Maplewood Memo
October 26, 2022
What's in the memo
1. Message from Principal Galloway
Letter from 4th Grade Students about Bus
2. Save the Date
3. School News
Thanksgiving Food Boxes // TAG // Yearly verification - Urgent Deadline // Speed Limit
4. News from Staff
Cafeteria // Library & Technology // PE // Art // Counselor // Counseling Intern // Social Worker
5. Volunteer
Volunteer information
6. Foundation & PTA
Foundation info // PTA Meetings & Info // Fundraisers // Dine Outs
7. Reading Friends
8. Health
9. Nutrition Services
information // October menu
10. Flyers
Girls Lacrosse
Principal's Message
Dear Maplewood Families,
There are many factors that contribute to the success of your child in school. Arriving on time and good attendance are two of them. Our school start time is 8:00 and students are expected to be in their seats and ready to go by 8:00. Anytime you can schedule appointments outside the school day is a huge benefit to your child as there are many things they miss out on that can never be made up. Please keep this in mind as you make winter travel plans as well. Of course, if your child is ill, we want them to stay home and get well. Thank you for your support in helping your child arrive on time and maintain consistent attendance.
Parent teacher conferences are just around the corner and we look forward to all of our parents having the opportunity to conference with their child’s teacher. These conferences are a great way to find out more about your child’s daily routine, classroom expectations and how your child is progressing so far this year. We will be sending home report cards on November 7th so you can discuss report cards at your child’s conference this year as well. Attending your parent conference is a great way to get involved with your child’s education and be part of the team that helps your child be a successful learner.
We have had a few successful fundraisers so far this fall - both for our Foundation and for the PTA. You blew the pie orders out of the park! And we are wrapping up the Maplewood in Motion fundraiser for our Foundation. (As a reminder, the Foundation money is for staff, like Educational Assistants, and the PTA money is for stuff.) The Foundation, PTA and I are working to put together a yearlong overview of the fundraisers coming up so you can plan your donations.
If your child rides the bus, please remind them that our school expectations apply to the time they are on the bus as well. Being safe, kind and responsible are key to transporting our students to school. During a recent morning circle in grade 4, the students began to share some frustrations they were having on the bus around students’ behavior. They decided to take action and write the rest of the school a letter asking us all to make the bus ride a more positive experience for everyone.
Please take some time to reiterate the importance of good bus behavior with your child if they ride the bus to school.
Warmly,
Kit Galloway
Below is what they wrote:
Save the Date
Every Tuesday
OHSU Covid Test Returned - Optional
October 26
Monthly Parent Tag Office Hours 6:00pm
October 27
School Pictures
October 28
OBOB Team Registration Deadline
October 30
Fundraiser at Hammer & Stitch
November 04,
No School - Teacher Planning Day
November 09-22
Book Fair - online
November 11
No School Holiday Veteran's Day
November 14-18
Book Fair
November 15
PTA Meeting 6:30pm
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84322901573?pwd=RmdkaVRzaDIxR0JudkNURTI5OEk2Zz09
November 21 & 22
Conferences
November 23, 24, 25
No School - Holiday Thanksgiving
School News
Thanksgiving Food Boxes:
Maplewood Elementary is working together with Neighborhood House again this year to deliver boxes of food during the Thanksgiving Holiday break for our families. If you would like to participate, you can have a box delivered (on Tuesday the 22nd), pick up a box, and/or help donate or volunteer!
There will also be donation bins at Maplewood to accept items. The bins will be located just inside the front door, and outside at the side door (please see pics below). If you would like to donate, you do not need to sign up. You can simply bring any of the requested items at any time! Requested items are; Dry & Canned Beans, Canned Fruits & Vegetables, Canned Soup, Chili, & Stew, Canned Tuna & Chicken, Brown Rice & Whole Grain Pasta, Nuts & Nut Butters, Whole-Grain Cereal/Breakfast Items, Snack items.
Click the LINK to sign up for a box or let us know if you would like to volunteer! https://forms.gle/cbtYsHWEHuuqz3i9A
Responses will go directly to the school social worker, Jeremy Schlott (jschlott@pps.net), and the school counselor, Kendall Cunningham-Parmeter (kcunninghamparm@pps.net),
only.
TAG
Parent Office Hours with the TAG (Talented and Gifted) Department
Ask questions and receive information related to TAG identification, services, processes, etc.
We will meet on Zoom, 6:00-7:00 PM on 10/26/22, 11/30/22, 1/25/23, 2/22/23, 3/22/23, 4/26/23, and 5/31/23.
