Mighty Mascoutah November Edition

Happy Fall! November will be busy yet Grateful month at MES. Please take some time to view the information below to stay connected!

Communication between home & school is vital for student success. Our teachers & staff have been working very hard to make every student feel welcome & supported while at school. We all at MES are dedicated to keeping in mind our vision statement: "We want to be a nationally recognized elementary school of choice whose staff goes above and beyond all students.

Please feel free to contact the MES office if you have any questions.

Educationally Yours,

The Dream Team

Admin Team

Use the links below to view the 2025-2026 MSD19 School Calendar

2025-2026 School Calendar List

2025-2026 School Calendar Grid

November 3-12: MES Scholastic Book Fair

November 5: Book Fair 5-8 pm

November 6: Pictures Retakes

November 10: Veterans Day Assemblies (WEAR RED, WHITE, AND BLUE)

November 11: Veterans Day (No School)

November 12: World Kindness Day

November 13: School Superintendent Appreciation Day

November 17-21: 4th Grade Field Trip at The Belleville Historical Society

November 18: PTO Meeting 6-7pm

November 20: Grief Awareness Day at MES (WE ALL WILL WEAR BLUE)

November 21: Spirit Day

November 25: MES Hayride

November 26-28: Thanksgiving Holiday (No School)

December 8-10: Santa's Kottage

December 10: Pancakes with Santa

We love to hear about all the amazing things are staff are doing in the lives of our MES Scholars. If your child's teacher has gone over and beyond to make you and your child feel supported, take a moment and shout them out. We will give these shout outs to staff and line our front office with things amazing words of affirmation.

November is here, and it’s the perfect time to celebrate gratitude and giving! Throughout the month, MES will be supporting the Mascoutah Meals program, which provides bags of food for students and families in our community who need it most.

Each grade level is invited to contribute specific food items to help fill these bags (see details below). Together, our MES family can make a big difference in ensuring that every student has access to nutritious meals.

We’ll wrap up our Month of Gratitude with a fun hayride celebration on November 25th for all MES students!

Here’s what each grade level is bringing:

• Kindergarten – Granola bars

• First Grade – Boxes of cereal

• Second Grade – Pasta (spaghetti-o’s, ravioli, macaroni & cheese)

• Third Grade – Applesauce, pudding, and fruit cups

• Fourth Grade – Hamburger or tuna helper, cans of tuna

• Fifth Grade – Instant oatmeal packets and ramen soup

Thank you for helping us show kindness, generosity, and community spirit this November! 💜

We love that our school community enjoys spending time together on our playground after school! However, we’ve noticed that some parents and children have been arriving on the playground before dismissal time, which can cause distractions for classes that are still learning or finishing outdoor activities.

To help maintain a calm and focused environment for all students, we kindly ask that parents and children remain outside the school gate until the following times:

• Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday: 3:25 p.m.

• Wednesday: 2:25 p.m.

This will allow teachers and students to finish their day without interruptions and will ensure that everyone can safely transition to dismissal.

We truly appreciate your cooperation and understanding as we work together to keep our school environment safe, focused, and welcoming for all.

Warm regards,

MES Admin Team

We will not have school on Tuesday, November 11 to celebrate Veterans Day. Our students will be performing ONE musical piece and will learn about the importance of our Veterans. We want to invite families to attend if you wish on Monday, November 10 at the following times:

• Families with student is K-2 will have their assembly from in the Big Gym at 9:15 am. Doors will open at 9:00 am.
• Families with students in 3-5 will have their assembly at 11:00 am in the Big Gym. Doors will open at 10:45 am.
• All Families are asked to leave directly following the Assembly, through our gym exit. We will not have students showing families around the building on this day.

All staff students and families are encouraged to wear Red, Blue and White for the assembly. On behalf of MES, THANK YOU to all of our veterans and your service and sacrifice to our country!

Lexia is a paid program that we utilize in the Mascoutah School District. It boosts student learning for all students, but especially those behind their grade level peers. Lexia is not taken for a grade.

Your child has been working very hard on reading at school. To keep the momentum going, please set aside some time for your child to practice at home. Every time your child reads, they become better! You can help your child become a stronger reader by reading to/with them or making sure they read every day. Think of your child’s reading skills as muscles. If they don’t use them, they lose their firmness. One way your child can work on building their reading muscles is by working in Lexia® Core5® Reading. If you are interested in this, please reach out to your child's teacher for their login information.

