Park Avenue Post

I'm pleased to let you know that I will be joining the Park Avenue students and families in the Columbus Day Parade TOMORROW (10/13). I invite our families to join us as we march in celebration through Port Chester.

The Columbus Day Parade will be held tomorrow, Sunday, 10/13 (Rain Date 10/20). Line up begins at 1:30 at Hawthorne Ave & Westchester Avenue, parade begins at 2:00. Route ends at Neri’s parking lot. Students who would like to march should arrive at 1:30, wearing a Park Avenue or red shirt. All children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

I'm pleased to let our school community know that we will be holding our first Halloween Parade in a long time at Park Avenue School!!! The plan is for students to get dressed in their costumes starting at around 1:15pm. Class parents (ONLY) will come to the school to help students get into their costumes along with teachers. The goal will be to start the parade around 1:45pm with grades K-2 leading the parade. The viewing time of the parade will be between 1:45-2:00pm so please don't be late as it will be quick.

The rules for costumes:

• ABSOLUTELY NO MASKS / FACE PAINTING
• NO WEAPONS, OR ANYTHING RESEMBLING A WEAPON, OF ANY SORT
• PLEASE KEEP COSTUMES APPROPRIATE FOR AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. PLEASE AVOID REVEALING OR VERY SCARY COSTUMES. INFLATABLE COSTUMES ALSO PRESENT CHALLENGES AS THEY RESTRICT MOVEMENT. (If you have questions, please call us in advance)
• COSTUMES MUST BE EASY TO PUT ON AS THE ADULTS WILL HAVE TO HELP UPWARDS OF 20 STUDENTS TO GET DRESSED IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.

Parents will be welcome to join us for the parade on the front lawn only. To attend, please be aware that there will be NO PARKING on Park Avenue during the event. We will have two police officers providing us support this day with traffic and security. Parents may not stop the parade or pull their children out of the parade at any time. The parade will begin on our back playground, exit on the College Avenue side of the school, follow the sidewalk around and in front of the school on Park Avenue and then students will re-enter the school on the Columbus Avenue side of the school. We ask that parents join us in front of the school on the grass (NOT BLOCKING THE SIDEWALK).

Please be reassured that any students/families that do not celebrate Halloween or do not wish to participate will be offered other activities that respects their wishes.

In an effort to ensure that ALL of our students have the opportunity to wear a costume this Halloween, we will be collecting used Halloween costumes at Park Avenue. There will be a bin outside the main entrance for donations. Please ensure that costumes are clean and bagged/organized in a way that keeps all items for the costume together.

Please join us for our Halloween Dance on Friday October 25th

Location: Park Avenue School Gymnasium

Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade dance is from 5:30-7:00 pm

Grades 3, 4, and 5 dance is from 7:30 - 9:00 pm.

THE PTO NEEDS PARENTS' HELP TO MAKE THIS SUCCESSFUL. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VOLUNTEER.

PLEASE CLICK HERE for the Virtual Principal Coffee schedule and link. This month, AP Elsy Gonzalez will be joining us to conduct a coffee chat in Spanish while I conduct the conversation in English. All are welcome!

Our lost and found box is full and we would like to reunite all of the wonderful jackets, water bottles, and other items with their owners. In the coming days, we will be placing items on tables outside the front door at dismissal time. Please spend some time reviewing the lost and found so that you can help your children to find their lost items!

Over the last few weeks, I have been watching afternoon dismissal to see what changes/improvements could be made. I would like to tighten up our procedures to ensure the safety of our children as we release them at the end of the day. To be successful, I need you help.

In the coming days, we will be sending home bright yellow PICKUP/REUNIFICATION CARDS (see photo above) to all families at Park Avenue Elementary. When you receive these yellow cards, there are THREE duplicate cards on one sheet of paper. Please cut them into three separate cards. One can be kept by each parent/guardian, one can be shared with a babysitter or grandparent doing pickup, and one should be saved at home for an emergency.

These cards are to be used at dismissal for easy identification of the adult making the pickup of our students. If you pickup your child at the doors, you would simply flash the yellow card to the teacher, substitute, or aide helping at dismissal. If you do car pickup, please keep the card in your car on the dashboard or behind the visor.

While many teachers may have already learned your faces, there could be instances where there is a substitute teacher or other adult who is not familiar with the adults doing pickup. Also, we have situations where babysitters are picking up many students from various families. These adults should be given one of these yellow cards.

The cards will also serve a second VERY IMPORTANT use. In an emergency, these cards would be used to help us to reunify students with their families. Please keep one of the yellow cards at home in a safe space. In an emergency such as a lockdown, fire, or other event, we would ask parents to bring these cards to help streamline the release of students to their trusted adults.

