Viking News
October 2019
Principal's Greeting
Greetings Viking Family,
It's hard to believe that we have already arrived to October. This is such a lovely time of year as the weather grows cooler and we have more time to connect with our family and friends. We are grateful for the opportunity to serve our students and families every day.
Over the course of the last month at Crestridge, we have been talking about courage. We have been talking to our students about the courage to believe in themselves. Demonstrating courage helps students increase self-confidence and helps us succeed in our personal and academic worlds. Additionally, showing courage and having positive attitudes towards ourselves and others are ways to feel connected to our school, strengthen our relationships, demonstrate responsibility when making decisions, and succeed in life. We have been practicing recognizing our emotions and learning to notice our bodies signals to our brain. We will continue our focus on courage during the month of October, however, we will begin looking outward to spread our courage to build a strong school family.
As we move into the second half of the first semester, we are wrapping up our initial round of MAP assessments. Our teachers have begun using the class results and individual student results to design instruction to meet the needs of each individual child. Our staff will be communicating your student results at conferences. Parent teacher conferences are Wednesday and Thursday, October 23rd & 24th. If you have not scheduled an appointment, please contact the office at 531-299-1280. We look forward to visiting with you about your student(s) progress.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not extend a heartfelt thank you to friends and family of Crestridge who have supported us in having a strong start to our year. We are so grateful to our PTO for championing our Viking Dash. Our students did an outstanding job creating videos, writing emails, or making phone calls to attain pledges to support our school. We realize this would not be possible with our strong parental involvement, so an additional thank you to our parents. Additionally, thank you to the many parents who attended our open house, your engagement in your child's education makes a positive impact on their engagement here at school. Many parents also volunteered formally or informally to make this evening a success. Thank you to all the parents who served popcorn, picked up chairs, or even helped to sweep- these acts show the heart and investment you have in making Crestridge a family. Lastly, a thank you to the many parents and friends of Crestridge who have committed to volunteering on an ongoing basis. We love your presence and you are making a difference!
Go Vikings!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Valerie Varas
Principal
Crestridge Magnet
Omaha Public Schools
(531) 299-1280
Mark Your Calendar
The following are a few important dates to remember:
- Inview Testing- Grade 2- The assessment window for Inview is October 14th - November 8th
- Tuesday, October 1st: Kindergarten to Fontenelle Forest
- Friday, October 4th: Crestridge Job Fair
- Monday, October 7th: PTO Meeting @ 5:30pm
- Friday, October 11th: Picture Retakes
- Monday, October 14th: Spanish Chat Parent Breakfast @ 8am
- Tuesday, October 15th: PTO Dining Out @ Five Guys (72nd Street)
- Thursday, October 17th: Author Visit- Drew Daywalt
- Monday, October 21st: Beginning of 2nd Quarter
- Wednesday, October 23rd- Thursday, October 24th- Student Led Conferences
- Thursday, October 24th- Friday, October 25th: No School
- Friday, October 25th: Crestridge at the Rose: Ella Enchanted (PM Show)
- Thursday, October 31st: Harvest Party and Parade
Curriculum Corner
Growing Readers! How to read Non-Fiction books with your child!
Kids love to read about real people, places, and events. Nonfiction books present real information in engaging and interesting ways. However, most children read a lot more fiction than nonfiction, so Crestridge staff encourages our parents to spend some extra time helping our children learn how to navigate a nonfiction book.
1. Talk About Nonfiction!
Begin by explaining that the book you're about to share is nonfiction. Remind your child that this means that the book will give us information that is true. The book will be organized around a specific topic or idea, and we may learn new facts through reading.
2. Look at the "parts" of the book.
Most good nonfiction books will have helpful features that are not a part of most fiction books. These parts include a table of contents, an index, a glossary, photographs and charts with captions, and a list of sources. Share the purpose of the features with your reader. For example, captions are usually right under photographs, figures, maps, and charts. Captions give a quick summary of what information is presented in the graphic.
3. Encourage your child to be their own "reading boss" with Nonfiction books!
Nonfiction books do not have to be read from cover to cover. Readers can use the table of contents and index to jump right to the information they are most interested in. In that way, they are the "reading boss" of that book!
As natural learners, young readers are drawn to books that give information about something or explain something they've always wondered about. The above tips are just basic ideas for how you can ensure your child is getting the most out of his/her Nonfiction reading experiences. Nonfiction books give children a chance to learn new concepts and vocabulary, as well as broaden their view of the world.
Crestridge Job Fair
Crestridge will be hosting our annual Job Fair on Friday, October 4th in the afternoon. This initiative gives students an opportunity to apply and interview for “jobs” throughout the school. If selected for a job, the students will be trained for their job and perform it with faculty and volunteer supervision throughout the school year. A chart with information about all of the exciting job opportunities available at Crestridge this year. If your child would like to apply for a job, he or she should complete the application that was sent home. All applications must be returned to school no later than Monday, September 30, 2019.
When helping your child select what jobs he or she is interested in and completing his or her application, keep in mind the following:
- It is solely the student’s responsibility to turn in his or her application to the office.
- Applications that are not turned in by September 30 will not be accepted unless the student was absent from school that day.
- A few jobs take place either before or after school. Students who are not able to be at school at the designated job time should apply for jobs during the school day.
- Make sure the applications reflect the student’s ideas and not their parents’ ideas. Students will be asked questions in their interviews about what is in their application.
- Make sure your child understands that there are a limited number of job positions in each category. Students are encouraged to apply for more than one job.
