Lakeland Elementary School
January Newsletter 2023
Mrs. Conerly Principal Message
Greetings Bobcat Families!
I have witnessed our Bobcat family come together as a true community to celebrate and support each other, never losing sight of our purpose...the scholars. At this time, I want to thank you for all that you have done and all that you will do in the coming year. While the New Year will continue to bring opportunities as well as challenges, I know we will work hard to do what is right for our scholars. We will continue to support each other. We will continue to celebrate each other and take pride in the accomplishments as members of this Bobcat family.
Thank you for your commitment and dedication to the scholars. I wish you all Peace, Joy, Hope and Happiness throughout the New Year!
Ra'Jeanna Conerly
Principal
Lakeland Elementary
rconerly@fwps.org
Family Academy
We know that schools can't do it alone. Partnership with families is an essential and valuable asset that can greatly impact scholar success.
We would like to invite our Lakeland families to attend the Federal Way School Districts new Family Academy, 1 or all sessions either in person or via Zoom. You will be able to select theme-centered micro workshops aligned to your interest. Please see the flyer below for more information on where the academy's are being held and how to register. The first session will be held here at Lakeland Elementary on February 2nd from 6-7:30 p.m. If you would prefer to Zoom rather than attending in person, a link will be sent out once you have registered.
Childcare, Interpreters, and light refreshments will be available.
Kindergarten Registrations Open January 17, 2023 for the 2023-2024 School Year
Kindergarten registration begins online January 17, 2023 for the 2023-2024 school year.
New Student Registration
Please follow the steps below to complete new student registration.
Create ParentVUE account @ www.fwps.org/kiosk
Select New Student Registration, Create New Account. If you have a FWPS ParentVUE account sign in using your credentials.
Follow the instruction/ process by answering the following questions on site. You’ll receive an email to create a password.
Once you have created your account, you’ll start the registration process by entering your student’s information.
For any questions please contact Lakeland Elementary Data Secretary- Alysia Torres @ 253-945-3002 or Email @ atorres@fwps.org.
Attendance Corner with Mrs. Torres:
Not sure if your scholar/s absence is excuse or unexcused? Here are a few resources to help determine.
For whenever your scholar is going to be out due to illness, doctor’s appointment, family emergency, etc. please call Mrs. Torres @ 253.945.3002 or you may log into your ParentVUE account to excuse your scholar/s absence.
Will your student be tardy? Remember families, we love to see parents faces too! For safety measures and precautions, we ask that families walk their scholar/s into the school building and sign them in at the front office.
We appreciate your continued partnership.
Winter Weather
Winter weather may bring road and driving conditions that cause changes in school operations such as delayed opening, early dismissal, or closure. Even when road conditions in one part of the district appear passable, driving conditions on hills and in other areas of the district can impact the operation of buses on some routes.
- Normal school operations will prevail unless a change of schedule is announced.
- Expect morning buses to be late during severe weathers.
- If buses cannot complete afternoon routes, students will be returned to their schools.
Out goal is to make information available to families about school closure or changes in the school operations by 5:00 a.m.
PREPARE FOR WINTER WEATHER BY MAKING SURE YOUR CONTACT PREFERENCES ARE UP TO DATE
As we enter the colder months, we know inclement weather may be in the forecast. When weather impacts our normal school schedule, one way we communicate with parents is through our mass notification system. To ensure you are receiving messages according to your preferences, go to
www.fwps.org/parentnotification and follow the steps listed to verify or make changes.
For more information about weather-related school closures or delays, please visit our website at www.fwps.org/domain/783.
Free Online Tutoring for Scholars in Grades 4-12
Does your child need one-on-one homework help? FWPS is offering free online tutoring for scholars in grades 4-12 for the 2022-23 school year! Scholars can sign up through Launchpad to Learning, accessible at
http://learn.fwps.org. For more information about how to access this service at no cost, visit:
https://www.fwps.org/Page/8221 Parent Drop-Off and Parent Pick-up
Dear Lakeland Families,
In the interest of safety, we would like to share the guidelines around parent drop-off and pick-up again.
The SOUTH parking lot (the lot closest to the bus loop) is to be used for PARKING ONLY. Feel free to park and walk your student/s to the gym entrance in the morning or walk up to the school to pick them up at the end of the day. Drive-thru student drop-off and student pick-up is NOT ALLOWED in this lot or the BUS LOOP.
Reminder: the yellow painted curb in the SOUTH parking lot marks a fire zone and MAY NOT be used for drop-off, pick-up or parking.
