The Avery Pulse
April 2nd, 2023
Upcoming Dates
- April 3rd-April 7th - National Assistant Principal's Week - THANK YOU, DR. WINKLER!
- April 10th - Late Start
- April 14th - Avery Play @ 7pm in the Givens Auditorium
- April 15th - Avery Play @ 2pm in the Givens Auditorium
- April 18th, 19th, 20th - MAP Testing for 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students
- April 21st - Blood Drive (details below)
- April 24th - Late Start
- April 25th, 26th, 27th - MAP Testing for 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students
- May 5th - 1/2 Day Early Dismissal @ 11:45am
- May 8th-May 12th - Teacher Appreciation Week
- May 8th - Late Start
- May 9th & May 12th - Scholastic BOGO Book Fair
- May 26th - Last Day of School | Early Dismissal @ 11:45am
One Book One School
Dear Parents and Guardians-
Today we had our Town Hall meeting on Friday and introduced the book Wishtree by Katherine Applegate.Friday afternoon, each family should have received a bag with the book, a bookmark, a bingo board, and a chapter guide inside.
Teachers will begin reading this book aloud throughout the month of April. We invite you to read the book too so that you can have discussions with your child(ren).
When an entire school community reads a book together, there is a lot we can talk about! With this one book one school project, we will have Town Hall Meetings, classroom discussions, and other activities for students and families to engage in.
I sincerely hope that your family enjoys reading this book alongside us and that we can take away the powerful themes of friendship, connection, and community.
Here are some resources:
Thank you for your continued support and partnership,
Hannah Peterson, Ed.D
Principal, Avery Elementary
Adventure Club Enrollment
Dear WGSD families
The enrollment window for Adventure Club for next school year is now open. If you wish to enroll your child(ren) in before or after school care, please navigate to the Adventure Club website, click on the link titled “2023-24 Adventure Club Waitlist”, and follow the prompts to be placed on the waitlist.
Thank you.
WGSD Adventure Club
Check in with Mrs. Wallace
Our building wide universals for social emotional learning and personal success continue to be: The Avery Way, The Zones of Regulation, and the 7 Habits. Please contact me if you have any questions about these universals or the counseling program at Avery.
Students will also continue our building wide focus on the 7 Habits of Happy Kids by learning about Habit #6… Synergize this month.
Habit #6 Synergize states: I value other people’s strengths and learn from them. I get along well with others, even people who are different from me. I work well in groups. I seek out other people’s ideas to solve problems. I know that “two heads are better than one”. I am a better person when I left other people into my life and work.
Life Skills introduced with this habit are:
1. Deciding how to utilize everyone’s strengths to get a task completed.
2. Celebrating differences amongst a group of people.
3. Resolving conflict.
Parenting Help… What are Thinking Traps?
Thinking traps are way of thinking that increase anxiety, worry, and stress. They often involve jumping to conclusions, guiding that things will go badly in the future and making connections that might not really make sense.
Here are 4 common Thinking Traps that are often connected to anxiety:
1. Fortune Telling- predicting something bad will happen in the future.
2. Catastrophizing- Making little problems or worries seem like big problems.
3. Overgeneralization-assuming that because we were worried or nervous in one situation, we will feel like that again.
4. All or nothing thinking- seeing things as “all good” or “all bad”.
Upcoming Mom's Night social event
Avery Play Information
It's opening (and closing) weekend for the Avery Play! You won't want to miss this 70+ year Avery tradition. The KnAvery Play: Avery and the Knights of the Lunch Table is an event for the whole family. Show times are Friday, April 14 at 7pm and Saturday, April 15 at 2pm at the Givens Auditorium.
Tickets are $4, cash, check, or credit card at the door or online here:
District Survey Opportunity
Helping students do their best in school requires a team effort. Parents, families, students, staff, and schools all play important roles in this process. To help all of us learn how to make your child’s school experience as positive and beneficial as possible, please give us your honest, thoughtful responses to the questions below. Your responses will be completely anonymous. If a question does not apply to you or you do not want to respond, then you may skip to the next question. If you have multiple children in our school, please complete one survey for each child.
Take the anonymous survey here.
Get tickets for Avery Socials and Parties for the coming months now!
2023-2024 Update
We wanted to reach out to you to inform you of some staffing changes that will occur with the Avery staff beginning in the 2023-2024 school year.
