July 25, 2016 Dear Sandpiper Parents; Welcome to another great year at Sandpiper! I hope that you have had an amazing summer and that your children are ready to return to school for another wonderful year of growing and learning! If you are new to Sandpiper, you are in for a real treat! Not only do we have the most highly qualified and caring teachers, but we also have an extremely active and involved PTO and community! My hope is that you will all experience the joys of being part of the “Sandpiper family.” As your Principal, my door is always open and I welcome your visits. Please do not hesitate to see me ​
anytime​
that you have questions, comments, compliments or concerns! Your teachers and I are anxiously preparing for your child’s arrival on August 9. I hope to see you all at the PTO sponsored “Back to School Bash”, as well as our “Meet the Teacher” night! Below you will find information that will prove valuable as we begin our new year. Looking forward to seeing you soon! Ms. Cameron, Principal SANDPIPER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 6724 E. Hearn Road Scottsdale, AZ 85254 PRINCIPAL Ms. Cameron OFFICE 602­449­6300 ATTENDANCE 602­449­6301 NURSE 602­449­6303 FAX 602­449­6305 www.pvschools.net/spes IMPORTANT DATES FOR THE 1ST WEEK BACK: Friday, August 5
Class Lists posted at 9:00a.m. (on Kindergarten gate) Sunday, August 7
Back to School Bash Peter Piper Pizza (Hayden and Frank Lloyd Wright) 4:00 p.m. ­ 6:00 p.m. (class lists posted at PPP) Monday, August 8
Meet the Teacher Kindergarten Orientation­ 9:00 ­ 10:30 a.m. (meet in the cafeteria) Preschool ­ 9:00 ­ 10:00 a.m.(in classroom) 1st Grade ­ 6th Grade ~ 5:00 p.m. ­ 6:30 p.m. (open house style) Tuesday, August 9 All Classes Begin (8:45 ­ 3:15) PTO Boo Hoo Breakfast for kindergarten parents and new families (enjoy coffee, juice, muffins and mingling!!) Thursday, August 11 CURRICULUM NIGHT (See details below) PTO will be providing treats in the library during “meet the teacher”, and will also be selling shirts and answering questions. Other school related vendors (Mascot, scouts, etc) will also be in the library providing information for interested families. KINDERGARTEN ORIENTATION Monday, August 8 at 9:00 a.m. ­ Students will get a chance to meet their teachers and spend some time in their classrooms while parents will meet the teachers, nurse, speech pathologist, principal and PTO president. First­day procedures will be explained and forms completed so everyone is ready for a successful first day of school! If you have school supplies, feel free to bring them at this time. AUGUST CALENDAR OF EVENTS: August 12
School Council ­ 7:45 a.m. August 16
PTO Meeting ­ 6:00 p.m. August 17
UPC meeting @ District ­ 8:45 a.m. August 18
Governing Board @ District ­ 7:00 p.m. August 30
Early Release ­ 12:30 p.m. SUPPLY LISTS: You can access our grade­level supply lists on our website (pvschools.net/spes), or you can pick up a copy from the front office. If you preordered a supply kit, they will be delivered to the school and in your child’s classroom by the first day of school. CURRICULUM NIGHT Thursday, August 11 6:00 ­ 6:30 p.m.
Grades K­2 6:30 ­ 7:00 p.m.
Grades 3­4 7:00 ­ 7:30 p.m.
Gifted/Resource 7:30 ­ 8:00 p.m.
