Weather Emergencies
For questions regarding when and how decisions are made, click HERE.
Dress for the Weather
Speaking of weather... The weather is cooling down and rain is making a grand appearance! Since we rarely cancel recess, it is so important to please make sure that your kiddos are coming to school dressed appropriately for the weather.
Attendance Matters!
Dear Families,
During the dates leading up to our winter break from school, we are grateful to everyone for helping to maintain a routine for showing up to school.
We appreciate everyone’s efforts to avoid taking extra time off prior to and after the winter break. As long as your child is healthy, please encourage showing up to class when school is in session.
If your family or your child needs support, please reach out to our social worker for help.
Every day of school is an important opportunity for students to learn as well as to connect to their peers and teachers.
We thank:
- Our students and their families who do their best to show up daily even when it isn’t easy.
- Our teachers who go above and beyond to make school a welcoming and safe place for all students to learn.
- Our many, many healers and helpers - the support staff and community volunteers who provide the extra hands and attention our children need.
Following are a few reminders...
Please use of one the following options to report your student's absence.
- Call our attendance line at: 253-800-5093.
- Log onto ParentVUE and enter an absence request.
** You must notify the Attendance Office each day your child is absent. **
Send a note: Send a note with your child when he/she returns to school. A note from your healthcare provider is recommended when appointments take place during school hours to excuse the partial or full day absence. If no notification is received for the absence, an automated message system will call and notify the family the child is listed as unexcused.
Pre-Arranged Absences: If you know in advance that your student will be absent for 3 DAYS OR LONGER, a Pre- Arranged Absence Form must be completed and returned to the office prior to the absence. Forms can be requested from the office. The principal will determine if the pre-arranged absences are excused or unexcused. The school board sets the district yearly calendar by June of each year. Please plan your family trips and vacation to coincide with pre-planned breaks in order to avoid accumulating excessive absences. Absences that are unexcused, may require the school to file a BECCA petition in accordance with Washington State Law RCW 28A.225.
If you would like to meet with our assistant principal or social worker, Mrs. Kaasa or Mrs. Lindstrom, regarding your student's attendance and discuss how we can support you in your student's success, please email Mrs. Kaasa at mkaasa@bethelsd.org, or email Mrs. Lindstrom at alindstrom@bethelsd.org, or call our office at 253-800-5000 to schedule a meeting.
We appreciate each one of you! May the upcoming days off be restful and healthy.
Thank you for partnering with us to improve attendance at Rocky Ridge Elementary!
For more information regarding our district's attendance policies, please visit: click HERE
For information on the importance of attendance, please visit: https://www.bethelsd.org/Page/4294
Read-a-thon!
ROCKY RIDGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is having a Read-a-thon this year!
Read-a-thons actually get your reader excited about reading and it gives friends and family the opportunity to encourage your child to read even more.
Our Read-a-thon starts Monday- December 5, 2022.
Instructions should be coming home soon (if not already) on how to activate your reader's personal page. This is where you will be able to view and record their progress.
We encourage you to activate your reader’s account today by clicking on https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/RiKflT/1 and following the simple instructions.
We've chosen "Read-a-thon" because it will not take much of your time, gives your child a reason to read and helps in the development of stronger reading skills. We hope EVERYONE participates.
Please email Ms. Lamar with any questions at: tlamar@bethelsd.org
Let's get reading!
PTA Fundraiser Update
Due to yesterday's weather... our PTA fundraiser pick-up has been delayed!
The next pick-up date will be announced ASAP. We are hoping for next week, but this depends on warehouse/supply availability. We will update everyone on our PTA FB page as soon as we know more!
Please note: Any/All perishable items that do not meet health department temperature controlled requirements will be replaced this ONE TIME by Cherrydale due to uncontrollable weather conditions. After today, replacements will NOT be available/granted for any items that are not picked up on a later scheduled pick up date.
Let's meet another Raccoon Staff Member...
Mrs. Ahmu has been a Raccoon for SEVERAL years and currently serves as our PBIS Para-educator. PBIS is an acronym for: Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support. This means that Mrs. Ahmu works SUPER hard to help create a safe learning environment by improving school-wide systems in place and supporting classroom behavior support systems.
A few of Mrs. Ahmu's favorite things are: loving on all our Raccoons, greeting parents, the color blue, sunny summer days, roses, watching movies, Pepsi, M&Ms, scrapbooking, dolphins, Starbucks, and shopping at Target. Mrs. Ahmu also enjoys spending time with her family at the beach.
Mrs. Ahmu can be reach at: mahmu@bethelsd.org.
Rocky Ridge is sure blessed to have Mrs. Ahmu here!
Mitten Tree
All gifts are due in the office by 12/14 (Wednesday).
You can reach out to Mrs. Lindstrom with any questions at: alindstrom@bethelsd.org.
Thank you for your generous support
of our Rocky Ridge families!
Parent / Guardian Identification
Our district's policy is that all parents/guardians remember to always have a valid ID on them when picking up their child(ren). We have various staff members that answer the door and at parent pick-up. They may not always recognize your beautiful faces and families.
Supporting our School
Many of our families have been asking if we're accepting any donations, running low on important items, and inquiring about ways to serve.
One way that you can support our school is...
tissue, tissue, TIIIIISSSSSSUE!
Sniffles, sneezes, and runny noses... Oh, my!
Donations can be sent to school with your child
or dropped off in the office.
All of us at Rocky Ridge appreciate our Raccoon families
and their eagerness to support, serve, and give!
Staying home
Too sick or not too sick for school... that is the question! And this is a question that our office staff is asked almost everyday. Please read the following written by the Pierce County Health Department.
Keep your child home if they:
- Are too sick to participate in normal activities.
- Need a level of care or observation not manageable at school or childcare.
- Create an unhealthy or unsafe environment for others.
Some conditions require you to keep your child home. They include, but are not limited to:
- Chickenpox (varicella): Keep your child home until all blisters have scabs and no new blisters are forming.
- Diarrhea: Keep your child home from school until diarrhea can be contained and they can participate in normal activities.
- Fever: Keep your child home until their temperature is below 100.4°F and they don’t have behavior changes, sore throat, rash, vomiting, diarrhea, earache, irritability or confusion. Children MUST BE fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medications.
- Flu (influenza): Keep your child home until they are fever-free for 24 hours.
- Strep throat: Keep your child home until they have taken antibiotics for 24 hours and are fever-free.
- Vomiting: Keep your child home until they have not vomited for 24 hours and they can participate in normal activities.
Please see the following chart.
Spirit Days are Every Week!
FRIDAYS = TEAM WEAR! ~ Show off your favorite team with sweatshirts and t-shirts! This could be a sports, choir, dance, chess teams... There are so many teams to celebrate!
We've got spirit! ... Yes, we do!
We've got spirit! ... How about YOU?!
FREE TELE-HEALTH!
Hazel Health is offering free mental and physical tele-health services at home for all students in the Bethel School District. There is no cost to families. To access services, parents will need to sign the online form here: my.hazel.co/bethelsd
Box Tops for Education!
Did you know you can earn money for our school just by going grocery shopping?
All you need to do is...
- Download the app.
- Add Rocky Ridge Elementary as your school.
- And scan your receipts!
Joke of the Week!
A. "Can you smell carrots?"
Dates to Remember
Dec. 7: NO SCHOOL | Staff Development Day
Dec. 12-16: Santa Shop (PTA)
Dec. 14: LATE ARRIVAL | Drop-off begins at 9:20am / Full STEAM Ahead!!!
Dec. 21 - Jan. 2: NO SCHOOL | Winter Break
Follow RRE on Facebook!