February Newsletter
February 2023
Message from Mrs. Yost
It is hard to believe we are halfway through winter. We have been fortunate with the mid temperatures allowing students to go outside for some fresh air and the opportunity to stretch their legs and socialize with their friends. We launched February with World Read Aloud Day. Each class had a mystery reader join their class yesterday. Thank you, Mrs. O'Brien, for organizing such a fun day involving many community members. I would like to thank members of the Board of Education, Town Council, Wallingford Fire Department, Central Office and Cook Hill Staff for taking time out of their busy schedules to read to our Cougars. It was definitely a Bucket-Filling event!
Reminder, if your child is not feeling well, please contact the school to report the absences. If your child has met their nine excused absence any future absences require a doctor's note to be considered an excused absence. We realize there are many viruses out in the community, and we are all rebuilding our immune systems. If you are questioning whether to send your child to school, do nothestitate to reach out to the nurse's office or main office for guidance. We love having our youngest learners in school, but understand if they are too sick to attend school. Communication is so important during these situations.
February may be the shortest month of the year, but it is packed with several learning opportunities celebrating Black History Month, World Read Aloud Day, Presidents Day and our 100th Day of School and Raise Craze. I hope families take this opportunity to share about this exciting learning around the dinner table or before bedtime.
Classes will celebrate Valentine's Day on Tuesday 2/14. Please be mindful that we are still not having food/ candy brought into school as part of our health and wellness district practice.This is the same expectation we had in effect for the fall and winter celebrations. Your child's teacher will be sharing a class list shortly listing all the students in the classroom.
In partnership,
Mrs. Yost
Important Dates
Author Focus - Ezra Jack Keats
Celebrating Black History Month
Wednesday, February 1 - World Real Aloud Day
Thursday, February 2 - Groundhog Day
Monday, February 6 - PTO Raise Craze Fundraiser Kick Off (through 2/17)
Monday, February 6 - 100th Day of School
Tuesday, February 7 - K-Kids Meeting @ 8:10am-8:50am
Tuesday, February 7 - Virtual PTAC Meeting @ 6pm & PTO Meeting @ 7pm - link is below
Wednesday, February 8 - CH Town Meeting @10am
Friday, February 10 - Jersey Day...Get ready for some football! Sport your favorite team jersey!
Students are welcome to wear any sports jersey of their favorite team - local, collegiate or professional level
Tuesday, February 14 - Red and Pink Day - Wear red and pink with your best Valentine accessories to celebrate love and friendship!
Tuesday, February 14 - Valentine Exchange-teachers will send out information-NO CANDY or FOOD
Thursday, February 16 - Early Release Day @1:30pm
Friday, February 17 - Early Dismissal @ 1:30pm - Winter Break
Friday, February 17 - PTO Raise Craze Fundraiser Ends
Monday, February 20 - Winter Break - President's Day
Tuesday, February 28 - Rare Disease Day
Virtual PTAC & PTO Meeting Tuesday, Feb 7, 2023
2023/2024 WPS Preschool Lottery/ Lotería Preescolar de las EPW 2023/2024
2023/2024 WPS Preschool Lottery
Please enter the following information in order to enter your child into the lottery for the Wallingford Public Schools Preschool Program for the 2023/2024 school year.
Please only submit one entry per child in the lottery.
This lottery will be open until February 24th at 3:00 PM.
You will receive further information (for example: when you should expect to hear about your drawing in the lottery) via email only, at the email address that you have provided below. You do not have to do anything further at this time. More instructions and the next steps in this process will come in March.
Thank you.
Preschool Lottery - Here is the link to register: Click Here
Lotería Preescolar de las EPW 2023/2024
Por favor, ingrese la siguiente información para inscribir a su hijo en la lotería del Programa Preescolar de las Escuelas Públicas de Wallingford para el año escolar 2023/2024.
Por favor, solo envíe una participación por niño en la lotería.
Esta lotería estará abierta hasta el 24 de febrero a las 3:00 PM.
Recibirá más información (por ejemplo: cuándo debe esperar saber sobre su sorteo en la lotería) solo por correo electrónico, en el correo electrónico que proporcionó a continuación. No tiene que hacer nada más en este momento. Más instrucciones y los próximos pasos en este proceso llegarán en marzo.
