VO News You Can Use
Dr. O's Weekly Parent Newsletter
NCSD Mission Statement
Developing each student's potential with a world class education.
November 25, 2019
Dear Village Oaks Families,
It was great to see so many parents at our conferences last week. It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is on Thursday...it’s true what people say about time flying when you’re having fun! Over the next few days I encourage you to reflect with your child on his or her successes this year and discuss what they are grateful for at VO. I hope you and your family have a peaceful Thanksgiving Break. Please remember that there is no school on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week.
Sincerely,
Alex
Diversity Day 11/26/2019
As we look around at all the students we have at VO, we are so fortunate to see so many cultures, religions, and languages spoken. This week we are asking students and their families to explore their own cultures as a special school project. As a culminating activity, students will participate in Diversity Day on Tuesday, November 26nd. Students will get to share with their classmates what they feel makes them special, which might include: family celebrations, vacations, traditions, special dances, cultural dresses/outfits, etc. Please see attachment for more information regarding this special day.
Please pack a snack for your child each day
Donate your child's used stretchy pants to the school
America's Best Eyeglasses Voucher
Please contact the main office at 248.449.1300 or stop by the main office by 11/25 if you would like an America's Best Eyeglasses voucher for a pair of glasses ($59.95 frame value) and eye exam. We have a limited supply of vouchers--first come, first serve!
Please dress your child for the weather
NCSD Lice Information
As school is now in session, it is important to remember the guidelines for avoiding head lice. It has been found in classrooms already this year so please be vigilant in looking for it and treating it effectively. The website below has very helpful information.
VO School Day Conversations
What are you most grateful for at VO?
What are you most proud about learning this school year?
How are you showing HEART at home?
At VO, we have HEART!
In Novi Community School District we believe in promoting high expectations for academics, meeting the emotional well being of our students and celebrating positive behavior for all of our learners.
At Village Oaks Elementary, we are building a culture of collaboration, leadership, and citizenship. As a school community, we strive to:
- Have a growth mindset
- Empathize and show kindness
- Act responsibly
- Respect everyone
- Team up and collaborate with others
As you know every Leaderific Friday we spend time as a school focusing on different ways to demonstrate our HEART characteristics. Last Leaderific Friday as school we enjoyed our latest HEART Video where we focused on empathy and showing kindness. Please enjoy our student produced video where student leaders are showing our everyday VO character!
VO FLL Winners!
The VO fourth grade Green Gears robotics team of Jenna Davis, Avaneesh Dale, Graham Long, Royce Martial, Sheikh Ndow, and Abhi Saladi competed this weekend in Ypsilanti, Michigan in a First Lego League (FLL) regional qualifier. They received an award for the mechanical design of their robot and earned an advancement to the state competition on December 8th!
This year's FLL challenge was called City Shaper, and the students were tasked with an Innovative Project that included improving a building or public space in their community. The team chose Village Oaks Elementary for their project, and researched and innovated to come up with multiple solutions to some of the problems they identified in Village Oaks, including designs for three types of outdoor learning spaces, increasing the number of classrooms and collaborative spaces, improving efficiency with solar tubes, and improving classrooms with reading nook furniture, flexible walls for fourth grade teams, and locker storage. They also thought outside the box to suggest an indoor "incentive" slide for bucket fillers and shiny heart award winners to use. They spent a lot of time learning about school design and talking to professionals during their project, and were excited to share their ideas with a survey of 3rd and 4th graders and presentation to Dr. Ofili.
As part of the competition, the team was judged on presentations on the Core Values of FLL, their Innovative Project idea, Robot Design, and finally competed in the robot competition field. The team built a working robot and attachments to accomplish different challenges on the playing field in 2.5 minute games.
The Green Gears received the trophy for Mechanical Design, which is awarded to, "a team that designs and develops a mechanically sound robot that is durable, efficient, and highly capable of performing challenge missions."
