97% - Keep it Up!

Attendance has been great the first four days of SY2013-2014!  97% of our students have been in school and there are hardly any tardy students! YEAH!

Yes, kindergarten hasn't started yet, but nonetheless, I am encouraged that we will have fewer absent students this year.  One of our goals is to improve attendance because learning is definitely impacted when students are not in school.

By the way, thank you for walking and biking to school!  Traffic improves when fewer cars are on the road!

8/3 - 8/9

August Parent Bulletin is on our school website or you can click this link to see it. http://www.halekula.k12.hi.us/pages/Hale_Kula_Elementary_School/Parents/Parent_News/Parent_Bulletin  Everyone will receive a paper copy of the August Parent Bulletin in their Wednesday folder next week. If you want to receive any other paper copies of monthly Bulletin make sure you turn in Go Green paper you will also get in Wednesday folder

In order to be a Chaperone on any school field trip you must attend Chaperone Training, once.  Classes are: in P14, last 30 minutes, are free and you can come anytime.  If you completed Chaperone Training in the past, then stop by P14  and update your child(rens) classrooms and any phone number changes on your Chaperone Registration Form.

You will receive a chaperone reminder paper and as an incentive for doing this before August 30 you can enter a special prize drawing.

       If you have never come to Hale Kula Chaperone Training, no worries. We offer 5 classes this month. And taking training this month enters you to win the drawing.

Our 33.2 million Construction Project

To receive updates about how buildings are progressing you can sign up at hkesfollowourprogress.blogspot.com then you will receive emails.

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Sat. Aug. 3         Family Fun Fair at Wahiawa District Park 10am – 2pm – games, rides, food

Mon. Aug. 5        First Day of School for 1^st – 5^th Graders – Let’s have a great year!

Tues. Aug. 6        School starts at 7:55 every day – be in your seat before the bell

                      IPC Annual Night Out against crime for families at Kaena Community Center. 4:00pm-6:30pm. Purpose is to heighten awareness and strengthen participation in local anti-crime efforts.

Wed. Aug. 7        School is out at 1:10 every Wednesday

Thurs. Aug. 8      Chaperone Training 8:00am in P14

                      4:00pm Kindergarten Class Postings

Fri. Aug. 9          8:00am Kindergarten Parent Orientation in the cafe, bring school supplies

School Bus:  Any questions, please call Cheryl in the school's office at 622-6380, x221

If your student lives a mile or more away from school and will be riding the school bus, please turn in a bus registration form and make payment in the school's office by August 2.  Registration forms and the current bus schedule are available in the office.  Passes will be ready for pick up during the week of 7/29/13.  Fees are:

Annual:            $270.00 round trip,  $135.00 one-way

Quarterly:       $72.00      "       "    $ 36.00  one-way

Bus Coupons:   $12.50 per sheet of 10 (cash only)

Cash (exact amount appreciated) and checks are accepted for annual and quarterly passes. Please make checks to:  Department of Education.  Cash only for coupons.

July 31 - August 5

Welcome back to another great school year at Hale Kula. If you have moved we wish you the best of luck in your new school. It’s easy to unsubscribe from this blog so you will no longer receive these emails.

School office is open 7:30 am– 4:00pm. They are processing incoming registrations and exit paperwork.  8:30am – 12:00pm and 1:00pm – 3:00pm

School Bus:  Any questions, please call Cheryl in the school's office at 622-6380, x221

If you live a mile or more away from school and will be riding the school bus, please turn in a bus registration form and make payment in the school's office by August 2.  Registration forms and the current bus schedule are available in the office.  Passes will be ready for pick up during the week of 7/29/13.  Fees are:

Annual:            $270.00 round trip,  $135.00 one-way

Quarterly:       $72.00      "       "    $ 36.00  one-way

Bus Coupons:   $12.50 per sheet of 10 (cash only)

Cash (exact amount appreciated) and checks are accepted for annual and quarterly passes. Please make checks to:  Department of Education.  Cash only for coupons.

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Wed. July 31       3:00pm – 4:00pm New Parent Orientation in the cafeteria & school tour

                      4:00pm Class Postings (Classes are posted on the cafeteria through the first week of school, so you can come any time to find out what class you are in.)

                      PTO is giving free icy pops to any families that come at 4pm to check class postings. They will give icy pops until they are gone. They will also be selling School T shirts.

Thurs. Aug. 1        2:00pm – 3:00pm – Teacher Meet & Greet. Bring your school supplies to your classroom and meet your new teacher.

Mon. Aug. 5        2013-2014 School Year Begins. School still starts at 7:55am every day

Wednesdays this school year 1:10 will be dismissal

Registration for 2013-2014

Our office is open all summer for new registrations!  If there are new families who have moved into your area over the summer and have school-aged children, please encourage them to come to the office to register.  Tell them not to wait until the last minute!  New Student/Parent Orientation is on Wednesday, July 31 at 3:00 with class lists posted from 4:00.  Thursday, August 1 from 2:00-3:00 is an opportunity to "Meet and Greet" your child's teacher and to bring in your school supplies.

By the way, I understand that Wal-Mart in Mililani received a shipment of primary composition books which kindergarten teachers are requesting.

Finally, it you can't find your copy of the School Supplies list, we have it posted on our school webpage.  Under the "Parents" tab, scroll down to School Supplies.  You can print out a copy.

 

Photos of Our Construction Project - July 10

Every so often, we will share photos of our project.  We have a Picasa album with photos from the end of June.  In the last week, so much work is being done to prepare for the actual construction.  To view the album, click on the hyperlink.

On-Line Application for Free/Reduced Price Meal Benefits

Effective July 1, 2013, the on-line application link for USDA program for free/reduced price meals is open.  This is a new web-based site that provides families with the option to submit an application on-line at http://ezmealapp.com.

This web-based program will walk parents and guardians through an easy step-by-step application process.  Please remember that military personnel add Base Pay, BAS, and COLA from their LES for a monthly (MO) earned income.  Housing and other benefits are not  counted towards your household income.

We strongly urge you to take advantage of this application process.  Waiting until school begins may delay approval of free/reduced meal prices when most other parents may be applying.  We do have paper copies in the school office if you prefer to submit a hard copy.

Please understand that the school does not keep copies of your application.  We just submit them to the State Office, and they make the determination regarding your child's meal status.

If your child received free or reduced meals during the past school year, there is a grace period of 20 days when their status carries over to the new school year.  Parents/guardians must submit a new application for the 2013-2014 school year.

We strongly encourage you to submit an application even if your child brings home lunch.  This coming year, we do not qualify for Title I funds (a loss of $140,000) because we did not meet the required percentage of students on free/reduced status.

Our Groundbreaking Ceremony

Here's the link to our blog about the groundbreaking ceremony held on Monday, July 1, 2013 which includes a slideshow and a tv report about the event.

http://hkesfollowourprogress.blogspot.com/2013/07/july-1-2013-our-groundbreaking-ceremony.html

Be sure to sign up to follow our progress.  If you're no longer at Hale Kula, you can continue to be updated on our $33.2 million project.  I still can't believe it's happening -- what a wonderful opportunity for our school!