EPE Express

Greetings EPE Families,

Its hard to believe that we are in the final marking period of the school year! With the month of April comes the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, also commonly known as the PSSA. Students in grades 3, 4, and 5 take part in the assessments. Grades 3 and 5 complete the English/Language Arts and Math Assessments, while 4th grade takes the English/Language Arts, Math, and Science Assessments.

The dates for the PSSAs are as follows:

English/Language Arts - April 26, 27, 28

Math - May 2, 3

Science - May 4, 5

While our teachers have been hard at work all year teaching our curriculum, we would like to remind all families to do the following on the days around the PSSA:

1. Have your child get a good night's rest.

2. Eat breakfast in the morning (we take the PSSAs from 9 to 11 AM).

3. Talk to your child about how they are feeling about the PSSA.

4. Have a positive attitude about the PSSA. Positivity is infectious!

5. We ask that students leave electronic devices at home on PSSA Days (phones, smart watches, etc). If a student does bring a phone, smart watch, etc. to school on a test day, staff is required by the PA Department of Education to collect the device until the tests are finished and removed from the testing room.

As we are beginning to embrace the warmer weather of Spring, we would like to remind our students and families about the dress code for EPASD schools. Please reference pages 9-10 of the 2021-2022 Elementary Student Code Of Conduct for detailed information:

https://4.files.edl.io/9090/01/24/22/133110-db415a27-1f2a-4ed2-ba46-bbe226675d04.pdf

Be mindful that flip flops, tank tops, and shirts which expose the midriff (crop tops) are not permitted in school.

The EPE Spring Chorus and Band Concert, will be held on Thursday, March 31st at 7:00 PM in the EPE Cafeteria/Stage. We look forward to a big crowd to watch our elementary musicians perform!

As always, if there is ever a question or concern, please do not hesitate to reach out to myself or Mr. Etter here at EPE.

Respectfully,

Rich Tysarczyk, Principal

rtysarczyk@epasd.org

Dan Etter, Assistant Principal

detter@epasd.org

717-732-0441

Please take a look at this wonderful commendation from an EPE Family!

Miss Hegman is an amazing teacher! My daughter adores her. She takes a personal interest in the students. On her personal time outside of school she attends games for kids sports. My daughter and Miss Hegman planned a matching outfits day. It was very special to my daughter to do that with her teacher. At school, she plays various games with the kids at recess. My daughter is very fortunate to have her as a teacher, she takes time to help the kids with whatever they need. She truly is fantastic and deserves to be recognized.

If you have something amazing to share about an EPE staff member, please consider doing so using the following short form:

https://forms.gle/f13ZhDceewQp42wX8

We appreciate the feedback and may share it in future newsletters.

Miss Gruber joined the EPE staff in March to teach Kindergarten!

Mrs. Baker's 4th Grade class made electrical flashlight circuits, grabbed a stuffed buddy, and made a fort under their desk to complete their reading assignment. They were very creative and successful blending science and reading together!

Miss Hess's 2nd Grade class participated in a "Book Tasting" The students rotated around to different selections of books from varied genres (nonfiction, fiction, poetry and biographies). They “tasted” a few books from each and recorded if they would read it again and why on a reading “menu.”

In the photos below, Mrs. Krizan and her 5th graders are enjoying music!

Around St. Patrick's Day, all of our classrooms participated with their buddy classrooms through a building-wide scavenger hunt activity. One of our favorite parts of this program is having older students paired with a younger "buddy student" for regular meetings and activities throughout the school year.

SPIRIT WEAR SALE

To order East Pennsboro Panthers apparel, please visit our online store at:

https://artisticimprints.3dcartstores.com/East-Penn-PTO_c_996.html?fbclid=IwAR03YT8hX2eLDU0DWhdKfRAqDBYTg95aW5wrXq6K4rNp7upLf7kx9-58UM4

*If you are interested in volunteering or want more information, please email us at epasdelempto@outlook.com.

Our book fair is extended one additional week for an online-only shopping experience.

Please check the link below if you would like information on the final science club of the school year.

Please link your Weis Shoppers Club Card to EPE to help us fund supplies for our school. See the informational flyer below.

April 24th from 12:00 to 3:00 at the EPHS Stadium

Coach Groff can be reached at egroff@epasd.org

Tryouts start on April 22nd!

East Pennsboro Elementary School has been a partner with Junior Achievement for many years. We welcome the community based-curriculum they have to offer in addition to our EPE volunteers. If you may be interested in becoming a JA volunteer, review the information below. Please note all JA Volunteers must follow EPASD Volunteer procedures and complete a volunteer application, submitted to the building principal for approval.

• Volunteer basis in our school
• 5-8 sessions with a class per year
• Scripted lessons from JA
• Topics centered around careers, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, community.

Interested community members may email the EPE Administration or our JA contact, Gini Riese, directly at griese@jascpa.org.

To learn more about Junior Achievement, visit the following websites:

https://www.jascpa.org/classroomk-5

https://jausa.ja.org/programs/index

The classroom teachers follow routine dismissal procedures daily. Changes in those routines

should be for urgent reasons and must be accompanied by a Change of Routine Notice or a

written parental notice requesting such a change. All student verbal requests for such changes will be denied without written notice or a phone call from a parent/guardian. Seesaw messages, text messages, and emails will not be accepted during the school day of a change of routine. Please have these requests into the school ahead of time so we can ensure students are where they need to be for a safe and secure dismissal.

