Sunnyside Elementary School Roadrunner Review 13401 SE 132nd Avenue, Clackamas, OR 97015 503-353-5620 Fax: 503-353-5635 Jennifer Dove-Kiltow, Principal September 17, 2015 Dear Sunnyside Families, Happy September and Welcome Back!! School is in full swing, and once again, Sunnyside is a vibrant and energetic place to be. As I enter into my third year as principal, I am reminded of what a strong, supportive community we have. From our Custodians and Secretaries, to our Teachers and Instructional Assistants, to our many wonderful parent volunteers, we all work together to make Sunnyside a great place for kids!! This school year we will continue with our ongoing theme of Perseverance and teaching students to have a Growth Mindset. Already students are working hard to show that they can accomplish tasks that are difficult and that as we learn we are actually growing our brain. It’s always exciting to watch a student grasp new concepts!! We also want to take time this year to get better acquainted with you, our Sunnyside families. If you have a family picture you’d be willing to share with us, please send it to school with your child. We are putting them up on a bulletin board in our cafeteria and would love to add yours to the wall. Last Friday we had our very first Friday Morning Meeting. These meetings are a school wide event that we hold on the first Friday of each month. They are a time for us to come together as a school community and to celebrate the things that are going well at Sunnyside. This last Friday Morning Meeting was used as a way to welcome students and staff, and to kick off our Jog-A-Thon fundraiser. You are always invited to sit in during a Friday Morning Meeting!! There are many exciting events throughout the year so make sure you stay informed by reading the monthly newsletter, looking on our school/district website, and on our PTA Facebook page. We love it when families stay connected and can join us at our various events. PTA meetings are the 2nd Monday of each month. You can find specific dates and times on the school calendar. Please be aware of several important pieces of information in this packet. There is information on celebrating birthdays, the parking lot, and upcoming school events. It is an honor to be the Principal of Sunnyside and to serve the many families that attend. Should you ever need to speak with me, don’t hesitate to call or email!! Respectfully, Jennifer Kiltow Principal Community Care Day A Big Success! A special thanks to Pastor Dave Morris and Hillside Community Church for organizing the recent Community Care Day at Sunnyside School. They worked hard, and also contributed new trees and other plants to help beautify our school grounds. Thanks also to the families from our school community who came out to help clean up and support this effort, as well as all who donated food, personal care items, and school supplies. Despite the wind and the threat of rain, it was a great day!! Changing After School Plans? To help insure the safety of all our children, please be sure to always send a signed and dated note any time there is a change to your child’s normal after school routine. If a last minute change becomes necessary, please make every effort to call the school office prior to 1:30 pm. Without a note, or a call from you, your child will be sent home according to their normal after school routine. Attendance Reminder School starts at 7:45 AM. Doors open at 7:25 am for students to enter the building. At that time, they can either have breakfast in the lunch room, or go to the gym. At 7:35 am, students are allowed to go to their classrooms and are expected to be in their seats, ready to learn, by 7:45 AM. Please help them arrive on time and ready to go for a full day of learning! Students not in their classrooms when the bell rings, are tardy. PTA Jog-A-Thon Our largest fundraiser of the year is taking place on October 2nd. Funds raised by this event support Sunnyside School in many ways: classrooms, Artist in Residence progams, reading incentive programs, assemblies, and technology, to name just a few. Jog-a-Thon packets have already been distributed for this healthy, fun and worthwhile event. Additional Pledge forms are available at the school office, or you may print them off by visiting our PTA website at www.sunnysidepta.org Together we can make this our best fundraiser ever! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last Chance! If you did not already send in the pink directory form included in your First Day of School Packet, this is your last chance to provide your information for the Student Directory! Sunnyside’s Student Directory is a great tool to help you connect with other parents to arrange get-togethers for the kids, email about classroom parties or activities, or for kids to contact each other with homework questions, etc! It also contains all the relevant school numbers and staff email addresses for your convenience. The information will NOT be published online, will only be used for this directory, and will be emailed as a PDF attachment to all Sunnyside parents that have given a contact email address to the school office. You are not required to be in the directory, but participation is encouraged since it is most useful when it includes everyone. To be included, we need to have your information by the end of September, as the directory will be published in October. Fill out only the information you feel comfortable having published in the directory, and return this form to the school office by Monday, September 28th! Name of Parents/Guardians (printed): _____________________________________________________________________ Phone Number: _______________________________________________________________________________________ Address: _____________________________________________________________________________________________ E-Mail Address: _______________________________________________________________________________________ Signature: ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Please list students enrolled at Sunnyside: Name:___________________________________Grade: _______ Teacher Name: __________________________________ Name:___________________________________Grade: _______ Teacher Name: __________________________________ Name:___________________________________Grade: _______ Teacher Name: __________________________________ Parking Lot Safety Our parking lot is a bit active as we learn and relearn traffic needs during drop off and pick up. The safety and sanity of the parking lot relies on everyone following established guidelines. With that in mind, we have developed the following information for you to help us make the traffic flow more smoothly at pickup and drop off times. Below is a map of our school for dropping off and picking up your child. Enter the school using the NORTH entrance off 132nd Avenue. Please pull as far forward as possible in the student drop-off/pick-up lane so more cars can enter, and to keep traffic moving. After dropping off or picking up your child, please exit the school grounds using the SOUTH exit onto 132nd Avenue. If you are at the curb in the student drop off lane, we ask that you stay in your vehicle so you can continue to move your car forward as other cars exit. If you need to enter the building, please park in the parking lot, even if you have someone waiting in the car. You may not stop your car in the driving lane for students to enter or exit your vehicle, or to parallel park. You must circle around the parking lot to get in line for curb parking or to find an open space in the lot. This is very important to keep students from running between cars and stopping traffic flow. Your patience is appreciated. We have a large number of families who choose to transport their children to and from school and the wait time has increased over the past few years. When everyone can follow the drop off/pick up protocol, things will run more smoothly. If you have questions/concerns about our parking lot procedures, please feel free to contact the office staff at 503-353-5620. The safety of our students and families is very important. Thank you for your cooperation. School Picture Day Coming Soon! School pictures will be taken on Thursday, October 8th. Watch for flyers to come home soon. Write To The School If You Wish To Keep Student Information Private The District is authorized to disclose directory information unless parents, guardians, or students 18 or older notify the District to withhold this information. Directory information includes that which is not considered to be harmful or an invasion of privacy, such as: name, address, telephone listing, date and place of birth, participation in sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, attendance, degrees, and awards. Schools may publish quality student work or may videotape students for films or television shows. A student’s name or photograph may appear in a District publication or on a District web site. Safety Calling We ask that you call the school office by 9:00 am. any day that your child will be absent or late. You may also leave a message on our voice mail at any time, by calling 503-353-5620. It is very important that you call us each day if your child will not be here!! We use our district’s automated parent calling system to check on your child if they are absent and we have not heard from you by 9:30 am. Did You Know? We remind students to bring money for their breakfast/lunch account by putting a red “apple stamp” on their hand. We feel that this has been helpful to students. Whenever your child’s account falls below $8.70 (the equivalent of 3 lunches), your child’s hand is stamped as a reminder that he/she needs to bring more money to be deposited into his/ her account as soon as possible. You may sign up for email alerts, as well as make payments to your child(s) account at www.nclack.k12.or.us. Click on MEALS located under the quick links section on the left, then click on Pay for Meals Online. Feel free to call the school office for your child’s ID #, in order to establish an account. We appreciate your cooperation in helping your child maintain a “positive” lunch balance. Parents/guardians may write to the Principal to request that directory information, student information to military or colleges (high school students only), or student work and images not be released or used in publications, web sites, or films. This needs to be done annually. Birthdays at Sunnyside Elementary Birthdays are a special occasion for children!! We celebrate each child’s birthday within the classroom in a variety of ways. Depending on the teacher, students might be celebrated by being given a small gift like a pencil, be sung to by their class, or have a special book that they’ve chosen read aloud. In consideration of food allergies and special requirements, PLEASE DO NOT send birthday treats, food or non-food to school. Also, if you are planning a party outside of school, please send invitations by mail. Handing out invitations at school, unless the whole class is invited, can cause hurt feelings. We love your child and will celebrate their special day, and we appreciate you for helping us with this!!