On October 4th, interviews will be conducted from 2:30 – 3:30 pm by parents and community partners. Students will interview for about five minutes. The interviewer will ask them questions regarding their application, experience, responsibilities and character. We recommend you spend some time with your child preparing for their interview. You might coach them on interview skills like making eye contact, shaking hands and answering questions.
If you would like to volunteer to participate to supervise a job throughout the year, we would welcome your participation.
We are looking forward to this exciting process! Please contact us if you have any questions.
Harvest Parties and the Parade
On Thursday, October 31st, Crestridge will continue with its tradition of Harvest Parties and a schoolwide parade. For families who choose not to partake in the festivities, please be assured that we will provide an alternate location and activity in order to allow you student to remain at school.
At Crestridge we work hard to ensure that students’ minds and bodies are ready for learning each day. In addition to the hard work we do every day to prepare students for success in the classroom, we can also work to encourage healthy eating and physical activity, leading them to lifelong success. By helping students start healthy habits early in life, we can help reduce our children’s’ health risks and increase their chances for longer, more productive lives.
Please see the pictures below that provide examples of healthy snack options that are acceptable for our school wide celebration. These items are consistent with the intent of the district’s Local School Wellness Policy and will promote healthful eating among our students. We are committed to making our school the healthiest it can be so our students can do their best work.
We are seeking parent volunteers to serve as a room parent. Room parents will work alongside teachers assisting them with classroom party activities and supervision. If you are interested in serving as a room parent, please contact Silvia Ortez at 531-299-1280.
**Costumes: Students are welcome to bring Halloween costumes to school in their backpack to change into later in the day. Costumes must be school appropriate (no weapons or scary items) and must not include makeup or be complicated so that students are able to independently wear the costume over their clothes with minimal teacher assistance.
Author Visit
We are so fortunate to have children’s book author, Drew Daywalt as our guest at Crestridge in the morning, on Thursday, October 17, 2019. Drew Daywalt is most well know for his 2016 Golden Sower winning book, The Day the Crayons Quit. He is also a 2020 Golden Sower nominee for his book, The LEGAND of Rock Paper Scissors. Please remember, we would love for your student to bring their own copy of one of Mr. Daywalt's book(s) or purchase a book(s) for him to sign, please make sure their order form is turned in by Monday, September 30, 2019.
Attendance Matters
Did you know?
- Starting in kindergarten, too many absences can cause children to fall behind in school.
- Missing 10 percent (or about 18 days) can make it harder to learn to read.
- Students can still fall behind if they miss just a day or two days every few weeks.
- Being late to school may lead to poor attendance.
- Absences can affect the whole classroom if the teacher has to slow down learning to help children catch up.
Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school—and themselves. Start building this habit in kindergarten so they learn right away that going to school on time, every day is important. Good attendance will help children do well in high school, college, and at work.
In Class Today Letters:
InClass Today is a proven researched based support tool designed to assist the Omaha Public Schools with improving student daily attendance by communicating directly with parents and guardians. Based on InClass Today’s algorithm, select students who have missed anywhere from 5%-50% of their schooling may receive letters. The letters are designed to create awareness of student attendance with parents/guardians. The first round of letters will be sent on October 11, 2019.
An Attendance Reminder:
A final reminder, remember that there are about 180 school days out of 365 total days in the year. Families are encouraged to take vacations during the ten weeks of summer vacation, two weeks near the holidays, or over the week break in the spring. Schedule appointments after school hours or on the weekend. If you need to schedule an appointment during school hours, consult the school calendar to choose a day when students have the day off.
Notes From the Health Office
Please note that "Cough Drops" are medication. If your student needs a cough drop at school:
1-The Health Office needs to keep them in the medication cupboard.
2-We need both a Doctor's note of permission and
3-We need a parent permission note also.
Thank you for your cooperation
Student Safety
We continue to refine and reflect on safety procedures that we have in place at Crestridge. This month, we wanted to share information regarding 3 topics: our bus lane, cell phones, and safety at nearby parks.
Bus Lane
In the morning, cones and a sign block access for cars to pull into our designated bus lane. We ask that families adhere to this procedure, even on inclement weather days. Although it may appear that there are no buses using the lane, we often have buses that arrive at different times. Keeping the bus lane clear allows for our arrival procedures to remain smooth for our students, for district transportation to remain on schedule, and most importantly it ensures the safety of students exiting the bus.
Cell Phones at Arrival and Dismissal
During the brief minutes dropping off or picking up your students off at school, we ask for your assistance in making our drop off and pick up lane a cell phone free zone. Distracted driving in an area where students are exiting and/ or crossing poses a risk for student safety.
Parks in the Area
It was recently shared with me by Crestridge neighbors that there is a concern for students going to parks in the area unsupervised. Although this is very much an individual family decision, your children are dear to us and therefore, we'd encourage families to provide active supervision to students in the event that they are going to local parks. Students at the elementary level are developing the skills to problem solve, notice concerning things in their environment, and how to ask and get help if the need it. Having an adult who is able to support students in these environments ensures their safety when they are not at school.
Cooler Weather
As the winter months inch closer, please remember that breakfast does not begin until 8:35. Students should not be dropped off prior to 8:35 am. This can become a safety issue once the temperature begins to drop.
An additional reminder that we make every effort to get students outside weather permitting. Please be sure to begin dressing students in layers, as well as purchasing cool weather gear to include coats, scarves, hats, and gloves. In the event that you are unable to purchase these items, please reach out to Ms. Rowland- Heather.Rowland@ops.org.