Due to shifting district enrollments and interest in other positions, the following moves will occur:
Katie Miller (current 2nd grade teacher) will be transitioning to a Reading Specialist position at Hudson Elementary in the Webster Groves School District.
Liz Dwyer (current 4th grade teacher) will be transitioning to a Reading Specialist position at Givens Elementary in the Webster Groves School District.
Michele Ferber (current Reading Specialist) will be transitioning to a Reading Specialist position at Givens Elementary in the Webster Groves School District.
JaNekka Hutchinson (current 4th grade teacher) will be transitioning to Hudson Elementary in the Webster Groves School District.
Please join me in congratulating and offering support to the above staff members as they begin to navigate this transition.
With that being said, below you can find our 23-24 teaching assignments:
Kindergarten
Jill Arbini
Alicia Brent
Marie Masterson
1st Grade
Gretchen Bluette
Bridget Ewing
Kerry Wildman
2nd Grade
Sheri Ely
Annie Holder
Hiring-TBD
3rd Grade
Dani Foster
Katie French
Alexis Witcik
4th Grade
William Ball
Stacey Kuschel
Joel Timmerman
5th Grade
Christina Hartz
Colleen King
Kristen Tomlinson
You will notice that some of the teachers will be moving to the next grade level-this does not necessarily mean your child will make the loop with their current classroom teacher. We will begin the class placement process after spring break. As part of that process, we will send communication out for parent input for us to consider as part of the placement process.
Thank you for your continued support and partnership,
Hannah Peterson, Ed.D
Principal, Avery Elementary
Avery Science Fair Winners
- Malena Lippold - 4th Grade
- Maddie Heffner - 5th Grade
- Agnes Andrasko - Kindergartener
Repeated Information Below
Avery Equity Group Information
Come be a part of expanding the scope and vision of the Avery Parents for Racial Equity group. After six years, the group is ready to build upon our work by fostering a welcoming and inclusive community for all Avery families, including families of color, LGBTQ+ children and families, lower-income families, and families whose students have IEPs, IHPs, or 504 plans, and others.
Additional spring semester meeting dates:
April 10, 6:30 p.m. – In person at the Avery Library
May 8, 7 p.m. -- Zoom
Questions? Contact Julia Maki and Libby Dowdall at averyequity@gmail.com.
Late Start Information
Please click the link for additional details related to late starts.
Beginning this school year, the Webster Groves School District has added late start days to the school calendar.
Late start days will allow for additional time for our teachers to use data and collaboratively plan to continue to address the needs of all of our students.
The schedule for late starts is below:
Late Start Supervision Program - 7:40am-8:50am
School Day Arrival Begins - 8:50am
School Begins - 9:05am
Families who need help with student supervision on late start days can participate in a program available at each building. If you already signed up for this supervision, you should have received a confirmation email from Avery on Sunday, August 14th at 9:45am.
If you are in need of supervision for your child(ren) and have not received a confirmation email that they are in our late start supervision program, please click here and complete the form.
Members of the Avery staff will manage the Late Start Supervision Program, including instructional aides and substitute teachers. Families who participate in the morning Adventure Club Program will automatically be enrolled in the Late Start Supervision Program.
For additional information on the late start program, please check out our district website: https://www.webster.k12.mo.us/domain/4244
Arrival on Atalanta Reminder
Thank you!
A Note from Nurse Palmer
Deciding if a child is too sick to go to school is a tough call for any parent. A student with heavy cold symptoms such as deep or uncontrollable coughing or significant lack of energy belongs at home even without a fever. Please refer to the attached Student Symptom Decision tree.
Nurse Palmer
Free and Reduced Lunch Information
It's not too late to signup for free and reduced lunch. You can do so here and return it to:
Webster Groves High School
100 Selma Avenue
Webster Groves, MO 63119
Attention: Food Service Office
Current 5th Grade Families
Dogs At Arrival and Dismissal
Equity in Action Committee Community Recognition
Equity in Action Committee Community Recognition
The Webster Groves School District's Equity in Action Committee values and encourages peer-to-peer recognition for equity work. In 2021, the EIA launched a Community Recognition initiative, which provides an opportunity for members of the community to recognize individuals (i.e. students, teachers, parents, friends, community members, etc.), schools, businesses, and organizations who make significant contributions towards creating and cultivating a culture of dignity that values all human beings within the WGSD. To learn more about this opportunity and to make a recognition, please go to Community Recognition. The deadlines are November 29, 2022, January 30, 2023, and April 24, 2023.
