October 2018
Parent Surf Report - Ocean Lakes Elementary School
From the Principal's Desk
Linda M. Reese, Principal
It has been a great first month of school. I always look forward to the first day of school when the students return from summer vacation. The students are adjusting very well to their new teacher, classmates and classroom. I have had the opportunity to visit each classroom and I am very excited about what I have seen so far. Students are really working hard learning the classroom expectations and routines.
I am happy to report that we are fully accredited. We owe our success not only to the hard working teachers and students but our parents and community. Ocean Lakes Elementary is successful because of our dedicated parents. We thank you for all of your support and hard work with the students at home.
We were so excited to see so many of our parents out during Open House. I hope you learned much about the curriculum, what is expected of your child, and how you can support your child at home.
I would like to thank everyone that has joined the PTA. We already have more memberships than last year. I am know we can meet our 100% membership goal. PTA membership is only $5 for one person or $10 for a family. To sign up for the PTA follow the directions attached to this email. The PTA is already hard at work planning activities. They purchased a t-shirt for every student and sent them home last week. Students should wear them for field trips and can also use them as a spirit shirt on Spirit Days.
For our returning parents and to all of our new parents, Ocean Lakes has a mandatory homework policy. Every child is to read for a minimum of 15 minutes nightly in grades K-2 and 20 minutes in grades 3-5. We have taught our younger students three ways to read a book: students can read the pictures, read the words, or re-tell the story. Also, your younger child can be read to by a parent, grandparent or older sibling. Do not forget to sign the reading calendar and return it to your child’s teacher at the end of each month.
Have a great month.
Dr. Reese
Upcoming Events
- 10/1/18 – 5th Grade Gifted Screening
- 10/3/18 – Sand Dollar Trade In Day
- 10/5/18 - SPIRIT Day; Announce SCA Winners
- 10/8/18 – Staff Day – Virtual Learning Day for Students
- 10/9/18 – Progress Reports Issued
- 10/10/18 – STEM club begins; Deadline for PTA Reflection Contest
- 10/11/18 – Cashola Night @ Chick Fil A 5-8 pm
- 10/16/18 – PICTURE DAY; Red Cross Blood Drive 2:30-7:30
- 10/19/18 – SPIRIT Day
- 10/21/18 - CycleBar Fundraiser 11:30
- 10/26/18-11/2/18 – Book Fair!
- 10/29/18 - Federal Cards Sent Home
- 11/2/18 - PTA Fall Festival; Federal Cards Due
Calling All Volunteers
If you are interested in volunteering for OLES, please stop by the office to complete a volunteer form. Every volunteer must complete this form annually.
How do I log in my volunteer hours?
I have had many inquiries about how to document volunteer hours for Ocean Lakes Elementary. Go to http://www.vbschools.com/volunteers/hours/landing.asp . Then click on Hours for a drop menu. Select How to log hours or if you know how to log your hours click on Log Hours for the page to fill in your information.
Progress Reports
Progress reports will only be issued to students performing below expected proficiency levels on October 9th. The electronic version of the progress report will be sent electronically to the parents unless they do not have an email address in Synergy. Paper copies will be provided to parents without an email address.
OLES Mission Statement
Ocean Lakes Elementary opens the door to learning to all by providing a nurturing environment that promotes 21st century learners. By engaging and being responsive to all students’ needs while creating opportunities for teachers, parents and community partners to collaborate and support successful achievement for all our students.
Compass to 2020 - Every Student, Every Day
Compass to 2020 is the new strategic framework for the division. It charts the course for teaching and learning across the division with the focus on ensuring that every student is challenged and supported to reach his or her full potential. The five year strategic framework includes four goals – high academic expectations, multiple pathways, social-emotional development, and culture of growth and excellence – and multiple strategies to guide this work. Interested in learning more? Click: http://www.vbschools.com/compass/landing.asp
Follow us on Twitter:
Follow us @oceanlakeses on Twitter to learn about all the ins and outs of Ocean Lakes Elementary School. We will be posting updated information, pictures from school, and much more!
Lost & Found:
Parents and students, please check the lost and found box for missing items. The blue box is located next to the gymnasium bathrooms. Valuables such as cash, jewelry, electronics, glasses, etc. will be held in the office. All items in the lost and found box will be donated to charity over Thanksgiving break.
Clinic Notes
Halloween Safety Tips
Halloween is an exciting time of year for kids. Here are some tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) to help ensure they have a safe holiday.
All Dressed Up:
· Plan costumes that are bright and reflective. Make sure that shoes fit well and that costumes are short enough to prevent tripping, entanglement or contact with flame.