Drive-thru student drop-off and pick-up is in the NORTH lot ONLY. In the morning you are able to drop-off your scholar and go. The afternoon does get backed up but as soon as our scholars are released, Melissa Carr does a fabulous job getting cars out quickly.
PLEASE help us make parent pick-up and drop-off safe by following these important guidelines.
Thank you for partnering with us to keep your children safe!
In Partnership,
Ra'Jeanna Conerly
Principal
Because of You Award:
We’re excited to continue the “Because of You” award nominations this year! Students in grades 3-12 are invited to nominate any Federal Way Public Schools staff member in the district they believe has positively impacted them, their school, and/or their community for the “Because of You” award! Scholars can nominate staff members online by visiting:
www.fwps.org/BecauseOfYou.
Recognitions will begin at the Jan. 24, 2023 school board meeting and will occur monthly until the end of the school year.
Thank you!
Reminders from the School Nurse!
Hello families! I hope everyone had an amazing, restful Winter break. As we return to school, the health room wanted to send out a few reminders:
· In the event a child becomes ill and needs to be picked up, the parent(s) will be called and are expected to come pick the child up immediately as stated in the Rights and Responsibilities Scholar and Family Handbook. Please have a plan in place for this in case it happens.
·
If the parent(s) cannot be reached, the emergency contact person will be called and asked to come pick the child up. Please make sure the school has updated phone numbers and keep emergency contacts up to date.
· In the event a child complains about not feeling well during the school day, the parent will be contacted. Sick children will expose all children and staff members who they come in contact with. These people can in turn expose the other children. We understand this may be an inconvenience, however, it is important and expected that you pick up your sick child promptly to decrease the spread of the illness.
· The health room cannot diagnose the cause of the illness. Sick children, especially those with the following symptoms are treated as POTENTIALLY contagious:
o fever, vomiting, diarrhea, undiagnosed rashes, uncontrollable coughs/runny noses (ones you would not want your well child around), or red, itchy eyes, with or without discharge
o Please refer to the chart below on when a child should return to school if they have any of these symptoms:
Choice Enrollment for the 2023-2024 School Year - Open Feb. 1 - Mar 15
For more information, or to submit an online application visit
www.fwps.org/Choice. All Choice Enrollment applications are due by 4:30 p.m. on March 15, 2023. The Choice Lottery will take place on April 19, 2023 at 5:30 p.m.
Battle of the Books Information
Hello, this is Ms. Debbie from the library!
Battle of the Books practices will start in the middle of February extending to the middle of April. The grade level of your child will determine which days they will come to the library for practice. Practices will be during the school day at lunch recess. More information will follow in the February newsletter.
Battle of the Book teams must be formed by January 31, 2023. I will be talking to each class to let them know, so teams can sign up before the cutoff date. It is really exciting to see all the children who seem interested in the battle this year!
The district competition has been set for Wednesday, May 10. This is when the winning teams from all the elementary schools will have the final competition to see which team has the most knowledge regarding the books. The winning team gets to have a very nice trophy displayed in the school for the following year with all the past and current winning team names displayed.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at dono@fwps.org. I look forward to seeing your child at the competition this year!
Breakfast and Lunch Menus:
Birthday Celebrations
Parents, birthday celebrations are fun and our scholars look forward to them however, if you are going to bring a birthday treat to your child's classroom, please coordinate this with your child's teacher ahead of time. Also be aware that balloons and left over treats are NOT ALLOWED ON THE BUS so please only bring the amount needed for their classroom. Thank you!
Upcoming PTA Events
Jan. 12th Lakeland Elementary Skate Night at El Centro Skate (formally Pattison's West) 6-8 pm
Jan. 19th Restaurant Takeover at Panda Express
Also, did you know that the Lakeland PTA has their own Facebook page? Clink on the link below and follow them for another way to stay updated on the happenings here at Lakeland!
https://www.facebook.com/LakelandElementary
Hello From Your Family Liaison, Misha Ruffin:
I am excited to share that the Art in the City program has returned to Lakeland.
Some of our scholars will have the opportunity to create an original art piece and have it displayed at one of our local community partnership buildings.
Scholars will work on their pieces at Creative Corner, during one or both recesses. I will make a selection from all art projects submitted to me. From there, the selections will be displayed in a community building for public viewing.
I encourage everyone to participate. If your scholar’s work is selected, please review, sign, and return the talent release form sent home.
For more information, contact me; Misha Ruffin, mruffin@fwps.org or (253) 945-3038.
