November 2018

November 2, 2018

Dear Parents and Guardians,

It is hard to believe that it is already November and almost time for parent teacher conferences!  Parent Teacher Conferences are a wonderful opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher(s) to learn how your child is progressing academically and socially in school. The dates for conferences are November 15 and 16. Students will have lunch and be dismissed at 11:20 both days. We hope to have 100% of our parents/guardians attend conferences this year. Please call Riverton at 874-8210 if you need to schedule or reschedule your child’s conference. 

Community Resource Fair

On Thursday afternoon during conferences, Riverton will be holding a Community Resource Fair.  At the Community Resource Fair, food, clothing, supplies, and other resource information will be provided for free to any family that visits.  The Community Resource Fair will be in the cafeteria from 12:00 to 5:00.

Book Fair

The Book Fair will also be happening during conferences and will be located in the Media Center. Come and shop for some wonderful books for your child and/or your child’s class. Thank you to PTO volunteers for organizing the Book Fair. A portion of all sales from the Book Fair goes directly into supporting Riverton School!

Flu Clinic

One of the best ways to prevent the flu is to get a flu shot every year.  Riverton will be holding a Flu Clinic on Wednesday, November 14th for those students whose parents have submitted permission forms. If you would like your child to have a flu shot, parents need to fill out the form completely and return it to the school.  Please be assured that if you have not returned the form, your child will not be given a flu shot. Teachers will remind students to pass in the returned flu permission forms, but be aware that sometimes the forms do not get passed in.  Please feel free to call and check to make sure your child's form has been turned in. Our goal is for every child to be protected against the flu this year!

Lost and Found

Just a friendly reminder to please check the Lost and Found for your child’s missing items. Lost and Found is located toward the back of the front lobby. Remember to sign in with the office if going to the Lost and Found area during school hours.  Thank you!

Morning Arrival Time And Building Entry

Please know that even with the arrival of cold weather, children are not allowed to enter the building

until 8:05am, unless your child attends Rec. Thank you!

Upcoming Events:

November 5-9: FOOD DRIVE- please donate a nonperishable food item(s) to our food drive!

November 7: Early Release, 1:20

November 8: Grade 1 trip to Pineland Farm

November 12: No School, Veteran’s Day

November 13: PTO Meeting, Media Center, 5:30

November 14: Flu Clinic

November 14: Early Release, 1:20

November 15 and 16: Parent Teacher Student Conferences, dismissal 11:20

November 15, 16 and 17: Book Fair

November 21-23: No School, Thanksgiving Break

November 28: Early Release, 1:20

November 30: Grade 5 to Portland Stage

Happy Fall!

Cordially                           

Mrs. Ann Hanna

Principal

October News

October 10, 2018

Dear Parents and Guardians,

The Portland Public Schools is currently doing an Enrollment and Facility Study to evaluate the most effective and efficient use of Portland’s school buildings. Last May, the Board of Education adopted a resolution to study all aspects of the district’s enrollment and capacity to identify potential cost-saving efficiencies in the overall cost of education. The need for the study became apparent during the FY 2019 budget process. Changes in the state school funding formula and increased valuation for the city of Portland means that the Portland Public Schools will most likely face a reduction in state funding for the foreseeable future. An Enrollment and Facility Study Commission has been formed to review the district's current and projected enrollment and programming against existing facility use.  The Commission includes board members, city councilors, district staff, and community members who will work together to identify and recommend possible efficiencies to the Board of Education by early 2019. Davis Demographics, a company with a history of working with the Portland Public Schools on similar projects, will assist in the study. To look for efficiencies, the study will include a review of demographics, facilities, enrollment, costs, programming, and transportation. Important decisions about our schools, our school boundaries and our investments may result from this analysis.

A Community Survey is one of the tools that will be used to gather input from the public. To complete the survey, please go to or click on this link: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdz9uvnxojKyzK3lv1rzwUH4poyPbcbu1kHqoU9tIp0NVuuzg/viewform

In addition, the Committee will also be holding neighborhood forums about the study to gather input from the public during the month of October. Riverton’s Community Forum meeting will be October 25, 5:30-6:30 in the Media Center.  We hope to see you there!

Safety First!

Keeping our students safe is our number one priority, especially during morning drop off and afternoon pickup. Our drop-off/pick-up is in the LOWER parking area, which is the large lot near the Community Center/Pool entrance. Students should not be dropped off in the morning before 8:05, and must be picked up by 2:50, unless attending Rec, Learning Works or other afterschool programs.

Dropping off your children in the morning should be a quick, kiss-and-go. Please do not park along the drop off area. If parents need to come into the building, please pull into a parking space to allow for safety and a smoother traffic pattern for others. Also, please DO NOT drop off students in the bus loop or the smaller parking area near the bus loop. The bus loop is only for busses and the smaller parking lot is for visitors. Finally, please be sure to obey all the speed limits on and surrounding the school grounds, especially when traveling through the parking lot. Thank you for your help in keeping all students safe at Riverton School!

Bully Prevention

Did you know that October is National Bullying Prevention Month? At Riverton School we are focused on creating a bully-free environment where everyone feels safe and empowered to teach and to learn. We reinforce this message by teaching students to use the PBIS bully prevention program called Stop, Walk and Talk technique to address bullying behaviors. It helps students know how to stand up to behavior they feel is offensive or not wanted, and empowers students to be self-advocates. The Stop, Walk and Talk strategy consists of three simple and progressive steps: indicating through words and gestures to stop, walking away if the problem continues, and finally talking to an adult if the problem is still not resolved.  The overall impact of this bully prevention program is to decrease bullying issues at school in order to create a more positive school climate.  For specific details about the program please see the resource on the link: https://www.pbis.org/common/cms/files/pbisresources/bullyprevention_ES.pdf

On Wednesday, October 24, Riverton School will be participating in Unity Day 2018. This is a day the Riverton School community will come together and send one large ORANGE message of support, hope and unity to show that we are together against bullying and united for kindness, acceptance and inclusion.  We invite all students, family members and staff to wear the color orange that day to show that we care about making Riverton a bully free school. Riverton students will be taking a pledge to stand up against bullying by speaking up, reaching out and being a friend. 

Pumpkin Fest!

Bringing children and parents together at school is one of the goals of Riverton’s PTO. Pumpkin Fest is a great Riverton tradition that helps us to meet this goal. Be sure to mark your calendar for our PTO Pumpkin Fest, which is Saturday, October 27 here at Riverton School.

Upcoming dates:

Spirit Day is October 12. Wear your Riverton colors with pride!

The October PTO meeting is October 18, 5:30 in the Media Center. Please come and find out what you can do to help support Riverton School!

Picture Day is Friday, October 19! SMILE!

Community Forum is October 25, 5:30-6:30

Happy Fall!

Cordially, 

Mrs. Ann Hanna, Principal