The Falcon Flash

Dear Skamania Families,

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you for your generous participation in this year’s Penny Wars! Thanks to your support, we raised over $900 to provide Thanksgiving baskets for Skamania families in need. Your kindness made a significant impact, and we are thrilled to share that we even had some funds left over, which will be used to purchase Christmas gifts for students on our giving tree.

This holiday season, we have a Giving Tree set up in our foyer with ornaments featuring the age, clothing and shoe sizes, and some of the needs and wants of our students and their siblings. Although we have some Penny Wars funds left, we need our community's help to fulfill each child's list. If you’d like to sponsor a child, simply take an ornament from the tree and use the details to shop for gifts. Please return your purchased items by Tuesday, December 17. There’s no need to wrap the gifts—just bring them as they are. Your generosity will help make a child’s Christmas brighter!

As we head into December, we have some exciting events coming up. On December 7th, students in grades 3-8 will perform at Skamania Lodge at 4:00 PM, and we ask that families arrive by 3:50 PM to get settled.

On December 10th, we will host our Annual Winter Concert at 6:30 PM, where all grade levels will showcase their musical talents. It’s sure to be a festive and memorable evening for our school community. The PTO will also be having a Bake Sale at the concert - take a peek below!

Then, we look forward to the start of Winter Break, which will run from December 23rd through January 3rd. We wish all of our families a warm and relaxing winter break, and we can’t wait to see you in the new year!

I also want to give a reminder to sign up for ParentSquare and make sure your notification settings are set to your preference. If you’ve already registered, please take a moment to confirm that your notifications are adjusted the way you want them. If you have selected “Digest” notifications, you will only receive a daily recap instead of instant updates.

For urgent matters, such as bus changes or inclement weather, we send out immediate notifications via ParentSquare and post updates on our Skamania School Facebook page. To ensure you're always in the loop, we recommend selecting "Instant" notifications so you can receive real-time alerts on important updates.

If you need any assistance setting up or adjusting your ParentSquare notifications, please don’t hesitate to contact the school office. We’re here to help!

Thank you again for all your support this year. We appreciate the sense of community and generosity that makes our school such a special place. Have a wonderful holiday season!

Warmly,

Katie Chavarria

Principal

December 7

4:00 PM

Grades 3-8 Performance @ Skamania Lodge

Please arrive at 3:50.

December 10

6:30 PM

Annual Winter Concert (All Grades)

Please arrive by 6:25.

December 23 - January 3

Winter Break

January 20

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - NO SCHOOL

Skamania School is excited to announce our December Reading Challenge! For every book students read, they will receive a light bulb to add to our Reading Tree. If the entire school reaches 300 books by December 20th (the last day before winter break), we’ll celebrate with a winter movie and pajama day! This challenge includes books read independently or together as a family. Let’s read, read, read, and earn a cozy PJ Day!

The holidays and winter months can bring great times and wonderful memories but they are also hard for many individuals and families. If you find that you, or your child, are in need of some extra support please reach out and ask for help by emailing me at tstinchfield@skamania.k12.wa.us. I can connect you to resources such as:

• Parent Connext: One-on-one parent coaching on Zoom with highly trained parent coaches. They can help with parenting challenges including issues with behavior, anxiousness, big emotions, ADHD, parent stress sleep, mood/depression, school, divorce and co-parenting.
• Individual and/or family counseling: this can take place right at the Skamania school!
• Food and financial assistance and more!

November's character trait of the month was kindness! Kindness is about being considerate, compassionate, and showing care for others through both words and actions. Throughout the month, our teachers focused on fostering kindness in the classroom, encouraging students to support one another and create a positive, welcoming environment. We are excited to recognize students who consistently went out of their way to spread kindness. Below, we proudly highlight one exceptional student from each class who demonstrated outstanding kindness to their peers and teachers. Congratulations to these wonderful individuals!

TK/K - Atlas W.

1/2 - Alijah M.

3rd - Piper M.

4th - Elydia R.

5/6 - Isaiah P.

7/8 - Marcello P.

• Report cards are in the mail and should arrive shortly. Please contact your child's teacher with any questions once you receive them.

• Attention bus riders: If your child rides the bus daily and you intend to pick them up instead, please inform the office as early as possible. We maintain a daily waiting list for families who wish to use the bus when space is available. Early notification allows us to offer these openings to other families who are waiting.

• Please dress your child for the weather. We nearly always go outside - rain or shine. Also, please remember to wear PE-appropriate shoes on PE days (every day but Wednesday and other early dismissal days.)

• Please contact the office if your child is supposed to ride the bus home with another student or get off at another student's stop. We do not have much (if any) extra room on the bus for additional riders. We also like to hear from a parent on both sides to make sure everyone is on the same page.

• Cell phones must remain in backpacks during the school day. Phones that are taken out will be held in the office until the end of the day.

• Gum is not allowed at school. Please help to remind your child of this policy.

• During school hours, please avoid parking in the staff parking lot on the side of the building.

• If your child arrives after 8:00, an adult must walk him or her into the office and sign in.

• If your child will be absent, please call or email the school to let us know.

Jessica Shumway

TK/K Teacher

Hello! I am Jessica Shumway. This is my fourth year teaching TK/K at Skamania School. Before coming here I had several years of experience working in schools, daycares, and nature schools in both Wyoming and Washington. I love teaching TK & Kindergarten because the littles are naturally so inquisitive, and we truly do get to have the most fun while we learn. Besides teaching, spending time outside and learning about nature is a passion. You can often find me rockhounding by the river, walking with my husband and dogs in the forest, or taking my Jeep up the mountain to find some mud or snow to play in. During the summer I work for Skamania County's Forest Youth Success, as a program coordinator and crew lead, guiding a crew of local teenangers in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest to complete USFS projects that benefit the beautiful natural areas of our community. I am always thankful to live and work in such a wonderful place.

We are excited to announce 2 events before the winter break.

1. The Skamania PTO is hosting a Bake Sale fundraiser in the multipurpose room at Skamania School, just before the winter concert December 10th, 2024 at 6pm.

We’ll have an assortment of homemade goodies for sale, from cookies and cupcakes to brownies and pies. It’s the perfect opportunity to satisfy your sweet tooth while helping us reach our fundraising goal.

How you can help:

Come shop! Bring your family and friends and purchase some tasty treats. Every dollar raised goes directly to supporting our little PTO.

2. Do you have toys that your kids have outgrown or no longer play with? Do you want to give them a new home while scoring some “new-to-you” toys? Join us for the Skamania School Toy Swap! on December 13th It’s a fun, eco-friendly way to refresh your child’s toy collection while saving money and reducing waste.

How it works:

This is a fantastic way to refresh your home’s toy box while giving back to those in need. It’s a win-win!

We hope to see you there! Let’s make these events full of joy, community, and fun!

As always, Thank you for your support and hope everyone has happy holidays!