EWES February School Newsletter
2025-26 East Washington Elementary School
I want to extend a heartfelt thank-you to our students and families for your patience and flexibility as we worked through the challenges of E-Learning. While we are grateful to have the option to learn remotely when needed, there is truly no substitute for in-person instruction and the incredible work our teachers do each day to support, inspire, and connect with our students. Our classrooms are where the magic happens, and we are so thankful to be back together.
Please know that we are aware of our technology challenges and are actively working to improve the delivery of instruction on virtual days. Thank you again for your patience, understanding, and continued support of our teachers. Here’s hoping the groundhog does his job and that there’s very little winter left ahead of us! 💙
Warmly,
-Stacy Richardson, EWES Principal
If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s Midterm Report or overall progress, please don’t hesitate to reach out! We believe that a strong partnership between home and school is the key to helping our students shine.
📧 Stay Connected
You can find our full directory of teachers’ and staff members’
email addresses at the link below:
👉 [Click HERE for EWES Staff Emails]
🏫 Principal’s Corner
For further assistance, please feel free to contact the principal directly:
Mrs. Stacy Richardson
📧 Email: srichardson@ewsc.k12.in.us
📞 Phone: 812-967-2929 ext. 1
Kindergarten, first, and second-grade students will receive their middle-of-the-year DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) reading assessment report with the Midterm Report. The information gathered from this assessment helps guide our instruction and allows teachers to better support each student’s reading growth.
Students in grades 3-4 will have their ILEARN Checkpoint #2 reading and math reports available for review through the parent portal. The information is available online at https://in-familyportal.cambiumast.com/#/. An email with a unique code for each child was sent via email from the assistant principal, Ms. Kayla Moore, earlier in the school year. If you need the access code, please email Ms. Moore at kmoore@ewsc.k12.in.us.
All grade 2 students, along with several grade 3 and a few grade 4 students, will participate in the important IREAD-3 assessment on March 2, 3, and 4. It is essential that students arrive on time each day, as testing will begin promptly in the morning. Late students are not permitted to enter the testing room once testing has started.
We kindly ask families to schedule doctor or therapy appointments outside of this testing window. In addition, a Parent Information Meeting will be held on February 26 to share important details about the IREAD-3 assessment. We strongly encourage all parents to attend. A flyer with additional information can be found later in this newsletter.
We encourage all parents to attend our IREAD-3 Parent Meeting on Thursday, February 26, at 6:00 p.m. to learn more about this important state assessment your child will be taking. Please see the flyer in this month's newsletter to register.
Beginning Monday, February 9, fourth-grade students will have the opportunity to purchase a snack during their lunchtime each day. Our cafeteria food service provider will be offering three snack options for $1.00 each. This is a fun “big kid” step for our fourth graders, giving them a chance to practice independence and responsibility—skills they will continue to build as they prepare for middle school.
Snack choices will include:
Fruit Roll-Ups
Rice Krispy Treats
Grandma’s Cookies
If your child would like to purchase snacks at school, please send money in an envelope clearly labeled with your child’s name and “snacks.” The money will be added to your child’s lunch account, and snack purchases will be deducted from that balance as they are made.
This month, our Mini Musketeers are focusing on Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw, which teaches students the importance of taking care of their mind, body, and heart. At school, students practice this habit by learning healthy ways to manage emotions, staying active, getting enough rest, and using positive strategies to calm their bodies and minds when needed. When students take time to recharge and care for themselves, they are better prepared to learn, grow, and lead each day.
Families can support this habit at home by encouraging healthy routines such as getting enough sleep, eating nutritious foods, staying active, and talking about feelings. Taking time for family connections, play, and relaxation also helps children stay balanced and ready to do their best. Together, we are building healthy, confident leaders at school and at home.
East Washington Elementary School will celebrate Read Across America on Friday, February 27, with our annual Read-In. We want our students to get excited about reading! Information will be shared closer to the event about how we will celebrate this special day.
In conjunction with our annual Read-In, students will have the opportunity to support the local Dollars for Scholars program through a fundraiser. The funds raised will help support an EHS Scholarship for one of our East Washington high school seniors. And, the child who raises the most money for this important initiative gets to present the scholarship at the 2025-26 EHS Senior Awards program. More details about the fundraiser will be shared soon.
In our commitment to creating a positive and safe school environment, all students receive valuable lessons from our school counselor on important topics such as self-regulation, bullying prevention, being a good friend, the power of yet, and more. These lessons are designed to help students develop essential social-emotional skills, ensuring they feel happy, supported, and respected. If you have any questions, please reach out to our School Counselor, Mrs. Endris (aendris@ewsc.k12.in.us), or our Student and Family Support Specialist, Mrs. Farnsley (vfarnsley@ewsc.k12.in.us). We are dedicated to fostering a school community where kindness and respect are at the heart of everything we do.
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