We Are... Wildcats
March 28th, 2021
A Message from the Principal
Our Wildcat students had a great March! For our PTO's reading contest, students read and submitted over 2600 books to our PTO!! How amazing is that?!? We hope all our families have a great and restful Spring Break! We will see you back at Weiss on April 5th!
Also, if you have another moment, the Google Form below is a quick way 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
Regards,
Mr. Bezeau
Principal
Downriver STEM at Weiss
Yearbook Ordering
Yearbooks are ready to order. If your child is interested in a yearbook, please click the link below. You will need the code to select our school.
Code: 4385021
Yearbooks must be ordered by March 28th.
COVID and Close Contact Reporting
Throughout this entire school year, our ability to maintain safe and effective in-person instruction has been reliant on our dedicated instructional staff, strong mitigation practices, and open and consistent communications between home and school. As we enter into Spring Break, we want to once again stress that it is imperative that positive cases, close contact quarantines, and students awaiting test results are reported to the PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE immediately. While the office will be closed from 3/27/21-4/4/21, we will once again be able to take reports of close contact or positive cases by phone on 4/5/21. Mr. Bezeau will also check his emails throughout Spring Break. If you need to notify the school that your child is a close contact, potential close contact, awaiting a test result or received a positive test result, please email me at:
Derek Bezeau - bezeaud@gibdist.net
Please remember, the school MUST be notified and students should NOT be sent to school if:
Anyone in your household is waiting on a COVID test or has tested positive for COVID.
If your child has been in close contact with a person waiting on a COVID test or who has tested positive for COVID.
If your child is awaiting COVID test results or has tested positive for COVID.
Beyond these scenarios, if your child does not pass any element of the home screener, he or she MUST stay home, and the school must be notified.
Not Receiving Texts?
Whenever Mr. Bezeau sends mass communication to the community, it is always sent through email and text. If you are not receiving these text and want to, please follow these steps to change your notification settings in Parent Connect:
- Log in to her Parent Connect.
- Once logged in, click on Change Communication Preferences.
- From there, on the left-hand side, you will see a circle with your initials. Click those initials.
- Then click Notifications.
- You will be able to customize the notifications you receive and how you receive them.
Here is how to access Parent Connect (you may already know how but I figured I would share the instructions just in case):
ParentConnect is the web application connected to our Student Information System. It will allow you to review current, up-to-the-minute information about your student including their emergency contact information. Emergency contact information has always been vitally important and it continues to be. More communication than ever will be coming home via email opposed to paper copies. When you need to update your contact information the web address for the ParentConnection site is:
https://zangleweb.resa.net/Gibraltar/ParentConnect
If you encounter technical difficulties using your account, please send email to: parentconnect@gibdist.net
Just a small glimpse of some of the great things happening at Weiss Recently
Some of our 3rd graders are practicing kindness by “dropping” kind notes into their classmates' “buckets”. #GSDPride #HappyGSD #SpringIntoGSD
Thank you Superintendent Conway for being a guest reader in Mrs. Bongiorno’s class this past month! The kids loved it!! #SpringIntoGSD #GSDPride
Important Dates
April 5th- School Resumes (Welcome Back!)
April 9th: Half Day for Students. This is the end of the marking period
April 15th: Report Cards Come Home
April 26th- April 30th: Autism Acceptance Month Spirit Week
May 31st: Memorial Day
June 11th: Last Day of School
Interested in Being a Lunch Monitor?
We are looking for a couple of caring adults that would love to help our Wildcat students during lunchtime. Our lunch monitors typically work Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 10:45-1:45 (but the schedule can be adjusted based on availability) and get paid by the hour. If you would be interested or know someone else that might be interested in becoming a Lunch Monitor, please contact our office at 734-379-7060
HELP THE PTO SUPPORT OUR WILDCATS
The PTO has two school year-long fundraisers available, both of which benefit the programs, events, and materials sponsored by the PTO. Every purchase helps the PTO work with teachers and staff to give our Wildcats what they need to for fun and successful year.
Our Weiss spirit wear is available with 10 different designs available. Want a little bling? Choose your design in a blue or silver glitter design. Looking to sport our Wildcat mascot? Select on of three Frankie the Wildcat designs. Want to show a little kindness? We have Kind Human, Wildcat designs. Purchase your spirit wear at weisselementaryspiritwear.com. March Coupon (can be combined with Free Ship) is 10% off moisture-wicking t-shirts with code: MAR21P
What a Crock Fundraiser – Catchy name, great food. What a Crock offers busy families the opportunities to purchase crock-pot ready meals that make dinner time easy and delicious. As tried and true users of What a Crock, the PTO is proud to partner with this company. Everything we’ve tried has been generously portioned, filling, and tastes homemade. Place your home delivery order at: https://whatacrockfundraisers.com/pages/weiss. This fundraiser will last through the summer, with 10-30% of the cost of each item purchased going back to the PTO.