· Consider adding reflective tape or striping to costumes and Trick-or-Treat bags for greater visibility.
· Because masks can limit or block eyesight, consider non-toxic makeup and decorative hats as safer alternatives. Hats should fit properly to prevent them from sliding over eyes. Makeup should be tested ahead of time on a small patch of skin to ensure there are no unpleasant surprises on the big day.
· When shopping for costumes, wigs and accessories look for and purchase those with a label clearly indicating they are flame resistant.
· If a sword, cane, or stick is a part of your child's costume, make sure it is not sharp or long. A child may be easily hurt by these accessories if he stumbles or trips.
· Do not use decorative contact lenses without an eye examination and a prescription from an eye care professional. While the packaging on decorative lenses will often make claims such as “one size fits all,” or “no need to see an eye specialist,” obtaining decorative contact lenses without a prescription is both dangerous and illegal. This can cause pain, inflammation, and serious eye disorders and infections, which may lead to permanent vision loss.
· Review with children how to call 9-1-1 (or their local emergency number) if they ever have an emergency or become lost.
CLOTHING REMINDER:
Please remember to keep a seasonally-appropriate set of clothes in a Ziploc bag in your child’s backpack. Spilled lunches, restroom accidents, and mud that soil your child’s clothes can be quickly remedied if a clean set of clothes is available.
Reporting Student Absences:
Student absences and late arrivals should be reported daily. Please call 648-3200 and use Option 3 to report absences or late arrivals. Please leave the following information: student name, teacher name, state whether the student will be absent or tardy, and reason for absence or late arrival.
Word of the Week
For the 2018-2019 school year, Ocean Lakes Elementary will continue with a Word of the Week (WOW word). Vocabulary is important to all of our students as they read and write every day. Each week, on the morning announcements we will highlight a vocabulary word. Students will also work on the WOW word in class. The focus will be on the part of speech, definition, writing the word in a sentence, and learning synonyms and antonyms. You can help at home! Ask your child about the Word of the Week!
Student Accident Insurance:
The school division is continuing to provide voluntary student accident insurance information. This information is available online on the school division website, http://www.vbschools.com/health/insurance.asp
- October 1st – 5th – TREMBLE
- October 8th – 12th – SUPPORT
- October 15th – 19th – STEADY
- October 22nd - 26th - NIBBLE
- October 29th – Nov 2nd – APPROACH
REDcard at Target:
Did you know that Target donates 1% of their REDcard holder’s purchases to OLES? Please take advantage of this amazing opportunity for our school! Target offers a 5% savings on every purchase made at a Target and Target.com when you use your Target REDcard. To take advantage of the many benefits offered by owning a Target REDcard, parents should visit the local Red Mill Target store at 2233 Upton Drive and inquire with any team member at a register. To sign up for a REDcard credit card all you need is an ID, and for a REDcard debit a blank check and ID. The process is super easy and takes only a few minutes to help support the Waveriders!
School Spirit Days:
Show your Waverider school spirit on the first and third Friday of every month by wearing a school t-shirt or school colors (blue and white). The class with the highest percentage of students wearing spirit wear, on each grade level, will earn the spirit banner for their grade level.
Parent-Teacher Conferences:
Teachers will be scheduling parent-teacher conferences from October 2nd to November 8th. Teachers will be contacting you to schedule a time to come and visit the classroom and discuss your child’s progress. Please take advantage of this time to discuss your child’s personal goals and classroom progress.
Parent Portal:
Parent Portal is parent and guardian computer access to important school year information about your child's progress, i.e. grades, attendance, assignments, notes from their teachers, and standardized test scores. You can sign up by going to vbschools.com and click on the parent portal tab. You must know your child's permanent ID # to sign up. Your child should know this # (they use it to buy lunch or login to their chrome books) or you can call the office for the #. You must have an email account to sign up as well. Specific instructions are on the website.
School Lunches:
Parents have the opportunity to pay for their child’s breakfast and lunch meals and ala carte items using a debit card or credit card (Visa, MasterCard). The secure Web-based payment system, SchoolCafe, allows parents to do the following:
- Prepay money directly into their child’s school account
- Schedule recurring payments
- Set up low-balance email reminders
- Monitor their child’s food purchases
- View Daily Menus
SchoolCafe is available on the school division’s website.
Meal Prices 2018-2019 School Year
- Full Price Breakfast $1.40
- Reduced Price Breakfast $0.30
- Full Price Lunch $2.85
- Reduced Price Lunch $.040
VBCPS Reading Bus:
Virginia Beach City Public Schools invites preschoolers ages 2 to 5 years and their parents to “open the door to adventure” on the Reading Bus. The bus will be at Ocean Lakes Elementary at 9:30 AM on October 4th, October 18th, November 1st and November 15th. For the most current bus schedule, visit the website at www.vbschools.com.
