News from WES 12/5/18

UPCOMING WES EVENTS

• Wednesday, December 5 - School-Wide PBIS celebration: Grades K-2 author visit; Grades 3-6 to Dartmouth Women's basketball game
• Thursday, December 6 - WES Family Game Night, 6-7pm WES cafe
• Thursday, December 6-Tuesday December ll - Scholastic Book Fair, WES lobby (open after school daily and late during game night!)
• Monday, December 10 - WCUD Board Meeting, 6pm, WCSU conference room
• Monday, December 17 - WCUD Special Board Meeting, 6pm, WUMHS library 
• Monday, December 24 - Tuesday, January 1 - Holiday Break - No School 

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WES ENROLLMENT INFORMATION FOR 2019-2020

At the November 19, 2018 School Board meeting, three resolutions for next school year were approved, including a resolution to integrate The Prosper Valley School K-6 and Reading Elementary 4-6 grades with Woodstock Elementary School students at WES next fall.  The approved resolutions follow:

Resolution #1: Holistic Campus Planning

Shall the Board establish a committee to develop a plan for the campuses in our district, to include:

• Campus configuration
• Investment and renovation plan
• Financing plan
• Community engagement
• Citizen voting

Resolution #2: TPVS/WES Integration Fall 2019

Shall the students of TPVS and WES be integrated across grades starting Fall 2019? (Final location in subsequent years shall be dependent upon the outcome of the campus configuration plan.)

Resolution #3: Integrate Reading Elementary School 4-6 with TPVS/WES in Fall 2019

Shall the students in grades 4-6 of Reading Elementary School be integrated into the common campus and grade configuration of TPVS/WES.

The approval of these resolutions means that TPVS will continue as a separate school operating inside the WES building, but next year students will be fully integrated into the WES student body along with Reading Elementary School’s 4th - 6th grade students. Ms. Mills will be the principal of this merged school.

The total enrollment of WES will increase from 207 this year to over 250, but there will be more balanced class sizes as a result of the merger.

        WES CURRENT 2018-19 CLASS SIZES

homeroom	PreK	K	1	1	2	2	3/4	3/4	3/4	5	6	6
Number of students	20	21	13	13	13	13	16	16	16	28	19	19

WES 2019-2020 PROJECTED CLASS SIZES WITH MERGER

homeroom	Pre K	K	K/1	1	2	2	3	3	4	4	5	5	6	6
Number of students	20	13	13	17	17	17	19	20	18	18	19	20	22	22

This restructuring leads to a district-wide decline of elementary teaching positions and some percentage of specialists’ time. The restructuring also permits a reduction in district-wide administration, including at least one less principal and one less administrative assistant.  We are hopeful that most, if not all, of these reductions can be accomplished through attrition and not through layoffs. If there are layoffs, the current contract language places the most weight on seniority, meaning that employees with the least amount of time in the district would be the first to be laid off.

Later during this school year, we will have much more information regarding the integration of students and staff from the three elementary schools.  It will take a bit of time to sort out which teachers will be teaching what grade levels, and to what classes and teacher(s) your child is assigned. Once that is determined, we will proceed with more activities to introduce classmates to one another and to their teacher(s) for next year. As always, please reach out to Ms. Mills with questions or concerns.

For more on this merger, see the Valley News article from Saturday.

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BOOK FAIR OPENS THURSDAY! 

Book Fair link 

The Scholastic Book Fair will begin this week. A flyer came home with your child that showcases some of the books we will have available at the fair. Our dates this year are 12/6 - 12/11.  Please reassure your child that there will be plenty of time to buy books. This year there is new feature called the EWallet. This is a digital payment option that provides students with a safe, secure, cash-free way to shop the Book Fair. Parents can set this up from home and pre-authorize a specific dollar amount. If your child has funds remaining at the close of the book fair, it will automatically be reimbursed to your credit card.

Following are two links. The first is a short tutorial with more details aboutEWallet.

https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bookfairs/cptoolkit/assetuploads/eWallet-Commercial_final.mp4

The second link will direct you to our school’s HomePage for the book fair. This is where you can set up your child’s Ewallet. You can also sign up to Volunteer for the fair! For those of you have volunteered in the past, the payment system is all digital and new! If you are interested, please reach out and I can send you a video tutorial.

http://www.scholastic.com/bf/woodstockelementaryschool6

Don’t forget, we will be open during Woodstock Elementary School’s first Game Night. This will run from 6-7 and I will keep the fair open from 5:30-7:30.

Regular hours will be 7:30am-9:00am and 2:00-3:30pm.

See you at the Fair!

Ann Jones - Book Fair Chair

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INFORMATION REQUIRED: FINAL PLEA FOR WINTER WORKSHOPS SIGN UP 

As of this newsletter's publishing, we are missing Winter Workshop selection information for about 50 students in grades 1-6. This makes it difficult for us to assign all students to workshops for the Fridays beginning in January. Even if your child is doing Ski Runners, we need to know so we get them on the right bus on workshop Fridays. Thank you to those families that have provided information. Here is the link for those still yet to reply to our Google sign up. Thank you for your prompt help in completing our Winter Workshop groups! 