Grades 5­6 SCHOOL COMMUNICATION In an effort to be fiscally and environmentally responsible, most of our communication takes place online. Newsletters and other updates will be posted on our website AND sent to your e­mail each month. (pvschools.net/spes) PTO information can be accessed through their website at ​
www.sandpiperpto.org.​
You can subscribe to their weekly updates by sending an email to [email protected]. DRESS CODE While the Arizona heat makes casual wear appropriate for school, please make sure that your child’s clothing adheres to our dress code: ➢ Hemline of shorts/skirts must be no shorter than 4 inches above the knee (in most cases, the fingertip rule satisfies this rule). Daisy Dukes are not appropriate school attire! ➢ Tops that show bare midriffs, strapless outfits, spaghetti straps, muscle shirts, and see­through blouses/shirts are not allowed. Tank top straps must be at least ​
2 inches wide (not 2 fingers wide). ➢ Undergarments should not be visible. ➢ Clothing with inappropriate pictures or language are not appropriate for school (South Park, alcohol, tobacco,etc) ➢ Hats may be worn to school, but they may not be worn inside the building. ➢ Tennis shoes are REQUIRED for PE. ➢ For safety reasons, platform heels, flip­flops and sandals without back straps may not be worn to school. ➢ Noticeable make­up or unusual hair coloring is not appropriate for elementary students. This is disruptive to the educational process and is therefore not allowed at school. CAMPUS HOURS Students are not allowed on campus before 8:25 a.m. We do not begin campus supervision before that time, and it is a safety and liability issue to have students on our property prior to that time. After­school supervision ends at 3:30 p.m. If your student has not been picked up by that time, he/she will be waiting in the office. If there is an emergency situation where you need to drop your child off early, or are running late to pick them up, please just notify the office and we will make arrangements to assist you. Also, keep in mind that it can be very traumatizing to students when parents do not pick them up at the arranged time and place. Please establish a backup plan in case there is a change in your routine. (e.g. “If I am not here by a certain time, report to the office and call me on my cell phone...or call grandma, etc.”) DOG/PET POLICY It is against district policy to bring dogs or other pets on campus without permission. As much as some of our students enjoy sharing their pets with their friends, they are not allowed on campus and I ask that you honor this policy. LUNCH NEWS We LOVE when parents join us for lunch!! It is a special treat for your child, so feel free to join us at any time! If you are having lunch with your child, please be sure to check in at the office and wear a visitor’s badge. Meal prices for students are: Breakfast = $1.00 and Lunch = $2.25. If you want to buy an adult lunch just add $0.25 to the student price. You are also welcome to bring a lunch for your child. And since you are here...feel free to stick around and help out in the cafeteria when your child’s lunch is finished; we can always use the help! LUNCH ACCOUNTS EZSchoolPay.com ​
is a secure service that allows parents to conveniently manage their child’s school meal account online. You can register using your e­mail address, a password, school name or zip code, a major credit card and your child’s student ID number. Log on to ​
EZ School Pay, ​
or find the link on our school website. GRADE LEVEL LUNCH TIMES Pre­K and Kindergarten
11:00­11:25 1st Grade
11:30­11:50 2nd Grade
12:10­12:30 3rd Grade
11:40­12:00 4th Grade
12:25­12:45 5th Grade
12:00­12:20 6th Grade
12:30­12:50 These are the times that students will be in the cafeteria. They will also have 20 minutes of recess prior to lunch, except for Pre­K and Kindergarten. Pre­K goes to recess prior to lunch and Kindergarten has recess after lunch. CELL PHONES AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY I understand that sometimes parents have their children carry cell phones in case of emergency. Here are the guidelines that must be followed at school: ● Cell phones should not be used once a student arrives on campus. They should be turned off and stored in a backpack from arrival time until 3:15 p.m. ● Parents, if you need to get a message to your child during school hours, please call the office. It is difficult for students to forget about their phones if they think you might be calling/texting them. ● Texting is becoming the norm for communication with young people, but it can also be the cause of many problems. Please monitor your child’s cell phone use, and periodically review your expectations for appropriate use. ● Electronic games, music players, and other devices should not be brought to school unless with permission from the teacher. ● The loss or accidental breakage of phones or electronics can be expensive and devastating to a student. ​
