Dear Lakeside Elementary Families,
Thank you to all who supported our PTO ROAR fundraiser last Friday evening. It was wonderful to see so many in attendance for a great night to raise funds for our students. Thank you to all who were involved by volunteering their time, purchasing items, and attending the festivities. Our Lakeside community is amazing!
Last week Lakeside fifth grade students, teachers, and parents enjoyed visiting Mystic Lake Camp for an overnight field trip. Camp is a great opportunity to build friendships and make memories that last a lifetime. Thank you to the many parents who served as chaperones on the trip. This highly anticipated experience sets the stage for a great final year as a Lakeside student.
Homecoming Week: October 3-7
Next week East Grand Rapids High School celebrates Homecoming and our Lakeside Lions always enjoy participating in some of the activities! Below are the “Spirit Week” happenings as chosen by our Leading Lions Student Leadership Team. Spirit Days and additional information regarding Homecoming are below.
- Monday, October 3 = Pajama and Nose in a Book Day
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Tuesday, October 4= What I Want to Be When I Grow Up Day
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Wednesday, October 5 = Wacky Wear Wednesday
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Thursday, October 6 = Dress Like a Teacher or Staff Member Day
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Friday, October 7 = East Pride/Blue & Gold Day
Homecoming Parade- Friday, October 7
The parade will start at 4:30 p.m. at Beechwood and Lake Drive and then turn westbound onto Lake Drive towards the high school. It will continue on Lake Drive before turning right onto Breton, left into Gaslight Village, left onto Croswell, and ending in front of the High School on Lake Drive.
We will keep our tradition of throwing candy during the parade; however, candy will only be thrown by walking parade participants. Walking parade participants have been instructed to throw candy near the sidewalks and not in the streets. We ask for your assistance in keeping our children safe. Young children tend to run into the street, putting them too close to the moving vehicles in the parade. We are requesting that parents keep children near the curb and not allow them to enter the street.
Homecoming Football Game- Friday, October 7
The football game will start at 7:00 p.m. at Memorial Field.
Upcoming Author Visit
The three elementary buildings are excited to announce that children’s author, Matthew Cordell, will be visiting our district thanks to a partnership with the Friends of the East Grand Rapids Library. Matthew Cordell has illustrated many books for children including works of poetry, novels, and picture books including The Only Fish in the Sea and Follow That Frog by Philip Stead. He has written and illustrated numerous picture books himself including Hello, Neighbor! The Kind and Caring World of Mister Rogers, Bear Island, and Wish. His work has been published around the globe in many different languages, including Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, French, and Italian. Matthew’s books have been recognized as Best of the Year selections by the New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Boston Globe, and his first wordless picture book, Wolf in the Snow, was awarded a 2017 Boston Globe-Horn Book honor award and the 2018 Caldecott Medal. Matthew lives in suburban Chicago with his wife, author, Julie Halpern, and their two children.
“One of the great pleasures of my career is being able to meet the many children and adults all over who might have encountered my books. It means so much to be invited into a school, a book festival, or a conference to share my love of reading, writing, and drawing with children, educators, and parents who in turn provide endless inspiration to me.” - Matthew Cordell
Matthew will visit Lakeside Elementary on October 25. This order form was sent home in Friday folders with all students so that families who are interested in purchasing some of his titles are able to do so in time for books to arrive before his visit. Mr. Cordell looks forward to presenting and signing copies of his books for students!
Code Red Drill
Consistent with our commitment to communicate and to serve the best interest of our students, I am writing to provide you with information regarding a very important safety drill that will be conducted on Friday, September 30. Lakeside Elementary will have a Full Sheltering/Lockdown drill in cooperation with East Grand Rapids Public Safety. This drill is conducted at least three times annually in compliance with legislation adopted in 2006 (as amended by Public Act 12 of 2014). This will be our first Code Red drill of this year.
During this drill, teachers and school staff implement procedures designed to maximize student safety in the unlikely event that a threatening situation was to unfold in or near our school. These procedures have been designed in collaboration with the East Grand Rapids Public Safety Department and a public safety officer will be present during our drill to observe and provide feedback about performance. The public safety department will not practice their response procedures during our drill. The most noticeable components to these procedures that your child will experience are hearing the term “Code Red” as a signal to take shelter, statements they might hear over the Public Address system if a real danger were present, the verification that doors are locked and closed, lights being turned off, and the repositioning of students within each classroom to maximize safety.
In preparation for this drill, your child’s classroom teacher will have an age-appropriate class discussion about the drill and about appropriate student behavior and responses during the drill. Teachers emphasize that this drill is just practice for a highly unlikely situation with the goal of avoiding or reducing student anxiety during the drill. Since each grade level is unique regarding what depth of information or what types of student questions are age-appropriate, teachers moderate these discussions carefully and may direct students to talk with parents about those questions deemed by the teacher to be best addressed by parents. While these classroom conversations and the remarks over the Public Address system prior to the drill have been adequate at creating an anxiety-free experience for the vast majority of students in the past, please feel free to talk with your child to help them make meaning of why such a drill is necessary and to understand its importance. If you have any questions or comments regarding this safety drill, please do not hesitate to contact the classroom teacher or me.
Parent Producer Needed for Mary Poppins, Jr.
Lakeside Elementary is excited to begin preparing for this year’s musical, Mary Poppins, Jr! In the next couple of months please watch for communication regarding rehearsals in the weekly newsletter. Before auditions occur, we are seeking a Parent Producer to work alongside Mr. Andy, our Director. Please see the full job description here and reach out to Mrs. Thelen if you are interested.
Calendar
Please click here for upcoming events at Lakeside Elementary. Choir for enrolled fourth and fifth grade students begins Monday, October 3 at 7:45 a.m. Students should enter through Door #9 off the Burchard (north) lot.
As always, my door is always open. Please reach out anytime with questions, concerns, or to say hello.
Warm Regards,
Additional Information
