June is almost over and we are saying so long to our students, staff, and parents. It has been a fantastic year filled with events that have brought us closer together. I would like to thank you for your ongoing support throughout the year. We could not offer such a rich education to our students without the continuing effort and support that you all give.
On behalf of the staff, I’d like to thank all of you who volunteered for Field Day. The kids had a wonderful time! Also, special thanks to all of you who have contributed in ways small, large and unimaginable! Helping teachers, volunteering as a Watch D.O.G., attending school or PTA meetings, chaperoning field trips, helping with school pictures, organizing events, working at events, showing up to support your children, serving on committees, sharing your talents… supporting our work in countless ways and providing the resources to do what we dream and know is good for children. Thanks for getting your kids to school on time each day, for kind notes of encouragement that mean so much, for sending your kids with healthy lunches obviously packed with love, for making sure homework gets done… and turned in. Thank you for providing rich and engaging, well-rounded experiences for your children and knowing that education is about joy, wonder and fostering curiosity, along with the development of social skills so needed to succeed. For these, and a million other things, we are truly grateful.
There will be a SUMMER READING PROGRAM offered again this year. The program will be offered here every Tuesday and Thursday from 9am -12 pm. The program will begin June 29th and run through August 18th. This is a wonderful program and we encourage all of our Whitmore students and families to participate in. Don’t forget about the summer reading challenge as well…Click Here
Summer math over the summer is also critical to your child’s success!
Practicing math is just as important as reading over the summer. Please make sure to review and sharpen their math skills on a daily basis. The goal should be to make math “real” and meaningful by pointing it out in the world around your child. That could include checking and comparing prices at the grocery store, driving down the street counting mailboxes, reading recipes, calculating coupons, or even measuring food or drink at the dinner table.
As part of our Mobymax subscription, students have access to adaptive and differentiated practice sets and problems. Other good resources can be found on the school websitehttps://wbolles.dearbornschools.org/parent-central/.
Summer School
Students who have been invited to attend summer school will be attending our program at Snow Elementary. This is a joint effort with Duvall, Nowlin, Long and Snow schools. The program runs August 2nd through August 19th . Please direct any questions to the main office.
Class Placements
Next year’s class placements will again be communicated before school starts on September 6th. Although we do not accept individual teacher requests, please know that teachers advocate for and work together for the best placement of each child. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation with this policy.
Kindergarten Program and Schedule
All Kindergarten students will participate in a “soft start” schedule to ease them into the school year. This means that Kindergarten will follow a different time schedule than students in grades 1-5 for the first week of school. Kindergarten parents will receive a separate letter with specific information about the program.
Summer Office Hours/Getting in Touch
The school office will be open through June 23rd and will reopen the week before school begins. I will be working a week after and before those days, although I will be off-site for meetings some days. I can always be reached through email waddelk@dearbornschools.org if something should come up in between the dates.
Playgrounds and Popsicles
The PTA will hosting three events this summer before students come back to school to reconnect with friends and families. Meet your friends and other families at Penn-Vassar Park for fun and enjoy some popsicles and a light lunch on June 30th (5:30-7:30pm), July 23rd (12:30-2:30pm), and August 25th (5:30-7:30 pm)
To those of you who are leaving us for new places and adventures, we wish you all the best. Congratulations to our very capable 5th graders who are onto a new stage in their academic career! And, well-wishes, albeit with saddened hearts, to Ms. Tyler, Ms. Kubitz, and Ms. Kraft, as they move to new positions within the district and Ms. Muston and Ms. Kalasz as they begin making new memories with their families. They’ve been a gift to us and will undoubtedly be a great asset to their new schools and adventures. We wish all of you a wonderful summer, with time for rest, a change of pace, and family.
Most sincerely,
Kristi Waddell, Principal