Fall has arrived and it definitely gives me that cool, crisp feeling that you get when new things are beginning!

I would like to thank each and everyone of you for a very successful start to the 2018-19 school year. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to see you and your children once again over the past several weeks and meeting our wonderful new students and their families.

I would also like to thank everyone that attended our first PTO meeting of the year in September. There are so many activities and events that would never be possible without the support of our PTO, and most importantly.…”YOU" the parents. We are looking forward to expanding our PTO membership and the opportunities that we can provide to our students. I would like to encourage you to participate in any way that you can, such as volunteering your time, your suggestions or your talents, just to name a few.

Our first round of student leadership jobs of this school year have been advertised, applied for, and filled! We are looking forward to the amazing work these students will do and for what lies ahead for us as a Leader in Me school.

We’ve also kicked off our new school-wide reading goal for the year! Students have a goal of reading a combined 2 million minutes! They impressively reached their goal of 1 million minutes last year - way before the end of the year. “Jay Hawk” will be encouraging them along the way this year and I look forward to being amazed with their results once again! - Erin Shearer, Principal

J-Hawk Journal

Race Around Webster

Let the Race Begin…..

Lace up those tennis shoes and stretch out those legs. Race Around Webster is Thursday, October 11th. Preschool will run 1 mile at 10:30am, Kindergarten-2nd grade will run 1 mile at 1:30pm and 3rd-5th grade will run a 5K at 2:15pm. Race bags will go home on Wednesday, October 10th.  Race shirts will be handed out in school the morning of the race. Our Final Collection for Sponsorship Money is Friday, October 5th. Volunteers are what makes this event happen, so please take a look at:https://www.signupgenius.com/go/409084cafab2ca4f94-race to help us make this an unforgettable event for our Webster children. Thank you again to all of you that have supported this year's RAW!

Webster Elementary - October 2018

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Webster Elementary School

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Webster ElementarySchool Night!

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Annual Veteran’s Day Breakfast & Assembly

Webster will once again be honoring our Webster Family Veterans with a breakfast and assembly on Friday, November 9th. We will also have a bulletin board on display at Webster with stars for each family Veteran for whom we receive their name and branch of service. If your family has a Veteran that you would like to have honored, please send in your Veteran’s name, branch of service, and an email address or physical address so that we can send them an invitation to our Veteran’s Day breakfast and assembly. Your Veteran’s information can be emailed to schuttj@urbandaleschools.com or raischs@urbandaleschools.com.

Help?!? - We could use your help in making our annual Veteran’s Day Breakfast & Assembly a success. We will have a breakfast at 9:00 am for the veterans and following that, the assembly will be in the gym. Please sign up if you are available to help clean up after the breakfast to honor these heroes!https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c44a5a62ca4fb6-veterans

Health Grams Contagious illnesses such as strep throat are always present to some extent throughout the community. In the past, we have sent out health grams to notify families if a case of strep is reported in their child’s classroom. This practice is changing as we recognize students are very active and exposed to illness in a number of community settings (sports, scouts, church, the mall, etc) and can acquire or spread the illness in any of these places. Reporting to us if your child has strep, fifth's disease, or other contagious illness is still helpful, as we will watch for patterns and use nursing judgement about when to notify families of high numbers of illness in certain age groups. However, we will no longer be sending out health grams for every reported case of illness. The Illness Fact Sheets for common childhood illnesses are posted on our website. (here) Please refer to these when you would like more information about an illness and please feel free to contact us at any time with any questions about a particular illness and whether or not your child should attend school. Head Lice As the weather gets colder, the spread of head lice again becomes a concern for many parents. Head lice is NOT a reason to be excluded from school. The Iowa Department of Public Health has this to say: Is Your Child at Risk? Yes. Head lice will spread as long as children play together. They spread almost completely through human hair to hair contact, and pets do not spread lice. Anyone can get head lice. Children in child care, preschools, elementary or middle schools are at risk. Head lice are NOT a sign of being dirty. Head lice are not dangerous and DO NOT spread diseases. What Can You Do? Parents are the key to looking for and treating head lice! The Iowa Department of Public Health advises parents to spend 15 minutes each week on each child carefully looking for head lice or nits. Persons with nits within ¼ inch of the scalp OR live lice should be treated. Careful use of a nit comb can potentially remove all lice. Each child should have his or her own comb or brush. Teach your child NOT to share hats, scarves, brushes, combs, and hair fasteners. Nut Allergies and Birthday Treats Reminder: Please contact me if you have any questions about what is safe for the students in your child's classroom. We have many food allergies in our building and do not want you to waste money on treats that cannot be served safely in your child's class.  - Sarah Bonnot, RN, BSN bonnots@urbandaleschools.com

