RStar Weekly News
September 2nd-6th
2019-2020 School Information
Reminder of No-Birthday Treat Guidelines
Our elementary school is implementing a “no birthday treats” guideline. This decision was made after much thought and discussion at the building and district level. There are a variety of reasons why we made this change, the main one being to coordinate with our district’s wellness policy on making healthy choices, in alignment with federal regulations.
Other rationale for restricting treats at school include the following concerns:
- Allergies: Due to the increasing number of students with food allergies, schools have had to be extremely careful with any food items entering the school building. It is a safety issue and something that we need to take very seriously.
- Promoting Healthy Lifestyle: The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in six school-age children are overweight; triple the proportion in 1980. The agency has projected that one in three children born in 2000 will eventually develop a form of diabetes linked to being overweight.
- Equity: Some parents are not able to provide treats for their child on birthdays or special days because of financial hardships.
The purpose of this change is to assure a school environment that promotes and protects students’ health, well- being, and ability to learn by supporting healthy eating, physical activity and healthy choices. This change brings together current research to create guidelines that help us with healthy choices for all of our students. If you are interested in reading the district’s policy on wellness, it is available on the District website.
Classroom teachers will continue to recognize and celebrate children on their special day in special ways.
Thanks in advance for your flexibility and for caring about the health of our STAR students.
FOOD-FREE WAYS TO CELEBRATE BIRTHDAYS AT SCHOOL:
- Ask your teacher about a special “recess pass” and choose the main activity the class does at recess time.
- Bring in your favorite book and the teacher will read it to the class.
- Give a gift to the class, such as a book (write an inscription inside), a toy for the play area, or a game.
- Get a special crown to wear at school all day.
- Provide a special craft for the class that day.
- Decorate your desk with balloons for the day.
SMW Golf Camp
Fall General Meeting & Room Parent Meeting
We will hold the PTA general meeting first and then start the party planning fun immediately following.
Tuesday, Sep 10, 2019, 06:30 PM
Rising Star Elementary School, Candlelight Lane, Lenexa, KS, USA
Greetings Rising Star families! I hope you all had a fabulous summer! I wanted to thank you for your contributions to Rising Star PTA last year. We are excited for another year and hope you will continue to support the students, faculty and staff at Rising Star Elementary. As we’re all rushing around preparing for back to school and all the chaos and to-dos this time of year, we wanted to give you an opportunity to get one more thing crossed off your list before school starts! We are excited to have an easy, user-friendly way for you to sign up for PTA. Simply use the link below. Payments can be made by using Pay Pal, Venmo @RisingStar-PTA or by sending cash or check to the address provided on the link. Again, we thank you for your past and future support!!
General MVP Information
- We love having volunteers in our classroom, and we will definitely need volunteers for upcoming field trips!
- If you are wanting to become a regular volunteer, please begin the MVP process. You will not be allowed to accompany us on a field trip until the process is completed.
- MVP General Information: https://www.smsd.org/families/volunteer-mvp
- The MVP Process is as follows:
- Complete the application here: https://bit.ly/1wM7Pvv
- Complete the background check here:http://bit.ly/mvpvolunteer
- Go to an MVP training at one of the sites listed in the schedule. (Please see the General Information link for dates, times, and locations.)
- If you need any help or have any questions, please e-mail Mr. Wilson at any time at RyanWilson@smsd.org
Food Service... Did You Know?
Did you know that breakfast is available each day at your student’s school?
Eating a nutritious breakfast helps students achieve the classroom goals set for them. National studies consistently confirm that breakfast helps kids concentrate, think, behave and learn. Eating breakfast:
-
improves children's classroom performance, including better test scores and grades
-
increases children's ability to focus and concentrate on school work
-
decreases behavior problems, tardiness and visits to the school nurse
-
increases attendance rates
-
decreases risk of food insecurity and hunger that impair development and
learning
-
may protect against childhood obesity
If it is difficult to fit breakfast into your morning routine, breakfast is available in all schools. A student must choose a full portion of at least three different items to receive a reimbursable school breakfast. One of the three items must be 1⁄2 cup of fruit or juice. Breakfast items include: protein, grain, fruit/juice, and milk.
