WEEKLY HAWK

Hello Homestead Community,

I hope you had a Happy Halloween filled with fun costumes and way too much candy! This week we will begin, or continue, with parent teacher conferences. I hope you have great conversations that support the learning of your little ones.

I want to update you on a few changes in staff. Kinsey Hannify, who supports the Library and Kindergarten, will be stepping away from her role at Homestead. She is still very much part of the Homestead community as a parent and volunteer. We thank her for her commitment to Homestead and wish her all the best. Additionally, Kaele Way has served as our itinerant school psychologist for about a year. Kaele welcomed a beautiful baby girl and has thus started her maternity leave. This week, Jessie Breeling, began in her role as school psychologist at Homestead. She will be with us on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I had the privilege of working with Jessie for the past few years and know that she will be a great addition to our community. If you meet her, please give her a warm welcome! Further, Crystal Griffin, our Kitchen Manager has been promoted to a District Traveling Kitchen Manager - Congratulations, Crystal, on your promotion! We will miss Crystal and her amazing energy and endless kindness. Lee Hyunjung will be starting as our new Kitchen Manager on Monday - Welcome Lee! Finally, there have been some administrators, Veronica and Jaron, filling in for me as I attended to a family emergency in Virginia. I am extremely grateful for the support and look forward to getting back into the swing of things on Monday.

Below is a link to an anonymous community survey. I am asking each family to take a few moments to thoughtfully share your perspectives and experiences. In my short time at Homestead, I’ve had the privilege of engaging in meaningful conversations with staff, students, and many caregivers. Now, I’m seeking a deeper understanding of how we can come together as a staff to best support your student(s). You’ll notice the word “thrive” in each question — and that’s intentional. Our goal isn’t for students to simply do well, but to truly thrive. Your feedback will help guide staff conversations and shape our focus moving forward, so we can better meet the needs and hopes of the families we serve. It’s an honor to be part of this community, and I’m grateful for your time, honesty, and partnership as we continue to grow together.

https://cherrycreeksd.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8kXbBO5DRvrx2ku

Take care,

Katie

This week's Hawks Highlights were:

Beck: I was helping a friend at lunch recess.

Cooper: I was being a nice friend.

Amayia: I worked really hard on my test with Ms. Paige.

Charles: I was respectable to everything and everyone.

Piper: I helped the teacher without being asked.

Book Fair Hours: Monday, November 3rd to Thursday, November 6th 11am-5pm

Students are also able to set up an e-wallet to purchase items at the book fair during school hours on their own. Cash, credit cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay are also accepted.

Please visit the book fair website for more information on e-wallets and books that will be available at: https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/homesteadelemsch

If you are interested in volunteering visit the sign up genius at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050F4BACA82EA5F49-59343038-fall

Please email Geniella Lester at homesteadbookfair@gmail.com if you have any questions.

See you at the Fall Scholastic Book Fair!

We have an abundance of lost and found items! All items will set up in the hallway in front of the library next week during the Book Fair and conferences. Please take a moment to check for any missing items!

Any unclaimed items remaining after Thursday, November 6 will be donated. Thank you!

Hello Homestead Families!

On November 13, 2025, Homestead Elementary is excited to honor veterans and active military personnel with a special assembly.

Please feel free to invite a special veteran guest to our school at 8:00 am for conversation, coffee, and a light breakfast. At 8:30 am we will begin our Veterans Day assembly in the gym. There will be time for our veterans to introduce themselves with their name, military branch and when and where they served. To conclude our ceremony, veterans and their students will go to the cafeteria to share refreshments.

If you would like to participate in our "Wall of Heroes" bulletin board at Homestead, please submit a Veterans Day Wall of Heroes form. You can complete and print the form by clicking on the link or you can pick up a form from your child's teacher. If you have turned one in the past years, we have saved it and will hang it up again this year. Please complete the form and return it to the Homestead main office by Monday, November 3, 2025.

We look forward to celebrating our military and their service to our country!

With gratitude,

Homestead Elementary School

We would love more donations of unscented gentle baby wipes in the art room. It makes our clean-up go so much smoother. Thank you!

Also, a huge shoutout to all of the volunteers helping with our third grade painting unit. Wow, it makes such a difference!

And....check out this beautiful 2nd grade sunrise/sunset display!

2:45-4:00 in the 3rd Grade Cafe

October 9, 30

November 13, 20

December 11

January 15

February 5, 19

March 12

April 9, April 30

Our school has started using Talking Points, a secure app that makes it easy to communicate with teachers and the front office via text. It's a great way to stay connected! If you need help or have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to the front office at 720-554-3700.
Download Talking Points and get more information here!

Please see attached picture for the IA schedule for the year.

We have several after school clubs and summer activities offered at Homestead through outside organizations such as Chess Club, Coding Club and Tennis and Pickleball Club. Stop by the front lobby of our school to see what is offered and pick up a flyer for more information. Or, click on this link to access the flyers electronically.