Sandpiper and the Paradise Valley Unified School District do not assume liability or responsibility for electronics brought to school by students. VOLUNTEER/CHAPERONE POLICY We love our Sandpiper volunteers and value the opportunity to have parents support our school, so please be aware of the following: ❏ All volunteers must complete a volunteer packet each year ❏ Parents, grandparents, and step­parents must complete a volunteer packet in order to volunteer and/or work with children under direct supervision of a certified teacher. This includes such activities as helping in the work room and assisting in the classroom. ❏ All volunteers who chaperone on a field trip must have a background check, including fingerprint clearance. This clearance can take up to 6 weeks to get back, so plan accordingly if you desire to chaperone a trip. If you had this done last year, you do not need to complete it again; however, you must still complete a criminal affidavit to the district. ❏ Any volunteer who is not a parent, step­parent, or grandparent must get a complete background check (with fingerprinting) for all volunteer positions. CLASS ACTIVITY DONATIONS ~ WHAT TO EXPECT Your child may be participating in field trips and other activities that have costs associated with them. Many of our teachers will provide a list of these costs to start the year so you can plan for them. Some parents prefer to pay for everything at once, and others will pay as they go. If you are ever in need of financial assistance, please speak to your child’s teacher or Ms. Cameron so we can make arrangements that will allow your child to fully participate in all activities. Each classroom also has a homeroom parent who helps plan class celebrations and assists with special activities. Homeroom parents usually try to coordinate gifts for the teacher during the year, and they will sometimes ask for a donation toward a common gift. This is separate from the class donations for field trips and activities, and there is no obligation to participate. FOLLOW YOUR STUDENT’S GRADES WITH INFINITE CAMPUS Sandpiper teachers use Infinite Campus for their online grade book, which means that you can access your child’s grades 24/7 throughout the year. This is a great way to monitor and support your student’s academic progress. To access Infinite Campus, visit our school or district website (​
www.pvschools.net​
) and click on the “Academics” tab and then click on “On­line grades” and follow the directions to acces your child’s account. SPIRIT FRIDAYS! Each Friday is Spirit Day at Sandpiper! We ask students to wear a school shirt or something blue to show their Sandpiper pride, and the class with the most participants wins a small treat. We also have other special days during the year that are just for fun, to show your pride or bring awareness to a cause. Your teacher communication and the school newsletter will inform you about these days! SANDPIPER TEACHERS I am so excited to welcome back our seasoned Sandpiper staff, as well as those teachers who are new additions to this list of highly qualified professionals. Here is our All­Star lineup for the 2016­2017 school year: Pre­K
Mrs. Cho KDG­ traditional
Mrs. Emch KDG ­ FLITE
Mrs. Little KDG ­ FLITE
Mrs. Bennett KDG ­ FLITE
Ms. Cuchiara KDG ­ FLITE
Mrs. Hostetter 1st grade ­ traditional
Mrs. Allmeyer 1st grade ­ FLITE
Ms. Burns 1st grade ­ FLITE
Ms. Perez 1st grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Sweeney 1st grade ­ FLITE
TBD 2nd grade ­ traditional
Ms. Mair 2nd grade ­ traditional
Ms. Nelson 2nd grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Cochell 2nd grade ­ FLITE
Ms. Conwill 2nd grade ­ FLITE
TBD 3rd grade ­ traditional
Mrs. Guckert 3rd grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Clark 3rd grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Stewart 4th grade ­ traditional
Ms. Rossow 4th grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Prose 4th grade ­ FLITE
Ms. Peters 5th grade ­ traditional
Ms. Brown 5th grade ­ traditional
Mrs. Eley 5th grade ­ FLITE
Mrs. Saylor 6th grade ­ traditional
Ms. Kull 6th grade ­ FLITE
Ms. Briceno ART Mrs. Ozlanski PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Mr. Rosenberg TECHNOLOGY/STEM
Mrs. Ronz MUSIC
Ms. Hall HONORS
Ms. Paluch RESOURCE
Ms. McGrady LFI
Mrs. Patinsky LFI
Mr. McHale LFI
Mrs. Parker NURSE
Mrs. Wilder READING SPECIALIST
Mrs. Cross O.T.
Mrs. Wolf SPEECH/LANGUAGE
Ms. Radic PSYCHOLOGIST
Dr. Bell STRINGS
Mrs. Mitchell BAND
Mr. Stapley OTHER IMPORTANT PEOPLE ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Mrs. Pfeifer RECORDS SECRETARY
Tracy Griffin CAFETERIA MANAGER
Ms. Lockett (Ms. Kim) CUSTODIAN
Ms. James (Ms. Karen) MASCOT MANAGER
Ms. Krumtinger (Ms. Jessica) MEDIA TECHNICIAN
Mrs. Priorello