Windy Hill Weekly

9/27 - Schools Closed for Students and Teachers

9/30 - Two-hour Late Arrival

10/3 - Fall Picture Day - yearbook photos

We have sent home picture day forms with students, please fill this out or complete the online form before October 3rd!

Ms. Coughlin was awarded a grant at the recent BOE meeting on September 19 to initiate the purchase of WHES's first-ever book vending machine! This will help with incentives for PBIS. Check out the list of books our PTO is working on to help stock with the donations of local businesses.

Please remember to send your child in sneakers for P.E.! Crocs and sandals are inappropriate footwear for running activities.

The Ladies of Charity are offering their HeartFELT Backpack Program again this year for children who are in need of additional food over the weekend. This program provides eligible children a bag of food for the weekend every Friday. The food is provided at NO cost to families. The bag of food will include 6 meals with occasional supplemental items and snacks. Please click and fill out the form below if you would like your child(ren) to be considered for this program.

https://forms.office.com/r/JXpJSekkAt

WHES families,

Hello! Here at school, we have been very busy learning about feelings and emotions- what they are and how we can recognize them in ourselves and others. Learning happens best when it is done both at school and at home. Below are many ways that you can help your child continue to learn about the theme of feelings, through reading about it, talking about it, and practicing it! We have really enjoyed exploring this topic at school and we hope you and your family will enjoy it as much!

Read About It!

Here are some books to help you learn more about feelings:

• The Way I Feel By Janan Cain

• My Many Colored Days By Dr. Suess

• The Color Monster By Anna Llenas

• Feelings To Share From A To Z By Todd and Peggy Snow

Practice It!

Practice identifying the feelings of others while you are watching a movie or TV show. As you are watching, talk about how each character feels and how you can tell. Encourage your child to use situational cues (what is happening) as well as physical cues (how the person looks).

Talk About It!

Here are some discussion points to help you talk about feelings with your child:

• How do you feel right now? How do you know?

• Do you think all feelings are okay to have? Why or why not?

• Is it easy or difficult for you to talk about how you are feeling? Why?

• Do you feel like you handle your feelings in a healthy way? Why or why not?

• Why do you think it’s important to know how you are feeling?

• Why do you think it’s important to know how others are feeling?

Parent/Guardian link to contact Ms. Whitaker (grades 3-5)

PTO is excited to kick off the year with the MEMBERSHIP DRIVE CONTEST. The membership drive contest is a fundraiser to fund ALL of the events planned for the year. Currently the PTO is at 19% Parent membership and 95% teacher membership. Help put the P in PTO; $20 to join and you are done for the school year!

When you join the PTO:

-Your dues help FUND student projects and ALL events planned for the year

-Zero commitment

-No volunteering required unless you choose to

-Emails for upcoming events and news

-Access to pre-ticket sales for Magic Night in January (expected to sell out)

-Voice and Vote on PTO matters

Simply, without families joining we are limited on the events and activities we can provide. Please consider joining your school's PTO; together we can do so many things, but you need you to join! Please watch the video for the fun details of the membership drive contest or visit our website for more information and to join. https://www.windyhillwizards.com/

Spirit Wear orders due by 9/30

PTO October Meeting 10/15, 4:30-5:30

Trunk or Treat Family Fun Event 10/17, 6:00-7:30

MOD Pizza Spirit Night 10/29, ALL Day

Become a part of the difference. Join PTO and instantly start supporting WHES. Volunteering is OPTIONAL and not required. Your dues help support the many family fun events, staff appreciation days, and many more things going on around WHES! Use the link below to sign up!

Purchase your child's shirt today!

4th grade chorus meets at PLC time (3:30 - 4:00) on B days.

5th grade chorus meets at PLC time (3:30 - 4:00) on A days.

If you want to attend any IN-SCHOOL event, such as VIP Day, Career Day, Field Day, field trip chaperones, etc., you must be a registered, approved volunteer. This is for the safety of all students. Each of the special events that we have within our school day allows you to engage with the students. All adults (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc) who plan to attend must be approved volunteers. The process takes less than 10 minutes. Please register as a VOLUNTEER.

Click HERE to become a volunteer!

The Online Volunteer Application works best on a laptop or desktop computer. Completing an application on a mobile device will not properly submit and could cause an issue with your application being received and/or approved.

1. Read the volunteer handbook.
2. Watch the volunteer training video below.
3. Complete the online application using a laptop or desktop computer.

Calvert County Public Schools participates in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs and offers nutritious meals every school day. Both breakfast and lunch service are available at all school locations. School meals offer a variety of food choices and meet nutrition standards established by the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act and the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Elementary Cafeteria Prices

Breakfast $1.65

Lunch w/ Milk $2.80

Milk & Water $0.60

Free and/or Reduced Price Meal Eligibility (FARMs)

Some students may qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Eligibility is typically determined by household size and income. Household Meal Benefit Applications are sent home with each student at the beginning of the school year and are available on the school system website. Parents need only submit one application per household if they believe their children qualify for free or reduced-price meals.