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Woodstock Climbing Team for students in grades 6-8

Do you have a student in grades 6-8 who is interested in joining the brand
new Woodstock "Middle School" Climbing Team? (This is open to all local students and is not a school-sponsored sport.)

We are a small team; most of us are new to climbing but thought it would be
a fun way to stay active during the winter months. We meet at the Green
Mountain Climbing Center in Quechee two afternoons per week. The practices
will run Dec.-mid March. If you'd like more information, please contact
Amanda Kuhnert at amandakuhnert@gmail.com or 802-371-9777. 

News from WES 11/25/18

UPCOMING WES EVENTS

• November 26-30 - PreK conferences
• Thursday, November 29 - PTO Meeting - Game Night Planning, 3pm WES cafe
• Thursday, November 29 - Resilience Documentary Film Screening, 6:30pm, Town Hall Theatre 
• Thursday, December 6 - WES Family Game Night, 6-7pm WES cafe
• Thursday, December 6-Tuesday December ll - Scholastic Book Fair, WES lobby (open after school daily and late during game night!)
• Monday, December 10 - WCUD Board Meeting, 6pm
• Monday, December 24 - Tuesday, January 1 - Holiday Break - No School 

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WES PLAYGROUND SNOW PLAY RULES

The snowy season is upon us! It is really important that students have a hat, gloves, a winter coat, and boots to go outside every day. We are always outside unless it is a steady rain or cold temperatures lower than 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Please help your child be prepared to enjoy outside recess each day. We have limited supplies to lend out and supplies are not always returned. At our morning recess before school, all students must have boots and snow pants to go on the snow. During lunch recess, students in grades K-4 must always have snow pants and boots if they want to go on the snow. Children without snow pants and boots must stay on the blacktop. In grades 5-6, students are old enough that they are permitted on the snow without snow pants during their lunch recess and manage the logical consequences the rest of the day if they get wet. 

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After School STEM Club

Nov 26 - Dec 19, 2018

Computer Science for grades 3-6

Come and join other interested students for advanced STEM explorations!  

Nov 26 - Dec 19 (four weeks)

Mondays and Wednesdays

2:50 - 3:50 p.m.

This is limited to the 15 students who can attend both days a week.

Please go to the WES STEM website,

and click on STEM Clubs link to fill out a registration form.

Registration will be first come, first served

http://wesstem-k-6.blogspot.com/

Or contact mgauvin@wcsu.net

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LOST AND FOUND!

Our collection of lost and found items in the gym hallway is growing. Please check it before winter break in December. All lost and found items will be donated in December or repurposed to our recess lending collection. 

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Look for this flyer coming home this week! 

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WINTER WORKSHOPS 2019

We are going digital with Winter Workshops sign-ups this year. Thank you for all the families in grades 1-6 that completed the sign-up by November 20th. If you forgot, here is the link again.

Here is the link to sign-up for a Winter Workshop.

In addition, if selecting Ski Runners, you must also register with Woodstock Ski Runners by December 1st. Click Here. 

If selecting Art Runners, also visit the Artistree website.

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WOODSTOCK YOUTH HOCKEY GIRLS OPPORTUNITY 

This Wednesday, WYH will be using their clinic ice for a FREE GIRLS ONLY introductory session! Ages 6-16 come join the fun - drills, skills, fun & more! Any and all abilities ages 6 to 16 are welcome.

There will be some equipment on hand but kids are encouraged to bring their own helmets.

It will be a fun night on the ice and a great way to into girls to the sport!

Wed 11/28
6:40pm-7:40pm

Woodstock Youth Hockey And Skating Association
https://www.woodstockyouthhockey.org

News from WES 11/11/18

UPCOMING WES EVENTS

• Monday November 12 - No School - Veterans Day 
• Monday, November 19 - WCUD board meeting at WES 6pm
• November 13-20 - K-4 parent conferences and 5-6 student-led conferences 
• Wed-Friday November 21-23 No School, Thanksgiving Break
• November 26-30 - PreK conferences
• Monday, December 10th - WCUD Board Meeting, 6pm
• Monday, December 24 - Tuesday, January 1 - Holiday Break - No School 

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WES STUDENTS COMPETE IN REGIONAL SPELLING BEE

Six WES 6th graders used WIN time to prepare for a regional spelling bee hosted at WES on November 3rd. Congratulations to Ada, Ethan, Eryn, Lucy, Sarah, Sequoia for your hard work and second place finish. Thank you to Mrs. Lackley for coaching, Mr. Miles for announcing, and Mrs. Giller for judging. 