Avery Staff Favorites
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1e6Z8KJTJ3zQ6gHg41L7Oef6teiXROKfX?usp=sharing
Arrival and Dismissal Procedures
Arrival from 7:40-7:50 AM
Bompart Avenue
Carpool drop-off only in front of school – parents to remain in vehicles with staff members assisting students
Families walking students to school will say goodbye at the external doors
No parking during arrival
Staff members will supervise at the curb
Marshall Avenue
Atrium entrance will be open for arrival for students dropped off on Marshall
Staff members will supervise at the curb
- Atalanta Avenue
We strongly encourage families to travel only from Bompart towards Glen to alleviate congestion and increase safety
No parking on sidewalks
Staff members will supervise at the curb
Dismissal 2:50pm-3:00pm
Bompart Avenue
Kindergarten and Fifth grades will dismiss out front
Atalanta Avenue
First and Fourth grades will dismiss along the side
Blacktop
Second and Third grades will dismiss on the back blacktop
Back Parking Lot
Staff parking only
No entrance or exit from 2:20-2:50
Expected Behaviors
Parents and Guardians-
As we head into the school year, there will be opportunities for the Avery community to come together for after school events on the Avery campus. This note is to serve as a reminder and conversation prompts to have with your children prior to events outside the normal school day:
Please listen to the parent volunteers who are supporting the event.
Please limit access to the building to use of restrooms or areas where activities are present.
The Avery Way is something students learn and recite EVERY morning. These would be good reminders for your child as well. Below you can find our Avery Way:
A-Always Safe
V-Very Responsible
E-Engaged in Learning
R-Respectful to self others and property
Y-You Matter!
Thank you for supporting Avery and the PTO by reinforcing these strategies with your child(ren).
Hannah Peterson & Aaron Winkler
Student Symptom Decision Tree
Lunch and Breakfast Information
Breakfast and lunch menus are coming soon and can be found here.
Breakfast Prices are $1.75
Lunch Prices are $2.80
Milk Only Purchase is $0.65
Federal funding that provided free meals to Webster Groves students the last few years is no longer available this upcoming year. If you think your family qualifies for free and reduced meals, it’s important to apply for assistance. Remember, meals are not free this year. You can apply for Free and Reduced meals here.
You can deposit money in your child's meals account via credit/debit card here or by check or cash at your child's school.
Birthday Treats
Beginning this school year, we will begin celebrating student birthdays differently than in the past. We will no longer be accepting outside birthday treats for your child's birthday. This decision has been made for a number of reasons, but primarily due to the dietary restrictions and safety of our students.
We will continue to celebrate your child on their birthday! Some ways we do this as a whole school are including names on our T.V. monitors around the building, announcing birthdays on the morning announcements, and beginning this year having students visit the office for their very own birthday pencil.
Individual classrooms also celebrate birthdays! Teachers will be reaching out to families on the unique ways they plan to ensure your children feel special on their big day!
Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Thank you,
Hannah Peterson, Ed.D.
Want to make a submission to The Avery Pulse?
To qualify for direct distribution to students and families, the
information must be:
- district-sponsored information
- something from a group affiliated* with the district.
- curriculum-related, as determined by the principal, including programs, events, contests and other activities.
*Affiliated is defined as a group recognized by the Board of Education and working
group created soley to work with district staff, students and parents
to raise fund for district activities (PTOs, booster clubs, the
Foundation)
Regarding signs, only signs for school or district groups (sponsored
or affiliated) can be placed on school grounds.
You can read the board policy here
https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Policy/ViewPolicy.aspx?S=448&revid=6VcjbAkBf4Ls3Fs6CyIxFA==&ptid=amIgTZiB9plushNjl6WXhfiOQ==&secid=1QSfUuz8WRJ5slsh0xnyVwukQ==&PG=6&IRP=0
If you are a non-profit organization that doesn't qualify for direct distribution to students and families, you can contact Derek Duncan (duncan.derek@wgmail.org) who is our Director of Communication and he will ensure that your flyer is posted on the community electronic bulletin.
If your information fits the above criteria, you can make a submission to theaverypulse@gmail.com
Submissions are due on Thursdays at 5pm
Avery Elementary
Website: https://www.webster.k12.mo.us/Avery
Location: 909 North Bompart Avenue, Webster Groves, MO, USA
Phone: 314.963.6425
Facebook: facebook.com/averyallstarswg
Twitter: @avery_allstars