Oakhurst Elementary
April 1, 2021
From the Principal
Greetings Owl Families!
We are one day away from spring break! Our students and staff have worked so hard to earn a much needed break. This week I witnessed some awesome discussions during Crew around acceptance as we read the book "Just Ask" by Sonia Sotomayor. Additionally, our first graders had a virtual visit from a meteorologist as they have been learning about weather. They were thrilled to see Ryan Beesley from Fox 5 Atlanta. Thanks to our first grade teachers for providing this amazing learning experience for both in-person and virtual learners.
Tomorrow is World Autism Day! Here is a link that shares some ideas of how we can celebrate it!
https://autisticmama.com/instead-of-light-it-up-blue-autism-acceptance-day/
We are looking forward to welcoming additional students to the building on Monday, April 12th. The transition will be an exciting time for in-person and virtual classrooms. Our in-person classes will have an average of 16 students and virtual classes will have an average of about 20 per class. Our virtual classrooms will continue with all of the supports that were allocated to them. We are committed to continuing success in our in-person and virtual classroom settings. Thank you for the support you have given during this time.
I hope you are able to have some family fun next week. Please remember to stay safe and mask up. We look forward to seeing everyone back at school on Monday, April 12th!
Principal Sanders
It’s Oakhurst Yearbook Time!!
This is certainly a year to remember! Please help us create a meaningful remembrance by supporting the 2020-2021 Oakhurst Yearbook in the following ways:
PAY FOR YEARBOOKS:
Books will be ordered for EVERY student and staff member, but to cover the cost, we need your help. Pay online at https://oakhurstelementarypta.org/. Go to “Store” then click the “Yearbook” link. There are options on the Yearbook Store page for Yearbook and Dedication payments, as well as to make an optional donation.
PURCHASE A DEDICATION ($10 each for SECOND-GRADE families only):
A yearbook dedication is the perfect way to say something special to your second-grader as they prepare to move up from Oakhurst. Each dedication will be approximately 1/10th of a page and will consist of a photo (that you provide) and up to 50 words or 260 characters. Order your dedication at the Yearbook payment site: https://oakhurstelementarypta.org/. Go to “Store” then click the “Yearbook” link. DEADLINE FOR DEDICATIONS is APRIL 2!
GET YOUR PICTURES IN THE YEARBOOK!
If your child did not have an individual portrait taken by the school photographer, please send a photo of your child that we can use on their classroom page!
Also, if you have photos of school activities (virtual learning activities, first day of in-person school, playing with friends safely, etc.) that you would like to have considered for inclusion in the yearbook, email them to oakhurstyearbook@gmail.com or send a link to a shared folder that we can access. Please send no more than 4 photos per student and include the names and grade levels of students pictured in the photos. Photos will be accepted through April 2.
Note: The Yearbook Staff will review all photos and determine final yearbook content. We cannot guarantee that all submissions can be used in the book.
Please contact the yearbook team with any questions at oakhurstyearbook@gmail.com. Thank you!
From the School Counselor
Parents,
Kindergarten will be completing “Think First, Stay Safe” lessons on this Friday, April 2nd. First and second-grade lessons were finished last week. The attached letter provides key concepts covered in the safety lessons. It is important for you to be aware of the key concepts, since home reinforcement of the program’s invaluable lessons can help ensure your child’s long-term safety.
Ms. Deming
From the Oakhurst Equity Team
Hello Families! This week we would like to share some of the resources we have been exploring in Crew. In the past few weeks we have been discussing and celebrating different abilities. In the links below you will find a read aloud of this week's book spotlight, Just Ask by Sonia Sotomayor, as well as links to a few videos from the series "Kids Meet." We are so proud of the thoughtful questions and discussions happening during these lessons. Keep up the great work, Crew!!!
- Just Ask read aloud
- Kids Meet a Guy in a Wheelchair
- Kids Meet a Deaf Person
- Kids Meet a Little Person
- Kids Meet a Photographer with Tar Syndrome
And here is the spotlight for our next week of Crew. We will continue the themes of inclusion and celebrating what makes us each unique. Happy Spring Break!
From the PTA
City Schools of Decatur Summer Program
CSD is delighted to share that we will offer an in-person summer program for students that qualify in grades K through 12. The program will run June 7-June 25 from 8:30 to 11:30am. Students will be invited to participate in the summer program based on eligibility criteria described below. Participation in the summer program is not required or mandated for any student. However, we highly encourage students who qualify to engage in this opportunity as it will set them up for success in the next grade level. For the summer program, which will be held at Talley Street Elementary and Decatur High School, availability of student transportation is limited.
Students who receive services from support programs such as Title 1, EIP, ESOL, and special education (via an IEP) will also be considered for the summer program per the criteria described below. Please note that the summer program is not the same as IEP service models, and do not use the same criteria as provided during the school year or Extended School Year (ESY). For a student with an IEP, the IEP team will determine ESY based on IDEA required considerations.
Invitations for participation in the summer program will be sent out by May 1. For students that qualify for the summer program but cannot attend in person, a virtual option will be provided. The Special Education Department will send out information regarding ESY directly to the parents of students who will be receiving those services at a future date.
K-5:
The summer program will be held at Talley Street Upper Elementary.
K-5 students must qualify in 2 of these 3 areas to be eligible for the summer program:
News from CSD Nutrition
CSD School Nutrition has several important updates for our community. Meals remain FREE until the end of the 2020-2021 school year. All students will receive 5 breakfasts and 5 lunches per week. We currently have 4 CSD TakeOutSpot locations to better serve our students. Please email us at meals@csdecatur.net with questions about our meal service plan.
