Rachel Sullivan - Principal

Narda Harber - Assistant Principal

Justina Record - Principal Resident

Rivera Family!

We are thrilled to announce our Teacher of the Year for the 2024-2025 school year—Mrs. Grubbs, our dedicated 1st-grade teacher!

We are also proud to recognize Ms. Bruce as our Paraprofessional of the Year, our dedicated aide in our AFS class.

We are honored to have them as part of the Rivera team and look forward to celebrating their achievements at the district ceremony!

Rivera Families,

We love celebrating our amazing teachers and staff, and we need your help! If you see or hear about a staff member who exemplifies excellence, leadership, motivation, creativity, or goes the extra mile, please take a moment to give them a shout-out!

Simply fill out a short survey to recognize their hard work. Your words of affirmation and kindness will be shared with them each month!

Thank you for helping us celebrate the incredible educators and staff who make Rivera Elementary special! 💙✨

At Rivera Elementary, we believe that meaningful conversations between parents and children can foster a love for learning, strengthen relationships, and help students make real-life connections to what they experience in school. By asking thoughtful questions each week, families can create opportunities for students to reflect on their learning, share their experiences, and develop important social and critical thinking skills. This initiative is designed to encourage open dialogue, celebrate successes, and reinforce the values of kindness, curiosity, and lifelong learning.

Here are six questions parents can ask their children each week to spark meaningful conversations about school, kindness, learning, and real-life connections:

1. What was the best part of your day at school, and why did you enjoy it?
2. Can you share one way you showed kindness to someone today or how someone was kind to you?
3. What is one new thing you learned this week that surprised or excited you?
4. How do you think what you learned today could help you in real life or in the future?
5. What genre of books or stories are you reading in class, and where do you see that genre in real life (movies, shows, news, etc.)?
6. If you could teach me one thing from school this week, what would it be, and how would you explain it to me?

Rivera Family-

A few reminders about our school arrival policy:

• Morning arrival is from 7:15 am to 7:40 am.
• Please ensure that all guardians stay in their vehicles during arrival and dismissal times. Rivera staff will let your child out of each vehicle or load them into each car.
• Learning begins promptly at 7:40 am, any students arriving after 7:40 am must be checked in at the front office by a guardian.

A few reminders about our school dismissal policy:

• If there is a need for a change in your child's transportation for the day, please notify us by 2:00 pm.
• The cutoff for early student pickup is at 2:30 pm.
• Dismissal starts at 3:00 pm.
• Please have the correct identification information for the release of your student(s).

We encourage you to log into your Home Access Center (HAC) now. There, you can view your students' teachers, report cards, and their attendance records, including absences and tardies. If you need assistance setting up HAC, please call the front office at 940-369-3800.

We are partnering with Adventure Dash Fun Run for our Spring fundraiser this year! The fundraiser will end on February 7th, with an Adventure Dash Day.

You can register your child(ren) early by going to: https://www.gopledge.com/donater_page/?url=RES25

Once registered, you will receive an email with your child's personal link that you can SHARE with your family and friends to start earning donations.

CLICK HERE for a fun video about the Adventure Dash Fun Run fundraiser and as always, thank you for your support!

Black History Month is here, and at Rivera Elementary, we are excited to celebrate the achievements, contributions, and rich history of Black individuals who have shaped our world.

Just like during Hispanic Heritage Month, we will be hosting a Living Museum on 2/28, where students will have had the opportunity to research and bring historical figures to life!

Below is a list of influential figures your student can choose from to explore and present. We encourage you to research together and help bring history into our school community!

Let’s celebrate diversity, history, and excellence together!

In Denton ISD, we believe our schools are a reflection of our community. Our mission to empower life-long learners to become engaged citizens who positively impact our local and global community can only be accomplished through open and honest conversation between our families and staff. To efficiently address any concern families may have, we strongly encourage all communication to begin at the level closest to the concern.

Denton ISD is committed to building positive partnerships between our staff and the communities we serve through positive and clear communication, acting as a bridge for community engagement, which leads to effective outcomes. When our staff and community work together, we set our students up for success, ensuring they are future ready.

Come support early literacy at Rivera!

We need volunteers to work with students using engaging interactive activities with small groups of 1-3 children.

(During school hours.)

