Maplewood School

Principal’s Newsletter

October 21, 2020

 

 

Dear Maplewood Families,

We continue to have beautiful weather with brief periods of rain.  While at school today I was looking at how green and healthy our field looks.  It was freshly mowed today.  Again, we are looking forward to the day when our students are back playing soccer and running across the field.

Typically, around this time of year, I would be sending reminders about having students dress for the weather-chilly mornings and warm afternoons.

 

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Conferences are still a few weeks away, November 23rd and 24^th.  You will soon hear from your child’s teacher about a way to sign up for a time for a conference.  Be on the lookout for that information.

Supports for Families- PANDEMIC EBT UPDATE FOR FAMILIES

The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) was approved to provide additional Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits to eligible students enrolled from July 1 - September 22. Similar to the spring, benefits are provided to children who receive free or reduced price school meals through the National School Lunch Program that are not attending school in-person.

Every child who is eligible will receive at least $100 and some will receive more benefits based on when school began. The initial $100 benefits were distributed on September 28th. If a child qualifies for any additional benefits beyond $100, this will be provided through a second deposit. Eligible students who receive Oregon SNAP benefits, or who received an Oregon EBT card in the mail with P-EBT benefits in the past, received these September P-EBT benefits on their existing Oregon EBT card. For lost EBT cards, families can request a new one by calling a local ODHS office or calling the EBT replacement line 1-855-328-6715.

If eligible families did not receive P-EBT benefits, they can send an email to the PPS Meal Benefits Office at mealbenefits@pps.net with the following information: Student name, school name, and parent contact information (address, phone). Once the student is verified as eligible an email will be sent to the P-EBT email address (ebt.schoolmeals@dhsoha.state.or.us) on the behalf of the family for follow up.

Whitney Ellersick, Senior Director, Nutrition Services
x63276     wellersi@pps.net

 

Black Relief and Resiliency Fund

$1,000-$3,000 Grants Available for Black Families: Oregon Cares Fund for Black Relief & Resiliency  

The Oregon Cares Fund provides Black individuals, families, businesses and non-profits experiencing adverse effects from the COVID-19 pandemic with cash grants.  The Black community is at the front of two pandemics: COVID-19 and systemic racism. Well before the health crisis began, Black Oregonians and Black business owners were far behind white Oregonians in education, health, and economic prosperity. The Oregon Cares Fund believes that the stability and wellbeing of the Black community is a reflection of our entire community. To qualify, you must provide proof of Oregon residency and have experienced financial strain due to Covid-19. Click here for more information and to apply.

Free Meal Information-While meals are served at no cost to children ages 1-18 at several Portland Public School sites through December, there are several benefits for eligible families to submit a meal application this school year.

• To ensure eligible students who qualify for free and reduced-price meals continue to receive meals at no cost for the entire school year (past December)
• Families approved for free and reduced-price meals may be eligible to receive future potential government assistance such as Pandemic EBT benefits.  
• Families may be eligible for other benefits such as school related fee reduction or waivers, low cost internet, AP test fee waivers, college application fee waivers and health coverage.

Families have the following options to submit a meal application:

1. Online at schoolcafe.com/pps.
2. Print, complete and mail back a paper meal application (https://www.pps.net/Page/2464) to PPS Nutrition Services, 501 N. Dixon St., Portland, OR 97227.
3. Request a paper meal application be mailed home from mealbenefits@pps.netor call 503.916.3402.
4. Families do not need to submit a meal application if any of the following apply:

• A meal application has been submitted and approved for the 2020-21 school year.
• The household received a 2020-21 Direct Certification Approval letter.
• All students in the household attend a Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) school (list located online: https://www.pps.net/Page/2088) where students eat meals at no cost.
• The household does not meet the Oregon Expanded Income Guidelines

For meal benefits related questions, please call 503.916.3402 or email mealbenefits@pps.net.

Donors Choose:

DonorsChoose Matching: On October 22, donations to DonorsChoose projects requesting books or school supplies will be doubled (i.e. matching funds will turn $20 donations to your project into $40). This is applicable to current DonorChoose projects, or use this link to create a project on DonorsChoose, and then ask people to donate on 10/22. 