Volunteer and Donation Opportunities
VOICE 2019-2020
Hello Parents,
Our VOICE (PTO Organization) is seeking volunteers for chairpersons for several of our committees. If you have interest in volunteering with VOICE during this school year, please check out the Sign Up Genius link below. If you'd like more information, please contact Debbie Luke at debbielukehomes@gmail.com
Yearbook Committee Seeking Photos
Do you have some great photos you would love to see in the yearbook?
Please submit them to the Yearbook Committee e-mail: VOYearbookPTO@gmail.com
Be sure to include a description of the event/activity in the photo, as well as the class if appropriate.
Save the date for Spring Fling! April, 24, 2020
We need many volunteers for this event to be successful. If you have any questions about a committee position please email debbielukehomes@gmail.com
Please consider volunteering by using the link below to sign up.
VO Flags
One of the things that makes our building so special is our diverse student population--we have families in our community who come from all over the world! To celebrate our global diversity we have hung flags in our cafeteria that represent many of the countries of our VO families. As a gift from VO retirees we were given flags of the following countries: Israel, India, United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Nigeria, South Korea, China, and USA. Thank you to our parents who have also donated the following flags: Poland, Singapore, Japan, Germany, Finland, Ireland, Nepal, Greece, Pakistan, Uruguay, Ecuador, Portugal, Spain, Central African Republic, South Africa, Wales, Iceland, Australia, Armenia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Russia, Scotland and Yemen. If you would like to purchase a flag of your country of origin or to represent one of the many nationalities of our school please visit Amazon and search for an ANLEY 3x5 flag: VO Flags
Before purchasing and donating the flag to our school’s collection please contact me or one of our secretaries with the flag information so we can make sure that another family has not already ordered the same flag.
November Shiny HEART Award Winners
Playworks
This year NCSD elementary schools will partner with Playworks to enhance the learning experiences for students throughout the district. Playworks is the leading nonprofit in Michigan and nationally using play to transform schools. A Playworks recess creates a place for every kid on the playground to feel included, be active, and build valuable social and emotional skills. Please click on the link below and read the attached Playworks article to learn more about our partnership and Patrice our Playworks Coach!
Looking Ahead
11/27/19--End of First Trimester No School
11/28/19-11/29/19--Thanksgiving Break No School
12/2/19--School resumes
12/2/19--Beginning of second trimester
12/3/19--First Grade Concert 6:30pm
12/5/19--Title One Family Math Night 5:30pm
12/6/19-- Records Day No School
12/9/19--Report cards viewable in MiStar
12/23/19--Winter Break No School
1/6/20--School Resumes
1/13/20--VOICE Mtg 7:00pm
1/20/20--MLK Day No School
Parent Pick-up/Parking & Bus Stop Expectations
As you pick-up and drop off your children please be mindful of the following:
- Do not park in front of our neighbors' driveways or mailboxes.
- Park in our parking lot and keep your pet in your car.
- For the safety of our students do not walk your children through our bus loop as students are loading/exiting our busses.
- Stay in your car as you drive through our car loop.
- Please do not drop off children before 8:55am. We do not have any supervision outside prior to this time.
- If you arrive late, please walk your child into the office and sign them in.
We ask that you remind your children that VO expectations/rules apply at our bus stops. We expect all of our students to be on their best behavior as they wait for their bus and we appreciate your help.
Thank you for your support!
CARE
Please remember if there is a change in your child's CARE schedule you need to notify Holly Bengle no later than 3:15. She will then contact the teachers. Holly Bengle can be reached at
holly.bengle@novik12.org or (248) 449-1307.
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VILLAGE OAKS MISSION
The mission of Village Oaks Elementary is to create and maintain an educational environment that supports academic achievement, consistent with district, state and national standards to meet all students' learning needs.
VO 2018 National Blue Ribbon Exemplary School
Village Oaks Elementary
VO school hours: 9:08 am-4:00 pm
Office hours: 8:30 am-4:30 pm
Attendance line: 248.449.1301
Office phone number: 248.449.1300
Email: Alexander.ofili@novik12.org
Website: www.novi.k12.mi.us/vo/
Location: Village Oaks Elementary School, Willowbrook Drive, Novi, MI, United States
Phone: 248.449.1300
Twitter: @NoviVillageOaks