EAST WARD COUGAR NEWS - OCT '25

Hey Cougars!

Many thanks to our Home and School for their tremendous efforts with this year’s Fun Run and thank you to all who were involved in making the event a success!

Everyone Matters at East Ward Elementary School. In all that we say and do, our faculty and staff strive to exemplify this message. It is my hope that everyone feels this at our school! We are working very hard this year to ensure that every child gets the instruction that they need to grow as learners. To that end, your child’s iReady diagnostic scores are posted in the Backpack tab in Infinite Campus. You should have received a communication from DASD about the iReady assessment this morning. If you have questions, there is a great deal of information that can be accessed at https://i-readycentral.com/familycenter/. I recommend caregivers become as familiar with this fun educational tool. You can also email your child’s teacher if you have additional questions.

We love having our students at school each day and on time — it sets them up for success and helps them start their day feeling connected and ready to learn! If your child will be absent or arriving late, please email ew_attendance@dasd.org to let us know. This email serves as your written note, so there’s no need to send in a paper copy or email teachers separately. If you don’t have access to email, a written note will still be required.

Please note that families may receive an automated phone call if a student is marked absent or late and we have not yet received notice. Sending an email in advance helps us keep attendance records accurate and prevents unnecessary calls. Thank you for helping your child build great attendance habits — every day and every minute at school makes a difference!

Because everyone matters, we will also be sending our Climate Survey very soon (Window opens October 16. I would greatly appreciate all caregivers’ participation. Your voices will help us to improve. Students in grades 3-12 will also participate in a student climate survey and our faculty and staff will also participate in a survey. All surveys are anonymous. Thank you all in advance.

We need your help. I am hoping there may be a team of parents interested in running an Indian Heritage Assembly for our third graders. To date, we do not have any parents volunteering to lead this year's assembly. In order to ensure a positive experience for everyone, we need a team of volunteers to be involved and a parent to take the lead. If you are of Indian heritage, or want to learn more about Indian heritage, please consider volunteering. Our third graders have had such wonderful experiences in previous years, and we want to continue to provide this experience for years to come. Please email the office at ew_attendance@dasd.org if you are interested.

If you have a love of gardening and a willingness to volunteer your time and skills, please send an email to the office at ew_attendance@dasd.org. Our current volunteer has been trying to “retire” from our school, but will not until a new volunteer can be secured.

If you are interested in being a chaperone for fieldtrips, it is essential that you have your clearances submitted to the office. If we have all forms from previous years, you must submit the Act 24 Arrest or Conviction Report, which can be found on our website in the EW Backpack. All clearances are good for 5 years. The forms needed are: Criminal record, Child abuse, Volunteer disclosure form, and TB test results. They can all be found in the EW BackPack.

Lastly, we will have a parade at school on October 31 at 9:45 AM outside on our field. Caregivers will gather in the center of the field and students will walk around in grade order. Please know there are no full masks or weapons in school.

Your Proud Principal,

Dr. Argonish

October is a meaningful month for our community as we observe Bullying Prevention Month. This serves as an important reminder of the role we all play in fostering a school environment where every student feels safe, respected, and valued. By promoting understanding, empathy, and kindness in our classrooms and schools, we help ensure that every student can learn, grow, and thrive without fear. October is also LGBTQ+ History Month, highlighting the importance of supporting and celebrating LGBTQ+ students and staff.

A reminder that there will be no school on Thursday, October 2nd in observance of Yom Kippur, which begins on the evening of Wednesday, October 1st.

Please join us in wishing all who observe this day a peaceful and meaningful time.

Diwali is the Festival of Lights, a five-day celebration observed by millions of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and some Newar Buddhists to mark the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness. Diwali begins on Monday, October 20th, and continues into October 21st.

This month, classroom teachers are using our Social-Emotional Learning curriculum, Second Step, to talk with students about Growth Mindset. Growth Mindset is the belief that our abilities can develop over time given effort and persistence. With students, we talk about how our brain is like a muscle that can get stronger or grow. It's easy to feel defeated if we think that our abilities and intelligence are set at birth, but if we believe that our brain can grow as we practice new things, we're more willing to push through when things get hard. Here are some things to think about when you talk to your child:

• Praise effort over innate skill ("I love how you're working so hard!" vs. "You're so smart!")
• Reminding children of past successes when they're struggling with something new ("Remember that it used to be hard for you to tie your shoes and now you can do it!")
• Leaning into the power of YET (When kids say "I can't do this", reframe that thought to "I can't do this YET")

Counseling lessons will be delivered in grades K-2 this month. You'll find linked below the take-away note that will be posted to Class Dojo after each lesson. Students in grades 3-5 will be taking the universal social-emotional screener, the BESS, at the start of the month. I will be having conversations with individual students about their self-report and working on interventions to help support their social-emotional well-being.

