2025

This school year has gotten off to a great start! The students are acclimating themselves to attending school (again). For some of our students, they have never been in school before. For our staff, fall is a time for building relationships, going over expectations, and helping our students to feel comfortable at school. We have already completed our first round of NWEA testing, picture day, and our first mentoring lesson.

We appreciate all of the support and positivity from our families and staff. This has helped get our year underway. October will be filled with fun activities and learning. We have already had some volunteers in our building and look forward to having more! Our Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) kick off was held September 25th and it was well attended.

GO PIRATES!

Gianina Meli

gmeli@riverviewschools.com

Ms. Annie Prusakiewicz, secretary (ext. 4)

Email: aprusakiewicz@riverviewschools.com
Website: https://forest.riverviewschools.com/
Location: 19400 Hampton Street, Riverview, MI, USA
Phone: (734) 479-2550, #4 (for office)

October:

Homecoming Spirit Week October 13th - October 17th

13th - Bright Lights, Big City // Wear Neon, Glitter or anything that shines like city lights

14th - Tourist Tuesday // Dress with sunglasses, hat, camera or a vacation shirt

15th - City Workers Day // Dress like a city helper, police officer, firefighter, mail carrier, construction worker, the mayor

16th- Dress like a movie star or wear a character shirt

17th - Wear Maroon & Gold from head to toe

17th - Homecoming Parade begins at 5 PM & Game vs. Grosse Ile

October (continued)

1st - COUNT DAY // Please make sure your student is on time and present for the full day

6th - 10th // Scholastic Book Fair

8th - Walk & Roll to School Day

8th - Forest Parent Club Meeting 6PM

10th - Boo Bash sponsored by FPC 5-7PM, Forest School grounds

23rd - Early Release (12:40 PM dismissal), Conferences from 1-7PM

24th - Mentoring

30th - Kindergarten Halloween Concert 6PM

ALL KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS SHOULD REPORT IN COSTUME TO THE MUSIC ROOM AT 5:30 PM VIA THE FRONT DOORS OF THE BUILDING

Halloween Spirit Week

27th - Monster Monday // Team Sully or Team Mike (wear blue or green)

28th - Trick or toes Tuesday // wear Halloween socks

29th - Witch or Wizard Wednesday // Hat Day

30th - Thriller Thursday // Wear Orange and Black

31st - Forest Elementary Halloween parade and class activities (see information below)

If your child is struggling in the area of academics or behavior, there are 3 different ways that our school can support your child. MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support), a 504 Plan, and an IEP (Individualized Education Program) are all frameworks used in schools to support students, but they differ in scope, purpose, and legal requirements.

1. MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support):

• Purpose: A proactive, school-wide approach to identifying and supporting students with academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs.
• Structure: It is a tiered system:
• Tier 1: Universal support for all students.
• Tier 2: Targeted support for students who need more help.
• Tier 3: Intensive, individualized interventions for students with significant needs.
• Applicability: All students can benefit from MTSS. It is not specific to students with disabilities but helps identify students who might need more formal support like a 504 or an IEP.
• Focus: Includes academic support (like MTSS intervention- we have 3 interventionists at Forest that service these students) and behavioral support (Tier 2 or 3 plan; social work, etc.)

2. 504 Plan (Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973):

• Purpose: Provides accommodations for students with disabilities to ensure they have equal access to education.
• Eligibility: Students with any disability (physical or mental) that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as learning, are eligible.
• Focus: Accommodations (e.g., extended time on tests, seating arrangements) that remove barriers but do not modify the curriculum or educational expectations.
• Legal Requirement: Federal civil rights law ensures that students with disabilities are not discriminated against in public schools and schools receiving federal funding.
• Plan: Less formal than an IEP, a 504 Plan is typically written by a school team and focuses on accommodations, not specialized instruction.

3. IEP (Individualized Education Program):

• Purpose: A legal document designed to provide specialized instruction, services, and supports for students with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
• Eligibility: A student must have one of the 13 specific disabilities listed under IDEA (e.g., learning disabilities, autism, hearing impairments) and need special education services.
• Focus: Provides individualized special education services, accommodations, and modifications to meet the unique needs of the student, including specific educational goals and progress monitoring.
• Legal Requirement: IEPs are legally binding documents that require schools to provide the outlined services and supports. They are reviewed and updated annually.
• Plan: Highly detailed, outlining educational goals, support services, and how the student will be integrated into the general education curriculum when possible.

Key Differences:

• MTSS is a school-wide framework used to support all students and identify those who may need more support (including 504 Plans or IEPs).
• A 504 Plan provides accommodations for students with disabilities but does not include specialized instruction.
• An IEP is for students who require specialized instruction due to a qualifying disability under IDEA, and it includes both services and accommodations.

These systems can work together. For example, a student identified through MTSS as needing more support might eventually receive a 504 Plan or an IEP.

Who Do I Contact for More Info?

· For MTSS, you can contact your child’s classroom teacher.

· For more info on a 504, contact Ms. Meli.

· For more info on an IEP, contact Ms. Sketch - MSketch@riverviewschools.com or Ms. Meli -GMeli@riverviewschools.com

Popcorn Wednesday started on 9/24. Students that have not prepaid for the year will be able to purchase popcorn for 50 cents per bag.

School attendance is important because it directly impacts a student's academic success, social development, and future opportunities by building a strong foundation for learning, fostering critical skills, and improving chances of graduating and securing stable employment. Chronic absenteeism, or missing 10% or more of school days, leads to learning gaps, poor academic performance, increased risk of dropping out, and can affect a student's long-term health and well-being

Mrs. Sandefur - Hailey B.

Mrs. Peterson - Brinley H.

Ms. Schock - Rivers M.

Mrs. Coleman - Grace E.

