This week was the start of orchestra and band. Thank you parents for the early drop offs and encouragement for our budding musicians. What a thrill to see our students working together with their teachers to make music together!

The following principal message is a repeat from last week, because it is so important to the Wasco School learning community. My imperative is to make sure families understand learning targets and that our work together as a team: parent, teacher, child is a feedback loop about the successes and next steps for learning. Conference time is dedicated for this purpose. We look forward to spending the time with you to discuss what we do best!

Dear Wasco Families,

Remember back to the information that was shared with you about Curriculum Night? Your child’s teacher shared the standards and supporting activities that guide our teaching goals. These learning goals are used in creating our school improvement plans, making grade level team goals, and determining report card grades. My point is, all of our efforts, in front of kids and behind the scenes, connect our work and help children meet their growth targets.

Your child’s teacher is working on their conference agenda. During the conference, you will learn your child’s goals for the year. We are looking forward to this opportunity to join the team: child, parent, and teacher! New this year is virtual or in person conferences. Thank you to our teachers for learning how to make this important time accessible to all.

Resources for you are listed below.

Kind Regards,

Principal Brennan

Principal phone number: 331-228-6294

Email: stephanie.brennan@d303.org

Main office phone: 331-228-2900

School Hours are: 8:00am to 3:00pm

(student supervision starts at 7:45am, please do not drop off before that time)

Thank you to all families for helping Wasco build a large donation to the American Cancer Society. We are proud of your kindness and generosity! As promised, the class with the largest donation selected Mrs. Brennan’s outfit for October 1st!

As we enter into some possibly cooler weather, students should come to school prepared to spend time outdoors. Students are typically outside for recess breaks, PE four times a week, and can be outdoors for classroom activities. We appreciate your attention to the forecast and providing your child with clothing choices to adjust to cooler temperatures is appreciated. Also, as the weather gets cooler, it is helpful to send extra masks in case a change is necessary due to condensation. The D303 mask guidelines are provided below for your reference and can also be found at the link below.

Our conferences are scheduled for Thursday, October 7th, 8:00 am-8:00 pm and Friday, October 8th 8:00 am-12:00 pm. This year you have the option to select an in-person or virtual conference. During your conference, your student’s accomplishments and goals will be presented. The conferences are an interactive experience for guardians, teacher, and child to discuss and make plans for growth.

The Pick A Time system of scheduling conferences for Wasco will go live at 9:00 am on Thursday, September 23rd. It will close on October 4th at 11:49 pm.

Directions for Accessing Conference Sign up (Pick A Time) The directions are also printed on the form attached.

You must use Home Access Center to sign up.

1. Login in to your HAC account

2. Click on the Home icon -> School Links Tab->Parent/Teacher Conference Scheduler

3. You will then be prompted through a series of fields to select your child, dates and time, virtual or in-person conference. If you select a virtual conference, a Zoom link will automatically be generated.

If you have any difficulty or do not know your HAC information, please contact the Wasco office at 331-228-2900.

The Wasco Specials Team (Art, PE, Empower, Music) would like to offer you all the option to schedule a conference. If you would like to meet with us to discuss your child's progress please contact us via email.

Unlike classroom teachers, specials are not using "Pick-A-Time" to schedule conferences. If you would like to schedule a conference, please email the teacher directly to set up a time. Below are the times that we are available:

Thursday, October 7th - 8am-12pm, 1pm-5pm, 6pm-8pm

Friday, October 8th - 8am-12pm

Email Addresses:

Mrs. Anderson (Art): joellen.anderson@d303.org

Mrs. Misner (PE): julie.misner@d303.org

Mr. Secor (PE): joseph.secor@d303.org

Ms. Green (Empower): rebecca.green@d303.org

Mr. Brooks (Music): tyler.brooks@d303.org

Thank you so much, and we look forward to talking with you soon!

All the best,

Wasco Specials Team

October 7th and 8th Conferences

October 11 No School

October 15 Picture Retakes

October 27

December 1

January 26

February 23

March 23

April 27

Release will be at 2:10 p.m.

