Positively Primary Post

Hello and Happy Fall!

It was wonderful to meet so many parents and family members during Get Acquainted Night! The children are so energized and proud to share their school with you and we are delighted to work in concert with parents who are partners in the process of teaching and learning. Thank you for all that you do to support the efforts taking place in your child’s classroom by their dedicated teacher and those who support learning in other, varied ways at our school!

October is always an interesting month as the children settle in to the routines that have been established, teachers carefully respond to the individuality of each child and we manage the growing excitement for all that comes with Fall.

Enjoy the beauty of this season and best wishes to you and your family, always.

Sincerely,

Ms. Danielle Dehm

On Monday, September 26th, the Boys Varsity soccer team came down to the Primary School to work with the 3rd graders in Mr. Fish's class. Each player was assigned a student and after getting to know each other, they interviewed each other. The interviews asked questions such as: "What does it take to be a High School Student-Athlete?" "What is the hardest part of 3rd grade?" "Who are three role-models in your life?" Mr. Fish noted, "The best part of this experience was to see and hear the conversations between our high school role-models and our current primary students."

Congratulations to Mrs. Leah Besaw, VPS second grade teacher, for being recognized by Senator Rich Funke for her efforts on behalf of students everyday! She is a consummate teacher in every way and brings learning to life by enthusiastically embracing the content while engaging young learners in a focused and delightful way.

One conference will be scheduled for each child in the Fall and Spring. In the event that only one parent can attend a scheduled conference, we are expecting that s/he will communicate the highlights of the conference to the other parent and share the progress report.

The children will be dismissed at 12:00 on the following dates so that parent/teacher conferences can occur:

Fall: December 1, December 2, December 8, December 9

Spring: March 16, March 17, March 22, March 23

Note: Other 12:00 dismissal days scheduled for teacher training and/or data work related to the common core standards are scheduled for:

February 3, 2017 and June 9, 2017

There is no school on Friday, October, 21, due to Superintendent’s Conference Day.

We are stepping-up our social media! Follow us in the following virtual spaces:

FaceBook - /VictorPrimary

Twitter - @VictorPrimary
Instagram - @VictorPrimary

YouTube - Search for Victor Primary School, click Subscribe

As a second grade teacher and mom of two young children, Mrs. Cole has so many favorite children's books that it's hard to choose just five. Here are a few of her favorite to read aloud:

"The Runaway Bunny" by Margaret Wise Brown. This is a beautiful story of a mother's love and how she would follow her children to the ends of the Earth, weitten by the same author of "Goodnight Moon."

"How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids" by Tom Rath. This is a great story to remind kids of the importance of using kind words.

"A Bad Case of Stripes" by David Shannon. In this wacky story, Camilla Cream learns that the best person to be is yourself.

"Corduroy" by Don Freeman. This classic story is so sweet and endearing. I love that the little girl loves him, even with his missing button.

"Betty Bunny Wants Everything" by Michael Kaplan. Betty Bunny always cracks my daughter and me up and each book delivers a lesson in a very comical way.

Research shows that children who are in school the majority of the time have an edge over those who are not. Students can make up missed assignments and copy notes, but they miss critical class discussions and teacher instruction—questions and explanations that stimulate their critical thinking skills and help make learning come alive!

A child’s solid educational background can be achieved through regular school attendance. Being late to school hurts a child’s learning as well. A child who is habitually 10 minutes late to school will end up missing 30 hours of class instruction during the year.

Consider the importance of attending school regularly and the rules and consequences for missing school and being late. When possible, avoid scheduling doctor appointments or family vacations during school hours and make sure your child eats nutritiously and gets sufficient sleep and exercise. This will help your child stay healthy and in school!

Please call the Health Office if your child will be absent from or late to school (even due to a medical appointment) at 924-3252, ext. 2420. Thank you!

This is a reminder that head lice are a community problem brought into the schools unintentionally by unsuspecting children. The peak time that children become infested with head lice is in the summer, because of sleep-away camps, slumber parties and vacationing. However, because head lice are so small, and because symptoms of itching may not develop for weeks or even months after infestation, parents and children alike often don’t even know there is a problem unless the parent inspects the child’s head closely and often. Fall is the time of year when we start to see some cases of head lice on children in school. This is a good opportunity to begin looking carefully through your young child’s scalp at least once a day if you notice your child scratching their scalp more than usual. If you see any stage of the head louse, nits (eggs) attached to the hair shaft that are hard to remove or live lice, your child needs to be treated, and the nits removed before you send your child back to school.

Adequate treatment requires four ounces per six inches of hair of an over-the-counter product you choose. Use exactly according to package instructions, which will include repeating the treatment in a week to ten days.

Head lice are a nuisance, but they are treatable and are not life threatening. The district monitors carefully every instance of any potentially contagious condition, and the school nurse works closely with everyone involved to ensure the health, safety, and dignity of every child. Your own physician is an excellent resource for you if you have any questions or if you find that an over-the-counter treatment doesn’t help. Your school nurse can help you with specific issues related to your child’s attendance in school. Remember, the single most important way to prevent a head lice problem in school is surveillance by the parent at home.

