Winona Elementary
December Newsletter
Message From Mrs. T
December
Happy December Everyone!
We will be completing our mid-year benchmark assessments in reading and math by taking the iReady assessment. After your student completes this assessment, we will be able to see who is already making a year's growth, who is on track to making a year or more of growth, and who may need some additional support with making that growth. We will send home parent reports on December 16th with your student.
As the weather continues to be wet and icy periodically, we ask that you look closely at the ground while walking your child to and from class. We work hard to make sure that we are spreading ice melt, shoveling, plowing, and spreading sand as much as necessary, but we want to make sure everyone is safe.
We have had a big focus on our attendance this year. After analyzing last year's data over the summer, our leadership team saw a correlation between student achievement and growth in learning and their attendance rates. Students who had lower rates of absences (were absent less), made more academic growth when compared to students who had higher rates of absences (were absent more). Our attendance rate for 2nd Quarter is at 90%, which is 1% lower than Quarter 1. We appreciate those of you who are having kids stay home if they have symptoms of illness, but if there is no illness, please make coming to school a priority. We are happy to support you with any barriers that you may be experiencing, so please reach out if there is anything we can do to help.
In order to help our parent drop-off lane go smoothly, please have your student have their things ready to go so that they can exit the vehicle safely and quickly.
As always, thank you for sharing your children with us. It is such a privilege to get to work with them every day!
Important Upcoming Dates and Events
December- Beginning January Events
6th- Bingo Night 6-7pm in cafeteria
15th Donuts with Dudes Please RSVP!
17th-Jan.4th Winter Break
Jan. 16th No School
Cooler Weather is Here!
We will be moving into our cold weather season. Please make sure that your children are wearing coats, and possibly hats and gloves to school on those cold days. When the snow begins to stick to the ground, we also recommend students have boots for recess or to stay on the blacktop. We do not typically have students change their clothes if they are wet if they have chosen to roll in the snow without the proper gear to keep them dry. Please let our school know if there is a way that we can help with cold-weather gear. One final request would be to make sure that your child's gear has their name labeled on it so that we can return any lost items to the correct owner, and so that you do not have to buy any replacement gear!
Winona Giving Tree
Winona Families,
If your student is on our giving tree list. Please plan on coming to Winona to pick up your student's gifts the week of December 12th. Someone from our office will call you and let you know when they are ready to pick up.
Holiday Resources 2022
Salvation Army of Loveland
Christmas gifts: Loveland Salvation Army will open its Angel Tree program on
December 13 and will run until December 23 Monday – Friday 9am – 4pm at our
Loveland office located 840 N Lincoln Ave. Families who have not registered with
any other gift programs, may come in during December 13 - 23 to register and to
receive gifts for their children the same day. Requirements for the Angel Tree
program: proof of residency in Loveland or Berthoud, and verification that family
has children ages 0 to 17 years old. That verification may include birth certificate
or school records or benefit records – anything to show that family has kids living
with them. With questions, call 970-699-8380. Note: if you have a Ft. Collins address, contact Salvation Army of Ft. Collins 970-207-4472 and make an appointment.
House of Neighborly Service
Holiday Food Basket -Visit HNS beginning December 1st to receive a Christmas Dinner Food Basket. This service will be available to income qualified households living within Thompson R2-J School District or with a Berthoud address through December 22. Contact House of Neighborly Service to learn more • Loveland: Call (970) 667-4939 or visit 1511 E. 11th Street, Loveland from Monday -Thursday 9:00am to 4:00pm or on the 1st Thursday of the month from 12:00pm to 7:00pm • Berthoud: Call (970) 532- 0161 or visit 375 Meadowlark Drive Berthoud on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00am to 5:00pm. You should plan to arrive 2 hours before closing.
Christmas Toy Store - This program provides an opportunity for parents/guardians to shop for new toys or gift cards (teens) for the children of the home. This program is for households that reside within Thompson R2-J school district or with a Berthoud address. • Loveland: Call (970) 667-4939 or visit 1511 E. 11th Street, Loveland from Monday -Thursday 9:00am to 4:00pm or on the 1st Thursday of the month from 12:00pm to 7:00pm • Berthoud: Call (970) 532- 0161 or visit 375 Meadowlark Drive, Berthoud ** Berthoud’s Christmas Store will ONLY be open on December 13,15,20, and 22 from 9am to 5pm**
Northern Colorado Toy Shop
6th Annual Toy Drive in Fort Collins to provide assistance to 500 children ages birth to 18 on December 3, 2022 from 9 am - 2 pm or until we run out of toys. Location: Knights of Columbus Hall, 121 N. Meldrum, Ft. Collins, CO 80521. Each child will receive a big toy, small toy, wooden toy car, and stocking. We encourage you to bring a large, black lawn bag to take your toys home in or something else that can help you transport your toys from our venue to your vehicle.
