Hollywood Headlines

Oct. 21

• Fall Break - No School

Oct. 22

• Mileage Club

Oct. 23

• NO Delayed Start, school starts @ 8:30 p.m.

Oct. 25

• Popcorn Friday
• PTO Halloween Decorating
• Mileage Club

Oct. 31

• Trail for Treaters @ 12:50 p.m.
• 2nd @ 12:50
• 4th @ 1:10
• 5th @ 1:30
• K @ 1:50
• 3rd @ 2:10
• 1st @ 2:30

• Halloween Snack @ 1:00 p.m.
• 2nd @ 1:00
• 4th @ 1:20
• 5th @ 1:40
• K @ 2:00
• 3rd @ 2:20
• 1st @ 2:40
• Halloween Parade @ 3:00 p.m.

Positive Attitude

• Charles Rose
• Oliver Veldt

• Emersyn Wrage
• Josiah Severance

• Raegan Louwaert
• Lennon Lopez

• Brooklynn Pintarelli
• Bryer Hatten

• Avery VanderMeer
• Logan Musk

Happy October! The PTO is thrilled to welcome a season filled with fun and festivities, and we have several exciting updates to share.

Halloween Celebrations
With Halloween just around the corner, we’re looking forward to organizing our trick-or-treat trail and providing a snack for our students. To make this event a success, we need your support with donations! Please check the sign-up genius linked below for the items we’re seeking. There’s also an Amazon wish list available, allowing you to ship items directly to Alamo. If you’re donating candy, kindly specify which type you’ll be bringing, and remember to choose a peanut-free option. We’ve included some great examples under each category! ALL items are due by Friday, October 25th!

Volunteer Opportunities
We also invite you to join us as a volunteer on Halloween! This event requires many hands to ensure everything runs smoothly, and we would love your assistance from 12:30 PM to 2:45 PM. If you can help, please sign up!

Upcoming Conferences
Looking ahead, our first conferences will take place in November. We hold conferences twice a year, and the PTO provides a meal at each one. You can help by sponsoring your favorite grade(s) by signing up on the genius link and submitting your payment via Venmo (@annaleepruis), PayPal (@annaleepruis), or by sending a check made out to Otsego Public Schools.

Thank you for your continued support and involvement! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out at alamo.pto.volunteersignup@gmail.com.

Have a great day,
Annie Pruis
Alamo PTO

Halloween is around the corner and we are excited for our Halloween Parade on Thursday, October 31st. The costume parade will take place at 3:00 p.m. inside and outside the building. Spectators can view the parade in the gym and outside along the sidewalks.

Students should bring their costumes to school and will change for their classroom parties prior to the parade. It is important that your child can put on their costumes independently as parents will be outside prepping for the parade.

Just a reminder - your child's costume must be non-violent. Weapon accessories/scary masks will not be allowed.

Student pictures were sent home today! Please check your child's take home folder for them.

Picture re-take day is October 24. Order forms are in the office lobby rack. If your child is going to re-take their picture they need to turn in the picture package book to the photographer on the day of re-takes.

Our continued efforts to enhance security to keep our students and staff safe will include the implementation of a new visitor sign-in procedure called Raptor. This is for those visiting and spending time in our buildings.

Starting next week, if you are visiting the school, you will stop at the main office as usual.

• With this new system, we will scan your ID to create a Visitor ID Label.

• This label will have your photo, name and location within the building that you are visiting.

• This allows others in the building to immediately know you are a welcome visitor in the school and have been checked in at the office.

• At the end of your visit, stop back in the main office to sign out.

With Raptor, IDs will be screened against the registered sex offender databases and a custom database created/maintained by each school that could include banned/restricted visitors, individuals with restraining orders, etc. Adding this level of security does not add a lot of time to the sign-in process, but will provide an added layer of safety and comfort.

Our WatchD.O.G.S. program will officially begin for the 2024-25 school year in October. “Dads” (or dad-like figures) who are interested in signing up to volunteer for a full or half day should contact Natalie Trumley (ntrumley@otsegops.org) or Nicole Knight-Lucas (nknight-lucas@otsegops.org) via email to schedule a date.

