Principal's Message
Dear Hallinan Families,
The Jog-a-Thon! Wow, what an amazing and energetic event! This was the first time students were allowed to run in the halls, and let me tell you, they made very good use of their time! You can see Jog-a-Thon 2022 photos here. Thank you to all the PTO volunteers who made it such a fantastic event despite the last minute change of venue and shift indoors due to unsafe air quality. Your flexibility and creativity is truly appreciated. A huge shoutout to Erin Saylor who not only headed up the Jog-a-Thon, but also organized and took the all-school photo directly below. I've also included student drawn portraits (and pictures) of our 5th grade team.
We fun have plans for next week as well! To celebrate our first quarter of learning, we're having a Spirit Week next week! Monday is Hallinan Spirit Wear day, Tuesday is You are Unique day and Wednesday is Peace, Love and Kindness day. There are details listed in the grid below to help guide students on what to wear each day.
I look forward to seeing you at Conferences on Thursday, 10/27 and Friday, 10/28. Please remember, conferences are for adults only. If you are unable to find childcare, please opt for a zoom conference. Have a great long weekend!
Just a reminder, tomorrow is a grade prep day for our teachers and there is no school. I hope you enjoy the upcoming long weekend.
Melissa Griffiths
The LO Fire Department visited our Pre-K students and talked about fire safety this week. They put on their gear so everyone could see that they are not scary and showed their tools including fire hoses, chain saws and ladders. And, yes, they are called to rescue a lot of cats. They also handed out hats, stickers and safety bags which included a map to discuss a safety plan.
Parent/Teacher Conferences are on Thursday, October 27 & Friday, October 28. Families may choose to attend their conference in-person or via zoom at the time they sign up. Reminder: No school for students on 10/27 & 10/28. Conferences are for parents only. We do not have childcare for students. If you don't have childcare, please sign up for a zoom conference. We look forward to seeing you!
MTSS Parent Guide
Meeting students where they are at academically, personally, and social-emotionally allows us to support the whole child and provide them with a positive, supportive school experience. One way we do this is through our district Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS). MTSS is an instructional framework that includes universal screening of all students, multiple tiers of instruction and support services, and an integrated data collection and assessment system to inform decisions at each tier of instruction. Review the MTSS Parent Guide here. If you have questions, please reach out to your classroom teacher or Student Support Specialist Kate Urbanski.
October is National Bullying Prevention Month. This is a month-long event to prevent bullying and promote kindness, acceptance, and inclusion. School counselor, Ms. E, is introducing the STOP! WALK! TALK! strategy to our students. If students feel hurt by someone's words or actions they should:
- Tell them to STOP
- Then WALK away from the problem behavior
- If the behavior does not stop, TALK to an adult at Hallinan
How can you help? You can help by reinforcing this strategy. It is our sincere desire to have a school environment which is characterized by respect and caring.
While we do not celebrate Halloween at Hallinan, we know it's an exciting time and we allow students to wear costumes to school as long as they abide by the following rules:
Costumes must be worn to school and must stay on throughout the day. Teachers will not be responsible for putting on, taking off, or managing costumes.
Costumes should be appropriate for all regular school activities like quiet work times, recess, and P.E. (no inflatables)
Costumes cannot include accessories such as guns, knives, swords, pitchforks or other items that make them scary, gory, or violent.
Costume masks, make-up and face paint are not allowed.
These guidelines are in place to protect the safety of your children and their costumes. We want students to have a fun AND productive day at school!
Do you recognize anything here? It's a jungle, a well organized jungle thanks to Shelby Setter! Please stop by Lost and Found. We want all these jackets, sweaters and water bottles to find their lost children. If you are here for conferences, jog-a-thon or the Harvest Fest, please stop by and look through our ever-growing collection of found items. Whatever is left on 11/1 will be donated to a worthy cause.
For the safety of children, volunteers are required to have an approved background check when volunteering in schools. Please click here: Volunteer Application for LOSD to start the online application and background check process.
Hello Hallinan Families!
Slices of Gratitude
A huge THANK YOU to Erin Saylor & Jesi Silco for donating so much time and effort into making Jog-A-Thon a reality. These women put in so much time ordering t-shirts, designing water bottles, procuring prizes, organizing volunteers, and much more behind-the-scenes work. And then at the last minute, they worked with Lee, Melissa, Linda, and Ms. Monica Glumbik to quickly switch the event indoors due to air quality. And even that wasn't super easy, it didn't happen by magic. These ladies worked at it and so we all owe them a huge thanks! The feedback from the kiddos seemed to be that they were pretty stoked to run indoors!