Please feel free to submit a Free and Reduced Meal Benefit Application any time during the year!

Calvert County Public Schools’ transportation services are available to every student enrolled in the school system. The Department of Transportation strives to provide economical and efficient transportation for all students which is safe, both physically and emotionally.

Here Comes the Bus Instructions

1. For the Here Comes the Bus® app to work properly, please verify student transportation data. Parents & guardians are asked to visit Home Access Center (HAC) to verify student transportation data, specifically the "To School" and "From School" Stop Locations. This information can be found by clicking on the "registration" icon within HAC.
2. If there is a necessary revision to the "To School" and/or "From School" stop locations, parents & guardians must contact their school's office to have the revision made. The Transportation Department does not have permission to make changes to student data, only the school has access to do so.

Download Here Comes the Bus App

After parents/guardians have confirmed the accuracy of their student's "To" and "From" transportation addresses in HAC, they are ready to download the app for use on a smartphone or tablet. Download on the App Store or get it on Google Play. Alternatively, you can visit Here Comes the Bus to create an account and begin using the system from your personal computer. In order to create an account, you will need to know your child's ID number and the school district activation code 87557.

• There will be two (2) drop-off lanes in all three rows of the parking lot (white arrows).
• Please do not arrive in parking lot prior to 9:05 to support traffic flow.
• Staff will be out to receive students starting at 9:15. Please wait for staff/safety monitor's signal to release your students.
• Once all of the cars in a row are unloaded, staff will direct each lane to exit, please look out for the stop/slow signs. Only one row at a time will be dismissed by staff.
  
• Students will walk towards the school using the cross walk with the support of safety monitors.
  
• If students are refusing to exit the vehicle, please park and escort your child into the building through the front entrance.
• Any students arriving after the arrival window of 9:15 - 9:25 will be required to park and sign their student in at the main office. Please do not park on the “downhill” at any time (red bar/ bus exit route). All parking MUST be in parking spots.

Parent pick-up will take place in the cafeteria. Parents are asked to park and come into the cafeteria, with ID to pick up students.

Cafeteria doors will open at 3:55pm

Students must be picked up by 4:15pm

The parent/guardian should write a note with the child’s first and last name, teacher’s name and include on the note who will be picking up the child. In the case of an emergency, please call the main office prior to 3:30pm.

For information about family events and youth activities taking place in our community, click the Community Events button, below. Please note: These events and activities are not sponsored by the Calvert County Board of Education or Calvert County Public Schools. We provide equal opportunities to outside agencies to distribute materials that offer opportunities to students and/or their parents, but that permission should not be considered a recommendation or endorsement by the school district.

Calvert County Public Schools does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, ancestry or national origin, familial status, marital status, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or genetic information in its programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies:

• Director of Student Services
• Director of Human Resources

443-550-8000

For further information on notice of non-discrimination, visit the Office for Civil Rights Complaint Assessment System at: https://ocrcas.ed.gov or call 1-800-421-3481.

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Anti-sexual, Anti-racial and Anti-disability Harassment Statement
Discrimination can manifest itself in behaviors such as bullying, harassment, or intimidation of individuals.

Calvert County Public Schools does not tolerate any form of harassment including, but not limited to, sexual, racial, or disability. Any individual (student, employee, or community member) who believes that he or she has been subjected to any form of harassment is encouraged to report the allegation of harassment. Students, parents, and community members may report allegations of harassment to: Ms. Cecelia Lewis, Director of Student Services, Calvert County Public Schools, 1305 Dares Beach Road, Prince Frederick, MD 20678

Employees may report allegations of harassment to: Mr. Zachary Seawell, Director of Human Resources, Calvert County Public Schools, 1305 Dares Beach Road, Prince Frederick, MD 20678.

Calvert County Public Schools is committed to conducting a prompt investigation for any allegation of harassment. If harassment has occurred, the individual will be disciplined promptly. Disciplinary actions for students found to have engaged in any form of harassment may result in suspension or expulsion. Disciplinary actions for employees found to have engaged in any form of harassment may result in suspension or termination.

Calvert County Public Schools encourages all students, parents, employees, and community members to work together to prevent any form of harassment.

For further information on notice of non-discrimination, visit the Office for Civil Rights Complaint Assessment System at: https://ocrcas.ed.gov or call 1-800-421-3481.

Calvert County Public Schools Antiracism Statement

Calvert County Public Schools explicitly denounces racism, bullying, discrimination, white supremacy, hate, and racial inequity in any form within our school community. Furthermore, CCPS will not tolerate the values, structures, and behaviors that perpetuate systemic racism.

Each member of the district, individually and collectively, is responsible for creating and nurturing a safe, antiracist learning environment where each student, staff member, and community partner is a respected and valued member of the CCPS community.