2-11-26 PAW'S PRESS

Dear Cherokee Families,

We hope all of our families have a wonderful mid-winter break! We have a HALF DAY on Friday, February 13th. Dismissal is at 11:44 AM. Break begins after dismissal. Classes resume on Monday, February 23rd.

Important Dates

Black History Month - See resources below.

February 13th - HALF DAY - Dismissal at 11:44 AM

Mid Winter Break - February 16th - February 20th

Classes resume - February 23rd

NEW DATE - 4th Grade Concert - March 10th (see above)

As in the past, the Paw's Press newsletters will include key information and typically will be sent at the end of each week. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help make the school year a success for you and your child! See you soon!

Sincerely,

Heather Batko

Cherokee Principal

hbatko@cvs.k12.mi.us

Added 1/25/26

Even though lunch is free for all students, we still need parents to complete the digital online ordering form so that we have an accurate count and enough food for all students.
Click here to order school lunch for February
Click here for a printable version of the February lunch menu.
Ordering deadlines: Please note that we have received communication from food services that families need to order lunch by 9:30 AM the school day prior. For example, when ordering lunch for pizza on Monday, please order by 9:30 AM on Friday. This helps with the accuracy of our lunch count. We of course always order extra but this helps with accuracy.
There is a charge of $1.50 for ordering doubles.
Click here for the Food Services website.

Ramadan Meals and Lenten Meals

Ramadan Meals
Chippewa Valley Schools Food Service will be offering a take-home meal at no cost to students who observe Ramadan. Please fill out the order form by Feb 17 th to pre-order your meals to participate.

Link for Pre-order: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=CeokmDkVAEKtn9jDQ0XYJ5E4oddswEJIrUtzosah5uRUQVpSQ09NVjlENE5RR0RHTjVWVlBESkZYWi4u

Lenten Meals
Chippewa will be offering some meatless options on Fridays. Check out what your school has to offer online with Chippewa's My School Menus!

More information can be found on our Facebook page or Chippewa Food Service Website.

In February we celebrate Black History Month! This can be a time for families to share stories, quotes, videos or discussions in celebration of the many influential Black leaders and people of our generation and those that paved the way long before us. Click here for helpful resources.

Click here for the Cherokee PTO Newsletter for February 2026

Winter is coming! If your Cherokee student is in need of a winter coat or other winter gear, please complete this form (click here) for each Cherokee student. Our social worker, Mrs. Gilbert, works with many organizations to connect families with coats and other resources. She will do her best to fulfill as many requests as possible on a first come/first serve basis.

Just a reminder, students continue to go outside for recess when it is 20 degrees or above (including if the wind chill factor 'feels like' below 20 ). Please make sure that your students come prepared with hats/gloves/snow pants/boots etc. Families may want to label these items with their child's name to make it easier for lost items to find their owner.

All children go out for recess unless a doctor's note has been submitted/is on file in the main office indicating otherwise.

Each middle school in Chippewa Valley will host a 6th grade parent orientation on Thursday, April 9th. More details will be shared in March.

Registration for students who will be entering Kindergarten in the fall of 2026 began on Monday, January 26th. Registration is done through central office.

NOTE: This is NOT for students who are currently enrolled in Kindergarten at Cherokee this school year. This is for the 2026-2027 school year.

Start here by entering your preliminary information: https://ps.cvs.misd.net/public/formbuilder/form.html?formid=5737884

We are already planning for NEXT school year. If you have a Kindergarten student for the 2026-2027 school year, save the date for our Kindergarten Kick-Off on May 12th.

This is NOT for current Kindergarten students.

Click here to apply.

Updated 10/12/25

Throughout the school year we are required to complete 5 fire drills, 3 lockdown drills and 2 tornado drills.
We completed 3 fire drills in September. The other two will be in the spring.
In October, we will had two lockdown drills. These drills are comprised of age-appropriate lessons as well as practicing other tasks such as locking down in a safe space, relocating to a safe place, etc. For one of our drills, we used our lockdown "blue light" alarm with our school resource officer.
We do not tell families or students the exact dates/times of these drills for safety reasons.
The book, I'm Not Scared I'm Prepared, that is utilized for the lockdown drills is below in a PDF format in case you would like to review it with your family. This book is used at all elementary schools in the district.
Our teachers do a great job of reviewing procedures in a way that makes students feel safe.

pdf

insert_drive_file

I'm Not Scared_B424-WATERMARK (3).pdf

Download

3.7 MB

We have many students at Cherokee with severe peanut/tree nut allergies. Therefore peanut/tree nut products and products contaminated in a facility that processes peanuts/tree nuts may not be consumed in classrooms.
A designated area/table in the cafeteria will be available for students with peanut/tree nut allergies. Peanut/tree nut products may not be consumed in this designated area/table. The area/table will be labeled as a peanut/tree nut alert zone.
Your child's teacher will review guidelines and answer any specific questions.
Click here for the Snack Safely Guide. This guide has recommendations for foods that do not have peanuts, tree nuts and are not processed in facility with these items. This guide updates regularly so it is best to check the link below rather than printing.