Hutchinson Public Schools

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Cornerstones of Early Learning

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By Marijean Storlie, Early Childhood Family Education Coordinator and
Mary Myers-Reinarts, Play and Learn Preschool Teacher/Program Coordinator

The back-to-school buzz is still in the air! With the Hutchinson Public Schools construction project we welcome a new Early Learning Center at West Elementary. Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE), Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE), Early Childhood Screening (ECS), and Play and Learn Preschool have all come together under one roof where collaboration and learning can blossom.

ECFE is an early learning program offering a variety of class options for families with children ages birth to kindergarten entrance. Our classes include separating and non-separating options for parent and child, special classes as well as family events. Sibling care is also available for some classes. A typical class includes a parent-child playtime and a circle time where all families engage in movement activities and songs. Separation classes also include a parent discussion time for parents to share, support and learn while their child has an extended play time opportunity with their peers.

ECSE professionals are available for children birth through age five who qualify for services due to special needs in their development. Early Intervention services for children birth up to age three are most often in the home or daycare setting. Children aged three through five years most often receive their services in a preschool setting. If you have a concern about your child’s development contact Help Me Grow at helpmegrowmn.org or our district website at isd423.org located under West Elementary Early Learning.

ECS is a free and simple check of how your child is growing, developing and learning. Screening at 3 years old is preferred, but your child may be screened between the ages of 3 and the start of kindergarten and is required by the MN Department of Education before your child enters kindergarten.

Play and Learn Preschool is a Four-Star Parent Aware rated School Readiness preschool program supported by a combination of MN Department of Education funding and parent tuition. We invite children aged three through five years old and work closely with ECSE to welcome children of any ability level. Our play-based curriculum builds on the common interests of children in our classes.

These four cornerstone Early Learning programs are foundational within the Hutchinson School District in supporting families with young children in our community. For more information about any of these Early Learning Programs please call the West Elementary School office at 320-587-4470 or visit our website isd423.org.​

Attention K-1 Parents

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Back to School Message from Principal Broderius.

Excellence in Academics, Activities and Character

Si a usted le gustaría recibir estas formas en español, por favor llame al 320-587-4470  ext. 3050 y pregunte por Fabiola, la intérprete para las escuelas West. 

Welcome parents to the 2021-2022 school year!  My name is Mrs. Broderius, and I am honored to be the principal at West Elementary.  The new school year is fast approaching, and I look forward to sharing my commitment, enthusiasm, love for kids, and education with you and your child. You are such an important part of your child’s education; after all, you are your child’s first and most important teacher.  We value your input and the time you spend helping your child experience educational success.  We welcome you as our partner in education.  

Our entire staff returns to work to prepare for the school year on Monday, August 23rd. They will work on schedules, prepare curriculum, focus on impactful teaching strategies, and get ready to welcome our students for the new school year.  West has an amazing staff who are fully committed to making this year a wonderful experience for all of our students. 

Our district uses a student information system called Campus as our main communication tool. If you are not getting our emails, please check your Spam folder and then notify us to verify we have your updated information. It is very important we have your current contact information at all times. Your child’s teacher may use Google classroom, SeeSaw, and email to share important information with you on a regular basis. You will be receiving information on how to help your child access these online platforms early in the school year. Please notify school with any contact information changes throughout the year. 

Please check out our website to read the 2021-2022 Safe Learning section for information regarding the upcoming school year.  http://www.isd423.org/covid-19-info/  This information will be updated throughout the year with any changes we encounter. 

The West student day is from 8:35 a.m. – 3:15 p.m. Our office is open from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.  You can call the office at 320-587-4470 during office hours or leave a message on our answering machine at any time. Someone will get back to you as soon as possible.  

Breakfast/snack & lunch for K-1 students remains free and will be part of the classroom schedule. The time students eat will be based on each classroom schedule. Students will be offered lunch while in school each day. They will eat with their classmates in the cafeteria. More information from our Child Nutrition Department about breakfast/snack and lunch is available on the website. If you would like to apply for educational benefits, please go to our website and download the Application for Benefits form under our Nutrition Program page.   http://www.isd423.org/district/servicesresources/nutrition-program/

Teacher assignments will be emailed on Friday, August 20th after 3:00 p.m. 

We will be hosting Kindergarten Welcome Conferences by appointment Wednesday, August 25th OR Monday, August 30th. Each Kindergarten family will receive a letter in the postal mail with a scheduled appointment time. Letters will be mailed to Kindergarten families on Friday, August 20th. All Kindergarten students’ first full day of school will be on Tuesday, August 31st. 