No Spring Break Meal Service
We will not be serving meals over break (April 5-9) as our staff is taking some well-deserved time off. We will resume meal service on Monday, April 12. Please email sblack@csdecatur.net if you need access to community resources during this time.
Elementary In-Person Meal Service UPDATE
We are continuing to offer daily take-home meals (1 breakfast & 1 lunch) to our in-person K-5 students. We do not require any order forms to be filled out IF your child wants meals with no special considerations. If your child is vegetarian or has a special dietary need, please see that section of our update for online forms to fill out. Please encourage your kids to take meals, as it helps us function financially and shows support for what we do.
Elementary Virtual Meal Pick-Up UPDATE
We are still offering DAILY meal pick-up for K-5 elementary school students at Fifth Avenue and Talley Street from 11:40 AM - 12:15 PM. This will allow our K-5 virtual students to receive meals and help support our nutrition program. This will continue after Spring Break.
Middle & High School Meal Service UPDATE
On Monday, March 8, we welcomed back some of our in-person 6-12 students! We are thrilled to be serving them again. Please see the chart below for a schedule of meal pick-ups. Please determine if your child is a Mon/Tues student, a Thurs/Fri student, or a virtual student to find the correct meal pick-up plan for your family. This schedule only applies to the 1st week back after spring break, before our school system shifts to accommodate more students.
Virtual Siblings Meal Pick-up UPDATE
We are continuing to allow our in-person siblings to pick up meals for their virtual siblings. Note that this service is only for meals without special considerations. (If you have a virtual student who is a vegetarian or has a special dietary need, see that section of our updates.) Please fill out this form to help us know what school site to send extra meals to https://forms.gle/WurGn6iSJYFaYjfb7
Vegetarian & Special Diet UPDATE
If your child is a vegetarian or has a special dietary need, please fill out this google form: https://forms.gle/BM7ArRokp13i9seX8.
We ask that our virtual students pick up their meals at one of our 4 CSD TakeOutSpots instead of receiving meals via their in-person siblings to protect their health & safety. Vegetarian students should fill out the google form, and no further action is required. Students with special dietary needs should fill out the google form, have a healthcare provider fill out the paperwork "Medical Statement for Accommodating Disabilities," and contact sblack@csdecatur.net for further assistance. Please see the Special Diets tab on our webpage for more details.
Lucky Us: It's National Nutrition Month! Time to celebrate our School Nutrition Staff
During the month of March, we are celebrating how LUCKY we are to have our amazing School Nutrition staff! They have been working hard every single day since the pandemic started, and we are deeply appreciative of everything they have been doing for our kids. Our goal is to provide every staff member with some form of thanks/appreciation from our students & our community by the end of March.
How to support us: Please consider taking photos of your child enjoying their school lunch and send them to us at meals@csdecatur. Take photos of you & your child(ren) picking up their meals at one of our TakeOutSpots! Email a thank you note to your school nutrition staff or send an email to our department for us to distribute to the correct staff members. Teachers, have your class write thank you notes and send them via interoffice mail to us! Administrators can have cards signed by teachers & staff. Parents can take pictures and help encourage students to thank the nutrition staff in their buildings. We can all work together to show our staff how much we appreciate their effort.
News from Our Partners
Decatur Education Foundation
Thanks to everyone who participated in the Run Where You Are Tour deCatur 5K and Fun Run! We would like to thank all of our event sponsors, especially our presenting sponsor, Mathnasium of Decatur, and our platinum sponsors Beth Ann Clanin Intown Realtor and Townley Kenton. Winners of the 5K will be listed at tourdecatur.com later in the week.
Take a night off from cooking during spring break! NaanStop and Greg Kodesh Realty are partnering with DEF for a dine-out/take-out and will be donating 20% of sales to the DEF! NaanStop is a family-owned Indian restaurant serving our mother's recipes. We're offering family meals, including 2 entrees, fresh-baked naan, handmade samosas, basmati rice, and chutneys (feeds 4).
Just place your order before 5 pm on Wednesday, April 7th, and your order will be available for pick up between 5 – 5:45 pm on Thursday, April 8th. Pick-up location provided when order is confirmed.
- link to menu: https://bit.ly/NSorderDecatur
- Pickup/drive-thru at Avery/Bucher in Decatur
- Pickup instructions will be sent with confirmation
- Pickup will be available between 5-5:45
- masks/distancing required at pick up
- order in advance before 5 pm on Wednesday, April 7th ... first-come, first-served, so get your orders in before they sell out!
Decatur Farm to School
WHICH GREAT RESTAURANT WILL YOU CHOOSE? Wednesday, April 21st, will be Decatur Farm to School’s Spring Take Out! Order from participating restaurants during their open hours and a portion of your order total will go to DF2S! You can get food from Arepa Mia, Brick Store Pub, Butter & Cream, Farm Burger, Folk Art, Kimball House, Leon’s Full Service, Marlay House, My Parents’ Basement, Oakhurst Market, Raging Burrito, Sapori Di Napoli, Steinbeck’s, The Imperial, or Universal Joint! Proceeds from the Spring Take Out support our DF2S programs. Give yourself a break, eat a delicious meal, and support a wonderful cause!
About us
Email: suhawkins@csdecatur.net
Website: https://www.oakhurst.csdecatur.net
Location: 175 Mead Road, Decatur, GA, USA
Phone: 404 -370-4470
Twitter: @OakhurstOwls