Kindergarten Parent Letter

• Kindergarten – Tuesday, September 2^nd (see more details below)
• Grades 1- 5 - Wednesday, August 27^th
• School hours: 8:30 – 3:00 (Wednesday dismissal time is 2:00)

We believe the safety and success of each child is tied to how well communication takes place between home and school. Therefore, please make sure the main office has your current address, phone number(s) and email address(es). We communicate with our families in a variety of ways. The main office uses phone calls, email, the Remind app (texts), FlashAlertNews app (school closures), school website and digital information board. Classroom teachers use phone calls, emails, class dojo (some teachers) and the Remind app (texts). Please let us know your preference in mode of communication. We want to know how we can assist you and your student(s) along with your needs, questions and concerns.

As noted above, our Kindergarteners have a different start date than our other students. We know the value of getting to know our incoming children to help us best meet their needs. The “soft start” approach allows us to do that. We schedule time to meet with the parents of each student before they begin attending school. Teachers will conduct the WA-Kids interview with the parents/guardians of each child to find out their strengths, interests and needs. These interviews will take place from August 27^th – August 29^th. Families are encouraged to call the main office at (360)

575-7084 to schedule a WA-Kids interview. With interviews occurring during the school day, students will wait to attend school until Tuesday, September 2^nd. The second aspect of the “soft start” is to begin with small groups of children to help them acclimate to Kindergarten. Therefore, classes are divided in half and come to school for half-days the week of September 2nd - 5th. This allows teachers to get to know students on a personal level and provide more individual attention as they begin learning Kindergarten routines, academics and social/emotional skills. You can request AM or PM sessions for that week at the WA-Kids interview. We will do our best to accommodate everyone’s scheduling needs.

Finally, on Monday, September 8^th, all kindergarteners will attend all-day.

In order to better create well-balanced classes, we will finalize class placements after WA-Kids interviews are completed on August 29^th. This may cause some students to move rooms from where they visited for the WaKids interview.

Monday, August 25^th, is Meet the Teacher Night at Olympic. Our Kindergarteners and their families are welcome to stop by between 4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. and visit the teacher whom they will meet for the WA-Kids interview, and drop off school supplies, which is a key purpose of the night. Please keep in mind, your child’s placement won’t be finalized until after WA-Kids interviews on August 29^th.

Meals are served in our gym. Our morning schedule will remain the same as last year, with the gate opening at 8:00. We ask that students not arrive before then, since there is no adult supervision prior to that time.

• Breakfast – 8:00 a.m. – 8:25 a.m. - Gym
• Student pick-up 8:25 a.m. – Class lines
• School day starts – 8:30 a.m.

Students not eating breakfast at school will report directly to their class line. Late students will have the opportunity to eat breakfast after the bell rings.

Lunch is 20 minutes with a 20-minute recess to follow. Students will be monitored to ensure they eat their lunch prior to going outside. Those who need more time to eat will be able to do so. All students will have a 15-minute morning recess, 15-minute afternoon recess and the 20-minute lunch recess. The exception will be on Wednesdays. Students will not have the afternoon recess on that day of the week.

Research shows that if a student misses two days each month of the school year, their learning is significantly impacted. Experience has shown that students who arrive late to school or leave early are also negatively impacted. Therefore, being to school and on time and staying to the end of the day is an expectation for every student at Olympic. As a school, we saw an improvement in unexcused and excused absences for the 2024-25 school year compared to the year before! I attribute that result to the hard work and dedication of our staff, students, and families. Our tardy rate, unfortunately, increased to significant degree, including many students being checked-out early before the end of the school day. We will continue to provide support and have high expectations for students coming to school, being on time and staying all-day, this school year.

For the safety and security of all students, we ask that when parents/guardians/family members bring students late or returning from appointments that they escort and check them in at the office window. Please note that office staff or I will call parents/guardians if a student enters the main entrance unaccompanied by an adult after the school day has begun. Students will not be sent to class until an adult officially checks them in. Thank you, in advance, for your help with this procedure. Student safety is our number one priority.

As with every year, it takes time for new families to learn our drop-off/pick-up system. Here are a couple of specific areas that help everyone to be safe before school and at dismissal time:

• When walking through the parking lot, please use crosswalks going to and from pick-up areas. We ask that families avoid crossing and/or walking through the drive-thru lane at any time.
• Students are to enter vehicles at the curb only. Please avoid having children walk out into the
• drive-thru lane to get into a vehicle. Also, drivers are to stay at the wheel while picking up at the curb. Cars are not permitted to be parked at the yellow curb. If you plan to get out of your vehicle to pick up your child, please first park your vehicle on 30^th Ave. or in a parking space in the lot.
• Kindergarten students need to be checked out by the teacher at their designated dismissal spot. Parents will learn those areas during the WAKids interviews.
• The morning drop-off is done in the parking lot at the curb near the porch. Please move along after dropping off your child(ren) so other vehicles can move into that area in a timely manner.
• For the safety and security of our students and staff, we ask that parents drop off their student(s) at the curb, gates or doors and avoid walking on campus past the fence or entering doors on the porch of the main building.
• Middle school and high school students who are responsible for picking up siblings, family members or friends at Olympic have some guidelines that are on the back of this letter. We ask that older students wait until five minutes before our dismissal time, 2:55 p.m. (1:55 on Wednesdays) to come onto our campus. There are three designated waiting areas listed for them to wait in until that time. This policy has greatly improved the end of the day for Olympic students and staff.

In order to keep the Olympic Elementary School campus safe and orderly leading up to the 3:00 dismissal, the following rules will be in effect for middle school and high school (secondary) students:

1) Students who pick up siblings or relatives at Olympic will arrive on campus no earlier than 2:55 (1:55 on Wednesdays). Acceptable waiting areas:

• On the stadium side of the large roadway gate
• Across 30^th Ave. near the crosswalk
• On the other side of the fence on 30^th Ave. at the south end of the campus

Students will report to the designated pick-up area for their sibling(s)/relatives(s) when they enter the campus.

 

Grade level pick-up areas:

Kindergarten – Curry (Portable next to parking lot), Woodman (Exterior door), Carlson (North porch)

1^st grade – Fence opening next to the North porch

2^nd grade – The gate next to the gym (Pipgras/Eggen/Parr)

3rd grade - The front doors of the school (Myklebust/Thorsvik)

4^th and 5^th grades – The south end of the school (Mosier, Nailon, Botero, Morgan, Bodenhamer)

 

2) Secondary students are to conduct themselves in a manner appropriate for being around younger children when they are waiting off campus and while on the Olympic campus. They will refrain from the following behaviors:

• Foul language
• Public displays of affection
• Roughhousing
• Disrespect
• Recreational activities
• Playing music

3) Secondary students who do not have a sibling attending Olympic will be asked to stay off campus until 4:00 p.m. on school days. They will find parking behind the stadium, on 30^th Ave. or other locations to allow Olympic families to park in the lot. This includes student athletes who report to the stadium or baseball field.

4) Secondary students will need to find other locations off the Olympic campus to limit congestion with a limited pick up area. Exception – Secondary students who live in the neighborhood west of Olympic Elementary School may cross the campus after their dismissal time and walk directly across our campus in a timely manner.

5) Anyone violating the above rules will be warned, have parents notified, have their school administration notified and/or be subject to a No Trespass Order. Special arrangements will be made for students with a No Trespass Order who need to continue to pick up a student or students from Olympic. But they will not be allowed to come on campus while it is in effect.