Windsor Newsletter
November 2019
- November 7th Picture Retakes
- November 7th Wild About Education Game
- November 12th PAWS Meeting
- November 15th PAWS Movie Night
- November 21st: Chick-fil-a Merle Hay Spirit Night from 5-8 pm
- November 27th- 29th Thanksgiving Break
- December 10th PAWS Meeting
- December 13 No School Staff PD
- December 23- January 1st No School Winter Break
At Windsor, We Put the I in KIND
World Day of Bullying Prevention - Windsor staff supporting the #blueup movement. Together we stand against bullying!
Principal Updates
Hello Everyone!
It’s that time again – leaves are almost done falling, frost has to be scraped from the windshields, and the time-worn tradition of arguing with your child about wearing a coat to school (assuming your children are like mine were anyway 😊). So this is my annual reminder about taking a few minutes with your student to talk about proper attire for cold weather, both indoors and outdoors.
Please contact Ms. Doeden if you have a need for winter wear for your student and she will do her best to connect you to services that will help. She can also put you in touch with services for energy assistance, food assistance, and other programs should you need them.
And while it’s on my mind, please check our lost and found as things come up missing. It is not uncommon for us to accumulate five bags or more worth of coats, hats, gloves, etc… by the time spring rolls around. In case you were wondering, once the school year is over, we take all unclaimed clothing and donate it to Goodwill. Often there’s a lot of good stuff there so please make sure you get your items back first!
Speaking of winter, once the snow flies the hill on 59th Street can be a bit tricky. I would like to strongly suggest you not pull over on the hill section to let students out or pick them up on snowy days. There’s a good chance you might have a real hard time getting going again. The city of Des Moines says they will make clearing the streets around Windsor a priority, but the cutout parking will not be. You can always use the ‘drive thru’ service at the west doors or park across the street and cross through the new crosswalk.
Coming up on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving break is our annual Mix-It-Up day. For those new to Windsor, it will sound a little crazy, but the kids absolutely love it. Mix-It-Up day was originally a movement to have older students sit with other kids they normally would not engage with during lunch, study hall, or other times. Sometimes they are given discussion questions to promote conversation.
Well here at Windsor, we decided to change that model to make it fun for elementary students. What we do is mix all the students in the building up. Here’s how it works:
Students draw a nametag from a bucket. All that is on that nametag is a teacher’s name in the bottom corner. That will be the student’s teacher for 90 minutes on Tuesday, November 26. HOWEVER – there are two nametags in the mix that have no teacher, those are the wildcards. If a student is lucky enough to draw that one, they get to choose any teacher in the building they want. Occasionally, a student draws their own teacher. In that case, the student has the option to keep it, or redraw.
On the day of the event, students will go to their new teacher for the afternoon. (We assign 5th grade helpers to assist with getting kindergarten and first grade to the right places.) Each teacher will then have a variety of students in their room from different classes and grades and they will do fun, fall activities. Some examples from the past have been making a birdhouse, reading a story and making puppets, and even turkey bowling. It’s really just a way to give kids an opportunity to break out of their molds a bit in a way that’s more fun than stressful.
I think that’s about all for now. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions, concerns, or anything else for that matter. Have a great rest of your day!
Fabulous Mrs. Fatino Showing Us One Of Her Favorite Books
Our community guest this month was Officer Palmer with the Windsor Heights PD! He talked to us about different types of bullying and role played how to handle bullying with one of our 5th grade students. (Vivian M)
Oakridge 21st Century would like to invite Windsor Students to join them after school. They will provided Transportation from Windsor at Dismissal, Parents pick up at 5:30PM. Please view more information below or pick up a packet in the Windsor Office
OASIS = Oakridge Achievers Successful In School Partners With Windsor Students!!
21st Century Community Learning Center
was awarded a 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant (21st CCLC) in 2014.
Through the 21st CCLC grant, Oakridge expanded its after school / out of school
programming to offer even more extended learning opportunities for students grades K-8.
21st CCLC programming includes the use of evidenced-based academic support, educational
enrichment, parent engagement, and family literacy activities, and focuses on improving
academic outcomes and performance in the core areas of reading, math and science.
All Oakridge 21st CCLC programing is aligned with classroom instruction using evidenced-based
academic supports and interventions with licensed teachers retained to provide the academic
components of the program. The program partners with Edmunds Elementary School and
Callanan Middle School, the neighborhood elementary school and regional middle school
serving the students that reside in and around the Oakridge Neighborhood, as well as
Holy Family which also serves a number of Oakridge students. A total of 175 K-8 students are
served at three sites.
With 21st CCLC funds, Oakridge Neighborhood Services has increased the rigor of after school/out
of school academic supports, the frequency of student contacts, provided an expanded portfolio of
educational enrichment activities, and also increased the emphasis on parental engagement and family
literacy. This rigorous programming is facilitated through a 6-day/week “high touch” model aimed at
meeting the academic and educational enrichment needs of high poverty and ELL participants.
For more information about our partners and other resources relating to the 21st CCLC, please
contact the 21st CCLC Program Coordinator:
John Spinks – 21st CCLC Program Coordinator
Oakridge Neighborhood Services
1401 Center Street
Des Moines, IA 50314
515-244-7702
jspinks@oakridgeneighborhood.org
Selena has completed this week’s Mission Monday! She tried something new at recess - basketball!
Pay Your Student Fees Online
School Fee Payment Instructions for Infinite Campus
1. Visit our district website at www.dmschools.org and find the Parents Link at the top of the site.
2. Click the Online Payments link under Links for School Info to get to the Des Moines Public Schools Web Store.
3. Select School Fees.
4. Enter your Infinite Campus Parent Portal User Name and Currently enrolled child’s birthdate (MM/DD/YYYY) to access a list of your student’s fees.
5. Select the fees you would like to make a payment for and click Next Page.
6. Confirm your payment choices and click Go to Checkout.
7. If a new customer, select “I am a new customer”.
a. Enter your email address
b. Click “Sign in”
8. If a returning customer, select “I am a returning customer”.
a. Enter your email address and password
b. Click Sign in
9. Enter your billing information and create a password (if required).
10. Enter your payment information.
11. Verify information for accuracy and select Complete Order.Payment will be processed and Receipt can be viewed and printed.
Need Help?
Forgotten Web Store Password? Click Password Reminder under Services, enter your email address and click the arrow. Your password will be emailed to you shortly.
Forgotten your Infinite Campus Parent Portal Password or no Parent Portal Access? Contact your student’s school building secretary Casey Brown at
PAWS Reminders
*November 6-15: Windsor Wear T-shirt Sales
*Tuesday November 12th: Fall Fundraiser Pastry Pickup 2:30-5 pm in the cafeteria
*Tuesday November 12th: PAWS Monthly Meeting at 6:00 pm in the cafeteria
*Thursday November 21st: Chick-fil-a Merle Hay Spirit Night from 5-8 pm
*Friday November 15th: Family Movie Night at 6:00 pm in the auditorium
*Don't forget to get the Box Tops for Education App on your phone. It is free and easy to use. Simply scan your receipts to earn money for Windsor. You can also turn in traditional box tops to the office at any time throughout the year. Thank you!
Windsor Elementary
Email: windsor@dmschools.org
Website: windsor.dmschools.org
Phone: 515-242-8440
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/windsordmps/
Twitter: @WindsorWildcatsDM