Lake Grove Elementary

Dear Lake Grove Families,

Grovers know how to share their kindness! It was so fun to see your children showering their peers and teachers with love on Monday as they celebrated friendship day.

Our staff is so grateful for your ongoing kindness and support, especially as it was demonstrated with doughnuts and coffee and gently used books this week! We continue to learn, grow and get better each day, and I'm so thankful to be part of this community!

Your children bring kindness into the world each day, and I'm confident they will continue to maintain this as a value as they mature into generous and empathetic leaders.

Be well,

Principal Jennie Knapp

• February 22: Peace, Love, Laughter, and Kindness Day (wear tie dye, tutus, ties, and tennis shoes)
• February 23: Kindness Always Wins Day (wear your favorite sports team gear)
• February 24: Look to Your Future With Kindness Day (wear clothes for the job you want to have when you grow up)
• February 25: Lake Grove, Powered by Kindness Day (wear Lake Grove colors and/or spirit wear)

As part of our sustainability efforts, on Thursday Lake Grove students participated in a Lunch Waste Audit facilitated by Mr. Larry Zurcher (Sustainability TOSA), Ms. Rebecca Johanson and Ms. Johanson's 5th grade class. The student-leaders did a wonderful job weighing, counting and analyzing the waste. We learned so much about what we waste and will make some recommendations to reduce our waste and then do another waste audit in the spring to measure our improvement.

As part of LOSD’s efforts to create a culture of belonging and to achieve equitable academic outcomes, we will once again administer the Youth Truth survey to all staff, parents, and students in grades 3-12. The Family Survey link is ytsurvey.org/losdfamily22, and it will be accessible beginning Monday, February 28. The YouthTruth survey is confidential, and responses from children and parents will be held in the strictest confidence. We encourage everyone to participate. This will be an important piece of information for administrators to improve our students' experiences at school.

Elementary students in grades 3-5 will also complete the survey between February 28 and March 25. This is a vital opportunity for students to provide feedback and help guide the school’s improvement plan. The survey will take 15-30 minutes to complete and will be offered during school hours.

*Please note that parents may opt their child out of the survey if they would like. Click here for the opt-out form.

This February, we look forward to investing our time and hearts on the character trait of K I N D N E S S in our Social Emotional Learning (SEL) lessons, classrooms, and school.

The definition students will be learning this month is KINDNESS: the choice to act with words, gifts, or actions to bring appreciation, positivity, and encouragement to others and yourself.

Kindness is not only a feeling, but a choice we get to make every day to bring good things into our lives and the world. Those good things can look like more than kind words: Kindness is given through our actions, encouragement, attitude, and gifts. We will spend time thinking about how to be kind to ourselves, our environment, our school, and to one another. We will get to experience meaningful words through compliments and feel the joy that comes from showing appreciation and acts of service to others.

We will also be focusing attention on cultivating our relationships with each other. Lake Grove students will be participating in a schoolwide community building activity sharing how we sprinkle kindness in our school community. Please be on the lookout for information regarding our Kindness Spirit Week, February 22-25th.

Here are links for extension activities to explore KINDNESS further as a family:

K-2 KINDNESS Family Letter (English) 3-5 KINDNESS Family Letter (English)

K-2 AMABILIDAD para Familias (En Español) 3-5 AMABILIDAD para Familias (En Español)

With the gorgeous weather lately, it has been so nice to see more families walking to bring students to and from school! We kindly ask that dogs and other pets are kept off of school grounds during arrival and dismissal due to safety and allergy concerns. Thank you for understanding.

February is Black History Month. Numerous classroom discussions and activities this month connect to Black history across grades and curriculum. Attention to Black history is not limited to this month as we continue affirming that Black lives matter, and that we will keep growing as a community of learners committed to being anti-bias and anti-racist in all that we do. Read about district-wide efforts focused on Diversity Equity and Inclusion here and make a point to have some conversations with your child about the importance of celebrating Black History Month. Not sure where to start? Here's a resource that may be helpful.

We are delighted to be able to welcome volunteers back to Lake Grove, and look forward to seeing more of you in the building in the coming weeks!

In order to be eligible to volunteer at Lake Grove, please complete the following steps:

• Review and acknowledge LG Volunteers Statement of Knowledge and Understanding - LOSD District Policies
• Send/show proof of vaccination and booster to Annika Nicholas at nicholaa@loswego.k12.or.us.

• Complete Background Check through school Raptor system - if you have not already completed this, bring your driver's license or passport with you on your first day volunteering and we'll get you registered in the office.

Any questions? Please contact the office at 503-534-2357.

Have you ever thought about working here at Lake Grove Elementary School? We have positions posted and are looking for wonderful people to join our team!