K - Feelings

1st - Tattling

2nd - Appreciating Differences

3rd - No lesson, conversations with individual students about the BESS

4th - No lesson, conversations with individual students about the BESS

5th - No lesson, conversations with individual students about the BESS

Rainbow Room Search: Find something in the room that is the color red. Then find something orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

Dr. Katie Rastetter, School Counselor

krastetter@dasd.org

610-269-8282 ex 23040

Cougar Families, let’s keep our kids healthy and ready to learn! 🐾 Please make sure immunizations are up to date to avoid school exclusion. Send in any new physicals, diagnoses, or allergy updates to the nurse’s office, and remember all medications require a doctor’s order. If your child is feeling sick, please keep them home to rest and recover. Thank you for helping us care for our Cougars! 💙

Thursday, October 2: School Closed - Yom Kippur

Friday, October 3: Early Chorus Rehearsal 🎤 8:00 AM

Friday, October 3: Fun Run (EW)

Monday, October 6: Early Orchestra Rehearsal 🎻7:30 AM-8:45 AM

Thursday, October 9: Early Band Rehearsal 🥁 7:45 AM-8:45 AM

Friday, October 10: Spirit Day

Monday, October 13: Early Chorus Rehearsal 🎤 8:00 AM

Tuesday, October 14: Early Orchestra Rehearsal 🎻7:30 AM-8:45 AM

Friday, October 17: Early Band Rehearsal 🥁 7:45 AM-8:45 AM

Monday, October 20: School Closed - Diwali

Thursday, October 23: Early Orchestra Rehearsal 🎻7:30 AM-8:45 AM

Friday, October 24: Early Chorus Rehearsal 🎤 8:00 AM

Saturday, October 25: Trunk or Treat 🎃 3:00 PM-5:00 PM (see event below)

Thursday, October 30: Spirit Day - Denim and Jeans Day (from Cougar Ambassadors)

Tuesday, November 4: No School For Students

Thursday, November 6: Spirit Day

Thursday, November 13: 4th Annual Family Heritage Night 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM

Wednesday, November 26: No School For Students

Thursday, November 27: No School - Thanksgiving Recess 🍂

Thursday November 27: Turkey Trot (See event below)

To order, log in to your account on mylifetouch.com or create an account using your student's student ID number.

All families can also log on and order a FREE Digital SmileSafe card.

More about the Smilesafe program here.

Rediscover Your Public Library

For families with young children, the public library is a great place to find entertainment, educational or cultural enrichment, or valuable information.

Top 9 reasons to go visit:

1. Free programs and activities: From author visits to puppet shows to family films, libraries offer programs with kid appeal after school, on the weekends, and during the summer. Ask your librarian for the schedule of upcoming events.

2. Story times: There’s nothing like hearing a good story read by someone who loves to read aloud. Libraries are terrific settings for story times which often include finger plays, games, songs, and crafts that can be learned and enjoyed again at home.

3. Workshops: Many libraries offer workshops that can help enrich your life as an adult and support you as a parent. At many libraries, it is possible to learn to knit, prepare your taxes, update your résumé, gain computer skills, or improve your parenting skills.

4. Books: Librarians are happy to make recommendations and most public libraries have a special section just for children’s books.

5. Audiobooks: Listened to a good book lately? Most libraries have a collection of popular adult and children’s titles available for checkout on tape or CD.

6. Movies: Your public library is a great source for free access to the latest blockbusters, family movie classics, documentaries, or favorite TV shows.

7. Music: Want to introduce your children to Beethoven or the Beatles or new children’s songs? Check to see if your library has a collection of music on CD.

8. Magazines and newspapers: Introduce your child to some of the magazines designed just for children. With bold photographs, poems and a joke or two, magazines are another reading choice for beginning readers. Or catch up on the news in your community and share a smile over the comics.

9. Computers: Most public libraries offer free Internet access, computers with educational games for kids, and valuable online resources for teenagers.

Libraries are also working to get more of their own resources online. Your local library may have its own website with links to other resources within your community. If you’re looking for the web or street address of your local public library, http://ilovelibraries.org/findyourlibrary offers several places to look.

