Falcons Weekly News

Dear Willow Hill Families,

Attendance at school is critical to student success. Any absence from school is an absence from instruction. At Willow Hill, we follow the process outlined by TCAPS to keep families informed. We encourage families to review the Attendance Monitoring Process found in the Elementary Handbook. We are sending out notifications in the coming weeks. The initial notification serves as an advisory, with subsequent letters indicating advancement into the Truancy Intervention process.

We recognize there are potentially competing demands for time that conflict with our school day schedule. We always encourage families to try to plan vacations that coincide with our district calendar. Parents are encouraged to follow protocols for keeping students home when they are sick. Call our office to report your child out when they will not be in school. If school is missed for medical appointments, please follow up with a note of excusal from that office. If you receive a notification and would like more information, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Thanks for your ongoing support of our school!

Go Falcons!

Angela

October 26-29 GTHD Hearing/Vision Screening (see below)
October 30 Halloween Parade, 9:30am & Monster Mash

November 2 No School, Regional Staff Development Day

November 4 Parent/Teacher Conferences, 4:30-7:30

November 9-13 Scholastic Book Fair

November 10 Parent/Teacher Conferences, 4:30-7:30

November 12 Parent/Teacher Conferences, 4:30-7:30

November 13 Picture Retake Day

2026-27 TCAPS District Calendar

Hearing and vision screenings required by the State of Michigan under the Public Health Code and provided by the Grand Traverse County Health Department Hearing and Vision Technicians are scheduled for your school as follows:

WILLOW HILL ELEMENTARY
OCTOBER 26-29, 2026 and DECEMBER 2 & 3, 2026

Dates are subject to change in the event of an unexpected school cancellation, such as inclement weather.

The goal of Michigan’s hearing and vision screening program is to identify children who may have hearing or vision concerns and assist families in finding care. Early detection and treatment, when needed, can greatly support a child’s learning and success in school.

• All students who are present on the scheduled screening dates, including any change dates, will be screened according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) grade-level screening guidelines.

• If you have a concern regarding your child’s hearing or vision, please let your child’s teacher or the school office know before the first scheduled screening date.

• If your child is currently under the care of an optometrist, ophthalmologist, other eye-care specialist, or hearing specialist and has a current care plan in place, please review the under-care section of the waiver.

• If your child has a shunt or other medically implanted device, please review the waiver for additional information regarding hearing screenings.

• If you wish to decline screening services, please print and complete the waiver. Return the completed waiver to the school at least one school day before the first scheduled screening date.
  
  

For 75 years, Michigan Public Health has provided free hearing and vision screening services to children throughout the State. Since 1949, the programs have served over 50 million children through standardized screenings and a formal referral process. If your child meets the MDHSS referral guidelines based on their hearing or vision screening, initial referral paperwork will be sent home in your child’s backpack.

Sign up is happening now for Parent/Teacher Conferences.

Wednesday, November 4, 4:30-7:30pm

Tuesday, November 10, 4:30-7:30pm

Thursday, November 12, 4:30-7:30pm

In order to remain within each teacher’s schedule of appointments, we request that parents make one appointment per child.

To get to the Willow Hill Elementary Conference Scheduler, follow the link provided:

https://ptcfast.com/schools/Willow_Hill_Elementary

• Select the teacher(s) from the list that you need to conference with, then click submit.

• You will be prompted to provide a working email

• PTCfast will send you an email with a link to the teacher schedule(s) you requested.

• Select your conference time. If you choose more than one teacher, you can coordinate the conference times for each of your children.
  
  

Please schedule your child(ren)’s conference before Thursday, October 29.

Thank you in advance for helping us to achieve our school goal of holding a parent-teacher conference for 100% of our students. If you have any questions, please contact your child’s teacher or the office.

We will have our traditional all-school Halloween Parade, on 10/30/26 at 9:30 a.m.

• Spectators: Families are welcome to cheer on our students as we parade through Slabtown. Adults choosing to dress up are asked to keep their faces visible without masks.

• General costume guidelines for students include:

• No full face coverings

• Non-violent

• No weapons or gore

• Please have students come to school ready in their costumes with change of clothes for after the parade. Please check with your child’s teacher regarding specific classroom festivities.

Please check with your child on missing items. More LOST and not much FOUND!

It is helpful to label all of your child’s items. Parents are encouraged to stop in and take a look.

School pictures are now available!

To see if your child's pictures are available to view, please log in to your account at mylifetouch.com. If you don’t have an account yet, you can create one using your email address.

To locate your child's photos, you'll need their Student ID or Portrait ID and Access Code. If you don't have this information, you can:

• Check your inbox for an email from Lifetouch that may contain your access credentials and a direct link to your child's images.

• Wait for your proof sheet to arrive, which will include your Portrait ID and Access Code.

• Contact the Lifetouch Help Center for assistance
  
  

Please note that pictures may not become available for all students at the same time, so check back later if you don't see your child's images yet.

Lunch Menu

MONDAY

1st choice: Hamburger
2nd choice: Cheeseburger

3rd choice: soy jammer with crackers & cheese stick

TUESDAY

1st choice: Beef Walking Taco

2nd choice: Meatless Walking Taco

3rd choice: soy jammer with crackers & cheese stick

WEDNESDAY

1st choice: Grilled Cheese Sandwich

2nd choice: Mini Pepperoni Calzones

3rd choice: soy jammer with crackers & yogurt

THURSDAY

1st choice: Chicken Tender Basket w/ Emoji Potatoes

2nd choice: X

3rd choice: soy jammer with crackers & yogurt

FRIDAY

1st choice: Cheese Pizza

2nd choice: Pepperoni Pizza

3rd choice: soy jammer with crackers & cheese stick

Salad bar with fruit and veggies are offered every day to all hot lunch students.

**Students who are bringing lunch from home are able to purchase milk for $0.75

Join us at Thirlby Field on Friday, Oct 23 as the Trojans and Titans come together to honor Veterans, active-duty military, and first responders! Gates open at 5:30 PM, with ceremonies starting at 6:35 PM and kickoff at 7:10 PM.

Tickets are $7 in advance on GoFan.co or 7–8 at the Thirteenth Street gate. Admission is FREE for all Veterans, active military, and first responders. Be sure to pick up commemorative apparel at either high school from Oct 12–23 (red for Trojans and blue for Titans) with all proceeds benefiting Reining Liberty Ranch.

Skip the lines and get full event details at www.tcaps.net/tcpatriotgame!

Join us for TCAPS Board Community Connections, an informal space for families and community members to discuss district-wide updates and TCAPS policy. This month’s meeting will be on October 22, 2026 at West Middle School from 5:00-6:00 p.m. Trustee Ballenger is scheduled to attend. Note: For specific building-level or student concerns, please contact your school principal first for the most direct assistance.