Westchester Weekly
All-Star Newsletter January 27, 2022
News from the Principal
Dear Westchester Community,
We are so proud of how our students are growing! Our recent mid-year review with our EL school designer allowed us to look closely at how our students are doing. Academically, we have seen good growth as evidenced by MAP and other screeners. Ethically, our students participated in meaningful service learning through their fall expeditions, and will do so again in the spring. The quality of work they are producing shows evidence of authenticity, craftsmanship, and complexity. They continue to develop the habits of perseverance, collaboration and craftsmanship in their daily lessons. During this very challenging year, all of these things are worth naming and celebrating! Thank you for continuing to partner with us in helping your children have the best education possible.
Christie Manasso
Latonya Henry
Interim Co-Principals
Upcoming Calendar Events
January 29th- Run with the Dogs race day
February 1st- Black History Month and Lunar New Year Begins!🎉
February 8th- BOE @ 6:30pm
February 10th- Early Release @ 12:50 pm
February 11th- Early Release @ 12:50 pm
February 14th-18th- February Break (No School)
Wolves of the Week
WE Virtual Family-Teacher Conference Announcement
Dear Westchester Families,
As we approach the end of Term 4, we will be scheduling virtual family-teacher conferences during the week of February 7th. We look forward to a rich discussion about the academic and work habits-related progress your child is demonstrating. You should have received an email/notification from your child's teacher with information regarding how to sign up for a family-teacher conference soon. Be sure to record the time and date of your child’s conference in your personal calendar.
At this conference, your child’s teacher will share information regarding areas of strengths and growth, the behaviors your child exhibits that promote learning, as well as next steps for continued growth.
This conference will be followed by a report card that will be available in Infinite Campus on March 3rd.
Thank you so much for collaborating with us. We look forward to partnering with you so that we can support your child's continued growth and success.
Early Release Information: CSD will have two early release days leading up to February Break to allow time for parent-teacher conferences.
- Thursday 2/10, 12:50 dismissal
- Friday 2/11, 12:50 dismissal
- February Break is Monday 2/14 through Friday 2/18
Sincerely,
Christie Manasso
Latonya Henry
Interim Co-Principals
Georgia Young Authors Contest!
WE Surveillance Testing
We have partnered with a new company, Mako Medical, to offer testing weekly at Westchester. We will test students and staff on Wednesdays from 8:30-10:00, beginning January 26th. Both rapid antigen and PCR tests will be available. If any CSD students or staff have a positive rapid test, they will be required to take a PCR test and not report to school or work.
Registration, consent, and result notification will be managed by the lab. You can opt in and register your student here. Previous registration is not accepted and everyone must register now with this new company.
PTA News
2022 Westchester Read-a-Thon Raising Money to Support Our Students and Teachers
Greetings Westchester Families!
Read-a-Thon is one of the Westchester Elementary School PTA’s
biggest fundraisers. Our Read- a-Thon helps foster a sense of
community and also grows the love of reading throughout our
school. All Westchester students are encouraged to participate!
Read-a-Thon begins Monday, February 21st and ends Sunday, February
27th but Fundraising begins now!
• During this time, students read by themselves or have someone read to them as
much as possible.
• Show your student how to turn ‘I’m bored’ time into reading time - wherever they
are.
• All reading counts! Students who are not yet reading or are emerging readers can
have help with their reading.
• Siblings may read to each other. Reading to pets is also a lot of fun.
• Students can choose books, graphic novels, magazines or whatever they like to
read.
• "Time spent reading books is the best predictor of a child's growth as a reader.
Students who read more, read better." - Anderson, R. et al. Reading Research
Quarterly. 1988.
What Does My Family Do During the Read a Thon?
• Set goals. Make sure these goals work for your family. Challenging but not
stressful. This will look different for each student.
• Create a fundraising page (instructions attached) at this link Peer-to-Peer –
Westchester PTA or go to westchesterpta.org and click on the "Read-A-Thon" tab.
Make sure to enter the correct grade and teacher for each child during page set-
up. This helps us accurately tally the minutes and assign prizes. Once your page
is created it will need to be "approved" before it shows up on the website. Don't
worry- this typically happens within 24 hours.
• Log your student's minutes online through the fundraising page at
westchesterpta.org by 9pm each evening.
• Ask for pledges
- Showcase your student’s efforts and seek donations from friends
- and family all over the country by sharing it on social media and
- spreading the word.
- Pledges can be made in “dollar per minute read” or as a lump sum
- donation.
- Fundraising begins 1/27 and runs through 2/28.
- Checks made payable to Westchester PTA can also be sent to the
- school.
What the Read -a- Thon Supports:
- Quality KN95/ KF94 masks for students
- Field trips for ALL Westchester students
- Visiting artists and experts for Learning Expeditions
- Equality Fund” to support students and staff in times of need
- Wylde Center - A Westchester Partnership
Questions? Contact us at jessicahelenmurdock@gmail.com.
LUNAR NEW YEAR CELEBRATION JANUARY 29TH
We would love your help making our first Lunar New Year Festival a success. If you'd like to volunteer or provide craft supplies, please sign up below.
Mask Drive
SPREAD LOVE WITH JIMELLA’S BAKERY
This Valentine’s Day, spread love with cookies from Jimella’s Bakery! Your order can also spread some love to Westchester as 10% of all orders placed will be donated to the Westchester PTA! Support the PTA and take care of all your dessert needs! Share the fundraiser with colleagues, friends and family and they can also support the school. Order online at jimellasbakery.com and put WEST in the notes section. Or you can also order by calling 404.290.8725 or email info@jimellasbakery.com and mention WEST.