Lap winners will be announced next week and we are still accepting donations through Peldgstar until Oct.31st!! So it's not too late for Grandma to send in that pledge. Pledge link here: https://pledgestar.com/hallinan/?
In the next newsletter, we will again mention our sponsors because we want to give them as much gratitude as possible! And a real quick shout out to Chris Thompson! Thank you Chris for live streaming the event for ALL parents! If you see him around please share your gratitude!
Missed Our Fabulous and Informative PTO Meeting?
At our PTO meeting this morning we learned a little about the school store, the HOPES committee, some fifth-grade celebration ideas, and the book fair. We also learned from Debi Panning that she is again working with the teaching staff to ensure our kids have comfortable classrooms aka flexible seating. This was part of the pre-covid agenda and it is back on the table (pun intended). This has been a high priority issue for parents, teachers, and obviously wiggly kiddos and we are looking forward to seeing that all roll out and will keep you updated on the results.
Our next PTO meeting is on Nov. 17th, 6:30-7:30 pm in the library. We look forward to you joining us!
OBOB Team Registration
Lots of info this week! If you want your kids to LOVE reading, please read about OBOB below!
OBOB Registration Forms will be coming home with all 3rd-5th graders this week. Alternatively, you can complete the online form HERE. Links with more information and a YouTube example of an OBOB "battle" are below and listed on the registration form. Return physical forms to the office, or email them to Hallinan OBOB Chairs - Stephanie Hengstler and Elise Klein by Friday 11/18.
Oregon Battle of the Books is a statewide program designed to promote a love of reading! Teams of two to five students compete to answer trivia questions drawn from 16 books in a quiz-show-style format. If your child is looking for a team, please let us know by indicating it on the form and we'll help build teams. Students are welcome to listen to audiobooks if they prefer that format. We are looking forward to a great OBOB event!
Links to Additional information
OBOB Website: https://www.oregonbattleofthebooks.org/
Video of an OBOB battle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtTsoHtGTLg
Stephanie and Elise - Your OBOB Co-Chair's
Tara Clasen and Shelby Setter
Hallinan PTO Co-Presidents 2022-23
Userway is Lake Oswego School District’s primary accessibility tool. When you see this graphic (or “widget”) on our district webpages, click on it to view a variety of accessibility tools, e.g., keyboard navigation, screen reader, pause animations, text spacing or color options. You can add this tool to your own computer at WCAG 2.1 AA Website Accessibility - Accessible Websites with UserWay | UserWay. Userway does not store information on users and is COPPA, FERPA, HIPAA, GDPR and ADA compliant.
Assistive Technology … Did you know?
Technology is changing and improving the school experience for students with dyslexia. Text-to-speech and speech-to-text software, calculators, and note-taking apps are common examples of “assistive technology”. Many of us enjoy audiobooks for pleasure reading, but audiobooks also can serve as a vital piece of assistive technology for those with learning differences such as dyslexia.
With audiobooks everyone can acquire new vocabulary, expand their knowledge and love of books, and enjoy complex or intriguing storylines. Because dyslexics have great listening comprehension, audiobooks enable independent access to school curriculum through “ear-reading” of complex or voluminous textbooks and novels.
The Lake Oswego Public Library has many audiobook services here:
LOSD assistive technology and audiobook resource information can be found here:
LOSD Audiobooks & Read-Aloud Tools
If you have questions or concerns regarding your child’s learning, please contact the school principal and/or literacy specialist. Another great parent resource would be to contact your school’s Special Education Advisory Committee representative. Please see here to learn how to contact your school representative.
The Oregon Health Authority is funding 8-week Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) parenting classes with varying days and times available. Free to Oregon residents! https://sites.google.com/thechildcenter.org/cpsfororegonparents/home
Office Phone: 503-534-2353
Principal Melissa Griffiths - griffitm@loswego.k12.or.us
Administrative Assistant Lee Gates - gatesl@loswego.k12.or.us
Administrative Assistant Linda Stevens - stevensl@loswego.k12.or.us
Click here to see the updated LOSD Elementary School Student and Family Handbook