OFFICE HOURS
NEW! Parent Office Hours with the TAG Department
The October focus will be the TAG referral process
Our next meeting will be Wednesday, October 26 6:00-7:00 PM
Zoom link for Parent Office Hours with the TAG Department
A list of questions and answers from past meetings are in this FAQ document.
We look forward to seeing you!
YEARLY VERIFICATION - IMPORTANT
Parent access to view gradebook and student information will be disabled after October 28th if you do not complete your Yearly Verification. You can do this by logging into your ParentVue account.
If you have never logged into your PVUE you will need an activation key code, sriley@pps.net or mbelgrav@pps.net can provide you with your activation key code if you need it.
It is important that you update your correct address, contact numbers and emergency contact numbers.
Thank you!
Speed Limit 15!
Please be respectful of the speed limit and our neighborhood community. For the safety of your children, please do not drive more the 15 miles per hour when driving your children to and from school.
Food Collection Front Doors
Food Collection Recess Doors
Food Collection Barrel
News From Staff
Cafeteria:
Hello Friends. The first week in November we are switching up the menu for two days. We normally have Brunch for Lunch on Wednesdays, but Wednesday Nov 2nd will be Burgers or Chicken nuggets. Brunch will be on TUESDAY NOVEMBER 1ST. For the new families, we do not serve syrup with our pancakes. I make a fruit compote. This menu will have strawberry compote. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Library & Technology:
Tech... (I see half of Maplewood students in grades 2-5 every six weeks - here what we've been up to, or will be doing with the second six-week session).
1. Typing Club (my.pps.net: backpack: Edtech: Typing Club: Maplewood Portland). Students can access and use the Typing Club at home, too. (Grades 3-5)
2. Internet Safety -- We've discussed this, and how important it is to build trust with adults at home. Students played the E-Volve game (bullying/upstander) on the Common Sense Digital Passport website. Other internet safety games here: https://www.digitalpassport.org/ . (Grades 3-5) And these add'l games, if you want more: Digital Citizenship Week activities on BrainPOP
https://www.brainpop.com/digitalcitizenship/3. World Book Encyclopedia Online (research, citations, copying/pasting text and images -- depending on the grade level) (Grades 2-5) https://www.worldbookonline.com/home/
4. Creating/adding to their online e-journal (Google Doc skills, word processing skills, returning to a document). (Grades 2-5)
Elin Kordahl
Teacher-Librarian & Computer Teacher
PE News:
We have been playing games in PE that help us practice dynamic throwing and catching along with strategies, cooperation, teamwork, communication, and SPORTSMANSHIP!
Now that the weather has turned and kids are wearing rain boots, please remind them to throw a pair of tennis shoes in their backpack for PE. If you have an old pair you want to leave in the gym, I have space for that!
If your child has an injury and needs to sit out, please email me at MWeatherill@pps.net or send a note with them!
Thank you.
Ms. Weatherill
Art:
Great news - all art classes now have a parent volunteer! Thank you wonderful Maplewood community. It is helpful in more ways than I’d imagined!
All grades learned about artist Paul Klee and made art using pencil, oil pastels and baby oil! These are based on his drawing of Cat and Bird 1928. Below are some examples:
We’ve now moved on to another Paul, Paul Cezanne. More on that in the next newsletter.
Reminder: art can be messy so you may want to dress accordingly on your art day!
Ms. Smith
Kendall Cunningham - Counselor
Dear Maplewood Community,
Welcome to the fall of 2022 at Maplewood!! By now I hope you are starting to feel in the swing of things with the school year! I am Kendall Cunningham (Ms. Cunningham to students) and I am Maplewood’s full-time school counselor. This is my ninth year serving the Maplewood community. Being a school counselor allows me to participate in the lively school environment and build relationships with students while supporting their personal/social/academic needs. I am a parent of two PPS students (Go Guardians!) and I especially enjoy working with students and their families as they progress through school.
In addition to being a Caring Schools Community, Maplewood will once again be using the Toolbox program (more at toolboxproject.com). Toolbox is designed to help develop student resilience by teaching kids tools/strategies that they can use in different situations. I lean heavily on Toolbox strategies in my K-2 lessons and reference these strategies frequently with the older students as well. Ask your student about their Toolbox tools and encourage them to use them with uncomfortable feelings and situations.
What exactly does an elementary school counselor do? Very broadly, a school counselor supports students by working to remove barriers to school success. To this end, the school counselor collaborates with school staff, students, and families to help support all learners. Each classroom comes to my room for twelve 30-minute lessons that focus on identifying and taking care of feelings, being a good friend and community member, problem- solving, bullying, and the district Racial Equity and Social Justice lessons on diversity, anti-racism, and being changemakers. In addition to lessons, I work one-on-one with students and families, lead small groups, assist students with hard life transitions, help families connect with community resources, and mediate conflicts between students. These are just a few examples of the many things I do as a school counselor.
