The Mustang Message

Dear Mustang Families,

It was only a 4-day week, but boy did we jam pack the fun! It was perfect to end the week with our 5th 6-weeks Academic Pep Rally. This one was extra special because we got to celebrate our Mustang Stampede Top Fundraisers and have a little fun with pies in the face!

🎉Four Day Weekend: All students and staff will not have school on Friday, April 18th and Monday, April 21st. We hope that you and your family will enjoy the extra time off and the Easter Holiday.

🏫STAAR Testing: We had 100% of our 3rd-5th grade students take the STAAR RLA Assessment this week and they sure worked hard! Next week, our 5th graders will take their Science STAAR on Wednesday, April 23rd. We will once again have a closed campus which means no lunch visitors or volunteers will be allowed on campus. Having a closed campus ensures that we provide the best testing environment possible for our Mustangs.

🐎Mustang Stampede Awards: Today we celebrated our school-wide success from our annual Mustang Stampede fundraiser! We set a new school record and raised a total of $32,399.80 during the fundraiser! We also got to award our Top 12 Fundraisers who raised the most funds and they got to pick their prizes! You can find those photos in the PTO section of the newsletter. One student from each grade level also got to pie Mrs. Miller or Ms. Nathanson!

💙Administrative Professional Appreciation Day: We are beyond thankful for both Mrs. Harris and Mrs. Westra and everything that they do for our Mustang Family! We are excited to celebrate them on Wednesday, April 23rd!

Thank you for your continued support in making Daniels such a special place for learning and growth. Have a wonderful weekend!

Warm Regards,

Katie Miller, Principal

The Tom Daniels Elementary 1st Annual Career Day is scheduled for Friday, May 9th. We are looking for individuals who would be willing to share information about their career with our students. There are two sessions, morning and afternoon, or you may stay all day. If you are interested, please fill out the information below and return it to Mrs. Tracie Reeh by April 25th.

What is Perseverance?

Perseverance is the willingness and ability to keep going when things are tough. People who persevere show steadfastness and give the extra effort needed to do something despite how hard it is or how long it takes to reach the goal.

Why focus on Perseverance?

• Perseverance encourages positive self-talk and thinking. When faced with difficult tasks, perseverance helps students reframe with positive thoughts, such as: "I'm not good at this YET!"
• Perseverance develops empathy. Students gain a better understanding of who they are and develop more empathy and compassion for others who may struggle to reach a goal.
• Perseverance sparks personal growth. Pushing through complex tasks builds resilience and helps students discover how capable they are.

Perseverance in Action:

• Share stories and challenging experiences. Be vulnerable and share personal experiences when you have struggled with a task or concept and had to work hard to push through.
• Praise effort and process, not intelligence or performance. Affirm students for the process they used to tackle tasks and point out how their abilities grow through their own hard work.
• Give your students the chance to struggle. Struggle builds self-confidence, independence, and perseverance. Resist the urge to intervene immediately and give students time to figure it out.

April 17th: Chick-Fil-A Spirit Night from 5-8 p.m.

April 18th: No School

April 21st: No School

April 22nd: School Bus Driver Appreciation Day

April 23rd: 5th Grade Science STAAR- CLOSED CAMPUS

April 23rd: Administrative Professional Appreciation Day

April 24th: Life Skills Field Trip to SA Zoo (Leifeste and Vasquez)

April 25th: 1st Grade Field Trip to the Community Garden

April 29th: 3rd-5th Grade Math STAAR- CLOSED CAMPUS

April 29th: Life Skills Field Trip to Singing Wind Park

April 30th: 3rd-5th Grade Miss USA Presentation Field Trip

May 1st: Principal Appreciation Day

May 1st: Special Olympics Pep Rally at THS

May 2nd: School Lunch Hero Appreciation Day

May 5th-9th: Staff Appreciation Week

May 6th: 4th Grade Field Trip to Riverside Nature Center

May 6th: 3rd Grade Field Trip to Nimitz for Magik Theater Production

May 7th: School Nurse Appreciation Day

May 8th: Little Olympics 3-6 p.m.

May 9th: Special Olympics

May 9th: Career Day

May 10th: Kinder Breakfast and Birdhouses

May 12th-16th: National Stuttering Awareness Week

May 12th: 3rd Grade Safety Day Field Trip

May 12th: Spring Orchestra Concert 6p.m. at HPMS

May 13th: 4th Grade Ag Awareness Day Field Trip

May 13th: 3rd Grade Jellystone Field Trip

May 13th: PTO Meeting at 12 p.m.

May 14th: Josh the Otter Presentations for 2nd and 3rd Grade

May 15th-16th: BOGO Book Fair

May 15th: 3rd Grade Sauer Beckmann Farm Field Trip

May 15th: 5th Grade Field Trip to Carver Park

May 15th: 4th and 5th Grade Challenge Lab Showcase

May 16th: Five Star Honor Roll Field Trip from 1:30-2:30 p.m.

May 16th: 1st-3rd Grade Challenge Lab Showcase from 1:30-2:30 p.m.

May 18th: Speech Pathologist Appreciation Day

May 19th: 2nd Grade EOY Awards at 9 a.m.

May 19th: 5th Grade District Challenge Lab Lunch Bunch

May 19th: 3rd Grade Singing Wind Field Trip

May 19th: 4th Grade EOY Awards at 1:30 p.m.

