The Winn Word

1.26.25

I am looking forward to having five whole days of school this week! It looks like the weather is going to settle down a bit. The temperatures look good too, so we will be able to play outside. Here are some tips & important info for this week:

• Snow Gear for Outside Play: Make sure your child has their boots, snow pants, mittens, hat, and coat. Please make sure those items are labeled in case your child misplaces them. If the kids want to go off of the blacktop they need snow pants and boots. If you need help with purchasing those items, please let your teacher or the office know.
• Invitation Only Conferences: Your child should have received an "invitation" from their teacher if we would like to see you at our February conferences. Generally, these conferences are for students that are having challenges academically or social/emotionally. If you would like to "request" a conference, you are welcome to do that as well.
• We need your help! We are in need of gym shoes (all sizes), boots (all sizes), and snowpants (larger sizes 3rd-5th grade sizes). Meijer is having a huge sale this week! Additional 50-75% of clearance items. If you can help us with any of the items above we would appreciate it!
• "Lunch with Laurie" has been rescheduled to this week on Wednesday at 11:30-12:30pm. This time is an "open" time for you to drop in via Google Meet. I will send the link to you via text and post it on our website on Wednesday. Bring your questions and let's chat!

As part of our CKH process, we have added a "reset room" to our Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) process. Mrs. McQueen has been a paraprofessional at Winn for several years. Her passion is supporting student behaviors and helping them reset so they can be successful in the classroom. Mrs. McQueen is our staff for the "reset" room.

What will Mrs. McQueen do each day? Mrs. McQueen can offer students support in several ways.

• She may be utilized to give scheduled breaks to students who need that.
• She may be called to a classroom to give a student a walking break or a break in our sensory room
• She may be called to a classroom to take a student who is "behaving out" of the classroom. This means your child's teacher has tried several strategies to help your child get back on track in the classroom. Behaving out is a consequence that means your child will leave the classroom and go through creating a plan to help them regulate their emotions and be prepared to be successful in the classroom. If this happens, you will receive the "plan" that was created via email AND sent home with your child. When you get it, please go over this with your child. We ask you sign it and return it to school.

Why does Winn need this "Reset Room?" Each building in the district has a room similar to this. As part of the Capturing Kids Hearts program, we have all designed a process that helps kids take ownership of their behavior and helps them to work through what they can do to be more successful in the classroom.

How Can You Help? The biggest thing you can do to help is to go over the sheet that we sent home. Ask your child about what happened and what they are going to do now. I have included "The Four Questions" we go through with your child. The big thing the questions do is help your child take responsibility for their actions. You are welcome to add in your own tips with your child to help them too! If you ever have a question about the what was written or what happened, please contact your child's teacher or the office.

This month, our school wide theme is emotion management. In our morning announcements and school assembly we’ll be prompting students to notice their own feelings by paying attention to clues in their bodies, and we’ll be reminding them to use their Second Step skills to calm down:

• Stop—Use your signal
• Name your feeling
• Calm down: Breathe, count, use positive self-talk

These skills help students calm down strong emotions when faced with learning and social challenges, which helps them succeed academically and get along well with others.

Second Step lessons specifically teach about calming down strong emotions such as anger, disappointment, frustration, and anxiety. You’ll be receiving Home Links that describe why managing strong emotions is important and include fun activities to do with your child to help him or her identify strong feelings and calm down. We hope the Home Links will give you tools to use together when your child is upset.

Please tell your child’s teacher if you have questions about how you can help your child learn to calm down at home.

One of our school improvement goals has to do with increasing student attendance. We do this because there is a tremendous amount of research around school attendance and student achievment. Did you know that missing about 2 days a month (10% of the school year), makes it harder for your child to read?

Our attendance policy at Winn is:

If a student is chronically absent/truant, the following steps will be taken.

1. 6 Absences (Excused & Unexcused) = Parents will be notified (Phone call & letter mailed home) of the number of absences.

2. 10 Absences (Excused & Unexcused) = Parent will be notified (Phone call/letter mailed home) of number of absences and meeting will take place to review attendance patterns.

3. 15 Absences (Excused & Unexcused) = Parent will be notified (Phone call/letter mailed home) of the number of absences and meeting will take place to develop an Attendance Improvement Plan.

4. 18 Absences (Excused & Unexcused) = A referral, for Truancy Action, to the County Truancy officer will be made.

This past week, you may have received a letter from me in regards to your child's attendance. If you have a question about it, please reach out to me at the office. I want to work with you to have your child here each day.

It's conference time again! This conference time is "by invitation" from your teacher. This means that your child has been identified as needing extra help academically and/or social emotionally.

Each teacher will be sending letters home with kids who need a conference this round. You may decide that you would like to meet with your child's teacher as well. Be on the look out this week for a letter coming home about Parent Teacher Conferences. If you have questions, please reach out to your child's teacher or the office.

Chrissy Walters is offering a weekly run club at Winn afterschool. She is opening the club for 3rd-5th graders. Mrs. Walters had an opportunity to talk to all of the students and you should have received a flyer where you can sign up. If your child is interested, please have them come try it out. It's a great way for your child to be active after school and make some new friends!

If you want to sign up your child click the Run Club 2025 image to go to the Google Form sign up! Training starts this week!

Click the WPC Newsletter above to get clickable links

• 2/5 WPC Meeting 5:30 (child care provided)
• 2/6 No School for Students
• 2/6 Parent Teacher Conferences (by request of teacher and/or family) 12:00-3:00 & 4:00-7:00pm
• 2/14 1/2 of school. Dismissal at 11:00am

Here is our Winn Elementary Parent and Student Handbook for 24-25. It is filled with lots of useful information about our school.

Thank you for sharing your child with our family here at Winn. Our motto at Winn is "Everything a Kid Needs." We focus on both academic excellence and creating good humans! I am here to serve you. If you have questions/concerns or need help in any way, please feel free to reach out to me.

Email: lrichards@shepherdschools.net
Location: 418 West Blanchard Road, Shepherd, MI, USA
Phone: (989) 866-2250
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/winnelementary