News and Announcements from City Schools of Decatur
Does your Child Need a Coat?
Does your child need a coat?
The winter months are here and we want to make sure our CSD students stay warm!! We have winter coats for students who need them!!
If your student needs a coat this winter, please use the link to fill out the Coat Request Form. It's simple and quick. Once the form has been processed, you will receive additional information.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at phardnett@csdecatur.net or Willie Washington at wwashington@csdecatur.net.
CSD Programs Virtual Roundtable
CSD Programs Virtual Roundtable (link and flyer)
Want to learn more about the programs available in CSD to support students?
ESOL & Federal Programs
MTSS
Special Education
Equity & Student Services
Thursday, January 27, 2022 6:00pm - 7:30pm
Submit questions here
(Question submission is still open)
Decatur Education Foundation
Save the Dates: There are two great family-friendly events coming soon that both benefit DEF:
Mead Road Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday, February 26th and the 20th Tour deCatur 5K on Saturday, March 12th! To register a community Krewe for the parade, please visit www.meadrdmardigras.org. Registration for the Tour deCatur 5K and one-mile Fun Run will begin on February 1st at www.tourdecatur.com. Start training!
DEF is teaming up with the counselors at Talley Street and Renfroe Middle School to keep the snacks stocked. We are also accepting donations to our weekend backpack program which provides supplemental food for students who need it. If you’d like to help with a donation, click HERE for links to each school’s Amazon Wish List. Your orders will go straight to the schools.
DEF has several ways in which you can donate your time:
As a Virtual Pals tutor -- we need tutors to be paired with a 2nd- 8th grade Decatur student for a one-hour weekly session. Click here to apply: https://forms.gle/LoiZxoi6WvSe6WEr6
As a Virtual Pals Coordinator -- we need one person who checks in with the tutor pairs on a weekly basis. Time commitment is 1 hour per week. Email muslimo@decatureducationfoundation.org to apply.
As an AIM Mentor -- we need adult male and female mentors to be paired with a third grader to have new experiences and find their passions. The time commitment is just 2-4 hours per month.
As a REACH Mentor – we need just one more adult male to mentor an 8th grade student who has been nominated by his teachers for the REACH GA program. REACH mentors help their mentees through the rigors of high school and college applications. Time commitment is just 2-4 hours per month.
If you've got a little extra time to share your life wisdom with a Decatur student, we've got opportunities! Please visit www.decatureducationfoundation.org/mentoring to learn more and apply.
Decatur Parents Network
Please join the Decatur Parents Network for our February 2nd Virtual Speaker Series at 7:00 p.m. This month's topic is Where is Your Family Going...Developing a Mission for Your Family and a Vision for Your Children?
For more information and to register for this event, visit https://www.decaturparents.net/events/speaker-series/where-is-your-family-going.
If you want to know more about the Decatur Parents Network, please visit our website at www.decaturparents.net. We have been supporting Decatur parents for the last six years and are a subcommittee of the DHS PTSA.
Run With the Dogs is almost here!
Run With the Dogs is this Saturday! Online registration has closed, but you can still register in person at any of the packet pickup times. Here are the options for registering in person and for picking up your race number and T-shirt if you are already registered.
Thursday, January 27 at Fleet Feet Decatur, 431 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue
10 am - 6 pm
*Packet pickup will be available inside the store. Take advantage of a 15% in-store discount that day, and all day Saturday and Sunday with race bib.
Friday, January 28 (DRIVE-THROUGH) at Renfroe Middle School
5 pm - 7 pm
*Enter driveway from Kings Highway for drive-through packet pickup.
Saturday, January 29 (RACE DAY) at Renfroe Middle School
7:30 am - 8:30 am
*Look for signs for onsite packet pickup.
Thank you for supporting Run With the Dogs, the largest annual fundraiser of the Decatur Bulldog Boosters. The Booster Club supports 1,000 student athletes on 45 teams representing 14 different sports at Decatur High School and Renfroe Middle School through annual team grants.
For more information on Run With the Dogs, click here.
Reminders from Last Week
Special Education Parent Survey 2022
The Georgia Department of Education is requesting that parents who have a student with IEPs participate in the Special Education Parent Survey for SY2021-SY2022. We are asking Principals, Assistant Principals, Special Education Teachers, and Case Managers to encourage their parents to participate in the survey.
As part of our collaboration to reach all parents of students with disabilities, we are asking building leaders to post the survey on their school websites. This survey helps to guide our district and state toward a more meaningful collaboration, which helps to bring about good outcomes for our students' education.
https://survey.gadoe.org/SPEDParentSurvey/Pages/ParentSurvey.aspx
Decatur Farm to School:
Decatur Farm to School is currently recruiting new members to its committee. Joining the Decatur Farm to School (DF2S) Committee is a great way to get involved with the work of getting our students outside in their school garden and making the connection to what they are learning in the classroom and eating in the cafeteria/at home. Click on the link to find out which volunteer positions are available and show your interest. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfPzRwurjgUc8IWvReQ0lNltEkijYSoRfUvbTWvq0iBvRczg/viewform
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Visit past newsletters for answers to your questions🤗
Westchester Elementary School
Email: bnation@csdecatur.net
Website: https://www.csdecatur.net/Westchester
Location: 758 Scott Boulevard, Decatur, GA, USA
Phone: 404-370-4400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westchesterelementarycsd