Cypress Woods Elementary

A Note From Mrs. Hill & Mr. Stevens

Thank you to all of our PreK - 2nd Grade families who joined us this week for our virtual Open House sessions. Open House is an important night of information to get the year started by building relationships between home and school that set students up for success. This Wednesday we will host our virtual Open House for 3rd - 5th Grade, Access, and Gifted Program families. Your child's teacher will send you a link to join the meeting.

If you were unable to join last week or have a conflict this week, please make sure to email your child's teacher(s) so that the information can be shared via email. We will be showcasing our specialists and other resource teachers on our website in the next week or so. Stay tuned for more information.

It's amazing that this week we will already welcome September. We will be celebrating National College Colors Day on Friday, September 3rd. We look forward to seeing all of our Eagles dressed in their favorite college colors.

Important Dates

Wednesday, September 1st

Virtual Open House for 3rd-5th, Gifted, and Access

Friday, September 3rd

National College Colors Day

Monday, September 6th

Labor Day - No School for Students

Thursday, September 9th

Picture Day!! Say Cheese!

CWE Guidelines For Success

This school year we are improving our implementation of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) with our new Guidelines for Success, where we will S.O.A.R. (Show Self-Control, Own a Positive Attitude, Act Responsibly, and Respect Self and Others)!

PBIS is a system to teach and reinforce behaviors needed for successful learning and social development of all students. The school-wide system creates proactive approaches for identifying, defining, teaching, and supporting appropriate student behaviors to foster a positive school environment for all students.

An emphasis of PBIS is to recognize and reward positive student behavior. As a way to acknowledge positive choices that students make at school, students will be awarded Eagle “Feathers” by school staff. The “Feathers” are turned in each week for recognition and to choose an award during their lunch period. “Feathers” will be signed and sent home with students each week. “Feathers” can also be earned by the entire class resulting in a monthly class reward.

For a detailed overview of our expectations in all areas of school, please see our Guidelines for Success Behavior Matrix. We ask that you please help your child learn, interact with, and model these expectations in different environments including home, community, and school. Thank you for your support and involvement in reminding our students of appropriate behaviors in all settings!

Free and Reduced Meal Application

While all students will receive meals at no charge, the application provides other key benefits – additional funding for schools, technology assistance and discounts for students such as clothing and college entrance exams. All households are encouraged to apply. Completing the online application is secure, convenient and worry-free. Results are available within two working days. Eligibility is based on household size and income. Once approved, the benefits are good for the entire year.

Wellness Updates

While we are seeing a rise in Covid cases across the country, we are also seeing them in Pinellas County and even in our school. Please know we are following the district protocols as they are outlined at https://www.pcsb.org/covid19. A couple of important notes:

If your child is displaying symptoms of COVID-19 please keep them at home. Please make sure to report you child's absence to your child's teacher or through the absence link on our school website (also linked below).
If your child or a household member has tested positive for COVID 19, please report that to us as well. We ask that you please also send in a copy of your child's test results which will help expedite your case through the covid team and the DOH.
Once a positive case is confirmed (through a test from a healthcare provider or DOH approved testing site) by the DOH and our district covid team, any staff or students who are identified as a close contact and needs to quarantine will be notified by our school nurse. Confirmed cases will also be reported to the district dashboard.
Please remember if there is a pending PCR test for ANY household member, students must remain at home until the results are back. This includes any siblings that may attend PCS.
Students should continue to follow their family expectations in regards to wearing masks. All family choices on wearing or not wearing masks will be respected. With that said, Pinellas County Schools strongly recommends the wearing of masks.

Picture Day - September 9th

Picture Day is coming on Thursday, September 9th. Order forms were sent home with students last week. Parents may choose to order online and write their confirmation number on the order form and send it to school with their child on picture day. Checks and cash (exact change) are also accepted. Should families want to prepay online they may order at www.leonards.com/photoprepay Access code C547997.

Car Line Reminders

Our car lines are beginning to run a little quicker in the mornings and afternoons. With one way into our campus, it is challenging during arrival and dismissal times. We are in ongoing communication with the county to ensure the light cycle at Cypress Woods Blvd/East Lake is adjusted at the peak times during the day so we can exit cars as quickly as we can. Thank you for your continued patience. Just a couple of reminders:

Follow ALL traffic patterns!! Our processes and traffic patterns work when everyone abides by our procedures.
Be alert and avoiding texting while in the car lines.
Please do NOT get out of your car while in the car line. Students need to enter and exit the car from the passenger side.
Parents are NOT permitted to park and walk to drop off or pick up their child at the door. Crossing the car line in the front of the school is dangerous.
While it may take a little longer during arrival and dismissal, we will never compromise safety for convenience.

Bus Bulletins

If you have a bus rider, please consider signing up for bus bulletin. Bus bulletin is a system that Pinellas County uses to communicate transportation issues with schools and families. If you sign up, you will receive information regarding any changes to your child's route. The information could include a late pickup, a substitute driver, a change in route, or a number of other things. This is a great way to stay connected to transportation without having to call.