PAWS Newsletter

Thursday, Nov 2 - Picture Retake Day

Friday, Nov 3 - Grade 6 Social

Wednesday, Nov 8 - OHI Veterans Day Choir from 6 p.m - 7 p.m.

Friday, Nov 10 - No School - Veterans Day
Tuesday, Nov 14 - Intermediate Band Concert
Thursday, Nov 16 - Military Family Life Counselor Meet & Greet

Wednesday, Nov 22 - Friday, November 24 - No School - Thanksgiving Break

Thursday, Nov 30 - Friday, Dec 8 - PTA Scholastic Book Fair

OHI’s attendance goal this year is 95%

Our average daily attendance is 93.6% YTD

Starting Monday, November 6, OHI will be participating in the Fill the Bus Food Drive! We will be working as a district team to collect non-perishable food donations for Oak Harbor Help House.

We are asking that students bring their donations to their homeroom teacher. ASB Leadership is working on a central location to count and organize the donations. Stay tuned for more information on this!

The food drive will run from November 6 - November 17. This month we are focusing on gratitude and donating food to help others is a great way to practice this character trait! Students can also earn points for their cat team for donating!

President: Brandy Preston
Vice-President: Sara McGrath
Treasurer: Kate Kelly
Secretary: Kerstin Cornell

PTA Meeting

Our next PTA meeting will be on Friday, November 17 at 4:15 p.m.

Cookie Wednesdays

Cookie Wednesday will be on November 8 and November 22. We will allow 3 cookies to be purchased per student.

Polar Pals

Polar Pals Gift Shop will give your children the opportunity to shop for high quality gifts for friends and family in the secure atmosphere of our school. Polar Pals Gift Shop program provides our children with an opportunity to make real life shopping decisions while learning that giving is as important as receiving. Gift items start at less than $1.00, with most in the $1.000 to $5.00 range. Flyers with a money envelope attached will be sent home around November 11.

Volunteering

Volunteer Opportunities - Reminder All Volunteers in School must have Badges

• There is a sign up in process for the Friday 6th grade social and will be available on Facebook.
• Book fair will begin on November 29th. It will be held in the front hallway. We will need many volunteers before and after school and to help with shifts. There will be a signup two weeks before the fair.
• We are working on a November gram. These will be sponsored and a sign up will be available soon!

FOOD POLICY

Several of our children suffer from severe &/or life-threatening food allergies. Food treats for celebrations will not be accepted/distributed. We want all children to receive special recognition and have the opportunity to celebrate special occasions. Please consider an alternative “treat” such as special pencils, erasers, etc. Thank you in advance for your understanding and thoughtfulness toward all our students.

As the weather continues to get colder, please ensure that your student is dressed appropriately and prepared.

Please read the information below for details in the event of school closures and schedule changes:

We pride ourselves on getting students to and from school safely. Snow, windstorms, earthquakes, and power failures can cause disruptions for schools and families. During difficult times, we will do all we can to communicate information through appropriate channels. When weather, road, or school conditions result in a schedule change, we inform families through multiple methods, as appropriate. If schools are operating on a normal schedule, no notifications will be issued.

School closures and schedule changes are districtwide, even if your neighborhood is not severely impacted. Some areas of the district experience more severe weather and driving conditions than others. If your residential area has hazardous road conditions, please do not attempt to drive to school and notify your school of your situation.

How To Get Notified

We use a variety of methods when issuing communication related to school closures and delays. These are the tools we use to communicate with families:

• Website: An alert will appear on the main page of our school district page and each school page.
• Social Media: If you haven't already done so, please follow us on social media. We are on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We will post regular information and alerts about the weather.
• Phone Call: Families can anticipate receiving phone calls following a weather decision. Please review your Skyward information and report any mistakes to your child's school.
• Text Message: Texting is only used for school closures, delays, or emergencies. Please review your Skyward information and report any mistakes to your child's school.
• Email: Families receive emails about weather decisions to the address we have on file. Please review your Skyward information and report any mistakes to your child's school.

For more information, please click here.

VAPING: WHAT PARENTS SHOULD KNOW

Vaping is the inhaling of a vapor created by an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette). It’s common among teens.

By learning about vaping, parents can:

• Talk to their kids about its health risks.

