October Newsletter

We had an amazing first month of school! From Eagle Bucks, to our first two SOAR assemblies, the opening of our school store and the start up of our EAGLE Arcade, our school wide PBIS is running strong! We had our Back-To-School night and our PTO Family Picnic, where many of our students got myself and other staff members wet in the dunk tank!

In October, we will have our Book Fair, Book Bingo and our Fall Parties! It is shaping up to be a great month and we are looking forward to it!

Here are some important dates for October and November:

• October 7 - PTO Meeting - 6:30 pm (Library)
• October 14 - REMOTE LEARNING DAY
• October 15-18 - Book Fair
• October 16 - Family and Parent Engagement Event & PTO Storytime
• October 17 - PTO Book Bingo
• October 22 - Fall Picture Retakes
• October 24 - McTeacher Night
• October 26 - Clothing Drive
• October 31 - Fall Parties - 2:30 pm
• November 1 - NO SCHOOL
• November 10 - PTO Skating Party
• November 20 - Bedtime Story Night
• November 27-29 - NO SCHOOL

A few reminders about our arrival and dismissal procedures:

• Please do not park in handicapped spots without sticker.
• If you are walking to and from the building to get your child, please park on the blacktop and students must be accompanied by a parent for safety reasons.
• If you are using the loop, do not get out of vehicle. This slows the line down and can become a safety issue.
• Please do not go through the middle of the loop as a shortcut.
• Please wait for pedestrians to fully cross in the crosswalks before resuming driving.

This school year, we are partnering with New Hope Ministries to provide food for families in need over the weekend. If you are interested in this program or have any questions, please contact our counselor, Mr. Connell at JConnell@wssd.k12.pa.us or contact him via Seesaw.

FALL CLEAN OUT..... if you got 'em, share 'em!!!! We are in search of gently used children's books for our Book Bingo events (10/16 & 10/17) during the Scholastic Book Fair (10/15-18). They can be dropped off any time during school hours before 10/11 in the vestibule right before going into the office. There will be a clearly marked box for the used books.

THE PTO THANKS YOU!

There’s no book fair like a Washington Heights' Scholastic Book Fair!

It starts with a choice: What do I want to read? And since being empowered to choose their own books is a milestone opportunity to identify and express their own voice, kids also leave the Book Fair as bolder, prouder, and stronger individuals.

There will be 2 time slots during the school day, each day (9-10:30am & 1:45-3:15pm) for students to shop (please wait for the papers to come home from your student's teacher to send in cash, a check made out to WHTPO OR set up an eWallet at https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/content/fairs/ewallet.html).

In addition, there will be time for parents, guardians, grandparents, etc. to shop in the evening on Wednesday the 16th from 6-7pm during "Story Time with Mrs. Zimmerman & Friends" AND Thursday the 17th during "Book Bingo" from 6-7:30pm!

Want to volunteer during the book fair? Make sure you have your clearances and click on https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70A054EAAAE2DA3F94-51633469-scholasticto sign up today!

Prior to our PTO Story Time event, come check out our Family and Parent Engagement event from 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm.

She's baaaaaaack!!!! AND she's bringing friends! Come join Mrs. Laurie Zimmerman (retired teacher & student fav) and some of HER favorite teachers during a fun little story hour in the library.

Drop off the kiddos in the library and head over to the cafeteria to shop the Scholastic Book Fair for one whole hour, uninterrupted--what a dream! We'll also be doing a mini bingo sampling as well but remember, the book fair is just one of the ways we can raise funds to expand our students' education outside the classroom!

*Any child staying for story time must be accompanied by an adult, parent or caregiver. Adults/parents/caregivers must stay in the building during this time.*

Come try your luck at book bingo during the Scholastic Book Fair. Straight across, diagonal, black out.... everyone’s a winner at book bingo!!! You too can have the opportunity to take home a [gently used] book of your choice AND even a chance to win a gift certificate to Cupboard Makers Books in Enola!

If you would like to donate your gently used books (elementary age K-4th grade appropriate), please drop them in the labeled box in the vestibule right before heading into the main office.

Also remember the scholastic fair will be open during this time to shop your last minute reading needs, before the fair ends the 18th!

You’ll be lovin’ it! Come see your favorite Washington Heights’ Staff servin’ up some tasty eats & fun treats! Come to the McDonald's in the Shoppes at Cedar Cliff anytime between 5-8pm and a portion of ALL sales will go directly to our PTO, which in turn helps fund our education adventures outside of the classroom.

Ever wonder what happens to clothes that can't be donated or reused? THEY GET RECYCLED! Bring your BAGGED used clothing, blankets, sheets, shoes, etc. to 531 Walnut St. Lemoyne (Washington Heights Elementary School) on October 26th anytime from 11am-2pm. We'll even get the bags from your vehicle and load them on the truck. The Gathering Company, LLC will be there and ready to collect AND ready to deliver! They will be giving us 10 cents per pound, which goes directly to our PTO. Events like these are wonderful because every little bit counts towards our funding efforts to expand education outside the classroom.

That's right, every student eats for free this year at West Shore. This is made possible by Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) of the National School Lunch Program, which allows schools in low-income areas to provide meals at no cost to families.

Every school year, a variety of supportive opportunities are available for students based on household income. These include, but are not limited to: fee waivers for participation in after-school activities, e-rate funds that offset the cost of access to technology resources, along with additional state and federal grant funding for programs and resources to support students. Historically, the District used the Free and Reduced Meal Application to gather this data, but because the District is participating in CEP (free meals for all students) we need to use a separate application.

If you think you qualify for supports, please check out this link for more information.

Responsibility is taking action and understanding the impact of our choices. I hope you take the time to talk with your child about our focus word during the month of October. I look forward to seeing our students practicing responsibility this month and every month!

West Shore Character Strong