Weekly Principal Update

Hello Harmony Hills Family,

As we approach Veterans Day, we reflect on the immense sacrifices made by the men and women who have served in our nation’s military. Their dedication, bravery, and commitment to our country remind us of the true meaning of service and patriotism.

At Harmony HIlls Elementary, we are honored to recognize and celebrate these heroes who have protected our freedoms. We invite you and your families to join us in paying tribute to our veterans on November 11th at 8:30, as our students have thoughtfully prepared a program to show their gratitude.

Through these events, our goal is to help our students appreciate the sacrifices of those who have served while building a spirit of respect and gratitude that lasts a lifetime. We welcome our community members, especially veterans and their families, to join us and share in this meaningful celebration. Please reference the flyer below.

As I mentioned in my Smore last week, we have our Spirit Pep Rally every Friday! Students are encouraged to wear our school colors—yellow and blue—as we celebrate school pride together.

The class with the most students dressed in our school colors will win the coveted Spirit Stick for the week! Let’s make this a fun and memorable day for everyone. Thank you for helping us boost school spirit!

Additionally, please mark your calendar for our PTA Membership/Eisenhower Night on November 12th. Parents will be provided information about middle school and what you need to know.

Word of The Week- duplicate- having two parts that are exactly the same or alike. (synonym- copy, imitate, clone) Example; I am going to duplicate his study habits as he makes all A's.

We had a fun moment today with Gabriel wearing an LA Dodgers t-shirt! As it turns out, he lost a friendly bet over the World Series and had to trade in his usual New York Yankees gear for a day. They say you’re only a Yankees fan until you’ve seen the Dodgers play in a World Series, but I don’t think Gabriel’s convinced!

Aubrey on the other hand, is an enthusiastic L.A. Dodgers fan through and through. Growing up in a family of long-time Dodgers supporters, Aubrey didn’t need any convincing to embrace the blue and white.

Our Second Grade teacher, Ms. Zamarripa could not help but celebrate with the kids as well. I can't remember the exact conversation we had but I know it had to do with Christmas and coming early this year.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfr5DFb7vR6gK0_hAAlyeMBnEfExC308xU5u8sJeWQvmuImwA/viewform?usp=sf_link

As you know we have kicked off our school fundraiser. It is scheduled to run from August 20th through November 28th. We are looking to raise money for several projects around campus. In order for the school to receive money, family and friends shop in SchoolStore.com. Please be on the lookout for fundraising information being sent home with your child. Just by signing up, your child will receive one of the items below.

As you know school safety is paramount as we head back to school. While some families utilize car-drop-off and others take the bus, there are many families who walk to school.

It has come to our attention from both staff and parents that traffic laws are not being heeded. Whether it's minding the speed limit or giving pedestrians the right-away, it is essential that we as a community make our roads safe.

Elementary aged children are small and more difficult for drivers to see, they are often unfamiliar with traffic laws, they tend to have difficulty judging speeds and distances, and they can be easily distracted. Therefore, it is critical for drivers to take special care throughout the school year. Please work with your child and plan for the safest walk to school possible whether you are accompanying them, or they are walking without adult supervision.

• To ensure your child's safety in our car pickup line, please clearly display your child's placard. If you don't have your placard, you need to come inside the school to show I.D. We take your child's safety very seriously.
• For safety reasons, please do not drop off your child before 7:15. We don't not have staff on campus until 7:15 to supervise kids.

• School breakfast is from 7:15-7:45. Please remind your child to go straight to the cafeteria upon arriving on campus. We want to ensure no child misses breakfast.
• If your child is a walker or gets picked up by car and you are on campus before dismissal, please do not hold conversations with them at the fence. When we see a student speaking with an adult not identified as school faculty, we take it seriously. Help us keep your child safe.

11/4 Kick off for "Fun Run" fundraiser (ends November 15th)

11/4 Early Release 1:00

11/5 Student Holiday

11/11 Veterans' Day Ceremony

11/12 PTA/Eisenhower Night @ Harmony HIlls 6:00

11/25-11/29 Thanksgiving Holiday

Modeling Gratitude

As we move into November and the holiday season approaches, I encourage you to model the concept of gratitude with your child. Practicing gratitude boosts mental health and improves relationships. When we practice gratitude, it also strengthens our ability to notice the GOOD in our lives. How do we model this?

Start by observing – notice the times you say “Thank you” to others. Was it a hasty, rushed comment or can you name what it is you appreciate? For example, if you go out to eat and your server is excellent, instead of just tipping or saying “Thanks” as you hurry off, you could tip and tell the server “I really appreciate you taking such good care of us today! You gave us excellent service and our meal was wonderful! Thank you!!” When your child is helpful at home, you could say, “Thank you helping our whole family by doing the dishes. When we all work together to keep our home clean, we have more time to do fun things together! I love spending time with you, so I really appreciate that I didn’t have to do ALL the housework by myself!”

