Letters from Limestone Walters

Nov. 1st: House Council Meeting @2:40pm & PTO Meeting @ 7pm

Nov. 2nd: Erin's Law Presentations (see details below)

Nov. 3rd: Meet the Speech Night 6pm-7pm

Nov. 4th: Wheel Spin Day

Nov. 6th: Day Light Savings Time (set clocks back one hour)

Nov. 8th: No School! Election Day

Nov. 10th: Choir Fest @ LCHS 7pm

Nov. 12th: Holiday Walk 9am-12pm

Nov. 17th: Doughnut Breakfast starting at 7:25am

Nov. 18th: Wheel Spin Day

Nov. 23-25th: No School! Thanksgiving Break

Nov. 27th: November Book Club @6pm (see details below)

Nov. 28th: Board Meeting @7pm

2022 Book Club November – Learning to Take a Different Perspective & Developing Empathy

In Saturday at the Food Pantry by Diane O’Neill, we meet Molly who is visiting a food pantry with her mom for needed food. Molly is grateful to be there, but then she sees a friend from school who looks embarrassed to be there. Will the girls realize that it’s ok to need to help?

ZOOM Read Aloud Event will be Sunday, Nov. 27th @6pm.

Fill out the form below to be emailed the link:

Our new procedure has been going so well. There are just a few things we need to adjust

• Even if there is no on else in the parking lot, we need you to continue to follow the cones all the way to the back of the lot vs. cutting across the middle.

• Once one vehicle cuts across it causes a ripple effect that can hold up traffic and opens the door for others to follow suite.

• Please pull all the way up to either first cone and or next vehicle

• Only use the drop off lane when dropping off your child
  

• Please continue to have your child exit the vehicle anywhere within the white box in the arrival map picture.

Remember our doors open for learning starting @7:25am

In Illinois, Erin’s law requires that all public schools implement child-focused sexual abuse prevention education that:

• Teaches students in grades pre-K through 12th grade age- appropriate information about how to recognize child sexual abuse and tell a trusted adult

• Requires school personnel to be informed about child sexual abuse

• Provides parents and guardians with information on the warning signs of child sexual abuse, plus any needed assistance, referrals or resources to support victims and their families

We will be working with the Center for Prevention of Abuse that will coordinate our trainings. Below is an outline of what will be covered in each grade level. These presentations will be given on Wednesday, Nov. 2nd. However, we realize this is a sensitive topic for both parents and students and it is not the school’s intent to interfere with your role as the parents. Students are not required to attend the presentation and will not be penalized if you should desire for your child not to participate. Should you prefer that your child not attend these presentations, please fill out the form below and return to school by Tuesday, November 1st.

Into Reading K-6

This month, K-6 students will be starting/continuing with module 3 and beginning module 4 at various time depending on the class. Below you will find two graphics that share grade levels essential questions and the social emotional/learning mindset focus.

We pride ourselves on creating a positive and welcoming culture and climate throughout our building. Our House Council was designed to build leadership capacity throughout the building. Staff are also couniting to give our students roles and strategies for standing up for what is right. Our new literacy series also has a strong social emotional component that immerses students in those skills and immersion leads to a stronger mastery. It was one of the major selling points as it uses books as a springboard for important conversations. It also creates a shared experience that benefits all students no matter their age.

"Young people might not be talking about stressful events but they are still trying to process them, and a book can be an incredibly powerful way to help them do that." ~Kate Cimo 6th Grade Teacher The Power of Read Aloud in the Middle Grades AMLE Blog Post

Talking with your child/children about what is bullying and what is not, is the perfect first step. Encourage your child to advocate for themselves and reach out to a trusted adult nearby or in the school. If you are looking for how you can support your child at home please check the links and videos below:

Lunch time read alouds are one of my favorite ways to build a culture of readers here at LW. On Wednesdays, I read picture books to all K-4th grade students and on Friday's I read the first chapter of a novel to all 5th-8th graders.

Readers thrive when they are surrounded by a supportive reading community which gave me the idea of a Book Wishes Amazon Wish List. This will help with getting even more books into classrooms as well as provide family and friends, who may not live directly within our community, an opportunity to donate as well.

