Washington September Update

There will be fun for the whole family! Carnival Games, Concessions, Our Famous Raffles, Silent Auction, Dunk Tank with Washington Staff Members, and more! We hope you can join us!

To volunteer at Family Fall Fest please sign-up at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F044FA9AB23A2F49-50868190-family#/

Whitewater Unified School District is happy to announce its first Story Trail program being launched at Washington Elementary in conjunction with the Family Fall Fest this Friday, Sept. 27th. A Story Trail is a favorite children’s book installed in an outside setting to engage children with movement as they pass from page to page of the story. The first story we have this year will be Audrey and Don Wood’s The Napping House. This story is part of the 4K library curriculum and is a favorite. It will be mounted along the fence on the 4K-Kindergarten playground similar to the one pictured below. Look for more pictures of our Story Trail with our children interacting with this beloved literary tale. This story will be available for families to enjoy in both English and Spanish.

September 15 - October 15 is designated as Hispanic Heritage Month each year. This month's celebration provides us with the opportunity to recognize significant contributions Hispanic Americans have and continue to make in the United States. The timing of Hispanic Heritage Month is noteworthy because it coincides with several Central American countries’ independence days.

During Hispanic Heritage Month, we have the chance of celebrating the history, journeys, and accomplishments of Hispanic Americans by highlighting their distinctive voices and experiences. We can all work together to inspire the next generation and connect communities via these festivities.

Here in Washington, we kicked off the month’s festivities with our cultural clothing representing different countries. We were able to see all the unique and colorful articles of clothing that represented Hispanic culture. The staff celebrated by having dishes from different countries with their different flavors. We were fortunate to have families donate food typical dishes from their countries. The staff at Washington will like to thank all families who collaborated for this event.

To ensure that students receive support in areas where they may be struggling, either in math or in literacy, WUSD utilizes short assessments to identify students’ unique needs and strengths. For literacy, we utilize the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) screener with all learners K-5. DIBELS includes short subtests to measure learners’ proficiency in literacy skills according to their grade level. For math, we are excited to share that this school year, our district is utilizing a math screener and practice tool called Happy Numbers for students in Grades K-5.

Happy Numbers includes a short diagnostic screener to identify student needs and strengths, and provides individualized learning pathways, tracking student progress throughout the year. Happy Numbers will be used as an instructional tool to supplement our existing Bridges Mathematics curriculum, primarily during small group time. The data from Happy Numbers, alongside Bridges Mathematics assessments, will help us target areas where students need more practice and support so that we may provide learners with what they need to achieve math proficiency. With the data from Happy Numbers and Bridges Mathematics assessments equipping teachers with identified areas for growth and strengths of learners, the NWEA MAP will not be administered this school year. If you would like more information about Happy Numbers, please click here to find resources online.

In addition to utilizing math and literacy screeners to identify needs, we have built math intervention time and literacy intervention time into every schedule to ensure we are meeting the needs of our learners. With these structures and resources in place, we aim to improve math and literacy proficiency through data-driven decisions at all levels of instruction.

Thank you for your continued support!

Drop-off

Our two main drop-off points are E. Main (behind the bus lane) and Fonda Streets. Be sure your student exits on the sidewalk side of your vehicle, NOT on the traffic side. Students are not to be dropped off in the back parking lot.

An important reminder regarding drop-off

If parents need to enter the building for a specific reason, they should park in the diagonal stalls on Fonda St. Otherwise, please drop off your child and continue along the street to keep traffic flowing. Cars parked along the sidewalk contribute to the traffic back-up in the morning, so please be sure to adhere to these expectations. Thank you!

A reminder: school starts at 8:00 AM.

Pick-up

Parents should stay as close to their vehicle as possible during pick-up. Students will be brought outside at the end of the day. If a parent needs to come inside for a specific reason, again, park in the diagonal stalls on Fonda St. Vehicles should not be left unattended on the side of Fonda as dismissal is a very busy time.

Student Absences: If you child must miss school for any reason, you must phone the office by 9:00 AM to report the absence. 262-472-8600. We take student safety very seriously. If we do not hear from you regarding your child's absence, we will attempt to call emergency contacts. If we can not get a hold of you or the emergency contacts, we may ask for a well-child check from the police department. Please avoid this by calling the school office if your child will not be in school. Thank you!

In need of some Washington Spirit Wear!? Order yours today! Orders must be submitted online by 11:59 PM on Sunday, September 29th. https://wwwashington24spiritwear.itemorder.com/shop/sale/

Our October meeting will be on October 2nd at 6:00 PM in the Library. We hope you will join us to hear about all the fun events PATT has planned. Meetings are held on the 1st Wednesday of each month of the school year except December and May.

Join our PATT Facebook group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/washingtonschoolpatt

10/16 - Culver’s Night 5-8 PM

10/16 - Walk 4 Washington Forms Due

10/23 - Walk 4 Washington