Eagle's Nest Newsletter
Some thoughts for the starting school year
March 2024
A few words from Mrs. Mullanix...
Thank you for contributing to our school fundraiser. The funds earned will help teachers purchase student incentives, supplies and materials on their classroom wish lists. HCCS staff and students appreciate your support!
Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to meet with your child’s teacher(s) during parent/teacher conferences. If you weren’t able to attend conferences, please reach out to your child’s teacher to communicate about how school is going for your kiddo.
I can’t believe Spring Break is just around the corner! Spring Break is March 21st-April 1st. When we return from Spring Break, we will only have 8 weeks left of this school year. April and May will be filled with state and district testing (ISAT, IRI, i-Ready benchmarks, etc.), field trips and other end of year events. Heritage students have worked really hard this year and we are proud of their diligence and perseverance.
Thank you for all you do to help your child be successful in school.
Mrs. Mullanix
Principal
Upcoming Events:
March 11th - ISAT Testing begins! Please be sure to communicate with your child's teacher regarding their testing dates.
March 14th - 3rd Grade Presents Charlotte's Web - Mrs. Rupp's Class 5:15pm, Mrs. Tam's Class 6:30pm
March 15th - Uniform Exchange 5:00 -7:00pm
March 18th - 4th Grade Fieldtrip to Celebration Park
March 20th - End of Quarter 3
March 21st -Teacher Workday - NO SCHOOL for Students
March 22nd - 29th - SPRING BREAK - NO SCHOOL
April 1st - Professional Development/Teacher Workday - NO SCHOOL for Students
April 2nd - Students Return to School
HCCS Parent Engagement Survey 2023-2024
Each year, we survey parents to help our schools improve. Your responses will be anonymous. If you have children in elementary and middle school, you may take the survey twice (once for elementary and once for middle school).
Click on the eProve Surveys link below.
https://eprovesurveys.advanc-ed.org/surveys/#/action/248393/33292
Thank you for taking the time to help us provide the best learning environment and opportunities for your children!
ISAT Testing Kicks off This Week!
Your child will be taking Idaho’s Standardized Achievement Tests in April and May. Students in grades 3-8 will be assessed in English Language Arts and Math. 5th and 8th graders will also take a Science assessment. Your child and/or your child’s teacher will provide additional details regarding specific testing dates.
We have been preparing at school each day to give students the tools they need to be successful on the ISATs. Let’s work together and make your child’s experience a positive and successful one!
Here are some suggestions you can do to help on their testing day:
- Ensure your child arrives at school on time.
- Have your child eat a healthy breakfast at home or at school.
- Ensure your child gets a good night’s sleep.
- Gently encourage them to do their best.
Let's go Eagles! You've got this!
Middle School Memorandum
Middle School Communication on BAND app
To communicate more effectively with families, the middle school teachers will begin using the BAND platform to communicate with families. (BAND will replace Bloomz, used for communication last year.) We are striving for 100% participation from our middle school families because we want you ALL to get updates on spring testing dates, field trips, 8th-grade graduation, and other important information. Please click the link below or scan the QR code to make sure you get all the important announcements.
Middle School Friday Homework Club for Missing Homework
Homework Club has begun! It will be held on Fridays after school, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Students can be assigned Homework Club by any teacher for a number of reasons: five or more missing assignments, grades of F, and failure to complete i-Ready homework. Homework Club is also optional for students who have limited internet access at home or who just need a quiet place to do schoolwork. If students are assigned Homework Club, parents/guardians will be contacted ahead of time to make sure that a ride home can be provided at 4:00. Students who are assigned Homework Club and fail to show will serve two lunch detentions the following week. If you have any questions about Homework Club that is assigned to your child, please contact the teacher who assigned it for that week.
From the Desk of the Director of Operations
We have a new guest management system that will help us welcome visitors into the building in a safe and easily identifiable manner. The goal is for staff and students to be able to recognize visitors easily and know that they have checked in through our new system and are welcome during their visit. There are several other schools in our local area who are currently using these systems and we're happy to be implementing ours as well! We will be providing more information as we get things rolled out officially, but in the meantime, please:
- Bring photo ID to every visit.
- Be prepared to answer some short questions on our new system - if you're in a hurry, please allow for a little extra time the first couple of visits so that we can get you checked in properly.
- Be prepared to tell staff which student or staff member you are there to pick up or visit. We will be happy to assist you!
Thank you,
Dalila Roberts
March's Call for Car Tags!
Please complete this form by clicking on this link to have a car tag printed for your child during after school pick up.
HCCS Car Tag/HCCS Etiqueta de auto
Or scan this QR Code with your phone.
Complete este formulario haciendo clic en este enlace para imprimir una etiqueta de automóvil para su hijo durante la recogida después de la escuela. O escanea este código QR con tu teléfono.
HCCS Core Characteristics
In March, our Core Characteristic is SELF-DISCIPLINE. Self-discipline is the ability to control your behavior in a way that leads you to be more productive and/or have better habits. It is proven to lead to increased success. Learning self-control and discipline early in life is helpful for decades to come, but it is never too late to learn how to improve your self-discipline so that your future can be a better one.
“With this magic ingredient, you can accomplish anything and everything you want to, and it is called self-discipline.” – Brian Tracy
HCCS Service Projects
At HCCS we teach the importance of community service and encourage all grades to participate in meaningful community service projects throughout the year. Our 8th graders and 2nd graders are both actively involved in the following projects and would love to have your support!