By now, you've likely seen Officer Ochoa walking around at Park Avenue. Officer Ochoa will be present in all of our elementary schools. The SRO (School Resource Officer) initiative aims to build a positive rapport within our school community, fostering safety and trust between our police department and our students, families, and educators.

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We recognize the importance of familiarizing everyone with Officer Ochoa, who has a compelling personal story of perseverance that has already inspired many. I encourage you to welcome him, shake his hand, and get to know the person behind the uniform.

Click here to read a letter from Officer Ochoa to students, staff and families. For the Spanish version of the letter, click here.

Park Avenue will continue its Veteran's Day celebration tradition this year. Our 5th graders will be hosting a Veteran’s Day Remembrance Ceremony as part of their service learning project. This ceremony will honor Veterans and Active Military connected to our Park Avenue School families. We will invite these heroes to participate in a tribute to their bravery and service. Each Veteran or Active Military person will be recognized with a medal of honor. Also History books for the Park Avenue Library will also be dedicated to recent Veterans who have passed on. Please join us!

*If you have a family member or friend who is a veteran or active please invite them to our ceremony. Your child will escort your family member or friend to the flagpole to be honored at a reception. Refreshments offered afterward.

Who: Veterans or Active Military and Park Ave. family members

Date: Friday, November 8, 2024

Place: Park Avenue Flagpole

Time: 10:00am

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR A LETTER OF INVITATION IN ENGLISH/SPANISH

Picture Retake for INDIVIDUAL photo retakes will be on Tuesday, November 12. Please mark your calendars. You should be able to review your child's photo in advance of that date and only students who wish to retake their individual photos will have the opportunity on 11/12/24.

If you would like to order online, please CLICK HERE and enter the code: PARKAVE24

If you have questions about the SET program, Please contact Rebecca Drago at

Rebecca_drago@ryecountryday.org

or call (914) 925-4792

The PTO is actively seeking volunteers for various activities and events that they are hosting this year. IF you can, please consider volunteering to help make this a fantastic year! CLICK HERE for the sign up link. Thank you!

There are a lot of great things coming up! Please mark your calendars:

Here are some upcoming highlights:

• Thursday and Friday, October 17 & 18 - PTO Pumpkin Patch Sale
  

• Saturday, October 19 - Trunk or Treat at Park Ave

• Tuesday, October 22 - PAS Kindergarten Field Trip to Stuart Farm

• Friday, October 25 - Halloween Dance

• Thursday, October 31 - Halloween Parade and Class Parties at Park (1:45-2:50pm)

• Friday, November 1 - 5th Grade field trip to Westchester Community College

• Tuesday, November 5 - Election Day / Supt. Conference Day (NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS)

• Thursday, November 7 - Tentative First Grade Field Trip to Muscoot Farms

• Friday, November 8 - Veteran's Day Celebration at Park Avenue

• Tuesday, November 12 - Picture Retake Day & PTO Meeting

• Wednesday, November 13 - Parent/Teacher Conferences (Noon Dismissal)

• Wednesday, November 27 - PAS Thanksgiving Breakfast (EARLY DISMISSAL)

• Thursday/Friday, November 28&29 - No School for THANKSGIVING

Open Door provides excellent, accessible, and personalized healthcare regardless of the ability to pay to build healthier families and communities. Inside Park Elementary is Open Door’s School-Based Health Center. It is a doctor’s office located on school property that provides a full range of accessible and friendly primary health care services to students.

Any child attending a district is able to visit any SBHC location within that district. One-time Parental consent is required. The SBHC can be your child’s primary care provider (PCP), however student’s that already have one can still use the SBHC services for sick and intermittent care. Each year the student will have an annual health check to keep care up to date.

For an appointment call: 914-934-2183. Para hacer una cita, llame al 914-934-2183.

To enroll in the SBHC, click:

https://opendoormedical.medforward.com/FillOutForm.aspx?formname=sbhc_consent_form_port_chester

https://opendoormedical.medforward.com/FillOutForm.aspx?formname=sbhc_consent_form_port_chester__spanish_

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The Port Chester School District's mission is to develop responsible and self-sufficient citizens who value cultural diversity, are creative and adaptable, and have the skills to think critically, communicate effectively, and continue growing individually.

The district's vision is "SUCCESS FOR EVERY STUDENT".

• Email: cdreves@portchesterschools.org
• Website: https://www.portchesterschools.org/pas/home
• Location: Park Avenue, Port Chester, NY 10573
• Phone: 914-934-7895
• Twitter: @craigdreves