SGS Weekly Parent Update
Growing ALL Kids: Academics, Attitude, and Attendance
September 24, 2017
Here's to September
We are entering into our last week of September and it is hard to believe we have been in school for almost a month. By Monday, September 25th, we will have all of our small group reading times up and running along with all of our double dose times for reading and math. This is a special time as it means we are jumping into all of our core academic areas and we are focused on growing kids. Our groups are a very important part of what we do at Sandy Grade as it allows us to focus on the individual child and their specific academic needs.
Check out the important announcements and upcoming events here in the building.
Virtue of the Month and PAWS Assembly -September
Our PAWS Assembly for respect is on Tuesday, September 26th. We are splitting the grade level presentations this year. Students in K, 1, and 2 will have their PAWS Assembly at 1:20 in the gym while grades 3, 4, and 5 will be at 1:50. As always, parents are more than welcome to attend.
OTSD ranks among best districts in the county & state!
OTSD Assessment Results
Math in action!
We are learning about place value!
We love math!
This Really Happened! September 24th
2017-2018 Student Handbooks
Happy New School Year!!!! We are excited to have staff and students back for another great year!
Attached is our 2017-2018 Student Handbook. Please click HERE to access it.
Our SGS Family Calendar can also be accessed by clicking HERE. This great new calendar will be sent home in a hard copy format for families in the first few weeks of school.
Please let us know if you have any questions or need clarification.
Thanks!
School Spirit-Wear Blue Fridays
We are all about Bobcat Spirit here! As a way to promote and increase student pride and spirit, we encourage staff and students to wear blue on Fridays. If your student has a Sandy Grade School shirt, this would be a great time to wear it as they show a little pride. If they don’t, it is ok…just wear blue! In case we don’t have school on Friday, we will always be sporting our school colors on the last school day of the week. Join us in supporting the Bobcat Pride!
Communication
Fostering a strong connection between home and school is of the utmost importance to us. One way in which we approach this is by working hard to make sure you know what is going on in the school environment. Here are some of the ways we communicate with families:
· Weekly Parent Updates on Friday - posted on website and e-mailed to parents
· Daily website updates, including our calendar
· Facebook under Sandy Grade School - Oregon Trail School District
· Twitter @SandyGrade_OTSD and #SGSBobcats
· E-mails through Constant Contact - please help us with this by providing a current e-mail address
· ParentVUE - online gradebook to check for missing work and assignment scores
Please know that we try as much as possible to post information online instead of sending home hard copy documents to help conserve costs and minimize the impact on the environment. However, we do try to make an effort to print items for families when possible.
Reading with Your Student
Partner reading!
Learning about traditions!
Working together!
Reading Logs are Starting
Reading logs are going home this week for all grade levels. Please keep an eye out for them. Many of the teachers have the reading log included as part of their weekly homework packet. If you did not see one come home in your child’s backpack, please connect with your child’s teacher. Let the reading begin!
Weekly Attendance Winners
September is Attendance Awareness Month
Showing up matters!
Celebrating great attendance with the Bobcat Triplets!
Every day matters!
Excused vs. Unexcused Absence
Oregon Trail School District recently updated how an absence is identified in terms of being excused or unexcused. OTSD and Oregon law defines excused absences as the following: illness of the student, illness of an immediate family member when the student’s presence at home is necessary, emergency situations that require the student’s absence, school field trips and school approved activities, medical (dental) appointments when confirmed by the parent, or a disciplinary suspension is an excused absence. Examples of unexcused absences are: appointments for haircuts, shopping, family vacation / trips, hunting, or other non-critical personal business. If you are unsure of how an absence will be coded, please reference the OTSD Code of Conduct on the district’s website or call the front office.
Site Council
Pulling Pink PAWS on Friday
You too can earn a Pink PAWS with good choices!
Thanks for helping Pink PAWS today...love the capes!
PBIS Bobcat Field Trips
PBIS Bobcat Field Trips Sandy Grade is a PBIS school, focusing on positive reinforcement and teaching expectations. All students and staff will follow basic expectations for the school: Be safe, Be responsible, Be respectful, and Be kind. Not only can parents support us by reinforcing our PBIS guidelines at home, you can also support us in making sure your child is eligible for PBIS reward activity, known as a Bobcat Field Trip. In order for students to meet eligibility requirements they must accomplish the following:
1. Students must maintain a 92% attendance average.
2. Students must be in good standing at the library. Ms. Janet will check for lost or overdue books.
3. Students must not have any office referrals for the quarter.
4. Students may only have one YIKES for the quarter.
5. Students must have all their reading logs turned in for the quarter with a minimum of five nights of recorded reading per week.
6. Students must not have any bus citations for the quarter.
7. Students must not have any missing work.
After each field trip, the eligibility requirements will be reset allowing all students to work towards earning the reward activity.
Lunch Paperwork-Reminder
Remember to complete a new Free / Reduced application by the early part of October 2017, if you were receiving meals at no or low cost last school year. All families must re-apply each year or benefits will discontinue in October. The form is easily accessible online or hard copies can be picked up at the front office. If you need help with the paperwork, we will gladly assist.
Parking at Sandy Grade
Finally, it is a pleasure working with your child. We are happy to have them here and we are excited about their academic growth! If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call or e-mail us.
Warmly,
Dr. Rachael George
Principal