The Skippack Star
October 7, 2022
Weekly Message from Skippack Elementary
Dear Skippack Families,
I hope this communication finds you well. This coming week is our annual Walk-a-thon! Our students and staff are excited to walk to support our school! To celebrate our upcoming Walk-a-thon, we will have a school wide spirit week, see the details below.
Walk-a-thon is our Home and School's largest fundraiser of the year and we need your help to meet our goal of $25,000! 100% of the funds raised will go directly to Skippack Elementary Home & School to benefit our students. These funds support events and activities like Skippy Day, Trunk or Treat, Entertainment Night, Family Bingo Night, BASH, 5th Grade Celebration, SEED Garden and many many more! With your donation, we can make it all happen! For more information on how to donate, please see details below. Thank you for considering to donate to this annual fundraising event.
A friendly reminder that there will be NO SCHOOL on Monday, October 10th. Schools are CLOSED for Teacher In-Service Day.
In this week's Skippack Star we have information about the following: Important Dates, Walk-a-thon Information, Half Day In-Service Day Schedule, Sock-tober Sock Drive, Rescheduled Picture Retake Day, Library Birthday Book Information, Special Education Event, Volunteer Clearances, Power Packs, Free Breakfast Information, daily operational procedures and Home and School updates.
On behalf of everyone at Skippack, I wish you a wonderful long weekend!
Warm Regards,
Leslie Nassoiy
Skippack Elementary Principal
Important Dates
10/10 - In-Service Day - NO SCHOOL
10/13 - Walk-a-thon (RAIN DATE)
10/14 - Walk-a-thon
10/19- Half Day In-Service - *Schedule below
10/21 - Trunk or Treat
10/28 - Trunk or Treat (RAIN DATE)
11/2 - Picture Retake Day
11/8 - In-Service (Act 80) Day/Election Day - NO SCHOOL
11/21 and 11/22 - Parent/Teacher Conferences *More information coming
11/21 - 11/25 - NO SCHOOL -Thanksgiving Break
Week of October 10th
- Monday, October 10th: NO SCHOOL
- Tuesday, October 11th: C Day
- Wednesday, October 12th: D Day
- Thursday, October 13th: E Day
- Friday, October 14th : F Day
Skippack Fire Company Visit
WALK-A-THON - Friday 10/14
How does Walk-a-thon work?
On Friday, October 14th, students will come out to the fields (located behind the school) by grade and complete as many laps as possible in 45 minutes (Kindergarten will walk for 30 minutes). All parents are invited to attend during their child’s time slot and cheer on the students! Please plan to check in at the Home and School "Welcome Area" outside, as all visitors will need to provide their ID to be on the school grounds. For the Walk-a-thon schedule, see the schedule in the Home and School Information section. *As a reminder, dogs and/or family pets are NOT permitted on school grounds. It’s a great day of exercise, fun, and school spirit!
Email us directly at skippackwalkathon@gmail.com with any questions.
Walk-a-thon Spirit Week!
Monday (10/10) - NO SCHOOL
Tuesday (10/11) - Wear your favorite team sports shirt/jersey.
“We are ready to show team spirit and walk together for Skippack.”
Wednesday (10/12) - Wear your pajamas.
“We are well rested and ready to walk to benefit Skippack.”
Thursday (10/13) - Wear your crazy socks.
“We are ready to put our best foot forward and walk for Skippack.”
Friday (10/14) - Wear your Walk-a-thon shirt.
“We are one team, we are Skippack!”
*If the Walk-a-thon is on Thursday due to inclement weather, we will shift to wearing our Walk-a-thon shirts on Thursday and wear our crazy socks on Friday.
Annual Walk-a-thon Information
Please consider to donate and share your student’s donation page!
- www.99pledges.com/fund/skippackwalkathon
- The link above will take you to the landing page - you can search for your child's name by typing into the "search for participant" box
- Each child is listed by their FIRST NAME, followed by the first 3 letters of their LAST NAME and teacher. Please make sure you are selecting the correct child
- Each student will have their own donation page with separate links - so if you have multiple children at Skippack, they will each have their own page
- You do not need to log in or change anything. All you have to do is make a donation for whatever amount you can and share your child’s page with friends and family. We are shooting for 100% participation so no amount is too small.
- if you would rather pay by Cash/Check - please fill out the attached form (see below) and use the instructions included to mail-in/return it to the school.