PTO board members: Steph McCraney, Trisha Buhrow, Laurie Hughell, Amanda Brockman, Jeanette Legler, Danielle Ibrahim, Marcy Brightwell Webster staff: Patty Van Scoy, Renee Assink, Bethany Berger, Jade Fox, Diane Gruba, Zach Maertens, Lisa Schaub, Jodi Schutt, Keri Zimmerman, Sarah Bonnot Webster Welcome - Erin Shearer • Welcome Back- 2018/2019 Video

Leader in Me – Jade Fox • Student Lighthouse Team 30 students are on the team/70 students applied • Events that Student Lighthouse team leads • Open House • Sharpen the Saw • Veteran’s Day • Student Ambassador’s voice of the student body • Mirror our staff action teams • New school wide goal - Students to read a total of 2 MILLION minutes • New Face – Meet Jay Hawk – he is going to help inspire our students to reach their new school-wide goal. Found at: https: voutu.be/rpm18L3pmc • Assembly teams: Students have learned titles and descriptions of the first round of jobs they can apply for this school year. Jobs listed are for 3rd-5th grades.

Playground Update – Stephanie McCraney • Playground is complete! There will still be maintenance, but is a great success.

Budget – Trish Buhrow • The budget was represented with Total Budgeted Fundraising minus the expenses from connecting families, encouraging kids and servicing Webster.

Upcoming Events • Family BBQ - September 14th: 5:30 – 7:30pm • September 21 – Homecoming Party • Oct 2nd – Next PTO meeting

Webster PTO Meeting Minutes - September 6, 2018

Clean out those closets!!

Webster Elementary will be collecting used shoes in ANY condition throughout the month of October. Bins will be inside the front main doors of the building for you to drop off your shoes. Shoes that are worn out will be recycled and shoes that still have life left in them will be donated to local charities.

Reuse-A-Shoe

The Webster PTO is excited to host the annual “Bingo For Books” night on Friday, November 2nd from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.! Mark your calendars NOW to attend this fun and entertaining night at school! With books provided by our wonderful Webster families, “Bingo For Books” offers a chance for the whole family to get involved.  Bingo game cards will be available to all at no cost with each winning Bingo card entitling the child to choose the book of their choice. There will also be raffle tickets available for drawings held throughout the night for other fun prizes! Free popcorn and drinks will be provided. This is a great opportunity to spend a fun, free evening socializing with other Webster families. Hope to see you there!

We need your donation of children's books for this great event! Especially needed are books for older elementary students including chapter books. Drop-off bins for books will be located at Webster!

Friday, November 2nd 6:00 - 8:00 PM

WEBSTER CAFETERIA

Play bingo to win FREE children’s books!

FREE popcorn and drinks provided!

Raffle prizes available for kidsRaffle prizes available for kids

PTO Meeting There will be no PTO

meeting in October. Please join us for our next PTO

Meeting on Tuesday, November 6th, at 6:30 pm

in the Webster Media Center.

Late Start We will have one Late Start

day this month. On Wednesday, October 10th, classes will begin at 10:00 am. Students may begin

arriving at the building at 9:45 am.

Inservice Day There will be no school for

students on Monday, October 22nd, due to

Teacher Inservice. Classes will resume on Tuesday,

October 23rd.

Monday, October 2nd, is CustodialAppreciation Day. Webster is fortunate to have three wonderful custodians who not only keep our building clean and beautiful, often cleaning messes no one else would dare to touch, but also take the time to smile and say "hello" to all.

A huge thank you to Jay, Ted, and Don for all they do for us each and every day! Webster is a better place because of the three of you!

C o u n s e l o r’ s o r n e r

Choose”. In Kindergarten through second grades, we began with the “Stop” section, discussing our feelings and how to identify feelings in others by using facial clues, body language and voice tones. For 3rd through 5th grades, we created a “weather barometer”, to help us identify our weather, or our emotions. The kids were very creative and insightful with this project, so I hope they shared their paper plate “barometers” with you. (Here is a short video we watched of Steven Covey, explaining how we carry our own weather. https://resources.franklincovey.com/all-videos/carry-your-ownweather-7habassociates ) Our next steps will be to identify our circle of control and practice using calming down strategies when we are upset. Then we will incorporate the “Think & Choose” sections to make proactive choices by thinking about the consequences before we act. Students have enjoyed role playing and sharing with partners or small groups, so this will be a great way for us to practice our skills. Our 5th grade students will take on leadership roles by creating some tools to teach others how to calm down, think through the problem and make proactive choices.

It’s hard to believe that we are approaching October already! I am enjoying getting to know your students and getting to see them in their learning spaces. I wanted to share with you that I have been incorporating the 7 Habits of Happy Kids into our district Guidance Lessons. Habit #1 is to “Be Proactive”, therefore, we have been discussing the differences between proactive versus reactive behaviors as well as taking responsibility for our choices. To help us visualize proactive problem solving, we have been using a stop light, labeled “Stop, Think, & School.

