5-21-23 PAW'S PRESS

Dear Cherokee Families,

You are valued partners in your child's education here at Cherokee. As part of our school improvement process, we invite families to share their input by taking a family engagement survey. We would greatly appreciate if you could take a few moments to complete the survey below. Thank you in advance!

Click here for the School Improvement Parent Survey Spring 2023.

Safety Update: We completed our last fire drill of the school year on 5/12/23. The kids did a great job. Each year we do at least 5 fire drills, 2 tornado drills, 3 lockdown drills and one cardiac drill. All drills are now complete for the school year.

Upcoming Important Events:

• Ordering Lunch - See below for the May and June menus and ordering links.
• FastBridge Assessment Window for Grades K-3 (May)
• Leadership Assemblies and Ticket Store (May 19th) - wear class shirts or other Cherokee swag
  
• PTO Spring Fling (May 19th) - Registration and info below!
• MSTEP Window Closes for Grades 3-5 (May 19th)
• Last Week of Library- Return Books (May 22)
• Incoming Kindergarten Kick-Off (May 23rd at 6:00 PM) - See below for more info
• Movie/PJ Day May 24th (Grades K-4, 5th grade will pick a different day)

• Field Day (May 25th) - Rain date is May 30th - See below for volunteer sign up
  
• NO SCHOOL (May 26th and 29th) - Memorial Day

• PTO Meeting (May 30th) - Media Center 6:15 (elections will be held)
• LAST Leadership Celebration (June 8th )- Assemblies, Ticket Store, Movie/PJ day
• 5th Grade Completion (June 12th at 6:00 PM)
• Kindergarten Celebration (June 13th at 9:00 AM)
• Last Day of School (June 14th) - Half Day dismissal at 11:21 AM

Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help make the school year a success for you and your child!

Sincerely,

Heather Batko

Cherokee Principal

hbatko@cvs.k12.mi.us

We will host a parent only informational night for families who have incoming kindergarten students for the 2023-2024 school year. It will be a PARENT ONLY INFORMATIONAL NIGHT on May 23rd at 6:00 PM in the den.

Click here for registration information and more!

Click here to register.

Field day is May 25th. Click here for volunteer sign up. Volunteers must have a background check on file.

We will not have school on Friday, May 26th and Monday, May 29th in observance of Memorial Day.

It is hard to believe how quickly the last few days of school are flying by! We are already starting to think about the 2023-2024 school year. Please see below for some optional opportunities to give input for next year.

Student Info/Family Input Form for 2023-2024

Each year, our staff works to create well-balanced classes. During the process, we look at each child's academic, social, and emotional needs.

As a partner in this process, we offer your family the opportunity to tell us about your child's unique learning style, strengths, and challenges.

The intent of this form is to help ensure the best possible learning environment for all children. However, this is NOT intended to be an opportunity to request a specific teacher. Due to many variables, honoring specific teacher requests is not possible.

If you would like to provide information on your child to aid in the placement process, this form (click here) must be submitted by Wednesday, May 31st.

ONLY STUDENTS EXITING 2ND OR 3RD GRADE - (INPUT FOR 3/4 BLENDED CLASSROOM)

As we begin planning for the 2023-24 school year, we anticipate a 3/4 blended classroom. In a blended classroom, students from both 3rd and 4th grade levels are placed with the same teacher. There are many benefits for students in a multi-age classroom including having an additional teacher present during the school day which allows for smaller instructional groups. We make every effort for students in a multi-aged classroom to have interaction with their grade-level peers and ensure students have the chance to participate in all grade-specific events throughout the school year.

Ms. Beliveau is a current 2/3 blended teacher at Cherokee. She has been asked to take the 3/4 blended classroom for the 2023-24 school year. Ms. Beliveau has been a teacher for 29 years and at Cherokee for 25 years.

Some families prefer their child have a traditional classroom experience; therefore, we are reaching out to gather input for your child’s placement for next year.