From the Counseling Office:

What is Toolbox?  Watch this three minute video with your student to find out more about this program that we practice at Maplewood!  Get out your guitar or uke (chords and lyrics here) to sing and play along with the song at the end!   

Maplewood staff and students use TOOLBOX in our classrooms and across our building.  TOOLBOX™ helps us all to be strong, effective, and kind. It helps us build resilience, self-mastery, and empathy for ourselves and others. As a simple metaphor, TOOLBOX enables us to use the inner “Tools” that already exist inside us. The strengths/assets-based common language of TOOLBOX is rooted in resilience, self-knowledge, self-awareness, and non-violence. When we as teachers/staff or parents/caregivers use and model TOOLBOX in our daily lives, we foster children’s abilities to manage their own emotional, social, and academic success.  Each month we will focus on a different tool.  Watch this newsletter for an explanation of the tool we are focusing on. 

Lunch Bunch Opportunities

If your student would like to connect with peers in a fun, online environment, encourage them to join Ms. Cunningham, school counselor, for a Lunch Bunch.  Go to Google Meet, click on Join a Meeting, and then type in CunninghamMW

Lunch Bunch for K-1 offered on Mondays from 11:30-12:00

Lunch Bunch for 2-3 offered on Wednesdays from 11:30-12:00

Lunch bunch for 4th-5th offered on Thursdays from 12:20-12:50

Financial Need:

Each year our school counselor compiles a confidential list of students with financial need.  These are students whose families are struggling to pay bills and meet basic needs.  Students on this list are not expected to pay school supply and field trip fees and are given info on resources and programs available in the area.  If this applies to your student, please email Kendall Cunningham at kcunninghamparm@pps.net and she will add your student to the list. 

* Free PTA memberships available.  Please contact Kendall (kcunninghamparm@pps.net) so she can connect you!

 

Kendall Cunningham

Maplewood Elementary School Counselor

 

Check out my website here for videos, resources, and info on our program at Maplewood!

Office Hours each Thursday from 2:30-3:30 (go to Google Meet, click on Join a Meeting, type CunninghamMW )

Counseling Request Google Form

 

Support Groups for Students: 

We will also be hosting a variety of groups for students focused on specific topics.  These groups will meet weekly for 8 weeks and focus on building skills, resiliency, and friendships.  Please reach out to Avy Harris (rharris@pps.net) for more information or to place your child on an interest list for one of the following groups:

• Grief/bereavement 
• Coping skills for anxiety 
• Parental separation  
• Gender-expansive and LGBTQIA+ student group
• Building social confidence and anti-bullying friendship group

 

Foundation:

Maplewood in Motion

Virtual event October 30 - November 1st!   

Maplewood in Motion, Virtual Fun Event, October 30-November 1st!

Would you like to have a place to go when it's raining, wet or even want a bit of shade in the hot summer?

 

Let's make Maplewood marvelous and get our covered blacktop built!
Over three days, move your body - run, bike, jump, skip hop... collect some pledges and have some fun. Everyone must register: kids, parents, friends, siblings, and adults.

• Adult registration is $30. Receive a t-shirt if you register by October 9th!
• Child registration is FREE! Receive a t-shirt if you get a minimum of $10 in pledges by October 9th! Please register TODAY,move that body and go get some pledges! 

Some of our local businesses are offering amazing discounts to participants!  Please support them and get a delicious treat the weekend of October 30th. You MUST mention you are a part of Maplewood in Motion.

Please email ericandkarimartin@gmail.com with any questions or concerns. Links for forms are below:   Registration Form    Use one for each participant. Use the payment link below to pay for adult registration.     Pledge Sheet   Please print and keep track of your pledges!     Payment Link   Use this link to pay for adult registration, make a donation, help sponsor the event, and to pay for pledges (a place to write in participant's name is at check out)

 

Text Alerts:

New KG and 1-5th Grade Families;

Get text alerts from your school: Text YES to 68453 to stay connected to your school.

School Messenger sends Emergency and school messages directly to your phone.

You may text STOP to discontinue the messages.

