Warrior News

Wow! How are we already in September and through 4 weeks of school?! Teachers have been busy teaching the expectations for all of the different areas around the school. We are finishing up beginning of the year assessments to see what students know and are able to do and teachers are using that information to make sure they are providing the best instruction to all students.

We are so excited for all of the events coming up in September, from Grandparents Day on Monday to our Family Fun Night next Thursday and everything else in between. PTO has also set up a spirit wear store so you can sport some Whitson gear - that shop will close on September 15th so get your orders in! More details are below.

There is a lot of information in this first newsletter so please read through it carefully so you know what's going on at Whitson and what is coming up. Happy September!

The home-school partnership is so important to everything we are able to do at Whitson. We want to be sure that you are aware of upcoming events and get to stay up-to-date on what students are doing and learning in their classrooms. As a school, we connect with you through:

• Facebook
• Emails
• Texts*
• Synergy
• The Whitson Website

*To receive texts from us, you have to opt-in. Text "Y" or "Yes" to the number 67587.

We try to make our monthly newsletter easy to read. Each month, you will see the following sections:

• The Latest at Whitson - This is where you will see all the fun things that have been going on around the school, including pictures and a note from the principal.
• Upcoming Events - In this section, we will highlight 3-6 upcoming events and have the full schedule for the current and upcoming months available.
• Important Updates and Information - Anything that is critical for you to see will be in this section. We will work hard to ensure that this section is only NEW information - this section is a MUST READ!
• Library News - When there is important information from Mrs. Schwinn, it will be in this section.
• PE - When there is important information from Ms. G, it will be in this section.
• Spanish Enrichment - When there is important information from Mrs. Parra, it will be in this section.
• How We Do School at Whitson - This section will highlight our Ci3T (Comprehensive, Integrated, 3-Tiered Model of Support) plan, including the Warrior Way and our PRICE language.
• From the District - In this section, you will find important information from the district that we think you should know.
• Grade Level Newsletters - Each grade level creates a monthly newsletter with information specific to their grade. These will be linked here for another easy access point.
• Reminders - Here you will find important reminders that we still want you to have access to. These items will likely first appear in the Important Updates and Information section and will move here if they are a repeat, but we still feel it is important for you to know.
• Get Connected - This section will give you all of the ways you can get connected to what we are doing at Whitson, from more about PTO, the TPS app, the Here Comes the Bus app, our Facebook page, and contact information.

We are excited to provide meals to all TPS students free of charge for the 2024-2025 school year!

Families are still encouraged to complete the Free & Reduced Meal Application, as this information is vital for the district to receive funding for many programs, technology, and more to ensure student success.

Families may qualify for reduced textbook fees and free or reduced-cost internet from Cox Communications. Complete the application at topekapublicschools.net.

Get your Whitson gear here!

Thank you to our PTO for setting this up and making it happen!

Once again, Advisor's Excel made a generous donation to Whitson and we have lots of fidgets and kick bands for desk because we know students often need to move while they're learning. We are so grateful for their partnership and continued generosity!

Once again, Whitson received a generous donation of school supplies from St. David's Episcopal Church. Their support ensures that every Warrior has what they need for a great school year! Thank you to their congregation for their generosity!

Thanks to a Whitson parent and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, we had an incredibly generous donation of paper and ink pens! If you know education, you know those are things we go through a lot of and we are so grateful to them for their generosity!

Students reaching for the stars! Whitson Elementary School students watched NASA astronauts answer their questions.. from space! Thanks to Mrs. Barb Wright, our awesome teacher and aviation club mentor, for helping make this amazing experience happen! You can rewatch the livestream here.

📸: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBEcoZ

We know that each grade level can look different here at school so we created quick guides for you to know what to expect from each grade level. They include what your students will be learning as big topics, what makes each grade level unique, how each grade level will communicate, and any big events you should know about.

We are working hard on making sure we know what students know and are able to do so that we can ensure we are best meeting their needs. Two of the ways we do this are through FastBridge and MAP. See more details below:

FastBridge Testing: Students are screened three times per year to assess their progress in reading. Our FastBridge testing team has been working hard to get all students assessed in reading the month of August. This will allow us to to differentiate their reading intervention time and set goals for progress!

MAP: Students take the MAP Growth assessment three times per year to find their just right level of learning for both reading and math. This tool also allows us to see how much a student is growing compared to same-age peers nationally that start with the same scores they do, which really helps us adjust what we are doing if we need to.

MAP and FastBridge data will be shared with parents during Fall Conferences, but you are always welcome to ask your child's teacher for results.

The after school program that we have been able to offer the past few school years was funded by the ESSER dollars given to schools after the COVID pandemic. Those funds have now expired so, at this time, we will not be offering any after school programming this year. If anything changes, we will be sure to let you all know!

