We Are... Wildcats!
10/28/2021
A Message from the Principal
Our Wildcats have learned a lot this past month on what it means to be an upstander! This is something that is not always easy to do but is so important! In the month of November, we will continue learning about gratitude. However, we are also going to spend some time learning about what it means to be respectful.
Take a moment to check out this 5-minute video about respect and feel free to discuss as a family some times when you have felt respected: https://youtu.be/GOzrAK4gOSo
Since November is right around the corner and it's the perfect time to show gratitude, please take a moment to complete this Google Form to share a shout-out about a Weiss staff member. A single sentence or two can really make a great impact. https://forms.gle/Rx4AvhThzRxZHc3r6
Continually Grateful,
Mr. Bezeau
Principal
Downriver STEM at Weiss Elementary School
November 2nd- No School -------------- November 5th- Half Day
Gibraltar School District Hiring a School Social Worker
Now hiring for School Social Worker!
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- Preferred State of Michigan full approval in School Social Work
- Masters in Social Work from accredited university with a School Social Work concentration, with demonstrated knowledge and competency in:
- Child psychopathology
- Diagnosis, assessment and testing
- Educational disabilities and their impact on children and families
- The practice of social work in educational settings
- Proficient in computer applications, word processing, spreadsheets, and other educational technology
Feel free to share this link for interested candidates: HERE
Halloween Reminders
Our classes will also be celebrating Halloween tomorrow. As of right now, the weather is not looking good for the outside community parade scheduled for 3:00. It shows a very high percentage chance of rain throughout the entire day. As a reminder, if it is raining, we will be canceling the parade. The final decision and notification will come out by 2:45pm tomorrow. However, the good news is that the classroom celebrations will still take place within the classrooms. As a reminder, we will not allow adult visitors inside the building tomorrow except for the classroom volunteers that submitted a volunteer background form and have already been arranged through the classroom teacher.
Here is the list of costume tips and reminders that were sent out earlier this month:
- Please keep costumes simple.
- Students should be able to use the bathroom independently while wearing their costumes.
- Choose a costume that doesn't reflect violence. Inappropriate props such as blood, plastic knives, and weapons of any kind are not allowed, even if they are a part of the costume. These could be saved for activities at home.
- No costume masks will be allowed as our students will still be required to wear their masks with their costumes.
- Students can wear costume makeup to school, but we encourage families to keep it simple.
Halloween Parade Route (Weather Permitting) - 3:00pm on Friday, October 29th.
School Happenings
Mrs. Kelly, our school librarian, has started her lunch book clubs. Some of our interested students in grades 2nd-5th grade will have a chance to talk about books with each other during their lunch once a week! Thank you Mrs. Kelly for giving our students this great opportunity!
We are excited to have our Kindergarten students help plant aloe this past week in our indoor garden project. The students studied the root structures and observed different soils and rocks for plant growth. Thanks, Mr. Budziak for giving these students this awesome opportunity!
Celebrating Differences
Weiss is a school that is full of students that come from a variety of backgrounds. While we love celebrating our many differences, it is also important for families to have conversations with their children about how we can appropriately celebrate what makes us unique. Our differences can come from our interests, appearances, cultures, race, abilities, and more. We never want any child to feel sad because of those differences. In elementary school, we do a lot of learning about accepting our differences but this message is more impactful when it comes from home as well. Our students are learning and need to understand that any language or actions that may cause other students to feel upset about who they are will have consequences. Depending on the age, the consequences could be more of a learning experience where the student apologizes and learns about their actions or it could be where students lose privileges. Either way, parents will always be notified. Here are a few examples of hurtful actions or statements that our Wildcats need to be aware of, to help ensure they are making good choices while at school:
Making fun of someone because they read a certain type of book
Making fun of someone because of the color of their skin
Making fun of someone because of their hair
Making fun of someone for the clothes they wear
Making fun of someone because of their nationality
Making fun of someone because of their accent
Making fun of someone because they aren’t as good in a certain subject.
The words we use need to make all people feel safe and respected.
Helping children understand what’s acceptable at school is most effectively accomplished when the message comes from both home and school, as a partnership. This is especially true in this situation. As a Weiss community, we would be grateful if this message is also reinforced at home.
Champions
COVID Protocol Update
Our GSD Fall 2021 Covid Protocols have been updated. The GSD Fall 2021 Covid Protocol document can be found HERE. Quarantine protocol 3 was updated. Protocol 3 include the following information:
Protocol 3: If an unvaccinated student properly wears a mask at all times (except when eating or outside for recess/activity) and they are deemed a close contact from the classroom setting, there are circumstances in which the child may continue to attend school. In order for the protocol to apply, the following circumstances must apply:
The continuous wearing of a mask must be verified by each teacher
The lunch setting confirms appropriate spacing between students
Other considerations may be taken into account based on the continual changing landscape of COVID-19 and the guidelines that come from local and state health departments. If this protocol is in place for a student, the student may only continue to attend if symptom-free and a mask is properly worn at all times.
Family Health Screener
Upcoming Dates
October 29th- Parade at 3:00 (Weather Permitting) and classroom parties.
November 2nd- No School
November 3rd- PTO Meeting at 6:30. All are Welcome!
November 5th- Half Day for Students (end of the 1st quarter)
November 17th- Picture Day Retakes
November 24th- Turket Trot. More Details to come soon.
November 25th-26th- No School- Thanksgiving Break
December 17th- Last Day of School prior to Winter Break
January 3rd- School Resumes
Feel free to add this "Weiss Families Calendar" to your Google Calendar to help easily keep track of upcoming Weiss events: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=gibdist.net_ra1jclsqrn76kim9gv4kj4jsb4%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FNew_York