West Bay Weekly Update

West Bay Families,

We had another amazing week at West Bay! On Wednesday, we had our first Bengal of the Month assembly as well as Family Circles! Check out our Bengal of the Month Winners Below! As a reminder there is no school on Monday due to it being Labor Day. There is a lot of information this week in the newsletter including Battle of the Books information, PTO Updates, Fun Run Information and updates from the Sunshine Committee. As always, please reach out with any questions!

Lunch Visitors

Beginning September 3, 2024, we are excited to welcome visitors to eat lunch at school with their children on special occasions. You may bring in a meal for you and your child or you are welcome to call in an adult cafeteria order by 9:00 am on the day of your visit. We have visitor seating available at lunch and our staff members are always willing to answer any questions you may have. We ask that visitors leave after enjoying lunch and do not go with their children out to recess.

Lunch Times

4th 11:20-11:40

3rd 11:35-11:55

1st 11:50-12:10

2nd 12:05-12:25

Kdg 12:20-12:40

5th 12:35-12:55

Enjoy the long weekend!

Amber Scott

Principal

ascott@epsne.org

402-289-9045

Monday, September 2

• NO SCHOOL LABOR DAY

September 9 (D Day)

• Fall Picture Day

September 19 (B Day)

• Fun Run/PTO Fall Social

September 24 and 25 (E and A Days)

• Parent Teacher Conferences (Early Dismissal 2:06)

September 26

• Teacher In-service- No School

September 27

• NO SCHOOL

Hello Parents,

We are excited to kick off our 24-25 Battle of the Books with 4th and 5th grade students! If you aren't familiar with Battle, more information regarding this awesome competition is included in the form below. Please note that if your student is interested, they must have ALL 4 members before signing up. ALL team members need to fill out the form. Lastly, ALL forms need to be completed by Sept. 9th.

Battle of the Books Information/ Registration

Looking forward to another great year of Battle of the Books,

Miss Holst and Mrs. Candy

Please visit the PTO Volunteer Page to assist with the following activities:

• Sept 9th- Picture Day Helpers
• 5th grade parents- sign up to bring snacks or donate to Sunshine Committee
• Committee Positions - please consider helping us plan a spring social for the school by joining the spring social committee! This is a great way to meet new parents and get involved at West Bay.
• School Day Volunteers (classroom helpers, copier committee, library assistance)

https://www.westbaypto.com/sign_ups

Mark your calendars for September 19, 2024

Hello 5th Grade Parents!!!

We wanted to take a minute to introduce ourselves and the Sunshine Committee. We are Bobbie Krumwiede and Mikhala Fehringer, moms to current West Bay 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders. The sunshine committee was created to bring a little extra sunshine to the West Bay staff throughout the school year. Our vision is to fill the staff lounge with a variety of snacks, treats, drinks and more. We will be asking for donations by grade level throughout the year.

So far this year our committee has been busy bringing sunshine to the staff at West Bay! We provided breakfast, snacks, and drinks on the staff's first day back, as well as a popcorn and candy bar for staff on the first day of school. We also provided staff with a surprise Crumbl cookie Friday! To continue providing our staff with a little sunshine, we will be asking for donations per grade throughout the year. 5th grade was chosen to kick off the year first :)

Below you will find a signup link for the items we are asking to be donated. You will need to sign into membership toolkit to get to the sign up. Membership toolkit is free to everyone! This will help us get started in our quest to fill the staff lounge. You will also find a link to our PTO Sunshine Committee if you chose to give a monetary donation rather than going out and purchasing the items yourself. THANK YOU in advance for any donations!

Sunshine Committee Page

September Sunshine Committee Donation Sign Up

Your West Bay Sunshine Committee

Co-Chairs,

Mikhala Fehringer and Bobbie Krumwiede

Note from the Nurse…

Welcome back to school!