Gracias.
Lotería para el Preescolar- Aquí está el enlace para registrarse: Haga clic aquí
Raise Craze
For those of you that do not know me, my name is Jen Carreira and I am a member of the PTO board. I have two daughters - one at each of our schools. I also volunteer in the Cook Hill library and work at Parker Farms as a lunch/recess teacher.
I am emailing you to let you know about our biggest fundraiser of the year that is running February 6th-17th at both schools. If you're at Cook Hill, you may remember it from last year. The fundraiser is called Raise Craze and it is amazing for so many reasons!
Raise Craze is a meaningful, interactive fundraiser where students collect donations online via a secure, custom website then show their appreciation by serving others and completing random acts of kindness. In other words, students spend time serving, not selling! Here’s a quick 2- minute video to tell you more. Raise Craze Instructional - YouTube
We can’t wait to get started and appreciate your support! I am going to ask you to distribute a few items to your students on Thursday, February 2nd:
1. The registration paperwork, which I will have in both English and Spanish.
2. The incentive plan - what prizes our students will be getting!
I presented information at the Cook Hill town meeting on 1/11 and made an appearance on Bulldog News Live with our student council prior to kickoff.
Additionally - I am in need of your help. I am compiling a list of daily service activities that I am hoping you can do with your class. This will hopefully boost participation!
We have some big goals - but I know with the help of you and our amazing principals, we can get there! The goal is to raise $30,000 for both schools. I am also hoping for 1,000 acts of kindness. For reference, last year we raised $11,338 at Cook Hill and completed 488 acts of kindness!
I will be creating a kindness tree at both schools and showcasing the number of acts of kindness we have each day. Additionally, I will have the class with the top acts of kindness each day receive our "traveling trophy" which is bragging rights for sure! PLEASE acknowledge our students who you can see are making an extra effort to be kind.
We are raising money for some exciting things for our students:
- Sensory walk at Cook Hill
- Mascot at Cook Hill
- Potentially new swings at Cook Hill
- Outdoor shade structure for outdoor learning, ceremonies, etc at Parker Farms
- New picnic tables at Parker Farms
*Please note - all of this depends entirely on how much we raise!
We will also have a celebration at the end for all the students with Kona Ice!
So you're probably wondering what makes this fundraiser DIFFERENT? There are many reasons but here are a few highlights:
- Reinforces kindness in the classroom.
- Everyone can participate by completing Acts of Kindness. No one is left out!
- Classroom Goals promote team building and cooperation.
- Our school keeps 90% of the funds raised!!
Here are some more ways you can help…
- Remind students to register & log Acts of Kindness.
- Weave kindness into your classroom discussions & lesson plans.
- Encourage students to register at home with an adult via computer or smartphone. Early registration is best but students can register up to your end date. If a student needs assistance and their parents reach out to you, please let me know.
I think that is all of the information I need to get to you for now! I am so excited to launch this at both schools. If you have any questions, please reach out to me!
Rare Disease Day - February 28th
Rare Disease Day is February 28th. To bring awareness and support to Rare Disease Day we encourage staff and students to wear stripes which signify a zebra, the symbol of rare diseases. If you would like to make a donation, please send a $1 in an envelope that day with your child. All money that is collected would go to N.O.R.D. (The National Organization of Rare Disorders). Thank you for helping to make a difference.
Alone we are rare, together we are strong!
Community Events
School Hours
School Hours: 9:05 AM - 3:30 PM
(Parent drop off 8:50am-9:05am)
Delayed Openings
2 hour: 11:05-3:30
No AM Preschool class
Early Dismissals
2 hour: 9:05-1:30
2 hour and 45 minute: 9:05-12:45
No PM Preschool class
School Contact Information
Amy Yost ~ Principal
Kara Piper, Secretary - kpiper1@wallingfordschools.org
Aimee Heinrich, Office Clerk - aheinrich@wallingfordschools.org
Amy Yost, Principal - ayost@walllingfordschools.org
PreSchool Office
Kelly Vallancourt, Secretary - kvallancourt@wallingfordschools.org
Email: ayost@wallingfordschools.org
Website: https://ches.wallingford.k12.ct.us/
Location: 57 Hall Road, Wallingford, CT, USA
Phone: (203)284-5400