See the postings for more details, and feel free to contact the office with any questions 503-534-2357.

Please label your student's coats and water bottles with their first and last name so we can return them before they get to our lost and found collection. If you have lost something at school, please take a look through the slides and submit a request for pickup. Please help by labeling all items. We will do our best to return labeled items directly to the student. See all items collected here. Please note that items not claimed will be donated by February 21st!

If your child will be absent, please email your student's teacher and copy the office at lgattendance@loswego.k12.or.us. Please list the date your child will be absent and any illness symptoms. You may also call us at 503-534-2357, or leave a voicemail on the 24-hour attendance line at 503-534-2299.

If you need to pick your child up early for an appointment, please be sure to bring your ID in to the office to sign them out.

2/21 No school - Presidents' Day

2/24 Early Release (2pm)

2/22-2/25 Kindness Spirit Week at Lake Grove

MANAGE THE SPRING ONLINE BOOK FAIR AT LAKE GROVE

The PTA is looking for a volunteer with approximately 3 hours of time to donate to our school during February, March and April. By dedicating only 3 hours over the course of the next several weeks, you’ll partner with our previous Book Fair manager, Alexis Nicoli, and support our students by working with Scholastic to host our book fair this Spring. This is an easy volunteer post! To help, email us at lakegrovepta@gmail.com.

VOLUNTEER ON THE TEACHER APPRECIATION COMMITTEE

Sign up to help plan a fun and creative Teacher Appreciation Week, May 2-6. Contact Ali Koper at akoper@outlook.com or 503-415-9699.

YOU DONATED LOADS OF BOOKS!

Thank you for showing the love this Valentine’s Day! Students brought in more than 200 books this week to help refresh classroom libraries! Our teachers went shopping this morning. Thank you so much!

THANK YOU ART LIT VOLUNTEERS! MORE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED IN CLASSROOMS

Art Literacy is a completely volunteer run program that introduces elementary students to art principles, elements, and techniques. All training, presentation materials, projects and supplies are provided by our PTA. This Spring, students will learn about artists JMW Turner and Grant Wood.

Volunteers are still needed in these classrooms for the first lesson:

1. Colacchio (March 31)
2. Crist (March 29)
3. Denton (April 20)
4. Laird (March 16)
5. Parks (March 2)
6. Pollock (March 10)
7. Russel (March 18)
8. Tesar (March 7)

To sign up to participate in an art lit lesson in your student’s classroom, visit: Lake Grove Art Literacy: Lake Grove Art Lit Presentations (signupgenius.com) This is a great opportunity to work with students in the classroom! A training session was offered earlier this week and a recording is available here: https://youtu.be/zcHJt72F3NU

Length of time required in the classroom:

-Presentation: 15 minutes

-Hands-on project: 30 minutes

You will be paired with at least one other volunteer for your classroom and will work together to ensure that all key roles and responsibilities for your classroom are covered. Questions? Contact Kim McKay at kimtamura@gmail.com.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO MAKE COUGAR DAY JOG-A-THON A SUCCESS

Fundraising is extremely important for enrichment programs at LGE. Contributions to our PTA help create completely volunteer-run programs like Art Literacy, Run Club, Oregon Battle of the Books and more. Donations also fund student events and celebrations like 5th grade graduation, as well as allow us to show our appreciation for the stellar teachers who help our students grow and thrive! Without funding from families and local businesses, and volunteers stepping up, our PTA could not offer this level of support.

On Friday, April 29, Lake Grove students will participate in raising funds for their school through a “Cougar Day Jog-a-Thon.” In order to execute the jog-a-thon, there are several jobs available to help prepare and plan for this event.

Sign up to manage one of these items!

• Compile a list of local businesses that may be interested in advertising to our families, build the list in a table with contact information (a list of local businesses already captured from previous years is available as a starting point for this volunteer). Timeframe: now through February.
• Contact local businesses mentioned above for potential business sponsorships. This could include dropping off flyers or sending emails and making phone calls. Timeframe: now through mid-March.
• Organize the display area/jar/campaign to donate funds to local charities. This is a task for a creative person! Let’s get the kiddos excited about building community. Timeframe: early April.

Fundraising questions? Contact lakegrovefundraising@gmail.com.

COMING UP MARCH 5: DINING FOR DOLLARS AT CHIPOTLE

Lake Grove will earn a portion of sales at Chipotle in Centerpointe on Saturday, March 5 from 4-8 p.m. When ordering online, use code X27Y3E4 or show the flyer in the store.

At Lake Grove, we are an inclusive school community fostering social, emotional, and academic growth for all students.

Principal: Jennie Knapp

Website: https://www.losdschools.org/lg
Location: 15777 Boones Ferry Road, Lake Oswego, OR, United States
Phone: 503-534-2357