• Set aside about 30 minutes per week to work in the program.

• Please allow your child to work independently at their own pace.

• Provide encouragement, but don’t give away the answers. In particular, note whether the apple symbol at the bottom left hand side of the screen turns red. This indicates that your child is having difficulty with that particular skill.

Does your child have a parent who is currently deployed and you feel like he or she could benefit from being in a deployment group? If so, please contact Mrs. Vitale at vitalem@msd19.org. She will be starting a deployment group by mid-October to help students who are missing their loved ones with our social worker intern, Mrs. Martell. Sessions will occur once per week for approximately 8 weeks.

A few days ago our school district sent out an email reminding families that if their financial situation has recently changed due to job loss, furlough, reduced work hours, or other circumstances, please consider applying for the Free and Reduced Meal Program—even if you haven’t qualified in the past. The application helps determine eligibility for free or reduced-cost meals through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and is completely confidential.

Application Link: https://www.msd19.org/page/free-reduced-lunch-application

For assistance completing the form or for general questions about eligibility, please contact your child’s school office.

This is also a reminder that parents can sign their children up for the FREE Weekend Meals program. On the third Friday of each month, a bag of food for the weekend is sent home with these children. The bag usually includes breakfast items, entrees and easy-to-make food items. Please call the school office if you are interested in signing your child up for this program.

Hello everyone! Just a few quick reminders from the school nurse!

Change of Weather/Change of Clothes

Now that the weather has changed, please send a change of clothes appropriate for the weather with your child to school. This can stay in their locker in case they need them for an emergency or if something happens that requires a change. Currently most students have shorts and t-shirts as their change of clothing.Having an extra set of clothes on hand for your student prevents them from missing prolonged class time and calls home to bring items in. Students are most comfortable and ready to learn if they have their own clothes to change into quickly when accidents happen.

Cough Drops-

'Tis the season. Students need to have a dated parent note in order to have cough drops at school and the cough drops will be held in the nurse's office.

Good lifestyle habits for health and illness prevention

• Breakfast everyday - studies have shown that students who eat breakfast do better at school !

• Plenty of Sleep - helps with focus, improves concentration and academic performance

• Exercise daily - benefits both physical and mental wellbeing

Illness

• Please keep your child home when ill.

• Students should be fever free( less than 100.4), no vomiting,and no diarrhea x 24hrs before returning to school

• Encourage your student to cough and sneeze into their elbow and good hand washing with soap and water

• Any Medications, including over the counter, need a doctor’s order and parent permission form completed to be given at school. Please bring all medications to the nurse, do not send them in with your student. Thank you!

1. Please send a paper note with ALL DISMISSAL CHANGES (i.e early pick-up and change in mode)
2. Please DO NOT pick up your kiddo during our dismissal times 3:00-3:30. It makes it difficult to locate, pack-up, and get your kiddos to you
3. If an emergency arises, please have dismissal changes made BY PHONE to the office by 12:30pm
4. Please DO NOT send changes via email, DOJO, thrillshare, etc. to the teacher. If they are absent, this message will not get received.

5. Extended Time Doors Open between 3:40-3:45 pm. We will not open the doors earlier than that. We need to dismiss all students before we open the door. Please do not ring the bell until 3:45 pm.

Ho ho ho! Our Annual Pancakes with Santa event is coming up, and we need a Santa to help make the magic happen! 🌟

This beloved tradition gives our students the chance to snap a picture with Santa and celebrate the holiday season together. Our families look forward to this every year — and we’d love to keep the joy going!

📅 Date: Tuesday, December 10
🕔 Time: 5:00–8:00 PM

If you’d like to bring some holiday cheer (and maybe test out your best “Ho Ho Ho!”), please email Dr. Cooley at cooleym@msd19.org.

Let’s make this year’s event merry and bright! 🎄❤️

The City of Mascoutah is looking to hire a crossing guard. Please contact the Mascoutah Police Department and ask for Lt. Steinkamp for more information or to apply. Information on the job is listed below-

The hourly pay is $18 / hour, and they work 3 hours per day.

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday:

Morning Hours: 7:15 – 8:45

Afternoon Hours: 2:30 – 4:00

Wednesday:

Morning Hours: 7:15 – 8:45

Afternoon Hours: 1:30 – 3:00