We have a great team to support our students at Maplewood. I am delighted to have the support of Jeremy Schlott, Social Worker, and Mirna Pani, School Counseling Intern who is doing her graduate studies at George Fox. We will be working closely together to help support students and families. Read on to learn more about our team here at Maplewood.
Finally, I want to acknowledge that these last few years have been very challenging for all of us. Whether your family has struggled with isolation, job loss, grief, learning loss due to distance learning, or parenting stress, we have all been carrying a lot. A lot. I’d like to be part of your team to support your student. You can call me at 503-916-6308, email me at kcunninghamparm@pps.net, or fill out this google form. The form is also linked in my email signature and on my website connected to Maplewood’s mainpage. Once again, I am excited to be serving the Maplewood community.
Kendall Cunningham
Maplewood School Counselor
(503) 916-6308
Monday to Friday 7:45-3:30
Mirna Peni - Counseling Intern
Mirna Pani
Maplewood School Counseling Intern from George Fox College
(503) 908-2824
Jeremy Schlott - Social Worker
Welcome to the start of a new school year full of hope and opportunity! My name is Jeremy Schlott, and I am super excited to be working with you as your school social worker. I am half-time with Maplewood, and half-time over at Capitol Hill Elementary. You may be asking yourself, what is a School Social Worker? Well, a famous group of four musicians once sang, “I’ll get by with a little help from my friends.” Making our way through the challenges of life can be difficult, and it is the role of the school social worker to help children and families get by. School social workers provide support services for struggling students and families. We are trained mental health professionals who can respond to crises such as a death in the family, loss of housing, or mental health emergencies. We also run support groups to help kids cope with anxiety and trauma, teach classroom lessons, and provide short-term counseling. In addition, we help provide connections to community resources such as food, clothing and housing. We work hard to use a culturally responsive, trauma-informed approach to best serve all students. I've worked with children, youth, and families in a variety of settings for over two decades, including early intervention, youth and child counseling, and medical social work and I am lucky to be part of such a wonderful staff at Maplewood! The best way to find me is to send an email, or fill out this google form which is also linked in my email signature and on Kendall’s counseling website connected to Maplewood’s mainpage. Please feel free to reach out at any time. Hoping your start to the school year is full of joy and learning.
Jeremy Schlott
School Social Worker
Volunteer
Volunteer info
We are excited to welcome volunteers into the building and classrooms this year. All volunteers must show proof of vaccination, clear a background check (https://www.pps.net/volunteer), and sign-into the Raptor system located at the main office on arrival and sign-out when leaving campus.
We can’t wait to have you in school with us!
Lunch Volunteers
We need 2-3 parents to volunteer for lunch duty, to help keep kiddos on task eating and give our teachers a break. Here are the time slots - message Lauren at 541-968-9140 or Maplewoodvolcoord@gmail.com to sign up!
K-1st: 11:20-11:45
2nd & 4th 11:50-12:15
3rd & 5th: 12:20-12:45
Foundation and PTA
Maplewood Foundation
Foundation is SEEKING ADDITIONAL MEMBERS. If you have an interest in making a big impact at our school, are interested serving with other mission- and impact-driven parents with different backgrounds, skills, and capacities, and/or have an interest in advocating for more investment in our school and a more equitable future, then we could really benefit from having someone like you serve on Maplewood’s Foundation. Out primary focus is to raise funds to help close the gap in the school’s budget for necessary educational staff. See our website for more info:
http://www.maplewoodfoundation.com/.
If interested and/or have questions, please email (maplewoodfoundation@gmail.com) or call/text Jeannette Taylor at 503.901.9813.
PTA Meetings
Join us at the PTA meeting every month to learn about upcoming projects, events, priorities, and to share your thoughts! PTA Meetings occur the third Tuesday of every month from 6:30 - 7:30 pm. Become an Oregon PTA Member; this supports our school and allows you to vote during meetings. (You don't have to be a member to attend meetings, just to vote.) https://www.oregonpta.org/membership
November PTA Meeting
Please join us at the next PTA meeting on:
- Tuesday, November 15, 6:30 – 7:30 pm
- Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84322901573?pwd=RmdkaVRzaDIxR0JudkNURTI5OEk2Zz09
- Passcode: PTA
- Full details at maplewoodpta.com/meetings/
Maplewood PTA
The Maplewood PTA strives to serve our school’s community of teachers, staff, parents, and students. We have lots of amazing things planned this year to support our school!
