Los Pen NEUs

Dear Los Pen Families,

I hope you all had a fantastic week!

It was wonderful seeing so much creativity and school spirit on display during our Crazy Hair Day! Just look at our vivacious TK teachers! From wild colors to gravity-defying styles, our students and staff certainly brought their fun and energetic spirits to school. Thank you for helping your children participate and making it such a memorable day for everyone.

As we look ahead, we are excited to continue our school-wide social-emotional learning lessons from CharacterStrong. Our students and staff will be diving into a new unit focused on gratitude.

We define gratitude as choosing to appreciate the people and things in our lives. Throughout the month, students across all grade levels will explore how practicing gratitude can boost well-being and happiness, while continuing to build key skills like emotion regulation, positive self-talk, and stress management. You can read more about gratitude in the flyer linked below.

Very Respectfully,

Mrs. Weekes

Maybe you see students messing around in the bathroom, taking someone else’s belongings, or a classmate being teased on the playground. These are all times when it is important to tell a trusted adult at school.

Sometimes, when children see or hear something unexpected or uncomfortable, they may not know what to do. Instead of fight or flight, they may freeze and not know how to respond. This is a natural reaction, and children should never feel bad for not knowing what to do in the moment. We can help them feel more comfortable by talking through different situations and practicing what they could say or do. Role-playing with your child can help them feel reassured on what to do, and asking a trusted adult for help. Remember, speaking up is not tattling when you are trying to keep someone safe or our property protected!

Family Conversation: Ask your child, “What could you do if you saw someone taking another student’s belongings or heard someone saying something unkind?” Practice a few scenarios together and discuss which trusted adults they can go to at school and at home. Remind your child that they don’t have to handle a difficult situation alone—asking for help is a sign of strength!

-Ms. Bohn

Running Club will be starting up again in November!

Parents can sign up to volunteer here: [https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C054BA5AD2FA2FCC61-66478826-running] or through the flyer below. See you out there!

Planning for your child’s future can feel overwhelming, but having the right information can bring peace of mind.

Join us for an upcoming Knowledge & Network webinar featuring the Executive Director of the Special Needs Trust Foundation and the organization’s Legal Counsels. They will share helpful information about:

• 🏡 Estate planning and planning for your child’s future

• 💰 Special Needs Trusts – what they are and when they may be appropriate

• 📝 Setting up and executing a Special Needs Trust

• 💳 How funds can be used and distributed

• ❓ Common questions and considerations for families

📅 Date: Tuesday, October 20, 2026
🕐 Time: 10:00 to 11:30 am
💻 Location: MS Teams Webinar

🔗 Registration: Registration is required. Please register here.

Note to registrants:

After registration, you will receive a confirmation email with a link to join the webinar and an option to add the event to your calendar. Please check your Spam folder if you did not receive the confirmation email. It is recommended to add notifications@powayusd.com to your contacts or safe-sender list to prevent reminder emails going into the spam folder again.

Saturday, October 17, 2026

• Fall Festival - 3:00 PM on the blacktop (sponsored by PTA)

Thursday, October 22, 2026

• Early Dismissal - Dismissal for ALL grades at 1:25 PM

Monday, October 26 - Friday October 31, 2026

• Red Ribbon Week (see Spirit Week schedule, below)

Thursday, October 29, 2026

• Early Dismissal - Dismissal for ALL grades at 1:25 PM

Friday, October 30, 2026

• Friday Flag - 8:45 on the blacktop

• Fall Festival - October 17th, 3-6pm: This our biggest event of the year! Come play fun games, check out the Los Pen Gross Lab, enjoy some food and get into the holiday spirit. Please do not forget to purchase your student's wristband ahead of the event at https://lospen.myptezcentral.com/ for $10 per wristband. Only students age 4+ require a wristband for this event.
• October 20th: Dine-out with teachers and staff at Best Pizza and Brew at the Carmel Mountain location. What makes this dine-out extra special is that between 4 and 8pm, some of our amazing teachers and staff will also be joining. Kids love seeing their teachers outside of the school so we thought this would be a fun dine-out where they can come say hi to their teachers (past or present) while enjoying some delicious pizza!