The Jayhawk Journal

Here we are with just 2 weeks until we enter Spring Break. There is so much that we still have to accomplish in these weeks ahead. First and foremost, I could not be prouder of how many students were able to join us for our SOAR Celebration this week. As always, thank you to our PTA for the candy and water, and a special thank you to Phoenix Theaters Laurel Park for always donating enough popcorn for 500 students! Just a reminder that all students have a fresh start for Trimester 3, we want to see all of our students at the next one!

Report Cards and I-Ready Reports will go live at the end of the week. We will send out directions once again to help you look over your student's report card for this trimester. We are currently getting ready to prepare for the MSTEP Test which will take place when we return from Spring Break. More Information will follow on my next newsletter.

We are thrilled with the number of students who are participating in March Is Reading Month! Keep hitting those books and collecting your home runs! As always, feel free to wear green and have a little fun with your outfits for March 17th. We will have a Spirit Week the last week before break, you can see the themed days in the March Is Reading Month section below.

Wishing a little luck of the Irish to all this week!

- Mr. Traub

Johnson Upper Elementary School is committed to providing a safe, respectful environment that supports the academic and socio-emotional needs of every student as they develop the necessary skills to become capable, confident, life-long learners.

This week we focused on being an Upstander and Anti-Bullying. Here at Johnson, our goal is to always include and stick up for one another. Mr. B took the time to go over some helpful tips for students at our SOAR Assembly this month in this area. Take the time to talk with your student about what they do to have positive interactions with their peers. Our next set of SOAR Clubs will take place on Friday, March 27th.

We would like to congratulate Ms. Herriff for being voted this award by her colleagues this week! Ms. Herriff is a 6th Grade Teacher here at Johnson. She is committed to building a family feeling in her classroom and would do anything to help support one of her students. She is part of our PBIS Team, can be seen in our parking lot directing traffic, and always contributes to so many ideas and conversations with her colleagues. She enjoys getting to know her students and working with them to accomplish anything. We appreciate her hard work and we are lucky to have her!

My Favorite Part of Being A Jayhawk Is....

Getting to be with my students every day!

Some Of My Favorite Things

Place To Travel: Key West

Foods: Rice Pilaf

Color: Pink

College: Eastern Michigan University

TV Show: Yellowstone

Sports Team: Detroit Tigers

School Subject: Social Studies

My Hobbies....

Gardening, traveling, reading, cooking, movies, and spending time with my family.

We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting on April 7th. Please see our flyer below for our next Skate Night at Riverside.

For the month of March, all LPS schools will focus on using integrity. Take the time to talk with your student about what that means to them and your family.

Hello Johnson Family,

Our Spring Flower Sale has officially kicked off!

Each family should have received an email this morning with a unique link for your child’s sales page. Please use that link to share with friends and family so they can easily support our school.

The sale runs through March 20, and we are hoping to make this fundraiser a success! Every order helps support our students and school programs, so please help us spread the word far and wide.

Order Pickup Information:
All orders must be picked up on May 15 directly from Johnson Upper Elementary School. (Additional pickup details will be shared as the date gets closer.)

Thank you for your continued support—we can’t wait to see our community in bloom this spring!

If you have any questions, please reach out to Mrs. Beck or Mrs. Jablonski.

Monday 3/16

Tuesday 3/17 Bagel Day - Wear Green!

Wednesday 3/18 Frost Counselors Visit 6th Grade

Thursday 3/19 7th Grade Preview Night at Frost

Friday 3/20

3/17 Wear Green Day!

3/17 Bagel Day

3/18 Frost Counselors visit 6th Grade

3/19 Frost Preview Night for Incoming 7th Graders

3/26 PTA Skate Night at Riverside

3/27 SOAR Clubs

3/30 - 4/3 Spring Break

We currently have an overflowing Lost and Found cart. Coats, water bottles, lunch boxes, gloves, boots and so very much more. It would be very helpful if items you send to school with your student are labeled in some way with your student's name so we can try to reunite them with their belongings. Please remind your student to take a moment to look through the lost and found and collect their items. We are running out of space on our rack for items! Thank you for your help.

Just a reminder for the upcoming weather that is expected. Please drive with extra caution in the parking lot as rain begins to fall. Practice patience and understanding as our staff works to keep all students and parents safe in the parking lot. We appreciate your ongoing partnership in these areas!

We will be going outside for recess as much as we can! We will only stay inside if the windchill is below 15 degrees Fahrenheit. This will be determined by using the Real Feel on Accuweather.com. Students are encouraged to bring boots and change in their lockers. If snow is on the ground, students can go anywhere if they have boots on. If students are in shoes, they will stay on the blacktop to play during that time.

Planning to volunteer this year? Fill out the iChat form now and you'll be all set for the year! Just enter today's date (or a day next week) for when you plan to begin volunteering. Then, you'll be all set when it comes time to help with Holiday Shop, Field Day, and other events.

We ask all parents/guardians to complete the welcome back checklist on parent connect. Why? This information is who we will contact in the event of an emergency. Year after year contacts will follow a student's file if they go unchecked. Please make sure all the contacts are current.

A nutritious lunch and breakfast is available for free each day at Johnson and at all Livonia Public Schools. If you forget to pack a lunch or just run out of time, we understand. Please know we will provide your student one of our lunch options always, no matter what. We hope this option will save you a trip up to the school. We also would like to remind parents that for safety reasons, we do not allow Door Dash orders for students. Thank you for understanding.

Students cannot be dropped off for school in the morning prior to 8:15am. This is when the doors open for breakfast and when staff is available to supervise students. Prior to this time, all school doors are locked. Students are not to be left unattended, arrangements must be made. Also, dismissal is at 3:30pm daily and at 11:45am on half days. It is required that all students who are picked up in the car loop be picked up no later than 3:45pm. Staff is not available to supervise students beyond that time. The district offers a SACC program for those students that cannot be picked up by 3:45pm. Please contact SACC at (734)744-2966 to make arrangements.

If your student is arriving after the last tardy bell, please note they need to check in at the office. They should enter the building through door number one (with the arch) and check in on the chromebook in the office. Parents do NOT need to come in to drop off students only to pick up.

If you need to pick up your student prior to the end of the school day, please know you will need to come into the office to sign them out and be verified by the office staff. Whomever is picking up a student early, must be listed on the Emergency Card.

Oftentimes a student will come to the office with a medical need. The office staff is able to dispense medication as needed as long as the medication is: 1) Delivered to school by a parent in the original unopened package or prescription container, {NO MEDICATION can be brought to school by students} 2) As long as there is an individual, signed medical authorization on file for each medication {form available in the office and online} Medication includes but is not limited to cough drops, aspirin, Tylenol, Advil, prescription drugs, creams, lotions, vitamins, inhalers, EpiPens, etc.… We cannot administer any medication that is not listed on file in the office. Please reach out to Jill Jablonski or Amy Dimmer in the office to set up a time to bring in medications and to review your student’s medical needs when they are in the building.

"There is a superhero in all of us, we just need the courage to put on the cape." - Superman