White Rock Elementary
March 28, 2024
Good Afternoon WRE Families,
Time flies when you're having fun! It's been a busy semester at WRE with so much to come in April and May - including our annual Open House event next week featuring Multicultural Night and a STEM showcase. Make sure to check out the details below and we hope to see you on Thursday evening!
We hope you have a wonderful 3-day weekend!
Love,
Principal Stevens
Open House - Multicultural Night - STEM Showcase
Join us for WRE's Open House featuring Multicultural Night and a STEM Showcase on Thursday, April 4 from 6:00-7:00 PM. Students and their families will get to tour our campus and classrooms, view artwork and hallway displays featuring Black History Month, participate in multicultural activities and performances, and visit the cafeteria for a STEM showcase.
Prior to Open House, there will be a PTA General Meeting and the PTA Reflections Awards Ceremony in the WRE cafeteria from 5:30-6:00 PM.
Stay tuned for more details!
Autism Awareness Day - April 2 - Wear Blue!
Help us celebrate Autism Awareness Day on Tuesday, April 2 by wearing BLUE! We would love for our whole school to "Light It Up Blue" in honor of this special day!
Solar Eclipse - Monday, April 8
Safety is the number one priority when viewing a total solar eclipse. Weather permitting, students and staff will safely view the eclipse outside on Monday, April 8. Richardson ISD has provided all students and staff with ISO-approved solar viewing glasses for the event.
The WRE campus safety plan for the Total Eclipse event will be sent out to parents next week. If you do not wish for your student to participate in the viewing of the eclipse outside, an opt-out form will be sent home. Complete that form and return it with your student if you are opting out. You can also find the opt-out form HERE.
We have exciting updates to share about the PreK program at WRE!
We will be welcoming a second PreK 3 class to our campus and will offer community spots in BOTH PreK 3 and PreK 4 starting in the 2024-2025 school year! Previously, community spots were only available for PreK 4 at WRE.
PreK 4
After completing online enrollment, the campus will review enrollment information and schedule a PreK appointment to determine eligibility for free PreK. During the appointment if your child meets eligibility criteria for free PreK the staff will place your child at the appropriate campus based on programming and availability. If your child does not meet eligibility criteria for free PreK you will be placed on a waitlist for community tuition, if interested. The PreK department will review the tuition waitlist around the end of May and reach out to families to discuss options at that time. PreK seats at any school can be limited based on available space, and Texas requires that qualifying families be provided PreK 4 services if requested.
PreK 3
After completing online enrollment, the campus will review enrollment information and your child will be placed on a PreK 3 lottery waitlist. The PreK department will award seats via the lottery around the end of May and reach out to selected families to determine eligibility for free PreK. If your child does not meet eligibility criteria for free PreK you will have the option to pay tuition, if interested.
Parents can review eligibility criteria for free (qualifying) PreK, along with tuition rates for non-qualifying students, on the RISD Pre-K website.
Families interested in enrolling a three or four year old student in PreK at WRE are encouraged to complete the online enrollment process as soon as possible.
The final I Know What to Do Day of the school year was held on Wednesday across RISD and we focused on the safety protocols for Shelter-in-Place. Our students and faculty participated a shelter in place drill by gathering in the WRE storm shelter. Our students did an incredible job following all of our safety protocols - they were quiet, orderly, and the entire school was safely housed in the tornado shelter area in less than 5 minutes.
Amazing job, WRE staff and students!
1-5 - National Assistant Principals Week
2 - Autism Awareness Day - Light It Up Blue!
3 - Paraprofessional Classroom Aides Appreciation Day
4 - School Librarian Appreciation Day
4 - PTA Meeting and Reflections Ceremony - 5:30 PM WRE Cafeteria
4 - Open House Featuring Multicultural Night and STEM Showcase - 6:00-7:00 PM
11 - Early Release - 1:10 PM
12 - No School!
16 - STAAR Reading (3-6)
17 - STAAR Reading Make-Up Testing (3-6)
18 - STAAR Science (5th only)
19 - STAAR Science Make-Up Testing (5th Only)
23 - School Bus Driver Appreciation Day
24 - Office Staff Appreciation Day
25 - STAAR Math (3-6)
25 - WRE Spring Choir Performance - 6:00 in WRE Cafeteria
26 - STAAR Math Make-Up Testing (3-6)
27 - Dad’s Club WREck the Night Campout - WRE playground
Kids' Heart Challenge Wrap-Up
A heartfelt thank you for your dedication to our Kids Heart Challenge at White RockElementary! We're immensely proud of our students for wholeheartedly embracing this program—learning, helping, and cultivating vital life-skills along the way.
Check out our results! We raised an AMAZING $47,019 in donations for our goal!
Highlights and Student Shout-Outs -
286 students joined our team!
74 students completed Finn’s Mission, learned Hands-Only CPR, and learned how to spot a stroke F.A.S.T.!
Our friends who raised over $250 to help people with special hearts and who will participate in our COLOR RUN are… Cliff H., Ryder F., Anaya P., Ramsey R., Thomas A., Henry A., Boone H., Kaamil A., Sullivan R., Keller L., Elliott H., Chappy P., Samuel D., Jennifer E., Xavier G., Theo H., Hudson H., Hawkens H., Hayes H., David E., Carter F., Luke C., Amara P., Knox S., Kate H., Madeleine D., Monroe M., William M., Logan T., Luke T., James G., Connor H., Charlie H., Hank G., Landry L., Bowen C., Hampton L., Caleb P., Ryan S., Caroline B., Camden P., Emme D., Kolt M., Tilly Kate S., Theodore H., Landry W., Cade W., Natalie R., Bishop W., Max S., Adelle T., Alicia W., Peter H., Cameron D., Kase M., Texas J., and John J.!