Colorado legislation has prompted greater need to screen and document volunteers in our schools. As of January 2022, we began asking every volunteer to complete a brief application to support activities in CCSD schools.

If you are currently volunteering or plan to volunteer in the future, please complete the CCSD online volunteer form. To access the form, click on the following link: https://apps.raptortech.com/Apply/NzU0OmVuLVVT or scan the QR code. It should only take a few minutes to complete and you will only need to complete this form once a year to meet the requirements to volunteer in all CCSD buildings.

Please note: if you completed this application more than one year ago, it is time to do it again!

The safety and security of our students and staff remains our top priority. Every person entering our buildings must have a badge printed from our Raptor system or a District ID.

We want to thank you in advance for your support of our schools and if you have any questions, please feel free to contact our Homestead main office at 720.554.3700.

This year, we’re requesting $20–$25 grocery store gift cards (King Soopers, Safeway, Walmart) instead of frozen turkeys due to limited freezer space. We’re also collecting all the traditional Thanksgiving sides to complete the meal.

📍 Drop-off in the front & back parking lots before school.

Thank you for helping families in need this holiday season!

Please click on this link to access the flyers in different languages.

Sungate Kids, in partnership with Cherry Creek Schools, presents an ‘Opportunity to Prepare for Safe Family Experiences for the Holidays’

For more information and if you would like to attend this training, please click the link below.

Sungate Kids Participation Form

All meals (breakfast and lunch) remain free for all students due to the Free Meals For All legislation that passed in November of 2022. We encourage families to complete a meal application to take advantage of other benefits offered to them and to support Title I funding in CCSD.

Meal Application: www.myschoolapps.com

Online Payments for Meal Accounts: www.MySchoolBucks.com (there is no fee for this service).

For questions or assistance with making payments please call 1-855-832-5226.

To view Menus: www.MealViewer.com

Download Today! Search in your app store for Homestead Elementary. Or use these links:

iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/app/id1115937231

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sia.homestead

What's on the app?

Attendance form

Contact info for staff

Parent calendar

School Supply Lists

Weekly Hawk Newsletters

Other resources

English:

Please contact (name of liaison) at (email) for support with this resource in your language.

Amharic:

እነዝህን መረጃዎችን በተመለከተ በቋንቋዎ ዕገዛን ለማግኘት ከፈለጉ እባክዎን ተሊሌን በዝህ እሜይል ያግኙዋት thirpa@cherrycreekschools.org

Arabic:

يرجى الاتصال ب )جميعة صباحي أو جاودة العلمي( على ) jsebbahi@cherrycreekschools.org أو

jdajanialami@cherrycreekschools.org للحصول على الدعم مع هذا المورد باللغة العربية .

Chinese:

如有需要，请经由ctaylor9@cherrycreekschools.org 与凯瑟琳•泰勒联系，以您的语言获得此资源的支持。

Dari:

لطفا برای کمک در مورد اين منابع به زبان خودتان با قزافی مهرزاد با اييمل qmehrzad@cherrycreekschools.org تماس بگيريد .

Hindi:

अपनी भाषा में इस संसाधन के समर्थन के लिए कृपया जेम्स रसाइथिी को jrasaily@cherrycreekschools.org पर संपकथ करें।

Korean:

귀하의 언어로 이 자원에 대한 지원을 원하시면 (리아 리) 에게 (llee6@cherrycreekschools.org) 로 문의하십시오.

Nepali:

कृपया जेम्स रसाइथिीिाइथ jrasaily@cherrycreekschools.org मा तपाइथको भाषामा यो संसाधनको सहयोगको िागी सम्पकथ गननथहोिा।

Russian:

Пожалуйста, обращайтесь к Ларисе Бака по адресу: lbaca3@cherrycreekschools.org для получения поддержки с помощью этого ресурса на своём языке.

Somali:

Fadlan la xiriir Omar Nur cinwaanka emaylka onur2@cherrycreekschools.org si aad u hesho macluumaad ku qoran luqadaada.

Spanish:

Si necesita ayuda con este recurso en su idioma, póngase en contacto con Ilse Chavez Maldonado en ichavezmaldonado@cherrycreekschools.org, Rosa Han en rhan4@cherrycreekschools.org, Carmen Vargas-Ball en cvargasball@cherrycreekschools.org o Monica Pantoja en mpantoja@cherrycreekschools.org.

Ukrainian:

Будь ласка, зв'яжіться з Зоряною Герман по електронній пошті zherman@cherrycreekschools.org, щоб отримати підтримку з цього ресурсу на українській мові.

Vietnamese:

Vui lòng liên hệ với Thuý Ngọc tại Lchung2@cherrycreekschools.org để được hỗ trợ về tài nguyên này bằng tiếng Việt.

You can keep up to date with the Homestead PTCO by visiting www.homesteadptco.org and our Facebook page.

Location: 7451 South Homestead Parkway, Centennial, CO, USA
Phone: (720) 554-3700