Cottonwood News
January 11th
Pre-Enrollment for 2019-20
This form will give us the name of your Kindergartener. Please call or email the office with a date of birth, address and parent information so that we can put you on our mailing list for Kindergarten Round-Up--March 26th and Kindergarten visitation--May 3rd. More information about Kindergarten will be on the district website.
News You Can Use
District Climate Survey--Please take a few minutes and complete the district climate survey. It always helps to know how we are doing and how we can get better.
Lost and Found--We have several jackets, coats, and sweatshirts in Lost and Found. We try to remind students to check it out, but we seem to have more lost than found. It is located right by the nurse's office.
Winter Recess—Recess is held outside whenever possible. We all need fresh air and the chance to run around. Teachers monitor wind chills and temperature before going outside. Please make sure your child dresses appropriately for cold weather. Coats, hats, and gloves are sometimes a must! If you have questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to call.
Snow Days: If for some reason, school is canceled because of weather, you can check the local news stations for closings. The Andover Schools will send out a School Messenger call to let parents know of closings. School Messenger only calls updated numbers in PowerSchool, so please keep your information current.
Thank you to the Andover Police Department for serving our community!
Bags of Love--Cottonwood Student Council and building service project
Exciting news! Student Council has been awarded a $500 grant from the Kansas State Department of Education and the Kansas Volunteer Commission to support our “Bags of Love” project during the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Day of Service and Remembrance 2019. The Bags of Love will be given to children in crisis, aged toddler to teenager, who are in protective custody at the Wichita Children’s Home.
Student Council funds will be used to buy new underwear, socks, and toiletries for the bags, and we are asking Cottonwood students to donate small toys/gifts to be included in the bags, i.e. play dough, slime, coloring books and crayons, journals and pens, small stuffed animals, books, etc. Items should be new and able to fit in a cloth grocery bag.
Since the character word of the month at Cottonwood is service, donating to Bags of Love would be an easy way to reinforce the character trait at home! Thank you so much for considering sending in a donation for Bags of Love. Donations will be accepted from Monday, January 7 through Wednesday, January 16.
Rock and Roll Forever
The 2nd and 3rd Grade Music Program will be Thursday, 2/7 at 7 p.m. in the Andover High School (AHS) auditorium. The theme of the program is “Rock and Roll Forever” and will feature the musically talented 2nd and 3rd graders who have been working hard on their program to give their family and friends a musical treat!
Dress is blue jeans rolled up at the hems and a plain colored t-shirt, no writing or pictures. Girls may wear plain t-shirts with poodle skirts if they have skirts.
The music program will be professionally recorded again and DVDs are available at $18. Forms will be coming home soon and should be returned to Mrs. Nobach by Friday, February 8, 2019.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to e-mail me at martinee1@usd385.org
Thank you,
Mrs. Nobach, Cottonwood Vocal Music
January is School Board Appreciation month
KELPA2 Testing
Cottonwood ESOL students will be taking the KELPA in February. The Kansas English Language Proficiency Assessment (KELPA2) measures the English language proficiency of EL(English Language) students. Kansas administers KELPA2 to measure student progress toward such proficiency based on English Language Proficiency Standards.
Each KELPA2 assessment is broken into four parts, corresponding with the four language domains: listening, reading, speaking, and writing. All students who are identified as ELs must take KELPA2, whether or not they are receiving instructional services. Building test coordinators (counselors) and ESOL teachers will administer the KELPA2 to all EL students in grades K-12 between February 1st and March 9th. A practice test will be held at the end of January for students to become familiar with the format of the test. EL students continue to qualify for services until they score “proficient” in all four language domains for one year.
If you have any questions, please contact Laura Dickman at dickmanl@usd385.org. Thank you!
Counselor's Corner--Marcie Faust
This month we are talking about making responsible behavior choices. We are also talking about appropriate conflict resolution. We are working on recognizing emotion in others and showing empathy towards our friends.
Throughout the school, many of our classes are working on service. It is important to give back and help those that are less fortunate than we are. Please continue to talk to your child about the importance of this.
We are about halfway through banana split groups. Please visit with your child about the group. Let me know if you have questions or concerns. Also, if they need additional support. If you are new and would like to acquire about this let me, know.
My circle of friends group will be visiting the Alley on Jan. 23. Make sure you let me know ahead of time if your child will be attending.