Top fundraising student in each grade and winner of their very own Buster Heart Hero keychain -
- Pre-K: Mason H.
- K: Henry A.
- 1: Cliff H.
- 2: Ryder F.
- 3: Boone H.
- 4: Anaya P.
- 5: Cade W.
- 6: Nolan S.
The top fundraising student IN THE WHOLE SCHOOL who will be Coach for a Day is… Cliff H.!
Top fundraising class in each grade and the winner of a class party -
- Pre-K: Holt
- Kinder: Muder
- 1: Burns – TOP FUNDRAISING CLASS IN THE SCHOOL!!!
- 2: Crain
- 3: Kurzner
- 4: Roby
- 5: Pearce
- 6: Faris
Students who completed Finn’s Mission and will enjoy extra recess are… Cliff H., Ryder F., Anaya P., Thomas A., Henry A., Boone H., Sullivan R., Keller L., Elliott H., Xavier G., Theo H., Hudson H., Hawkens H., Hayes H., Luke C., Amara P., Knox S., Logan T., Luke T., Connor H., Charlie H., Landry L., Bowen C., Hampton L., Caleb P., Camden P., Landry W., Bishop W., Max S., Peter H., Cameron D., Charlotte B., Blake B., Bowen B., Hayes D., Billie T., Ellis H., Crosby G., Natalie A., Michael S., Hollis J., Grant F., Walker D., Everly D., Oliver H., William H., Channing W., Pruitt R., Blake C., Asa D., Emery W., Jacob W., Elodie C., Maxwell P., Boden B., Dylan J., Lucy E., Ethan H., Nora W., Davis W., Carson C., Will C., Katrina K., Perry A., Charley O., Charlie J., Cooper S., Hudson S., Drew H., Graycen C., Chloe W., Payton A., Hudson H., Brooks H., Hannah H., Luna K., and Scott W.!
The winner of our Oculus drawing is… Cameron Dulaney in Mrs. Jefferey's 2nd grade!
The Siqueiros family shares their gratitude. Raising funds and awareness for the American Heart Association has impacted each of their three children as they all navigated a congenital heart defect.
Any additional donations will be sent to the American Heart Association and your student’s post-event Thank You Gifts will be ordered soon!
No School - March 29 and April 12
At the March 7 board meeting, RISD trustees an update on the inclement weather days in the current 23-24 calendar. RISD has banked enough instructional minutes so that students will not need to make up the bad weather day used in January.
This means both Friday, March 29, and Friday, April 12, will be student and staff holidays. The school district will work with all employees to ensure their schedules align with the calendar. Thursday, April 11 is also an early release day.
2024-25 Enrollment Begins February 27
Enrollment for the 2024-25 school year opens online Tuesday, February 27 at 8:00 a.m. Whether you’re new to RISD or returning for another year of school, parents can take advantage of convenient online enrollment using a PowerSchool registration account. Enrollment for returning students will require a “snapcode” that will be emailed to current parents on February 26.
Starting February 27, enrollment for next school year will open for all current or future students in Pre-K through grade 12. Please click here for more information about the enrollment process and what documents are necessary to complete enrollment.
Contact your current (2023-24) RISD school for questions or assistance with enrollment, including help submitting necessary documents.
XPlore Registration - Opens Monday, April 22
Registration for xPlore will open on Monday, April 22.
RISD will continue to assess the xPlore capacity at every campus to determine xPlore availability, and then will work with parents to have supply meet demand for xPlore seats across the district.
For families potentially impacted by Project RightSize, please register for the xPlore after-school program for the 2024-25 school year at your current campus.
Please click here to learn more about RISD’s after-school program, xPlore.
Volunteering at WRE
Volunteering at WRE
If you would like to volunteer at White Rock Elementary, you must complete a volunteer background check for EVERY new school year. We have many opportunities to volunteer at WRE throughout the year, including attending field trips, working in the library, helping at Field Day, PTA events, and many other activities.
We will not allow anyone who has not completed and passed the volunteer background check to volunteer. Please click on the link below to complete the background check. You MUST also watch the full length of the very short powerpoint at the end to complete the entire background check. If you do not watch the powerpoint, your application will be marked incomplete and you will not be able to volunteer at WRE.
FOCUS Parent Accounts
FOCUS Accounts for Parents
Parents of RISD students are encouraged to sign up for a FOCUS account. You can also add a new RISD student to an existing account by visiting www.risd.org/focus.
FOCUS is a great way for parents to keep track of how their child is doing in school! In FOCUS, parents have access to -
Current grades
Attendance and absences
Report cards
Assessment results
Online absence note submission
Clinic visits
And more!
Focus Parent Portal is accessible through any web browser, the Focus App, or the RISD Mobile Parent App.
Have a question? Please email FocusParent@g.risd.org or call 469-593-0811.
Free and Reduced Meal Applications
Richardson ISD is implementing a new school cafeteria payment system for 2023-2024 called SchoolCafe. RISD will no longer be using the PayPams service.
Existing balances in PayPams will automatically be moved when parents create a SchoolCafe account. Please click here for more information about SchoolCafe.
To receive free or reduced-price meal benefits for the 2023-2024 school year, families can complete a meal benefit application via this SchoolCafe link.
Parents at all RISD campuses must sign up their family if they wish to receive school meal benefits.
Parents with questions or in need of assistance may visit the RISD Child Nutrition website or contact RISD Child Nutrition at 469-593-0109 or 469-593-0102.
RISD 2022-2023 Academic Calendar
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