Coyote Connection

• November 1-15: Spirit Wear Sale
• November 5: No School (Professional Development)
• November 5: Election Day (School is a voting site)
• November 7: STEM Family Fun Night 5:30-7:00
• November 8: Cornucopia of Cotton Candy for PTO
• November 12: PTO Meeting 4:30
• November 12: Off the Grid Food Truck (PTO Fundraiser) 4-6:30
• November 20: Popcorn Friday Money Due
• November 22: Popcorn Friday (PTO Fundraiser)
• November 25-29: No school (Thanksgiving Break)
• December 6: Family Engagement Meeting
• December 20: Krispy Kreme Dozens of Donut Sale (PTO)
• December 20: Last day of Quarter 2
• December 20: Snowball Reading for Winter Break (PTO)
• December 23 - January 3: Winter Break
• January 6: No School (Professional Development)
• January 7: School resumes

Happy November, Coyotes!

Thank you so much for your participation in our recent Parent-Teacher Conferences. It is so nice to see our community and staff coming together to discuss specific progress and making connections to support our staff-student-community relationship overall. Your engagement and support are truly appreciated. These partnerships are a strong part of our determination to achieve high levels of learning for all.

If you would like to continue taking part in our school community, feel free to join our STEM night on November 7, come to our PTO meeting on November 12th, or attend our family engagement meeting on December 6.

We have a very exciting event coming up, our STEM night. We have a great lineup of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math events to check out, booths to interact with and things to take home. We hope to see you all there!

Mr. Dahlgren

Are you looking for our assistant principal, Mrs. Carbajal? On Mondays and Wednesdays, Mrs. Carbajal will be working at Hillsdale Elementary School, but you can find her at Desert Sage on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. You can also reach her via email at carbajal.sylvie@westada.org or call the office and leave her a message.

Time to order your yearbooks! Early bird price of $20 is active until 12-20.

In November, I will be teaching personal safety in 1st and 3rd grade. Opt-out forms have been sent home. In December, I will be teaching personal safety in 5th grade. If you have a 5th grader, please look out for an opt-out form that will be sent home in the next couple of weeks. This form should only be signed and returned if you do not want your child to participate in the personal safety lesson. Please feel free to reach out at 208-350-4020 or mepham.lindsey@westada.org if you have any questions or concerns.

If you are in need of holiday resources, please contact Lindsey Mepham at 208-350-4020 or mepham.lindsey@westada.org.

We have been learning how to jump rope in PE. Kinders are learning how to jump on the balls of their feet and create a timing and the older kids are learning different skills and putting a routine together. We will move into long jump later.

PTO Thanks to You...

Thanks to everyone that was able to visit the Rusty Dog during conferences. The money from fundraisers like this help support our activities for students and staff during the year.

Please come join us...

We are looking forward to a year of fun for students and staff. We are looking to hear from parents with ideas of what they would like to see this year. We are needing help to make our ideas of fun for students and staff come to life. Our meetings are for an hour each month. We would love to have people join us. We understand if the time does not meet everyone's schedules and would still love any extra help that we can have for our events and planning. Our next meeting is November 12th at 4:30 PM. If you have any questions, please email us at desertsagepto25@gmail.com

Looking Forward...

Cornucopia of Cotton Candy with a Bonus Popcorn Sale:

November 8th after school we will be selling Cotton Candy for $2 and bags of popcorn for $0.50. We will be selling in front of the school and by the school buses. We will be accepting cash and venmo.

Spirit Wear Sale:

November 1st - November 15th we will be holding a Spiritwear Sale. Click the link and start shopping for your next shirt or hoodie to show your Desert Sage Spirit. Clothes will be delivered to your student around December 18th.

Off the Grid Pizza Food Truck:

November 12th Off the Grid Pizza Food Truck will be at the school from 4 PM - 6:30 PM. Come grab some of the yummiest pizza around. Gluten Free options are available. A portion of the sales will be returned to the PTO from the evening.

Popcorn Friday:

November 22nd is Popcorn Friday. Money will be due back Wednesday, November 20th. Each bag of popcorn is $0.50 with a limit of 2 per student. Keep an eye out for the form to come home for payment and ordering. You can also click here to access the order form here.

Know someone who should be getting our emails but hasn't signed up yet? Send them this link.

West Ada’s goal of remaining on the cutting edge of education is as strong as ever. One of the most recent examples of that is on display with the opening of the Flyers Center. Flyers is a unique facility designed to empower our youngest K-5 learners. The emphasis is on teaching these students how to correctly address the behavioral problems that are hindering their education and development. Check out the latest podcast, where we’re joined by Kelli Knowles, the Principal of Flyers Center, and Jamie Giebler, a behavior consultant in the district. These two educators are spearheading West Ada’s innovative approach to behavior and student development. To learn more about Flyers, click here To learn more about Varsity Tutors, click here To learn more about the podcast, or for past episodes click here.

