RP-TLE Weekly Family Communication

Dear Families,

By now, most of you have read the letter that I sent home letting you know that I will be retiring from my position as your building leader on January 20th. I've attached my letter, in case you haven't had a chance to read it. https://5il.co/1n9n4

I want to thank you for sharing your children with me over the years. I will miss them most of all! Their unexpected hugs, their beautiful smiles, their excitement when they succeed and their genuine little personalities have filled me with such joy and happiness. Even the difficult conversations that I have had with many over the years have been so fulfilling for me. I have appreciated everything more than I can express.

You're in great hands! Mr. Siembida is very excited to lead and your RP-TLE Team is amazing, as you already know.

I leave RP-TLE with a full heart and many wonderful memories. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Schmitt

We are so proud of Noah, Roczen and Grant for being brave during Rocket Launch on Friday. They stood in front of our entire school community and shared what they have learned about the sun, the moon and the stars. This is part of their Language Arts/Science unit and clearly they are enjoying reading for information. A Rocket Three to Ms. Zweigle for supporting the boys and to the boys for taking pride in their learning!

This month, our school-wide theme is "respect". We know that Mrs. Kolbe LOVES to have fun, so she organized a wheelbarrow relay race where grade levels competed against one another. The learners who were chosen to participate have been doing a stellar job showing respectful behavior this week. We had a lot of fun and our kids cheered on their classmates, as they raced to the finish line.

Our teaching team recognized Mrs. Kolbe with positive affirmations.

• • Anytime I ask Mrs. Kolbe to help out with something, she never hesitates. She is giving of her time and talent. Mrs. Kolbe is very dedicated to RP and expects the best from her learners.

  • Mrs. Kolbe is the life of the party, yet one of the most hard working dedicated teachers I know. :)She is eager to help wherever needed and is a great leader for our building. Love her fun attitude and jumps right in when there is a task to be done!

  • Watching Mrs. Kolbe grow into the confident and capable teacher she is today has been a pleasure. She is extremely hard-working, organized, and efficient. She is a go-getter and when she has her eyes on a goal, she is driven to achieve it. I am proud to think that I have been a mentor of sorts to her over the years and to call her my teaching partner today.

  • Mrs. Kolbe is such an amazing human as well as teacher. She is someone who will literally do a full stop of what she is doing to come and help me with anything. Whether it is creating a Google slide, composing a note with beautiful fonts, or whipping up an activity for buddies. She is constantly pushing herself for improvement and stepping outside of her comfort zone. Thank goodness she's at TLE!

  • Having Mrs. Kolbe as my teaching partner is one the best things to happen to me! She has made me a better teacher! She is always has a listening ear or a hug when I need it most! Blessed to have her by my side each day!

After every long break from school, our learners review our Rocket Way behavior expectations in shared locations around our school. This time of the year, we rely on our fourth grade leaders to help review with the rest of our learners. A shout out to Emmett, Eli, Layla, Vera, Bristol, Isabelle and Kourtney for facilitating learning at each location. You ROCKED!

Happy birthday to the following learners (and teacher) who celebrated this week:

Mr. Mikesell (1/9), Emmett Church (1/11), Emmett Rands(1/13), Elyssa Barnes (1/13)

We hope that you have a FANTASTIC DAY!

If RP-TLE is going to be able to have a team, we need to have, at least, three more girls register. Remember, financial assistance is available! Please consider enrolling your 3rd or 4th grade daughter in this wonderful program!!

Thank you to the mommies who will be helping to coach our 3rd and 4th grade girls who are interested in being a "girl on the run". A shout out to Yolanda Blaser (mommy of Rebecca), Nicole Boroff (mommy of Kenadi), and Robyn Fisher (mommy of Lyndsey). Click on the image to the left for more information regarding registration, which starts on December 1st.

Princess Ball Planning

The Middle School PTO puts on the Princess Ball for all the elementary girls, and we would like your help with this event.

If you are willing to help organize and plan the big event please fill this form out. The exact date is still in the works, but most likely the second weekend of March. We will need to meet soon to firm up the date, theme, details, etc.

Click here to access the form to volunteer.

Any questions please reach out to Jessica VanderLaan at jessvanderlaan11@gmail.com.

We are in need of boys and girls pants sizes 5 and up. If you are able to donate to our clothes pantry, we would greatly appreciate it!!

Monday, January 16th: No School~Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Tuesday, January 17th: Happy Birthday to Miss Heidi!

Friday, January 20th: Half Day of School with Dismissal at Noon~Records Day for Elementary

Monday, January 23rd: PTO Pizza Kit Fundraiser Begins

Wednesday, January 25th: Mrs. Overkamp's Birthday!

Monday, January 30th: Mrs. Salazar's Birthday!

Wednesday, February 1st: Mr. Schuppe's Birthday!

Wednesday, February 8th: PTO Meeting in Room 20

Friday, February 10th: Popcorn Friday!

Thursday, February 16th: No School for Kids~Professional Development for Teachers

Friday, February 17th and Monday, February 20th: No School~Mid-Winter Break

Friday, February 24th: Pizza Kit Fundraiser Ends

HAND2HAND IS HERE! FREE FOOD!