• September 2: NO SCHOOL, Labor Day
• September 5: Papa John's Night
• September 9: Grandparent's Day Event
• September 10: Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) Meeting, 6:00
• September 11-12: Hearing and Vision Screenings
• September 12: Family Title I Game Night
• September 17: Constitution Day
• September 17: Geography Bee Tryouts, 8:10 OR 3:40
• September 18: Family Fitness Night at Hummer Sports Park, 5:00-7:00
• September 23: NO SCHOOL
• September 24: Whitson Night at Chick-Fil-A
• September 27: Field Day

• October 1: Picture Day
• October 3: Papa John's Night
• October 4: Field Day Make-Up
• October 7-11: Spirit Week
• October 7: Grace Med Dental
• October 7: PTO Fundraiser Begins (more to come)
• October 8: SPMT, 4:00
• October 10: PK-2 Breakfast With Buddies, 7:45-8:30
• October 10: PTO, 6:00
• October 11: Last day of Quarter 1
• October 14: NO SCHOOL, Teacher Planning and Prep Day
• October 15: NO SCHOOL, Teacher Professional Development Day
• October 21-24: Book Fair
• October 22: Last day of PTO Fundraiser
• October 22: Whitson Night at Chipotle
• October 23-24: Parent/Teacher Conferences
• October 24-25: NO SCHOOL
• October 29: PTO Fundraiser Pick-up
• October 31: Halloween Parties, 2:30-3:30

Want all of these dates easily accessible and to be able to check if anything changes? Access our school calendar on the Whitson website! There, you can add the calendar to your own or even sign up for email alerts if something changes using the menu with the < sign above Saturday!

Please help us welcome our new staff! We are so excited they chose to be Warriors!

All school fees have been assessed in MySchoolBucks. You can pay with cash or check in the office. To pay with a credit card, you must set up a MySchoolBucks account. There are no credit card fees charged to pay by card so whatever your fees say you owe is what you will pay. For step-by-step directions to set up a MySchoolBucks account and pay fees online, please follow the directions below.

Dear TPS Staff & Families:

Thank you for helping us kick off another great school year! TPS Transportation and Kansas Central have collaborated this week to ensure all routes have been completed and bus routes are now available to families in your Synergy ParentVue account.

Below are detailed instructions to view the route in ParentVue.

1. Please login at our district's new SynergyParentVue portal from an internet browser (Chrome, Safari, etc.) on your computer or mobile device. THIS INFORMATION CAN NOT BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE PARENTVUE APP AT THIS TIME. If you are in need of assistance logging in to your ParentVue account, please contact Information Technology at 785-438-4750 or sishelp@tps501.org.

2. Once you have logged in, if you are on a computer, click on the ParentVue tab at the top of your screen. If you are on a mobile device, click on the Home tab at the top of your screen.

3. Click on the Student Info button from your computer or mobile device.

4. If bussing information is available for your student, it will be listed under the Bus Information heading at the bottom of the Student Information page.

5. Routes are currently posted for many families, and additional routes will be posted to Synergy over the weekend for families who have new routing information or signed up after the first day of school. Please note that students must be at least 1.75 miles from their home school address to receive free transportation. The eligibility for bus services is determined by the student's home address, not a relative or a daycare provider.

6. If you have any additional questions on transportation and bus routes, please contact our Transportation Call Center at 785-295-3928, 785-295-3979, or 785-295-3904.

7. If your student receives transportation through the district and not Kansas Central, you will receive a separate email from TPS Transportation if and when changes occur.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we work to ensure a smoother experience for all families for the first full week of school.

Please see the document below to learn all about the crisis drills we do at Whitson so that we are prepared in the case of emergency. These drills are mandated for us to do by the state of Kansas.

Drills for this month*:

• September 10: Secure Campus
• September 19: Fire Drill

*Drill dates are subject to change based on weather or other factors.

We are very lucky that we got a new resource - Character Strong - to help teach Warriors how to be aware of their feelings and how to become "purposefull people." This program is filled with resources that we think will better connect with students AND also includes monthly newsletters that we can share with you at home to keep the learning going. The first month, we are focused on RESPECT. Check out this video and the family newsletter to understand what we mean when we say that.

At Whitson, we practice the Warrior Way at all times, which is:

• Self-Awareness
• Compassion
• Respect
• Responsibility

The Warrior Way helps us make good choices with our behavior and show kindness to others. This month and next our focus is on SELF-AWARENESS. Check out the picture below to see all the ways we show self-awareness at school and talk with your Warrior about how you can show self-awareness at home or out in public.

In addition to the Warrior Way, at Whitson, we also believe our learning is P.R.I.C.E.less, which stands for

• P - Perseverance
• R - Reflection
• I - Innovation
• C - Curiosity
• E - Embrace the Challenge

Our P.R.I.C.E. language describes how we learn at Whitson. This month and next we are focusing on PERSEVERANCE. Look below for what we expect from our Warriors when persevering. Then, talk with your Warrior about times you have had to persevere.

Kindergarten:

• Learning about greetings and colors. Aprendemos sobre los saludos y los colores.

1st - 5th grades:

• How do we greet and introduce ourselves to others? ¿Cómo saludamos y nos presentamos a otras personas?
• Students will learn and practice different forms of greetings and introductions in Spanish and they will identify themselves and others in Spanish.

Click the link below to view the calendar in both English and Spanish for the 2024-2025 school year.

The Whitson PTO needs you! Please consider attending our upcoming PTO Meeting on Tuesday, September 10th at 6pm in person or via Zoom to be informed on changes for the school year and to help set direction for how PTO funds get used. We need your input to plan events, raise funds and invest resources where it will make the biggest impact on your children here at Whitson. We can only do this by collaborating with school staff and getting input from parents and family members like you! Please contact ptowhitson@gmail.com at any time with feedback and ideas.

Thank you,

Whitson PTO

President: Taylor Phelps

Vice President: Elizabeth Miller

Secretary: Katherine Phelps

Treasurer: Helen Swan

Email: kpierce@tps501.org
Website: https://whitson.topekapublicschools.net/
Location: 1725 Southwest Arnold Avenue, Topeka, KS, USA
Phone: 785-438-4570
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whitsontps