Walker Wolf Bites
April 1st, 2024
Golden Paw Awards
This week’s Golden Paw Staff awards go to:
Monica Bermudez, Second Grade Teacher and Raquel Llamas, ELD Teacher
"I would like to nominate Ms. Bermudez for the golden paw award. Ms. Bermudez has been an amazing and committed teacher at Walker for many years. She has a great positive impact on students and gives her students a challenge. Ms. Bermudez is always willing to go above and beyond to help a child in need and makes learning fun. Next week her class will be starting their chick unit where student will get to observe eggs in an incubator and hatch in the class then see how to care for baby chicks. The students are so excited. Ms. Bermudez is a Wonderful asset to the Walker team. We are lucky to have her here!"
"Mrs. Llamas deserves the Golden Paw because she is a kind and dedicated teacher. She makes students who are new to Walker, and sometimes new to the United States, feel safe, welcomed, and supported. She works hard to help our students grow and helps them celebrate all their accomplishments along the way. Students work hard and have fun in her class! Raquel is great to work with and always willing to offer great ideas to the teachers she collaborates with across the campus."
Parent Climate and Culture Survey
Each year the district asks families to complete a survey that provides important feedback regarding schools and the district as a whole. We are asking families to please take the time to complete this survey using the link below:
Parent Survey (English)
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DX3SHRM
Parent Survey (Spanish)
https://es.surveymonkey.com/r/DXKFY9P
Families will have until April 30th to complete the survey. We appreciate your support and for taking the time to complete this survey.
State Testing Begins This Week for 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grades
State Testing Schedule
Third Grade
AASA Writing 4/1
AASA Math Part 1 4/8
AASA Math Part 2 4/9
AASA Reading Part 1 4/15
AASA Reading Part 2 4/16
Oral Reading Fluency 4/3 - 4/12 (when students are not testing another area)
Fourth Grade
AASA Writing 4/2
AASA Math Part 1 4/11
AASA Math Part 2 4/12
AASA Reading Part 1 4/18
AASA Reading Part 2 4/19
Fifth Grade
AASA Writing 4/1
AzSci Science 4/4, 4/5
AASA Math Part 1 4/8
AASA Math Part 2 4/9
AASA Reading Part 1 4/15
AASA Reading Part 2 4/16
Kids Heart Challenge
Dear Families,
Kids Heart Challenge is coming soon! Students will learn how to have happy and healthy hearts and brains, while raising lifesaving donations to help others with special hearts. Plus, your family can learn the lifesaving skill of Hands-Only CPR in Finn’s Mission! Register TODAY at http://www2.heart.org/goto/luluwalkeror by downloading the FREE AHA Schools App for Apple or Android.
Thank you for supporting our school, the American Heart Association, and this lifesaving program!
Parent Pickup and Drop Off Reminders
As we prepare for the last quarter of the school year, we wanted to send out reminders regarding parent pick up and drop off procedures to ensure an efficient and safe process.
First off, we ask that families please follow all traffic laws when driving or parking around the campus. Please do not speed through the parking lot, drive the wrong direction along Roller Coaster Rd, park in unmarked parking areas in the parking lot, or cut off other drivers in the car line. Please be sure to park in a safe manner if you park along Roller Coaster Rd and do not let students cross into traffic unattended.
We ask families to enter the parking lot only on the east of the campus and exit only the northwest end. Please do not use the exit adjacent to the drop off and pick up area during the pick up and drop off times.
As always, we encourage families to utilize the car line for student drop and pick up. The car line moves very quickly in the morning and rarely is there a substantial line once students are allowed to enter the campus . We have worked very hard to speed up the process for picking up students in the afternoon and if you arrive at Walker by 2:00 pm, the wait time is less than 15 minutes.
Finally, please be respectful of other drivers. We are all members of the Walker family so please have patience with other drivers.
We appreciate your support in helping to make student drop off and pick and efficient and safe process.
Free Dental Sealants for Second Grade Students
The Arizona Department of Health Services will be coming to Walker to offer free dental sealants for all second grade students. This program is optional for families to participate in. Please see the flyer attached below for more information.
Snacks for State Testing
Beginning April 1st, our students in Grades 3, 4, and 5 will be taking the AASA and AzSci state exams. We are asking families to please sign up for snack donations to help support our students while the test. Families can use the link below to sign up for items to donate. We thank you so much for your support of our Walker Wolves.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080B4CADAB2FABFB6-48203545-state
Registration Updates
We appreciate everyone who has completed the online registration for the upcoming school year. We would like to ask any family who is not returning to please contact Jennifer Lee at jlee@amphi.com or 696-6519, to let her know as soon as possible. If you have not signed up for parent portal or completed you online registration, we ask that you do as soon as possible as this will affect the number of classes were are allocated for the upcoming school year.
