Northwoods News
A Message from Principal Nixon--Week of September 30, 2019
Dear Northwoods Families,
I hope you all had an enjoyable weekend! This edition of the Northwoods News is packed with important information, so please read through carefully.
Upcoming Events & Important Information
Quarter 1 Interim Reports were sent home on Friday for all students in grades 1st - 5th. Please make sure you review the reports and contact your child's teacher if you have questions. Since Kindergarten students work on the same curriculum standards for the entire first semester, they did not receive an interim report last week. They will receive interim reports at the end of the first quarter and will receive their first report cards at the end of the first semester.
Walk-to-School Day
Please join us for Walk to School Day on Wednesday, October 2nd. Families that wish to participate should plan on meeting at the Godbold Park basketball courts at 8:15. See the flyer below for more information. I will be walking along with the kids, and I would love to see a big turnout!
Teacher Workdays/Calendar Changes
Mark your calendars! October 9th is a Teacher Workday and students will not have school. Additionally, the make-up day for the inclement weather day on September 5th has been changed to October 31st. Friday, November 1st will now be a Teacher Workday.
Custodial Appreciation Day
Wednesday, October 2nd is Custodial Appreciation Day. Please help us recognize Ms. Rose showering her with hugs, thank yous, flowers, and/or goodies.
Fall Picture Day
Fall pictures (individual student portraits) will take place on Tuesday, October 8th. Make-up day for fall portraits will be on Wednesday, November 6th.
National School Lunch Week
October 10th thru 14th is National School Lunch Week. Our staff will be working to celebrate this NSLW by having students draw and write about their favorite foods in the cafeteria. Student responses will be hung in the cafeteria. Please see the flyer below for more information.
Morning and Afternoon Carpool Procedures
Parents, please use BOTH carpool lines when queuing in the morning and afternoon. This will help reduce the amount of vehicles we have overflowing onto Chapel Hill Road.
Medications
Parents--please DO NOT send medications with your child to school! We have seen several instances over the last couple of weeks in which inhalers, epipens, benadryl, and even antibiotics have been sent to school with a child. Please know that we are not allowed to accept or administer any type of medication (even cough drops) to your child without the proper forms from a physician. If your child requires medication, please call the front office to ensure that you have all the required documents. All medications must be dropped off by a parent/guardian.
Election Day Information
Election Day--Tuesday, October 8th
Northwoods Elementary as been identified as a polling site for this year's elections, which will take place on Tuesday, October 8th. On election day, the cafeteria will be utilized as the voting site on our campus. To accommodate voters, we ask that parents and visitors please refrain from parking in the front parking lot (closest to the office) so that we have sufficient space for voter parking.
Rest assured that we are taking every precaution to ensure that our students remain safe and separated from voters throughout the day. We have asked for additional election personnel to help monitor the front doors of the school as well as the cafeteria space to ensure that voters enter and exit the building promptly. We are also modifying how students will purchase breakfast and lunch on election day.
Breakfast & Lunch Procedures on Election Day
Students who regularly purchase breakfast will still have the opportunity to do so. However, instead of purchasing their breakfast in the cafeteria we will have cafeteria staff positioned outside of the 3rd grade hallway who will assist students with selecting their meal choices. Breakfast will be served from 8:45 - 9:15 as usual.
Field Trip lunch forms were sent home last week for students who plan to purchase lunch on Election Day. Our cafeteria staff will compile the forms by class and will prepare individual bagged lunches for all students who plan to purchase lunch. Lunches will be delivered directly to classrooms by cafeteria and front office staff. Teachers and students will eat in their classrooms on Election Day.
Carpool and Walker Procedures
Carpool and Walker procedures will remain largely unchanged on Election Day. We will have all available staff on hand to provide extra coverage as students transition in the morning and in the afternoon. The only major change will be that carpool students will gather in Ms. Stingley's 3rd grade classroom in the afternoon as they wait for parents to pick them up. If you plan to pick your student up early, we ask that you do so by 3:15 so our staff has sufficient time to prepare for afternoon dismissal.
Northwoods Elementary PTA Information
Custodial Appreciation Day
Wednesday Oct 2 is Custodian Appreciation Day. If you see Ms. Rose in the hallway, say "thank you", reach up for a high five, or give a great big hug for all she does for our school!!
Adopt-a-Spot
On Sunday, November 17th, join us for Adopt-a-Spot to give our campus landscape a little love from 2:00-3:00. We’ll be working in the rain garden, doing general tidying up and maybe a bit of mulching. From 3-5 join us in the Northwoods School Garden to help finish out planting for our winter garden! Hope to see you there!
Please Join The PTA!
Join the PTA for 2019-2020! Show your support to the students at Northwoods - your membership will ensure we make enough funds to provide Northwoods with all of the wonderful programs the children love. Don't wait! It's your last chance to entered into our Membership Drive raffle giveaway for the Koalaty Time in Cary Gift Basket. Join by Oct 4th for your chance to win!
2019-2020 Cultural Arts Performances
We are pleased to announce that the PTA has arranged 3 Cultural Arts performances throughout the year. The dates, times, and information for each show is below. Please Note: Due to increased student numbers and limited space, parents will not be invited to watch the performances this year.
Dates:
November 15, 2019
January 17, 2020
April 28, 2020
Times:
All assemblies are scheduled in the afternoon:
Grades K-2 from 1:15pm to 2:15pm
Grades 3-5 from 2:30pm to 3:30pm
Artists and performances:
11/15/19
Yasu Ishida - Japanese Magical Journey
Combining traditional Japanese theatre, lion dance, music, origami, magic, and storytelling, Yasu will guide audiences to the enchanting land of Japan. He will share excerpts from a Japanese traditional folktale with origami, a Japanese traditional vaudeville act with the playing of a traditional flute, and a Japanese lion dance. Yasu's programs include stories that he performs with lots of audience interaction and participation.
To learn more about Yasu Ishida and his performance, you can visit his website at:
01/17/20
Rick Brown - Meet Sir Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton makes a guest appearance to talk to students of all ages about his life, and how he changed the world of science. Sir Isaac will bring his Laws of Motion and Theory of Gravitation to life for your students. He starts by telling the students about his early life and about the famous the story of the apple falling on his head. Since man has always wanted to move things, so Sir Isaac shows how they got better at doing just that. Students try to break the third Law of Motion which deals with action-reaction. Using students to help, Sir Isaac demonstrates his three laws of motion in fun and exciting ways. He marvels at all the ways that the Laws of Motion have been used for by mankind including especially the space travel that has taken place during the last 60 years.
To learn more about Rick Brown and his performances, you can visit his website at:
https://www.scienceedventures.com
04/28/20
Trent Arterberry - Think Bigg
Think Bigg blends mime, storytelling and puppetry into a hilarious show of kid-friendly stories and characters. Featuring lots of audience participation, students learn about non-verbal communication and specific mime techniques both onstage and in their seats. "In short episodes as a racing-car driver, a pilot, a robot, a digital dude, a puppet named Mr. Bigg and the classic man-trapped-in-box scenario, he fascinates his young audience and involves them in trying some of his moves and realizing the power of the imagination." - NOW Magazine, Toronto
To learn more about this artist and his performance, you can visit his website at :