CONTACT US IDEA Walzem 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 210-239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
_____________________ Ryane Burke Principal, Academy Crystal Arreaola (K-1) Assistant Principal of Instruction Christopher Mayes (2-3) Assistant Principal of Instruction Alicia Ramirez Assistant Principal of Operations Te’Nesha Austin-Jackson Academic Counselor
PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE Dear Families – I am very pleased to make some announcements this week regarding a few staff promotions here at Walzem Academy. Starting this week, Ms. Arreola, who was one of our amazing Kinder teachers, will be transitioning into an Assistant Principal role here. She brings a wealth of experience around excellent instruction, and we look forward to having her support our Kinder and 1st grade teams in their academic growth. We will share with you more information about the Kinder teacher who will be replacing Ms. Arreola during this week. Temporarily, Ms. Chacon, one of our awesome, regular Walzem Academy teachers will be teaching in Ms. Arreola’s room. If you have a Kinder or 1st grade student, please feel free to reach out to Ms. Arreola for support or questions regarding your child’s instruction, of course, in addition to talking directly with their teachers. As Ms. Arreola transitions out of her current role, we are also excited to announce that Ms. Barnes will be the new grade level leader for our Kinder team, so please use her as a support as well, she is an excellent resource and experienced teacher and leader!
The second staff transition that will be taking place this week will be Ms. Bracy moving out of the AR Zone and into a 2nd grade co-teaching role. While we know all of your students loved having Ms. Bracy as their AR facilitator, we are excited to see our 2nd graders thrive under her ELA instruction. Ms. Alyssa Solano will be transitioning into the AR Zone and will be continuing to support our students’ continued road to becoming millionaires! We would like to congratulate all of our staff being promoted to new roles, and while we are sad to have had staff leave our community due to personal reasons, we know that this Team and Family will continue on and keep getting better together! AVERAGE DAILY ATTENDENCE Scholars who achieve perfect attendance during the week are awarded a token and the opportunity to select a prize from the Treasure Tower. We have a high expectation and aspiration for perfect student attendance! Bringing your scholar to school every day helps ensure his or her success at IDEA, college, and beyond! STUDENT SHOUT OUTS! Kinder Star Student: Ralph Ocura Core Value: Janelle Robinson First Grade Star Student: Mariah Reynolds Core Value: Justin Briones Second Grade Star Student: Zariah Woodkins Core Value: Adrian Cervantes Third Grade Star Student: Isaiah Mendez Core Value: Amilia Aldaco Fourth Grade Star Student: Xiomara Martinez Core Value: Alex Thrope No School: Monday, October 10th, 2016 School Holiday
October 3rd, 2016 IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS Reading Selfies: Whatcha readin’? It’s something we ask our scholars every day. They are reading some awesome, fun, and really insightful books. As parents you are their favorite people and best example of what it means to be life-long learners. What are you currently reading? We’d love to know. Send a selfie with the book you’re reading, tell us who your child/children are, we’ll use them in a creative way to encourage our scholars. Send selfies to
[email protected]. WordMasters rock!
IMPORTANT REMINDERS Upcoming Student/Parent Lunch Oct. 7th – 3rd gr. 11:25 am
IDEA Walzem Academy 1st Annual Pumpkin Patch Academy families we will be hosting a pumpkin patch for students during science class on Thursday, October 6th and pumpkin decorating on Friday, October 7th. Families who are registered volunteers (submitted volunteer forms with front office and valid ID) are welcome to join us by signing up with your child’s homeroom teacher by Tuesday, October 5th. Interim Assessment (IA) #1 Spirit Week Monday- “Mismatched Monday” Wear mismatched colors shirts, socks, and/or jeans. Tuesday- “Career Day” Dress in your future occupation. Wednesday- “Crazy Hair Day” Natural hair styles must resume on Tues., Oct. 11. Thursday- “Superhero Day” Dress as your favorite superhero. Friday- “College Day” Wear your favorite college shirt or jersey.
IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 (210) 239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
IDEA Academy Walzem Fall Fundraiser Dear Parents & Students,
Start Date
We are asking for your support in making our fundraiser a great success. This is a PRE-PAID fundraiser so please collect the money with each order. Sell to family, friends, neighbors and coworkers. Fill out order forms completely & return top copy.
Friday, September 30th
End Date (Money & orders due)
Friday, October 14TH For Questions Contact: The school at (210) 239-4600
“Since all children will benefit from our fundraiser, we would greatly appreciate participation from everyone”
Prizes Prizes Prizes Prizes The more you sell, the more you get! Bonus Prize Sell 10 items Win Magic Box – 1 Lucky student will find $100 prize inside box!
Sell 25 items Get time in the Cash Cube (grab all you can and keep it)
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING OUR SCHOOL! Our greatest treasures are our children, no
IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 239-4600 door-to-door(210) selling! www.ideapublicschools.org
IDEA WALZEM ACADEMY: STEPS FOR PARENTS WITH QUESTIONS & CONCERNS
STEP 1: Email, call, or Dojo message your homeroom teacher or subject teacher
STEP 2: Call or email the Grade Team Leader
STEP 3: Email an Administrator
___________________________________________________________________________________ ADDITIONAL REMINDERS Uniforms Monday- Thursday: -Shirt: Tucked in IDEA embroidered polo -Pants: Dickie’s flat front khakis -Shoes: All black shores; black laces; white socks -Belt: Plain black belt Uniforms Friday: -Shirt: Tucked in IDEA spirit shirt or college shirt. -Pants: Jeans (no holes, studs, designs, jeggings/skinny jeans) -Shoes: All black shoes; black laces; white socks -Belt: Plain black belt. Students who are not in proper uniform will receive a call home. IMPORTANT NOTE: Friday Dress – Students may either wear the complete Friday dress OR wear their MondayThursday dress, but not a combination of the two (i.e. Students cannot wear blue jeans and their IDEA polo).