East Ward would like to display a Wall of Heroes during the month of November to honor those in our school community who have served in the United States Military. If you would like to have someone honored for Veteran's Day, please complete the form below by October 10th!

https://forms.gle/KvFgPY2YsKzQFaFfA

East Ward is preparing for their fourth annual Family Heritage Night on Thursday, November 13 from 5:30 PM – 7:00 PM.

This event is dedicated to celebrating the variety of cultures within our school community. The event feature displays, food, games, music, and more, all showcasing the diverse backgrounds of our families. We would love for your family to share your culture with the East Ward Community!

If you are interested in having a table at Family Heritage Night, please go to https://tinyurl.com/ewheritage25 – Any questions, please reach out to Dr. Kessler – jkessler@dasd.org

Dearest Cougars,

We could not be more proud of how we saw our East Ward community come together in these past few weeks. It is truly amazing what we accomplish when we work as a team. Together, we raised $20,302!! We surpassed our goals and now are able to fund all field trips going forward so they are FREE for ALL students!

Here are some highlights:

• Kindergarten raised the most bringing in $6,050!! They certainly earned the Fun Run Trophy!!
• Rue Milby from Team Riggins raised $2,310 and will get to Pie Dr. A in the face on Morning Announcements! 🥧
• Team Riggins earned a Pretzel Pajama Party!! 🥨
• The following classes raised over $1000 and have earned a popsicle party sponsored by Alsie’s of West Chester:
• Team Johnson (Kindergarten)
• Team MacLean (2nd Grade)
• Team Ellis (4th Grade)
• Team Hamill (5th Grade)
• The following students raised $500 or more and earned a custom backyard baseball bat:
• Rue Milby (Kindergarten)
• James May (Kindergarten)
• Tehya Peters (5th Grade)
• Dalton Dudrick (5th Grade)
• Students earned the following incentives:
• Snack Pack with Dr. Rastetter OR a VIP Pizza Bingo Package / Free Spring Fair Wristband (14)
• Fun Run Swag Bag (65)
• Sports Headband (82)
• Bracelet (172)

Final Prizes and Incentives will be distributed or scheduled this week accordingly. We can’t wait to celebrate a successful Fun Run!

***Thank you*** to all the caregivers who contributed, volunteered, supported their students at Fun Run!! We appreciate you all so much and look forward to working with you at future events this year.

It’s been a busy and exciting start to the school year! To recap September, we had a successful Dine & Donate at Handle’s Ice Cream (the school made $125!), and East Ward Pride T-shirts have been ordered and will be ready in October – look out for the shirt(s) to come home with your child.

The HSA is looking forward to a fun-filled October. Our upcoming events are:

• Trunk or Treat & Jad’s Pizza Dine & Donate
• Saturday, October 25
• 3pm – 5pm (Trunk or Treat) & 5pm – 7pm (Jad’s Pizza)
• A popular, fun event at East Ward is our annual Trunk or Treat! Enjoy dressing up in costume and ‘trick or treating’ at many decorated trunks in the East Ward parking lot. After Trunk or Treat, head over to Jad’s Pizza to enjoy dinner!
• *To make this event a success, we need families to volunteer to decorate a trunk and donate bags of candy. Sign-up here! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0848A4A929A5F9C16-59059166-trunk#/

• Book Fair is coming to East Ward Library
• October 23 – October 30
• Book Fair is only 3 weeks away. Students will have the opportunity to shop the book fair during their library classes as well as before school or during recess. There will also be two evening shopping opportunities for families to visit the book fair (October 27 and October 29 from 6-8pm).
• Families can set up an e-wallet for their students by using the Link below: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/eastwardelementaryschool2
• Please consider volunteering to help at Book Fair. The sign up genius below has time slots during the school day and evening family nights. Please consider signing up during your child’s library class. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0848A4A929A5F9C16-58599742-scholastic

Thank you!
The Book Fair Committee

To follow along with all the Home and School Association is doing, check Class Dojo announcements from Ms. Reilly, our Facebook page and groups, Instagram (new this year!), and our website.

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EastWardHSA
Instagram: @EastWardHSA
Website: https://linktr.ee/eastwardhsa

Email: ewinfo@dasd.org
Website: https://ew.dasd.org/
Location: 435 Washington Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335, USA
Phone: 610-269-8282
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dasdew
Twitter: @dasd_ew