Timber Talks

We absolutely loved having our students back at school with us this week. They did an incredible job adjusting to our school routines and were ready and eager to get back to learning. Thank you for supporting their transition.

One of the areas that need continued attention is consistent attendance and arriving to school on time. We had over 50 students arrive late to school on Wednesday alone, which can lead to a stressful morning for the student walking into class late when instruction has already begun. Today was a full school day and we had 79 absent students. While we know it was different than our regular routine, today was a full day of learning that was missed for many and we want your child to have every opportunity to succeed. They cannot do that if they are not here to learn. Please let us know if you need any resources to assist with establishing this consistent routine.

With the upcoming weather report, you may be wondering what a virtual snow day looks like in Estacada. Rather than adding days to the end of the year, we will be flexing to online learning should the weather prevent school from taking place on campus. Because REID days are not counted into our total hours of instruction, these days will be cancelled for students.

During a virtual day, you will receive an email from my account directing your student to log on to the morning meeting at 9am. During the meeting, your teacher will take attendance and provide you with the necessary information to complete the day's learning. Please make sure that your student's technology is charged up and ready to go!

The penny war is a fundraiser that has been organized by our PTO to help raise funds for a new popcorn machine. The popcorn machine is used at some of our family and school events. Once that goal is reached, additional funds will support classrooms and saved to help raise funds for a future purchase of an electronic reader board outside our building. Thank you for your consideration and support of this event.

Are you looking to get involved in helping our school? Join our Parent-Teacher Organization on Thursday, January 17th from 6:00 - 7:00 pm in the River Mill Library. We hope to see you there!

In order to help you all know what the week looks like, we will list it out clearly for you each week. REID days for are invited students and will change each week. Students are invited to REID days for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it's to extend or challenge a student, and other times it might be to provide extra help on a particular skill. On those days, our doors open at 7:50 and dismissal is at 10:00am. If you have questions about this week's schedule, please let us know!

This Week:

• Jan. 8th : Regular School Day
  
• Jan. 9th: Regular School Day
• Jan. 10th: Regular School Day
• Jan. 11th: Regular School Day
• Jan. 12th: REID Day, by invite only

Upcoming Events:

• Jan. 15th - No School, MLK Jr. Day
• Jan. 19th - Regular School Day (Friday)
• Jan. 25th - RME Family Night
• Jan. 26th - REID Day, by invite only

Want to stay informed about what's happening at River Mill? Follow us on Facebook.

My School Bucks is an online payment service that provides parents the ability to securely pay for meals, monitor student cafeteria purchases, and receive email notifications for low account balances. Please note: currently, a convenience fee of $2.75 will be applied for each transaction. All transactions are processed and applied to students' accounts nightly. To enroll, please follow the link below and have your student's ID number handy.

We know that weather can sometimes be unpredictable in Oregon and at times, students may need to access their learning from home for the day if we need to close school. In order for us to be prepared to best support you and your child, please take a couple minutes to fill out the technology survey below so we can get you connected with the right items. If you do not want your child to bring home a device, this is your chance to tell us. We plan to begin sending devices home the week of October 30th. Thank you!

The weather is super unpredictable. Please make sure your child has layers of clothes and a coat or jacket with a hood and long sleeves. If they do not, they will need to remain under the covered area during recess time when it is raining.

If your child gets super wet at recess or has a bathroom accident, we do not have extra clothes for them. For all students, Pre-K to 5th grade, please have a spare outfit (including socks) in your child's backpack. This will help make them more comfortable while they are at school.

If you wish to send snacks or gifts for your child’s birthday, the office will be happy to call your student out of class to see their surprise. To minimize classroom disruptions, our policy is to keep flowers, balloons, gifts, etc. in the office until the end of the day. When the student is released for the day, they can pick up their gift and take it home. Please contact your child’s teacher to make necessary arrangements for celebrations that can be scheduled at a time that is compatible with the day’s learning schedule. State law requires that snacks fit the healthy criteria for the Oregon Smart Snack law.

Please remember that our doors open on Monday through Thursday at 7:20 and on Friday at 7:50. We do not have supervision until those times so please do not drop your child off sooner than that time.

When it comes to dismissal, it is imperative that you update pick up patrol. We have several after school clubs and we need plans to be accurate. In addition, we still use pick up patrol on Friday, REID days and we need plans changed in that system on that day as well. If you need any support with this, just let us know. If we have not heard from you, we use the student's default plan in Pick Up Patrol to know where to send them. Thank you for understanding.

Every Student. Every Day. Whatever It Takes!

Principal Corinne Johnsen

Go Timbers!

Email: johnsenc@estacada.k12.or.us
Website: www.rmes.estacada.k12.or.us
Location: 850 North Broadway Street, Estacada, OR, USA
Phone: 503-630-8517
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RiverMillElem
Twitter: @RMTimbers