12-19-25 PAW'S PRESS

Dear Cherokee Families,

Our last day of school before our Holiday Winter Break is December 19th. It is a HALF DAY with dismissal is at 11:44 AM. We will miss our students over break and look forward to seeing them in the NEW YEAR ! Classes resume on January 5th.

The next Paw's Press will be sent on January 4th.

Important Dates

January 5th - Classes resume

January 16th - Leadership Assemblies & Ticket Store - Wear class shirts or Cherokee gear

January 19th - NO SCHOOL - MLK JR DAY

January 22nd - PTO Meeting - Media Center 6:15 PM

January 27th - 4th Grade Concert - See below

January 28th - NO SCHOOL - Professional Development Day

January 30th - PTO Daddy Daughter Dance - details coming soon

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

Updated 1/5/26

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 January
Click here for a printable version of the January 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.

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.

It was nice to see so many families at our holiday event on December 12th. PTO had games, crafts, treats, selfie stations, a magician and even the man in the big red suit!

Our top winners (for each class) for the PTO WALK-A-THON received their prize on December 15th! We had a fun limo trip and went to McDonalds. Thank you to all of our families for their generosity this year with our WALK-A-THON!

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 many great many 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.