The Puma Pride
January 11, 2021
Principal's Message
Hello, Willow Dale Families!
In light of this weeks’ events, the teachers and staff had a fantastic week reconnecting with students and setting goals for the remainder of the school year. The positive energy in the building overshadowed the despair surrounding our nation. Please take a minute to view our kindergarten students' video in Mrs. Mahaffey's class who share their New Years' resolutions!
As we approach the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday this coming Monday, I wanted to reflect on his words, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Our students and teachers continue to be the light that will guide us during these difficult times. Our teachers have created safe spaces in their classrooms to have age-appropriate discussions and assist students who are anxious or struggling with what is going on. We love our students and will continue to ensure that their emotional needs are met so that they can have academic success at Willow Dale. Please know that our School Counselors, Mrs. LaRose and Mrs. Zemitis, are available should you require any assistance. Their contact information can be found below.
The kindergarten teachers and Reading Specialists will begin to administer the Dibels benchmark assessments for our kindergarten students beginning on Monday, January 11. If you have any questions regarding these assessments, please reach out to your child’s teacher.
Over the next few weeks, Willow Dale will be rolling out a new dismissal system where parents who opt to pick up their child(ren)from school will use a smartphone app to let us know that they have arrived for pick up. The adoption of this system will provide for a safer and more efficient dismissal. We appreciate your patience as we learn to navigate and tweak the process. More information can be found below.
Additional reminders have been included in this newsletter to ensure that our Willow Dale students have the best educational experience possible. Please review the items below. Our families have done a great job with reporting illness or asking questions when they are unsure of sending their child to school. The information below can provide some guidance. Your continued vigilance will help us maintain our in-person instructional model. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to the school nurse, Mrs. Salita.
Finally, I want to thank all of our families who continue to work with us to provide the best support for our students’ success. We are in this together. Please feel free to contact Mr. Julius or me if we can be of assistance.
We look forward to seeing everyone at the virtual Home and School meeting on Monday at 6:15 PM.
Have a Pawsome week!
~Dr. Perkins & Mr. Julius
Phone: 215-441-6093
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WillowDaleEl
Twitter: @Willow_Dale_ES
New Car Rider Dismissal Procedure and Smartphone App
We are excited to share that after careful consideration, our school will now be using a program to help organize the school dismissal process and improve safety. This program is a phone application downloaded onto your smartphone (found in the app store) and will allow you to notify the school of pick-up changes and authorize others to pick-up your child from school, alert you when your child has been picked up, as well as help organize the car line during pick-up.
The registration process is easy, and we ask that all parents register with the phone application as soon as possible. Several resources are included below to help you understand how to use the application and assist you with this transition. Please make sure you register with your current personal mobile phone number, or the app will not allow you to access your child’s information for security reasons.
If you do not think the school has your mobile number on file or if your child does not appear on your app’s home page, contact support@pikmykid.com mailto:support@pikmykid.com after registration, with your child’s name, school, grade, and updated contact information for you.
Anyone who will be picking up your child should also register themselves with the application. Their screen will be blank, and they will not have any authorization until you allow it within the app.
Please keep a look out for the new car tags that will be distributed in the coming week. If you already received your car tag(s), please make sure that from now on, the car tag is displayed on your dash on the passenger side while on school grounds and that you make a note of this number. This is to help ease the transition to the new dismissal system. Please note the following:
- Carline 1- Line closest to the school building
- Carline 2- Line closest to Norristown Road
If you need additional car tags, please notify the front office.
We appreciate your patience during the setup as we are working on making the process as safe and seamless as possible.
For more information and instructions, go to this link
Hybrid Schedule
Don't Forget Your Chromebook & Charger Everyday (Students in Grades 2-5)
Counselors' Corner
Family New Year Resolutions
At the beginning of the new year, we often make individual resolutions. Setting goals is important because it helps you identify priorities and trigger new behaviors. This year, consider setting some goals and resolutions as a family to encourage working together to have your best year yet.
Some ideas to get you started are:
Get outside more
Put together some photo albums of your family adventures or holiday celebrations
Read together
Start a family game night or family movie night
Eat and make healthier food together
Unplug devices more often
Exercise as a family
Volunteer together
Plan a system for household chores and responsibilities
Set bedtimes for all to get more sleep
Set a budget for saving money
Click here for an article to help you get started with creating family goals that are important to the success of the whole family.
https://www.steppingforwardcounselingcenter.com/how-to-create-family-goals-for-the-new-year/
Click here for more family resolution ideas!
https://www.familyeducation.com/life/new-years-resolutions/top-10-new-years-resolutions-families
- Mrs. LaRose - Grades 1, 3, 5
- laroka@centennialsd.org
- X 17031
- Mrs. Zemitis - Grades K, 2, 4
- zemile@centennialsd.org
- X 17030
Reminders for Cold Weather Days
Guidelines for Recess
Below 60 degrees—Jacket or long sleeves
Below 50 degrees—Coat and long pants
Below 32 degrees—Gloves and hats to go outside
Below 20 degrees—Shortened recess (5-10 minutes)
Below 10 degrees—Indoor recess
All temperatures represent the “feels like” number. Sometimes the windchill or windspeed may necessitate an indoor recess.
