Welcome Back Thornton Creek

I cannot wait to see (almost) everyone tomorrow as we kick off the 2025–2026 school year! Together, we’ll continue diving deeper into our learning and building on the great things already happening to create a joyful and sustainable future for our community.

Please be sure to join us tomorrow morning, September 3—1st through 5th grade families are invited for a Welcome Back Coffee and Donuts-in the Commons for about 20 minutes right after arrival. Our new Assistant Principal, Jenn Everman, will be joining us too!

Kinder and Pre-K Families, please be sure to join us the morning of September 8 for a Welcome Back Coffee and Donuts in the Commons. We’ll gather for about 20 minutes right after arrival.

The first day of school is not an early release. Students will be dismissed at 2:25 p.m.

Over the past week, our entire staff has been hard at work planning, learning, teaming, and bonding together. Our shared goal is to work collaboratively and in unity to provide the very best learning experience for every student.

We are committed to:

• Collaborative Relationships – Building strong connections with one another and with you, our families.

• Schoolwide Systems – Ensuring consistent expectations and procedures in all areas of our Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS).

• Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) – Supporting our staff as they work together to make sure every student learns at high levels.

Learn more about our commitments in the first community meeting September 16!

As we begin this year, we invite you to partner with us and join in building something special for our children. Thank you for your support, your patience, and most importantly, for sharing your children with us. We cannot wait to see all the joy, learning, and growth this year will bring!

With a Smile,

Brandee Spencer

Principal

We’re excited to get back into the groove of community with our in-person Community Meetings this year, with a livestream option for those who can’t attend in person. These meetings are a chance to be part of the conversation and to help shape decisions that support our students’ and teachers’ success. Our teachers are also looking forward to joining us and sharing in the dialogue.

Tuesdays, 7–8:30 p.m.

• September 16- upcoming

• November 18

• February 24

• April 21

• June 9

To honor this day, our community will be celebrating together in several ways:

• September 17 Assembly: Students will learn about Peace Day and begin creating their peace pinwheels in class. You can support at home by talking with your child about what peace means to them.

• September 24 Pinwheel Celebration: At 8:10 a.m., the whole school will gather on the field to place our pinwheels and share a moment of silence.

This is a meaningful tradition that brings our community together in reflection and action. And as always, be on the lookout for volunteer opportunities in the TCPG newsletter—your involvement makes days like this even more special.

October 7

There are still spaces available for After Care programming at Kids Co at Decatur. Students are picked up from Thornton Creek and brought to our neighbor school, Decatur, for programming. If you are interested, please contact Adam Foote the Kids Co. at Decatur Program Director. He can be reached at 206-747-2584. For additional information visit Kids Co.

On-Time Arrival

One of our key goals this year is to improve on-time arrival for all students. Consistent attendance and reducing tardies are both essential to student success.

Our school hours are 7:55 a.m.–2:25 p.m.. Please make sure your child arrives on campus with enough time to eat breakfast (served from 7:35–7:50 a.m.) and head to class ready to learn. Students who arrive late may finish breakfast in the cafeteria before going to class. To minimize disruptions, breakfast will not be allowed in classrooms.

Being on time to school is a critical life skill and sets students up for a successful day of learning. Thank you for supporting your child in building this important habit!

Attendance and Office Procedures

• If your child will be absent or late, please email thorntoncreek.attendance@seattleschools.org or call 206-252-5304 with the reason for the absence.

• Vacation days are recorded as “unexcused vacation” absences. These are not considered truancy, though you may still receive an automated call or email from the District. If so, you can simply disregard the message and enjoy your trip.

• To pick up your child early for an appointment, please come to the office to sign them out. We’ll call your child to meet you once you arrive. Advance notice (by emailing thorntoncreek@seattleschools.org or calling 206-252-5300) is always helpful. While we understand that appointments during school hours are sometimes necessary, minimizing classroom interruptions is greatly appreciated.

Traffic Guidance, and Caring for our Neighbors

• Students in PreK, K, and 1st grade, and older students with siblings in these grades, should enter and exit the school at the NE 77th Street gate. Students in 2nd through 5th grades should enter and exit the school through the "Dragonfly Gate" on NE 80th Street. Special Education buses load/unload on 77th Street, and large buses load/unload in the parking lot drive-through area off of 40th Ave NE.
• Please note: Traffic on both 77th and 80th must move in one direction: 77th is designated for westbound traffic and 80th is designated for eastbound traffic. Please do not park your car on either of these streets or block Decatur's parking lot.
• Teachers will come to their assigned line spot at 7:50 a.m. in the morning and at dismissal at 2:25 p.m. (1:10 p.m. on Wednesdays). Please keep in mind that teachers need to be able to stay focused on greeting their students at the beginning of the day.
• "20 is Plenty!" Neighbors as far north as 85th Street have notified us that we are driving to fast through neighborhoods. Please be mindful.

** We want to make you aware that a new home is being built right across the street from our Dragonfly Gate. With construction equipment, trucks, and workers in the area, traffic may be heavier and there could be occasional obstacles during arrival and dismissal.

The construction team is aware of the impact on our school and Decatur and will do what they can to keep things running smoothly. We ask for your patience during this time, and encourage families to consider parking on a nearby side street and walking up to help ease congestion.

After School Playground Hours

We are fortunate to have the outdoor space that we do here at Thornton Creek and Decatur, and we see that it is a loved playground following our pick up. This year we have made some adjustments to the accessibility of our shared playground for our TC families who enjoy playing after school and I hope to provide some clarity in what has changed from years past. As of this year our playground is shared with 4 after school programs who are all taking their students out to play, in addition to Decatur, who now has a recess in their master schedule at 3pm. In order for Decatur's staff to be able to provide the same safety and accountability for those students still in school we are asking our families to leave the playground and field by 2:55 p.m.. The Dragon Fly Gate will be closed at 2:40 p.m., and so if you are leaving closer to 2:55 p.m. you will need to exit the 77th street side gate . On Wednesdays, families should plan to leave by 1:45 p.m.

School Meals

To learn about changes to the School Meal program, please visit the culinary Services page of our District Website. Pay online for meals. You may also pay cash or check to Shannon in the office. 2nd-5th grade students will be encouraged to memorize their student ID for a quick and easy lunch line.

Tissues and Snack Donations

If you are able to donate unscented tissues to the school office we will distribute them to classes as needed. Also, individually packaged, allergen free, snacks are greatly appreciated for students who forget or don't have snacks. Thank you!

The Developmental Preschool at Thornton Creek Elementary is in the process of recruiting Preschool aged students without IEPs to serve as peer models for our classroom.

Here is a description of the peer model requirements:

• student is toilet trained
• student is 3-5 years old
• student is able to attend one of our classes (7:40-10:20 a.m. or 11:45 a.m.-2:25 p.m.) M, T, Th, F
• student demonstrates developmentally appropriate skills for their age

District website the explains the Developmental Preschool Program

Attending as a peer model is free and your child will receive all the same curriculum instruction and assessments of students in our program! If you are interested in learning more, have any questions, or would like to have your child enroll as a peer model, please email Jadyn Tipton at jatipton@seattleschools.org. We have capacity for 2 peer models per class (AM or PM), so 4 total.