Panther Pride
September Newsletter
A note from Mr. Stucky
I hope this newsletter finds everyone well and ready for Labor Day Weekend! While this weekend typically signifies the end of summer, it is also a checkpoint for schools. We have already had three full weeks of school! These first weeks are crucial in setting the learning environment for the rest of the school year. We focus on building relationships, learning procedures and routines, and creating a space where your child feels safe and excited to come to everyday. Being in classrooms I feel like our students and teachers have done a fantastic job focusing on these priorities! Now that the conditions for learning are set, we will move into the next phase of the school year emphasizing academic, social, and emotional growth with every student.
I can't thank you enough for all of your support in making these first three weeks successful. Each morning at drop-off I get to witness parents giving encouraging words for the day as children get out of the car. Each lunch period I get to see the little notes that parents have written to remind children that they love them. And each day as I speak with parents, I'm reminded of how hard you work in order to give your children the best. I know the last year and a half hasn't been easy for any of us and I appreciate all the little things you do to prepare your children to be successful at Gardner Elementary.
Each month we change the format of this newsletter from the typical GE Weekly Update to a Monthly Newsletter with a lot of good information for the month ahead. Please take a moment to read through all the great things happening at GE in September.
Enjoy the three-day weekend! We'll see you on Tuesday!
Mr. Stucky
Counselor's Corner
Hello GE Families!
This week in the 3rd and 4th grade classrooms, we began talking about the concept Size of the Problem. The goal of these lessons is to increase students awareness of the following concepts which contribute to them learning better self regulation:
Problems come in different sizes
Emotions and reactions come in different sizes
Reactions come from emotions
It’s expected that the size of the emotion and related reaction matches the size of the problem
To figure out the size of the problem we think about:
How long it will take to make the problem smaller, fix it, or make it better
How much help we need and from whom (kids or adults)
Small problems can be taken care of quickly and can be solved by the child alone or with the help of another person. Kids can help other sids solve small problems
Medium problems take more time to solace and require more help. Usually adults help kids solve medium problems.
Big problems take a lot of time to take care of and require a lot of help from others. When big problems happen, even adults need help from other adults.
What you can do at home:
Highlight naturally occurring times when you (as the caregiver) encounter a problem. It’s important for your child to understand that you are constantly being challenged by problems of all sizes. In using language of problem solving, it’s helpful to use the following elements to help break down a problem or situation:
What happened
The size of the problem
How you felt about it
Ideas for solving the problem or making it smaller
What you did
How you felt about it afterward
(We Thinkers! Social Thinking)
We will continue this concept during our next counselor lesson as well! Next week I will be in Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade classrooms! Be looking for next week's update to see what they will be learning!
Have a great holiday weekend!
Lauren Meyer
School Counselor
913-856-3334
Dates to Remember
9/16 - Fall Pictures
9/27-9/28 - No School
9/30 - Walk-A-Thon
New Teaching Position
Parents and Families,
I am happy to let you know that we have been allotted a new position at the school this year, an Elementary Interventionist. The position was designed to work with students in order to bridge learning gaps in math and reading, including those remote learners from last school year. The Elementary Interventionist will collaborate closely with our Math and Reading Specialists in order to identify and focus on students in the building who need specific math and reading support. I am pleased to make you aware that our Elementary Interventionist for this school year is Linsey Clark! Mrs. Clark comes to us highly recommended from Grand Star Elementary where she has served as a classroom teacher for 22 years. We are glad to have her as part of our Panther team this year!
If you have any questions regarding this new position, please feel free to reach out and let us know. Mrs. Clark will be sending out an introduction letter to the families of those students she will be supporting.
Student Absences
Watch D.O.G.S.
Fall Pictures - September 16th
ATTENTION 4th GRADERS: Panther Pride Leadership Council
PPLC will also be starting up their student store in October. Be on the look out for more information about that!
GE Empower - 3rd and 4th Grade Boys
Little Blazers Cheer Clinic - Fall 2021
GEHS Boys Youth Basketball Academy - Fall 2021
Head GEHS Boys Basketball Coach, Zach White, is excited to host a Fall Youth Boys Basketball Academy.
Grades K-2 -- 3:00 pm - 3:45 pm
Grades 3-5 -- 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Grades 6-8 -- 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Location: GEHS Gyms
When: Sundays starting September 12 and ending October 31
Participants will be getting to know their future GEHS coaches and interact with high school players, learn fundamentals, and build relationships.
https://www.teamsideline.com/sites/geycp/program/41394/GEHS-Boys-Youth-Basketball-Academy
Student Drop Off/Pick Up Procedures
Drop Off:
Drop off begins at 8:05. For safety, students must remain in the car until a staff member comes to let them out. Please do not have them get out of the car prior.
Tardy Bell:
The tardy bell rings at 8:25. If students are not in their classroom by 8:25 they will have to go through the office for a tardy slip.
Pick Up:
Kinder & 1st Grade - dismissal will be in the front car loop on the South side of the building
2nd-4th - dismissal will be in the back car loop on the North side of the building UNLESS you also have a child in K-1. If so, please pick all children up in the front loop.
Dismissal begins at 3:25 and for safety reasons we will dismiss the car line first. We ask that everyone remain in their car and place their car tag (given out at Meet the Teacher Night) on their dashboard. If you walk up to pick up your child they will not be called until the car line is finished.
Please be patient with us the first couple of weeks while we learn students to cars. It can be frustrating seeing the long line, but I promise, once we get past the first couple of weeks it only takes about 15 minutes from start to finish! Please see diagram below.
Early Pick Up/Late Drop Off:
If you need to drop your child off late or pick up early, please enter through our front doors and ring the doorbell to the left of the office door. You will be required to show ID and sign your child in/out in our book that will be on the table inside the vestibule. The office staff will come out to get your child or call down to their classroom if picking up.
Latex Free Facility
Gardner Elementary
Email: ashbaughk@usd231.com
Website: https://www.usd231.com/o/gardner-elem
Location: 218 East Shawnee Street, Gardner, KS, USA
Phone: 913-856-3300