Helms Newsletter #15
December 11th, 2023
đź—“ UPCOMING DATES:
THIS WEEK:
- Mon 12/11-12/21: Holiday Dress Up Days (details below)
- Wed 12/13: No December Coffee with the Principal (Will resume in January)
- Thu 12/14: LoterĂa Night! (PTA Sponsored) Volunteer Sign Up--> here Event Registration--> Here
- Fri 12/15: 2nd Grade Field Trip (PTA Sponsored)
- Fri 12/15: 1st Grade Field Trip to the Zoo (PTA Sponsored)
- Sat 12/16: GT Testing ends for the school year.
- Wed 12/20: Pre-K Field Trip (PTA Sponsored)
- Wed 12/20: Nutcracker Christmas 2nd - 5th choir and dance group (more info to come)
- Thur 12/21: Ready to Grow Gardens for 3rd/4th/5th (PTA Sponsored) Volunteer Opportunity
- Fri 12/22: NO SCHOOL - WINTER BREAK BEGINS
FUTURE:
- Mon 1/8: STUDENTS BACK FROM BREAK/Grade cycle 4 begins/Ancillary Schedule Rotates
- Fri 1/12: Grade Cycle 3 Report Cards available on HISDConnect portal
- Mon 1/15: NO SCHOOL - MLK Jr. Day
- Wed 1/17: January Coffee with the Principal 8:30am Cafeteria
- Wed 01/17: PTA General Meeting 6 pm, Helms Cafeteria
- Mon 1/22: SDMC Meeting
- Everyday: Playground open to Helms families 3:15pm-3:45pm. Enter through front reception. VIPS approval required. Playground is open to the public after 6:00pm once after school program ends.
- Helms Spirit Shirts can be worn everyday!
Social Skill for the Week - Calming Down
Calming Down
Pre-Kinder Lunch Menu - December
Kinder-5th Grade Lunch Menu - December
Attendance This Week
Dec. 4 - 8
Holiday Dress Up Days
Dec. 11th - 21st
Carpool Protocol & Pedestrian Safety Reminders
Please do not cut into the carpool line at Lawrence St or Nicholson St.
For 22nd St, the carpool line starts at Shepherd.
For 21st St, the carpool line starts at Ashland.
Please respect the car pool lines when picking up students. Help keep our little ones safe.
Costume Recycle Project / Proyecto de reciclaje de disfraces
¡Reciclemos esos disfraces usados! Estamos buscando recolectar cualquier disfraz que estĂ©s listo para regalar. Si desea donar algo, habrá una caja en el vestĂbulo principal para dejarlo. Esperamos usarlos en algunos eventos futuros de la escuela/pta. ¡Los personajes del libro y los disfraces de Halloween son bienvenidos!
Middle School Choice Information
School Choice Application and Enrollment Key Dates 2024-2025 Academic Year
- Phase One Application Opens. (Apply to Lottery) 1/18/2024
- Phase One Application is Due*. 2/23/2024
- Lottery Notification Date (Student matched to a school). 3/26/2024
- Phase Two Application Opens 3/26/2024
(Students who did not accept a position in the lottery and still want a different school assignment can apply to any school with space available.)
- Phase One School Acceptance Deadline 04/09/2023
(Students who wish to accept their school match must do so by this date.)
- Phase Two Application Closes. Date to be determined soon.
Save the Date: HISD will host the following community events in December to help parents understand and use the School Choice Enrollment and Application Process:
- Tuesday, December 19th – In-person event (time and location coming soon)
- Wednesday, December 20th – Virtual events
- Option 1: 4:00pm – 5:00pm (registration link coming soon)
- Option 2: 5:30pm – 6:30pm (registration link coming soon)
School Choice Fair Dates (Times: 9-12pm).
3/23 @ Lamar High School
Convenient Recycling at the GCR Pod
Clearing out closet space for the holidays? Drop off old clothes and other household items at our Green City Recycler (GCR) Pod. Helms receives $0.10/lb collected.
GreenCityRecycler sorts the clothes, belts, shoes, books, toys, etc and redistributes them worldwide to places in the greatest need. Items too worn to wear are recycled into rags.
Our bright green GCR Pod is located at the exit of Helm’s main parking lot on 20th street (see photo for reference).
LoterĂa Night - This Week!
Both sessions begin at 5:00 pm
Session 1
LoterĂa at 5:00 pm, Taquiza dinner at 5:45 pm
Session 2
Taquiza dinner at 5:00 pm, LoterĂa at 5:45 pm
Win prizes and celebrate the holiday season. LoterĂa is similar to Bingo, but uses images on each players card. Hot Dogs, hamburgers and tacos provided by Helms PTA- all for FREE!
Volunteers needed! Click here to sign up today --> Volunteer Registration
A Nutcracker Christmas
Wednesday, December 20th at 6:00PM in our Helms Cafeteria.
*Note: Program participants should have received permission forms by now. Must be signed by parent for participation in the program. See below for participant costume details.
New for 2023-2024 School year- Helms Yearbook
Helms PTA is excited to bring to Helms Elementary, it's first ever school wide yearbook. The yearbook will have dedicated pages for each grade and classes. The yearbook will also feature highlights from clubs, events, and more.
Want to get involved? Email the committee at mailto:helmsyearbook@gmail.com
PTA After School Program
We are excited to offer a wide range of activities such as hip hop, art club, sports, culinary, coding, and more. The enrichment programing may change based on instructor availability. For questions, please email AfterSchool@helmsPTA.org or visit the HelmsPTA.org website.
Resources
Parent Portal HISD Connect for PowerSchool
The district's Student Information System (SIS), HISD Connect by PowerSchool, includes student contact, enrollment, and demographic information, as well as grades and online resources.
Parents are given a unique code, or access ID, for each of their students and are able to use those codes to set up an account to access their students' profiles through the parent portal. Parents who haven't received their student's access ID should contact their school.
HISD 2023-2024 Academic Calendar
PLEASE NOTE: THE CALENDAR WAS UPDATED ON 8/24/23.
Winter Break is now Dec 22-Jan 5th.
School will be in session Feb 20th.
Helpful Links
Clever for HISD (access learning programs and more)
HISD Connect (AKA parent portal or PowerSchool. Access students grades, attendance, and forms.)
Memorial Hermann Hogg Health Center (provides medical and dental service with no out of pocket cost for Helms families)
Register with VIPS to volunteer on campus
What is VIPS? VIPS stands for Volunteers in Public Schools. It is HISD's volunteer management program. You may also hear it referred to as RAPTOR.
Anyone volunteering for the school during school hours must be VIPS approved for safety reasons. Applicants register, complete an online orientation, and consent to a background check. Volunteers must reapply each year. After completion, look for an email verification from donotreply@raptortech.com confirming your application has been received. Approval process may take 0-5 days.
WRAPAROUND SERVICES:
CONNECT WITH US:
HELMS FAMILIES
Grade Level Chat Groups (ask a community member for invite)
HELMS PTA
Email: Hello@HelmsPTA.org
Website: www.HelmsPTA.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HelmsDLPTA/
HELMS ELEMENTARY
“Two Languages, Endless Possibilities”
Principal: Alexander Gonzalez agonza30@houstonisd.org
Assistant Principal: Helen Anguiano helen.anguiano@houstonisd.org
Magnet Coordinator: Julie Hernandez jhernan2@houstonisd.org
Registrar/Attendance Clerk: Patricia Hernandez phernan6@houstonisd.org
Nurse: Joanna Phillips Joanna.Phillips@houstonisd.org
Email: agonza30@houstonisd.org
Website: https://www.houstonisd.org/domain/22
Phone: 713.867.5130