Registration for 2024-2025 School Year
Online registration is not open for families. The district is offering help sessions over ZOOM to assist families with the registration process. The sessions will be:
- Monday, February 26th (5:00 – 7:00p.m.) Zoom Link: https://amphi.zoom.us/j/99117002110?pwd=VjNZempxUkVCTWFlNDl5djBzbFZOQT09&from=addon
- Wednesday, February 28th (4:00 – 6:00p.m.) Zoom Link: https://amphi.zoom.us/j/91571330627?pwd=VWJ3WVBCKzFPWFh3RlFuZkRJdEM0Zz09&from=addon
- Wednesday, March 6th (5:00 – 7:00p.m.) Zoom Link: https://amphi.zoom.us/j/94040148562?pwd=VTIrYkt4OVIvQ0QyV2N1cXdzMUVTdz09&from=addon
Parent Square
Next school year the district will be transitioning to the Parent Square program as a communication communication tool for all schools. The program functions in the same way as ClassDOJO and will allow for parents to communicate directly with their child's teacher and other school staff. It also allows for information to be sent to parents via email as well. In addition, the program allows the school to send out mass communications over the app and through phone calls when necessary. While we are still utilizing the ClassDOJO app for the remainder of this school year, the district and school have begun to utilize the program to communicate information out. We are encouraging families to download the app so that you can become comfortable with the program before next year and so you can set your communication preferences.
Parents were sent information from the district on the program in October which included a link to join the program. If you have lost the link or did not receive the email, the Parent Square app can be downloaded and/or accessed at:
https://www.parentsquare.com/signin
Kindergarten Round-Up Dates
- March 27th
- April 3rd
- April 17th
Round-up slots begin at 12:00pm and last till 3:00pm
If you would like to sign up for a kindergarten round-up slot please call the office at 696-6518. Please encourage any family you know with a child who will be 5 by September 1st, 2024 to reach out to the school to sign up for a round-up slot. We are also accepting open enrollment applications for kindergarten and all other grades for the 2024-2025 school year.
Walker PBIS Awards
Kindergarten
Mrs. LaRock
Athena
Carlos
Ella
Madison
Ranier
RyRy
Santiago
Sarah
Savannah
Mrs. Powers
Cameron
Carissa
Enzo
Ethan
Ihuoma
Jackson
Jameson
Jasmine
Mia
Nova
First Grade
Ms. Mayortena
Luis Miguel
Orion
Wyatt
Ms. Ratliff
Athena
Aubrey
Calvin
David
Everett
Jackson
Wyatt
Second Grade
Mrs. Acuna Newman
Gulfem
Ms. Bermudez
Ares
Jacqueline
Karim
Kaylin
Searia
Mrs. Miller
Elah
Sonari
Third Grade
Mrs. De La Rocha
Holland
Marcellino
McKynlee
Nicolai
Zane
Mrs. Luciano
Aliya
Ian
Jezabel
Mrs. Williams
Cadhin
Cesar
Elianna
Kyler
Lilliana
Melody
Sutton
Fourth Grade
Ms. Banales
Mya
Fifth Grade
Ms. Flippo
Emilia
Jaiden
Raven
Mrs. Kidd
Alezander
Antionette
Aurora
Elijah
Felina
Julittza
Priscilla
Trinity
Important Reminders
- Please do not exit and leave your car if you are using the car line to drop off or pick up your child.
- Please be sure that you communicate how your child will be going home each day. Please try to keep it as consistent as possible. We also ask that you do not change how a student will be getting home after 1:00pm. This will ensure that it can communicated in time to the classroom teacher.
- If you are picking your child up after school we ask that you have a sign in your car or that you carry a sign with your child's name (first name and last initial), grade, and teacher.
- A reminder that the shoulder along Roller Coaster is not Walker Elementary School property and it is illegal to park in the bike lanes and unsafe to park there. Please utilize the parking spaces within the Walker Elementary School parking lot if you would like to meet your child at the West Gate for dismissal.
This Week
Tuesday - 4th Grade AASA Writing Testing
Wednesday - 3rd Grade AASA ORF Testing, Early Release at 12:00pm
Thursday - 3rd Grade AASA ORF Testing, 5th Grade AzSCI Testing
Friday -3rd Grade AASA ORF Testing, 5th Grade AzSCI Testing