8th Grade:
The 2023-2024 8th graders have been working on different kinds of projects to build a pollinator garden. Bees, butterflies and all kinds of pollinators are important to our community. They pollinate crops and plants, which help grow the plants to give us food and more resources. The reason why the 8th graders have decided to make this pollinator garden is because a lot of land is being taken away and used for other purposes. We want to make an environment where these pollinators feel safe to pollinate and move pollen from one place to another.
You can help support our 8th graders and their wonderful service project by donating or volunteering to help by emailing adolan@hccs481.org!
2nd Grade:
You can also help support our 2nd graders in their community service project by saving all of your pop tabs!! They are collecting them to support the Ronald McDonald House, which is an amazing charity organization that provides lodging, food, and more to families who have children staying in the hospital for extended periods of time.
Many cans have pop tabs including soda and other drinks, canned foods like soup, tuna, etc. Simply pop off the tab and put it into a baggie to drop off at school! Our 2nd graders appreciate your support!
Middle School International Travel Opportunities
Are you interested in your middle school student visiting Spain with Heritage? Heritage middle school students will visit Spain during spring of break next school year with Mrs. Abad and Mrs. Fenner as trip coordinators. Our current 5th graders would qualify to attend this trip because they will be middle schoolers next year. If you didn’t get to attend the informational meeting, but would like more information, please reach out to Mrs. Abad and she can give you more information: pabad@hccs481.org
Counselor's Corner
Social Media information
Kids are going through some treacherous terrain when it comes to technology and social media use, however, we understand that they're also using technology for some positive things like learning, understanding, creating connections and communicating. We as parents do need to be more involved in what they are exposed to. Teach your kids to limit their time online. They don’t have the capacity on their own to clearly discern what is a good limit.
Here are some online exposures to watch for:
Online hate
Online hate is language or actions that target a characteristic of a person or group of people in the digital space. For example, calling a friend a racial slur in a video game might be laughed off, but it normalizes the term and spreads online hate. It may also desensitize children to racism when they see it.
Online grooming
Grooming usually refers to child sexual abuse. However, groomers also target children for purposes such as radicalization, drug trafficking (county lines) and financial gain. Groomers first befriend a child. Online, this could be someone they have never met. A groomer might pretend they’re the same age as your child; because there is a screen between them, your child can’t know who the other person is for sure.
Inappropriate content
Give your child a safe space to explore their curiosity online. Inappropriate content can take many forms, from inaccurate information to content that may lead your child to unlawful behavior. Children with unsupervised access to the internet can stumble across this content or it could even be sent to them directly by another child or adult.
Cyber bullying
Unlike bullying offline, cyberbullying can follow a victim wherever they go — through social media networks, video game platforms and over messaging.
Self-harm
Self-harm is often understood to be a physical response to an emotional pain of some kind and can be very addictive. As children’s use of the online world grows, increasing mental health issues such as self-harm are taking a different form online. Children are now actively seeking abuse online as a way to self-harm.
Sexting
The term ‘sexting’ is used to describe the sending and receiving of sexually explicit photos, messages and video clips, by text, email or posting them on social networking sites. Young people may send images and messages to their friends, partners, or even strangers they meet online. Although there is a lot of talk among teens of sending nudes research shows there’s been little growth in the number of young people doing it.
Follow the link for more information:
Track and Field is Off and Running!
Track and Field season has started, but it's not too late for your student if they would still like to sign up. You can click on the links below to complete the registration process or pick up the forms at the office.
Practice will be Wednesday - Friday from 3:15 - 4:30pm. We currently have the following track meets on the schedule:
4/3 vs. South @ Summitvue Middle School - 4pm
4/9 vs. Syringa @ Caldwell Middle School - 4pm
4/23 vs. Summitvue @ Summitvue Middle School - 4pm
We are still in need of a track coach! If you or someone you know are interested in helping our student athletes learn and develop their skills in track and field, please contact Mrs. Thowson by emailing gboal-thowson@hccs481.org. Go eagles!
The Pulse of PTSO
A big thank you to all of those who helped provide the teacher dinner last month. It was appreciated during their busy conference day.
Thank you to everyone who completed the uniform exchange survey. It was helpful to know how to better meet the needs of families wanting to attend. The next uniform exchange will be held Friday, March 15 from 5:00-7:00. If you have used uniforms in good condition that you want to exchange for credits, please drop them off by the 14th at the office with your name and phone number on the bag. As a reminder, size availability is dependent on donations and any discounted new stock we can find. Exchanges are provided as an option to purchase uniforms or use credits, but sizing varies. There are opportunities to help with the event and also earn credits towards uniforms. Please sign up on the link below!
Our current PTSO board members terms are up at the end of this school year, and we are looking for new members! If you have interest in taking a role in PTSO please connect with us and we'd be happy to review what it entails.
Stay Updated on Social Media!
You can now follow HCCS on Instagram as well as Facebook! We will be sharing photos, activities, updates and information on both social media platforms and hope you give us a follow!
You can find us here:
Instagram: www.instagram.com/heritagecommunitycharterschool/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/heritageschool
HCCS Parent University
Our Parent University will provide important information regarding our school, as well as tips and educational materials that can help guide you and your children as they navigate through their growing years. This will be an ongoing project and will be updated with new information periodically. We hope it will provide useful tools and resources that will benefit everyone.
ADDRESS:
Heritage Community Charter School
1803 E. Ustick Road
Caldwell, ID 83605
(298) 453-8070
INTERNET/SOCIAL MEDIA:
WEBSITE: www.heritagecommunitycharter.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/heritageschool
INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/heritagecommunitycharterschool/