Email: amaxon@riverviewschools.com
Website: www.riverviewschools.com
Location: 13425 Colvin Street, Riverview, MI, USA
Phone: 734 285-4080

Dear Memorial Families,

March is coming and everyone is excited for spring, especially as we have had small doses of warmer temperatures to get us in the spirit. As we progress to the end of the school year, each month will get a little busier, as we will see with March's events.

Monday March 4, our Memorial 4th & 5th graders will have an hour long interactive virtual presentation from Michigan's Attorney General's office on OK2Say; please see the attached letter below that provides information and the video that will be shared with our 4th & 5th graders. If you have any questions, please be sure to contact me. Thank you!

March 5, will be our day for Spring Pictures here at Memorial Families can order online either before or after the pictures are taken. Please use the website: https://inter-state.com/order

Memorial's order code is: 85383VB

Memorial is introducing "Tuesday Talks" twice a month for the rest of the school year, where all students in all grades will gather in the gym for a short assembly where we will celebrate our students, specifically students of the month, superstars in the lunchroom, students who have won coloring contests in the cafeteria, and any other fun events that are happening throughout our school. It's a great time for students to be together and to see and be apart of these important acknowledgements. Each of these "Tuesday Talks" will take place beginning at 9:05 and will be wrapped up no later than 9:30 a.m. The dates for Tuesday Talks are: March 5 and March 19.

Friday March 8 is a busy day for us, with Mentor Day, Early Release Day, and later the Hall of Fame Banquet. Congratulations to Memorial's Lisa Pappas, our Teacher of the Year, and to Kristy Warlick, as our Support Person for the year. These two women represent the highest levels of excellence and professionalism for Riverview Community Schools and we are so proud that they represent Memorial.

Memorial PTC is hosting an Afternoon at the Movies for our boys and their VIP for an fun-filled afternoon at the MJR Theater in Southgate on Sunday March 10, from 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. There will be a private showing of Kung Fu Panda 4 along with snacks, raffles, treats, and more! Please register no later than March 1st The tickets include admission to a private showing of the movie, a photo area, and discounted drinks and popcorn for advance purchase. All movie and food tickets will be handed out upon check-in at the MJR on March 10th. Thank you again to our Memorial PTC for this fun-filled afternoon. Here is the link for registration: https://memorial-boys-vip-guest-afternoon-at-the-movies.cheddarup.com/ On a side-note this is the day we spring forward with our time as well.

Thursday March 14 is our Memorial ELA Parent Night that will run from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Please see the flyer below for more details. All are welcome! Please RSVP using the link below so we can have enough pizza and refreshments for all. The focus for this event is on Oral Language.

Here is the RSVP link: https://forms.office.com/r/iwC1K5zUwa

Friday March 15, Representative Jamie Churches is coming to Memorial to read to all three of our 3rd grade classes, for March's month of reading.

Spring Break will officially begin on March 25 and classes will resume on April 1.

Our character trait of focus for the month of March is Honesty/Taking Responsibility. We are still focusing on kindness with our kindness jar messages that we love to share during morning announcements.

Thank you Memorial Families for your support, flexibility, and patience during our first Virtual Day on February 27! You are so appreciated and we are grateful for each of you.

As we move closer to April, we are getting ready for Kindergarten Round-Up and the new student (2024-2025) screener days which will fall on April 19 and May 10. This means that our current kindergarten students (2023-2024) will not have school on these selected days. Please mark your calendars for these dates. I apologize for any inconvenience and confusion this may cause.

As always, thank you for all of your support, kindness, and time that you give to our school! We are a team and we rely on you to make our school great! This is a lot of information! If you have questions or need to reach me, please contact the office. I can be available by phone or we can schedule a meeting. Thank you for reading!

Educationally Yours,

Angelyn Maxon

amaxon@riverviewschools.com

(734) 285-4080

Our school has scheduled an OK2SAY presentation. The presenter will discuss OK2SAY – Michigan's Student Safety Program with students. The program informs students how they can help make their school and community safer by reporting dangerous and concerning behaviors to a trusted adult or OK2SAY.

The following is an overview of the OK2SAY program for each grade level and a brief summary of the topics we address in the presentation.