Many factors are used when determining class placement and we cannot guarantee student placement, however, your preference will be considered if the situation does arise.

If you have a preference that you would like considered as we begin to place students in classes for next year, please complete the online form (click here) by Wednesday, May 31st. THIS IS ONLY FOR STUDENTS EXITING 2nd and 3rd GRADE. If you have no preference, there is no need to respond.

Click here to order hot lunch.

Click here for a printable version of the May hot lunch menu.

Click here to order hot lunch for June.

Click here for a printable menu for June.

Message from Mrs. Badalamenti:

Baby Chicks are coming to Cherokee again!!

In STEM class, students just met our new baby chick eggs. They take 21 days to grow inside the egg in order to be ready for hatching. Students were able to take home a sliding countdown, or a calendar to track their growth. As we near their hatching (around May 8th), I will set up the camera again on the incubator so students can login (using their school login information) and watch them LIVE on Teams.

Here is the link:

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_NDQ4ZGFhM2MtZjkxOS00MWRhLWFiZTYtMDg3ODNjYzUyYTA5%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%229824ea09-1539-4200-ad9f-d8c34345d827%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22c99d8c81-7e00-4e64-88a6-e0f152beac44%22%7d

• We have many students at Cherokee with severe peanut/tree nut allergies. Therefore peanuts/tree nuts products and products contaminated in a facility that processes peanuts/tree nuts will not be allowed for certain classes, common areas, etc.
  
• Due to the severity of some of our students with allergies it has been asked that some classes avoid bringing peanut/tree nut products for both lunch and snacks consumed in the classroom. Other classes have only been asked to avoid bringing peanut/tree nut products for snacks consumed in the classroom. Guidelines have been communicated to individual classrooms/grade levels. Please contact your child's teacher if you have any questions about the guidelines for your child's classroom.
• The link for the Snack Safely Guide is below. This guide has many great many recommendations for foods do not have peanuts, tree nuts and are not processed in facility with these items. This guide updates regularly so it is best to check the link below rather than printing.
• Click here for the Snack Safely Guide.

• If your child is not feeling well, please keep them home and call our attendance line.
• Attendance at school is of course very important. However, if a child is not feeling well they should stay home so they are able to rest and recover. This year it seems that it is taking children longer to recover from some of the viruses that are going around. We know this and totally understand.
• We a want to prevent the spread of illness as much as possible.
• Students should be fever free for at least 24 hours (without the assistance of fever reducing medication) before returning to school.
• Students should also wait at least 24 hour to return to school after vomiting.
• Students who are having difficulty breathing, severe cough, etc. are also strongly encouraged to stay home.

• Thank you to Russ Milne Ford for sponsoring our class t-shirts!
• Russ Milne Ford is located at the corner of M-59 and Gratiot (24777 Hall Road, Macomb 48042)
• Sales Department 586-842-0653
• Service Department 586-840-8285
• Click here for the Russ Milne Ford website.

• We are so excited to welcome volunteers back into our cafeteria once again! See the flyer below!
• Please understand that these volunteers are not in place of lunch monitors.
• Our lunch monitors will be responsible for supervising the students, cleaning, etc.
• Paw's Pals volunteers will have time to chat with students and build relationships during lunch. If recess is outdoors, they are also welcome to go outside and spend recess with students.
• This program is very similar to the Watch D.O.G.S program that was in place at Cherokee prior to the pandemic. It is not limited to male volunteers as the Watch D.O.G.S program was.
• Just like any other school volunteer, our Paw's Pals volunteers will respect the privacy of our students.
  
• In order to participate in the program there are 2 steps to complete.
• Step One: Click her for May Sign Up Dates. OR Click here for June Sign Up Dates. Keep in mind that if your 2022-2023 volunteer background check is not on file, it takes two weeks to process.
• Step Two: Click here to complete the Paw's Pals Application. The volunteer background check is a part of this application.
• Please give our main office a call at least 48 hours prior to your volunteer date if you are note sure if your background check has been approved. If you already know that you have a background check on file for this school year, you may come to the main office on the date you have selected.

