Bulldog News

January 2024

West Clayton Elementary School

Website: www.johnston.k12.nc.us/wces
Location: 1012 South Lombard Street, Clayton, NC, USA
Phone: 919-553-7113
Facebook: facebook.com/westclaytonelementary
Twitter: @WCESBulldogs

IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND UPDATES

SPOTLIGHT ON ATTENDANCE

Attendance Rates: We're moving in the wrong direction!

September 94.5%

October 94.8%

November 92.8%

We are working to get our attendance rate up closer to 100%! We know that students are more likely to learn and grow if they attend school regularly.

A few important reminders about attendance:

Covid is now treated the same as any illness.
Family Education Leave Forms must be completed prior to a trip being taken. Also, I am only able to excuse 5 consecutive days for an approved Family Education Trip. These forms can be found on our website in our Parent Document Hub.
We are not able to excuse absences and/or tardies without a note. Notes can be sent with students, sent via email or rooms, or turned into the front office.
There is a limit to the number of parent notes we can accept before we need to require doctor's notes.
Students are NOT to be checked out after 3:00 pm. Students miss valuable instruction when tardy and/or checked out early.

BEHAVIOR AND EXPECTATIONS

It is important that we create a safe and caring learning environment for ALL students at WCES. We understand that there are expectations and consequences implemented in each home that differ ever so slightly. While it is reasonable and understandable to have home expectations and consequences, we must have our own set of school expectations and consequences so that we can make sure we are able to provide a standardized yet student-specific educational experience. The following will help us help your children reach their full potential academically, socially, and emotionally:

Review the School Wide Expectations with your child(ren).

WCES Parent/Student Handbook
WCES Parent/Student Handbook (en Espanol)

Support the school as we implement appropriate consequences and support based on our Johnston County Public School Board of Education Policies and Procedures.
Consider limiting and/or abstained from student social media use. Research states that social media use is connected to mental health and often aggravates mental health problems. A lot of the concerns we work through at school are because of student access outside of school. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7364393/
Consider developing screen time rules. We try to limit the amount of screen time in school to required educational programs. We know how important it is for students to build relationships with others and learn how to communicate and collaborate (even when they might not always agree with one another). https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/screen-time/art-20047952
Connect to Rooms and check in on your child's weekly newsletter so that you can be informed and can know what types of questions to ask.

WELCOME TO NEW STAFF

We are excited to welcome (or have welcomed) a few new staff members over the last couple of months.

Ms. Alex Woodall - School Resource Officer
Ms. Alexis Brefka - Third Grade
Ms. Syrara Walker - Kindergarten
Ms. Caris Sutton - Exceptional Children Self-Contained
Mr. Bret Dixon - Exceptional Children Self-Contained
Ms. Nicole Finnell - Teacher Assistant
Ms. Elizabeth Gigante - School Social Worker

NEW INFORMATION/UPCOMING EVENTS

January

School Board Appreciation Month

1 New Year’s Day - No School

2 Holiday - No School

8-24 MAP MOY Testing Window (K-5)

8-31 mClass MOY Testing Window (K-3)

9 Law Enforcement Appreciation Day

11 Romeo’s PTA Spirit Night

15 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday - No School

22 Advisory Council Meeting 6:30 PM

22-March 8 ACCESS Testing for Multilingual Learners

24 End of Quarter 2

25 Teacher Workday - No School

26 Teacher Workday - No School

29-Feb 9 MVP #2 Testing Window (3-5)

REMINDERS

ROOMS Support!

https://johnstoncountypsnc.sites.thrillshare.com/page/rooms

JCPS has put together a site that can help you make sure you are connected to your child's classroom through the JCPS app and Rooms.

It's extremely important that you have the JCPS app because it's where we send out reminders, updates, important information, and you can connect directly to your child's teachers, Ms. Barnes or Ms. Willoughby.