Theme of the Month

Our advocacy theme for the month is Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds. We will work on and discuss ways in which we can all stay healthy, both physically and mentally.  We will learn how making healthy physical choices can lead to feeling better and having a healthier mind.

MAP Testing & PALS Testing

We will be MAP testing during the first week of May.  We are planning on testing with reading on Wednesday, May 5th, and math on Thursday, May 6th.  These dates are tentative and may be changed.  If changed, we will notify you!

We will also be PALS testing during the month of May.  All 3rd grade students will be PALS tested for the end of the year.  Only 4th graders who need to be tested will take the test for the end of the year.  If you are unsure if your child will need to take the PALS test, or have any questions regarding this test overall, please reach out to your child’s advocate. 

Important Dates

• Friday, May 28th - Teacher Work Day - No School or Assignments

• Monday, May 31st - Memorial Day - No School 

• Thursday, June 3rd - Continuation Day & Conferences - Half Day for Students

• Parent-Teacher Conferences from 1:00pm - 8:00pm

• Friday, June 4th - Virtual Yearbook Signing - Half Day for Students (from home)

• Parent-Teacher Conferences from 8:00am - 12:00pm

Recess Equipment

We are excited to announce that recess equipment such as basketballs & footballs are now allowed! Your child is welcome to bring one from home, but each cohort will also have their own box of recess equipment to choose from.

Service-Learning Exhibition starts April 22

                This year, for service learning, students stayed in their advocacy classes to work on projects. Classes chose a topic and then made projects to educate others about that topic.

                Projects will be completed and ready for exhibition on April 22 and will be available to view on the left side of the webpage here.

These projects are available for you to learn about and support a range of causes such as bees, unhoused populations, and wild animal habitats.

Community Clean Up – April 22 - 25

Trash pickups are always a popular activity around Earth Day so let’s join the popular crowd. Unfortunately, we still can’t be together doing this as a group so you will pick up litter wherever you’d like! We have a goal of picking up 2021 pieces of litter between April 22 and April 25.

                You can choose 30 mins to an hour sometime within those 4 days to head out and make your community a little cleaner.

Westgate has Washington Street adopted from 120^th-128^th. If you’d like to pick up litter along our adopted street you are more than welcome!

                Please fill out this form to indicate you’d like to participate. You’ll receive a sticker, bags, gloves (if you need them) and a general safety video the week of April 19.

                Send pictures and how many pieces of litter you picked up to Mrs. Valenza at [email protected]. There will be a running total on the environmental education page of our website so you can follow along the whole weekend.

                If you post to social media use the hashtag #WCSEarthDay2021

Advocacy Focus for March 

Our Advocacy focus for March is “Going Green, a look at Environmental Issues and their Solutions”.  All classes will be working and learning about environmental topics and how we can make a positive impact.

Spring Conference Sign Up 

Conferences are coming up on March 18th & 19th.  On the 18th, conferences will be from 8:00am - 8:00pm.  On Friday the 19th, conferences will be held from 8:00am - 12:00pm.  We will be posting the sign-up link on Friday, March 5th, so please look for that in your e-mail or the advocacy pages.  The 20-minute slots are first come, first serve.  

DEAR

March is National Reading Month!

The Westgate Events & Fundraising Committee is hosting the 3rd annual Drop.Everything.And.Read (DEAR) fundraiser during this time.This is a great time to celebrate reading, encourage students to be readers and give to your community!

Please consider reading a diverse selection of books. Students need books that provide both windows and mirrors if we are going to create more readers, writers, and people who feel included and recognized, and who understand that the world is far richer than just their experiences alone.  The National Education Association recommends these books and authors to get you started.  Reading is Fundamental offers this Diverse Book Finder link.

Donations can be made to Westgate by...

Check

Make payable to 'Westgate Community School'

12500 Washington Street

Thornton, CO 80241

ATTN:  Teri Garrick

*NOTE:  Please add D.E.A.R in the memo for donations.  

Every bit helps.  Donations from $5 - $25 are gladly accepted.

You can also donate here:

https://www.westgateschool.biz/Westgate-Events-25-admin-fee-events.htm

All donations will be used for needs such as:

• Finishing our playground

• Finishing the environmental educational campus

• Purchase of new technology equipment

• Additional teacher training

 Contact Events Fundraising if you have any questions/comments.

Snack

Each class will have snack at some point in the morning.  Please do not send your child to school with candy or treats as a snack.  The snack should be (somewhat) healthy.  Cookies, brownies, & similar items are considered treats.  A good snack to bring would be fruit/vegetables, cheese, jerky, etc...  

Upcoming Dates:

March 18th & 19th: Conferences

March 20th - 30th: Spring Break

March 31st: Beginning of 4th Quarter

Welcome Back!

We are very excited to have kids back in the building on Monday! 

