Dear Families,
We had so much fun at our annual Willow Walk today! It was a beautiful, crisp fall day; perfect for a "long" walk! Students began by walking out of the gym with staff cheering them on, complete with purple pom-poms. On top of that, Buddy the Bear came to celebrate and support our staff and students on their walk. Several students seeing Buddy for the first time exclaimed, "WOW! Is that the REAL Buddy the Bear??" The kids were loving every minute of this event. Our Willow Walk is the perfect way to bring us together and celebrate our school family. Thank you to those volunteers and families who came to cheer us all on! Your presence added greatly to the fun!
Jenny Smith, Principal
NEW *PTO News*
ICE CREAM PREORDERS ARE DUE BY 5pm today
SPIRIT WEAR
THANK YOU all for your support and patience with our spirit wear fundraiser! We are pleased to report that despite supply chain delays, our spirit wear arrived and was sent home with students this week!
BOOK FAIR
The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to Willow Grove from October 17th through October 21st! Check us out on social media to learn more about how to set up an e-wallet for your student and to sign up to walk through the fair with your student's class!
ICE CREAM SOCIAL
Our ice cream social will be held on October 20th from 6-8:30pm. Please join us and check out our social media pages for volunteer opportunities . . . we still need a few more volunteers!
BERNIE'S BOOK BANK
This year the PTO is partnering with Bernie's Book Bank for a book drive. The bins will be available for you to donate gently used or new books to clear out some older favorites to make room for new books purchased at the fair. More information will be available on our social media pages.
REMINDER TO CONNECT WITH THE PTO
Remember to check the Willow Grove PTO online at the links below for the latest PTO news and events.
Willow Grove PTO Membership Toolkit
REPEAT *Book Fair!*
The Scholastic Book Fair is coming up soon, the week of October 17th. Click here to learn more. There is also information in our PTO blog. We especially can't wait for the Ice Cream Social event where we get to see and mingle with families as you enjoy a frozen treat and shop at the book fair. The Ice Cream Social is Thursday, October 20, from 6:00-7:30 PM. Thank you to our PTO for organizing the book fair and our evening at the ice cream social!
REPEAT *Halloween on Monday, October 31*
It’s hard to believe it’s already time to talk about Halloween, but I’ve been seeing costumes pop up at the stores already! Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. I especially love watching your children in all of their excitement! I like to provide details about Halloween early so you will know parameters about costumes as you are choosing the perfect one! There is also an opportunity for you to view our parade I’d like to share with you.
Costumes - As you are choosing or creating a costume for your child, please keep them school appropriate. No blood or gore and no bare tummies in school. Children may not wear masks. Weapons, real or pretend, are never allowed on school grounds. No cigars or cigarette items. Please keep hair coloring and make-up simple. I can't wait to see what you come up with!
9:30 AM - Parade - Parents may stand on the front sidewalk to view our parade! If there is rain, we will need to cancel the outdoor parade. We cannot allow parents in the school to view the indoor parade, for obvious security reasons. Let's cross our fingers for a beautiful fall day!
10:00-10:45 - Party (Kindergarten, Structured, and AM Blended/ECSE) - Only approved PTO parent volunteers may enter the building for the classroom parties. Our room parents put together a fun celebration in each classroom!
2-2:45 - Party for PM Blended/ECSE
Blended and ECSE Program - Blended will have 2 parties (one for AM and one for PM). Again, only PTO-approved volunteers may attend the party. Blended PM parents may bring their child in just for the parade if they'd like. Parents must provide transportation to and from the school parade. Students must leave after the parade and return when their typical program starts. If you choose to bring your child to the parade please notify your child’s teacher so they know to expect your child. You will drop them off in the office and pick them up there after the parade. Please bypass the line for scanning ID’s for the party and come right in to retrieve your child.
IMPORTANT NOTES FOR PTO PARTY VOLUNTEERS:
Parents attending the parties may not bring additional family members, other children, etc. We need everyone to abide by this and will have to ask you to leave if you come with other attendees. For your sake and ours, please do not put us in this situation. We have many individuals entering our building for the party and cannot accommodate additional individuals.
Every PTO volunteer approved to come into our school MUST have their license or ID scanned through our security system to enter. You have to bring this with you or you will not be able to enter. There is always a very long line at this first party, so please anticipate this. We highly encourage PTO room party volunteers to swing by Willow sometime in the month of October before October 31st to have your license scanned, which will speed up the process. The more people who come in early to be scanned, the shorter the line! You may also come in the day of the Halloween party BEFORE THE PARADE to have your license scanned. We will clear out the office just before the parade starts, so please come early, as lines are long for this first party.