The All Star Family Newsletter

Dear Parents,

Each year our school is evaluated by the state and given a grade that is reported to the public. This grade is based on our scores from the state test, ACT Aspire, student attendance, and scores from our English Language Learners among several other factors. Last year, our school was ranked a D by the state. The staff at OHE has worked very hard to address gaps in learning and student attendance.

This year, I’m happy to announce that we have moved from a D to a C on our school report card. This is due to many factors including higher levels of achievement and growth on the ACT Aspire. We also gained an overall 2000 additional days of learning this year in improved attendance. It’s so exciting to see how much students can succeed when they are in school every day. It really makes a difference in their success!!

We want to celebrate our staff and students for the success we are experiencing. They have worked so hard to raise expectations and encourage and support our students when they struggle. We look forward to seeing even more success this year.

This newsletter is full of ways you can support your child to achieve great things in their learning. Even using a couple of tips to support and encourage your child can make a difference.

I can’t wait to see our students SHINE this year!!

Mrs. Shirley

The information gathered from these surveys will help us to improve our school. You will be able to select English or Spanish after opening each survey. Please complete BOTH surveys (level 1 and level 2). Your voice is important to us, and we appreciate your help in making Oakland Heights a terrific school!

Parents and families are essential partners in promoting good attendance because they have the bottom-line responsibility for making sure their children get to school every day. Just as parents should focus on how their children are performing academically, they have a responsibility to set expectations for good attendance and to monitor their children’s absences, so that missed days don’t add up to academic trouble. This Parent Handout outlines strategies including:

• Make getting students to school on time every day a top priority.

• Alert schools and community agencies to barriers that keep kids from attending class.

• Ask for and monitor data on chronic absence.

• Demand action to address systemic barriers that may be causing large numbers of students to miss too much school.

The Capturing Kids’ Hearts October word of the month is Self-Direct. Students are learning about how to envision who and what they want to be and how to take steps to achieve their vision. They are also learning about things they can control to help them make decisions and have positive interactions with each other. Click the links to read the CKH October parent newsletter. English Spanish

3rd--Lifetouch Pictures

5th--3rd and 4th Firefighter Challenge

5th--PTO meeting at 4:30

9th--Fire Safety Week

13th--RHS Homecoming

18th--end of 1st quarter

18th--District Firefighter Challenge

19th--No School for Students

20th--No School

23rd--Red Ribbon Week

24th--3rd grade kickball

26th--OHE Flu Clinic

27th--1st Quarter Awards (4th@ 8:15, K@9:00, 1st@9:45, 2nd@ 1:15, 3rd@2:00)

27th--Kindergarten Pumpkin Patch Field Trip

27th--report cards sent home

31st--Halloween/Food Day

Some of our OHE students went to the Pope County Fair, while other students went to the RSD Center for the Arts to enjoy Buckets and Boards. Our counselor, Mrs. James, led us in Start with Hello week to highlight the importance of being kind to one another.

We loved having grandparents and other special guests eat with their students at Grandparent Lunches!

We are celebrating Hispanic Heritage month at OHE! All students were encouraged to represent their culture in a variety of ways during the week of October 25th through 29th. Teachers are participating in a door decorating contest representing Spanish speaking countries. Parents brought foods from their home countries for teachers to try during parent teacher conferences.

Each month, students who demonstrate the characteristics of an OHE Student are nominated by their teachers. We hold a monthly school wide assembly to recognize these students, and they receive a star to put on their carabiner clip on their backpacks. The characteristics of an OHE Student are: responsible citizen, empathetic leader, innovative achiever, inclusive collaborator and critical thinker. You may click the link (here) to out more information about each characteristic.