*If you are in need of coats, hats, gloves- Contact the School Counselors:
Ms. Zemitis: zemile@centennialsd.org
Ms. LaRose: laroka@centennialsd.org
Don't Forget to Bring & Wear Your Mask (Pack a Spare)
Buses and Bus Schedule Information
CENTENNIAL 2020-2021 BUS SCHEDULE INFORMATION
***You can access your child's busing information in SKYWARD
Information can also be accessed by clicking on the below link.
- Type in your address to access your child's busing information.
- Addresses with east, west, north, or south use the abbreviation E, W, N, or S with no punctuation. If that does not work, omit using it in your address.
If you have any questions, please contact us at 215-441-6000.
Calling All Families for our Willow Dale Family Project
As part of our second No Place for Hate project, we would love for families and staff to create a collaborative cookbook with lots of family favorites and traditional recipes from your culture. This is optional but we would love as much participation as possible!!!
In classes, teachers read Everybody Cooks Rice and learned about how food is connected to cultural identity. Families often have food traditions and favorite recipes they love to make for meals or holidays. Please look in your child’s google classroom or Seesaw to find the recipe template for your family to use. Only one per family is necessary. Families will "turn in" a recipe slide with a recipe their family loves to make or something they traditionally make for holidays or family meals. There will be an example from the family of Mrs. Zemitis and a template you will use for your recipe. The slide has a space for inserting the name of your dish, your family name, ingredients, directions, and a picture of your dish. You can also get fancy with inserting a video or tik tok tutorial of you making your dish. Check out Mrs. Zemitis' TikToc of her family making chocolate covered pretzels on her sample slide. Click here to view!
The directions for how to complete the slide are in the notes section at the bottom of the slide. When it is all complete, please click the turn in button. Please let your child’s teacher or Mrs. Zemitis know if you need help or have any questions. You have until February 12th to complete your recipe slide. We will put it all together in a Willow Dale Family Favorites cookbook slides presentation and possibly printed to be shared with our school community!
National Family Code Night - January 27, 2021 @ 7:00 PM
Willow Dale is pleased to invite every one of our families to participate in a second National Family Code Nights, a free live-stream family learning event for any K-5 school. Regardless of physical location, our school’s community can share this wonderful learning experience in which each child pairs up with a parent or other older partner to do their very first hour of coding together! No experience needed! It’s great fun, proven in thousands of schools nationwide, and now provided via a live-stream.
Family members, teachers, and educators can join the live-stream from home or school to enjoy an important, delightful experience. A live prize drawing for a Home Robotics Bundle from Wonder Workshop will be featured at each National Family Code Night. So save the date and get ready for a community learning experience the whole family will love and value.
Resources for Families
https://www.education.pa.gov/about/Resources/ResourcesFamilies/Pages/default.aspx
Tech Support for Families
- Featured Videos -CSD Online Learning Resources - CSD STUDENT & FAMILY VIDEO TUTORIALS site.
- CSD Online Learning Resources
- Site contains videos and tutorials for students and families
- 1:1 Initiative Resource Center
If you have a technology issue, please submit a help desk ticket (link below) for the fastest response.
CSD Community Technology Support Desk Options for Support
- CSD Community Technology Help Desk: http://helpdesk.centennialsd.org/support/login (this option allows you to create an account, create and submit new tickets, view the status of your ticket, and leave comments on the ticket).
Willow Dale Elementary School's Technology Support Desk Contact
Please call Ms. Kwasniuk (215) 441-6000 and enter the extension 17020.
Important Message from the Nurse's Office
Parents, we need your help to keep our students safe and healthy.
Please remember to check your student for the COVID 5 every morning before they come to school.
If you answer yes to any of the following questions, please keep your student home.
- Do they have a temperature of greater than 100.3?
- Do they have an altered taste or smell?
- Have they been exposed to someone with a lab-confirmed case of COVID 19?
- Are they awaiting test results of a recent COVID 19 test?
- Do they have an unexplained cough or shortness of breath?
Thank you in advance for your support! We are all in this together!
- Mrs. Salita and Mrs. Kleinschmidt-Willow Dale Nurses
Attendance in Virtual Learning
Children who attend school regularly make the best academic progress, graduate, and go on to successful post-secondary education and/or careers. It is important, even on virtual days for students to join the classroom teacher for learning via Google Meet.