My name is Elizabeth Page and I am the school nurse at Elkhorn South, Spring Ridge, and West Bay. I am in each building 2 half days per week. If you ever need to contact me, please feel free to email me at epage@epsne.org with any questions or concerns. Here is some important information to review:

⁓Physical and Immunization Requirements⁓

Nebraska law requires that all students have a physical examination upon entry into school, at the seventh grade level, or when transferring from out-of-state. Upon entry and out of state students must also show proof of a visual evaluation (to include testing for amblyopia, strabismus, internal and external eye health, and visual acuity). Lastly, immunization records must be submitted before attending classes for all students. Please visit this link: Summary of the School Immunization Rules and Regulations to view specific vaccine requirements. If you have not turned in your Kindergarten or new out-of-state student’s paperwork, please do so ASAP.

⁓Medication Policy⁓

If your student requires any medication (over-the-counter and/or prescription) while at school, each medication must have a Medication Authorization Form signed by the parent and a physician before we can administer. All medications must not be expired and provided in the original packaging or container with a label. For prescription medications, please only provide a maximum of 30 day supply. All medication must be dropped off in the office by a parent or guardian. Please do not send medication in your child’s backpack.

⁓Students with Asthma, Severe Allergies, Diabetes, and/or Seizures⁓

If your child has asthma, severe allergies, diabetes, and/or seizures, and you have not yet done so, please submit an Action Plan signed by both a parent and physician. Plans must be updated annually.

⁓Sick Child Policy⁓

Just a reminder to monitor your child for symptoms of illness and to keep them home if they have any of the following: fever >100.0, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, head lice, eye infection. *Students must be fever free without the use of fever reducing meds for 24 hours before returning to school.

Thank You! Elizabeth Page, RN, BSN

epage@epsne.org

Starting September 6th, guardians will be able to receive email summaries about their student’s activity in Google Classroom. Guardians will receive an email invitation on September 6th and will need to accept the invitation in order to receive Google Classroom email summaries. When you receive the invite email and click the accept button, you will be taken to a page verifying your email address. Please make sure this is the email address you would like to use before clicking accept. If it is not the correct email address, do NOT click decline or accept, and see bullet number 3 under "Get email summaries" in this document Guardian Email Summaries - for Guardians.

You may not receive an invite email if you are still signed up from last year or if teacher(s) have not enabled email notifications in their Google Classrooms.

In email summaries, you can review:

- Missing work—Work not turned in when the summary was sent

- Upcoming work—Work that is due today and tomorrow (for daily emails) or that is due in the upcoming week (for weekly emails)

- Class activities—Announcements, assignments, and questions recently posted by teachers

- Email summaries do not include grades.

If there’s no activity to report, or if a teacher turns off email notifications, you might not get an email summary.

Please see this document for more information Guardian Email Summaries - for Guardians.

Just a few reminders to help traffic flow smoothly and to keep our students and staff safe!

• Students may begin exiting cars during drop-off at the designated location (after the curve)
• Staff will be outside to assist with drop off and pick up, please pay attention to signals on where to pull up to and when to move forward.
• Drivers are to stay inside the vehicle at all times in the drop off/pick up lane
• Students should enter/exit vehicles curbside.
• Students should use the crosswalk to cross to the sidewalk and never cross in front of traffic in the drop-off lane
• Please wait your turn in line and do not cut the line to drop your student off and pick them up.
• If your child is unable to unbuckle/buckle themselves, please practice at home. This is a skill they need to be able to do independently.
• Please be patient and be a positive role model for our children. These procedures are in place to help maintain a safe and respectful environment.
• It is unlawful to park in a handicap stall without the proper licensing, you will be asked to move.

Arrival Information

Breakfast will be served from 7:35-8:00 a.m. in the cafeteria. Students eating breakfast should enter through the front doors.

All K-5 students should be dropped off in the "drop off zone" located in the front of the school, staff will be outside to assist with arrival.

Drop off every day begins at 7:55 and ends when the tardy bell rings at 8:15. There is NO adult supervision outside of the building before 7:55 am.

Pre-K students should be escorted to and from the preschool door (#2) at 8:20 and 12:20

Dismissal Information

Students may be picked up by their designated door, if you have more than one student, pick up both students at the youngest student's designated door.

