Westchester Weekly
Ms. Smiley's Class
Congratulations on earning the Spirit Stick
WE Staff!
Art Club Fun!
News from the Principal
Greetings WE Families,
Here we are! We are wrapping up August and our first month of school. We look forward to seeing you tonight for Curriculum Night.
We will start at 6:00 p.m. in the auditorium for introductions and announcements. We will transition to the classrooms by 6:30. Teachers will share important information about your child's classroom with you. There is always time for questions, but we do ask that this be kept to general information. This is not a time for individual parents/teachers' conversations. If you have specific concerns for your child, it is best to contact your child’s teacher and arrange a time to talk. If you have more than one child, it is ok to step out and move to the other class mid-way through the session. We will wrap up by 7:25 and close out at 7:30 so everyone can get home for the evening.
Tomorrow is our first Community Circle, and all are invited. Please arrive by 8:15 so you can be checked in and in the auditorium for the 8:20 start with the children. We will use our Visitor Management System. Have your ID with you to check in. We will use our new checkout system in which you can quickly scan the QR code on the screen to check out before leaving.
Remember to mark your calendars for these upcoming Westchester events:
September 2nd - 4th: CogAT testing for First-grade students
September 7th: Labor Day, No School
September 21st - 25th: FALL BREAK
From your very grateful principal,
Christine Knox
Handbook update:
HEALTH INFORMATION
The staff at Westchester work to maintain a healthy environment to reduce the transmission of communicable diseases by frequent, thorough handwashing, cleaning/sanitizing surfaces and assessing children who appear ill. We follow the sickness policy guidelines recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Please keep your child home until they are symptom-free for 24 hours without medication, if they exhibit the following:
Fever of 100°F or higher
Diarrhea
Vomiting
Severe Coughing
Eye discharge- mucus or pus draining from the eye, or pink eye
Change in behavior - lethargy, inability to focus
We have a School Health Aid, Nurse Julia McDaniel, who can attend to the immediate needs of sick children. The nurse has an office with a bed and a chair, where students may rest while they wait to be picked up by their parents.
Medication:
Medications (including over-the-counter) can be administered to students with parental permission. They must be provided by the parents and in the original container. All medication will be administered in the clinic. The permission form is available in our clinic.
Allergies:
Westchester strives to create a safe learning environment by reducing the risk of exposure to allergens, including being nut-aware, implementing a no-food-sharing policy, and teaching proper handwashing protocols. Regardless of the steps we take, we cannot guarantee a completely allergen-free environment. We are, however, an allergy-aware school. Each year, our staff is trained to recognize symptoms of an allergic reaction and to respond to an allergy emergency, including administering epinephrine when appropriate. All students receive allergy education. Finally, we encourage students to be advocates for their health, recognize the symptoms of an allergic reaction, and have a plan of action. Please contact Nurse Julia if you have questions.
Each fall semester the gifted review team looks at existing student data to discuss students’ needs and determine if further evaluation for gifted identification is needed. If you are interested in having the team discuss your child’s needs, you may complete the Recommendation for Review Form before Wednesday, September 30. No additional information is needed. The Gifted & Talented Specialist for Westchester Elementary is Jennifer Querubin. For more detailed information about the review process, please contact the Gifted & Talented Specialist for your school at jquerubin@csdecatur.net
Reminders
School Lunch Policy: Please be sure to maintain a positive lunch balance for your child. This will help us avoid any unexpected lunch changes for students. Check your Parent Portal frequently to make sure your child has adequate funds for the cafeteria. You may also find the Parent Portal app (for Apple or Android) to be more convenient.
