Dragon News

November 20, 2025

Dear McKelvey Primary Families,

I wanted to share that I will be out of the building for a short period, about 9 school days beginning Monday, as I take some family leave. I’m grateful for this time and appreciate your support while I’m away.

Our amazing McKP staff will continue to provide the same caring, consistent experience your children receive every day. During my absence, Mary Johnston (a former Parkway principal), will be available to assist with any needs that arise.

I’m looking forward to returning soon. Thank you for your continued partnership and for being such an incredible school community!

Sincerely,

Dr. Christina Pliske

Mark your Calendar!

November 26-28: No School

Dec 1-15: Cereal Drive for Parkway Food Pantry (more info coming soon)

December 2: McKelvey Night at The Painting Spot 5-8pm

December 10: McTeacher Night at McDonalds (flyer below)

December 19: Half Day-dismiss at 1pm; Spirit Day-Wear Pajamas

December 22 - January 2: No School, Winter Break

January 5: School Resumes

With the ever-changing St. Louis weather, please check the temperature each morning and be sure to have your child dressed appropriately. We consider the National Weather Service's wind chill chart below for decisions on outdoor recess time.

If the temperature is within our guidelines, the students will go outside for fresh air. Please remember to label hats, coats, gloves, etc. If you are in need of winter clothing for your child, please reach out to us and we will assist you.

The online store is open November 3–23 only!

Order online using the link, pick your favorite gear, and all items will be shipped to the school and delivered to your child’s classroom the week of December 15 — just in time for holiday gifts for kids, parents, and grandparents!

Order link: https://mckelvey-pto-spirit-wear.checkoutstores.com/

Happy shopping, Dragons! We can’t wait to see everyone showing off the new designs around our community.

Sponsored by the PTO — supporting school spirit and raising funds for McKelvey! Any questions - McKelveyPTO@gmail.com

Dear Families,

You may know that our classrooms have a calming corner that we call the “Dragon Den.” Students have been learning about the steps of the Dragon Den:

1. Calm (use a calming tool)

2. Feel (identify feelings)

3. Think (consider the size of their problem and the size of their reaction)

4. Choose (make a choice when leaving the Dragon Den)

One of the choices in step four is to follow the “group plan.” The group plan is whatever the whole class is doing together. Students have learned about the difference between following the group plan and following their own plan.

Here is a link to the visuals we use at school.

I encourage families to create a “Dragon Den” at home if possible, no matter how small or simple. This helps to normalize the idea of using the Dragon Den at school, and it helps kids become more familiar with the tools and process.

Thank you for partnering with us!

Mrs. Roth

We are so grateful for our McKelvey teachers and staff, who keep our kids happy, safe, and learning every day. Let’s show them how much we appreciate their hard work by leaving a note of thanks!

This project is sponsored by the McKelvey PTO. The PTO will collect all notes, print them, and deliver them to teachers and staff the week of Thanksgiving.

How to participate:

Write a note for your child’s teacher—or any teacher or staff member you’d like to thank.
Submit one note per form, but you can fill out the form as many times as you like for as many teachers and staff as you wish.
Deadline: Thursday, November 20th at 5:00 PM

Let’s show our McKelvey teachers and staff how much they mean to us!

You can find the form here: https://forms.gle/R2GDGxVrdRqaT5c78

Did you know that Parkway has its own food pantry, located at Northeast Middle School? The Parkway Food Pantry is a charitable organization that serves Parkway students, families, and employees. We are a community that supports one another and is here to serve.

More families are reaching out to the pantry for support right now.

We can support you
If your family needs assistance, please use this link to sign up for our next food distribution day on Tuesday, November 18. Please help us prepare by letting us know you're coming! Your information will be kept confidential and used only for planning our distributions.

To learn more about food pantry assistance, visit our website.

You can find a list of other food pantries in our community here.

You can support the Pantry
The Pantry is funded by monetary and food donations from our community. The Pantry needs donations, especially as we anticipate an increase in need in the coming month.

If you would like to support the pantry through a food drive, you can sign up here or contact Parkway Pantry Partners at parkwaypantrypartners@gmail.com.

If your family or organization is in a season of giving, please consider a donation using our PayPal donation link.

For more information on the Parkway Food Pantry, visit our website.

Please take a moment to take the District Survey Department Survey:

https://www.research.net/r/Y3KNSZS

Eye Thrive is a vision van that serves our community throughout the year. They have added more dates for those that may need vision services at no cost. See the information below, or go to their website at https://eyethrive.org/mvc/

Eye Thrive will be on-site at the listed locations beginning at 9 AM to provide free eye exams and glasses for children ages 4-18 on the dates below.
Arrive early; appointments are given on a first come, first serve basis.
Appointments accepted until 11am.
All services provided at no cost.
Services include a comprehensive eye exam and, if needed, prescription glasses.
Most glasses are made and delivered on-site.
A parental consent form must be completed prior to receiving services.
Capacity onboard is limited; only patients are allowed on the vehicle
December 4: Walnut Park Library

Below is a link to our district calendar (click the blue button) as well as a snapshot of the half and no school days throughout the year. We know unplanned absences will occur, but your child's attendance is extremely important. We miss them when they are gone and they miss important learning and social interaction when they are not at school. If possible, when planning for appointments and/or vacations, please attempt to use the afternoons of half days or days off school throughout the year.

25-26 District Academic Calendar

Important Links

The links and buttons below can be found below. I will keep these here throughout the entire year so that you can easily reference them when needed.

This must be done yearly!

If you are in need of assistance with breakfast or lunch money, please complete the Free and Reduced lunch process. This must be done EVERY Year.

Check out the Menu

School breakfast and lunch menus can be found here. You can deposit money into your student's account at My School Bucks.

Adventure Club

Needing before or after school care? Visit the Adventure Club site to contact them for more information.

https://prcommunityed.org/programs/school-age-care/registration-instructions

Sign up to be a volunteer!

If you think you might want to take advantage of any volunteer opportunities or chaperone field trips you will have to complete the Parkway volunteer requirements. This could take several weeks so be sure to complete it early!