Students that ride the bus will be dismissed from the classroom at 3:00 pm

Students who walk, are picked up or go to EKC will be dismissed at 3:06 pm

Pre-K dismisses at 11:30 am and 3:30 pm (Do not arrive before these times)

Pre-k- Door #2

Kindergarten- Door #2

1st Grade- Door #1 (Front Doors)

2nd Grade- Door #1(Front Doors)

3rd Grade- Door #14 (EKC/Gym Doors)

4th Grade- Door #10 (5th Grade Door)

5th Grade- Door #10 (5th Grade Door)

The elementary school (K-5) day is from 8:15-3:06

Students who arrive late/leave early must sign in/out at the front office. When a student leaves early, a parent must come into the office to sign their child out.

At West Bay, the doors will remain locked during the school day, and all visitors will gain access using the security camera/access panel outside of the school's main entrance. The office will grant access after you do the following steps:

1. Push the button and wait for an identification request.

2. Give your name and purpose for entering the school.

3. When you hear the door unlatch, enter and proceed to the office.

4. Sign in on the visitor sheet and take a visitor badge.

There are many ways to get involved as a parent at West Bay. Please check the West Bay PTO page for volunteer sign-up opportunities.

Beginning September 3, 2024, we welcome parents to eat lunch at school with their children on special occasions. You may bring in a meal for you and your child or you are welcome to call in an adult cafeteria order by 9:00 am on the day of your visit. We have visitor seating available at lunch and our staff members are always willing to answer any questions you may have.

If your child takes medication during the school day, please complete this form and return it to the front office. If you have questions please contact Jane Greve at jgreve@epsne.org or call 402-289-9045.

Medication Authorization Form

As was shared with all families in an email from Elkhorn Public Schools in early August, information regarding the resources utilized by Elkhorn Public Schools in the event of severe weather can be found at the link below.

EPS Severe Weather Protocols - August 2024 Letter to Staff and Families

Let's flip the script - creating a sense of "JOMO (that's Joy of Missing Out) encourages students to be fully present and embrace being in the here and now! Check out Screen Sanity for more helpful tips and remember the importance of modeling being where your feet are!

TeamMates of Elkhorn is currently seeking additional mentors to fulfill our waitlist! Mentors spend 30 minutes a week building a lasting relationship, and creating a positive impact that lasts a lifetime. Please consider volunteering your time to meet the growing need for mentors across our District. Apply now by clicking here!

Additionally, visit Runza on Tuesday, September 19, and support your local chapter of TeamMates! 10% of all Runza sales at the 204th and Maple location will be donated back to our Elkhorn chapter.

Per EPS Board Policy 1006.07, District residents aged 65+ are eligible for a free activity pass which admits the holder to District-sponsored events and activities. Passes can be picked up at the EPS Central Office at 20650 Glenn St. during normal business hours. Individuals must provide a valid driver's license showing a current address of residence with EPS boundaries to receive a pass.

Dear Parents,

As we begin the new school year we wanted to give you the following information for student meals. We ask that you keep your students account funded to prevent any issues with their purchases.

Meal Information and Free/Reduced Lunch Application

EPS also partners with SchoolPay for student lunch accounts. To add funds, go to www.schoolpay.com and log into your user account. If you do not yet have a SchoolPay account, instructions to create one can be found by clicking here.

Breakfast and lunch prices for the 2024-25 school year are as follows:

Breakfast:

• Breakfast
• Elementary: $1.80
• Middle School: $2.00
• High School: $2.15
• Lunch
• Elementary: $3.00
• Middle School: $3.65
• High School: $3.85

Additionally, a free and reduced lunch application must be submitted in order to receive free/reduced meal prices and the additional benefits that can be provided to families who qualify. Instructions for completing online or hard-copy applications can be found at https://www.elkhornweb.org/parents/lunch/. A hard copy of the application can be found attached to this email. Families who qualify for free/reduced meals may also request the waiving of student fees by completing the waiver application found at https://forms.gle/b2fewM19yQH1GBeGA or hard-copy waiver forms are also available in your school’s office.

Email: ascott@epsne.org
Website: elkhornweb.org/westbay/
Location: 3220 188th Avenue, Omaha, NE, USA
Phone: 402-289-9045