Mrs. Uhse - Cecilia F.

Mrs. Masters - Hussein A.

Mrs. Taft - Riley S.

Mrs. Avery - Caleb B.

Mrs. Kissel - Kiaan G.

Mrs. LaFehr - Violet W.

Ms. Curry - Ayla T.

Mrs. Grunwald - Gabriel C.

Mr. Snyder - Kairi C.

Mr. Newland - Hudson S.

Ms. Fraczek - Griffin S.

Mrs. Gajewski - Maggie L.

Congratulations!!

• Each morning, children will be greeted by their teacher and enter the building through their assigned pod door. Every grade level has their own "pod" with their own assigned set of doors, where students will enter and exit each day. These doors are located around the building and will be labeled in chalk during the first week of school. (See diagram below.)
• If your child comes between 8:20-8:40 to eat breakfast, they should also use the front doors.
• Pod doors will not be open until 8:35
• Parents of non-busing students can either walk their child up to the door or use the drop off lane. There will be parent club volunteers and staff members to assist children getting out of cars in the drop off lane.
• Parents should not walk with their child into the building.
• When walking from the parking lot to the building, you MUST use the crosswalk (located directly in front of the flag pole and painted as such).
• Please do not walk in between cars in the drop off lane. This is very dangerous!
• Please assist your child in crossing the crosswalk, especially our younger students.
• Drivers, DO NOT GET OUT OF YOUR CAR IN THE DROP OFF LANE! If you must get out, please find a parking spot, so we can continue the traffic flow.
• If your child is not ready to get out of the car quickly (and without you), do not use the drop off lane. In this case, please park.
• When using the drop off lane, please pull all the way up to the sign that says "STOP" (to the left of the front office).
• DO NOT USE THE STAFF PARKING LOT! There are more staff than there are spots. Let's give these amazing people the privilege of not having to walk far, after teaching our children all day. This way, they can make sure they are ready and able to be there to teach your child on time,.
• DO NOT ALLOW YOUR CHILD TO GET OUT FROM THE DRIVER'S SIDE OF THE CAR WHILE IN THE DROP OFF LANE!!! This is a HUGE safety issue!!
• DO NOT let your child out across the side street and allow them to cross to get to school. This is a huge safety issue! We have crossing safeties to make sure everyone is safe!
• The warning bell will ring at 8:35.
• Please make sure your child is in the doors and ready to learn by 8:40.
• If your child arrives at 8:45 or later, the pod doors will be closed and locked (for safety). In this case, please follow our tardy procedure, which is outlined below.
• If your child is consistently tardy, please enroll them in Champions before and after school care (see below).
• Many of our intervention classes (for those that need more support in reading and/or math), and classroom circles occur first thing in the morning. It is imperative that all students arrive to school on time consistently to ensure their emotional and academic needs are being met. Also, breakfast (if your child chooses to buy it) is first thing in the day as well.

You will find a poster on the front doors (next to buzzer). If you are signing your child in to school late (after 8:40) or you are picking your child up early, please use this QR code. You can do so by going to your camera on your phone, as if you are getting ready to take a picture. A "website or code" yellow box will pop up on your screen. Click on that box to access the sign in/out form. Once form is completed, ring the buzzer to alert our secretary. You would also use this process when bringing your child (back) to school from an appointment.

• Students will be dismissed at 3:20 pm from their pod doors.
• Parents must be there to pick up their child(ren) promptly. We know there may be an exception or two that you are unable to avoid. If you know you will not be on time consistently, please enroll your child in Champions (before and after school care)-see below.
• All K-2 students that are being picked up can only be picked up by family listed on their emergency contacts. You can always call the office to add on to these or change them.
• Also, K-2 students must have the adult picking them up come to the pod doors. These students are not allowed to walk out to the cars alone.
• DO NOT PARK IN FIRE LANE FOR ANY REASON. If your car is parked in fire lane, you may be issued a ticket.

• Make sure your child can open all items that you put into their lunchbox. The go-gurts and pizza sauce in the Lunchables are VERY difficult to open, even for the adults! Practice opening these items at home (and send only what they are able to open by themselves).
• Do not send huge lunches. 2-3 items (and a drink) is more than sufficient. They do have snack time as well.
• Practice at home for our younger kids! Set a 20 minute timer when your child starts eating. When the timer goes off, talk with your child about how much they have eaten. We don't want to rush our students, but it is 30 minutes from lunch line to clean up & line up again. Most of the time, families have much longer to sit and talk while they eat. They may not be used to this. A timer can help to give them a better concept of their time alotted to eat.
• Reinforce and remind your child of positive behavior in the lunchroom. Keeping hands and feet to self (especially while in line), facing forward (so that they can see when to move forward) and talking once they have eaten the most important parts of their lunches are all key.
• Do not send in sugar-loaded lunches. This causes a major crash later that afternoon.
• Supervise or oversee your child, if they make their own lunch.

Watch D.O.G.S. are fathers, step-fathers, grandfathers, uncles, big brothers and other father-figures who volunteer at school. During the day, DOGS may read, work on flashcards with students, play at recess, eat lunch with, patrol the hallways, make sure the perimeter is secure, help with morning drop off and actively engage with not only their students, but other students as well.

If you or another family member would like to volunteer at Forest Elementary, please fill out the following form. You must have a new background check on file every school year.

https://www.riverviewschools.com/parents/volunteering

If your child will need to take medication at school, use an inhaler, or if there is the possibility of your child needing over-the-counter medication, please have your Doctor fill out and sign the form (below). As the parent/guardian, you will sign it as well. Lastly, please turn the form into the office with the original/prescribed bottle or box of medication.

https://www.discoverchampions.com/our-locations/riverview/mi/001393