Western Primary School News

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Welcome to the Classes of 2035, 2036, and 2037! The 24-25 school year is underway. The beginning of the year is always filled with building relationships, getting to know each other, and learning the procedures of each classroom and the school. We are off to a great start and looking forward to a successful year with a lot of learning!

School picture day will be Tuesday, September 17th. Ordering information can be found on the website below and will be sent home with students soon. Also, we will be participating in swimming again this year as a part of our physical education curriculum. Second grade classes will begin swimming in late fall with first grade and kindergarten swimming in the spring. More information will be sent home before swimming begins for your student.

Teachers have been working diligently conducting beginning of the year assessments to obtain the current instructional level for each student. This information is used to drive instruction in the classroom and helps us to identify students who may benefit from Title I services. Title I is a federally funded program that provides financial assistance to states and school corporations to meet the needs of educationally at-risk students. Western Primary currently has seven Title I paraprofessionals who work with students one-on-one and in small groups to provide extra instructional assistance to bridge the gaps of student learning. You will receive a letter this month if your student qualifies for the Title I program and will be receiving extra assistance.

We are also kicking off our Reading Rockstar program this month. If you or someone you know would like to volunteer at the school for 30 minutes once a week, we welcome you! Our Reading Rockstars are paired up with students who need extra one-on-one reading time with an adult. All volunteers must have a level 1 background check which requires a small fee, but it is valid for three years. If you would like to be a Reading Rockstar, please complete this form. Please share this info with anyone who you think would like this opportunity!

If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to reach out. By partnering with parents, we are best able to meet the needs of each child and provide the best educational opportunities.

Thank you for the support in your child's education,

Mrs. Melissa DeWeese

Western Primary Principal

We are excited to host a Read-A-Thon at Western!

At Western, our priority is to make sure that our students have the tools they need to learn and grow. We can't do that without your support. This year we are hoping for 100% participation from our families. Be sure to check your students folders tomorrow for more information.

We encourage you to activate your reader’s account today by clicking on https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/323831373337/1 and following the simple instructions.

We've chosen Read-A-Thon because it will not take much of your time, gives your child a reason to read and helps in the development of stronger reading skills. All pledges and donations will go directly to our Christmas Assistance program. Through this program we are able to help struggling families within our community have a brighter holiday season.

• September 2nd - Labor Day, no school
• September 9th - Triathlon
• September 10th - Chipotle Fundraiser
• September 17th - WPS Picture Day
  
• September 20th - Sundae the Principal
• September 23rd-27th - Read-A-Thon
• September 23rd - Literacy Night 4:30-6:30
• Oct 21st - 25th - Fall Break

This school year is off to a great start! We are continuing to work with students on cafeteria, hallway, and restroom procedures. During the first weeks of school kindergarten and first grade students need frequent reminders when walking or standing in a line. They need to be reminded to not touch others or items hanging on the wall. They also need reminders to remain seated in the lunchroom and raise their hand and ask for permission to get up. Many students require assistance opening items in their lunch brought from home, and packing up and cleaning up after themselves. Another challenge can be the volume they use when talking. Tasks such as these are executive functioning skills. Executive functioning skills are skills people use everyday to learn, work, and manage daily life. The seven main executive functioning skills are:

Planning, organizing, and time management, working memory, flexible thinking, task initiation, attention/focus, perseverance, and self-reflection. Of these seven there are three main areas: working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. These develop along with the child at different ages and stages of development. Some ways that parents can partner with the school are to:

*Practice eating school lunch at home, make sure your student can open and close all the items packed in their lunch box.

**Have students clean up after themselves after eating, put their items away and in the trash.

***Students should be able to remain seated during the meal for approximately 20 minutes.

****Practice wait time when your student needs to tell you something (that is not urgent) ie- taking turns talking at the table and not yelling over or interrupting others.

*****When walking in a store, restaurant, etc. have your student keep their hands down and not reach out and touch or grab items from racks or shelves.

In the coming newsletters there will be developmental milestones for home and school.

At Western Primary, all K-2 students visit STREAM as a Special Area once each week along with Library, PE, Music and Art. During STREAM, the students will experience STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.) However, our primary students will also benefit from READING instruction and the ART of tinkering with hands-on manipulatives through play, creating, and curiosity. Our vision was to instill even more literacy skills during this critical time of reading foundational skills development in our Primary building. The lessons are purposefully designed to reinforce skills that are taught in classrooms by our amazing teachers with a hands-on STREAM approach.

Last week, after reading We Don’t Eat our Classmates with sound effects from Novel Effect, Mrs. Tuberty practiced the weekly reading skills with the students. Next, they were asked to build a tower with cups..WITH DINOSAUR hands instead of their own hands. (popsicle sticks) They were amazing!

If you are NOT currently using PikMyKid to announce your student for pick up, we ask that you install the app on your smartphone and use this method to announce your student(s) for pick up. If you have previously installed the app and your app is not working, please uninstall and reinstall the PikMyKid app. Directions are attached to guide you in this process. When you pull up to the dispatcher in the lot south of the building, app users will only need to provide the first and last name of the student(s) you are picking up. If you are not using the app to announce the student(s) you are picking up, please show the car tag(s) previously provided to you with their unique pick up number displayed.

Please refrain from using your cell phone while in line. Your full attention is needed to keep staff and students safe. Thank you so much for your cooperation, we currently have over 200 students being picked up daily. By following a few simple procedures we can help provide a safe efficient drop off and pickup for our young Panthers.

Pik My Kid Parent App Guide

Book Cart is back!

Book Cart is available to all our students before school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students can bring in $.50 or trade gently used books for a book of their choice. (Please make sure books able to be traded are marked with a note.) We encourage reading with your child every evening, either reading aloud or having them read to you!

Email: mdeweese@western.k12.in.us
Website: wps.western.k12.in.us
Location: 2671 South 600 West, Russiaville, IN, USA
Phone: 765-883-5528