Welcome to another edition of The Washington Weekly!

As we prepare to welcome our #WizKids back for an exciting 2024-2025 school year, we’ve included important information about supply lists, Meet the Teacher, Popsicles on the Playground, bus transportation, carpool tags and Talking Points. Please take a moment to review these details to ensure a smooth start.

Don't forget to sign up to support our Welcome Back Breakfast for staff by donating funds or food items. We need your help to make this event a success for our teachers and staff on their first day back 😁

We can't wait to see you all at 1000 Fayetteville Street THIS FRIDAY, August 23 from 3:00-5:00pm for 1st-5th Grade Meet the Teacher & Kindergarten Popsicles on the Playground!

Magically,

Catie Burnette

Principal

Sign up to donate items for our staff Welcome Back Breakfast! We are all looking forward to going back to school, and we would like to welcome our teachers back with a hearty breakfast, as well as stocking the staff lounge with snacks! The Welcome Back Breakfast will be on Wednesday, August 23rd at 8:00am.

Please drop off your non-perishable and refrigerated items from the following options:

• Monday-Friday in the main office between 8:00am - 4:00pm

• Please drop off your HOT (biscuits or quiches) and other fresh perishable food items on Wednesday, August 21 from 7:00am - 7:45am in the carpool lane.
  

We also need help setting up, serving, and breaking down, and we would love to have your energy here with us! CLICK HERE TO VOLUNTEER!

If you are unable to provide food for the breakfast, you could drop off a box of non-perishable snacks on the first day of school or at Meet the Teacher evening. The teachers and staff REALLY appreciate some fuel for their busy day helping our school and students do great things!

• Kindergarten Supply List 2024-2025 English/español
• 1st grade Supply List 2024-2025 English/español
• 2nd grade Supply List 2024-2025 English/español
• 3rd grade Supply List 2024-2025 English/español
• 4th grade Supply List 2024-2025 English/español
• 5th grade Supply List 2024-2025 English/español

Meet the Teacher for 1st-5th Grade is on Friday, August 23 from 3-5pm at Washington GT Magnet Elementary School. This is a floating event, so join us for a quick visit or stay a while to get all your back to school information.

Please park in designated parking areas, in the bus loop or on Fayetteville Street. In case of emergencies, do not park in the carpool/fire lane.

• Visit your child's classroom and meet their teacher. (Did the postcard not make it in time? We will have class lists posted throughout the building!)
• Pick up a carpool number and tag.
• Join the PTA & register to volunteer!
• Ask questions about bus transportation & get your child's bus tag.
• Sign up for our Before Care Program.
  
• Join the Boys & Girls Club After School Program.
• Learn about other after school & transportation options.

All 1st-5th grade teachers will be sending postcards to students and families the week of August 19. The postcard will have your child's homeroom teacher's name! Kindergarten students will find out who their teacher is on Friday, August 30 at Kindergarten Meet the Teacher.

Please complete THIS FORM if you plan to use the carpool lane to PICK UP your students. Once submitted, two copies of an assigned carpool tag can be picked up at Meet the Teacher or will be sent home with your student once school begins. If you need more than two copies for your family, please note that at the bottom of the form.

An email was sent out on Friday, August 16 to families containing incorrect bus route information. WCPSS sincerely apologizes for any confusion or inconvenience this may have caused. Please disregard the bus route details in the first email.

All families should have received corrected bus information, including detailed information about bus stops and estimated pick-up and drop-off times. That information also can be found in PowerSchool. Contact your school or transportation customer service at 919-805-3030 if you have questions.

If you have specific questions about bus transportation, visit Ms. Ratley's table at Meet the Teacher.

Families should download the Here Comes the Bus app. It will let you know when your bus will be arriving and if there is a substitute driver. Discuss with your child the importance of appropriate behavior on the bus to help protect everyone in and around the bus. Misbehavior on school buses is subject to disciplinary action.

We encourage all parents to download the **Talking Points for Families** app before the school year begins. This app is a vital tool for staying connected with your child's teacher, allowing for easy and effective communication in your preferred language. By having the app ready to go on the first day of school, you'll be prepared to engage with your child's learning journey right from the start!

Kindergarten Popsicles on the Playground is DURING Meet the Teacher for 1st-5th grade. Rising Kindergarten students and families are invited to join us on Friday, August 23 frm 3-5pm for a popsicle on the Washington GT Magnet Elementary School playground with the Kindergarten team!

Kindergarten students participate in Staggered Entry. Students will attend ONE day of school the first week based on their last name.

• Letters A-G: August 27
• Letters H-N: August 28
• Letters O-Z: August 29

Kindergarten students and families will meet their teacher on Friday, August 30th from 2-3pm. The first day of school for Kindergarteners is Tuesday, September 3, 2024.

FOR STUDENTS WHO ARE STARTING KINDERGARTEN OR WHO ARE NEW TO WCPSS: All immunization records are due to our school's Data Manager on the first day of school. Any student without up-to-date immunization records will be excluded from school starting September 27, 2024.

Questions? Call our main office at 919-856-7960.

To receive free or reduced-price meals for the 2024-25 school year, families must submit a meal benefits application online at MySchoolApps.com. Benefits applications must be submitted annually. Paper copies are available in our front office. For families who completed the 2023-24 meal benefits application, the benefit continues for their student's first 30 school days of the 2024-25 school year. At elementary schools, full-paid breakfast will be $1.75 and lunch will be $3.50.

It is important for us to have the most updated contact information for your family. Families who need to update their contact information should contact our school's Data Manager, Ms. Webb. If you do not get WCPSS communication as a text, consider opting in for text messages by texting YES to 67587.

Renew your volunteer application for 2024-25: Families and individuals who were approved to volunteer during the 2023-24 school year received an email on July 1 outlining the quick and easy volunteer renewal process for the 2024-25 school year. The renewal window will be July 1-Oct. 1. Visit Volunteering in WCPSS to learn more about volunteer renewal or apply to be a first-time volunteer.

• 2024-25 Student/Parent Handbook (English)
• 2024-25 Student/Parent Handbook (Spanish)

Wednesday, August 21- Teacher Workday

Thursday, August 22- Teacher Workday

Friday, August 23- Teacher Workday

Friday, August 23- Meet the Teacher & Popsicles on the Playground, 3-5pm

Saturday, August 24- PTA Back to School Play Date, 10am-12pm at Kids Together Park

Monday, August 26- Teacher Workday

Tuesday, August 27- First Day of School for 1st-5th Grade, K Staggered Entry, Last Names A-G

Wednesday, August 28- K Staggered Entry, Last Names H-N

Thursday, August 28- K Staggered Entry, Last Names O-Z

Friday, August 30- Kindergarten Meet the Teacher, 2-3pm

Monday, September 2- HOLIDAY, No School

Tuesday, September 3- First Day of School for Kindergarten Students