Welcome Back Families!
Greetings, I hope this finds you smiling & well!
I am looking foward to inviting all the students back on Monday, as well as a wonderful 2025 together!
“And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.” — Rainer Maria RilkeWhile this is true of every morning, there is something special about collecting our intent/goals on an eve and moving forward into a new year together. See you soon! -Your Tamarack Team
State Testing
Oregon Department of Education State testing is around the corner!
We start state testing with the ELPA (English Language Proficiency Assessment) in late February. Below are a list of the tests and a brief description. State Testing has no affect on your child's grades or progression through the grades, it provides the school with information on progress and areas to target for our growth and delivery of academic services. You can find more information here: Oregon Department of Education Statewide Assessments. Your child's teacher will let you know in advance so you can help support their test times by ensuring they get enough sleep the night before, have an hour off screens before bedtime, bring their water bottle to school and eat breakfast either at home or when they arrive here at Tamarack. We will ensure a stress-free, comfortable space that will support your child’s best efforts. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out, we are here to help!
Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) English Language Arts (ELA) & Math. The SBA is given to all 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grade students. The ELA portion will focus on reading, listening, researching and writing. Math is a separate test and will focus on problem solving, communicating reasoning as well as general math fluency (automaticity of math facts and procedures). If you have questions regarding this assessment please contact me, Christy Walters waltersc@hsd.k12.or.us.
Additionally, the Oregon State Assessment of Science (OSAS) is provided to 5th grade only will touch on Physical, Life and Earth Sciences.
English Language Proficiency Assessment (ELPA):The ELPA measures and reports on students' English language proficiency in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and comprehension. All students who receive English Language Services, have a first language other than English, take the ELPA. IF you have questions regarding the ELPA, please contact Gabby Castro grades Kinder, 1st & 2nd castrog@hsd.k12.or.us or Sharon Angal grades 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th angals@hsd.k12.or.us, they can provide more information.
schedule
If you are intersted in opting out forms are below, you can also let her classroom teacher know and we can support printing the form below for you. Smarter Balanced ELA/Math Opt-Out Forms (for download/print)
SBA Opt-Out (ODE PDF Form) (English)
SBA Opt-Out (ODE PDF Form) (Spanish)
SBA Opt-Out (ODE PDF Form) (English Fillable PDF)
SBA Opt-Out (ODE PDF Form) (Spanish Fillable PDF)
Exemption From Testing Forms (for download/print)
ELPA Request for Exemption Form PDF (English and Spanish)
ELPA Request for Exemption Form Online Form (English)
ELPA Request for Exemption Form Online Form (Spanish)
Science Request for Exemption Form PDF (English and Spanish)
Here is our testing schedule:
ELPA: February 24th-March 14th
SBA: April 7th-May 9th
Your classroom teacher will let you know closer to the date when testing will occur.
Reminder, please slow down...
A 2025 Wish: slow down in the parking lots and on Kinnaman. The city will be expanding the street and adding an additional crosswalk on Kinnaman in the coming year. We have had a collision & several complaints (driver to driver; walker to driver). Please be patient, safety focused, do not let your kids run to your car and know that we will work hard to get everyone dismissed as quickly as possible. Our school is physically large and our dismissal time Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fridays is 2:20 (1:50 Wed)-meaning, students should be leaving their classroom door at 2:20 (we work hard to stagger this a bit) but little legs can only move so fast. We also continue to receive new students weekly, this slows us as we ensure ALL students are arriving at their correct dismissal procedure. The gate to the parking lot from the undercover area is focused for car pick up. Parent walk up is through the plaza to the undercover. You may also give your child permission to walk home and you can wait along the sidewalk beyond the school. With more students, a new crosswalk and a busier street, our shared focus on a safe school zone speed is imperative. It's not perfect but we are trying our best and we truly appreciate your help and support:) Go Team!
CSE (Comprehensive Sexuality Education) Lessons Calendar
You recieved info in an earlier newsletter this school year and will recieve a mailer regarding CSE lessons for 24-25SY. With so many new families, I want to reshare our calendar. If you have any questions, don't hestitate to email or call. It is your choice to opt your student out of all, some or one of the lessons. We work hard to create a supportive enviroment delivering developmentally appropriate lessons focused on safety. As a parent/guardian, we encourage you to learn more about our K-12 Comprehensive Sexuality Plan and teaching materials. To make this as easy as possible, we have posted documents on our Comprehensive Sexuality Education Plan website that outline the standards, curricula, and instructional materials used at each. Here is an online link to opt out of any one or all lessons: https://forms.gle/NiAXvoS8TChtwhJQ9
Dates
2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th grades: March 10-March 21st
Kindergarten & 1st grades: April 14-April 25th
Tamarack Gear Shop!
Check it out: https://tamarackelementary.itemorder.com/shop/home/
Your orders will arrive in batches at the school and will be delivered to your child's classroom/backpack to go home as they are accumulated and printed-no shipping costs. I will also place this gear shop link (created a local company, Horizing Up) on our school website under the Communtiy Group tab. Go Otters!
Dates for your Calendar
January
16: Tamarack Community Group Meeting @ 5:30 Library
20: No School in celebraiton of Martin Luther King Jr.
30: Coffee Chat w/ Mrs. Walters @ 8:05 am Front Office
31: No School, Teacher Grade Prep
February
3rd: No School, End of 1st semester
10: Chick-Fil- Fundraiser! 5-8pm
17: No School, Presidents' Day
20: Tamarack Community Group Meeting @ 5:30 Library
27: Coffee Chat w/ Mrs. Walters @ 8:05 am Front Office
March
20: Tamarack Community Group Meeting @ 5:30 Library
24th-28th: No School, Spring Break!
April
10: Coffee Chat w/ Mrs. Walters @ 8:05 am Front Office
11: No School, End of 3rd Quarter Prep Day
17: Tamarack STEM Night @5:30-7pm
24: Tamarack Community Group Meeting @ 5:30 Library
May
5-9th: Tamarack Staff Appreciation Week!
15: Tamarack Community Group Meeting @ 5:30 Library
26: No School, Memorial Day
29: Coffee Chat w/ Mrs. Walters @ 8:05 am Front Office
30: 2nd Annual, OTTER FUN RUN!
June
12th: 6th grade Promotion Ceremony @ 8:10 Gym
12th:Last Day of School Dismissal @ 11:20!
