Ottawa News
Information and Updates for Ottawa Families
From the Principals
Hello Ottawa families,
Happy Fall! πWe are looking forward to an eventful October at Ottawa!. Please be sure to read the information below regarding our upcoming Parent/Teacher Conferences, Halloween activities and PTO events.
As a friendly reminder, for the safety of our entire school community, all visitors to our building must report to the main office through door #1 before going anywhere in the school. This includes during arrival and dismissal times. In the morning, our doors open at 8:50 a.m. for students to come into the building. Only students who are on our morning service squad team may enter the building earlier. All other students are to remain outside until the doors open. We appreciate your help and support to keep our students and staff safe.
Please be sure to read through all of the information in our newsletter as it is our main form of communication with our families. We don't want you to miss out on any important details or happenings. We appreciate your continued cooperation and support.
Sincerely,
Mr. Lockhart and Mr. Johnson
Principal and Assistant Principal
Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences
Fall Parent / Teacher Conferences for the 2023-24 school year are scheduled for Wednesday, October 18th from 5:30 p.m. β 8:00 p.m. and Thursday, October 19th from 1:00 p.m. β 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.β 8:00 p.m. These conferences will be in person in your child's classroom.π
To schedule a conference with your child'd teacher please visit the SignUp Genuis link below:
When signing up, please type your child's full name in the Studentβs Name section. The scheduling window is currently open, and will close on Friday, October 13th at 5:00 p.m. If you do not have access to the internet, please call the office for assistance during the scheduling window.
π Halloween at Ottawa π
Halloween will be here before you know it! At Ottawa, this how we celebrate:
- Each classroom will hold their own unique party the morning of Tuesday, October 31st. This party is only for students and staff.
- Following the party, students will participate in the trick-or-treat parade beginning at 10:45 a.m. We will be parading outside the school (as long as the weather cooperates) for all to see. Families are welcome to line the parade route to see our otters, take pictures, and wave.
- Please remember, Halloween costumes should be of a non-violent, friendly theme. Please no Scream masks, knives, weapons, blood, heavy make-up, etc. A great deal of effort is put forth at Ottawa and at home to teach children to deal with problems in a non-violent way and to always remember our Otter Expectations. We do not want to see the students dressed as perpetrators or victims of violence. Please help your child plan a costume appropriate for our school.
- After the parade is completed, parents may choose to sign their child out. Please go to the exterior door of your childβs classroom to do so. Students who are not getting picked up early will be dismissed at 11:50 a.m.
- We are looking forward to a fa-boo-lous day!
π PTO News π
It is officially fall and we are getting ready to kick off some of our favorite events of the year. Here are the details:
- Ottawa has an annual Halloween Parade where students get dressed in their costumes and walk the halls and an outside path. ALL SPECTATORS WELCOME! We encourage families to come and see their students and their friends during the outside portion of the parade.
- Last Year the PTO started the tradition of a candy pass out during the parade. We encourage families to sign up to pass out candy during the Halloween Parade. Candy will be provided for you. You will need a background check to participate. Email 40PTO@cvs.k12.mi.us to get started with your background check and use the link here to sign up to pass out candy - https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E084CAFAA2FA7F58-halloween1#/
- Our Candy Monster has been set out since Monday, for Candy Donations. Please consider dropping a bag in the monster for the Halloween Parade.
- Last but not least, our BOO BASH! will be held on November 3rd, the Friday after Halloween. This is a Family Free Event Sponsored by the PTO. Costumes encouraged! We will have costume contest, free games, free craft, music, donut and cider concessions, and we will be bringing back SILLY STRING A TEACHER! We have more sign ups this year and our special guest MR. LOCKHART cannot wait to get silly stringed himself.
- We are also doing TABLE OR TREAT. A little twist on trunk or treat. Parents can sign up to decorate a table and pass out candy to students. The best decorated table wins a prize on the PTO. It is a great way to get rid of all that extra Halloween candy (hint hint)
We cannot do it without your help. Please consider signing up to volunteer at different stations and for setup and clean up. Sign up link to RSVP and volunteer here - https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E084CAFAA2FA7F58-boobash#/
Next PTO Meeting: Thurs., October 12th
October PTO Meeting
Please enter the building through door #11 (west side of building by staff parking lot). The meeting will take place in the cafeteria
Thursday, Oct 12, 2023, 07:00 PM
Ottawa Elementary School, Millar Road, Clinton Township, MI, USA
π Ottawa Elementary School Hours π
- The first bell rings at 8:50 a.m. At this time buses will release students to enter school. Students who walk to school or get dropped off can also enter the building.
- The second bell rings at 8:55 a.m. Students should be in their classroom at this time, as the school day begins. If your child arrives to school after 8:55 a.m., please enter though our main office doors.
- Our end of school day bell rings at 3:39 p.m. However, students who attend afternoon SACC, walk to school or get picked up will be dismissed at 3:35 p.m. Students who ride a bus home will be dismissed at 3:39 p.m. or when their bus arrives.
Half School Day Schedule:
Our school day begins at 8:55 a.m. and ends at 11:50 a.m.