EPE accepts attendance notifications (excuse cards, absence notes, etc.) via email. Parents can email epesattendance@epasd.org as a means of reporting your child’s absence. Paper notes will still be accepted as well. Reminder that all excuse notifications are required to be submitted within three school days of your child’s absences.

Excused Absences:

When a child is enrolled in the district’s educational program, the student is subject to the

Pennsylvania State Attendance Laws. The Board considers the following conditions to constitute an excused absence from school:

1. Illness

2. Quarantine

3. Student required court attendance

4. Prearranged doctor and dentist appointment for time of appointment and appropriate travel time only

5. Authorized school activities

6. Pre-approved educational tours and trips, not school sponsored

7. Other urgent reasons, including funerals, that apply to the child and approved by the building administrator

Parents/guardians are expected to telephone the school when students are absent for any reason. In addition, a written excuse from a parent/guardian is required for each absence.

Unexcused Absences:

An unexcused absence shall be defined as:

• Absence from school with parent/guardian consent for reasons other than those considered

excusable.

• Leaving school during school hours without permission from the administrator.

• Absence from school without knowledge/permission of parent/guardian (truancy).

• Absence from school without knowledge/permission of school authorities.

• Absences from school without written parental excuse submitted within 3 school days of the absence.

You may refer to the Elementary Student Handbook in the link below to review more specific information about our attendance policies in certain situations (Page 10 of the document). Please contact our school office if you have any questions about our attendance policies or procedures.

https://4.files.edl.io/69d5/07/19/21/151326-d52fa66e-ffe7-4c30-b50d-154126ce7428.pdf

Automated Absence Alert:

EPE will begin sending automated absence alerts this school year. The Automated Absence Alert system was implemented to inform parents when their students are absent from school. If/when your student is absent or does not report to their classroom they are recorded as absent. When the daily attendance is submitted electronically, an automated message will be sent to a phone identified by the parent/guardian. This call will normally occur by approximately 10:00 am. Should you have questions or concerns you may contact the

attendance secretary by calling: East Pennsboro Elementary School (EPE), (717) 732-0441.

School Buses:

School buses will queue at the rear of the school building, behind the new addition for arrival and departure.

Car Riders:

Cars for parent drop off and pick up will queue in front of the school. Please pull up to the stop sign rather than stopping midway through the loop to unload. In the afternoon, parents must have their name hanger tags visible for student pickup. Students may only be dropped off or picked up within the “loading zone” that will be marked in the front of the school - approximately the first ten cars at a time. Parents may not park in the parking lot and walk up to the loop attendant. Please stay in your car at all times. Please review the map below of the car rider loop.

School Vans:

School vans will utilize the small loop near the baseball fields for arrival and dismissal. No cars should be in this loop.

Times:

Parent drop-off begins at 8:25 AM. Students must be in the building by 8:50 AM.

Parent pick up times run from 3:20-3:40 PM.

We certainly appreciate your understanding and flexibility as we ensure a safe and orderly process for each student. We continue to recommend that you send your EPE students to and from school on our school buses.

Please create a Sapphire Parent Portal account. There are several benefits to creating a parent portal account:

• You can access your child's report cards when they are published
• You can keep track of your child's attendance
• You will be able to receive important notifications about your child

To create a parent portal account:

• Go to our website www.epasd.org
• Hover over the "Students" tab
• Click "Sapphire Community Web Portal"
• Click "Create a Web Portal Account"
• Follow the remaining on screen instructions to enter your information.

If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Wadlinger at pwadlinger@epasd.org. She would be happy to help!

Click the link below for the 2021-2022 School Year Calendar:

https://3.files.edl.io/a46e/21/07/12/193153-0662518b-7b67-41b7-9b1b-05072d4992b6.png

Click the link below for the 2022-2023 School Year Calendar:

https://4.files.edl.io/ebf1/01/07/22/164517-1789e60a-f841-4fe4-be5a-eaa6cc508e52.pdf

April 2022:

4 - Report Cards Issued

7 - School Board Meeting 7:00 PM EPE LGI

13 - Spring Break

14 - Spring Break

15 - Spring Break

18 - Spring Break

21 - School Board Meeting 7:00 PM EPE LGI

26 - English/Language Arts PSSA (Grades 3, 4, 5)

27 - English/Language Arts PSSA (Grades 3, 4, 5)

28 - English/Language Arts PSSA (Grades 3, 4, 5)

May 2022:

2 - Math PSSA (Grades 3, 4, 5)

3 - Math PSSA (Grades 3, 4, 5)

4 - Science PSSA (Grade 4 Only)

5 - Science PSSA (Grade 4 Only)

5 - School Board Meeting 7:00 PM EPE LGI

19 - School Board Meeting 7:00 PM EPE LGI

20 - EPE Field Day

All above dates are subject to change. Any changes will be communicated via our blackboard connect system.

Please feel free to contact us below:

Email: rtysarczyk@epasd.org
Website: https://www.epasd.org/
Location: 840 Panther Parkway, East Pennsboro Township, PA, USA
Phone: 717-732-0441
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EastPennsboroElem/