Mable Woolsey Vision Statement: We will build a nurturing community of life long learners while fostering opportunities for social, emotional, and academic growth to ensure that we help create productive members of society.

Mable Woolsey Mission Statement: We will provide a safe and stimulating environment. We will nurture a rigorous and adaptive learning community. We will support a child's natural desire to learn. We will inspire students to discover their fullest potential.

WE ARE KNOXVILLE...educating all students to be productive, involved members of our society

I am excited to announce that our school has been awarded a $2,000 grant through the Youth Empowerment Services (YES) initiative! I applied for this funding to support our Character Strong SEL curriculum by adding mentor texts and other essential materials that will enrich our students' social and emotional learning experiences.

YES, funded by the Illinois Children’s Healthcare Foundation and the Children’s Mental Health Initiative 3.0, focuses on serving youth ages 0-21 and their families, providing a collaborative, "no wrong door" approach to connect them with local resources. Over the last 3 1/2 years, YES has awarded over $150,000 in direct support to schools across Knox, Warren, and Henderson Counties, with a priority on sustaining mental health resources in schools—particularly for elementary counselors and school-based therapists.

I’m so grateful for this opportunity to strengthen our SEL initiative and further support our students in growing into kind, respectful, and emotionally resilient individuals. Thank you to YES for helping us build a stronger foundation for our school community!

At Mable Woolsey Elementary School, we are committed to recognizing the outstanding efforts of our dedicated staff members who continually go above and beyond for our students. Your nominations help us celebrate and acknowledge the exceptional contributions of our team. Please take a moment to nominate a staff member whom you believe exemplifies our school's values and dedication to student success.

Nomination Link

Congratulations to our Staff Shining Star nominees for the Remainder of October!

Teachers received a nomination certificate, a gold star for their shirt, and a star-shaped stress ball.
A big thank you to the families who nominated staff members last week!

Our District-Wide Social-Emotional program, Character Strong, is an evidence-based, multi-tiered solution designed to support whole child success. Integrated into morning meeting lessons, Character Strong helps build a sense of community while developing essential life skills.

The aim of education is to prepare young people for success in all areas of life, including academic growth, college and career readiness, and overall life satisfaction. To achieve these goals, Character Strong focuses on three foundational outcomes:

A Sense of Belonging: Fostering an environment where every student feels valued and connected.

Improved Well-Being: Enhancing students' emotional health and resilience.

Increased Engagement: Encouraging active participation and investment in their learning and growth. By addressing these key areas, Character Strong helps lay the groundwork for students' long-term success and fulfillment.

We are looking forward to focusing on Gratitude this month! One way to think about Gratitude is “choosing to appreciate the people and things in our lives.” Practicing Gratitude can increase our well-being and even our happiness! Gratitude is 1 of 3 traits we will focus on throughout the year that helps students Be Well. Across grade levels, students will be developing skills like emotion regulation, positive self-talk, and stress-management.

This November, we're kicking off a new building-wide behavior challenge! Grade levels will work together as a team to reinforce the character traits we've been practicing—kindness, respect, and responsibility. When a grade level is seen demonstrating these positive behaviors, they’ll earn a turkey on their behavior card. Once a card is filled with turkeys, that grade level will earn a special surprise!

Teachers and staff can award turkeys in various school areas like recess, lunch, and the hallways. There’s one twist: grade level teachers can’t award their own grade level for the turkey challenge cards. This will inspire teachers to recognize positive behavior across all grades, boosting our sense of culture and belonging and reinforcing high expectations for everyone.

For individualized recognition this month, students can earn a “turkey” by showing November’s character trait—gratitude. Teachers can recognize ANY student that shows gratitude including those in their classroom and those who are not. This will take the place of the bees that we used in our “bee kind challenge.” These students will get to hold the gratitude sign and have their picture taken and they will receive a small reward. We’re excited to celebrate positive behaviors and strengthen gratitude in our school community!

Today, we're excited to kick off our "Book Blast" in partnership with Books Are Fun! Each student will receive a treasure map to complete by Friday, November 15th. This fun activity encourages literacy and offers students a chance to earn free books. With your support, students will have a full week to work on their treasure maps. Plus, the first 190 students to complete their maps by Monday will receive special prizes! At the end of the event, every child will take home at least one free book as a reward for participating. Last year’s Book Blast was a huge success, and students loved earning prizes and adding new books to their home libraries!

Volunteers Needed: Grandparent’s Day- Contact Jenn Walter at:

jwalter@bdiscreens.com

Each month, Mable Woolsey's student council proudly leads "Community Giving Days," offering students a chance to give back to causes that matter. For each giving day, student council members select an organization, and students and teachers participate in a themed dress-up day, bringing in donations to support the chosen cause. This November, in honor of Veteran's Day, students wore red, white, and blue and contributed money to the Wounded Warrior Project, showing their support for our nation's veterans. It's a fantastic way for students to engage with their community and make a positive impact. We’d like to extend a special thank you to Mrs. Parrish, our dedicated student council leader, and all the student council members for their hard work in organizing Community Giving Days each month!

Friday assemblies in the gym are an exciting way for students to kick off their day. The assembly is all about getting pumped up and celebrating the great things that happened throughout the week. Mrs. Small leads the event by reviewing the highlights she observed, announcing birthdays, recognizing positive office referrals, and awarding winner for the Mable Woolsey Way Ticket drawing. Students also get to show their school spirit by clapping along to the school fight song together.

Congratulations to our students who were selected in the Mable Woolsey Way Ticket Drawing for being safe, respectful, and responsible! Keep up the great work!

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our community partners for their generous donations to support our students. From food and clothing to hygiene products and snacks, these contributions have made a significant difference in the lives of our students and families. We truly appreciate your willingness to step up and lend a helping hand. Your continued support means the world to us, and we are grateful for the positive impact you're making in our school community. Thank you!

Parents, with the changing of the season, the need for Tylenol and Ibuprofen has increased significantly. Unfortunately our supply cannot meet the demand of the students. If your child is one that needs over the counter medications regularly, please bring those items to the school for your student's use. If you would like to make a donation of Tylenol or Ibuprofen to add to our stock, the most used/needed forms are liquid and chewable. We greatly appreciate your assistance in this matter.

• Monday, November 11 - NO SCHOOL (Veterans Day)
• Wednesday, November 13-World Kindness Day
• Thursday, November 14-MWES PICTURE RETAKE DAY
• Thursday, November 14th-Crayon Sales ($0.25-$1)
• Monday, November 18th-Food Drive & Spirit Week Begin
• Wednesday, November 27 - Friday, November 29 - NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)
• Saturday-November 16th-Grandparents Day
• Friday, December 20 - 2:07 Dismissal (End of 2nd Quarter)
• December 23, 2024 - January 6, 2025 - NO SCHOOL (Winter Break)