The event is first come, first served. A completed survey will be required to enter the toy shop and will be given out the day of the event. A birth certificate from anywhere is REQUIRED along with a picture ID for the parent receiving services. You may only shop for your children at this event. For more information: https://kenziscauses.org/toy-shop-fort-collins/
Two Hour Delay Start
Spring Concert March 28th
Everyday Counts at Winona!
Reading Fact for the month!
When children have a home library, as few as 20 books of their own at home (think: one bookshelf full), they achieve three more years of schooling than children who don’t have any books at home.” 7 Surprising Facts About Reading That Prove It All Adds Up
Caregivers, if you need books at home for your children, please let us know! We have quite a few gently used books that we are happy to pass on to families that want to build their home book collection. Send requests for books to any of these teachers:
You may also let Ms. Jordan or Mr. Devon know that you are interested in free books.
Wellness Newsletter
Sleep in Heavenly Peace
Just in time for the holidays….Sleep in Heavenly Peace will again deliver twin beds and bunk beds to families with compromised sleeping situations on Saturday, December 17th.
Families may apply at shpbeds.org/apply/
Respite Vouchers for Grand Families
The Larimer County Office on Aging needs your help to get the word out about their new program. There are 12 vouchers available to grand families raising grandchildren.
Please take a look at the documents for more information or download them below.
2022-2023 School Calendar
https://www.thompsonschools.org/page/2?ref=globalIcon&site=tsd#calendar1/20220726/month
Free and Reduced Lunch Applications
2022 - 2023 MEAL BENEFIT APPLICATIONS NOW AVAILABLE!!!
Applications are now being accepted for the 22-23 school year. This may qualify you for other benefits such as reduced fees and the P-EBT program.
Apply online at: www.myschoolapps.com
If you haven't applied and been approved for Free/Reduced Meal Benefits for school year 22-23, we encourage you to complete one now. Prior year benefits will expire on September 28th Students without an APPROVED 22-23 application will be charged for all meals beginning on September 29th. New benefits begin as soon as the application is processed.
There are 2 ways to apply:
www.myschoolapps.com to complete an on-line application. This is the FASTEST way to apply and be approved. Provide an email address, and your benefit letter will be emailed to you within hours.
Fill out a paper application, available at all schools. You can turn in your application to the school or to our office at 2890 North Monroe Ave, Loveland. Please allow up to 5 days to process paper applications. You are responsible for any charges accrued during that time.
Did you know many federal, state and local funding sources for TSD schools are based on the number of students eligible for free or reduced school meals? When you apply for free and reduced meal services, your school is eligible for additional funding that is important to maintain valuable school programs and services for families.
And, in addition to meal benefits, families who qualify for free or reduced meals are also eligible for other benefits, including reduced or waived school fees, technology support and internet access, as well as assistance with costs for a number of school programs like athletics and before/after school extracurricular activities.
Office Hours
7:30am-3:30pm M-F
Office Number
970-613-7100
Attendance Line
970-613-7111
Fax Number
970-613-7120
How sick is too sick??
How sick is too sick? Does your Child need to stay home?
Diarrhea
Yes – The child or staff member may return to school or child care 24 hours after their
last episode of diarrhea.
Fever
Fever is a temperature of
100.4°F or greater.
Yes – The child or staff member may return to school or child care if the fever has
been resolved for 24 hours without fever-reducing medications.
Flu-like Symptoms
Fever
Sore throat
Runny nose or congestion
Yes - Children and staff may return to school or child care as long as they are
fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications and symptoms are improving.
We are seeing a lot of flu-like symptoms since the start of school. Please do not send your students to school with symptoms that could be contagious. Call the health office to excuse an illness or if you have any health questions.
Thank you!
Mrs. Ashley
970-613-7102
Winona Spirit Wear!
The Winona Elementary School spirit wear is available to purchase all school year long. Choose from hundreds of designs and garments, all delivered to your home in days.
December Lunch Menu
Kim Tymkowych
Email: kim.tymkowych@tsd.org
Website: https://www.thompsonschools.org/winona
Location: 201 South Boise Avenue, Loveland, CO, USA
Phone: 970-613-7100