Northwoods News

Northwoods Families,

Happy Labor Day!! I hope you've all had a wonderful holiday weekend. As we prepare for the start of our second week of school (first full week for kindergarten students), I would like to thank you all for your help in making last week a huge success! It was great to see all of our students back in the building, learning new routines and procedures, and diving into new curriculum! Over the next couple of weeks, our teachers and staff will continue to teach and reinforce rules, expectations, and procedures to build a strong and positive foundation for the rest of the year.

Please take a few minutes to read through the information below. Have a wonderful week!

Upcoming Events:

• Tuesday, September 6th--AIG meeting for families of currently identified students
• Tuesday, September 13th--3rd Grade Beginning of Grade Assessment (BOG)
• Thursday, September 15th--Curriculum Night
• Thursday, September 15th--Hispanic Heritage Month begins
• Friday, September 16th--Instructional Assistant Appreciation Day
• Monday, September 19th--First day of Positivity Project lessons
• Tuesday, September 20th--AIG Information Meeting
• Wednesday, September 21st--3rd Grade Explorers Parent Meeting

Student Arrival: Please make every effort to ensure your child is dropped off at school on time each morning. Our arrival period begins at 8:45 AM and concludes at 9:15 AM. Students arriving after 9:15 AM are considered tardy and must be signed in at the front office by a parent/guardian.

Positivity Project:

We are excited to relaunch the Positivity Project (P2) curriculum on September 19th. For more information about P2, please read the information letter below.

• Positivity Project Family Information Letter

Parent Visitors at Lunch/Outside Food:

As a reminder, parents/guardians will not be permitted to eat with their child during his/her lunch time for the first 30 days of the school year. It is essential that we have this time to help students and teachers build clear, consistent expectations. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation with this matter. Additionally, as a friendly reminder, outside food from local restaurants is not permitted during parent visits.

Q1 Curriculum Night:

Save the date! Our first Curriculum Night of the 2022-23 school year will be held on Thursday, September 15th at the following times:

• 5:30 - 6:00 PM--3rd-5th Grade
• 6:00 - 6:30 PM--PTA General Meeting
• 6:30 - 7:00 PM--K-2nd Grade

AIG Parent Information Sessions:

Ms. Casey, our AIG teacher, will be offering several information sessions for families of students in grades 3-5 who are currently and/or newly identified for AIG services. Please see the information below. All sessions will be conducted virtually.

School Visitors/Student Check-Out Requirements:

The safety and security of our students and staff are of utmost importance. In accordance with district recommendations as well as to maximize school safety, school staff will follow the procedures outlined below for ALL visitors, including all recognized parents and district staff members.

• All visitors will be required to ring the doorbell near the front office prior to gaining entry.
• A front office member will greet visitors, ask their name and the purpose of their visit.
• All visitors will also be required to present a valid photo ID.
• After obtaining their name and purpose, and ID, a front office team member will permit entry. If a visitor refuses to provide a name, purpose, or identification, or if the staff feels uncomfortable with the interaction, the visitor will be denied entry and access to the building.
• Upon entry, all visitors are required to sign in at the front office and will be issued a visitor's badge before being permitted to move throughout the building.
• Students will NOT be dismissed from their classroom for early dismissal until all processes and procedures noted above have been satisfied.

Carpool Procedures (AM & PM):

To help increase traffic flow on our campus as well as to reduce traffic congestion on Chapel Hill Road during our arrival and dismissal times, our campus has been designed with two carpool lanes. If you plan to drop off or pick-up your child via carpool, we ask that you observe the following rules:

1. Incoming traffic should queue in both carpool lanes (pictured below).
2. Follow the Chick-fil-A (zipper merge) method of alternating vehicles (left side, right side, etc.) when merging at the designated merge point.
3. Be patient and give grace. Allowing other vehicles to merge in front of you won't significantly impact your wait time.
4. Have your child's car seat positioned on the passenger side of the vehicle so that we can safely screen and unload from the safety of the sidewalk.
5. To help carpool run more smoothly, please make sure your child has his/her backpack, lunch, and water bottle ready so they can quickly exit the vehicle after their screening.

Recess in the Garden:

Recess in the Garden starts the week of September 12th. It's a fun opportunity for volunteers to connect with our Koalas. Gardening expertise is not needed! Garden Coordinator Carol Clark and Lead Mary Lumpkin will lead most shifts but we need assistants! More info on how Recess in the Garden works is in the SignUp Genius(es). Can't make it during the day? Weekend help is always appreciated. Still can't make it? Keep up with us on Facebook! www.facebook.com/northwoodsschoolgarden.

SignUp Genius links:

K-1st Recess in the Garden SignUp (Tuesdays)

2nd-3rd Recess in the Garden SignUp (Thursdays)

4th-5th Recess in the Garden SignUp (Tuesdays)