I pour over book blogs and websites, reach out to fellow educators, and grab titles as I read too. I used these resources to carefully curate a selection of books that cover a wide variety of ages, genres, topics, themes, etc. I then added these titles to our #LWRocketsRead book wishes list on Amazon. Your purchase means it will be shipped directly to the school, find its way into the classroom, and have a label with who donated it! Please make sure to include your name when purchasing.

The first 9 books listed are from our Book Club and would go to our school Library. Next are first chapter books and then picture books are more toward the bottom of the wish list.

The number requested lets you know what grades it will be for:

For chapter books:

2: 5th-8th

1: 7th-8th

For picture books:

5: for all classrooms K-4

3: for K-2 classrooms

2: for 3-4 classrooms

1: for our school library (Book Club Books)

If you are interested in donating please click the link below. Please feel free to share our with family and friends! I can't wait to see where our farthest book comes from.

It has come to our attention that there are two schools listed when you go to load Box Tops. We have contacted them and they are in the process of deleting the wrong one. In the meantime, make sure you have selected the one with the correct address: 8223 W Smithville Road and the one labeled Limestone Walters Elementary School. Collecting Box Tops is now all done digitally so see the flyer below to get started!

Looking for other ways to help our school?! This program makes fundraising easy by donating to local organizations based on the shopping you do every day. Once you link your Card to our school, all you have to do is shop at Kroger and swipe your Shopper’s Card. Please consider visiting the link below to sign up for Kroger Community Rewards.

Nov. 1st: Home Game vs. Elmwood @5pm (JERSEY DAY)

Nov. 9th: Away Game vs. Christ Lutheran @5pm bus leaves at 4:15pm

Nov. 10th: Away Game vs. St. Patrick Catholic School @4:30pm bus leaves at 3:30pm

Nov. 14th: Away Game vs. Hollis @5pm bus leaves at 4:15pm

Nov. 15th: Away Game vs. Pl. Valley @5pm bus leaves at 4:15pm

Nov. 16th: Home Game vs . Norwood/Bartonville @5pm (BLACK OUT)

Nov. 2nd: Home Game vs. St. Philomena @5pm

Nov. 7th: Away Game vs. Norwood @5pm bus leaves at 4:15pm

Nov. 8th: Home Game vs. Brimfield @5pm

Nov. 10th: Home Game vs. St. Patrick's @5pm

Nov. 16th: Away Game vs. Quest @4:30pm bus leaves at 3:30pm

Nov. 17th: Home Game vs. Parkview @5pm

Nov. 21st: Home Game vs. Hollis @5pm

Nov. 22nd: Away Game vs. Oak Grove @5pm bus leaves at 4:15pm

Nov. 30th: Home Game vs. St. Thomas @5pm

Board Elections are approaching. This year we have four positions that are 4 years and one position that is for 2 years.

The Illinois State Board of Elections has posted the 2023 Candidates Guide that includes a candidate checklist, information on campaign contributions/expenses and disclosure, and petition forms (pages 42-43) for board candidates. The State Board of Elections has also made available the 2023 Election and Campaign Finance Calendar.

If you are interested in becoming a candidate for our Board of Education please visit the Peoria Elections Website by visiting the link below. This will provide you with what you need as well as address any questions you might have.

Our PTO meets the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm in the library. This is a great way to get involved in fundraisers and activities that support our school. If in person doesn't work for you, they also have a virtual Zoom option. The links are always posted on our website closer to the date.

Remember

I enjoyed cross country runners supporting their teammate, students advocating for themselves, and giggles at recess.

Gratitude

I'm grateful for a few last warm days before winter, book conversations with LW readers, and classroom visits.

Goals

• continue to learn how to the best best principal I can be by attending Limestone Area Principals Meetings, networking with other principals, and attending Illinois Principal Association Lead Webinars for new school leaders
• continue building our lunchtime aloud book selections and get more of the books into classrooms
• continue to build our upstander capacity
• attend the School Board Conference with our Superintendent and Board of Education

~Mrs. Stefanie Pitzer, Principal

Email: spitzer@limestonewalters.com
Website: https://www.limestonewalters.com/
Location: 8223 West Smithville Road, Peoria, IL, USA
Phone: 309-697-3035
Facebook: facebook.com/LWrockets316
Twitter: @lwrockets