4th – 5th grade students learn essential rules for being safe online and off. The presentation emphasizes the difference between "tattling" and "telling" and helps distinguish between rude, mean, and bullying behavior. Students will learn effective responses to cyberbullying and recognize common techniques used by internet predators. The students are also introduced to the OK2SAY student safety program and encouraged to always talk to a trusted adult when they see or hear about something that is not right.

You can preview the videos used in the 4th/5th grade presentation here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIwM-zOlzVR6y4vJO0CYmIaXlmq1N-B67

Consider providing a student debrief questionnaire. If you wish to facilitate a class discussion or convey the key takeaways from the presentation, you are welcome to use the Elementary Classroom Discussion Questions.

https://www.dropbox.com/sc/r8d3ahiqrgqng3u/AADyfFDiMEkjsntXwG7YAQyRa

• Mr. Joe Vitale - State Farm Insurance - Wyandotte
• Lanzetta Orthodontics - Taylor
• Feature Finished Auto Detail - Taylor
• Harbor Freight Tools - Southgate
• Kendra Scott Necklaces - https://www.kendrascott.com/jewelry
• Mills Gymnastics - Southgate
• Airborne Adventure Park- Taylor
• SprinkSpec Design LLC - Riverview
• Bubba's 33 - Taylor
• The Oak Cafe - Wyandotte
• Arkay Service Center - Southgate
• Riverview Highlands Golf Course - Riverview
• MJR Theater- Southgate
• Riverview Junior Football Association (RJFA)

Also a big thank you to our families and PTC who also made donations to our most recent events!

• Be kind and patient! Let's set a good example for our students!
• It is illegal to leave your car unattended if it is not parked in a designated parking spot - this includes on Colvin, the drop-off lines, and unmarked spaces in the two parking lots
• It is considered trespassing to park in other business lots - this includes the law office, Hair Forum on Fort Street, and residential drives and spots.
• Students are only supposed to cross at Colvin and Longsdorf where the crossing guards are located. There are spacious sidewalks for students to walk down so that they are crossing with the help of a crossing guard.
• Drivers need to drive slowly and cautiously around school grounds before and after school
• In the east parking lot, respect the cones that are put up for 10 minutes in the morning and in the afternoon, to ensure that those walking by our safe from parking lot traffic.
• Safeties will be at each set of doors and working out of the east parking lot with cones. Please remember these are students who are beginning their first opportunity as leaders within this role. They are nervous and can be easily intimidated. If you see a problem that needs to be addressed, please contact the office and allow for me to handle it. Please do not attempt to correct it yourself. Thank you!
  

• Also our city's emergency vehicles (police, fire, and ambulance) need the driveway kept cleared at all times in case they need to access our building. There is never an appropriate time to stop and hold up the line coming in from Longsdorf to the west parking lot. Thank you for your cooperation and support it making our parking lot safe.

  
  

• If you are arriving to school to pick-up older students, please do not pull into the pick-up line until after 3:30 which would allow for kindergarten families to pick-up safely and exit the parking lot. Many families have reported that they wait on a nearby side street until after 3:30 before entering the west parking lot and find that this works best for all.
  

• April PTC Meeting Change - Meeting will be held on Monday April 22, 2024 at 6:00 p.m.

  
  

• Kroger Community Rewards-

  "Memorial Elementary PTC is participating in the Kroger Community Rewards Program!

  How often do YOU make trips to Kroger?

  Did YOU know those trips can become dollars for Memorial Elementary PTC?

  Here’s how:

  •Visit Kroger.com or open your Kroger app

  •Scroll down to Rewards

  •Click Kroger Community Rewards.

  •Link your card to an Organization

  •Search for your organization

  •Type Memorial Elementary PTC

  •Click Enroll

  This is no charge to you! Kroger simply donates a % of your grocery bill. Who knew giving could be so EASY! Thank you!

  https://www.kroger.com/i/community/community-rewards

Each student is assigned a mentor teacher at Memorial that they will see once a month for a building wide character building lesson. The remainder of the school year dates are as follows: March 8, April 23, and May 21. Sessions will begin at 9:30 a.m. so it's important for students to be here on time so that they don't miss out. These groups are smaller than a traditional classroom and combine students from all different grades within our school. It's a great opportunity for teachers and students to build even stronger community relationships to ensure that all feel that they belong.

