Crocker Chronicles

The Crocker Chronicles is a monthly e-newsletter for parents and guardians of students at Crocker Elementary School. Our goal is to keep you informed of the news and information you need in order to be involved and engaged in your student's education.

My name is Brad Dittmar and I am a graduate from UNI with a bachelors degree in physical education/coaching. I also have a masters degree in exercise science from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. I have been teaching PE for 20 years, this is my 3rd year here in Ankeny. I am married with three children (Zoe 22) (Olivia 19) Drake (17).I enjoy outdoors activities and adventures such as backpacking, camping, canoeing/kayaking, hiking/running. I'm excited to be part of the staff here at Crocker.

My name is Jennifer Wildman and I love teaching Third Grade at Crocker Elementary! I am originally from Naperville, Illinois where I previously taught elementary school for five years. I attended Aurora University where I received my Elementary Education degree and earned my endorsement as a Reading Specialist. I live in Ankeny with my husband and our two children. I enjoy gardening, reading, drinking coffee, and spending time at sporting events with my family. I love watching my students grow and cultivating a learning environment in our classroom.

Hi! My name is Marisa Kennedy and I am the Crocker School Counselor. Each week students in kindergarten through 5th grade will have a 30 minute session of classroom guidance. Topics covered in guidance throughout the year will be: school readiness skills, problem solving, empathy and respect, conflict resolution, careers, bullying prevention, respecting differences, and teamwork. Guidance activities can include any of the following: discussion, children’s literature books, video clips, interactive games, puppets (kindergarten), hands on activities, and role-plays.

October’s Unit Title: Empathy and Respect

Essential Question: How do I recognize feelings in myself and others?

Content taught in this unit:

• Empathy is feeling or understanding what someone else is feeling.
• People can have different feelings about the same situation.
• If you can name your own feelings, it will help you figure out how other people
• feel.
• All feelings are natural. Some feelings are comfortable and some are uncomfortable.
• Physical clues can help you identify others’ feelings.
• It is okay to have strong feelings, as long as I know how to cope with the strong
• feelings.

Mrs. Kennedy, School Counselor

marisa.kennedy@ankenyschools.org

Hello, Crocker Families!

October is National Dental hygiene month, so this month I want to talk about your child’s oral health. Oral health is the health of the teeth, the mouth, and the surrounding skull and facial structures. Oral health impacts the ability to speak, smile, smell, taste, chew, swallow, and make facial expressions. To maintain oral health, It is recommended that your student brush their teeth for two minutes twice a day, paying close attention to their molars (that’s where the most cavities are found in children). Excellent teeth brushing, flossing, and eating a healthy diet all help contribute to the oral health of your student. Your student should visit their dentist every 6 months for a check-up. Your dentist and hygienist will help clean your child’s teeth, check for cavities and can give you options for preventing cavities in the future. If you need help finding a dentist, or have questions about the health of your child’s teeth and mouth, please contact me at julie.maile@ankenyschools.org

General Reminders:

*If your student has a fever (over 100.4) they need to stay home until they have been fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication

*If your student has had vomiting or diarrhea, they need to stay home until they have gone 24 hours without an episode.

*If your student tests positive for Covid-19, they will need to stay home and isolate, please call me at 515-965-9710, or email me at julie.maile@ankenyschools.org and we can discuss when they can safely return to school.

Have a safe and healthy school year!

Can’t get enough social media? Neither can we!

Crocker’s new Social Media Action Team is ready to show you the smiles, stories and successes that happen in our halls every day. We are super excited to have multiple ways to showcase our students and staff, including our existing Crocker Elementary Facebook page as well as new social media tools like Instagram and Twitter — coming soon. Check back here for more information as we get rolling! #crockerrocks

Crocker Fun Run

Crocker Elementary PTO will be holding their 8th annual Crocker Fun Run Fundraiser on Wednesday, October 5th, starting at 9:30. This is a whole school event in which students participate in a fun during the school day. it is a great way to boost school spirit, promote physical activity and have FUN!

See below for a copy of the Fun Run Packet.

Kona Ice @ Crocker!

Kona Ice will be at Crocker on October 7th! They will start setting up at 2:30 and be here until 3:30. Kona Ice accepts cash, credit cards, apply pay and Pay Pal.

Stay informed with what is going on with Crocker PTO by visiting their website CrockerPTO.org

The Fall Parties will be Friday, October 7th. No costumes will be allowed, which is the same guideline as in past years.

Parent/Teacher Conferences are scheduled for October 17th-19th. You should have already received a sign-up link from your respective teachers. If you did not receive this link for some reason, please email your student's teacher.