As a reminder, Home and School relies on this fundraiser to be able to offer all the amazing activities & classroom resources to our students each year. Without your support, we would not be able to continue to do these special programs! Thank you for your support!
Half Day Schedule - October 19th
Students will have a half-day on Wednesday, October 19th. The half-day is so the district can carry out in-service/professional development activities. Elementary schools will dismiss at 12:10 PM. *Parent pick ups will begin at approximately 12:05.* Lunch is not served on half-days.
Kindergarten Half Day Schedule - Morning kindergarten classes will dismiss at 10:30 AM and afternoon kindergarten classes will meet from 10:30 AM until 12:10 PM.
Sock-Tober Sock Drive
What do you get when you hold a sock drive in October?
Sock-tober!
Join the Skippack school community as we collect brand new socks for our friends at the Daily Bread Community Food Pantry.
Any size, color, and type of new sock will be accepted. Collection boxes will be placed in the main lobby area for students to drop off donations on the way to/from class each day until 10/28/22.
Let’s put our best foot forward and support our community in Sock-tober!
Picture Retake Day RESCHEDULED
Birthday Books
Volunteer Clearances Information
Perkiomen Valley School District is thankful for the support of its many volunteers. If you are interested in attending future field trips and/or volunteer at our upcoming school events, you will need to have your volunteer clearances on file, please read further to understand the details. Please consult the Volunteer Handbook as well as the information and FAQ’s below to learn more. All individuals volunteering/chaperoning as program volunteers in any capacity within the Perkiomen Valley School District are required to complete the following clearances and forms:
Pennsylvania Child Abuse History Clearance (free for volunteers)
Pennsylvania Criminal History Clearance (free for volunteers)
FBI Federal Criminal History Record Report (fingerprinting) or the Volunteer Affirmation Form if you have lived continuously in Pennsylvania for the last 10 years (free)
Volunteer Handbook Acknowledgement Form that states you have read our handbook (see page 5 of the handbook)
Tuberculosis Risk Assessment Questionnaire (see page 6 of the handbook)
Once you have completed the necessary documents, you should submit all paperwork to the Volunteer Coordinator in your child’s building. (The Volunteer Coordinator list is located on the pvsd.org.) If you have a child in more than one building, you do not need to repeat this process for every school. Submit your clearances to one building and your information will be included in a district-wide database that all schools can access. YOU SHOULD RETAIN ORIGINALS FOR YOUR FILES. Do not bring clearance forms to the District Office.
All three clearance reports must be renewed every five years. If you are not sure how old your clearances are, please email Karen Zucker at kzucker@pvsd.org for information.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR RETURNING VOLUNTEERS/CHAPERONES
If your current clearances are more than five years old, you will need to submit a new set of Pennsylvania clearances and the fingerprint report Registration ID number/Act 153 Volunteer Affidavit to your child’s building. Please keep in mind that you will need to re-submit all of your clearances before each five-year period has expired. Examples: If you obtained your clearances in June 2015, you will have to re-submit your clearances again prior June 2020 in order to remain in compliance. PV Volunteer Procedures
Special Education Spotlight
*Parent Pick Up Notes/Emails ~ Important!
If you plan to pick up your child during dismissal, please remember to send in a note or an email to our office staff, pjacobson@pvsd.org and/or syanulevich@pvsd.org and your child’s classroom teacher. Please include your child’s name, date of the pick up and the adult who will be picking up your child. This is to ensure an efficient pick up procedure process and the safety of our students.
Educational Trip Forms
Attendance Information
Attendance Information ~ If you have a child who will be absent or missing class time, please send an email (from the email you have listed in ParentVue) to: SkAttendance@pvsd.org. This will count as your call-out AND parent excuse. Please indicate in the email the date of absence, student’s grade and the reason for the absence. An absence is considered unexcused when the child’s school has not received an email providing an acceptable reason for the absence within a 3-day period. Parents may also call our attendance line at: 610-409-6060, option 1. If you do this, you would still need to submit an email with the above information in order for it to be excused. Any medical notes should be scanned or sent in with your child, send to pjacobson@pvsd.org.
Dismissal Change?
If you need to make an unexpected dismissal change for your child during the day, please contact the main office via telephone (610-409-6060) by 2:30 PM, if possible.
PV Power Packs
PV Power Packs is a weekend food program for students experiencing food insecurity. Bags of food, including 2 breakfast items, 2 lunch items, 2 snacks, and 2 fruits, are sent home with students prior to every weekend. There is no financial information required to participate in this program and students pick up their bags from their counselor or designated person every week.