• K-5 (M/T/Th/F): 8:45-9:05am*
• Wednesday K-5: 9:00-9:20am*
• AM Preschool (M-Th): 9:00am
• PM Preschool (M-Th): 12:55pm

*There is no adult supervision outside of these drop-off times. Please do not drop off students before the indicated times. Students are to go to the playground and line-up when the bell rings. If a student arrives after the drop-off times, they will need to enter through the office.

Breakfast is served starting at 8:45am every day except for Wednesdays when it is served starting at 9:00am.

All West Ada elementary schools are closed campuses, meaning parents and community members are not allowed to enter campus without checking in at the front office when students are present. Parents are asked not to access classrooms and hallways for the first two weeks of school as we build routines for students. Therefore, please be sure to drop off your child outside of the campus gates that access the playground or in front of the school.

For the elementary school bell schedule, click here: Bell schedule

Thank you for bearing with us and being patient as we work to cleanup our after-school procedures to ensure students are exiting campus safely, and are finding the appropriate adult! As you have likely noticed we have made some shifts to the parent waiting areas and have adjusted where older students exit the playground area to reduce the amount of foot traffic going through one gate. This has already helped us do a better job ensuring that our younger students are getting to their adult.

• 5th Grade will continue to exit through the West doors. They should then be walking outside to their destination (bus, bike racks, all the way around the back to parent pick-up etc.).

• 4th Grade will continue to exit through the side hallway doors (north and south) to get to where they need to be (bus, bike racks, all the way around the back to parent pickup).

• 3rd Grade will continue to walk around the back of the school to access the bike racks and bus. If they need to go to parent pick-up, they will exit through the back daycare gate.

• 2nd Grade will continue exit the East/West Hallway doors unless they need to go to the bus. They will walk through the center of the hallway to the bus doors.

• PreK-1st will continue transitioning to parent pick-up, bus, etc. with a teacher escort.

• Any older siblings will wait for/gather their younger siblings by the portables. They will then exit through the daycare gate, or back around to the other side.

• Parents of Kindergarteners and 1st Graders will wait in the designated areas by the barriers as shown in the attached picture. Parents of Preschool students will wait off to the West Side of the gate to gather your students.

Again, we thank you for your patience as we iron out this system. I know that it slows down the process of getting students to adults, but it increases the our ability to make sure students get to where they need to be safely, and safety is our priority over speed.

• All roads surrounding Desert Sage are 20 mph speed limit.
• On school grounds, speed limit is 10 mph or slower as traffic allows.
• Use the loop at the front of the school for drop-off and pick-up of students. The back of the school building is reserved for staff parking and school buses only.
• There is no double-parking or double drop-off/pick-up. Students must be dropped off and picked up at the curb. All drivers need to stay in the line and continuously pull forward so as not to leave any gaps in the line. Other cars will follow in line and move forward as the line moves.
• Do not pass other cars in drop-off/pick-up area. Please wait patiently in the line until the car ahead of you moves.
• Do not block crosswalks.
• Have student ready to exit the car immediately.
• If you need to get out of your vehicle, please park in the marked spaces in the parking lot. Do not park in the loop or in the daycare line.
• Unless your vehicle is clearly defined as being qualified to use the handicap parking, please be aware and refrain from parking or sitting in your car in these spots. Signs are posted as a reminder.
• Keep the area directly in front of the gate at parent pick-up clear so students can exit the gate and navigate to their parent/guardian.
• Please cross at the crosswalks.
• When conditions are wet/snowy/icy, please slow down and plan on additional time.
• Please refrain from using/checking your cell phone while in the drop-off/pick-up line.

We appreciate your help in keeping our students safe!

If you are visiting the school during school hours (including the playground), volunteering in a classroom, or picking up your child before the school day ends, you must enter through the front doors and check in with the office. When checking in, you will be required to show photo identification (Driver's License or state-issued photo id). As part of our visitor check-in procedures, office staff will need to scan your id.

We also want to make all of our families aware that pets are not allowed on campus when students are present.

Thank you for helping us keep our students safe!

Before volunteering, we kindly ask that you read the volunteer handbook and complete all forms. Even if you have completed this process last year, volunteer forms need to be updated every school year. You can stop by the office to complete the forms or download the forms below and submit them to the office once completed. Thank you for your patience and cooperation!

• 23-24 Volunteer Handbook Just need to read
• Volunteer Application Requires signature
• Volunteer Disclosure Statement Requires Signature
• Volunteer Acknowledgment Statement Requires signature

If your child will be absent from school, we ask that you please call our attendance line at (208) 350-4021 by 9:30am and leave a message with your child's name, date(s) of absence, and reason for absence.

If, on a particular day, there is a change from how your child typically gets home, please notify the office before 3:00pm at (208) 350-4020. We will make sure to get a message/reminder to your child before the day ends. Please don't only notify the teacher.

Website: https://www.westada.org/desertsage
Location: 9325 West Mossywood Drive, Boise, ID, USA
Phone: (208) 350-4020
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/desertsageelementary/