Salish Ponds Elementary School
October 2023 Newsletter
Welcome Back!
Dragonfly Families,
Welcome to October! We have a lot of exciting activities planned this month, including celebrating Jewish heritage month, teaching and reading about inclusion, and bully prevention. You'll find resources to help you learn more about these topics in our monthly newsletter.
On Monday, October 2nd, we will be having coffee with the principal again. This is a great opportunity to get to know the administration and discuss setting up a parent-teacher organization to support activities throughout the school year. We hope you can join us for the assembly and stay for the follow-up conversation.
Our fall session of SUN begins October 9th. The students are very excited about the addition of Chess for Success, and we are sure it will be a great success.
Finally, please mark your calendars for Back-to-School night on Thursday, October 12th from 5:30-7pm.
Don't forget, there is no school on Wednesday, November 1st, as this is a planned professional development day for staff.
We are pleased to share that our student has been working hard and making great progress in their new groupings. Our English Language Development (ELD) classes have begun this month, and our reading specialist and support staff are meeting with small groups of students and working on their skills.
We are also excited to report that our new math curriculum is off to a great start! Staff and students are getting familiar with the new materials and the layout. To ensure your student is getting the most out of the curriculum, please reach out to their teacher for more information.
Thank you for all your help and support getting the 2023-2024 school year started so well!
We look forward to a great month ahead!
Gracefully,
Mrs. Stevens
503.492.7260
Counselors Corner!
Hello Dragonflies!
We can’t believe it is October already! We hope you and your learner had a wonderful first month of school that was full of new beginnings and exciting learning experiences!
For October, our theme highlights the importance of Inclusion and creating a safe place for all people of diverse backgrounds. Our goal is for students to practice Inclusion, including but not limited to offering every student a safe place to learn and play and not excluding students from activities on purpose.
Here are some resources for you if you choose to continue the conversation about Inclusion at home:
K-2
Books: All My Stripes by Shaina Rudolph and Danielle Royer
The Big Umbrella by Amy June Bates
Marco and I Want To Play Ball: a true story of inclusion and self-determination
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGetnPl5GjE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_f1zH0OlRw
3-5
Books: The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
The Brand New Kid by Katie Couric
Masterpiece: an inclusive kids book celebrating a child on the autism spectrum by Alexandra Hoffman
The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
SUN/MFS
We are looking forward to Fall SUN starting on October 9th! For families that turned in a registration packet, please keep an eye out for a confirmation or waitlist letter coming October 2nd. Please keep in mind that if your student is on the waitlist for Fall, we do our best to get them into either Winter or Spring session.
If you have not turned in a registration packet, you can still do so. If you need another registration packet, your students can pick one up from outside room 18 or text 503-704-7590 to request one.
Resources:
Coat giveaway! - info on website
PlayEast - Recreation scholarships and activities
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Makayla Bearden (she/her)
SUN Site Manager
Metropolitan Family Service | www.metfamily.org
Salish Ponds Elementary | 1210 NE 201st Portland, OR 97024
Cell: 503-704-7590
Bully Prevention Month
October is bullying prevention month. Reynolds is Kind. Stand up, step in, be a friend, district. Students will be asked to complete acts of kindness each day. Lessons will be shared in each classroom, all month long, about how to be a friend, stop bullying, and to know what bullying is.
School assemblies will also be focused on the prevention of bullying.
October is Bullying Prevention Month. Bullying Prevention Day is October 18th. This might be a good day to talk to your child(ren) about what bullying is and how harmful it can be. We are already working with the consequences of several incidents of bullying. If you need more information about bullying prevention, please see National Bullying Prevention Month | Youth.gov or NATIONAL STOP BULLYING DAY - October 18, 2022 - National Today or contact us at 503-492-7260 x 3016 (Arianne) or x 3037 (Virginia).
Jewish Heritage Month
We celebrate Jewish Heritage Month to commemorate and recognize the long history of Jews in America, their contributions to American Society, and to acknowledge, celebrate, educate, learn about, and honor Jewish individuals, culture, and communities.
Rainy and Cold Recess
Fall is here and winter is just around the corner. At Salish Ponds we will have the kids go outside rain or shine. With that in mind we ask that you help you child come to school prepared to be outside every day. Coats, hats, and gloves can help to make a cold day outside a fun recess for all.
New School Times!
Mondays are a late start to allow staff time to learn and collaborate for student success. The rest of the week allows for more student learning time. Please note the new start times for this school year. Arrival and dismissal times are:
Mondays 10:15am – 3:50pm
Tuesdays to Fridays 9:05am – 3:50pm
There is a 15-minute arrival and breakfast period. Students will be recorded as late after 10:30am on Mondays and 9:20am on Tuesdays through Fridays. Please make sure students arrive on time so they can eat breakfast and connect with their classmates. Morning time is a time to check in with each other and build community, and we don’t want them to miss it!
Upcoming Events at Salish Ponds:
October
- 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th Assemblies in the Cafeteria, from 10:40-11:10 am
- 2nd Coffee with Mrs. Stevens at 11:10-11:35am
- 12th Fall photos, all day
- 12th Back to School Night, 5:30-7pm
- 17th, Wear blue for STOMP OUT BULLYING
- 1st, no school
- 6th, Coffee with Mrs. Stevens at 11:10-11:35am, in the SUN room
- 10th No school, Veterans Day
- 20-22nd, No school, Conferences
- 23rd & 24th, No school- Holiday