Students may be dropped off at the south lot of the building (by the basketball courts) between 9:05-9:15 a.m. at the double-doors near the corner of the building closest to the main road. An aide will be there to greet your child. You do not need to sign your child in and it is not necessary for you to escort your child to his/her classroom. If you need to enter the building, as always, you will need to present a picture ID to the aide on duty.

If you are dropping off your child to school after 9:15 a.m., your child is considered late. Please walk your child into the building and fill out a tardy slip at the Main Office window so that our Attendance aide (Sue Delmonico) knows that he/she is not absent and you do not receive a phone call. Your child will receive a hall pass to give to the classroom teacher so that the teacher knows he/she has checked in at the Main Office. If you can’t accompany your child into the building, you need to send him/her in with a signed note, stating the reason for tardiness. Please do not just drop off your child and leave.

Dismissal at the Primary School begins at 3:10 p.m. following the afternoon announcements. Requests for changes in dismissal must be done prior to 11:00 a.m. on the requested day. VPS Dismissal Request Forms have been sent to households and are also available at www.victorschools.org. If you forget to send a note with your child you may call the office by 11:00 am with the dismissal change and office staff can write your child a note.

If you are picking up your child from school at 2:45 p.m. or later, go directly to the dining room to sign-out your child. Park behind the building (south lot) by the basketball courts and enter through the dining room door. Please do not come to the Main Office to pick up your child if it is 2:45 p.m. or later, as you will be redirected to the dining room. This procedure is for the safety and welfare of our Primary students as well as to prevent parents from being detained in the bus loop as buses begin assembling into formation for dismissal.

If your child is to be excused before regular dismissal time, a note with the necessary information should be sent to school with your child that morning. Pick ups earlier than 2:45 p.m. take place in the Main Office.

If you are going to be volunteering in the building at the end of the day and would like to take your child home with you when you leave, you still need to send in a dismissal change note that morning and follow the above procedure to sign your child out.

As always, be prepared with a picture ID when picking up your child from school or visiting the building throughout the school day.

· Pick-ups before 2:45: Main Office

· Pick-ups 2:45 and later: Dining Room—park in back and enter through cafeteria

Thank you for your cooperation in making our dismissal process run smoothly!

Tuesday, October 4

PIE Meeting—7:00pm, VIS Aud.

Monday, October 12

Columbus Day Observed; No School

Thursday, October 13

Board of Education Mtg—7:15pm, VEC

Friday, October 14

PTSA Fall Family Event (Corn Maze)

Wednesday, October 19

VOICE Meeting—6:30, PPS Conference Rm

Friday, October 21

No School—Superintendent’s Conf. Day

10/3 - D Day

10/4 - A Day

10/5 - B Day

10/6 - C Day

10/7 - D Day

10/11 - A Day

10/12 - B Day

10/13 - C Day

10/14 - D Day

10/17 - A Day

10/18 - B Day

10/19 - C Day

10/20 - D Day

10/24 - A Day

1025 - B Day

10/26 - C Day

10/27 - D Day

10/28 - A Day

10/31 - B Day

Do you have a new baby in your family? Do you have a friend or family member in the Victor School District that recently gave birth to a newborn or adopted a child? We would like to send a gift to that family. Please share the following information with us so we can extend our best wishes:

Name of Parent

Name and Age of Child

Child is M/F

Address

Return this information to Victor Primary School, Attn: Ms. Danielle M. Dehm, 953 High Street, Victor, NY 14564.

Please sign up for the Principal's ListServ for more and important information about our school. Simply follow these steps: Click on this link http://www.victorschools.org/primary/cfm ; click on "Sign up for Mrs. Dehm's email updates, add your email address and click on "Primary School News" and any other boxes for the news you would like to receive, select "Subscribe" and then click "Submit."

If you prefer to "unsubscribe," follow the same directions and click on the pull-down menu which indicates "unsubscribe" and then click "Submit."

Website: www.victorschools.org/primary
Location: 953 High Street, Victor, NY
Phone: (585) 924-3253
Facebook: facebook.com/victorprimary
Twitter: @victorprimary

Primary Office: 924-3252, ext. 2410

Primary Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Principal: Danielle M. Dehm, ext. 2410

Assistant Principal: Jennifer Check, ext. 2405

Principal's Secretary: Robin Kinsella, ext. 2410

Building Secretary: Kristen Stone, ext. 2411

Nurse: Lori Pownall, ext. 2422

Attendance: Sue Delmonico, ext. 2420

Health Office Fax Number: 742-7068

Psychologists:

Julie Braniecki, ext. 2201

Tim Trott, ext. 2182

Tania Zazulak-Angelini, ext. 2180

PTSA Website: www.victorPTSA.com

PIE Website: http://www.victorschools.org/people.cfm?subpage=120

At Victor Primary School we are not only concerned with your child's academic growth, but also with his or her development as a total human being. This includes emotional and social well-being, a sense of responsibility, appropriate behavior, and physical aptitude. To accomplish this, we work together as a team to foster a "positively primary" environment for all.