Leighton Update

Dear Leighton Families,

What an incredible start to the school year! Our 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders had an amazing first week easing back into the building. Thanks to our soft start on Tuesday and Wednesday, students were able to smoothly transition into their daily classroom routines and procedures, paving the way for the best school year ever!

Throughout the week, Assistant Principal Mr. Morris and I took significant time to speak with all of our students about important safety procedures, school expectations, and lunch and recess routines. Our students did a phenomenal job listening and demonstrating respect and responsibility during these important conversations. We even completed our first evacuation drill of the year today and the students did a tremendous job.

Upcoming School Picture Day

Please mark your calendars: Leighton’s School Picture Day will be held on Wednesday, September 2nd. Online ordering information is available in this newsletter. Your child will also bring home a physical order packet today or by Monday (August 24th) at the latest.

Upcoming Fall Assessment Days Reminder

On September 4th, only students with last names that begin with A-L will be coming to school to take our first round of diagnostic assessments in iReady benchmarking in reading and Forefront screener in math. Students with last names starting with M-Z will come on September 8th, and take the same diagnostic assessments.

Friday Night Football Expectations

We look forward to cheering on our Greenmen at the Varsity Football Team's home opener tonight at "The Vet"; we hope to see many of you there. As a quick reminder, Friday night football games are school events. Please help us remind students that activities like tag, "backyard football" and other forms of horseplay are not permitted, as the stadium is simply too crowded to accommodate these activities safely. If students are asked to stop and continue engaging in these activities, they will be required to sit with their parents or potentially leave the event. Thank you for partnering with us to keep these community events safe and enjoyable for everyone! On a side note, the theme for tonight is Red, White and Blue if your child wants to participate or wear your Greenmen gear.

Sincerely,

Spencer Warders

Principal

Please click the green button below to submit a change in your student's daily transportation,

or to inform us of an early dismissal time. Any changes made by phone are not guaranteed.

*Daily dismissal begins at 3:25PM. Last available time to pickup your child early is 3:15PM.*

When reporting your child's absence, please call 330-562-2209 and select option 1. You will be prompted to leave a message with the name of your child and the reason for the absence. If you need to talk to our attendance secretary, Mrs. Mariah George, please select 0 and you will be connected during normal school hours.

Questions? Please contact us at 800-686-7427, ext. 28
or e-mail us at customerservice@ripchostudio.com

ATTENTION Families of Students Interested in LES Robotics Club...

Online registration information for the 5th, 4th, and 3rd Grade Robotics Clubs will be emailed to families before school on Tuesday, 8/25/26. This non-competitive club is advised by District Gifted Coordinator, Becky Quinn and invites LES students to learn about the Lego Spike Prime robots, explore use of the varied sensors, code the robots, follow building plans, and design their own unique builds to accomplish varied tasks in a fun and collaborative environment.

Online registration will be open until midnight on 8/25/26 and students will be randomly selected by number generator to participate. (Priority selection will be given to 4th and 5th grade students who have not participated in LES Robotics Club in the past year.)

Below is Leighton's Dress code for all 3rd-5th grade students. If the shoe covers the toe and has a strap around the heel this is acceptable. We have recess daily and do not want students tripping on their footwear.

Dress Code:

Students must wear garments that provide appropriate coverage for a school setting. Clothing should be long enough to allow students to sit, stand, and move comfortably while maintaining coverage. Exceptions may be made for religious or medical purposes.

• No article of clothing or accessories should be worn which distracts from the educational process as determined by school staff.

• Clothing, accessories, and jewelry must not promote, advertise, or depict inappropriate, derogatory, or explicit imagery or language.

• Shoes must be worn at all times. Flip-flops and similar open footwear may not be worn.

• No hats, hoods, or head coverings, except for religious or medical purposes, shall be worn at school.

• Coats and outerwear will be stored in student lockers except during recess time.

School administration reserves the right to interpretation of this dress code and will make the final decision on the appropriateness of clothing and appearance.

Below is Leighton's policy on cell phones and smart watches

Any watches (i.e. Apple/Smart Watches) should be used solely as a watch for the day. If they are found to be used as a cell phone (or using any Apps) they will be told to store it in their locker. If the watch is used improperly repeatedly, the administration will confiscate it, and parents will be asked to pick it up at school. The student will not be able to bring the device back to school. Students may come to the office where the secretary or school counselors can make a call home if necessary.