May 20th: 4th Grade Field Trip to LBJ Park

May 20th: 1st Grade EOY Awards at 9 a.m.

May 20th: 1st Grade Pizza in the Park Field Trip

May 21st: PBIS Carnival

May 22nd: Kinder Promotion at 9 a.m.

May 22nd: 3rd Grade EOY Awards at 1:30 p.m.

May 23rd: Last Day of School and Early Release at 11:45 a.m.

May 23rd: 5th Grade Promotion at 8:30 a.m.

Each Tuesday at Daniels, our staff will be trying to help promote CCMR (College, Career, and Military Readiness) by wearing shirts of different colleges, careers, and branches of the military. Although attending college is a great option for students when they graduate from high school, it isn't the only option that can lead to a rewarding and successful future. Our students may be young, but their future is bright! We invite all of our Mustangs to join in on Tuesdays and wear their favorite CCMR shirt!

Please note the following procedures that will be in place to help this process go smoothly.

• Visitors MUST check in at the front office by presenting their ID and obtain a visitor's pass.
  
• Visitors will be able to eat with their student in the designated seating. No friends or classmates will be able to join.
• Visitors are not permitted to sit at the student tables with homeroom classes.
• You are welcome to bring food for your student, but it cannot be shared with other classmates.
• Visitors will NOT be able to walk with students back to their class after lunch or attend recess with them.
• Visitors MUST sign out in the Office before leaving campus.

Scheduled Lunch Times

Kindergarten: 10:45-11:15 a.m.

1st Grade: 11:05-11:35 a.m.

2nd Grade: 11:25-11:55 a.m.

3rd Grade: 12:35-1:05 p.m.

4th Grade: 12:00-12:30 p.m.

5th Grade: 11:50-12:20 p.m.

Our campus goal this year is 96% school-wide attendance. Regular attendance is extremely important. If your child is absent from school, please call or email your child's homeroom teacher and our Attendance Secretary as soon as you know they will not be attending school that day. Please include the reason for the absence. Excused absences are illness, medical appointments, or death in the family. Notes, calls, or emails must be received within 3 school days of the child returning. Unexcused absences may result in your child being placed on an attendance plan, prevent your child from being promoted to the next grade level, or may result in truancy charges being filed. Attendance is taken each day at 10:00 a.m. A student must be on campus at that time to be counted present.

Students are counted tardy if they are not in their class by 7:45a.m. Parents are required to bring the student into the office to check them in if arriving after 8 a.m. Chronic tardiness will be addressed by administration. It is vital that students arrive to school on time. This time is important to helping develop social skills, organization skills, and learning to begin the day prepared. Students that arrive after 7:45 often come in behind the rest of the class, causing anxiety and stress on the student. Always allow time for traffic delays due to weather conditions and the first few weeks of school.

All visitors and volunteers must sign in at the front office before entering the campus. Our Raptor system requires a valid photo ID for all first time visitors. Each year this is reset. Visitors will be unable to enter the campus if they have not signed in with proper ID, even if the DES team knows you. We will not allow visitors to be released to classrooms unless the teacher has previously let the office staff know.

Parents are welcome to visit at lunch time during your student's grade level lunch time starting Monday, August 19th. We will continue to have a visitor's table.

At the conclusion of their visit, all visitors MUST sign out in the office before leaving campus.

Birthday treats must be store bought with a nutrition label. Treats from bakeries must also include a nutrition label.

Birthday treats may be dropped off in the front office. Visitors will not go to classrooms for birthday celebrations. Teachers will celebrate the last 15 minutes of the day, prior to dismissal. Flowers and balloons are not to be sent to school for delivery for any student.

If your student needs a transportation change for the day, please do your best to contact the office by 2:00 p.m. As it gets closer to 3 p.m., it can sometimes be difficult to locate students as the dismissal process begins. We understand that emergencies happen and will assist when those arise.

We also ask that students who need to leave early are picked up by 2:30 p.m. as well. This will allow our office staff to focus on dismissal and to ensure that it runs smoothly.

Thanks for your cooperation and understanding!

Breakfast and Lunch are offered on campus daily. Please check the menu frequently to see any changes that might occur.

2024-2025 Meal Prices

Breakfast Paid Student - $1.75

Breakfast Reduced Student - Free

Lunch Paid Student - $3.25

Lunch Reduced Student - $0.40

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is an evidence-based, tiered framework for supporting students’ behavioral, academic, social, emotional, and mental health. When implemented with fidelity, PBIS improves social emotional competence, academic success, and school climate. It also improves teacher health and wellbeing. It is a way to create positive, predictable, equitable and safe learning environments where everyone thrives.

Kerrville ISD is utilizing PBIS on all four elementary campuses as well as at HPMS.

At Daniels, we have adopted the acronym of PRIDE. Our Mustangs are expected to show PRIDE in all they do and in all areas of the school. Students are asked to wear their badge so they can be rewarded for showing PRIDE throughout the school and by all staff members. Students are able to use their points to shop at the PBIS Store and to participate in school-wide incentives.

Please remember to send a water bottle with your child each day that is labeled with their name. We will have a water bottle filling station available for students to refill their water throughout the day if needed and an option for students if they do not have a water bottle.

Please remember that all cellular devices should remain off and in student backpacks during the school day. When students have exited the building they are welcome to get their devices out and turn them on.

If you need to get a hold of your student during the school day, please contact the front office and we can relay the message to them.

Regular school attendance is important. Please ensure that your student is at school each day possible.