When you volunteer, you will receive a schedule for the day that allows you to help out in different classrooms doing a wide range of activities (reading a story, working with a child 1:1 on work, playing a game with a small group). You will also have scheduled time on the playground and lunchroom to interact with students and be a positive role model for them. We need a current background check on file before you are able to volunteer.

10 Tips to Boost Your Child’s Friendship Making Skills

Friends play an enormous part in our kids’ lives. The good news is that making friends involves skills which can be learned. Here are ways you can make a difference in your child’s social life.

1. Reinforce smiling! A trait that well-liked kids use often is to smile, so reinforce your child’s smiling efforts. “What a great smile!” or “That smile of yours always wins people over.”

2. Boost manners. When it comes to friends, manners do count and are appreciated by other parents.

3. Encourage listening. Listening lets a friend know another is concerned about their needs. Tell your child, “Focus on what your friend is saying. Hear their words!”

4. Teach deal breakers. Learning “Rock, Paper, Scissors,” flipping a coin, and “Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe” are great for reducing conflicts, breaking ties, and deciding who goes first.

5. Stress assertiveness. Encouraging kids to “look at the color of the speaker’s eyes” helps them appear more confident as well as interested in the speaker’s words.

6. Make time for play. Carve time into your child’s schedule for play dates and social interactions to expand social competence.

7. Practice introductions. “Hi! My name is John.” “Glad to meet you.” “You’re good at soccer.” “Do you live around here?” “Do you go to school here?”

8. Teach kindness. Popular kids care, share, and are helpful. Praise your child’s prosocial behaviors so she knows kindness matters.

9. Talk about emotions. Kids can’t care about others if they can’t recognize feelings. So, use emotions and words, and point out facial expressions, voice, tone, and body language.

10. Teach friendship skills. Friendship consists of skills like taking turns, having a conversation, joining a group, problem solving and listening. Choose one skill, explain the value, show how to use it and practice it until your child can use it alone. Add a new skill when that one is mastered.

You are also invited to join us any Tuesday or Friday (weather permitting) during your child's lunch recess time. Please make sure your child wears tennis shoes these days.

Here are the recess times for each grade level.

We know that your dog, or any pet, can be a member of the family and a best friend; however, it is important to know that pets are not allowed on school property, even if they are on a leash. A number of children, and some adults, are not comfortable around all pets and may be allergic so for the health, safety and comfort of all of our visitors, they are not permitted in school buildings or on school district property. (Exceptions are made for service animals, animals under the control of public safety officers and for instructional purposes with prior approval from the district.) Thank you for your understanding of this policy.

Alamo PTO needs you! The PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) is a wonderful way to become involved in your child's education and to get to know other parents and teachers. The PTO has many activities throughout the school year that you can help with by volunteering. The PTO meets once a month at 4:10 p.m. in the Alamo Media Center. Listed below are the dates for this year's meetings. We would love for you to attend!

Meeting Dates

Oct 14

Nov 11

Dec 9

Jan 13

Feb 10

March 10

April 14

May 12

June 9

Students at Alamo can purchase popcorn on the last Friday of the month beginning on September 30th. Popcorn can again this year be purchased for the entire year by sending $4 per student (discounted, as well as the "easy button" for parents!) on or before the first popcorn date of September 27th, or it can be purchased each individual time for $0.50.

Below are the dates for popcorn Friday this year.

October 25

November 22

December 20

January 31

February 28

March 28

April 25

May 30

If your child is absent and the absence is unexcused, you will receive an automated phone call reminding you to report the absence. Please remember to report your child’s absence, before 9am, by calling our attendance line at (269) 694-7680.

Join Alamo Parents REMIND

Would you like to receive text updates on important dates and activities taking place here at Alamo Elementary? REMIND is a safe and efficient communication app designed for teachers/schools to communicate important classroom/school information. If you are interested in receiving updates from Alamo Elementary via text, text this message @alamopare to the number 81010 or click on the link below.

Email: nknight-lucas@otsegops.org
Website: https://alamo.otsegops.org/
Location: 8184 North 6th Street, Kalamazoo, MI, United States
Phone: (269) 694-7600
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/415538888654020
Twitter: @otsegoschools