Thanks to a partnership with group of local volunteers, our school will be participating in the Hand2Hand program. The program helps to provide a student with food for the weekends and is intended for families who may be experiencing a financial burden. This program will be available to all of our kids and parents will give permission for their child to participate. We are grateful to the generosity of the volunteers in our community.

Food is discretely to children in the program each Friday.

CLICK HERE FOR LETTER

Are you raising your grandchild or children who are relatives? You are not alone. "Grandparents Raising Grandchildren" is a kinship care program that offers support. All services are free. For more information contact Callie Sierra at 231-733-6654, or email her at sierrac@hccc-health.org.

Calling in Absences:

When parents call in an absence for a sick child and leave a message, it would be helpful if they could let us know the symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, etc.) that the student is having or if they have been seen by a doctor and have a diagnosis (strep, flu, pink eye, etc). We ask these questions when we get a live person, but it is important for accurate health reporting each week.

Emergency Contact Information:

If you need help updating your child's contact information, please call our office and speak with Carly, or Heather. Thank you for your help with this.

Office Team Contact Information:

Please know that our office is willing to help answer any questions that you may have at any time during the school year. Ms. Carly Akins (akinsc@reeths-puffer.org) and Mrs. Heather Nicholson (nicholsonh@reeths-puffer.org) are amazing and happy to help! Our number is 719-3190.

School Hours:

School begins at 8:45 and dismisses at 3:45. If you would like more information about before and after school care, please contact, Dawn Lynn at Lighthouse Learning. The number is 638-2172, or you may call 719-3190 x 2206.

Our teaching team teaches and reviews our RP behavior expectations during the first couple of weeks of school. This week each class will rotate through common and shared locations in our school to teach our learners our expectations for behaviors. This includes our shared bathrooms, hallways, lunchroom, lockers, playground and bus. Below is a PDF of our slide presentation. Please review with your child at home, as well.

A Note About School Meals:

There are a couple different ways that you can add money to your child’s school account to pay for their breakfast and/or lunch:

1. Go to https://www.familyportal.cloud and set up an online account, where you can add money for your child by putting in your debit/credit card information. Please see the attached letter for answers to frequently asked questions.

OR

1. Bring in/Send in an envelope with cash or a check enclosed. Please include the child’s first and last name, and write “Lunch Money”. If you are sending money for two students, please write how much each student will receive. The office will collect these envelopes and the kitchen staff will enter the funds into the correct account.

If you would like to apply for benefits, go to https://www.familyportal.cloud and fill out the online application, or you can stop in at the Twin Lake Elementary office for a paper copy.

If you have already applied for the Free and Reduced-Price program, you will receive a letter stating that your child has been approved and what benefit they will receive. Benefits will be effective immediately thereafter. If you have questions about the Free and Reduced-Price program, feel free to reach out to Jodi Connell at connellj@reeths-puffer.org.

In the event that your child does not have money in their account, but they do not have a cold lunch, they will still be able to eat a hot lunch. We will not let your child go hungry! However, please note that this will bring the account to a negative balance until more money has been added to the account.

*Go to https://ps-rp.muskegonisd.org/public

(There will be a default username and password in both boxes. Delete and create your own.)

*If you are a first time user, you will need to click on the “Create Account” tab, and fill out the

information. You will create a new Username and Password. You can add your students at the

bottom of the page using their Access ID and Access Password.

NOTE: The Access ID and Password is NOT the same as the Student Number and their

birthdate.

*If you have an existing account, use the “Sign In” tab to log in using your Username and

Password that you already have. If you do not remember these, call the office and we can help

you.

*Once you are signed in, you can add new students to your account by following these

instructions:

1. On the start page, click on “Account Preferences” from the navigation menu on the left. The

“Account Preferences – Profile” page appears.

2. Click the “Students” tab

3. Click the “Add” Icon to add a student to your parent portal account. The “Add Student”

dialog appears. Fill out the information and you should see a new tab for the student appear at

the top of the page.

*Once all of your students are added to your account, update the demographics for all of

your students by clicking on the “Demographic Update” button on the left side of the page.

Please electronically sign the required forms. Print the Emergency Procedure Card, sign it, and

give it to your child’s teacher.

IIMPORTANT: You'll receive a specific ID and Password for access to the Parent Portal. If you are a returning family, you may follow the directions above. Please don't hesitate to contact Carly, or Heather in our office if you need help.

FREE & REDUCED LUNCH APPLICATION

This year, we are asking that all of our families complete the free and reduced lunch applications. Some of our families are surprised that they qualify based on their income. With food prices rising, it will be helpful for many of our families and we no longer have the grant that afforded free breakfast and lunch for all of our learners as was the case last year.

The link below is to the online Free and Reduced Application. Please consider completing an application.

Application

Mr. Paul Siembida

Assistant Principal, Twin Lake Elementary School

Email: siembidap@reeths-puffer.org

Phone: 231-719-3190

Location: Twin Lake Elementary School, 3175 5th Street, Twin Lake, MI, USA