parents and businesses who participated in making that day extra sweet! Pajama day was a success, and we cruised through the day after Halloween, thankful for the extra hour of prep time.
-->You should have received your students' pictures. Mr. Bruce Lorenz has offered a package to each WEVS family free of charge. If you share on social media, please be sure to credit him!
-->Please share our Sees Candy Fundraiser link on ALL your social media places! (See below for more info.) This is a 'hands-off' fundraiser; the company does all the work, including taking orders and payment and shipping the product directly to the consumer, then sends us a check for our donation. We just need help getting the word out!
The week ahead:
Nov 3rd- DAYLIGHT SAVINGS! Don't forget to set your clocks back!
Nov 4th-8th- Ms. Sylvia out for professional development
Monday, Nov 4- Ms. Jess out for professional development; Mrs. Moore is subbing
Tuesday, Nov 5- Please look for report cards coming home. Please sign up for a 15-minute conference here if you would like to meet to celebrate your student's work and effort this quarter. The purpose of this conference is to allow your child to showcase their successes. If you have concerns or would like to meet about something else, please contact Sylvia directly to set up a time outside of q1 conferences.
Tuesday, Nov 5- VOTING DAY! Please vote!
Thursday, Nov 7- Ms. Jess out for literacy training- Mrs. Moore is subbing.
Friday, Nov 8- Monday, Nov 11- NO SCHOOL for Veteran’s Day holiday
Week of October 27
What a great week! Thanks, parents and students, for a wonderful trip to the NC Aquarium and Jockey's Ridge, and we finished the week with an exciting Friday with flag football as the finale!
We have another very busy week on deck!
Monday, Oct 28- Ms. Jess is out for literacy professional development. Ms. Marcy will be teaching her classes.
Tuesday, Oct 29- Ms. Sylvia is in Raleigh for a school director's meeting. Mr. Sean will be teaching her classes.
Thursday, Oct 31- 2:30- School wide Halloween Parade around the Corolla Village. We are anticipating a 2:30ish line-up to begin our walk to participating businesses. Parents are welcome to come along! Just a reminder, while costumes are encouraged, please use discretion when considering allowing costume accessories to go to school. Please NO weapons or masks that cover the whole face, and please use discretion with accessories that could be easily lost or damaged including wands, staffs, stuffed animals, etc.
Friday, Nov 1st- 9:45 am -ONE HOUR DELAY! School doors open at 9:30, school day begins at 9:45.
Friday, Nov 1st- Final day of the quarter. Report cards will come home no later than Tuesday of next week.
Flag-Football continues in PE Class on Fridays. Parent volunteers are appreciated. Please reach out to a SIP member if you can help from 2:50-3:40pm. Please refer to the SIP Remind announcement for contact information.
FUNDRAISING
We are finishing up our matching grant campaigns; one double, and one TRIPLE! The doubled match generated over $55k before the match, and the weekend's triple match generated over $17k before the match, so, with massive amounts of gratitude to our donors, volunteers, sponsors, and cheerleaders, we will have taken at least $150,000 chunk out of fundraising goal! This is INCREDIBLE! Super work by all! It is estimated that we have about $240,000 left to raise to complete the build without a mortgage. Down to less than a quarter million from 2.4 million feels like we are plugging along! We still have a classroom naming opportunity for $100,000 if you can think of any businesses or philanthropists looking for a good cause!
On that note, we have partnered with Sees Candy for a fundraiser. This is high-quality chocolate that makes for fantastic holiday and seasonal gifts. Please feel free to share the link with your relatives, friends, business owners, etc. There is NO responsibility on your end, except to spread the word. (In other words, this doesn't involve parents and students going out and gathering orders and money.) The website does it all: collets payment, sends the product, etc.
Coming down the pike
This seems to be the time of year that rolls through like the Polar Express! So here we go!
- Monday, Nov 4-Thursday, Nov 7th- Ms. Sylvia in Burlington for state software training,
- Monday, Nov 4- Ms. Jess out for professional development, Ms. Marcy subbing
- Tuesday, Nov 5- Report cards come home, AND DON'T FORGET TO VOTE!
- Wednesday, Nov 6-Thursday, Nov 7- afternoons dedicated to student parent conferences. **A note about these quarter conferences: this is an opportunity for you and your student to celebrate their accomplishments. These meetings are limited to 15 minutes, and students are expected to be there and to lead the discussion. If there are concerns about academic progress or student behavior, please reach out to the homeroom teacher to schedule a conference outside of quarter conference times.
- Friday Nov. 8-Monday Nov 11- No school for students. Happy Veterans' Day.