Empower Maker's Challenge

Are you looking for ways to EMPOWER the whole family to get involved and creative? These Empower monthly challenges are a great start! If your family or child completes one, email a picture or video to Miss Green (rebecca.green@d303.org) to be featured in the next newsletter (all Empower Maker's Challenges can be viewed in Schoology).

Empower Hero

Learn about important inventors and creators each month by viewing our Monthly Empower Hero (you can learn more about previous Empower Heroes on Schoology).

Here is the Empower Hero google slideshow to link.

What's Next in Empower?

We will be starting our new modules in the next few weeks. To learn more about each module, you can view the Empower website.

Kindergarten and First Grade - Make it to the End

Second and Third Grade - Get on Board

Fourth and Fifth Grade - Light it Up

Please have your child bring all tube donations directly to the office. We appreciate your help!

Our students diligently collected and donated money for the American Cancer Society. The classroom that collected the most money was Mrs. Winkler's first grade! The class received the honor of dressing Mrs. Brennan on Friday, October 1. Students grade K-5 all had great plans for how to dress up the Principal and we shared some good laughs!

What makes a ‘good day’ at school?

Miss Green: A good day at school is when students are excited to learn. My favorite part of the day is when students tell me they had fun or that they are excited to come to Empower. A great day is when students start to answer their own and each other's questions through discussions and problem solving.

Miss Green: If I could pass on wisdom to my students it would be, they can make a difference no matter how old they are and they can do hard things- sometimes it just takes time.

Miss Green: I usually spend my summer breaks traveling as much as I can. My favorite place to visit is Tampa, Florida. My dad and my brother live there so I like to visit as much as I can! I also LOVE the beach.

St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 strives to provide all students with the best opportunity to succeed academically, socially, and behaviorally in school. As part of this commitment, District 303 is enhancing our Multi-Tiered Systems of Supports (MTSS) across the district for the 2021-2022 school year. This year, students in grades 3-12 will be completing a universal screening tool to assess their social and emotional learning skills. You can read more about the assessment and the dates of screening in the letter below.

October 6, 2021 - SOS for Parents in the Trenches, Zoom Webinar, 6:30 p.m.

Debbie Reber, NY Times bestselling author

(Recording will be available after the event)

Click here to register!

When parents are feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and burned out, it’s hard to show up in a way that best supports their child’s development, especially if/ when our kids are struggling, too. In this practical and actionable talk, Debbie shares ten powerful “tilts,” a.k.a. practical ideas to help parents shift their thinking, responses, and actions in a way that will help them feel more confident and peaceful as they parent their unique children.

October 13, 2021 - Supporting Kids Who Learn Differently: Back-to-School Edition, Zoom Webinar, 6:30 p.m. Debbie Reber, NY Times bestselling author

(Recording to be posted)

Click here to register!

School always presents certain challenges for students who learn and think differently (kids with ADHD, dyslexia, giftedness, autism, anxiety, or other neuro-differences). But the COVID-19 pandemic has created even greater obstacles. Debbie shares ideas on how parents can best prioritize and plan in the pandemic-era school landscape. She also offers advice on how to support differently wired children’s cognitive, social, and emotional needs during this atypical time, while also taking care of one’s own emotional health and well-being.

You can use the map link above to identify your child’s entrance and exit door. Upon arrival, students should enter the building through their designated door, where they will be greeted by a staff member. At the end of the day, students exit through the same door and proceed to a designated area sorted by their transportation home. Our students who ride the bus line up with a peer and staff bus monitor. Students who are picked up by car stand on the front sidewalk and wait for their ride to arrive. This is the same pattern we used last year. We appreciate it when you extend cooperation and consideration for others in our school community. The kids learn from all of us and we are a team working together to help children build lifelong skills and positive community habits.

Did you know, ALL D303 students may receive a student loan card to checkout and access books from the St. Charles Public Library?

Click on the button below for more details on how to get one for your student!