For more information regarding how to receive a Power Pack for your child or to make donations to the Power Packs program, click here: https://www.pvsd.org/families/pv-power-packs/
Free Breakfast Program - Opt Out
Governor Tom Wolf announced free school breakfast for all students across the commonwealth this school year. The Universal Free Breakfast Program will go into effect on October 3, 2022 and run through the end of the 2022-23 school year. Note: this applies to breakfast only. For lunch, families in need can apply for the free or reduced school lunch program. Visit our food service webpage for information. Below is additional information about the free/reduced lunch program as well as the option to “opt out” of free breakfast meals for your child.
The free breakfast program will be available at each school. Students interested in obtaining breakfast will be expected to report to the cafeteria upon arrival at school. They will need to input their 6-digit ID when picking up their meal. They will eat their breakfast in the cafeteria prior to reporting to class.
We are aware that some families may prefer that their students not participate in the free breakfast at school (in some instances last year, students were eating two breakfasts - one at home prior to school and one after arriving at school). Families may choose to “opt their child(ren) out” from obtaining breakfast using this form. If a family opts out, the student’s account will be flagged and breakfast will not be available to them. You may change this preference at any time by contacting our Food Service department.
Free & Reduced Lunch Program
The federal funding to provide free meals expires with the start of 2022-23 school year. This means families will need to apply for the free or reduced school meals program if needed. Visit our food service webpage for information and to access the application. In the event you need assistance, do not hesitate to reach out to a representative of the Food Services department.
Flexible Instructional Days (FID) in 22-23
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) approved the use of Flexible Instructional Days (FID) as an alternate form of instruction in response to inclement weather or other emergencies. On a FID day, instruction will be virtual. FID assist schools in meeting the required 180 student days. PA Schools may use up to five (5) FID per school year - in PVSD, we will utilize FID when all 3 inclement weather days built into the district calendar are used.
For more information and and the elementary FID schedule, CLICK HERE.
Home and School Information
WALK A THON
Friday, October 14th
Students come out to the fields (located behind the school) by grade and complete as many laps as possible in 45 minutes (Kindergarten will walk for 30 minutes). All parents are invited to attend during their child’s time slot and cheer on the students! Please plan to check in at the Home and School Welcome area outside, as all visitors will need to provide their ID to be on the school grounds. It’s a great day of exercise, fun, and school spirit! Email us directly at skippackwalkathon@gmail.com with any questions.
Here's the class schedule:
9:00 - 9:45 am: 2nd Grade
9:50 - 10:35 am: 1st Grade
10:45- 11:15 am: AM Kindergarten
11:25 - 12:10 pm: 3rd Grade
12:45 - 1:30 pm: 4th Grade
1:35 - 2:05 pm: PM Kindergarten
2:10 - 2:55 pm: 5th Grade
TRUNK OR TREAT
Friday, October 21st from 6pm-7:30pm
Join us Friday, October 21st from 6pm-7:30pm at Skippack Elementary and enjoy a night full of fun for our Skippack Community. Children are welcome to dress up and enjoy a safe trick or treating experience. We will need lots of trunkers and candy donations this year. Rain date is October 28th.
*Please send in bags of candy with your kids if you would like to donate. They should be placed in the bins in the front lobby.
SPIRIT WEAR Closes October 23rd
Please support Home and School and show your school spirit!
https://skippackelem.itemorder.com/shop/home/
HOME AND SCHOOL MEETING October 25th at 9:30am, Faculty Lounge
All parents are welcome to attend and this is a great way to hear what is going on and get involved! Meetings alternate between mornings helda t 9:30am in the Faculty Lounge and 7:00pm in the school library. For information on getting your clearances to volunteer and attend field trips, please visit: https://www.pvsd.org/families/volunteer-procedures/. Also see information above.
Join us on our FACEBOOK page to stay up to date on all the latest information. We are very careful to only allow current staff and parents/caregivers of students at Skippack to join the page, so please answer the questions that pop up after your request to join the group. If you have requested to join, but have not answered the questions, your request will not be accepted. https://www.facebook.com/groups/skippackhomeandschool/
If you have any questions about Home & School or would like more information, contact us at skippackhs@gmail.com.
Skippack Elementary
Email: lnassoiy@pvsd.org
Website: www.pvsd.org
Location: 4081 Heckler Road, Collegeville, PA, USA
Phone: (610)409-6060
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skippackelem
Twitter: @Skippack_E