There will be many cold days ahead. If your family is in need of anything please let me know. I have additional resources that I can connect you with.
Marcie Faust-Cottonwood Counselor/LPC/NBCC
316-218-4620 ext. 2
Nurse's News
MIDWEST DENTAL
401 N. Woodlawn
Have or know any kids in need of dental care? Our office is volunteering Friday afternoon, February 1st from 12-4 to provide dental services FREE OF CHARGE for children without insurance!
Services include:
- Cleanings
- Fluoride treatments
- Sealants
- Fillings
- Extractions
If you know of someone or would like to get a child set up to come to see us, simply call our office at (316) 686 - 6601, Beth and Beth will be glad to get your little one on the books. In order to avoid excess waiting time for you, we would ask that rather than walking in, you make an appointment to be seen. Feel free to call with any questions.
Stay Healthy!
Mrs. Tauke and Mrs. Peay
Cottonwood PTO
Check out our Facebook page for more information. Our next meeting is February 6th from 7:00-8:00 in the Cottonwood Lounge. Please join us to see what is happening at Cottonwood.
Watch your child's Friday folder for more information regarding:
Mother-Son Night at The Alley--February 20th from 6:00-8:00. All our boys and a guest are invited to bowl for the evening. Pizza and drinks to be provided by the PTO.
Father-Daughter Event--We decided to have The Alley host us again for this event. All our girls and a guest are invited to bowl for an evening. We are working on these details and date.
Spring Fling--Our Spring Family Night will be at All-Star Sports. The date and more information will follow soon.
School Safety
Breafast is served from 8:20-8:50.
After school dismissal is at 3:45. Please continue to follow the traffic patterns. It helps the adults if you have the name cards in the side windows. If you have suggestions on how to make our process and flow of traffic safer, feel free to share your ideas.
Communication is Key
School website: http://cottonwood.usd385.org/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/CottonwoodElementary
PTO Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/cottonwoodelementarypto/
Andover Twitter: https://twitter.com/AndoverSchools
Cottonwood Twitter: https://twitter.com/CottonwoodElem
Teacher Facebook/Twitter pages:
Mrs. Defebaugh https://www.facebook.com/MrsDsClass/
Mrs. Fox https://www.facebook.com/foxin5th/
Mrs. Gallagher https://www.facebook.com/mrsgallaghers5thgradeclass
Mrs. Plank https://www.facebook.com/Mrs-Planks-Fourth-Grade-1490196337947267/?fref=ts
Mrs. Ralston @Mrs_Ralston
Mrs. Rich https://www.facebook.com/emmonsa/?fref=ts
Ms. Wright https://www.facebook.com/wrightces/?fref=ts
Mrs. Hachen https://www.facebook.com/HachenHighlights/?fref=ts
Mrs. Davis https://www.facebook.com/dayswithdavis/
Mrs. Highfill https://www.facebook.com/highfill2nd/?fref=ts
Mrs. Barscewski https://www.facebook.com/Mrs-Barscewskis-First-Grade-1295655550474548/?fref=ts
Mrs. Kindle https://www.facebook.com/kindle2014/?fref=ts
Ms. Hinz https://www.facebook.com/1stgradehinz/
Mrs. Hanna https://www.facebook.com/MrsHannasKindergarten/?fref=ts
Mrs. Wagner https://www.facebook.com/Wagner-Kinders-826576851066135/
Mrs. Wood @woods1stgrade, https://fb.me/woodslittlelearners
Mrs. Wilson https://www.facebook.com/Wilsonart2015/?fref=ts
Mrs. Nobach https://www.facebook.com/groups/2114346102210974/about/
Peachjar-- Peachjar is an “electronic backpack” system where schools post calendars, activity information from enrichment providers, and school letters. This system is used exclusively for distribution of school-approved fliers. Your email address will not be shared or used for any other purpose.
Andover Food Service-- Andover School Lunch Menus are digital. Look for the link on our district website at USD385.org, or go to usd385.nutrislice.com. There is also an app available. Just look for Nutrislice in your app store. Please call Nutrition Services, 316-218-4603 with any questions.
Next Cottonwood News--January 25th
Cottonwood Elementary
Email: rookss@usd385.org
Website: http://cottonwood.usd385.org/
Location: 1747 N Andover Rd, Andover, KS, United States
Phone: 316-218-4620
Facebook: facebook.com/CottonwoodElementary/
Twitter: @CottonwoodElem