Half School Days for 2023-24:
- September 5 (1st day of school)
- October 18, 19, 20, and 31
- December 22
- February 16
- March 13, 15, and 28
- June 11 (last day of school)
π Upcoming Important Dates π
Oct. 18th - Half Day*
- Parent/Teacher Conferences 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
- Parent/Teacher Conferences 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. & 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Oct. 31st - Half Day *
Nov. 3rd - End of Trimester 1
Nov. 7th - NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS
Nov. 22nd through Nov 24th - Thanksgiving Break
* 11:50 a.m. dismissal
π« School Age Child Care (SACC) π«
New SACC (Childcare) Hours
SACC is available before school starts from 6:45 a.m. and after school until 6:00 p.m. each day school is in session. This includes half days. You may contact them directly at (586) 723-6687.
*Parents must re-register each year in order for children to use the SACC program: CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to our SACC director, Ms. Baszczuk at (586) 723-6687 or lbaszczuk@cvs.k12.mi.us.
From our Transportation Department
With the start of school just a few weeks away, the transportation department is hard at work making bus routes more efficient. Route numbers may change, and some bus stops have been moved. Please know that while stops may be different, safety is our first priority. It was necessary to adjust these routes for efficiency to make sure we could get students to school on time and safely.
We encourage you to visit the district transportation web page which will have a link to InfoFinder. This new program will show you where your stop is located and the stop time estimate. In the first few weeks of school, as drivers navigate construction and as traffic patterns change in and around the schools, bus stop times may need to be adjusted.
Soon you will be receiving an invitation link through email to download the StopFinder app. Please make sure your email is correct with your studentβs school. Stopfinder will provide busing information and allow you to track the bus.
This is the platform that will be used for all transportation notifications for late arrivals or delays. There are links posted on the transportation page to help parents utilize the StopFinder app to its full potential. If you have any routing questions, please email the department at transportation1@cvs.k12.mi.us and we will answer you as quickly as possible. We appreciate your patience and understanding.
Chippewa Valley Schools
Transportation Department
InfoFinder Introduction
At Ottawa we are ALL IN on improving reading/literacy instruction for ALL of our students. We are looking at every aspect of our teaching, our schedule, and how kids learn to read. In our classrooms, all of our teachers and grade levels use strategies and practices supported by the Science of Reading.
When you hear a school talk about the Science of Reading, what does it even mean? Well, first, it is important to know that kids donβt just learn to read by being given books. Kids donβt learn to read by guessing or looking at the pictures on a page. In fact, guessing and relying on photos on a page are not good habits at all because they donβt put any emphasis on sounding out or other research based strategies.
Although some children catch on quicker than others with reading, ALL children need specific instruction each day focusing on the five components of reading:
- Phonemic Awareness
- Phonics
- Fluency
- Vocabulary
- Comprehension
Click Here to read an article on the Science of Reading and some things you can do at home to support your child with reading and learning to read.
Tardy and Absence Update
Getting to school in the morning can be a hectic time. Please remember though that tardies can negatively impact the learning of your child. It is also disruptive when many students consistently continue to trickle into the classroom throughout the morning. Please remember that our first bell rings at 8:50 a.m. and class begins at 8:55 a.m.
Our school is working very hard to improve literacy and reading skills in all of our students and beginning our daily lessons right away in the morning is very important. When students are continuously tardy, they miss a considerable amount of crucial instruction time.
Here is something that we may not always think about: If a child is tardy every day by 10 minutes, that is 50 minutes of lost instruction per week. This is 200 minutes a month of instruction time that is lost. Adding up these minutes over the course of a school year can truly have a negative impact on learning.
Absences are another concern when they become chronic. Macomb County has a truancy department that keeps track of tardies and absences for school age children. Chronic absences are a big deal and it is against the law to have a child not attending school on a regular basis.
The loss of instruction time that takes place resulting from chronic absences can result in learning gaps over the years. We fully understand that children will get sick, go on vacation, or have other places that they need to go and will have to miss school at various times during the year. The main concern is chronic absences that continue to occur throughout the year. Unfortunately, if the pattern of continued absences is the same for the child the following year, the loss of learning continues to increase.
Again, we know that students will arrive late to school from time to time. Of course, children will also need to miss school from time to time. Please do your best to make sure your child is at school on time and in school as much as possible. It truly does have an impact on their learning.
Parking Lot Etiquette and Procedures
Please remember there is no parking in the bus lane, which is located along the curb in the front of the building. This lane is designated for busses only to allow students to safely exit and enter the bus.
Please drive with caution as you enter and exit our school parking lots. The traffic flow at all schools is slow and that is the safest for our kids. We have many children and families crossing the streets from our surrounding neighborhoods. Please try not to be in a hurry when dropping off and picking up your children.
Please be cautious and also respectful to each other, our students and staff. We ask that you refrain from confronting each other with issues. If you have any questions or concerns you may reach out to our administrative team.
Assistant Principal
Fox Elementary & Ottawa Elementary
Chippewa Valley Schools