Tiger Talk
11/19/24
Dear Tiger Families,
As we approach this season of Thanksgiving, I am reminded of how fortunate we are to be part of such a wonderful and supportive community. Our school thrives because of the generosity, dedication, and time you give to help create an environment where our students can learn, grow, and flourish.
Many of you volunteer your time, offer your services, and make generous donations that directly impact the educational experience of our students. Your contributions—large and small—make a meaningful difference, and we are deeply grateful for each of you.
At this time of year, I am especially mindful of all the blessings we have in our school community. Thank you for your unwavering support in making our school such a positive and productive place for our children to learn and thrive.
On behalf of our entire staff, I wish you and your loved ones a joyful, peaceful, and safe Thanksgiving holiday.
With gratitude,
Amy Russ, Principal
Thursday, November 21, our students will have the opportunity to meet Ms. Cally Conklin who is the Statewide Education Specialist for the Safe School Institute. Ms. Conklin joined Crime Stoppers in January 2023 and supports the growing needs of the Crime Stoppers Safe School Institute as it expands statewide.
Ms. Conklin is a native of Dripping Springs, Texas. After graduating from The University of Texas at Austin with a BA in English, she graduated from Texas A&M University School of Law. She worked for Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas in Dallas as a staff attorney who represented victims of domestic violence. After spending some time working in the private sector as a free-lance writer and an attorney, she is very excited to be back in the nonprofit world.
Kinder, 1st and 2nd Graders will attend her bullying prevention presentation at 8:00 am, and 3rd, 4th, and 5th Graders will attend her presentation at 9:15 am. The presentation defines bullying, conflict, consequences, and provides action steps for resolution. Scenarios are used throughout to reinforce messaging. Students will learn how to utilize campus resources and understand the importance of being an upstander versus a bystander.
Ms. Conklin's contact information is shown below.
Cally Conklin
Statewide Education Specialist
Safe School Institute
Direct Line: 512-962-8967
Email: cconklin@crime-stoppers.org
Incentive for Tiger Promptness
The tardy bell rings at 7:40 am, and that is the time that classroom instruction starts. To be on time for class, Tigers should be in their classrooms by 7:40 am each morning.
Being present for all of the school day is very important for successful learners. Therefore, during the month of November, we are rewarding all NEVER FOUND TARDY Tigers. Each Friday, Tigers who were on ON TIME ALL THAT WEEK will receive a surprise.
The tardy bell rings at 7:40! Please help your Tiger(s) to be eligible to receive the incentive surprise each week by getting them to school by 7:40 am each day.
We are excited to announce a partnership with the Austin Spurs to enhance our student attendance.
Any student who has no more than two absences during the first nine weeks of school received a complimentary ticket to an Austin Spurs basketball game of his/her choice.
Every day that students attend school is vital and contributes significantly to their success. If your child has earned a free ticket, it was sent home last week. Please check backpacks for a QR code that provides instructions on how to redeem the ticket. If you have multiple children who received free tickets, please contact Rebecca Shaffer at rshaffer@spurs.com for guidance on redeeming more than one ticket.
This super incentive will continue for the second 9 weeks, so keep up the great work!
Hello, WCHE families!
As many of you know, the month of October was National Bully Prevention Month, so that was the topic of our lessons in guidance as well. The focus of our lessons with our Kinder-2nd grade students was on identifying bullying, the importance of being an Upstander as opposed to a Bystander when we witness bullying, and which trusted adults we can notify if we experience or witness bullying.
In 3rd-5th grade, we expanded the topic of bullying to include cyber bullying, while also comparing and contrasting the three main forms of conflict. These are rude moments (when someone does something to hurt us but not on purpose,) mean moments (when we say or do something to hurt someone else on purpose but only because we lost control of our emotions in the moment,) and bullying (when a person with more power targets another person, leaving the target to feel scared or helpless in the situation.)
We also discussed conflict resolution strategies that we can use when we experience rude behavior or a mean moment (if we experience bullying, we tell the nearest trusted adult). All students also received bracelets with anti-bullying messages. Below are some of the books found in our school library that we used as part of some of the lessons.
Keep an eye out for November's Counselor's Corner recap as our focus will be Kindness in coordination with World Kindness Day on November 13.
Best regards,
Dustin Boren, Counselor
No Worries! We can Replace SMART Tags
If your Tiger(s) lost part or all of the SMART Tag equipment, we are happy to replace them upon receipt of the cost to replace the missing or broken items. Just let our Receptionist, Mrs. Michelle Harper, know what needs to be replaced. She can accept payment by exact cash (sorry, we have zero change) or by check payable to WCHE. The price list is:
Scannable badge......$5
Reel and/or lanyard......$5
Oops, lost the whole thing!......$10
West Cypress Hills Elementary
Email: WCHPrincipal@ltisdschools.org
Website: https://wche.ltisdschools.org/
Phone: 512-533-7500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ltisdschools