MEREDITH HILL MESSENGER

Earthquake Drill

The Federal Way School District has requested that schools be prepared for earthquakes and have suggested that schools perform at least four drills throughout the school year.

Our first drill at Meredith Hill will take place this Friday, October 18^th. The staff and students have practiced the procedure on their own and this will be the first whole school evacuation of the school year.

We feel it is important for students to become aware of this procedure so that if in the event a real earthquake should take place, the staff and students will automatically know what to do and that all safety precautions will be in effect.

G.A.T.E. Information

Gifted and Talented Education (G.A.T.E.) Nomination Packets will be available in all elementary buildings by mid-November for testing in January (grades 3, 4, & 5) and February (grade 2). Test length runs approximately 3 ½ hours which includes time for short breaks. If your child is currently in the Fulltime program he/she is not required to retest. Students in Pullout program need only test if they wish Fulltime placement. Questions? Please call Gwen Knechtel, GATE Program Manager: 253-945-2056. GATE web page on FWSD website will be updated with test information in the near future.

Dates to Remember

October

16 – Coffee For Parents, 10:00 a.m.

17 – Coffee For Parents, 7:00-8:00 p.m.

18 – Earthquake Drill

24 – Cookie Day

25 – S.L.T. Meeting, 7:30 a.m.

30 – NO SCHOOL – Student Led Conferences

31 – NO SCHOOL – Student Led Conferences

November

1 – NO SCHOOL – Student Led Conferences

6 – Health Screening

7 – Cookie Day

8 – NO SCHOOL – Waiver Day

11 – NO SCHOOL – Veteran’s Day

12 – Rock & Roll Van – Pacific Science Center

19 – General PTA Meeting, 7:00 p.m.

21 – Cookie Day

22 – End of 1^st Trimester

28 – NO SCHOOL, Thanksgiving Vacation

29 – NO SCHOOL, Thanksgiving Vacation

Thank You Volunteers!

Volunteers generously gave 362 hours of service in the month of September ! Our thanks to you!

Health Screening

Washington State law mandates health screening for students. Meredith Hill Health Screening Day will be Wednesday, November 6. Grades K through 3 will have hearing and vision screening. Grade 5 will have hearing, vision, and Scoliosis screening. Screening is done with respect for the student’s privacy. Rechecks will be done in the weeks following screening on any student not meeting the standards for hearing or vision. We will also screen students absent on screening day at that time. Parents are notified of the results only if the student does not meet the normal criteria for the screening. This notice is intended to inform you so that you may have your student checked by your health care provider.

A written note from the parent is required to waive any part of the state mandated screening. Please call me at 253-945-3200 with any questions.

Students at any grade level may be referred to the Speech Language Pathologist for hearing screening or the School Nurse for vision screening. Parents or teachers may do this at any time during the school year for concerns of reduced visual or auditory acuity.

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Health Screening Day at Meredith Hill is coming up Wednesday, November 6. The screening is done in one day to minimize disruption to classroom time. I rely on parent volunteers to help me with this task. I will need approximately 20 volunteers. Contact the PTA or the school if you are interested in helping for all or part of the day. We will teach you to screen hearing or vision; no experience necessary!

- Linda Russo, School Nurse

FWSD Board Meetings

The Federal Way Board of Education meets the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at Federal Way City Hall. Meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. in Council Chambers. These meetings are open to the public with the exception of executive sessions as authorized by law. A Community Forum is held on the first Tuesday of each month at 6:00 p.m. and the public is invited to come and have discussions with Board Members on any topic.

Dates for Board Meetings this school year are:

October 8 and 22 March 11 and 25

November 12 and 26 April 22

December 10 May 13 and 27

January 14 and 28 June 10 and 24

February 11 and 25 July 22

August 12 and 26

School Board Meetings are shown on TV on Channel 21 during the meeting and throughout the week at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and at 12:00 noon on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. You must live within the City of Federal Way boundaries to be able to view this channel.

Messages at School

We often receive requests to give students messages in class. When we do this, it interrupts the learning process for the entire class. We are very willing to help you in a real emergency, but we ask that you make ALL necessary daycare and other personal arrangements with your child BEFORE he/she leaves for school each day. It is very important to your child’s feeling of well being that he/she know for sure what the daily plan is. Students are not allowed to use the phone to make personal arrangements and scheduling changes.

Please send a note to the teacher if your child is having a change in their go-home routine. If we have not received information from the parent, students will be instructed to follow their normal go-home routine.