Reminders

• Picture Day is coming on Friday, September 5!
  • You can place your order on mylifetouch.com by using your Picture Day ID: EVT3GHHTT. Order before midnight on Picture Day to get FREE shipping! Your child can also bring their completed flyer with cash or a check on Picture Day.
  • Orders after Picture Day must be placed online only on mylifetouch.com
• Westgate Spirit Week: September 8^th
  • Monday: Rainbow Day
  • Tuesday:  Crazy Hair/Hat Day
  • Wednesday: Westgate Wednesday
  • Thursday: Throwback Thursday
  • Friday: Pajama Day
• Specials: Our new special is PE. We will stay in this special until Oct. 17. You can subscribe to Mr. Anderson’s Edlio page here.
• Water and Snacks: Please remember to send your child a spill-proof, reusable water bottle that is labeled with their name. In addition, students eat snacks twice a day. Morning snack is at 9:15, and Afternoon snack is at 1:15. Healthy snacks are always the best option. Please make sure your child knows which food is for their lunch meal and which food is for their snacks. Please do not send cookies or candy for your child to eat during the morning snack time. Snacks need to be pre-prepared so I can continue teaching the class while the students are eating.
• Friday Folders - Your child should have a Friday folder that comes home each Friday. Please review the folder with your child and return it to school empty each Monday.
• Toys are strictly prohibited for all students. To ensure a safe and focused learning environment for all students, please make sure that your child is not bringing toys to school.
• Gum- Unless your child has a plan specifically permitting gum, please do not send them with it to school. Students passing out gum in class are a distraction in the learning environment.
• Technology – Please do not send your child to school with any devices, such as phones, smart watches, tablets, air tags, etc. Per school policy, if these items are brought to school, they will be turned off and placed in a lock box in the morning and returned in the afternoon.
• Infinite Campus Phone App: I would like to invite you all to regularly check Infinite Campus to check on your student's grades and identify any incomplete or missing assignments that may need to be finished.
  • Click on the following link to create your Infinite Campus account if you do not already have one.
    • https://4.files.edl.io/8b72/09/15/22/164611-24e1a24a-402c-49de-9a50-97e1e60c66bd.pdf
  • The following link will help you set up the Infinite Campus App, which is nice to have as you can set it to notify you whenever a grade is entered for your student.
    • https://1.cdn.edl.io/X3X3DBQ7iIoHx1h6P5aI99A0RyC52XnQd9k5SnwDVIODKHgl.pdf

• Volunteers
  • Complete an online Volunteer Interest Form
  • Complete a background check. Cost is $20.95.
  • Complete a Volunteer Agreement Form
  • Volunteer Opportunities:
    • Organize papers.
    • Fill Friday Folders.
    • Put labels on books for my classroom library.
    • Chaperone future field trips.

We’re Learning with Little Spot of Feelings and Emotions!
We are so excited to introduce the Little Spot of Feelings and Emotions program in our classrooms! This curriculum uses colorful characters and engaging stories to help students learn about their feelings—like happy, sad, frustrated, and calm—and how to handle them in positive ways. Through fun activities and conversations, students discover how to recognize their emotions, express them kindly, and understand the feelings of others. These important skills help us create a caring, respectful classroom community where everyone feels safe and supported!

So far, we have learned about the Scribble Spot, which represents when you have more than one feeling at a time. For example, during back-to-school time you can feel excited and nervous. Last week, we read A Little Peaceful Spot and learned how to find and use a “peaceful spot” to help calm down when experiencing big feelings. Students practiced strategies such as taking deep breaths, imagining a calming place, and thinking kind thoughts. We discussed times during the day when using a peaceful spot can help them feel more in control and ready to learn.

Next, we will read A Little Spot of Anger and learn healthy ways to manage feelings of anger. Students will explore how anger feels in their body and practice strategies to calm down before acting—such as taking deep breaths, counting to ten, and walking away to cool off. We’ll talk about how expressing anger in safe, respectful ways can help solve problems and keep relationships strong.

Dates and Announcements:

Reminders

• 1^st and 2^nd Grade Parent Engagement Night
• No students, please. 
• Parents and Guardians of 1^st and 2nd-grade students only.
• This is an opportunity for you to connect with and get to know other parents & guardians as well as the 1^st and 2^nd grade teachers.
• Come for merriment and connections!
• Clubs: After-school enrichment clubs begin NEXT week. If you would like to sign up, visit the school’s clubs page. First Quarter Clubs will run from August 18 – October 1.
• Specials: Our current special is I-Lab. We will stay in this special until Aug. 30.
• Water and Snacks: Please remember to send your child a spill-proof, reusable water bottle that is labeled with their name. In addition, students eat a snack twice a day. Morning snack is at 9:15, and Afternoon snack is at 1:15. Healthy snacks are always the best option. Please make sure your child knows which food is for their lunch meal and which food is for their snacks. Please do not send cookies or candy for your child to eat during the morning snack time.
• Toys are strictly prohibited for all students. To ensure a safe and focused learning environment for all students, please make sure that your child is not bringing toys to school.
• Morning and Afternoon carline are “hug and go” only. The staff asks that you please stay in your vehicle and allow your child to exit the vehicle on their own.  This will allow the flow of traffic to move quickly.
• Friday Folders - Your child should have a Friday folder that comes home each Friday. Please review the folder with your child and return it to school empty each Monday.
• Technology – Please do not send your child to school with any devices, such as phones, smart watches, tablets, air tags, etc. Per school policy, if these items are brought to school, they will be turned off and placed in a lock box in the morning and returned in the afternoon.
• Infinite Campus Phone App: I would like to invite you all to regularly check Infinite Campus to check on your student's grades and identify any incomplete or missing assignments that may need to be finished.
• Click on the following link to create your Infinite Campus account if you do not already have one.
• https://4.files.edl.io/8b72/09/15/22/164611-24e1a24a-402c-49de-9a50-97e1e60c66bd.pdf
• The following link will help you set up the Infinite Campus App, which is nice to have as you can set it to notify you whenever a grade is entered for your student.
• https://1.cdn.edl.io/X3X3DBQ7iIoHx1h6P5aI99A0RyC52XnQd9k5SnwDVIODKHgl.pdf