Recess Expectations Parents please review these recess expectations with your scholar(s) as students who do not meet expectations will be sat out and lose recess privileges: 1. Keep hands and feet to yourselves 2. Do not leave designated area without permission 3. Follow directions on the first time given Staying Hydrated During Recess We ask that parents send water bottles for their children to drink during recess. This will help all kids get hydrated without losing fun recess time. Student Drop Off: 7:15AM – 7:45 AM *Students arriving after 7:45 AM are marked tardy.
IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 (210) 239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
Grade Team Updates KINDER CORNER Happy Monday parents! Last week for science your scholars began to learn all about matter. What is a solid, liquid and a gas? This week test your students to see if they can give you an example of each type of matter. A few reminders and updates; if your child did not get their picture taken last Monday the make-up day will be November 4th. This week we will be having our pumpkin patch and our pumpkin decorating. Only parents that have been officially registered with the front office will be able to join. Please contact the front office to make sure you are on the approves list. We hope you have a fabulous week! GO KINDER WOLVES! NEW Grade Team Leader: Mrs. Barnes
[email protected] ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
FIRST GRADE CORNER First Grade Families, Every 1st grade student at IDEA Walzem Academy is expected to honor our classroom rules: we are kind and respectful, we help each other, we are good listeners, we stay safe and we try our best. We wanted to express our ladder of consequences we enforce when these rules are broken (every teacher has the behavior plan and classroom rules posted in their room for students to see). These are the steps we will take in the classroom: Step 1: Redirection, Step 2: “Needs Work” point, Step 3: Reflection desk, Step 4: Time off recess, Step 5: Phone call home, Step 6: Referral. Students will receive an automatic office referral and you will be notified if your child is: hitting, using profanity, running out of the classroom, or throwing objects in a dangerous way. If you receive a phone call from any teacher, please know we need your immediate support. Grade Team Leader: Ms. Acuna
[email protected] ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SECOND GRADE CORNER Hello 2nd Grade Families, Thank you for making in our first parent lunch a success! We have a lot of exciting things going on this week. Our 3 rd and 4th grade students will be completing their first Interim Assessments this week. As a celebration of this, we will have our first Spirit Week of the School Year. The schedule will be as follows: Monday: Mismatch Day- wear mismatched color shirts, socks, and/or jeans. Tuesday: Career Day- dress in your future occupation. Wednesday: Crazy Hair Day Thursday: Super Hero Day- dress as your favorite super hero. Friday: College Day- wear your favorite college shirt or jersey. Also, Thursday, October 6th (3:00-3:20pm) we will be having our first ever Pumpkin Patch. Pumpkin donations (6 to 8 inches in size) are greatly appreciated. Only registered parent volunteers may participate. On Friday, October 7th (2:303:30pm) scholars will be able participate in a pumpkin decorating activity. All families welcomed. Please arrive at the front office from 2:15-2:30 to sign in. We will begin decorating shortly after. Please reach out to your scholar’s home room teacher for further info. Here’s to a great week! Grade Team Leader: Mrs. Morales
[email protected] __________________________________________________________________________________________________ IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 (210) 239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
THIRD GRADE CORNER Dear Third Grade Families, Happy October! We have some exciting things happening this month! Reminders: -As the weather "cools off" (I use the quotes as a former North Dakota native) please remember that students cannot wear non-idea jackets in the building. There are also a lot of IDEA jackets in the lost and found, so please stop by the academy office to check if your scholar is missing theirs. -Please remember to turn in sibling letters, even if your scholar does not have a sibling. -On October 11th-12th, third grade students will take their first Interim assessments. This is like a practice STAAR test. The duration of this test is 2 hours. Students will complete the math IA on Tuesday and the reading IA on Wednesday. Please be sure your scholar is at school, on-time especially during these two days. It will also help for students to get a good night of sleep so they can do their best! This test will count as their final grade for the quarter. -Please don't bring toys or Pokemon cards. -Report Card Night is on the 18th from 4:30-6:30 Thank you for everything you do! Sincerely, The 3rd Grade Team Grade Team Leader: Mrs. Mahoney
[email protected] __________________________________________________________________________________________________
FOURTH GRADE CORNER Every week, our students are working on a set of spelling words to expand their vocabularies and writing abilities. Lifework reminders: Parents please ensure students are writing 5 complete sentences on their reading logs. Students need to show their work for their math questions. Mr. De Leon has taught them to show the inverse operation to check their work. Uniform reminders: Please ensure your child is wearing a black belt and all black shoes. If you need assistance in purchasing any of these items, please reach out to your child’s homeroom teacher. Upcoming events: Writing IA October 4th Reading IA October 12th Math IA October 11th Sincerely, The 4th Grade Team Grade Team Leader: Mrs. Solano
[email protected] __________________________________________________________________________________________________
IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 (210) 239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
Individualized Learning: Accelerate Reading Zone 100% of all students will be on grade level or show growth of 1.5 years based on the Renaissance STAR reading assessment by the end of the school year. 100% of all students will become Word Masters and 100% will become Millionaire Readers. We ask you to encourage reading at home. The better reader a student is the better overall learner they become. We thank you in advance for your support and look forward to meeting with you all. Please feel free to contact Ms. Brien-AR Zone co-teacher at 210-350-1417; with questions and concerns or for ways we can partner with you.
IDEA Walzem Academy 6445 Walzem Rd. San Antonio, TX 78239 (210) 239-4600 www.ideapublicschools.org
