Starr Family News

Families and Students,

We are so excited to be back with your children! We will be reviewing procedures and expectations with everyone, and then we will get right back into learning and growing!

For parents this month, we have an exciting opportunity for you to be a part of a virtual workshop with one of our TBRI trainers, Jessie Hyde! Jessie has been working with the Central Office, principals, teachers, and staff as we learn all about TBRI and how it can help us relate better with our students. Now she is making herself available to work with you! For more information,, please see the flyer later on in this newsletter.

I also wanted to remind you about our school goals this year. One of our goals is to raise our school attendance. Every time a class has all of their students there, the class earns a letter. Once the class builds that word, they all get a special treat! We have several classes working through our words and have had fun celebrations! You can help classes earn letters just by sending your child to school every day, even if you are late! Students with perfect attendance for the whole month will get a special dog tag to collect each month. We can't do this without parental help, so any child with perfect monthly attendance is also entered in a drawing to win a Family Fun Basket! This month's basket theme is Family Game Night! I can't wait to see who wins it!

As always, I am here for you. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. I am deeply proud to serve our students and families, and I look forward to another strong semester of communication, partnership, and growth!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Melissa Jordan

Principal

MelissaH@rcs.k12.in.us

765-973-3426

Be sure to follow us on Parentsquare and Facebook, and watch for information on your child's Class Dojo page to stay up to date on all information.

We are extremely proud to share our Perfect Attendance kiddos for the month of November These kids were at school every day, on time! Attendance is so important, and these kids are rocking it! Thank you, parents, for helping them make their goal! Remember, our school goal for attendance is 95%!

• January 6th - Students return to school
• January 9th and 16th - Virtual TBRI Parent Workshop (5:30 - 7:30)
• January 10th - Report Cards mailed home
• January 20th - MLK Day - No School / Snow Make-up Day
• January 23rd - District Spelling Bee @ Civic Hall
• February 14th - Teacher Work Day - No School for Students
• February 17th - President's Day - No School / Snow Make-up Day

There is a good chance of us getting some severe winter weather this month. Please pay attention to forecasts, radios, Facebook and ParentSquare for updates. These are your best sources for the most up-to-date information. Making sure that the school has your current contact information is extremely important to make sure you are aware of schedule changes. We do not want any children out unnecessarily.

If there is a delay do not send students at normal times. Everything operates 2 hours later. For example, if the doors normally open at 7:30, they will open at 9:30 on a delay day. Dismissal times are normal, unless it is a Tuesday. If there is a delay on a Tuesday, students will NOT dismiss early.

If school is closed, procedures will depend on the following:
*Snow Day #1 will be a built-in snow day, and students will be in session on January 20.

*Snow Day #2 will be a built-in snow day, and students will be in session on February 17.

*Any Snow Days after these two will require students to log into Canvas to do their work.

For more information about these days, please see the links below:

• eLearning Day Parent FAQ sheet English
• eLearning Day Parent FAQ sheet Spanish

TBRI (Trust Based Relational Intervention) is an attachment-based, trauma-informed intervention that is designed to meet the complex needs of vulnerable children. TBRI® uses Empowering Principles to address physical needs, Connecting Principles for attachment needs, and Correcting Principles to disarm fear-based behaviors. While the intervention is based on years of attachment, sensory processing, and neuroscience research, the heartbeat of TBRI® is connection.

All RCS schools are using these strategies to better understand and meet the needs of our students, there are wonderful components for parents, as well! This virtual workshop is a great way to learn about these strategies and strengthen the connections with your child.

If you need to make a change to how your child is going home, please make sure you contact the front office at (765) 973-3426 BEFORE 1:30. We cannot guarantee changes made after that time. Also, if you need to pick up your child before dismissal, you must let the office know in advance. We will not dismiss students before dismissal without prior authorization. This is for the safety of all of our students. Thank you!

All of these students were the top spellers in their classroom bees and represented their classes in the Starr Spelling Bee. They all did a wonderful job!

Our top three students will represent Starr at the District Spelling Bee on January 23rd. They are Abby Waddell (1st), Danika Martin (2nd), and Bethel Ekwealor (3rd). These three are spelling superstars!

A new attendance law has been passed by Indiana lawmakers. Our school system is required, BY LAW, to follow the policy. Please make sure your child is at school every day unless they are sick.

https://4.files.edl.io/bfbf/06/30/21/134907-9a5e3d3c-b098-49a5-aaff-01579b07b734.pdf

Email: MelissaH@rcs.k12.in.us
Website: https://starr.werrichmond.com
Location: 301 North 19th Street, Richmond, IN, USA
Phone: (765) 973-3426
Facebook: www.facebook.com/starrcoyotes
Twitter: @StarrCoyotes