Wednesday Note

Greetings WPA Families,

PTC's

Thank you also to everyone who joined us for parent-teacher conferences. Having strong parentships between schools and families has a significant impact on a child's education. We greatly appreciate all you do to support your student's education, including attending conferences, reading with your child, supporting nightly homework, communicating with the school, and volunteering. This support is vital in making WPA an amazing place to learn and grow.

CogAT Assessments and Gifted and Talented Programs

We have worked for the past few years to improve the programs we offer to all students at WPA, including the advanced and accelerated students. Offering high-quality programs for students at all levels is a cornerstone of growth for all students. A critical part of this process is offering the CogAT (an assessment used nationally to help identify gifted students). This assessment is one component of the G&T identification process. We have always set the bar high at Wasatch Peak Academy, which also extends to how we offer this assessment. Universal screening for students is the standard in gifted education. In November, we will assess all students in 3rd and 5th grade. In the spring, we will offer the CogAT to 6th-grade students interested in taking accelerated math 7/8 next year (as this is a requirement from most Davis School District schools.) We plan to help support smooth transitions into Jr high for students wanting to take this path. If you have any questions about these assessments, don't hesitate to get in touch with Mrs. Pilkington.

Halloween

We will celebrate Halloween on October 31st with our annual Parade, Costumes, and class parties. We will host our annual Halloween parade at 8:15. Parents are welcome to join us in the gym. The whole parade will pass through the gym once so please plan accordingly. Students are welcome to wear costumes for this event. We ask that costumes be in keeping with our dress-down day dress code, be appropriate content for an elementary school, have no weapons, no masks, minimal make-up, be considerate of other cultures, and no excessive blood or gore. The Halloween parade usually takes about an hour and needs to move quickly through multiple classroom doors. For this reason, costumes that are wide, very delicate, or have long trails struggle to fit through doorways making the experience less fun for the students wearing them and are not advised. We will be ending the day with our Halloween class parties. If you are interested in helping with class parties, please contact your student's teacher or class captain. November 1st will be a professional development day, there will be no school for students.

Lost and Found

Our Lost and Found cupboard is getting quite full. Please take a moment to check it before it gets donated at the end of the week!

Fall Festival

Our fall fundraiser is right around the corner. It is a fun-filled way to support the school and connect with more families from WPA. This event is one of the highlights of the year, but it takes a lot of people to make it run. If you can help support this event with set-up, running a booth, and/or cleaning up it makes a HUGE difference. Please see the link to sign up.

Or help with our silent auction.

Mark your calendars for the Fall Festival on Friday, October 11th, 4:30-7:30 p.m. This fun-filled night of games, activities, food, and prizes is the main PTO fundraiser and helps support a wide variety of activities and events at WPA throughout the school year.

Reminders (Or previously shared information)

Dress Code Reminders

A friendly reminder that clothing with non school logo's, sweat pants, shoes that light-up, shoes with wheels, Shoes with no heels (crocks), and open toes are not permitted in the WPA dress code.

Carpool Reminders

Please use the crosswalks to cross traffic lanes. (If you are not dropping off in the front carpool lane, please have students cross onto the school property using the crosswalk on the west side of the school near the garden.)

Please pull all the way forward when possible to pick up or drop off; it is the number one thing parents can do to help the carpool move smoothly.

Please save the center parking area for staff and individuals needing to access the permitted wheelchair and accessible parking.

Start of Year Testing

In the coming weeks, we will be assessing a variety of different topics to provide students with the highest quality of education possible. These assessments will include Acadience Reading Assessments (formally DIBELS Reading), WIDA, Acadience Math, and curriculum-based assessments. Later in the fall, we will administer the CogAT (grades 3 & 5) and begin Interim RISE assessments. If you have any questions regarding these assessments, don't hesitate to get in touch with us.

Class Placement and Beginning of Year Assessments

Placing students in the right classroom environment is vital to ensure their individual needs are met. We are proud to be a leading school in South Davis County for student growth. A combination of classroom placement, robust support programs, and a strong intervention model are a cornerstone of this success. We use a variety of assessments and careful thought and consideration in class placements each year. Still, we recognize that it is expected for students to grow and develop at different rates. One summer can impact the growth of a student as well. With that in mind, we start each school year by reassessing students (and again in January) to ensure that our program meets the needs of ALL students. While we often get the placement right, there are occasions when we need to change a student’s classroom. We are always happy to give additional information about class placement. If you have questions regarding your student’s class placement now or throughout the year, please get in touch with Mrs. Pilkington.