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PTO TEAM APPRECIATIONS 

Thank you to all our volunteers who helped make the WES Family Harvest Hoedown a success. This Hoedown had the highest attendance of all our hoedowns, and we are grateful for the part our volunteers played to help bring our school community together for such a fun, family-centered evening.

We are happy to report that, along with our highest attendance for this event, we also had our highest volunteer involvement!  It took over 50 parents, teachers, staff, and student council members to coordinate all the parts of this event. We truly appreciate all their efforts. It is no small feat to come together to collect pizza order forms, serve baked goods, coordinate our student council members, turn out dozens of pizzas, set up tables, chairs, and decorations, run activity booths, and clean up for an event with over 200 people. Friday night’s Hoedown was proof that many hands make light work. 

Thank you again for the success of the 2018 Family Harvest Hoedown!

Visit our school Facebook page to see more pictures from WES events including the Hoedown! 

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WINNING at WES 

This week, we completed our first round of WIN (What I Need), our 8:15-8:45am morning individualized instruction. Teachers reported many students making academic gains during this time in skills such as identifying letters in Kindergarten, increasing reading levels by 1-2 levels in first grade, collecting data on license plates in 2nd grade, completing independent study projects about topics such as favorite animals in 3rd and 4th grade, and developing study skills in 5th and 6th grade. Here is more on the 2nd grade project: The kiddos were asked to keep track of how many license plates they saw and which states they were from. Then we collected and compiled everyone's data and made a visual representation of the data to answer the question, "Which region of the country did we see the most plates from?"  Then the kiddos were asked to reflect on why they saw the most plates from the northeast region.  Here is a video of 2nd graders presenting their data about license plates.  

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After School STEM Club

Nov 26 - Dec 19, 2018

Computer Science for grades 3-6

Come and join other interested students for advanced STEM explorations!  

Nov 26 - Dec 19 (four weeks)

Mondays and Wednesdays

2:50 - 3:50 p.m.

This is limited to the 15 students who can attend both days a week.

Please go to the WES STEM website,

and click on STEM Clubs link to fill out a registration form.

Registration will be first come, first served

http://wesstem-k-6.blogspot.com/

Or contact mgauvin@wcsu.net

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Everybody Engineering Week 

This week, students in grades 2-6 worked in mixed grade level teams to complete a week-long engineering challenge. This was our fourth annual Everybody Engineering Week. A pair of sixth graders facilitator each team while teachers participated at team members rather than group leaders. The challenge was called the 1-Minute, 1-Touch Challenge. The challenge was to create a system through which a ball would travel with only one touch. The goal was for the ball to pass through the system  and land on an X after exactly one minute. Creative team solutions included ramps, water, sand, robots, and zip-lines. The STEM lab was abuzz with students popping in to borrow items ranging from wood, duct tape, robotics kits, power drills, glue guns and any number of recycled materials.  Teams were recognized not only for their ability to complete the challenge in one minute, but also for the creativity, beauty, high tech/low tech aspects of their designs. Students felt successful not only because of what they created, but because of their teamwork, problem-solving, and perseverance. Check out the engineering STEM blog for more pictures.  

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WINTER WORKSHOPS 2019

We are going digital with Winter Workshops sign-ups this year. For all students grades 1-6, please complete the sign-up by November 20th.

Here is the link to sign-up for a Winter Workshop.

In addition, if selecting Ski Runners, you must also register with Woodstock Ski Runners. Click Here. 

If selecting Art Runners, also visit the Artistree website. Their registration will be available soon.  

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The Woodstock Community Food Shelf Thanksgiving Project

Sign up by Monday November 13

Dear Families, 

The Woodstock Community Food Shelf is giving out Thanksgiving Baskets to local families. We have a mission to help any local family who needs a little help with groceries, especially at Thanksgiving. 

If you and your family live in Vermont, and would like to receive a basket this year, we invite you to come to the Woodstock Community Food Shelf on Maxham Meadow Way and sign up.

Your basket would typically contain items for a family of four including a frozen turkey, 5 lbs of potatoes, onions, celery, stuffing mix, gravy, cranberry sauce, canned pumpkin or other pie filling. Sometimes pie shells, pickles, or other extras are available. 

If you would like to obtain a basket, we ask that you first register at the Food Shelf and then sign up for a basket. 

Registration is simple, asks only very basic questions, respects your privacy and information, and takes only about 5 minutes. 

Please bring with you your Vermont driver’s license, or a rent/utility bill, as our area of service is only for those presently living in Vermont. After you have registered, all that is left to do is sign the sheet for a Thanksgiving basket.

Hours for signing up are Mondays from 4-6pm, Wednesdays from 1-3pm and Saturday from 10-12.

The deadline for signing up for a Thanksgiving basket is November 12. Baskets are to be picked up on Saturday morning, November 17, from 9:30 until noon.

If you have questions, please call the Food Shelf during open hours at

457-1185 or Sheila Murray at 457-1701 or Leigh Snell at 457-3661.

With warm wishes, 

The Woodstock Community Food Shelf