Principal's Corner
We hope everyone had a wonderful spring break! We are excited to welcome students back to the building. The first week of school we will take time to review the schoolwide expectations for common areas in the school (hallway, bathroom, office, cafeteria, and playground/recess). Our goal in reviewing these schoolwide expectations is that students will have a strong idea of which behaviors would be expected and unexpected.
Thank you for everyone's participation in spring conferences. We hope you appreciated the time to connect with your student's teacher to discuss how your student is doing at school. If you were unable to schedule or attend your student's conference, please contact the office or your student's teacher.
We look for forward to seeing how much students will growth over these spring months. Thank you for all you do to support your students and the Dragonfly community!
With gratitude,
Principal Walker
Cell Phones/Electronics at School
Please contact the office if you have any further questions.
Utility Resources
Here are some utility assistance programs that will open up over the next few days:
-Latino Network’s utility assistance hotline opened yesterday (Thursday), March 31, 2022 at 1:00 PM. (503) 208-2174
-Human Solutions’ utility assistance hotline will open on Saturday, April 2, 2022 at 12:00 PM. (503) 405-7877
-NAYA’s utility assistance hotline will open Monday, April 4, 2022 at 8:00 AM. (503) 946-9898)
Family Survey
A family survey was sent home with students. The survey is optional. The results from the survey will help the school have a better idea of the needs that exist in our school community, which will allow the school to collaborate with community partners to better provide supports.
You can complete the survey online by clicking on the survey link:
Spring Pictures
Only students who prepaid for pictures or bring in money will have individual pictures taken.
Each class will have their picture taken together.
Order forms will sent home with students. You can also view the order form attached to this newsletter.
April's Themes
Perseverance means that you push yourself to work through challenges or difficult situations. We thought this would be a good area to focus on since we've just come back from spring break and are in our final stretch of the school year. If your student shares challenges they are facing at school, we encourage you to discuss what they can do to practice their perseverance skills.
We will also discuss the feeling of being disappointed. The phrase that we use with disappointed is "maybe next time." We will have conversations with students about how it's okay to feel disappointed and to focus on the idea that maybe they will get their way next time.
Arab American Heritage Month
Arab American Heritage Month celebrates the rich and diverse culture and contributions of the diverse population of Arab Americans. It has been observed during the month of April since 2017.
An estimated 3.7 million Americans have Arab roots with ancestries traced to 22 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, including Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Palestine, Morocco, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, Bahrain, Tunisia, Algeria, Sudan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and others.
Additional Resources:
State Testing
Students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade will begin state testing soon. 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students will take an English Language Arts tests with two parts and a math test with two parts. 5th grade students will also take a science test.
Teachers will work with students to build test taking strategies over the next few weeks. They will also remind students to do their best. You may want to talk to your student about how the most important thing is to give their best effort.
Additionally, students who are well-rested will do better on their tests since they will be able to focus more. We ask for your support in having a well-established bedtime. It is also important that students arrive to school on time, especially in the classes that will have their testing sessions in the morning.
Testing Opt-Out and Exemptions
- Students who receive English Language Development services will take the ELPA to assess their language skills.
- Students in grades 3-5 will take the Math and English Language Art assessments
- 5th grade students will take the Science assessment
Opt-out of Math and/or English Language Arts assessment:
Caregivers can opt their students out of these assessments by completing the opt-out form and submitting it to the office.
Exemption for Science or ELPA (English Language Proficiency):
Caregivers can request a testing exemption from the assessments to accommodate a student's disabilities or religious beliefs. You can fill out the exemption form and return it to school. The principal or assistant principal will meet with you to review the application and discuss the available accommodations for the requested exemption.
Please visit the district's Exemption Guidelines for State Testing page for more information and to access the forms.
COVID Testing Kits
The district has worked with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to supply COVID-19 at-home test kits for students and families!
Each family will be receiving one COVID-19 at-home test kit per student on Friday, April 1. Each kit contains two rapid antigen tests which will give you results in 15 minutes. Having these tests available in our school community helps to expand access to universal testing across the district to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
Students and families are encouraged to use these tests if they develop symptoms consistent with COVID-19 or who have had a known exposure to COVID-19. If the test returns a positive result for a student, please keep your student at home and contact the school.
Please see the attached two-page flyer that contains additional instructions when testing. You can also visit the COVID-19 Testing in Oregon website for further details.
If you have any further questions, you are always welcome to contact the main office.
Kinder Connect
We will also host a Kinder Connect event on Thursday, April 21, from 4:00-6:00 PM. This event will allow families to meet staff and ask any questions they may have. We will share more information about the event soon.
You can visit the Reynolds Kinder Registration website for more information.
Educational Effectiveness Survey
Reynolds School District has partnered with the Center for Educational Effectiveness (CEE) to provide surveys to all families with students in Reynolds Schools, students in grades 4–12, and school staff members. The surveys will be active April 4–28, 2022.
The results of these surveys drive many important decisions and processes in our District. It is critically important to take the time to complete the survey and have your voice heard!
Please complete the survey online by using the QR code in the attached flyer or request a paper copy from the school. We appreciate your feedback!
Salish Ponds Elementary School
Website: https://www.reynolds.k12.or.us/salish
Location: 1210 Northeast 201st Avenue, Fairview, OR, USA
Phone: (503) 492-7260
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/salishpondsrsd