If your Kindergarten child has not completed the Early Childhood Screening process, you will be scheduled for an appointment during the week of August 23rd or on August 30th. Early Childhood Screening is a health and developmental assessment for children ages 3 years and older. Early Childhood Screening is mandatory in the state of Minnesota for all children before they enter Kindergarten.  You and your child’s timely attendance at this screening is required. Please contact ECFE or visit our website for more information.  http://www.isd423.org/district/tailored-programs/early-intervention/earlychildhoodscreening/

First Grade students and families are invited to our Open House event which will take place in person on Wednesday, August 25th, between 4:00-7:00 p.m. This will give you a chance to find the classroom, meet the teacher, drop off school supplies, and verify transportation information. First Grade students’ first full day of school will be on Monday, August 30th. 

You should have received communication from the Hutchinson Bus Lines with your child’s bus information. Please contact them directly with updates, changes, or questions about bussing at 320-234-0888. 

Our morning buses will be arriving and unloading at West between 8:25 and 8:35 a.m.  We will have staff ready to greet students and help them find their way to the classroom.  Once verified and received, your child should attach the plastic bus tag on their backpack.  Staff use these to help students find their way during the first few days of the new school year. If you still have one of our plastic bus tags from last school year, we encourage you to use it again on the first day.

If you are transporting your child to school, please use the new parking lot on the northside of West Elementary.  Do not use the south circle bus loop or the west staff parking lot. Parent drop off in the morning will be between 8:25 a.m and 8:35 a.m. You should escort your child to the door or have your child meet one of the staff along the sidewalk where they will be helping supervise and guide students as they enter the building. Kindergarten students who are transported by parents will enter the north Kindergarten door #11 and First Grade students will follow the sidewalk and enter the west door #7. Only staff and students are able to enter the building, so we ask that you say your goodbyes at the door or at the car. There is no outside supervision in the mornings and our doors will remain locked until 8:25 a.m. Please do not leave your child unattended. If your child is tardy and arriving after 8:40 a.m., please use the main entrance and check your child in at the office. 

At the end of each school day, we will begin loading our transfer buses at 3:10 p.m with the goal of them leaving our lot by 3:20 p.m. The transfer buses arrive at Park Elementary where students transfer to their go home bus (if needed) and our Park students get loaded. These buses are scheduled to leave Park by 3:40 p.m. at the latest. Please know that the first week of school the buses will be off schedule by a few minutes. Buses also run behind on days where there is a lot going on in town, such as city wide garage sale day. In addition, buses can also run behind during weather events such as rain and snow storms. If you are concerned about your child’s bus, please contact Hutchinson Bus Lines directly at 320-234-0888. They have direct radio contact with the driver and can quickly get the answers you are looking for. Students may have assigned bus seats and are required to wear face coverings while riding the school bus.

At the end of the school day, parents who are picking up should use the new parking lot on the north side of West Elementary and meet their child on the sidewalk. Please look for the supervising teacher assigned to your child’s classroom. You are required to sign your child out each day by using the clipboard paper sign out or by using the digital sign out option found here:  https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1Y_hoQviWRE0OoYhsq6OAja-cQleHiidTbXcy3Mm0j-c/edit?ts=5f342511    You can bookmark this on your phone for easy daily use. Signing your child out each day is required. 

West Elementary is also on Twitter, which also serves as a text message communication. You do need to have a Twitter account and/or the Twitter app to receive the text messages. We use it to share great news and important updates about West Elementary.  Follow us on Twitter: @WestElemTigers   Our district also has a Facebook page that shares occasional school news. You can follow us: Facebook.com/isd423  

Your child will see specialist teachers for Art, Music, PhyEd, and STREAM while at school. A school-wide schedule has been developed so your child will see two of these specialist teachers each day.

Our West students will have at least 20 minutes of outside recess after lunch and will be supervised by an educational assistant. Outside play, sunshine, and fresh air are so important to our day. Please know we will be going outside as much as we can. We only stay in if it’s really raining hard and for excessive cold. Please make sure your child has appropriate clothing and shoes for outside play every school day. We require students to wear shoes that cover their toes and have backs on them. These are the safest shoes for school. 

Picture Day at West Elementary is scheduled for Thursday, September 2nd and Friday, September 3rd. Information flyers will be distributed with more information. 

Sincerely,
Mrs. Broderius
West Elementary Principal

Tiger Take Home – Order by 5/2/21

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Hutchinson Food Service Program is excited to offer an opportunity for families to order some of their students’ favorite menu items to serve at home.