The Aurora City Schools use Final Forms to complete necessary back-to-school paperwork and to send out important communication. Final Forms saves data from year-to-year so that you will never need to enter the same information twice. If at any time a phone number, email or other contact information changes we will get a notification that a change has been made, so please make updates when needed. Also, if you see a field in red, you will need to make these updates in the system. You will need to see all "green fields" to show that your Final Forms are up to date for the 26-27 school year. Please click the Final Forms image to take you to the login screen.

Hello Leighton! Part of our role as school counselors consists of connecting families with varying resources. You will note a link to a list of Community Resources should you wish to explore resources for your child outside of the school setting. During the school year, Leighton offers a variety of opportunities to assist families with financial needs through partnering with our PTO. By reaching out to us via completing this form, phone, email or in-person, we can assist your student with funds for upcoming Book Fairs or the Holiday Shop, holiday gifts, Thanksgiving “baskets,” winter clothing including jackets, pants and boots; purchase of the class T-shirt, purchase of a yearbook, school supplies and any other need brought to our attention. Please do not hesitate to contact us with the slightest concern. Feel free to simply let us know what you need, and we’ll connect with you to ensure this need is fulfilled!

Mrs. Nicole Wadkins

(330) 562-2209, option 3

nwadkins@aurora-schools.org

Mrs. Lindsey Ambrosia

(330) 562-6199, ext. 5414

lambrosia@aurora-schools.org

SEPTEMBER

2nd- School Picture Day - (Online order link info will be communicated when available)

2nd- Gifted Services Info Night for gifted 3rd graders and 4th/5th graders new to LES - (6-7 p.m)

4th- Assessment Day for Students with Last Name A-L (M-Z Stay Home)

7th- Labor Day NO SCHOOL

8th- Assessment Day for Students with Last Name M-Z (A-L Stay Home)

OCTOBER

9th- NO SCHOOL: NEOEA Day

12th- Professional Development Day- NO SCHOOL

16th- End of 1st grading period

22nd- Parent Teacher Conferences 4:30 - 7:30

27th- 5th grade Band Concert @ AHS 7:00 pm

28th- Parent Teacher conferences 4:30 - 7:30

30th- Leighton Fun Run / Fall Festivals

• Please monitor your child for illness symptoms. If your child has a temperature greater than 100 they must stay home until they are fever free for 24 hrs without medication. For coughing, congestion and sore throat that are disruptive or not well contained, it is preferred they stay home until symptoms are decreased or your child has been evaluated by your physician.
• Students sent home from school with a fever also may not return to school until they are fever-free without medication for at least 24 hours. This means if your child was sent home on Tuesday at 12:00 p.m. with a fever, he/she may not return to school until Thursday. If your child does return the next day, our school nurse will be calling for you to come to pick him/her up. Thank you for your support and efforts in this area.
• Please consider sending in a spare change of clothes for your student to keep in their locker in the event of spills, toileting accidents or muddy clothes.
• If a prescription or over-the-counter medication is needed to support your child during the school day, it must be accompanied by a physician/nurse practitioner signed document. Please reach out if you need a copy of these forms.
• Please remember we are a peanut and tree nut free school in the classrooms!
• Please contact our school nurse, Erika Harper at 330-562-2209 ext 3285 or eharper@aurora-schools.org with any questions related to illness or the clinic.

You can track your child's lunch account by setting up your profile. You may also send in cash or a check written out to the Aurora City Schools.

If any student needs to be picked up or dropped off other than their home location, they MUST fill out an alternate bus stop form before we can transport and return to us by email, fax or dropping off at the office. That form is located in the same area as listed below on the webpage and is also included below.

Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. My email is cwingler@aurora-schools.org.

swarders@aurora-schools.org

Jeff Morris - Assistant Principal

jamorris@aurora-schools.org

Halston Pratt - Building Secretary

hgarzapratt@aurora-schools.org

Mariah George - Attendance Secretary

mgeorge@aurora-schools.org

Email: swarders@aurora-schools.org

Website: aurora-schools.org
Location: 121 Aurora Hudson Road, Aurora, OH, USA
Phone: (330)562-2209