• Recognize if their child might be vaping.

• Get help for kids who are vaping.

How Does Vaping Work?

E-cigarettes (or “vape pens”) heat a liquid until it becomes a vapor, which is inhaled. The liquid (called e-liquid or “vape juice”) can contain nicotine or marijuana distillate or oil. E-cigarettes can be refillable or pre-filled with cartridges containing the e-liquid. The pre-filled e-cigarettes (called “Puff Bars”) are designed for one-time use. After taking a certain number of “puffs,” the user throws the device away.

What Are the Health Risks of Vaping?

The health risks of vaping include:

• addiction: E-cigarettes contain nicotine, a drug that’s highly addictive. You don’t have to vape every day to get addicted.

• anxiety and depression: Nicotine makes anxiety and depression worse. It also affects memory, concentration, self-control, and attention, especially in developing brains.

• becoming a smoker: Young people who vape are more likely to start smoking regular (tobacco) cigarettes and may be more likely to develop other addictions in the future.

• sleep problems

• exposure to cancer-causing chemicals

• chronic bronchitis

• lung damage that can be life-threatening

Other health effects are possible that we don’t yet know about. Vaping hasn’t been around that long, so its health risks aren’t all known.

How Do I Know if My Child Is Vaping?

Start by asking your child in a nonjudgmental, concerned way if they have tried vaping. You want to encourage conversation, not shut it down. Even if you don’t think your kids vape, talk about it with them anyway so they know it’s unhealthy.

Signs of vaping include:

• new health issues such as coughing or wheezing

• e-cigarette supplies, like cartridges or other suspicious looking items

• new smells (some flavorings are banned, but others are in nicotine and marijuana vapes — so parents might notice fruity or sweet scents)

For more information: https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/e-cigarettes.html

Character Trait for this Month: Gratitude

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 our happiness. Gratitude is 1 of 3 traits we will focus on throughout the year that helps students Be Well. Throughout the school, students will be developing skills like emotion regulation, positive self-talk, and stress management.

- Adapted from Character Strong Newsletter

Classroom Lessons this Month! Mental Health Hygiene and Suicide Prevention

OHI counselors are coming into classes to talk with students about suicide prevention and grief this month.

In 5th grade, we use the Crisis Connections' Riding the Waves curriculum which will address healthy emotional development, depression, and anxiety. This curriculum’s overarching goal is to build the emotional skills within children to prevent suicide at it’s earliest stages, so the word "suicide" is not used explicitly at this grade level.

In 6th grade, we use the Youth Suicide Prevention Program’s language around risk and protective factors, warning signs, common myths, and prevention steps, as well as discuss the stages of grief.

If you have any questions regarding these lessons please contact your child’s counselor:

Last Names M-Z: Chandra Mays, cmays@ohsd.net

Last Names A-L: Grant Finney, gfinney@ohsd.net

Here are some resources to check out for both grief and suicide if you would like some more information to discuss with your child:

Suicide Prevention:

https://www.sprc.org/

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/suicide.html?WT.ac=ctg#catbehavior

Grief:

https://www.dougy.org/

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/death.html?WT.ac=ctg#catfeelings

Big Brothers and Big Sisters is coming to Oak Harbor Intermediate!

Are you interested in individual mentoring for your student one time each week?! The school-based program in partnership with Big Brothers and Big Sisters meets after school at Oak Harbor Intermediate on Wednesdays starting at 3:40 PM for one hour.

Please see the attached flier for more information or to sign your student up!

From the Desk of Our MFLC:

VETERANS' NAMES FOR BULLETIN BOARD STARS

Have you seen how the bulletin board honoring veterans has evolved? There's still time to put a star up honoring a veteran! The stars will remain in place through the month of November. See the attached picture.

Get a Consent Form on File:

Military Families, don’t have your child miss the opportunity to join in on Deployment Groups, Lunch Bunch Groups and/or One-To-One with our Military and Family Life Counselor. Make sure you fill out a Consent Form and turn it into the office:

SAVE THE DATE

Don't miss out on our after school event honoring military kids, their families, and veterans! It's just 45 minutes on Thursday, November 16th in the OHI Library. See the flyer below.

Oak Harbor Intermediate

150 SW 6th Street,

Oak Harbor, WA 98277

360-279-5300