We have great ideas for your student’s grad party or family get togethers. Items are now split into smaller portions for families to decide on the quantity they want without having to buy the whole case.

Families benefit from the low cost bulk products and profits from these items benefit our Food Service Department.

Parents can order by logging into their Tiger Portal and clicking on the Smartschoolk12 icon. Then click School Store.

Community members may order by calling 320-234-2603 and dropping off payment at the District Office.

Orders must be submitted by Sunday, May 2nd.
Pick up Monday, May 10th at West Elementary from 3:45-4:45pm.

 

Self Control: A Life Skill

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By Anne Broderius, West Elementary Principal

Every year educators not only teach important academic skills or standards, but educators also spend time teaching many essential life skills. Often, these life skills are referred to as character traits such as grit, curiosity, self-control, social intelligence, generosity, optimism, and gratitude. Some think these character traits are fixed, but many educators and researchers have proven a person’s character is malleable or can grow, change, and develop over time. 

In addition to character traits, educators reflect on a child’s executive function, or a set of mental skills used everyday in life, work, and school. Executive functioning, also known as the management system of the brain, includes working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. Children who have trouble in any of these areas will find it hard to focus, follow directions, and handle emotions while faced with challenges or changes in their world in and out of the school setting. 

Parents often wonder if their child will be ready for school. All parents want their child to experience school success, and will often ask what they can practice at home to be ready for school. One character trait or executive function important for students’ school success is self-control or also referred to as self-regulation. This is described as the ability to listen, to wait, and to manage emotions, thoughts, and behaviors when faced with challenges, temptations, and impulses. This is a complex skill that develops overtime. As an executive function, self-control is an important cognitive process that is required to achieve tasks or goals, which leads to life, work, and school success. It requires a child to slow down and think through their actions. Most educators would agree that the path to school success and academic achievement is formed at an early age. In addition, most educators would say a determining factor of school success is the extent to which a child can attend to a lesson, story, and multi-step directions. Some studies have found that self-control is often a better predictor of academic success than a child’s IQ or grades earned. 

It’s never too late to provide your child opportunities to practice and develop self-control. Consider playing games where self-control is practiced by needing to follow specific detailed directions or being a keen listener. Games might include Simon Says or Red Light Green Light. Even a classic card game like Memory can help build self-control and attention to detail. You have maybe even seen on social media a version of the marshmallow experiment where you ask your child to avoid a temptation for a few minutes. This is another form of self-control or delayed gratification development where a child is asked to wait for a preferred candy or food. 

Have family members share examples of times they needed to practice self-control. It’s important for children to hear and see how even adults need to practice this in daily life. These honest conversations are important. Children will take cues from you, their family members, or other important adults in their world. By watching others, they will learn to value and develop this important character trait. In addition, it’s important for the adults to model self-control when faced with life’s challenges too. Think about how all adults are modeling how they manage emotions and challenges around your child. 

Children are amazing and our future. When we focus on the environments we create for them, both in and out of school, we will help to create all kinds of positive possibilities for their future.

Kindergarten Parent Nights

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Este año tendremos la inscripción de Kindergarten en línea.  Si usted necesita asistencia,
llame a West Elementary al 320-587-4470, ext. 3050,  y se le conectará con nuestra intérprete, Fabiola.  Ella esta disponible de 8:30 am a 3:00 pm.

If you would like to learn more about our Kindergarten program and our school,
please consider joining Mrs. Broderius, Principal virtually for one of the following sessions:

5:30pm Monday, March 29th ~ OR ~ 5:30pm Tuesday, March 30th

To attend the virtual meeting, click on the time, and then click “Ask to Join.” You will be admitted at the meeting time.

To register for the virtual meeting, please visit this website or scan the QR code below.

~ http://bit.ly/westparent ~

You must complete the online registration for your child by April 15, 2021.

Click Here to Start Your Online Enrollment

If you have any questions regarding the online registration process,
please call the District Office at 320-587-2860 or West Elementary at 320-587-4470.

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Middle School

1365 South Grade Road SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2854
Fax: 320-587-2857
Staff Contact Information

Park Elementary

100 Glen Street SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2837
Fax: 320-587-4821
Staff Contact Information

District

30 Glen Street NW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2860
Fax: 320-587-4590
Staff Contact Information

High School

1200 Roberts Road
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2151
Fax: 320-587-8217
Staff Contact Information

West Elementary

875 School Road South
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-4470
Fax: 320-587-0735
Staff Contact Information

Tiger Elementary

805 School Road SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
Phone:
Fax: 

Staff Contact Information