- Tuesday, Nov 26- WEVS community Thanksgiving potluck and early dismissal (12:30)
- Wednesday, Nov 27-Sunday, Dec 1- THANKSGIVING BREAK- no school
- Friday, Nov 29/ Saturday, Nov 30- First weekend of Christmas in Corolla
Week of October 21
Whew! What a busy weekend last weekend! So many thanks to ALL; we raised THOUSANDS of dollars these past few weeks, including a chunk for this last weekend's Hang 10 and yard sale events. So much gratitude to all of those who helped, visited, patronized, donated, organized, and supported in all the ways! And as you all have seen, the building continues to grow! Want to see a sneak peek at the inside? Take a look here for a virtual tour of the new building!
On a different note, we have had a reported case of hand foot mouth disease, a very contagious-when-you-have-a-fever virus that can be super uncomfortable. If your child spikes a fever and seems to have tiny red bumps on the hands and/ or feet, and possibly sores inside the mouth, please keep your student home until the fever is passed and they feel better.
Can you do us a favor? Please write your students initials somewhere in sweatshirts and coat clothing. We have had LOTS of clothes left at school these last few days. It's not supposed to rain, so we are leaving them out on the picnic table for now! Please swing by this weekend or Monday morning and take a look!
The week ahead:
- Monday, Oct 21- FIELD TRIP! We meet AT the aquarium at 9:30. (We do not come to the school at all; all students will be on the trip so no staff will be at the school.) We must enter together.
9:30 am Meet AT the Aquarium on Roanoke Island
9:45- Enter the building/ assign parents to groups
10:00- k-4 program with Aquarium staff/ 5-8 scavenger hunt tour
11:15- SNACK
11:30- 5-8 start squid dissection program/ k-4 scavenger hunt tour of aquarium
1:00 pm- packed lunch at the picnic tables
1:30 pm- depart for Jockey’s Ridge
1:50 pm- Dr. Sheridan’s program
2:20 picture at the top of Jockey’s Ridge
2:45- dismissal for travel to Corolla- PLEASE READ HERE for parent information from the aquarium. If you are attending but not as a chaperone, you must purchase your own ticket in advance by clicking here . See below for rules the aquarium has asked us to follow:
- Tuesday, Oct 22- Sylvia and Kat out in the morning for professional development. Ms. Marcy and Mr. Sean subbing.
- Friday, Oct 25- PIZZA DAY! Team jersey day! And flag football day! Parent volunteers have been amazing! If you'd like to participate, please reach out to a SIP member if you can help from 2:50-3:40pm. Please refer to the SIP Remind announcement for contact information.
Birthday Shoutouts! Happiest of days to:
Mya- Oct. 22nd
Mr. Seth- Oct. 23rd
Ms. Lauren- Oct. 26th
Charlie- Oct. 26th
Week of October 14
THANK YOU so much for all of the help this weekend raising money for our new building! From hosting as a Hang 10 for 10 business to patronizing a Hang 10 event, from staffing events to collecting money boxes, you all are making it happen! The building is starting to take shape, literally.
Our middle school field trip was a success! Huge thanks to the staff and parents who accompanied our students to Williamsburg and Jamestown.
The WEVS family contact link is here. This contact list will move to the BOTTOM of this newsletter after this week.
The week ahead:
Monday, Oct.14th- No school for the holiday.
Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 2pm- Board of Directors Meeting- Zoom or Library
Friday, Oct 18- Parent volunteers welcome for flag football 3pm at the Whalehead Field
Friday, Oct 18- PIZZA DAY! Please bring $5 OR a non-perishable food item. AND.... It's team jersey day! Wear your favorite sports team jersey. This can be a jersey of a team you play on or a team you support.
Monday, Oct. 21- FIELD TRIP to the Aquarium and Jockey's Ridge- ACTION REQUIRED- please fill out this form to indicate if your child is attending the field trip, and their mode of transportation.
Week of September 30
Welcome to almost October! Another interesting week in the books, including a beached boat find, an end-of-school ice cream treat, a striped dolphin, and some drastic improvement in football skills!
SIP TEAM nominations are open: It is time for self- nominations for the SIP team. Currently, the SIP parent liaisons are: Jaqueline Winter, Erin Price, and Leanne Gebhart. This is a volunteer position that requires about 2 hours per week, including two monthly meetings, and regular interaction with WEVS families and the WEVS leadership team. If you are interested in serving, please fill out the hyperlinked form.
We are getting ready to publish our communication roster for parents. The default is publication of both parents email and phone number. Please fill out this form if you do NOT want one of those contact methods shared. One opt-out per parent please. (You can't opt out both parents on one form.)
**Save the date! ** For your radar- we are working with the aquarium to nail down a date of either Oct 21 or 22nd for a field trip! We will let you know as soon as we do!
The week ahead:
Tuesday, Oct. 1st at 4pm Middle School camping trip parent meeting, in person or Zoom.