For more information contact Mrs. Thomson

Reading Recovery Teacher/K-2 Support, mthomson@dentonisd.org.

“Literacy is a Journey not a Race.”

- Bonnie Hill Campbell

Come support the journey at Rivera Elementary.

We are pleased to announce that Denton ISD has been approved for a federal program that will provide free breakfast and lunch for all students – regardless of their eligibility for free and reduced lunch – at 10 campuses across the district.

We need your help to continue this for next school year, please click this link and fill out the form.

Hey Rivera Families!

It has been a pleasure meeting the students and their families over the last few weeks. I am thrilled to be able to support the Rivera Community. Communities in Schools has been supporting students by offering school supplies, snacks, and clothing. If you require further assistance, kindly reach out to me at (940) 369-3806 or via email at spereyra_cis@dentonisd.org.

Additionally, I strongly believe in the power of community support. Currently, we have a shortage of small-sized clothing (4T and 5T). If you have any gently used clothes to donate, please consider contributing to our closet.

It's been an amazing beginning to the school year, and I'm excited to be here at Rivera!

Samantha Guerra Pereyra
Case Management Site Coordinator, Rivera Elementary
Communities In Schools of North Texas
(O) 940-369-3806 Hablo Español

Apply for CIS Services at Rivera- https://shorturl.at/GISGQ

www.cisnt.org

Mark Your Calendars!

February

• 2/3-2/7 - Adventure Dash Fundraiser
• 2/7 - Adventure Dash Fun Run Day
• 2/7 - Fluffy Buddies Day!
• 2/14 - Early Release & Valentine's Day Parties
• 2/17 -No School
• 2/21 - 4th Grade Field Trip to the Perot Museum
• 2/25 - Reading Interim for 3rd, 4th, & 5th grades (Practice STAAR Test)***
• 2/27 - Science Interim for 5h grade (Practice STAAR Test)***
• 2/28 - Living Museum

***If your student is taking the practice STAAR assessments, we encourage families to support their success by ensuring they get plenty of rest, eat a nutritious breakfast at home or school, and arrive on time, ready to do their best!

Copies of the Federal Campus Report Card and the Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) are published annually by the Texas Education Agency. These documents are available on our school webpage and can be accessed by visiting the links below. These reports provide information regarding student performance on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) as well as additional state and federal accountability information. If you have questions regarding these documents, please contact me at rsullivan@dentonisd.org.

• 2024 Federal Report Card: https://rptsvr1.tea.texas.gov/perfreport/frc/frc_srch.html?year=2024
• 2024 Texas Academic Performance Report: https://rptsvr1.tea.texas.gov/perfreport/tapr/tapr_srch.html?srch=C

Happy December Rivera Families,

We are entering colder weather and along with that comes cold and flu season. If your child has not been vaccinated for the flu yet, now is the time to do so. Reach out to your child's pediatrician or Denton County Public Health at 940-349-2900 to schedule an appointment to get their vaccine.

Along with staying up-to-date on vaccines, you can protect yourself by:

• Practicing good hygiene by covering your coughs and sneezes
• Washing or sanitizing your hands often
• Cleaning frequently touched surfaces
• Bringing in fresh air by opening a window
• Purifying indoor air
• Having outdoor social activities

Here is a reminder of reasons to keep your child at home:

• Fever of 100.0 or greater
• Persistent vomiting (two or more episodes, regardless of fever, that is not associated with a preexisting, documented condition, or exercise)
• Persistent diarrhea (two or more episodes, regardless of fever, that is not associated with a preexisting, documented condition)
• Skin rashes if spreading, purulent, weeping, or associated with fever.
• Purulent or crusting drainage from one or both eyes with reddened conjunctiva.
• Persistent cough with productive drainage or bloody sputum
• Recommendation of a physician or school nurse

If you are in need of a pediatrician for your child, feel free to reach out to me at 940-369-3805 and I can help you connect with one.

Take care,

Lauren Britt, RN, BSN

Tomas Rivera Elementary School Nurse

Lbritt@dentonisd.org

(940) 369-3805

Any decision made about canceling school or changing the start time will be announced no later than 6:00 a.m. of that same day. DentonISD will use our school messenger system to push out calls and emails to all employees and families. The announcement will also be posted on the DentonISD website and social media platforms.