Research links gratitude with stronger immune systems, better sleep patterns, higher feelings of optimism, the ability to experience higher levels of joy and pleasure, having more generosity towards others, and feeling less loneliness. Isn’t it amazing how many areas of our life can be affected by simple gratitude?

A wonderful book to read (or listen to) with your child is My Gratitude Jar by Kristin Wiens. I’ve linked a read aloud video performed by the author herself for you. Maybe you can even start this practice within your own family in your own way!

Thank you,

Kimberly Varner, M.Ed.,CSC, LPC-A

Kimberly Varner, M.Ed., CSC, LPC-A

Licensed Professional Counselor Associate # 94958*

School Counselor

Section 504 Campus Coordinator

At-Risk Coordinator

Trauma Informed Schools Point of Contact

Harmony Hills Elementary School

(210) 407-3826

(210) 407-3809 - fax

kvarne@neisd.net – best option for fastest response

*Supervised by Nancy Asher, LPC-S, RPT-S

Counseling Request Form

PTA news

· Our next PTA Membership Meeting will be Tues, Nov 12th at 6pm. After a brief PTA meeting, we will host an Eisenhower Info Night to hear all about the wonderful things going on at IKE from Principal Herrera and other staff. You will have the opportunity to learn about extracurriculars like band, orchestra, choir and theater, athletics, UIL, clubs and more! This gives families a chance to ask questions and meet staff from our feeder middle school, and we'll have door prizes to give away as well!

· The HH Hawks Fun Run starts Monday Nov 4th! Our goal this year is to raise $8,000 for providing replacement blinds for classrooms (safety) and art murals to brighten up the hallways! These benefit ALL students at Harmony Hills Elementary, and we would love for all our families to participate!

Students will also experience an exciting character enrichment program called “Castle Quest”, teaching students about how to be brave and live with character.

Key Dates to Remember:

Sign up online at MyBooster.com – 10/21 to 11/4

Fundraiser Kickoff in school – 11/04 during school

Event Day – 11/15 during school

Follow our social pages for updates and fun incentives like Pajama Day Nov 6th if you register online!

· Harmony Hills PTA Life Membership Award

Do you know someone who has gone the extra mile for our children? Is a valuable volunteer, exceptional teacher, staff member, coach, administrator, or community member? If so, please consider nominating him/her for this very special award.

Receiving an Honorary Life Membership Award is one of the highest forms of recognition to let a volunteer know how much you truly appreciate their dedication to our children and the community. TX PTA Life Membership Awards are awarded to parents, staff or community members who deserve to be recognized. Nominees do not have to be a PTA member. Please share your nomination so our HH community can show our appreciation for their service to our school! Deadline to submit nominations is Nov 10th, 2024.

https://tinyurl.com/HHlifememberawards

· Thank you to our Volunteers! There are many ways to help, some that only require a limited amount of time or one day events. The school appreciates your help, and the kids love seeing their people helping at school! If you're interested in helping as a room parent, or even just helping in the classroom or making copies, and haven't filled out the form yet, please click on this link to sign up and get involved at HH! https://tinyurl.com/HHvolform24

· Yay, we met our October membership goal! Thank you so much to those who have already supported our school with your PTA membership! If you haven't had a chance yet, you can join PTA online at www.joinpta.org, or fill out the form in your welcome folder (extra copies available at the front desk). Your membership does not commit you to anything at school, but it does help support our school and advocates for public education on the local, state and national level!

Thank you for your support! If you need help or have questions, please reach out anytime on Instagram, Facebook or email us at harmonyhillshawkspta@gmail.com.

When at school, students are not only learning academics, but social behaviors as well. When your child is not here they miss out on both. Friendships are formed and nurtured, and academics are learned and practiced. When your child has formed a pattern of being absent, it is hard for them to come back to school and pick up where they left off. They have missed the social stories of what has happened in their friends lives. They have missed important classroom celebrations. They have missed the connection of group classroom discussions. The list goes on. In short, they no longer feel like they belong to our Hawk Family. The connection to school is crucial to maintain successful educational experiences.

Poor attendance can contribute to anxiety of a child when they face coming back to school. If your child has poor attendance, the healthiest thing you can do for them is get them to our doors and we will do the rest. A healthy routine of coming to school, so your child feels like they belong and understand what is expected of them, is an ingredient to a healthy state of mind. They deserve the best we have to give but they have to show up.

Of course when your child is ill, it is important for them to stay home and recover. If it is an extended absence due to illness, and you are concerned about your child coming back to school, we are here to help.They are our future!

Parents please be aware of our cell phone policy. Failure to follow the rules will result in your child's phone getting confiscated and/or discipline consequences. Please know your child is always able to come to the office if they need to contact a parent/guardian.

Carri Elliott

Principal

Harmony Hills Elementary School