ZERO WASTE WEDNESDAYS!

How It Works:

• Every Wednesday is “Zero Waste Wednesday” here at Westgate. What this means is that if students have lunch that doesn’t use any waste AT ALL (i.e., nothing to throw away, like baggies, cans, plastic cups, paper lunch bags, etc.), then their names will be entered into a raffle. Ten raffle winners will receive recognition over the intercom on Fridays for being the Zero Heroes of the Week.
• *Students who have school lunch will qualify if they accurately sort their lunch into the appropriate trash and recycling AND have a reusable water bottle for the day*
• Bonus Recognition: If there is an entire classroom that has zero waste lunch one day, the entire class will receive recognition automatically.
• Extra Bonus Recognition: The class with the most days with all Zero Heroes at the end of the year will be considered the Zero Hero champions of the year!
• Why:
• The goal is for families to start the conversation about alternatives to lunch waste, like glass or plastic lunch containers, reusable lunch bags and water bottles, and cloth napkins. If a student has any item that must be thrown away (at school or at home) their names will not be entered, and they can try again next week and every week after that. Hopefully, this will instill changes that will go far beyond Wednesdays during lunchtime at Westgate. https://www.westgateschool.org/apps/pages/waste

• Volunteers
• Complete an online Volunteer Interest Form
• Complete a background check. Cost is $20.95
• Complete a Volunteer Agreement Form
• Volunteer Opportunities:
• Repair damaged books from my classroom library.
• Help with Friday Folders on Thursdays or Fridays.
• Put labels on books or bins for my classroom library.
• Help students get their lunches passed out or heated up more quickly.
• Pick up necessary printing from the downstairs printers.

• Advocacy: Our August Advocacy theme is RISE (Respect, Integrity, Safety, Empathy)!
• At Westgate, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a part of our Whole Child Education program. PBIS is a system in which students, staff and the community create a set of school-wide behavioral expectations/core values, we teach those expectations in all our various environments, and then we CELEBRATE when we see students doing those things! At Westgate, we RISE (Respect, Integrity, Safety, Empathy).

Hello! 

My name is Ms. Okestrum, and I am your child’s Advocacy Teacher/ Advocate. Advocacy is more than just Homeroom. Advocacy classes are first and foremost a time for students to build supportive relationships with their peers and with an adult they can trust, as well as learn about social and emotional health. It is a time for everyone to feel recognized and welcomed into the classroom and school community. As your child’s Advocate, I will be your primary point of communication, so feel free to reach out to me at any time (my email is [email protected]). I am committed to advocating for your child this year. 

This will be my 4th year of teaching and I am so excited to be returning to Westgate to teach 2nd grade for my 2nd year here! I love our warm and welcoming Westgate culture, and I feel proud to work at a school that values whole-child learning and enrichment.  

I have worked with kids since I was a kid, from babysitting, to nannying, to working at summer camps (including one summer where I worked at the zoo!). I received my Bachelor's in English and Psychology through CU Boulder and completed my teaching licensure through the Friends School in Boulder. This summer, I also attended the Orton-Gillingham training to bring my literacy instruction to the next level. 

In my personal life, I enjoy reading, writing, acting in plays, playing all kinds of games, and spending time in the great outdoors. I live with my wife, Megan, and our strange but loveable meowing dog, Jazzy.  

I have subscribed you to my Advocacy and Academic pages through Edlio. Edlio is our means of posting information to our class pages on the Westgate website. You will receive updates to your email automatically whenever I post to Edlio. You may also receive an email from me with the same information.  Please follow this link for weekly updates, academic information, upcoming events and other information. 

For specials this quarter, your child will have I-Lab with Mr. Elliott, and PE with Mr. Anderson. You are not pre-subscribed to their Edlio pages, so please go to Mr. Elliott’s and Mr. Anderson’s Pages on the Westgate Staff Pages website and subscribe. 

This month, our August Advocacy theme is RISE!  

At Westgate, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a part of our Whole Child Education program. PBIS is a system in which students, staff and the community create a set of school-wide behavioral expectations/core values, we teach those expectations in all our various environments, and then we CELEBRATE when we see students doing those things! At Westgate, we RISE (Respect, Integrity, Safety, Empathy).