The Wheatland News

WES Vision Statement
CREWS
Instrumental Music
Staffing
Thank you

WES Vision Statement

At Wheatland, we develop lasting relationships, empower choice, and engage in unique learning.

CREWS

WES focuses on building relationships and community among students and staff. Each month students meet with their “Crews” for about 25 minutes. Crews are led by a staff member and are composed of students from all grade levels. Students remain in the same Crew each school year, having an opportunity to deepen their relationships and add to their network of teachers and peers. Crew time will be spent doing fun activities to help students & staff get to know each other as well as help our surrounding community. Kindergarten students will have their first crew in October, while 1st-5th will in September. Ask your child about their Crew!!

Instrumental Music

5th grade students have the opportunity to join band or orchestra. Students started the year by seeing the various instruments demonstrated for them and then testing on each to see what they have a natural affinity. There is quite a bit of research behind the benefits of music, so I would encourage you to have your child play in one of these outstanding programs.

Staffing

We are looking for an instructional aide who will primarily support kindergarten. If you are interested or know someone who is, please go to Human Resources on the district website to apply. The position will be M-F from 8:00-4:00.

Thank You

The older I get, the more sentimental I get. I find myself in times of reflection being overwhelmed with gratitude for serving our Wheatland school community. Being around children gives me perspective in a world that often seems to be focused on negativity. Children find joy in so many simple things. Their perspective keeps me grounded and filled with hope and excitement for the future.

At the district’s opening assembly for all staff this year, the guest speaker spoke about a senior living center complex that included a preschool. Residence and preschoolers interact daily. One story struck me the deepest. A ninety-year-old man shared that he lost his will and purpose to live, but now found it as a result of interacting with the children. The POWER of children changed his life. Our WES students fill my bucket each day, and for that, I am so very grateful.

I am also grateful for you, too! Being a parent is the hardest job there is, filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, sometimes all happening in the same instant. Two of my children are adults now, and my youngest is in high school. I am frequently reminded of their time here at Wheatland when I interact with your children. Please know that you are doing a great job!! Sometimes the hardest thing to do is step away and let them grow through a struggle. That is one of the hardest things to do. Please know your parenting doesn’t go unnoticed, and keep up the good work.

As we move further into the eighteenth year WES has existed, please know that I am looking forward to greeting your children each day. Even on challenging days, it is a pleasure and honor to serve as the principal.

We’re off to a great start this year. Summer break is pretty amazing, but it fills my cup to see our Wheatland staff and students at the beginning of the year. You can see the anticipation and excitement on their faces for what lies ahead. I’m also filled with excitement for my second year as the school counselor. I’ll provide classroom lessons to all students, small group activities, individual counseling and open-office times for anyone who needs to talk or process through difficulties. There’s more information on my “Meet the Counselor” flyer in the foyer. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email me.

Some additional information for you, you should have received an email from Shauna about Safer, Smarter Kids. This is our district’s approved curriculum for all elementary school counselors. Your attention to this is greatly appreciated.

This summer I had the opportunity to network with counselors from all over the country. Something that piqued my interest was parent book studies. So, I ordered tons of great books and began reading – for pleasure, it was amazing! (For the past two years I’ve only had time for textbooks). Currently I’m enjoying The Gift of Failure by Jessica Lahey. If you’re interested in a book study group, please fill out the form attached by scanning the QR code above or clicking here. The subjects of all book studies will be about how to best support our students/children.

I’m looking forward to another great school year, and I’m so thankful for the opportunity to serve our school community.

The Wheatland Elementary Library Birthday Book Club is one in which you can celebrate your child’s birthday in a special way and help our library collection continue to grow.

To donate, please go to bit.ly/wesbbc25 and click on the “Donate Books” button to see our wish list

All donations must be submitted by September 26, 2025.

Your generosity will benefit all of our students. We thank you for your participation and support of our school library!!

Student Council is a group sponsored by Mrs. Sprague for 4th and 5th grade students. This year, meetings will be split, so 4th and 5th graders will have separate meetings. We will have our first meeting of the school year on September 24 (5th grade members only), and will discuss the responsibilities of being a Wheatland Student Council Member. We will also brainstorm a list of theme days for this year's Red Ribbon Week.

First Student, which provides the district’s transportation service, has rolled out a new, improved FirstView App. This new app will allow enhanced, real-time tracking capabilities for all transportation services. If you have the FirstView Classic app on your phone, please delete it and download the FirstView 1.0 app in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. You will need to use code D5F5F to access Andover’s information. If you have Transportation issues you can call First Student at (316) 247-1926.

Our system is now live for accepting online Child Nutrition Program Applications and meal account deposits.

Child Nutrition Program - Online Application Now Available through the Meal Magic Family Portal

Link: https://usd385.familyportal.cloud/
Click on Apply for Benefits and follow the prompts in order to complete the application
Questions on applications may be directed to Bonnie Scarth at 316-218-4603 or scarthbonnie@usd385.org.

The Meal Magic Family Portal is also the gateway to parent/guardian access to student meal accounts. Click on My Account then “I need to register as a Family Portal user” to begin your account set up. Please read the instructions and watch the how-to videos to familiarize yourself with the software. Once setup is complete, the following actions are available in the portal.

Meal account deposit(s)
Student account balances and transactions
Ability to transfer funds between student accounts
Notification options
Student purchase settings
Please note that online meal account transactions will have a 4% software processing fee to cover the third-party processing cost.

We are also accepting meal account deposits by cash or check in the WES office. Please clearly label your food service deposits by student ID with the amount to be deposited per student. Checks should be made out to USD 385. When processed, these payments will be reflected in your Meal Magic portal.

Reporting Absences

If your student will be absent for any reason, you must notify the WES Office. Please email Claire at pruettc@usd385.org or call the office at (316) 218-4820 to report any absence. Simply notifying your student's teacher does not mean the message is received in the office and your student may be marked incorrectly. If your student will be absent for 4 or more days in a row, you must fill out a Pre-Planned Extended Absence Form and return it to your child's teacher.

Changes in Dismissal

If you need to make a change to your child's method of transportation after school, you must notify the office no later than 3:00PM. If possible, please try to keep changes to a minimum. Frequent changes cause confusion for students. If the office has not received notification of a change, your child will be sent home via the method they usually take.

Signing In or Out

If your child arrives after class has begun (8:45 am), please stop by the office and check your child in.

If your child must leave school during school hours, a parent/guardian must come to the office to check them out. If anyone besides the parent/guardian is to pick up your child, the school must have a signed note, email or phone call authorizing the release to this person. We thank you in advance for your cooperation as this aids in our focus on having a safe school for everyone. Please do not pick up your student after 3:15PM if at all possible.