& Caring

a Safe

We are

Calm down and breathe

deeply.

What is the problem?

What are your options?

Make yourchoice.

Consider everyone'sfeeling.

What are the consequencesof your actions?

Talk to someone you trust for support.

Joleen Brady,School Counselor

Webster’s Parent Teacher Conferences will be held on Tuesday, October 16th, and Thursday, October 18th, from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm. You can sign up for your conference time(s) at:  http://www.ptcfast.com/schools/Webster_ElementaryRemember - attending Parent Teacher Conferences is one way to be involved and help your child succeed at school. It’s a great opportunity to discuss your child’s progress and share your child’s strengths and needs.We look forward to seeing you on one of our conference nights.

Our school is hosting a Follett Book Fair!

Supporting a love for reading is critical to student success. Supporting your school is just as important. The Follett Book Fair encourages your child’s reading habits, builds their personal libraries and raises funds for the school, all at the same time.

What makes Follett Book Fairs different?

Follett has been supporting schools for more than 140 years which means you can expect an awesome selection of titles, from a wide range of publishers. These are books your kids want to read.

Dates: October 16th and October 18th from 4:00 to 8:00 pm

Debit and credit cards will be the only accepted forms of payment. We will not accept cash or checks. You can also visit www.follettgift.com to purchase a Follett gift card for your student.

Support Webster and the avid reader(s) in your family by visiting the book fair during conferences!

The first large group rehearsal for band students will be on Tuesday, October 23rd. Lessons and rehearsals will be every A & D day through Friday, May 17th.

Calendar of Events

Friday, October 5th - J-Hawk 7 Habits Assembly - 2:30 pm in Gym

Wednesday, October 10th - Late Start Classes Begin at 10:00 am

Thursday, October 11th - Race Around Webster (Rain date 10/12)

Tuesday, October 16th - Parent Teacher Conferences - 4:00 - 8:00 pm

Tuesday, October 16th - Book Fair

Thursday, October 18th - Parent Teacher Conferences - 4:00 - 8:00 pm

Thursday, October 18th - Book Fair

Monday, October 22nd - Teacher In-Service No School for students

Friday, October 26th - Last day of Fall Running Club

Friday, November 2nd - Bingo For Books

HELP!! - When picking up your student(s) in the parent pick up line, PLEASE place your Family Name sheet in a visible spot for teachers to see. This help is invaluable in making the line move smoothly and quickly!

The Winter Warmth Drive is a collaborative community service project run almost entirely by students within schools around the Des Moines Iowa metro and is celebrating it 's 11th year of service. The drive is a collection of new or gently used coats, hats, gloves, scarves, blankets, snow pants and boots. In 2016 during the 9th annual Winter Warmth Drive we collected items from 34 schools! Items collected were provided to 11 different local non-profits agencies and to schools where there is a need among youth for proper winter outerwear.

Webster will be collecting items for the Winter Warmth Drive from October 29th through November 8th. There will be boxes in the Webster hallways to drop off your donations during the drive. The goal this year is to collect 15,000 items in the Des Moines metro area. Let's help them achieve this goal!

Stay Informed!There are many great ways to keep on top of what’s going on at Webster! The Webster page of the district website: http://www.urbandaleschools.com/schools/webster-elementary/ is one source. There you will find announcements, newsletters, schedules and other important information. You can also follow us on Twitter @WebsterUCSD and also find us on our Webster Elementary Facebook page!Help us connect with you by making sure we have the most accurate and up to date phone and email contacts for you. If you change numbers or email addresses, please notify the Webster office at 331-8600 or by emailing Mrs. Briggs, briggsb@urbandaleschools.com or Mrs. Gass, gassm@urbandaleschools.com. Also, be sure to upload the Webster Parent Calendar in either Google or iCal format!

We’re

Going On a

Field Trip!

Kindergarteners will be visiting Thomas Mitchell Park on Thursday, October 4th, to study the changing of seasons, learn about how wild animals prepare for winter and to complete an insect study. Please look for more information to come from your student’s teacher.

First grade students will visit Jester Park on Tuesday, October 9th, as part of their Life Cycles science unit. Please watch for more information to come from your student’s teacher.

Vendor Fair Vendors Wanted

Webster’s PTO hosts a Holiday Vendor Fair each year on the first Saturday of December. If you know of someone who would like to participate in this year’s Vendor Fair, please contact Misty McNabb at mnmcnabb18@gmail.com with any

Interested in Trivia Night?

New this year, Webster Elementary’s PTO will host an adult only Trivia Night/Silent Auction to help with fundraising efforts. If you would be willing to help on this team, please contact Katie Hoover at hooverk31@gmail.com.

REMINDER: Last day of Fall Running Club will now be Friday, October 26th.