Full Day Dismissal Times:

3:05 SACC, Safety & Service Squad

3:08 Walkers & parent pick up

3:12 Bussers

Half Day Dismissal Times

11: 18 AM - SACC, Safety and Service Squad

11:21 AM - Walkers and Parent Pick Up

11:25 AM - Bussers

Bus Riders:

• Busses may run slightly late picking up students the first few days of school as our drivers and students learn their new routes. It is still recommended that students arrive at their bus stop 10 minutes prior to their scheduled time.
  
• Busses may run slightly late for drop off this week since students and drivers are learning their routes.
• Directions on accessing Transportation information can be found below.

Click to visit: CVS Transportation Webpage

Click here or below to access step-by-step directions on locating your Bus Stop Information

Click here to log in to VersaTrans

Walkers/Riders:

• Walkers/Riders should line up and be dismissed from their classroom entrance doors. Teachers will pick-up their students from their entrance at 8:25 when the morning music begins.
  
• A map of grade level entrances can be found below.
  

Parking Lot:

• Please review the Parking Lot procedures below to know your student's entrance and exit.
• Staff will be present in the Parking Lot, Bus Loop and Building Entrances to help ensure a safe and smooth arrival and dismissal process at the start of next week.
• We ask for your patience and support as our new families learn the process and our returning families get back-in-the-swing-of-things :)

Please remember, ALL of the policies and procedures put in place at Cherokee are intended to keep our children safe. Many of these policies are district-wide and can either be found in the CVS Return to School Guidelines, the CVS Student Code-of-Conduct, or Cherokee's Paws' Policies & Procedures. Links can be found below.

We appreciate your understanding and appreciate those families who continue to model kindess, patience, and respect. You make a difference & we are all doing the best that we can!

Please Remember:

• Adults are to remain outside of the building and must be "buzzed-in" by the front office.
• All adults must show their ID at the entrance if they need to drop something off or pick-up their child early.
• Contact information must be up-to-date in case we need to contact your family.
• We release children to only those people listed on your child's PowerSchool contact list.
• Changes in your child's dismissal process must be called in no later than 2:30 so we can be sure to get the information to our staff.
• Families are asked to preorder lunch using the online ordering system below.
• Refrain from parking on Rivergate near the school including the bus loop.

A NOTE FROM MRS. ASHLEY

For families looking to register for SACC

• SACC registration is first come first served.
• Due to limited staff and capacity limits some registrations may not be approved at this time until more staff are available.
• As staffing levels increase, so will our ability to enroll more students. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
  
• Once your registration application is submitted you must receive a registration approval email before your child can attend.
• Registrations will remain pending in the system and will be approved as openings become available.

For families currently enrolled in SACC

• Adding on additional days other than what was originally scheduled may be limited at this time due to student and staff ratios. You will be notified if your schedule change can be approved (some days may be available where others may not)
• If your child does not need to attend on a scheduled day please remove them from the schedule to open up a spot for someone else.

We appreciate your understanding at this time and anticipate more staff to be available soon. Until then we must adhere to the Licensing Rules for Child Care Centers and stay within the required student to staff ratios. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

NOTE: SACC will continue to remain peanut/tree nut fee.

Ashley Murphy

Cherokee SACC Director

(586) 723-4860

• CLICK HERE to access the CVS SACC informational page.

If you would like to be a Cherokee Elementary sponsor please contat our PTO at 35pto@cvs.k12.mi.us or call our main office.

We choose to Inspire, Believe, Achieve & LEAD!

Website: https://www.chippewavalleyschools.org/schools/elementary-schools/cherokee/
Location: 42900 Rivergate Drive, Clinton Township, MI, USA
Phone: 586-723-4800
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CherokeeWildcats

https://www.facebook.com/CherokeeWildcats

https://www.facebook.com/groups/CherokeePTO/