Internet and Social Media Safety
Downriver STEM at Weiss Elementary School prides itself on providing a safe learning environment for its students. An emerging national concern is the inappropriate use of social media by students. This problem has the potential to be harmful in many ways, and we ask your support in assisting us with this challenge.
Across the nation, schools have seen an increase in negative student behavior as a result of student use of popular social networking websites and applications (apps). Many sites and apps contain instant messaging components that allow students to chat with other students and to post statements and videos that ordinarily would not be said in a face-to-face conversation.
The popularity of these social media platforms only seems to be growing. SnapChat, for example, is said to have over 200 million members and has become one of the most popular “message exchange” sites among students nationwide. In fact, we are noticing that while there are age restrictions on many sites, this does not seem to be a deterrent to student use at younger and younger ages.
An unfortunate reality is that our students are at an age where they do not fully understand the full extent of the consequences that come with the choices they make online. Students view these platforms as a natural way of communication, forgetting the permanence that comes with what they express online. One of the biggest challenges for this generation is students learning to navigate these sites appropriately as some students use these platforms to bully or threaten harm to others. This type of behavior has been well documented as causing long-term negative consequences for the student who posts this communication and those who are the target of the communication.
It is imperative that parents are aware of what their children are posting online and what others are posting in reply. These sites and apps are public domain, and anything posted there can be seen by anyone who has Internet access.
Helpful Tips and Resources
We encourage you to talk with your son or daughter about appropriate use of social media and the potential dangers that exist with online use. Ask if they have an account with Facebook, Tik Tok, SnapChat, or similar websites and apps. If your child is using such a site with your permission, you may want to review his or her profile to ensure that no personal and identifiable information has been posted.
We also encourage you to establish rules and guidelines to ensure the safety of your child while on the Internet. Some websites offer parental or family guidance for Internet safety; for example, SafeKids.com, located online at http://www.safekids.com.
Downriver STEM at Weiss Elementary will continue to provide Internet security within our schools. It is important that parents also monitor Internet/Social Media use at home.
Thank you for your support and cooperation in keeping our students safe. If you have questions, please feel free to contact me in the Weiss main office at 734-379-7060.
UPDATED WCHD HEALTH SCREENER
Kindergarten Round Up
Do you have a child at home who will be five years old on or before September 1, 2021? Do you know someone who does, perhaps a friend or a neighbor? If so, Gibraltar School District has a spot waiting just for them in our kindergarten classrooms next year! Gibraltar School District offers both a traditional Kindergarten program as well as a Young Fives Kindergarten program. Both of these programs have a strong focus on the math and literacy skills needed for a solid foundation through the course of the formative elementary years. Registration is now OPEN online!
To begin the enrollment process, please visit the link below and follow the link to the Online Pre-Enrollment! Once completed, you will schedule an appointment to complete the enrollment process.
http://www.gibdist.net/about/register-students/kindergarten-young-5s-registration
We will be running small-group informational sessions for parents and prospective students, on April 21 and April 28 at each elementary building. Once your enrollment process is complete, you can schedule your appointment for a small-group session!
Important Parent Survey
As we enter into the spring and the end of the year quickly approaching, we are actively planning for summer programming options and for the fall of 2021. We are looking for specific feedback on instructional initiatives from this current school year as well as gauging interest in additional learning opportunities for the spring/summer for students who may need more time and support. Your feedback on both current and future programming options is critical to this planning.
Please take a few moments of your time to respond to the survey in the link below. In order to have the most accurate information, please complete this for each child you have in the district. This level of information helps us to tailor our plans to the building level where appropriate. Each submission should only take 1-3 minutes. This survey will remain open through Sunday, March 14.
Please note that all responses are for planning only and are not any sort of commitment on your part.
Please access the survey at the following link: GSD 2021-2022 School Year Parent Survey
Downriver STEM at Weiss Elementary School
Website: https://www.gibdist.net/weiss-elementary
Location: 26631 Reaume St, Woodhaven, MI 48183, USA
Phone: 734-379-7060
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Frank-E-Weiss-Elementary-171825686267958