Food Service Payment Options
Payments for school meals may be made:
-
Online through efunds ($3 fee per transaction)
-
At the school with check or cash
-
At most schools with a credit card (no fee)
-
Calling food service office with credit card (no fee)
Students will not be permitted to purchase ala carte items if their account is negative. More information on student account guidelines is available at https://www.smsd.org/about/departments/food-service/prices.
Don’t forget – if your child receives free or reduced meals, they are eligible for one breakfast and one lunch per day as part of this benefit. All breakfast and lunch meal choices are available for all students regardless of eligibility status.
The school breakfast menus, lunch menus, and other nutrition information are available on the district’s website at https://www.smsd.org/about/departments/food-service.
Changes to Vaccination Requirements
Changes to Vaccination Requirements for Kansas Schools
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has announced two new vaccination requirements for the 2019-20 School Year.
Students entering Kindergarten and First Grade: Two doses of Hepatitis A are required.
- Many students have already received two doses of hepatitis A as it has previously been required for daycare and Pre-Kindergarten programs.
- Students with one dose of hepatitis A, will need to receive and provide documentation from their health care provider of the second dose of hepatitis A by October 18, 2019, or 6 months from the first dose.
- Students who were previously unvaccinated for hepatitis A will need to provide documentation of receiving the first hepatitis A vaccine from their health care provider by October 18, 2019.
Students entering Seventh Grade: One dose of meningococcal ACWY vaccine is required.
- Students are required to provide documentation of receiving one meningococcal ACWY vaccine from their health care provider by October 18, 2019.
Students entering 11th Grade: One dose of meningococcal ACWY vaccine is required.
- Students are required to provide documentation from their health care provider of receiving the 11th grade meningococcal ACWY vaccine after their 16th birthday.
Vaccine requirements for schools can be found online at: http://www.kdheks.gov/immunize/schoolInfo.htm.
About the Vaccines
Meningococcal ACWY Vaccine
The meningococcal ACWY vaccine protects against meningococcal disease. Meningococcal disease has two common outcomes: meningitis (infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord) and bloodstream infections. The bacteria that cause meningococcal disease spread through the exchange of nose and throat droplets, such as when coughing, sneezing, or kissing. Symptoms include sudden onset of fever, headache, and stiff neck. With bloodstream infection, symptoms also include a dark purple rash. About one of every 10 people who gets the disease dies from it. Survivors of meningococcal disease may lose their arms or legs, become deaf, have problems with their nervous systems, become developmentally disabled, or suffer seizures or strokes.
Hepatitis A Vaccine
The hepatitis A vaccine protects against the hepatitis A virus. The virus is spread primarily person-to-person through fecal-oral route. In other words, the virus is taken in by mouth from contact with objects, food, or drinks contaminated by the feces (stool) of an infected person. Symptoms can include fever, tiredness, poor appetite, vomiting, stomach pain, and sometimes jaundice (when skin and eyes turn yellow). An infected person may have no symptoms, may have mild illness for a week or two, may have severe illness for several months, or may rarely develop liver failure and die from the infection. In the U.S., about 100 people a year die from hepatitis A.
If you have questions about the requirements, please contact your school nurse.
West is Best Scholarship Fund
West is Best Scholarship Fund was founded in 2012 to provide financial assistance to students to participate in after school sports or scouts. Recipients must live or go to school in the SM West attendance area. Over the years, we have provided over 520 scholarships totaling over $56,000 to area youth in all grades, K-12, at all West-area schools. For more information or our scholarship forms, please visit our website at www.westisbestscholarshipfund.com.
Follow Us on Social Media
SnapChat-Risingstar512
Website: risingstar.smsd.org
Location: 8600 Candlelight Lane, Lenexa, KS, USA
Phone: 913-993-4500
Twitter: @RStar512