Reminders:

1. Make sure your child comes with a cold lunch and water bottle.  There will not be access to a microwave, and the water fountains are blocked off.  However, your child can still fill up their water bottle throughout the day.
2. Please make sure your child brings back any hard copies & packets that were picked up earlier this quarter.  We will be using those in class. Your child is also welcome to bring any school supplies such as notebooks, pencils, markers, etc...
3. Make sure your child has a jacket! We will be having outdoor recess whenever weather permits!
4. Optional - Pack a book for your child to read! This is ideally a chapter book.  This book can be used if work is done early in literacy, or during quiet time.  Since we cannot lend out books from our classroom library, this may be something to consider.

If your child is staying online, please make sure you have accessed the daily schedule along with the times for Zoom.  There will likely be a lot of technical issues to work through this week, so I appreciate your patience as we work through this new way of doing synchronous online learning.  Please reach out to me if there are any issues and I will do my best to get them resolved as soon as possible.  All live lessons will also be posted as a recording in Teams if your child is unable to attend synchronously.  

Office Hours

Now that we are back in-person, Office Hours will be moved back to Fridays.  My Office Hours will be on Fridays from 2:30 - 3:30pm by accessing our normal Zoom link.

Advocacy Focus for February 

Our Advocacy focus for February is Growth Mindset & Grit.  Our class will be working on helping students learn to reframe failure and have perseverance and tenacity in their academic and personal lives.  Identifying and replacing the negative self-talk that so many of us are accustomed to with positive self-talk will also be part of this unit. 

Kindness Week

At Westgate, we believe in promoting kindness every single day. During the week of Valentine's Day, however, we traditionally focus on celebrating and prioritizing acts of kindness as a way to show our love, admiration and appreciation for one another and for our community. Just because we are navigating COVID this year does not mean we cannot continue to celebrate and promote kindness, it might just look a little different! 

This year we are challenging our community to perform at least 200 acts of kindness as a school. We invite you to document and share your acts of kindness with us! Each day has a kindness type/ style and a challenge that goes with it. You can follow the suggestions for each day and document the kind act. Please share by using the hashtag #ShareYourKindness to tag your act of kindness on social media (social media tips are below), or you can send a picture or video directly to [email protected]. The week will culminate in a reimagined Kindness Day where we will collect cards and letters of appreciation and then Admin will deliver via contactless delivery to local first responders, essential workers, and seniors at Bonaventure. 

2/8 Monday - Words of Affirmation, Encouragement and Love

• Write a letter, send a text, or make a phone call to someone you appreciate 
• Send messages (letter, texts, etc.) to five people with whom you’d like to send words of affirmation 

2/9 Tuesday - Acts of Service 

• Do something kind (like a conscious act of kindness) for someone today 
• Share a compliment, smile (even behind your mask, your eyes will smile too!) at somebody, help clean up, etc.! 

2/10 Wednesday - Quality Time 

• Enjoy intentional quality time with someone in your bubble 
• Play a board game, make dinner together and eat around a table, read a book, take a walk, etc.! 

2/11 Thursday – A Day of Giving 

• Share a gift with someone (you don’t need money to give a gift!)
• Cook a meal, bake a treat, make a craft or just give something from your heart to someone else!

2/12 Friday - Kindness Day Reimagined 

• Throughout the week, we will collect letters for essential workers and first responders. Admin will complete a contactless delivery on this day!
• Free Kindness Day! How many acts of kindness can you give today? 

Social Media Tips - Post on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to share your acts of kindness

Our Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/westgatecs

Tag Westgate’s Twitter: @westgatewild 

Tag Sharon Collins, Executive Director: @EdSharonCollins

Westgate’s Instagram is: @WestgateWild

Use #ShareYourKindness when posting on all platforms!

Upcoming Dates

Week of February 11th - Kindness Week

February 15th - Presidents’ Day - No School

February 16th - Teacher Work Day - No School 

Specials

Our class will have Tech as a specials class this quarter! See the link in the distance learning schedule below. The Zoom link for music is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88583081882pwd=M1FPbUcwaXZtMERobVVuMGVHVDdOdz09.

Supply Pick-Up

Supply Pick-Up will be on January 8 from 1:00 - 4:00 PM (South side of the school – near Lobby).

Important Dates

· January 5 – Complete the technology readiness check for MAP assessment. Email me with troubleshooting questions.

· January 6, 7, 8 – Pre Assessment and NWEA MAP assessment days. Note: January 8th is a Friday and all three days require synchronous attendance. See the assessment schedule and Zoom links below. This assessment is crucial to planning for your student’s academic needs

· January 8 - Supply Pickup

· January 11 - Regular Distance Learning classes begin on Zoom. See the distance learning schedule.

· January 18 - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - No School

· Week of January 25th - PALS Testing - More information to come

Theme of the Month

Our Advocacy focus for January is Self-Compassion & Regulation. The learning goal for January is: Students will learn the basic tenets or self compassion (Self-kindness vs. Self-judgment, Common Humanity vs. Isolation, Mindfulness vs. Overidentification). Students will examine their own places for growth and they will work toward changing negative self-talk into positive mantras. Self-regulation will include topics such as coping skills, identifying and managing emotions, goal setting, & self-care.

