Dolphin Digest
September 2022
DEAR WINTER PARK FAMILIES:
We can't wait to kick off the new school year as we welcome all our #WPESdolphins tomorrow morning! Over the last week, our staff members have been busy preparing for the year ahead, and we have some exciting things in store for the first week.
For those that were with us last year, you know that we accomplished a lot in 2022-2023, and for those that are new - we are so glad you've joined us! As we look ahead, we firmly believe that we have the perfect combination of elements in our Winter Park school community to help us "Ride the W.A.V.E.S." successfully in the new year: Wisdom, Academic Excellence, Vision, Equity, & Synergy!
Of course, the most important common factor across all five of these areas is our human capital: the students, families, staff, and school community. You all are the heart of the work we do, and we are so grateful to begin this journey!
This Dolphin Digest is our first family newsletter of the year, and one of these will be sent out at the start of each month. In between these monthly newsletters, you will also receive a weekly email from me (typically on Sunday evening) with important reminders and dates for the week ahead.
After reading through all of the information shared below, be sure to also check out the "Policies & Procedures" page on our school website, which you can access HERE. You'll find even more information about things like attendance, grading, dress code, etc.
I hope you quickly see that I am always happy to answer any questions, address any concerns, or listen to any feedback you have. Don't ever hesitate to reach out via email or phone at any time.
Looking forward to a great year!
~Mr. Hall
Transportation
CAR RIDERS:
AM:
- Students may begin exiting their car at 7:20 when a staff member is outside on duty. Please do not drop your child off to wait outside the building before this time.
- The tardy bell now rings at 7:40am. If you arrive after 7:40 when the adults have already gone inside, you will need to park and come inside to sign your child in. Please do not drop your child off to walk up to the door alone, as we will be required to call you and have you come back to sign them in.
- As the line moves towards the front of the school, please pull all the way forward on MacMillan in order to fill in all the gaps and ensure the line moves quickly.
- Staff members will be on duty to assist your child so please remain in your car.
- Do NOT park across the street on Pine Street and walk your child over to avoid waiting in line. This prevents the line from moving because our crossing guard has to continue stopping traffic. Our crossing guard is there for people that walk to school because they are within a mile, and all other families should wait in the line and pull up to the curb to drop off.
PM:
- Dismissal now begins at 2:35 and typically ends around 2:50pm. If you show up after the adults on duty have already gone inside, you will need to park and come in to get your child from the front office.
- Be sure your car tag is displayed so that your child's name can be called. If you need an additional car tag at any point, let your child's teacher know.
- Staff members will be on duty to help your child get in the car.
- If your child needs help buckling their seatbelt, please wait to pull all the way forward and past the last adult on car duty. This will give you plenty of time to get out and assist them with buckling without holding up the rest of the line.
BUS RIDERS:
- Click HERE to access the Winter Park bus routes.
- The parent portal app (Edulog) will be working for both morning and afternoon runs beginning the first day. Use these instructions for help in downloading the app and linking to our school routes: ENGLISH & SPANISH
- If your child does not ride for three days in a week, they will be de-assigned from the bus route.
- You can access the NHCS Transportation page by clicking HERE.
School Improvement Team
We need you! We are looking for volunteers to serve on our School Improvement Team, and have worked to provide some flexible options this year to make the commitment much easier:
- Any parent/guardian of ANY child in ANY grade level is welcome! This is a great opportunity for you to learn more about our school, get to know different staff members, and provide feedback as part of the team. It's okay if you are brand new to the school, or if you have been a part of our community for years, we would still love to have you no matter what!
- The three big improvement areas that we focus on during these meetings are Academics, Behavior, and Community Engagement.
- All meetings will be held on Wednesday from 3:00-4:00pm (once per month)
- You can commit to as few or as many of the meetings as possible. Even if you can only make one, we would still love to have you!
- We will be providing a hybrid meeting option this year so that you can attend virtually if that would work better for your schedule. We will be happy to share the Google Meet link with anyone that is interested.
- The dates are included below so that you can plan accordingly with your schedule:
- September 20th
- October 18th
- November 15th
- December 13th
- January 17th
- February 14th
- March 13th
- April 24th
- June 7th
If you are interested in being a part of our group, feel free to email Mr. Hall or our School Improvement Chair: Mrs. Mulvey (tara.mulvey@nhcs.net). We hope you'll join us for any or all of our meetings throughout the year!
Breakfast & Lunch:
- Breakfast and Lunch are both free for all students at Winter Park this year.
- If you would like to pay for extras like chips or cookies, you may use cash or add money to your child's lunch account. More information can be found on the Child Nutrition page.
- Monthly menus can be found on the link above, but you can also access the August and September menus by clicking HERE.
- You may join your child for lunch in the cafeteria, but you must sign in at the front office. If you are unsure of your child's lunch time, reach out to his/her teacher. Each class has lunch for 25 minutes each day.
Garbage to Gardens:
Waste Diversion Efforts:
At Winter Park, we partner with the Garbage to Gardens program to promote sustainability. One of Garbage to Gardens' missions is to divert school waste from the landfill through compost. This year at Winter Park, we are planning to increase our composting efforts by diverting all of our breakfast and lunch cafeteria food waste daily. Data collected during our Waste Free Wednesday last year showed a 75-90% reduction in landfill waste with focus on composting in addition to the recycling we already have in place. If you are interested in learning more about this program or volunteering in the cafeteria, to help support our efforts, please reach out to Mr. Hall or Ms. Weeks, the program coordinator.
Spotlight on Staff:
Recently, Ms. Weeks (4th grade teacher) was featured in Wilma Magazine for all of her efforts with Garbage to Gardens the last two years as part of her Emerging Leaders project. Check out the article, called "Feeding the Needs: Waste Not, Want Not" by clicking HERE.
Neptune Navigate:
Click HERE to read about Neptune Navigate, a program used to teach digital citizenship and online safety. Our media specialist, Mrs. Rodgers, will be walking your child through the modules in this platform at some point in the year. Feel free to reach out to her with any questions after using the links within the letter to learn more information.
BOY Paperwork:
All parents/guardians of NHCS students in grades 1-5 are required to complete the beginning-of-year paperwork using the Scribbles online system. The online system allows parents/guardians the ability to complete this process from their laptop, cell phone, or desktop computer. If there has been a change of address, please update the address on the beginning-of-year paperwork and upload the new proof of residence. The beginning of year paperwork window will close October 1st, 2023. Click HERE for a step-by-step guide to assist you if needed.
Other Resources:
Dates to Know:
Monday, August 28th:
- First day of school!
- Kindergarten staggered enrollment: Day 1
Tuesday, August 29th:
- Kindergarten staggered enrollment: Day 2
Wednesday, August 30th:
- Kindergarten staggered enrollment: Day 3
Thursday, August 31st:
- All Kindergarten students come!
Monday, September 4th:
- Labor Day Holiday: No school for staff or students!
Wednesday, September 6th:
- Beginning of Grade Test (3rd Grade)
Thursday, September 7th:
- Beginning of Grade Test (3rd Grade)
Wednesday, September 20th:
- School Improvement Team meeting (3:00-4:00pm)
Wednesday, September 27th:
- Boy Scout Sign-up Event (5:30-6:00pm)