As we step into March, we are excited to embrace a new theme for the month: Courage. Courage is the strength to face challenges, try new things, and step outside our comfort zones. This month, we will be encouraging our students to cultivate their inner bravery—whether it's in the classroom, on the playground, or in their personal growth.

We hope you will join us in discussing what courage means with your child at home, and how they can apply it to their daily lives. Together, let's help our children become confident, resilient individuals who face each new day with the courage to be their best selves!

We will continue working together daily to help our students grow in accountability and teamwork. As part of our ongoing efforts, we revisit The Heart of the Yellow Jacket expectations each week, reinforcing positive behavior and holding our students accountable.

Your support at home is invaluable—helping remind students of our behavior matrix (The Heart of a Yellow Jacket) and the importance of staying focused on these expectations. One of the highlights of the month is our visit to the Yellow Jacket Store, where students can spend the Jacket Bucks they've earned by following our behavior expectations. We will visit the Jacket Buck Store during the week of March 10th.

Our next Behavior Bash will take place this coming week! This 9 weeks bash, we’ll be taking our students back to the East End Ballfields to celebrate their hard work and positive behavior. It's a fun way for our students to see the impact of staying on track with the expectations we set with our behavior matrix. Your support in reinforcing these values at home plays a big role in helping our students succeed.

Thank you for your continued support in making this a positive and productive school year!

Tamara Strawn, Ed.S.

Principal

March 3-7th-Read Across America Week

March 13th-Class Pictures

March 24-28th-Spring Break

April 3rd-Spring Pictures

April 10th-1st Grade Family Night (See Information Below)

April 14th-May 16th-Spring State Testing Window

April 15th-Purple Up Day

April 18th-Military Child Celebration (Students Only)

May 26th-Memorial Day-No School

May 29th-Last Day of School

Our Capturing Kids' Hearts program is all about building strong, positive relationships, creating a safe and supportive environment, and showing genuine care and respect. The meaning behind sharing good things each day is to build a positive and supportive school culture where students feel valued and connected. By sharing good things, whether they are personal achievements, positive experiences, or acts of kindness, students and staff can celebrate moments of joy and success.

A social contract is an agreement, in individual classrooms and staff meeting rooms, about how everyone in that room agrees to work together and treat each other. It’s posted in each classroom where everyone can see it and refer back to it. The social contract is about making sure students and staff work together, respect each other, and treats everyone the way they would like to be treated.

The Launch each day serves as a powerful way to end the day with intentionality, setting a positive tone and fostering a strong sense of connection. Daily launches build community, reinforces social-emotional learning, motivates students, and creates a positive, structured environment in which both students and teachers can thrive.

Our staff at East End Elementary continue to work together to create a nurturing environment for our children and we want to give you the opportunity to take a moment to recognize their incredible dedication and hard work.

If you have a moment, we encourage you to send a staff shout-out. We will get the shout-out to the staff member.

Let’s celebrate the amazing individuals who contribute so much to our children’s growth and happiness.

If you have any pictures of you and your military child/dependent that you would allow us to use for our Military Child Celebration slideshow, please send those to joysharp@sheridanschools.org with the subject line: Military Child Celebration.

• Want to eat lunch with your child? We have a limited number of seats, so you are required to call the office to reserve a specific date and spot. 501.888.4262
• Please try and send all lunch and snacks with your student in the morning rather than bring to the office for us to deliver.

• You MUST have your student car tag in order to pick up your child. (Handbook-pg.68)
• You can purchase ONE additional car tag in the office for $1.00.
• Parents must stay in their vehicle in the carline. We have staff to assist students. When stopped, students should open their car door and have all items ready to get out in the morning. If you have a child safety lock on your door, please ask for help opening the door.
• When staff start to close the morning gate at 8am, we will not re-open it. You must check your student in the front office after 8am.
• For the afternoon carline, we encourage you to work on your child buckling themselves. If they cannot, please pull up to the front parking lot after they get into your vehicle to buckle them. This helps our carline work more efficiently.
• If at all possible, please have your student's car seat on the passenger side. It is safer for staff and students if all students enter and exit the vehicle from the passenger side.

• Students at EEE have been learning about the HEART of the YellowJacket.
• Honest, Effort, Accountable, Respect, Teamwork
• Every positive behavior shows the HEART of the YellowJacket.
• Students can earn Jacket Bucks!
• Behavior Bash after each 9 weeks. Criteria to go: No MAJOR Behavior Referrals and 80% on class behavior log.
• POSITIVE Office Referrals=Phone call home & Celebrated on our Caught Being Kind Wall!

Students are doing a great job showing the HEART of a YellowJacket in all areas of the building. See the expected behaviors in the hallway.

Arkansas law (Act 930 of 2017) requires the administration of a developmentally appropriate measurement or assessment for kindergarten through grade two (K-2) in literacy and mathematics. Beginning in the 2024-2025 school year, ATLAS, or Arkansas Teaching and Learning Assessment System, will be administered. The ATLAS K-2 assessment is intended to be administered three times during the school year so that educators can make data-driven instructional decisions. This will help inform teachers of students that require remediation, intervention and/or enrichment. Each test is an adaptive type test, and students are not expected to know all of the test items.

Parental involvement in elementary education—such as assisting with homework, signing daily folders, and holding children accountable—has been shown to significantly enhance student success and growth. Research indicates that children whose parents are actively engaged in their education tend to achieve higher academic performance, exhibit better social skills, and demonstrate improved classroom behavior.

UAMS Health Six Bridges Clinic is an adolescent and young adult substance use treatment clinic.

• Six Bridges Clinic offers outpatient substance use treatment for Arkansans ages 12-21.

• Treatment is individualized to meet the needs of the adolescent and may include individual, group, and family therapies; medication; ongoing recovery support services.

• The clinic accepts self-referrals and/or a provider may send us a referral.

• Simply complete this online referral form OR call 501-526-8487 to schedule an appointment.

AR ConnectNow is a 24/7-accessible virtual therapy clinic for all ages. Call 800-482-9921 to schedule.

• Access short-term virtual therapy services anywhere in the state for help managing stress, depression, anxiety, grief, and more.

• AR ConnectNow has transitioned from a free service to a fee-for-service model. The UAMS Office of Financial Clearance is available to assist patients who are uninsured or underinsured.

• Although AR ConnectNow’s therapy is no longer free, the virtual clinic still offers free resource coordination to help Arkansans meet their basic needs (and sometimes more specific needs).

• The AR ConnectNow website was recently redesigned and expanded to include mental health education and tools for building healthy coping skills.

• Find more tips on Instagram: @UAMS_ARConnectNow

Please feel free to contact East End Elementary administration for any reason. We are here to partner with you to ensure safety and success for your child. You may call the office at 501.888.4264 or by the emails listed below. Thank you for choosing to share your child with EEE!

Tamara Strawn, Principal

tamarastrawn@sheridanschools.org

Alan Braden, Assistant Principal

alanbraden@sheridanschools.org

Christy Whitley, Counselor

christywhitley@sheridanschools.org