Our Crocker Library is excited to announce that we will be hosting a Scholastic Book Fair during conferences! Our book fair will be open during the following dates and times:

Monday, October 17th- 3:30 PM-7:00 PM

Tuesday, October 18th - 3:30 PM-7:30 PM

Wednesday, October 19th- 7:30-8:30 AM

We are also in need of volunteers to help our book fair run smoothly. All volunteers must have their background check and updated volunteer paperwork completed prior to volunteering. Please see the link below to sign up!

Volunteer Sign Up

Please consider participating in one of our favorite events while helping to support our library at the same time!

• School Retake Pictures will be taken on Tuesday, October 18, 2022
• Order forms will be sent home with students the week before and can be returned to the photographer on picture day
• Pictures may also be ordered online at mylifetouch.com Picture Day ID is EVT79H42G
• New students or students who missed picture day in September will get their picture taken even if pictures are not purchased
• Students who wish to have their picture retaken must return their original portrait package.

AHS Circle of Friends and AHS Key Club Present: Trunk or Treat 2022. All children and families are welcome for fun, games, treats, activities, and MORE! Costumes are welcomed but not required. Sweet Swirls Food Truck will be serving ice cream, hot cocoa, and coffee. The Trunk or Treat is on Thursday, October 20th from 6:00-7:00 pm in the Ankeny High School parking lot. This is a FREE sensory-friendly event. There will be no strobe lights, loud music, or super scary costumes worn by the hosts.

October

05 Fun Run!

07 Fall Parties

10 PTO Meeting at 6:30 pm

17-19 Conferences

18 Picture Retake Day

21 & 24 NO SCHOOL

Every Wednesday, school begins at 8:55 am, which is 1 hour later than other days. The doors to the building open at 8:30 am. Students may enter the building at this time and either go to the gym or lunch room to eat breakfast. Please do not drop your students off before 8:30 am on Wednesdays, as there is no adult supervision for them until that time.

Please remember to send a water bottle with your child everyday! This promotes hydration throughout the day and fewer classroom disruptions by cutting down on the student need to leave class and visit the drinking fountain.

Please contact the school if your child will be absent from school, arriving late or leaving early. Crocker's telephone number is 965-9710. Another option is to send an email to cr.office@ankenyschools.org along with your student's teacher. We do need the reason why a student is not in school. If the school is not notified of an absence, the office will attempt to contact the Parents/Guardians at their primary number listed on Infinite Campus.

While it is encouraged for students to have appointments outside of school hours we understand that at times this is not always possible. When you know your student has an appointment and will need to be picked up from school during the day please call the Crocker Office to let them know you are coming. When you come to the school ring the Aiphone doorbell and let us know who you are there to pick up. We will ask for you to remain outside to wait for your student.

If your student forgets to bring something needed that day for class we ask that you ring the Aiphone doorbell and we will ask for you to put the items on the table just inside the door labeled the the student's name and teacher.

Please remember that delivery's of flowers, candy, balloons, or presents are not accepted for students as stated in the parent handbook and will be sent back with the delivery driver.

Unforeseen accidents in the classroom, lunch room and playground can result in wet or soiled clothing. Please make sure your student(s) has the following back-up items in a grocery sack or large ziploc that can be kept in their locker for those unforeseen accidents.

Appropriate back-up clothing suggestions:

• Shirt
• Long pants
• Underwear
• Sock
• PE shoes

The Ankeny Elementary Physical Education Department recommends that students keep an extra pair of tennis shoes at school to use. This promotes better safety and full participation in all physical education activities.

The information distributed in the Virtual Backpack (vBackpack) is provided as a community service to inform members of the community of available activities or services. The majority of information included in the vBackpack is from community organizations. Community groups can submit their information within certain guidelines, governed by Board Policy #1004.25.

Virtual Backpack

Email: cr.office@ankenyschools.org
Website: crocker.ankenyschools.org
Location: 2910 Southwest Applewood Street
Phone: 515-965-9710
Facebook: facebook.com/CrockerElementarySchool
Twitter: @AnkenyCrocker

Ankeny Community School District does not discriminate based on race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, ancestry, political party preference, military affiliation, socioeconomic status, or familial status. Inquiries or grievances may be directed to Kenneth Morris, Jr., Equity Director, 306 SW School Street, P.O. Box 189, Ankeny, IA, 50021-0189, (515) 965-9600, kenneth.morris@ankenyschools.org; or the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, Grimes State Office Building, Des Moines, IA, 50319-0201, (515) 281-4121; or the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, 500 West Madison Street, Suite 1475, Chicago, IL 60661.