The Chat

It is our pleasure to welcome you to the 2023-2024 school year!

You are invited to stop by and take pictures of your child this week. We have a Chatfield themed back drop in the lobby.

Curriculum Nights start next week. You may be wondering what happens at Curriculum Night, do I really have to go? The answer is YES! You need to attend! Curriculum night is important because it is a good opportunity to find out what your child will be working on this school year. We share many of the books we read as well as the other resources we use to teach. We share expectations for the quality of work students produce and we talk about the many events that happen at each grade level. It is also a good opportunity to meet the teacher and see the classroom.

August 29 6:30pm Early Elementary Grades K & 2 Curriculum Night

August 30 6:30pm Grade 1 Curriculum Night

September 5 6:30pm Middle school Curriculum Night

September 7 6:30pm Upper Elementary (3-5) Curriculum Night

Please make sure to complete and return your child's emergency card by Wednesday, Aug. 23. Thank you for your quick attention to this very important item!

Any and all spirit wear can now be purchased locally at VillageTee! Please visit the link and the Village Tee website to see all of the possibilities available. We are just getting started! www.villagetees.net/product-category/chatfield

Parents must follow state regulations regarding medications in school and complete paperwork with the office for any medication (prescriptions or over-the-counter) to be taken at school. Families must complete new forms for 2023-24 prior to the first day they wish medication to be given. Medication (prescriptions or over-the-counter) must be provided to the office. Forms are available at our website under the Student Life, Forms tab or in the office.

We are recruiting homeroom parents to take the lead on a few important jobs. If you are interested in any of these responsibilities please contact the indicated person:

• Homeroom Parent: This parent supports the teacher's plan for classroom events - contact your child's homeroom teacher.
• Homeroom/Grade Level Art Docent K-5 only: This parent provides a monthly brief introduction to an artist and style of art - contact Mr. Lange at nlange@chatfieldschool.org
• Homeroom P.I.E. Parent: This parent represents the homeroom at each P.I.E. meeting - contact your child's homeroom teacher.

You are invited and encouraged to attend the Chatfield P.I.E. meetings to be held the second Wednesday of each month at 4pm in the middle school commons. Chatfield P.I.E. serves as an organization to provide student and family engagement and participation and to support school activities. The P.I.E. meetings provide a forum for the school staff to share information with parents. Again we highly encourage you to attend! We have a new leadership team for the new year. Christina Hall is President, Tracy Coulter is Vice-President, Amanda Blay is Secretary, and Jacqueline Wellingtong is Treasurer.

Meeting dates

Sept. 13, Oct. 11, Nov. 8, Dec. 13, Jan. 10, Feb. 14, Mar. 13, Apr. 10, May 8

The Bike Rodeo Fall Festival is scheduled for October 7! It is just around the corner! Please stay tuned for details!

Breakfast is served "to go style" in the lobby from 8:00 to 8:20. Students do not need to order in advance. They will take their breakfast to the classroom. Students must be on time to class, breakfast can not be used an excuse for tardiness.

The lunch schedule is listed below. Students must order their lunch each day when arriving to homeroom. Both breakfast and lunch are served without cost to students/families!

Grade - Time

K - 11:15-12:15

1 - 11:20-11:55

2 - 11:20-11:55

3 - 11:45 -12:20

4 - 11:45-12:20

5 - 11:45- 12:20

6 - 12:10-12:45

7 - 12:10-12:45

8 - 12:10-12:45

Lunch Room Expectations:

The lunch room is a good time to teach and practice manners. Please discuss the expectations below with your child.

Students are expected to be polite, use quiet voices, and appropriate language.

Students are expected to use proper table manners and be respectful to each other.

Students must clean up their area and floor prior to leaving the table.

Below are the "Rules of the Playground." Please discuss these expectations with your child.

• Keep hands and feet to yourself.

• When swinging, you may not twirl, twist, spider, go sideways, let your shoes fly off or jump off the swings.

• Do not climb swing poles or pavilion poles.

• Do not throw rocks, sand, mulch, snow, or anything that could become dangerous.

• Use proper language.

• When using the slides come down feet first and there is to be no jumping off slides.

• Sit on the bleachers; do not stand, jump, or fool around on the bleachers.

• On the black top or near play structures, do not kick or drop kick a ball or football. Footballs need to be thrown in the field or on the football field only.

• Do not sit on top of the monkey bars / climbers.

• You may play on the paths in the children’s garden but please stay off of the dark mulch landscape beds.

• Never fight, wrestle, hit, kick or punch.

• Be safe.

• Do not eat snacks - no food. Do not litter.

Teachers and assistants may have additional rules that are not listed here.

Our middle school students are selling Lapeer area discount cards through Sept. 8. The cards sell for $10 and for the student there is a $6 profit for the student towards their field study. All money that is raised in 6th and 7th grade that is above and beyond their trip cost gets rolled over to the next year.The middle school students will be doing four fundraisers this year.

If your child is in middle school, and you would like to sell discount cards but have not picked them up yet, please see the attached form: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1O-pKwpsTY68Y2BYaiLZwAgh7qNKc6f7e0hNRFsJCyNI/edit?usp=sharing

Bike Club - A Fall Season Adventure League held every Monday at the Willows

The first Bike Club of the season is Monday August 28, from 3:45-4:45pm at the Willows. Bike club is free and open to any student grades 3-8. Parents and non-Chatfield students are welcome. Students 2nd grade and younger are welcome if a parent rides with them. We will do most of our riding on the Oakdale trail system, 9.5 miles of singletrack with no road crossings. This multi-use, natural surface trail offers some amazing terrain for us to enjoy. Bikes brought in before school can be put on the bike rack near the gym or parked out by the Willows. Helmets are mandatory and we do have loaners. Bike club will last approximately 8 weeks. Contact Peter McCreedy at pmccreedy@chatfieldschool.org with questions.

Link to Register: Bike Club Registration LINK

Weekly participation is not mandatory, but in order to participate you must have completed the registration.

Chatfield students will host their grandparents or special guests on Thursday, September 21 from 6:30 to 7:30pm. Join us for punch and cookies, a tour of the school and grounds, and a musical treat.

The student & parent handbook for 2023-2024 is available now. Please take time to read it over. If you have any questions or concerns please let Mr. Young or Mr. Kraly know.

Handbook LINK

Link to confirm you have read the Handbook:

https://forms.gle/AfA6UCkprHQgcPAD8

8/25/2023 No School

8/29/2023 6:30 PM Grades K-2 Curriculum Night

8/31/2023 Picture Day

9/1/2023 No School

9/4/2023 No School

9/5/2023 6:30 PM Grades 6-8 Curriculum Night

9/7/2023 6:30 PM Grades 3-5 Curriculum Night

9/21/2023 6:30 PM Grandparent's Evening

10/7/2023 10AM-2PM Bike Rodeo

10/16-19/2023 5th Grade Camp

10/20/2023 No School

10/25/2023 Picture Retakes AM

10/27/2023 End of 1st Marking Period

10/27/2023 Half Day of School 11:30am Dismissal

Parents & Guardians,

We are hiring some part time employees! If you are interested in being on one of our teams please let us know! Specifically we could use some support on our lunch team, child care team, and on our substitute team. Contact Mr. Kraly at bkraly@chatfieldschool.org or Mrs. Davis at adavis@chatfieldschool.org

The Chatfield School, a tuition-free, public school academy nestled in the heart of Lapeer, offers the best educational opportunities for students in grades K-8.

Email: chatfieldschool@chatfieldschool.org
Website: www.chatfieldschool.org
Location: 231 Lake Drive, Lapeer, MI, USA
Phone: (810)-667-8970