PTA membership:
Please consider joining PTA. Individual memberships are $5.00 each or $10 for a family . You can join at member.pta.org. If you haven't already you will need to create an account first. You will select RED "join" button, click on the GREEN box "PTA's in your community". Click on state of VA on the map, then join your local PTA by selecting Virginia PTA, Ocean Lakes Elementary. Select your membership, verify your info and click on BLUE "join" button. Finally enter your payment info. PTA has a lot of fun events planned for this school year and need your support!
Preview. Genre. Summarize. Title. – PGST:
Waveriders in grades kindergarten through fifth grade will continue working hard on perfecting their reading strategy: PGST! The strategy is designed to help your child practice their reading comprehension skills. The kindergarten and first grade teachers have modeled this strategy when completing whole group activities. In 2nd-5th grade, the teachers will continue to model, while increasing the student’s independence with this strategy.
United Way Fundraiser:
It’s that time again for the student campaign for the United Way. This year, the Waverider student goal is to raise $500 for the United Way Campaign. The SCA will be hosting its 4th Annual PIE IN THE FACE contest at the Fall Festival on November 2nd from 7:00 P.M. to 7:30 P.M. Students can purchase raffle tickets for $1.00 starting Monday, October 22nd through Fall Festival. Fall Festival will be held on Friday, November 2nd. Tickets will be available that evening, as well.
Upcoming OLES Events
PTA Reflection Contest
This year's theme for the PTA Reflection Contest is "Heroes Around Me". Entries are due by October 10th. Prek - 5th grade students create theme-based artwork in dance, choreography, film, literature, music, photography, and visual arts. For further details and rules please visit www.pta.org/reflections.
Chick Fil A Spirit Night
Please join us Thursday, October 11th at Chick Fil A on General Booth Blvd for our first spirit night of the year. A portion of the proceeds will be given to our school. Just tell the cashier you are from OLES so we get the credit. We look forward to seeing all of you there!
Red Cross Blood Drive
We will be hosting a Red Cross Blood Drive on October 16, 2018 from 2:30 - 7:30 in the cafeteria. Please come out and support our local red cross.
PTA Cycle Bar Fundraiser
On October 21st at 11:30 am we will be hosting an indoor cycling ride at CycleBar at the Red Mill location. The class is $25 per rider and the funds will go right back to the school. Come get a great workout and give back to the school all at the same time. You can sign up using the link https://bit.ly/2pyjsqZ. For more information, check out their Facebook Page, CYCLEBAR (Red Mill).
Scholastic Book Fair
Our annual Scholastic Book Fair will be held the week of October 29 - November 2. Preview day will be Friday October 26 and Family will be November 2nd. We will need volunteers to set up on Thursday, October 25 from 2:30-4:00 and to pack up on Friday, November 2nd after family night. The following is a link to sign up to volunteer and online shopping - http://www.scholastic.com/bf/oceanlakeselementary.
Attention Future Running Club Members
Ocean Lakes will participate in the Shamrock Operation Smile Final Mile again this year. This program is an extension of the Shamrock Marathon held annually in March. The goal of the final mile program is to have elementary students complete their own marathon, 26.2 miles, by running one mile at a time. Our students will run or walk 25 miles beginning on January 4th during running club every Friday morning at 7:15 a.m. On race day, Saturday, March 16, 2019, the students will run the final mile of their marathon at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront with over 4,500 elementary students. If you are interested in participating, you must register for the race. You can register online by December 14th at shamrockmarathon.com/registration and the fee is $20. If you have any questions about the running club, please contact Mrs. Uiterwyk at judith.uiterwyk@vbstudents.com.
Special Recognition Weeks/Months in October:
- October 7-13 – Fire Prevention Week
- October 8-12 - National Educational Office Professionals Career Awareness and National School Lunch Week
- October 21-27 –America’s Safe School Week and National School Bus Safety Week
October – Virginia Disability History and Awareness Month, National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month, and National Dyslexia Awareness Month
VBCPS - Navigating the Journey
VBCPS will be hosting Navigating the Journey which will take place at the Virginia Beach Convention Center on Tuesday, October 16 from 5:30 - 8:00 pm. During this time you will be able to speak with school representatives about the many programs, initiatives, and services offered at each school level to help you and your child navigate the PreK - 12 journey.
Thank you to all the parent chaperones for the 5th grade Air Show Field Trip on September 21st. The trip wouldn't have been a success without you. The kids really enjoyed it!
5th graders had a blast! Thank you Navy!