Tuesday, Oct 1st - 5pm Non-WEVS sponsored Swim Team information and evaluation meeting at Corolla Light- more info below
Wednesday, Oct 2- Thursday, Oct 3- Ms. Sylvia and Ms. Kat out for professional development in testing administration
Friday, Oct. 4th the first SIP with SIP event will be held at the Kind Cup following drop off at 8:45, revolving door style- come as you can and leave when you must! All are welcome to come meet your SIP representatives, share ideas, ask questions, and just converse.
Friday, Oct 4th- CLOTHING SWAP!! Please bring your too-small clothes and trade them for some clothes that fit! Shoes, coats, clothes welcome. Whatever is left at 4:15 is going to the thrift store!
Week of September 8- LOTS TO SEE HERE!
AUDIO VERSION if you'd rather listen!
You all! Thank you for an enormously successful, fun-filled first week of school!
This week:
Monday, Sept 9- 9:30am- SCHOOL PICTURES in the morning! No money or order forms need to be sent in.
Wednesday, Sept 11- 2pm- Board meeting at the library and broadcast on Zoom. All are welcome. Link can be found on the WEVS website.
Birthdays: Happy belated birthdays to Emilia, Clint, and Banks! What a great way to kick off the year, with THREE birthdays, including a visit from LizardLand! And Happy Birthday to Ms. Jess this coming weekend!
A couple of housekeeping notes:
*Birthdays-
- If you are planning on sending in a treat, please reach out to your child's teacher as we have several food allergies at the school. We can have allergy-friendly treats if we have notice.
- If your child has a birthday in the summer months, we encourage a HALF BIRTHDAY celebration during the school year!
*Lunch time- we LOVE to have parents hang with their kiddos during lunch. A few items to keep us all accountable and organized.
- If you plan to attend lunch with your kiddo, please either text Sylvia and/ or fill out this form by 9am that morning. This is so we know how many to expect and who will be on campus at any given time.
- Our lunch times are staggered by age. Middle school eats first, right at 12:30, and k-5 is called for lunch at 12:50. (Fridays are a little different because of the pizza- everyone eats in the first rotation.) The twenty minutes allotted for lunch also includes finding a seat, using the microwave, filling up water bottles, cleaning up and washing hands, etc. Thank you for your patience with, and support of, our routine.
- Instead of allowing kiddos to throw away uneaten food, we tell them to take it home so that you can see how much of what they are eating and adjust lunch-packing accordingly.
- One of the things they are learning is routine, self- sufficiency, and self- accountability. Please allow and encourage your students to take care of their routine themselves during lunch. Of course, we often have students ask for help opening, twisting, closing, etc, but even asking for help is a skill we are honing.
Thank you for your support on this!
Arrival and Departure:
- We know we are figuring out schedules and commute times; please remember that students cannot enter the building until 8:30am. Teachers are using that time to prepare for an awesome day of learning.
- At the end of the day, we ask that kids (or parents) check out with the middle school leader as they leave campus. Kids cannot play in the school yard, climb trees, play gaga ball until parents have arrived to take over care.
- The schoolyard rules apply at all times, even after school. Gaga ball rules are universal and timeless! Only hands are used in the gaga pit (no kicking balls); kids are not permitted to walk on the picnic tables during school; we ask you to support that rule even after school has ended. There is no kicking/ hitting/ spitting during school, and we expect that same conduct even after school.
FUNDRAISING: there are some simple things you can do that will allow you to earn money for the school in your daily routines.
- Link your Harris Teeter VIC card to us. You can do this in the checkout lane (just ask the cashier to link your card- it must be done at the beginning of each school year, so if you linked it last year, you've got to do it again now.) We are number 1578. You can also do this on line by heading to Harris Teeter- Together In Education and linking your vic card using the email that is associated with the card.
- Download BoxTops for Education and link your account to us. See pictures below for steps.
- Share our story with EVERYONE! Don't forget to mention our matching opportunity running through October!
Week of September 1
Audio version if you'd rather listen
You all are so great! We have so many thanks:
- Thanks for all of the assistance in moving (twice!) our furniture and supplies to set up our chapel classroom.
- Thanks for making our back-to-school picnic fun and delicious!
- Thanks for your timelines in making sure all the paperwork is turned in!
It is shaping up to be a fantastic year, and we are eager to get it started. For those who missed the potluck, or if you wanted to review the talking points, the welcome back to school points are here. (It's worth looking at because my monologue was cut short.) ;)
ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL:
- Drop your child at their homeroom spot- k,1, and 6,7,8 at the schoolhouse, and 2,3,4,5 at the chapel. FOR THE CHAPEL, PLEASE DROP YOUR CHILDREN OFF FROM A CARPOOL LINE.
- Please come down to schoolhouse yard (feel free to swing by the coffee shop and grab a cup of coffee first!) and meet your SIP representatives, and stick around for a WEVS first-day-of-school family picture which should happen as close to 9am as possible.
- Wish your kiddos a great day and then leave them to kick off the school year!
- Return at 3:40 to pick up your student AT THE SCHOOLHOUSE (all students!)