Click Here

Click Here

Click Here for Elementary Handbook

This is something new this year, so please mark your calendars. Students will be released at 12:50 on the following dates. Lunches will be served to all students before they are dismissed from school on these dates.

• March 8, 2024
• June 7, 2024

Dismissal is 12:50 on these dates - Lunches will be provided to all students

• March 25 - 29 - No School for students
• April 11 - Kindergarten Round-up - Memorial Library - 6:00 p.m.
• April 19 - No school for current Kindergarten students (2023-2024)
• May 10 - No school for current Kindergarten students (2023 - 2024)
• May 27 - No School for students
• June 7 - Last Day of school (Early Release)

Grade 5 - May 2, 2024 - Spring Concert - 6:00 p.m.

Click Here for Principal Letter

Important Times

Memorial Elementary 2023-2024

8:25 - 8:46 - Breakfast in the Cafeteria

8:40 -Kindergarten teachers will meet students outside at designated area to bring students to class - K – Teachers – NW Doors (closest to cafeteria/Champions Program)

8:45 - Grades 1-5 students will enter through the following doors

1st Grade Teachers – NE Doors (closet to Board Office)

Grade 2 and Bus Students – North Doors (closest to Flag Pole on Colvin)

Grade 3 – NW Doors (closest to cafeteria/Champions)

Grade 4 – SW Doors (closest to main office)

Grade 5 – Recess Doors (closest to the playground and Longsdorf)

Students riding the bus – North Middle Doors Colvin by the flagpole

3:25 - K Dismissal – Teachers will walk students outside – Please communicate with teacher dismissal plans - kindergarten students will not be dismissed unless someone is there to pick them up.

3:30 - Grades 1-5 Dismissal

Our District Calendar for 2023-2024 can be found on our district website after scrolling to the bottom of the page: District Website - Click Here

If you would like your child to eat breakfast, please drop them off no earlier than 8:25 and no later than 8:35. They will come in the cafeteria doors (A.K.A the Kindergarten Doors) and go directly to the lunchroom. Chartwells staff will be able to supervise and assist your child in getting (and eating at the tables in the cafeteria) breakfast. Students will then report to class when the warning bell rings (8:). Students may NOT report to their classroom, go back outside, or go to their lockers before 8:46!

A couple of important reminders:

• Students must report DIRECTLY to the lunchroom. They may NOT go into their classroom or locker to drop their backpack off prior to the warning bell. If this is a repeat issue, you will receive a call and free breakfast program is no longer an option for your child.
• Children must be well-behaved for Chartwells staff in the lunchroom. If this is an issue, you will be called, and breakfast will no longer be an option for your child(ren).
• You may NOT drop your child off UNLESS they are eating breakfast. Chartwells staff are not able to supervise children that are dropped off and not eating breakfast. If you need childcare for your child(ren), please contact Champions before and after school care (see parent newsletter or call the office for contact information).
• You may not drop your child off to the breakfast program earlier than 8:25 am for any reason.
• When the warning bell rings at 8:45, your child must clean up and head to class. If your child reports to class at 8:50 or after, they will be marked tardy.
• Your child does not need to order breakfast ahead of time, or on certain days. This is a drop-in service that you can utilize up to 5 days per week.
• If a student comes to school a few minutes late, a bagged breakfast can be provided if students need one, until 9:10 a.m.

Click Here for Superintendent Hatzl's letter to families

Click here for the CEP Form

There is not a deadline for this form. Thank you!

This link for volunteers allows our office to do a criminal background check with the State of Michigan Police Department and is the first step in becoming a volunteer: Click Here for Volunteer Consent Form

Click Here for District Website for Volunteering

Our district leaders have updated our Strategic Plan for the next 5 years - this plan will be the focal point and road map for all decision making that will be made for instruction, building improvements, staffing, and curriculum changes. After reading, I welcome all input from you on this plan. Strategic Plan Click Here