Windermere Family Update

It’s been an AWESOME week at Windermere!!! Did you know yesterday our entire building flew to Europe? We learned so much about so many different countries in Europe. It was such a fun trip. Make sure you ask your child(ren) about their travels and below is a short write up on the history of Global Education at Windermere. A huge thank you to Mrs. D for working so hard with our students to continue this tradition. Also a special thanks to Ms. Richey, Mrs. Myers, Mrs. DeFrancesco, Mrs. Justice and Mrs. Hurley, our very talented related arts team, who work so hard together to make this happen. We couldn’t do it without you! It’s a highlight of our year!

We sure hope your family will join us next week at PTO’s Family Cultures and Traditions Night. This is such a fun and meaningful way to learn more about our families at Windermere.

I hope you have a great weekend. Enjoy the sunshine.

Julie

We explore the whole world at Windermere! Every year (for over 25 years) we have a different continent we focus on with our students and staff--this year’s continent is Europe. We investigate the many cultures of each continent through their music and art, cultural games in physical education, literature, as well as animals and geographical diversity. We sing and dance, and try new art forms and techniques. It is such a great way for us to keep in mind that we are all “Citizens of the World!”

This Thanksgiving, Windermere is excited to support local families in need by creating Thanksgiving meal kits for the Heart to Heart Food Bank. From Monday, November 11 to Monday, November 18th, we will be collecting non-perishable food items and bags for sorting to help ensure that everyone can enjoy a festive meal this holiday season.

Donations can be sent in with students and placed in the neighborhood boxes or brought to our Family Culture Night on Thursday, November 14th, where we will have a dedicated table celebrating Windermere’s culture of giving. If you are willing to volunteer to deliver the food on Thursday, November 21st to Heart to Heart, please contact Sarah Wood at sewood@uaschools.org.

Join us in making a difference by donating the following items:

Canned green beans

Stuffing (Box or mix)

Broth (chicken or turkey)

Fried Onions

Canned Sweet Potatoes

Canned Cranberry Sauce

Egg Noodles

Gravy (chicken or turkey)

Bags for sorting items

Instant Mashed Potatoes

Canned Pumpkin

The theme for the lesson is "Introduction to SAM Labs Robotics"

- All kids can build and all kids can code!

Students will...

- Learn about SAM Labs robots.

- Learn how to use and apply the SAM Labs App and interface.

- Build and program a SAM Labs robot.

We are less than a week away!! Please make time to join us on November 14 from 6pm to 8pm and celebrate the cultures and traditions that enrich our school community. The annual Family Culture & Traditions Night helps our students follow the Windermere Way by being respectful and ready to learn about different families in our community. We’re excited to reinforce an inclusive and welcoming environment where all students and families feel valued, respected, and celebrated for their unique identities and backgrounds.

In addition to learning more about our families, we’re excited to offer interactive activities featuring our own Windermere students presented by School of Rock Columbus (6:30 PM) and CK Lee Twaekwondo (7:15 PM). Please ask your student(s) to join us if they already work with CK Lee or School of Rock Columbus!

Host a table, enter an artistic creation, or follow our “Hawk Kettle Migration” card and earn a chance to win raffle prizes from our amazing partners including Cover to Cover Books, K Studio, Brush Crazy, Sunrise Asian Market, and many more. Raffle prizes will be drawn at 7:00 PM and 7:55 PM.

Not able to host a table at this time but still want to help? We're in need of volunteers to make the evening memorable. Please take a look here - middle and high school students are welcome: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0544A5AA2AA3FF2-52812502-windermere

Finally, we know that dinner might be difficult on the 14th – we’ve got you covered! Come hungry and grab a bite to eat from Grandad's Pizza along with dessert from Kona Ice.

Please take some time to read our Counselor Connection Newsletter for parents where you will find updates about monthly counseling lessons and parent resources.

Schoolwide, we are seeing an uptick in illnesses. As a gentle reminder, students should remain home from school for 24 hours AFTER being free from vomiting, diarrhea, and/or a fever without medication. Thank you for partnering with us to ensure Windermere remains a healthy learning environment for all students and staff.

We are so excited for Family Culture & Traditions Night coming up next week! Please stop by the library for a tasting event! We will have lots of delicious books on display available for your reader(s) to check out that evening! Also consider sampling some of the foods we have been reading about these last three weeks. We will have paletas from Diamonds Icecream, Challah bread from the Jewish Community Center, and noodles (with chopsticks!) from Fukuryu Ramen right here in Upper Arlington! We will wrap up our food and culture books study as we head into the long holiday weekend as we share together an unlikely story of friendship, The Thanksgiving Door.

World Kindness Day is Wednesday, November 13. That’s right, Upper Arlington is partnering with the world to bring a little extra kindness into our spaces. School counselors designed these BINGO-style cards to encourage students to Start with Heart and participate in acts of kindness. First introduced in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, World Kindness Day offers an opportunity to highlight good deeds in the community and the common thread of kindness. Studies have found that acts of kindness are linked to an increase in well-being, self-esteem, empathy, compassion, and mood.

Please make sure you are adding money to your students lunch accounts on our EZ pay website. We have multiple students with negative lunch balances. They will always be able to purchase a school lunch (even with a negative balance) but are not permitted to buy snacks and extras.

You can access Linq Connect to monitor their student's meal account usage in more detail — including viewing current balance and purchase history, setting spending limits and transferring money between student accounts. Families can also access elementary and middle school lunch menus via Linq Connect. For instructions on how to set up an account, please the Linq family guide.

Our lost and found is overflowing. Please have your students check for missing sweatshirts, jackets, water bottles, etc. Due to how much is currently in our lost and found, we are now donating items at Thanksgiving Break. We may also donate at winter break if there is a large amount of clothing items.

Learn more about the strategic planning process by joining district leadership for a town hall meeting on Tuesday, November 19 from 6 until 7:30 p.m. at Upper Arlington High School. Attendees will hear a review of the research and work done to date and then break into smaller groups to learn about the steps planned to implement each strategy during the next five years.

Any prescription medication administered at school requires written authorization from the student’s physician as well as written parental permission. Per Ohio Revised Code, the Prescribed Medication must be received by the health office in the container in which it was dispensed by the provider or pharmacist (we cannot accept medication in baggies). Medication authorization forms and other health forms can be found on the district website at: UA Health Forms. Should you have any questions, please contact the Windermere Health Office at 614-487-5060.

Our health clinics track communicable illnesses and work with local public health agencies to mitigate potential outbreaks. If your student is diagnosed with or treated for a communicable illness/condition (strep, pinkeye, influenza, COVID-19, lice, etc.), please report those to the school nurse at windermerehealthclinic@uaschools.org, or windermereattendance@uaschools.org. Thank you for partnering with us to ensure Windermere is a healthy learning environment for all of our students!

Please refer to this arrival and dismissal doc for guidelines on keeping everyone safe during our drop off and pick up times.

Please email windermereattendance@uaschools.org along with your child’s teacher, any student absences. For extended absences (vacations, travel, etc.) please submit a pre-planned absence form. For more information on the district attendance policy, please visit the district's attendance web page. For all medical appointments, please provide a doctor’s note.