Advocacy Themes of the Month

Our new focus for December are Optimism & Gratitude! We will focus on ways to think more positively, as well as ways in which we can show who and what we are grateful for.  

Conferences

Winter Parent Teacher Conferences will take place from 8:00am - 8:00pm on Thursday, December 17th and from 8:00am - 12:00pm on Friday, December 18th.  The link to the sign up will be emailed to all parents on and will also be available on every teacher’s Advocacy pages.  Please sign up for a time to meet with your child’s teacher!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040C45A8AE23A4FF2-winter 

Important Dates

Last day of school for kids - December 16th

Conferences - December 17th & 18th

Return to Distance Learning - January 6th

MAP Testing - January 6th - 8th(please check your email in January for more details)

Supply Pick-Up - January 8th (please check your email in January for more details)

Math and MobyMax 

Reminder- No school on Wednesday!!!

Now that we are going back into distance learning the need for connection and community is of great importance. Katie Goforth and Julie Ruhl will be hosting grade level Social Zooms for all students throughout the day every Friday. Social Zooms are intended to be an unstructured space for kids to connect. Ms. Katie and Mrs. Ruhl are hosting the Zoom, but the purpose of the Social Zoom is to allow students to connect organically. They will ensure the Zoom remains school appropriate, safe and comfortable for all students! 

• There is a social zoom in the morning and one in the afternoon to accommodate different family needs.
• In Fourth Grade, the Social Zooms will be from 11:15-11:45am and 3-3:30pm
• Here is the AM [11:15 am] Link: https://zoom.us/j/98629368262?pwd=Ym5VNTh2bG5ZMXZuU2E3c2pORU10Zz09
• Here is the PM [3:00pm] Link: https://zoom.us/j/96680911182?pwd=dzFuSHJpUHg0WUJCYTRFOG96WVNHUT09
• The passwords for each meeting is posted in your students' Teams.
• Social Zooms are completely optional! You can join none, one, or both! 
• Ms. Katie and Mrs. Ruhl will be monitoring the Zoom to maintain school expectations. If there are concerns during the Zoom, they will provide warnings and redirect behavior, but if the behavior continues, the student may be removed from the Zoom. 
• If you have any questions, please email [email protected] - we hope to see your student Friday!

Bully Prevention

October is Bullying Prevention Month and we have the honor of doing a virtual screening of the documentary The Upstanders. Being an upstander is being someone who takes action when you see someone being bullied. You are bound to see some familiar faces as the documentary was filmed at Westgate.

On Wednesday, October 28^th at 6:00pm there will be a virtual screening of the documentary as well as a panelists discussion of the film. These panelists include our very own Ms. Washington, Mrs. Novak, and Mrs. Collins as well as the director, Scilla Andreen. The link will be available through the newsletter in coming weeks. Email [email protected] with any questions. We hope to see you there!

New Schedule

Our schedule for in person learning is changing next week! Please make sure you pack a snack with your child since lunch will be later than normal.

7:45 - 8:15 - Morning Gathering 

8:15 - 9:15 - Specials

9:15 - 10:45 - Language Arts

10:15 - 11:45 - Math

11:45 - 12:15 - Lunch Recess

12:15 - 12:45 - Lunch

12:45 - 1:15 - Advocacy

1:15 - 2:05 - Social Studies

2:05 - 2:25 - Afternoon Recess

2:25 - 3:15 - Science

3:15 - Clean Up & Car Line

Picture Retakes

Picture days will be Wednesday, October 28, and Thursday, October 29. These days are for students who did not get their picture taken in September, and for students who would like retakes. *Retakes will only be given if the student brings the original photo package back to the photographer.* In general, we will be photographing in-person learners on Wednesday (because that is not costume day!) and online learners on Thursday. 

Halloween

Students can wear costumes on Thursday, October 29th in honor of Halloween. Students can only wear their COVID mask (no Halloween masks or full painted faces). We will not have a class party and students cannot bring snacks to share. Students must also wear their costumes to school.  There will be no opportunity to change into a costume.

Spirit Week:

Monday, Oct 26th Pajama Day

Tuesday, Oct 27th Crazy hair day

Wednesday. Oct 28th School Spirit: Wear your Westgate gear!

Thursday, Oct 29th wear your Halloween costume. The only mask your student can wear is the Covid face covering.

Original Works: 

It is that time of year for our annual ‘Original Works’ fundraiser. For those who are new to the school or for those who have forgotten – because of all the things we have to remember these days – this is a fundraiser where kids create artwork in the “classroom”, and families have an opportunity to purchase products with their creative artwork on them. The school gets a percentage of all sales. This is typically our 3rd largest single fundraiser of the year, but with things being so different, it has the potential to be one of our largest fundraisers for the current school year. 

Important Original Works Dates: 

Now until October 16th – Kids will create their artwork. They may continue to work on this at home!

October 19th through November 2nd – Families will be able to order products on the Original Works website. 

November 2nd – Order deadline date to guarantee all orders are turned around quickly and in plenty of time for the holidays. 

Late November to Early December – Products will be delivered directly to families’ homes.