PLAN AHEAD! WEEK OF DECEMBER 15-19
Dear Parents and Staff,
English Language Arts and Mathematics MAP testing begins this week. Day one will be Tuesday for English Language Arts and Day two will be Thursday. Best of luck to our students!
Thank you for your continued support and hard work in helping our school thrive. We are excited to share that our AQuESTT ratings are listed below—congratulations to our students, staff, and families for helping Cather earn an “Excellent” rating!
A special thank-you to Mr. Breiter and Mrs. Ferguson for their dedication in preparing our Band and Orchestra concert. Our students have been practicing diligently, and we appreciate their effort and enthusiasm. Great job, everyone!
You’ll also find our holiday dress-up days listed in the newsletter. And a big thank-you to our Parent Boosters for generously providing staff snack days next week—we are grateful for your support!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs. Kreager
Nebraska Department of Education Rating for Schools
Willa Cather Elementary - Receives Excellent Rating
Congratulations Students, Families and Staff!
ACCOUNTABILITY FOR A QUALITY EDUCATION SYSTEM, TODAY AND TOMORROW (AQuESTT) •
AQuESTT is a next generation accountability system developed by Nebraskans for Nebraska to help ensure a quality education for all students. It goes beyond what is required by statute, providing much more than a testbased method for measuring student achievement. It is unlike any other state system of accountability. •
AQuESTT considers the broader educational experiences and success of each student, not just performance on mandated assessments. Student growth and improvement over time are just as important. • AQuESTT represents a system of classification and support. • AQuESTT is focused on continuous improvement for schools. The system is built on six key research-based investments: 1) positive partnerships, relationships, and success, 2) transitions, 3) educational opportunities and access, 4) college, career, and civic ready, 5) assessment, and 6) educator effectiveness. Success in these areas will result in better outcomes for all students and schools. • Nebraska’s schools are fundamentally strong. AQuESTT classifies schools and districts into four performance levels: Excellent, Great, Good, and Needs Improvement.
Way to go Mustangs!
INCLEMENT WEATHER INFORMATION:
There may be some occasions when attending school due to inclement weather or other unforeseen circumstances may not be advisable. Student safety and learning is always the top priority for Millard Public Schools. With that in mind, Millard Public Schools will utilize a few options including 1) eLearning Days 2) Late Starts and 3) cancelling school. Late Start and eLearning days will not need to be made up at the end of the school year.
The District will communicate with staff and families when we may need to utilize one of these options. Announcements related to using any of the above options will be made on the radio and TV stations by 6 a.m. The announcement will also be posted on Millard’s website: www.mpsomaha.org. Parents and staff will also receive automated phone calls, texts and emails from our automated system. Typically, phone calls occur after 6:00 a.m., depending on when the decision is made.
Late start days will begin exactly 2 hours later than the normal school start time. When weather permits for a later start, the streets, sidewalks and parking lots can be better cleared and rush hour traffic can be complete. Doors will open on late start days at 10:15 a.m. School will begin at 10:30 a.m. We will have grab and go breakfast available for students that did not eat breakfast. Our lunch schedule will remain the same.
During an eLearning Day (students do not attend school) it allows for the scope and sequence of the coursework to stay on track and minimize disruptions to the learning process by leveraging technology, digital tools and other educational resources. Teachers will share information for assignments/tasks on an eLearning Day.
You can expect these things to occur for an eLearning day from Cather Elementary.
Teachers will talk with students and parents prior to the eLearning day at conferences to clearly explain what eLearning day procedures are for students.
You can expect eLearning day assignments to take 30-60 minutes to complete.
Teachers will be checking their emails periodically from 8:30 a.m until 3:30 p.m. to answer any questions that students and/or parents have.
Students will have 2 days to complete the eLearning assignment and hand it in.
A Canceled Day / Traditional Snow Day
On a day when school is canceled, schools are closed and no work is assigned.
BAND AND ORCHESTRA LATE START SCHEDULE
Orchestra
CATHER 5th Swanda & Ziegler
1:50-2:10
CATHER 4th Christensen & Griebel
2:10-2:30
CATHER 5th Pasko
2:30-2:50
Cather 4th Zadina
3:10-3:30
Band
Monday: Clarinets 2:30-2:50, Brass 2:50-3:10, Percussion 3:10-3:30
Wednesday: Flutes 1:50-2:10, Percussion 2:10-2:30
Friday: Flutes 2:30-2:50, Clarinets 2:50-3:10, Brass 3:10-3:30
Thank you Mr. Yeluri
It is that time of year where students will need their winter gear. Coats, hats, boots, gloves. Please watch the weather and send students with appropriate gear for recess. When we do have snow on the ground if students have all of their gear to include snow pants and boots they can play in the snow. Send it in a large grocery bag as the clothes will be wet. No playing on the ice, throwing or kicking snow or ice.
Cather families! Check here each week for library and technology updates and helpful hints and tips! If you have any technology or library related questions, please do not hesitate to email me at sjcollins@mpsomaha.org.
Information about our One School One Book will be coming soon! We hope that you can all join us in reading one book together as a community!
January will be Robotics Month at Cather! During technology classes, your students will explore all types of robotics - it's always tons of fun woven in with learning!
Please contact your student's classroom teacher if you are a mother figure and interested in volunteering to support students and staff!
Teacher and student projects
Flash cards
Bulletin boards
Laminating and cutting
Art projects
Work room copies
Organizing classroom library books
Library assistance
Read to the class
Assist students in the classroom
*Parents, step-parents (married), and grandparents will NOT need to fill out the volunteer background check district forms. All others WILL need to do so. This process takes about a month, so plan ahead!
Visit our CATHER WEBSITE at https://cather.mpsomaha.org/
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram
Check out your teacher's website!
School Hours M, T, Th, F 8:30-3:30pm
W - 8:30-2:30pm