 

In the past families text YES to school messenger when I meet them during in person registration.

As in person registration is not occurring I am requesting families complete this step at this time.

Thank you.

 

Immunizations 2019-2020:

Per state requirements, schools and children’s facilities are required to share their immunization and exemption numbers for each vaccine, along with the county’s immunization numbers. This information is typically provided in the Spring following Exclusion Day. At the time this was being prepared to go out, school closures occurred. Now that the school year has started, we are posting this information for Maplewood Elementary.  The Immunizations are posted on the Maplewood web site Under the "School News" Tab.

 

 

INFORMATION & ACTION REQUIRED - ONLY IF You have NOT completed your Yearly PvueVerification online.

• Online Yearly Verification via ParentVUE deadline is October 31, 2020.
• Beginning on November 1, 2020, if parents have not submitted the online Yearly Verification, they will receive the following message upon login:
• The Yearly Verification process must be complete to continue.  
•  This is a hard stop to log in to ParentVUE. The only options for the parent are to click Begin Yearly Verification or Logout.
• ParentVUE Activation Key Letters, for parents who have not created their ParentVUE accounts, will be sent out today, October 19, 2020, via School Messenger.
• The ParentVUE flyer, along with Yearly Verification resources, can be found on the ParentVUE/StudentVUE Information district website.

 

November Book Bag pick-up days for A-L families, only!
Tuesday, 11/10 (11/11 is Veterans Day)
Tuesday, 11/24 (11/25 is a no school day)
Back to Wednesdays in December!!!
(always 7:15-9 & 3-5:30)

 

PTA NEWS:

eBlast – MAILING LIST

Do you want to receive PTA information in just one place, once a week? Subscribe to our mailing list today by going to: http://maplewoodpta.com/ and entering your email address on the right-hand side, below our “subscribe to our mailing list” field.

 

eBlast – lista de correo electrónico 

¿Quiere recibir información de la PTA en un solo lugar, una vez a la semana? Suscríbase a nuestra lista de correo hoy en: http://maplewoodpta.com/ e ingrese su dirección de correo electrónico en la esquina derecha, debajo de nuestro campo "suscríbase a nuestra lista de correo”.

 

 

Maplewood Coffee Maplewood Coffee & Tea - 5206 SW Custer St, Portland, OR 97219 Maplewood in Motion participants - Free fresh baked cookie! Fri/Sat/Sun: 8 AM - 2 PM Driftwood Coffee Driftwood Coffee - 4604 SW Vermont St $.50 off Adult Coffees & FREE kids Hot Chocolate Fri/Sat/Sun: 8 AM - 1 PM Sunny’s Legendary Yogurt Sunny’s Legendary Yogurt - 4397 SW Vermont Street 20 % off! Fri: 12 PM - 10 PM Sat: 11 AM - 10 PM Sun: 11 AM - 9 PM Spielman Bagels & Coffee Spielman Bagels - 7713 SW Capitol Hwy 15% off discount to all participants   Fri/Sat/Sun:  7 AM - 2 PM   Village Coffee Multnomah Village Coffee Multnomah - 7781 SW Capitol Highway $.50 off latte and FREE kids hot chocolate Fri: 6:30 AM - 5 PM Sat/Sun: 7 AM - 5 PM         Kona Ice & Burrito Bar   Thursday, October 22nd 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Food Truck Fundraiser!  Kona Shaved Ice and Burrito Bar will be at Maplewood for your dining pleasure. Masks and social distancing are required.  Come grab some dinner and a treat before the debate!       Maplewood Coffee   Maplewood Coffee and Tea Halloween Themed Dinner To Go  Maplewood Coffee is donating All proceeds to benefit Maplewood PTA! Thursday October 29th  $35 for 2 Order online by Wednesday, October 28th   Order Here   Upcoming events/dates:  Oct. 24    Fall Clean up Oct. 31    Halloween                  Nov. 05   End Of Quarter Nov. 06   Teacher Planning Day – No School Nov. 11   Veteran’s Day -  No School Nov. 23-24    Conferences Nov. 25   No School Nov. 26   Thanksgiving Nov. 27   No School