Details for Dragons

Welcome to our new and returning Mason families! We are so excited to welcome you to the 2023-2024 school year. Our staff and teachers have been working hard to prepare to make this year the best one yet here at Mason. The Student Support Team is comprised of the Counselor, the Family and Community Specialist, the School Nurse, the Social Worker. We're here to support the emotional, social, mental health, health, and academic development of our Scholars. Please reach out to our team with any concerns. We're excited to serve and partner with you and your Scholars this year.

Mr. Scherck, counselor, and Mrs. Krumsieg, social worker, work together to provided classroom social emotional learning (SEL) throughout the year. We aim to provide students tools to identify emotions, learn coping skills, build character development, and learn about restorative practices. This year, the district is using a SEL curriculum called RethinkEd. We'll be introducing this to students over the next month and teachers will support by providing weekly SEL lessons. Look for more information in future newsletters.

Welcome to the new school year! Please be sure to contact Nurse Tina if your student's immunizations are not up to date. If your student needs any medications while at school, please bring it to school with a doctor's note. Students are not allowed to carry their own medication in the building. As a reminder, if your child is sick and exhibiting any potential signs of COVID to please keep them home and consult your healthcare professional if the symptoms worsen.

Similar to past years, Mrs. Krumsieg, the School Social Worker, will be leading a group for kids who have experienced grief and the loss of a loved one. The group is based on curriculum from the organization Annie's Hope. If you are interested in your student participating in this support group, please fill out this form. I will follow-up once I've gained interest. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at patricia.krumsieg@slps.org or 314-645-1201. Thanks!

https://forms.gle/mntwHQrvAhwMfoqe9

The app called "Here Comes the Bus" is a great tool for families to use to help track their student's bus. You can download the app to your mobile device. Here's a link to the website to learn more:

https://help.herecomesthebus.com/en/support/home

Ms. Sissy Goff is a therapist in Nashville, TN. She shared this art therapy project to do with kids who are experiencing some type of transition, such as the start of a new school year.

1. Have them draw a picture of a bridge.

2. On one side of the bridge, have them draw what last year was like for them. They can use certain colors. They can draw people or objects that represent 3 things that were important to them about last year.

3. On the other side of the bridge, have them draw things that they know or believe will be true about the upcoming year. Again, it can include people, activities, even what they hope the year will hold for them.

4. On the bridge, have them write different things they want to carry over from one year to the next.

You can make this as simple or complicated as your child can understand. There could be things in the water under the bridge that they hope will wash away from last year. Regardless of the detail, it can create some more insightful conversations and intentional thought about this important time of transition.

MOST 529 September 14th

Join College Kids and Lindsay Tobin Thursday, September 14th @ 6pm! This session will provide a general overview of the MOST 529 Education Plan and help interested individuals learn about ways to save for education expenses and federal and state tax incentives. For additional information please contact Barbara Davis at 314-612-1686.

Register in advance for this meeting here!

Parents and Educators You’re invited!

Our Office of Financial Empowerment offers FREE financial services that are available to the College Kids families and the general public. Services include free credit and money management workshops and one-on-one credit counseling that helps identify issues, raise credit scores, get out of debt and reach financial goals. We also offer presentations on multiple topics such MOST 529, student loan forgiveness, taxes, retirement, wills, mortgages, child support and much more. Students can earn a $5 incentive when a parent/guardian schedules and attends a financial coaching session or workshop with our Financial Wellbeing Coach, Reginald Garth. Mr. Garth can be reached at 314-613-3196 or reginald.garth@operationhope.org. Schedule an appointment today: https://calendly.com/reginald-garth

Upcoming FREE classes from the Office of Financial Empowerment

Mission - The mission of College Kids is to improve college access and attainment among youth, increase assets for low-to-moderate income families living within the city, and promote the use of safe and affordable mainstream financial services and products among students and their families.

Website: https://www.slps.org/Domain/1139
Location: 6031 Southwest Avenue, St. Louis, MO, USA
Phone: 314-645-1201