Hello wonderful Panther Lake families and community,
By the way it looks outside, the Pacific Northwest fall has officially arrived! Please don't forget to make sure your scholar is dressed appropriately for school (layers) and has a spare set of clothes just in case. We want to provide as much play time outdoors as possible!
Our Family Survey is officially open and we would love to hear your voice! Your input is imperative for improving our school for our scholars and our community. Please take a moment to provide your insight regarding our school and how we're doing by clicking here or following the button above!
Don't forget to join us next week for our Veterans Day assemblies on Monday and Tuesday mornings.
Have you served in the military? Do you have a veteran family member?
We invite you to attend our morning assemblies on November 7th and 8th.
Scholar Led Conferences
Panther Lake continues to celebrate our families and the hard work our scholars are doing everyday! Our 100% SLC attendance history shows how committed our families are to school partnership and we cannot do this work without you! Teachers are reaching out to schedule conferences and if you have any specific needs, please let us know. Our school book fair will be open during conferences starting November 9th through the 10th. Scholars will be able to preview the book fair next week. Check out our Panther Lake Book Fair website before the fair!
Below, you will find our Title Compact Link via Button: Panther Lake Elementary is a Title 1 school. Title 1 is a federal program that provides additional funding to school programs to meet the educational needs of at-risk students. School districts receive grant money based on several factors including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in each building. Each Title 1 School is required to have a Title Compact with families. The compact outlines the roles of the scholar, family, and the school. We annually collect feedback from scholars, parents, and staff in the creation of this compact.
Rainy Day Recess
Washington weather is pretty wet in the fall and winter months. At Panther Lake, we want our kids to have as much time playing outside as possible. This does mean we do not call for indoor recess when it is raining. We will only call for indoor recess when the weather is unsafe outside. Unsafe weather is lightening, thunder, or hail.
Please ensure your scholar is dressed for the weather to include waterproof shoes (if possible) and a waterproof jacket (if possible). We highly recommend dressing in layers if needed and packing an extra set of clothes, just in case. Umbrellas may be brought to school for arrival and dismissal. For safety reasons, umbrellas will not be allowed at recess.
Please reach out if you need anything as we have resources available if needed.
Morning Breakfast and Classroom Tardy
Please remind your scholar to be in the gym and ready for our morning assembly by 9:10am. Teachers begin taking attendance at 9:10am as that is the official start time for school. Scholars arriving after 9:10 without checking in with their teacher will be marked as tardy. Please check ParentVue for all information regarding your scholar's academic progress and attendance.
Thank you again for your continued partnership! We truly appreciate every one of our Panther Lake families!
Tabatha Ritch
(Principal)
253-945-3634
253-391-7444 (Cell - Text okay)
and
Emily Smith
(Assistant Principal)
253-945-3608
253-391-6251 (Cell - Text okay)
A message from Ms. Mo
Hello!
I am Marla Mo, Panther Lake's Reading Teacher.
I am here to offer all the support you need for your child's reading needs.
You can email me at mmo@fwps.org or call me at 253.945.3637 to ask questions, tell me your concerns, or find ways to help your child fall in love with reading and improve their literacy skills.
I love sharing my knowledge with parents to give you the tools and information you need.
Thank you for partnering with me to support your child's reading at home and at school!
Seeking Members!
President- Renee Metanoia
Vice President- Juliana Ha
Secretary- Jason O'Daniel
Treasurer- Kianna Hall
PTA is still in need of members to support family event planning and building up our Panther Lake community.
If you would like to join our PTA, please reach out to Mr. Sanchez or any of our board members.
To report absences:
- Call Mrs. Hagen at 253-945-3603 or office 253-945-3600, email: bhagen@fwps.org
- Report on ParentVue, preferable before school starts at 9:10am (before teacher submit absences)
*If absences are not reported before 10:15am, parents will get a district automated absence callout* to remind them to call students absence in.
TIP: If students go to a medical appointment and misses school, you can provide a doctor's note so the absence can be excused as “medical” which will not count as an absent for BECCA.
**If you have a question about BECCA, our state school attendance law, please feel free to email or call me for more information.**
Prearranged absence: Form attached needs to be completed when student is out for more than 2 days BEFORE missing school. This applies for vacations or extended absences.
*parent will complete the top portion, then teacher will complete their section, parent and student will sign and final step will be completed from our principal, Mrs. Ritch.*
Tardy hours 9:15-9:40am
Absence is after 9:40am
If students are late and check in after 9:40am and it is under an unexcused reason, parents will get the auto absence callout.
- PLEASE put a reason down when students are coming in late or leaving early, if there is no reason written down, then the attendance code will not be accurate and it will be automatically coded as unexcused.
If you have any attendance questions, please contact Data Secretary Bonnie Hagen 253-945-3603 bhagen@fwps.org