If your child is going to be absent, late, or leave early, please notify the homeroom teacher and the school to let us know. More details below.
Reporting Absences
SUBMITTING ABSENCE NOTES
Attendance Notes can be Submitted Electronically via email at WDAttendance@centennialsd.org. Please know you will still receive automated phone calls (to the primary phone listed in Skyward) if you have not submitted an absence note via email by 10:00 AM on the days your child is absent from school.
**Absence notes must be submitted within 3 days of the student's absence, otherwise, the absence will be recorded as unexcused.
E-Mailing Attendance Notes
- Parents with children in Willow Dale may e-mail attendance notifications/notes to the following address: WDAttendance@centennialsd.org
- E-mail notifications are encouraged on the morning of the absence day. However, e-mailed absence notes may be sent on the day following the absence.
- When sending an absence notification please include the following information:
- Child's Name
- Child's Grade
- Child's Homeroom Teacher
- Date(s) of Absence
- Reason for Absence
- Contact Phone # for Parent/Guardian
- Other Pertinent Information
Email: WDAttendance@centennialsd.org
Phone: 215-441-6093
Nutrition Services Information
All Students are Eligible for a FREE Breakfast & Lunch Daily
The USDA has extended the waiver to continue feeding under the Summer Programs which entitles all children 18 and under to eat for free. These programs have been extended throughout the entire school year.
Parents, please continue to apply for free and reduced programs, as this helps fund other programs in the district which could benefit families. Now more than ever, we need families to complete the Free and Reduced meal application even though all meals are currently free. Please complete the application today.
We Need your Help!
Free and Reduced Lunch Application
Willow Dale depends on funding based on the number of free and reduced applications approved. Please help us maintain our funding that directly assists our students.
This year, our numbers are lower due to the free meals provided. If you already receive SNAP benefits and have not applied this year, please take a minute to apply.
If your financial situation has changed, please visit schoolcafe.com to apply today!
Applications can be submitted at any time during the school year. All information submitted to the school is kept confidential. Since meal transactions are computerized, there is no discrimination or identification of free or reduced paying students, so all families are urged to consider this program.
For questions or assistance, please reach out to:
Mrs. Shannon Stone - Supervisor of Food & Nutrition Services
StonSh@centennialsd.org 215-441-6000 x11015
Home and School Meeting-Virtual
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/79297262717?pwd=djFJUGU4REFPcmNsR2xWblBLdXE1Zz09
Meeting ID: 792 9726 2717
Passcode: 7RbXYw
Monday, Jan 11, 2021, 06:15 PM
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All Schools and Offices Closed - Martin Luther King - Holiday
Monday, Jan 18, 2021, 08:30 AM
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All Schools Closed - In-Service Day
Tuesday, Jan 5, 2021, 08:30 AM
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All Schools and Offices Closed - Presidents Day Holiday
Monday, Feb 15, 2021, 08:30 AM
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CEA Helping Hand
Dear Centennial Community, Please mark your calendars for Monday January 18, 2021. CEA Helping Hand is sponsoring a Food Drive at William Tennent High School from 10am to 12pm. While supplies last, we will be distributing non-perishable food items for families in our community experiencing food insecurity.
Thank you!
Help the Home & School Raise Extra Funds!
Child Care Arrangement Form
School Safety Drills
We will practice fire, lock-in, lock-out, and weather emergency drills. These drills may or may not be announced. Unannounced drills more accurately indicate the preparedness of the school and the effectiveness of safety procedures. Your child's teacher will review the exercises and procedures with their classes. Please make the teacher aware of any concerns regarding your child's participation in the safety drills.
The Warminster Director of Emergency Management Services and the Warminster Police Department will be invited to observe our drills and provided feedback for improvement.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to Dr. Perkins or Mr. Julius.
Family Trips Scheduled During the School Year
Dear Centennial Families;
The Centennial School District Board of School Directors approved Policy 204.1, Family Trips Scheduled During School Year.
Although the scheduling of family trips during the instructional year is not encouraged, the Centennial School Board recognizes that students may benefit educationally by accompanying their parent(s)/guardian(s) on trips. The revision to the policy will allow the schools to approve up to five (5) days instead of three (3). Any trip beyond five (5) days will need the approval of the Superintendent.
Parent(s)/Guardian(s) who are requesting approval for a family trip need to complete and submit the attached form to their building principal at least 3 days before the trip.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Dr. Perkins or Mr. Julius.
Willow Dale Elementary School
Email: perkca@centennialsd.org
Website: www.centennialsd.org/Domain/692
Location: 720 North Norristown Road, Warminster, PA, USA
Phone: 215-441-6093
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Education/Willow-Dale-Elementary-School-331460017756772/
Twitter: @Willow_Dale_ES