Stay up to date on events and more
Sign up for the Maplewood PTA email list
Follow Maplewood PTA on Instagram
Maplewood in Motion 2022
Thank you to all that participated!
Whether you are tracking at home or through 99 Pledges, we greatly appreciate all the work you and your students put in to help fund the staff that Maplewood relies upon.
99 Pledges
Sunday was the last day to earn minutes. You can finish up loading your information for the pledges through today (Tuesday 10/25). This would be a great time to ask those who did not pledge per minute to help with a one-time donation.
Paper Tracking
For those of you who tracked using the paper handout, your next step is to collect those checks and bring them to the Maplewood Foundation box in the front office. If this causes a barrier, you can email maplewoodfoundation@gmail.com and we can find a pick-up/drop-off solution.
Again THANK YOU. We know that fundraisers are work for all involved. Any support is appreciated by the whole community, but especially our EAs and students!
Your Maplewood Foundation Team
http://www.maplewoodfoundation.com/
Fundraising to Support Maplewood
Take this brief survey to let us know your preferences about which fundraisers you love (or don't) to help us plan out the 2022-2023 school year!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5XKDL66
Amazon Smile
Make sure you've selected "Maplewood Elem PTA" as your Amazon Smile donation recipient. Link: https://smile.amazon.com/charity/select/search?orig=&category=all&query=maplewood+elem+pta
Once selected, Amazon will donate 0.5% of your eligible purchases to Maplewood at no cost to you! Make sure you shop using smile.amazon.com. More information here: http://maplewoodpta.com/donate
Dine Outs
Hammer & Stitch - Dining for dollars, All day Sunday, October 30, Mention the Maplewood Dining for Dollars and 15% of your sale will be donated to Maplewood PTA.
2377 NW Wilson St., Portland,
Yalla - Dine Out December 12th
PTA Reflections:
Participate in our friendly ARTS CONTEST at Maplewood! The theme this year is "Show Your Voice!" More information coming soon. If you have any questions, email Clémence at maplewoodptareflections@gmail.com
Book Fair Dates & Times
Neighborhood Parage
Dining for Dollars Hammer & Stitch
Reading Friends
READING FRIENDS
The Maplewood Reading Friends Program is looking for volunteers to read with students during the 2022-23 school year. The Reading Friends volunteer works with a student once a week individually to help grow their confidence in reading out loud/more fluently.
The program starts after Thanksgiving and runs until the end of the school year.
The time obligation will be an orientation of approximately an hour, and then 30 minutes once a week with the student. The session is the same day and time each week.
Interested in volunteering? Please fill out this registration form at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/3FR52BM.
Any questions? Reach out to Kari and Clémence, our Reading Friends Coordinators, at maplewoodrf@gmail.com.
Health Room
Medications
A reminder from the health room. Please bring any medications that your child must take during school hours and consent forms to Health Office. This is for prescribed medications that must be taken during the school day. If your child is in grade three, four or five, you may fill out a form for them to self subscribe enhalers or cough drops. Please fill out appropriate form for permissions. You can contact Julie Ries our Student Health Aid (SHA) for more information. If you have any questions please contact the school, or email our nurse, Cheryl Bell at cbell@mesd.k12.or.us or Healthy Aid Julie Ries at jries@mesd.k12.or.us for further information.
Nutrition Services
PK - 12 SCHOOL MEAL PAYMENTS AND ACCOUNT BALANCES
The Nutrition Services team has been so excited to see so many students enjoying school meals this year. To help communicate meal account balances to families, the Nutrition Services department will start sending notifications and friendly reminders to families whose student’s meal account no longer has funds on it to purchase school meals. Remember, families may apply for free or reduced price meals at any time throughout the school year and must apply every year to maintain eligibility. All families can check their account balances online with SchoolCafe at any time (and there is no charge to view your accounts).
Families have the following options to pay for school meals:
Pay as you go: Bring cash or check (payable to Portland Public Schools) directly to the cafeteria*
Prepay for meals with cash or check (payable to Portland Public Schools) in the cafeteria*. Funds will be deposited into the student meal account. Purchases will be deducted from the account balance.
Pay with a debit/credit card using SchoolCafe, a secure online meal payment system. NOTE: There is a minimum payment of $15 and a 5% fee per online transaction.
*Payments can be dropped off at the school office. Please put the payment in an envelope labeled 'cafeteria'. Checks can also be mailed to PPS Nutrition Services, 501 N Dixon St, Portland, OR 97227.
Whitney Ellersick, Senior Director, wellersick@pps.net