Message from the Principal, Michael Chipman - Cherry Creek ...

Parent Bulletin #6
November 3, 2011
Willow Creek Elementary School
7855 South Willow Way
Centennial, Colorado 80112
A Cherry Creek School
Phone: 720-554-3900
Michael Chipman, Principal
720-554-3900
Kathy Carmel, Office Manager
720-554-3903
Beth Perron, Secretary
720-554-3901
Deborah DuBois, Nurse
720-554-3907
Beth Barber, Food Services
720-554-3965
Petra Lindsey, Director
Willow Creek Cares for Kids
720-554-3966
Charles Caraway
Building Engineer
720-554-3964
Fax Number
720-554-3988
Weather Hotline
720-554-4701
Web Site
www.will.ccsd.k12.co.us
Attendance Line
720-554-3995
If your child is going to be absent
or late, please call by 8:45
a.m. In addition to notifying your
child’s teacher, you must also
call the Attendance Line. This is
a 24 hour open line. Thank you.
Message from the Principal, Michael Chipman
Conferences
Next week (November 7th-11th) is conference week and we are
looking forward to connecting with you to talk about your children’s
accomplishments thus far. The time spent conversing about our
children’s needs is vital to their continued success at school. Thank
you for being a part of this important process!
Veterans Day
We are looking forward to honoring our veterans during the week
of November 7th-11th! Please join us for our Veterans Day assembly
on Thursday, November 10th from 2:45 p.m.-3:25 p.m.
American Education Week
During the week of November 14th-18th we will be honoring our
Para-Professionals for Education Support Professionals Day (Nov.
16th). We would not be able to do the things we do at Willow Creek
without the amazing support of Deb Markano, Paula Rae Brauer,
Buffy Krantz, Ellen Kushar, Karen Branch, Nancy Escobar,
Heather Krause, Katie Linton, Mary Cole, Brigitte Gatewood,
Ginger Herndon, Misty McDonald-Russell, Tim Crabb, and Ian
King. Also included in this list are our Technology Technicians,
Lori Ambrose and Chris Domino, our Academic Support Technician,
Amy Turner, our KEP Specialist, Sandi Sandler and our KEP
Leaders, Sandy Hueser and Anita Sullivan.
Accountability Meeting
Please join us on November 17th for a very important accountability
meeting. We will be discussing the school’s Unified Improvement
Plan (U.I.P.) and gathering input from the community that will be
implemented into the U.I.P.’s final construct. The meeting will take
place at 6:30 p.m. in the library. You will gain valuable insight
about the nuts and bolts of Willow Creek’s data and be a part of
our improvement plan!
Weather
Cold weather is upon us! Please make sure to send children to
school with layers and boots when necessary. Our outdoor recess
policy is as follows:
1. Below Zero-Students do not go out for recess
2. Zero-10 Degrees-10 minute or less recesses
3. 10 Degrees and Above-10 minute- up to 20 minute recesses
It is important to note there are no safety concerns as far as exposure
goes with our recess policy. (Frostbite sets in when skin temperature
drops to about 27 degrees Fahrenheit. It would take a half
hour in –20 degree temperatures to create such a condition.) However,
children do find it hard to comfortably play outside when they
are not dressed for the weather. Sending them with layers during
this time of year is imperative!

Kindergarten Enrichment Parents:
Check out the new Kindergarten
Enrichment
Blog! Log-in and see
what great things we
have been doing. Updated
weekly! Please
visit us at
blog.ccsd.k12.co.us/
shueser. (Please note
that there is no “www.”
in front of the website
when searching for this
blog.)
Delayed Start Information
We never know when the weather might make
a quick change for the worse here in Colorado
and it is getting to
be that time of year
when it could be 70
degrees on day and
snowing the next.
As a quick reminder,
the elementary
school delayed start
times are the same
as last year. When
the district is on a
delayed schedule,
elementary bus pickup and school start times
are delayed one hour.
When there is a weather emergency, information
on school closures, delayed starts,
early dismissals or late dismissals will be
posted on the district’s website at
www.cherrycreekschools.org. This information
will also be sent to local media and
recorded on the weather hotline which can be
reached by calling 720-554-4701.
School Lunch Menu
The school lunch menu can be found on the
Willow Creek website:
www.will.ccsd.k12.co.us under the General
Information/Lunch Menu section. Paper copies
are also available at the front office.
2011-2010 Willow Creek Parent Handbook
If you did not pick up a Willow Creek Parent
Handbook during the registration period we
do have some extra handbooks at the front
office. This is a valuable resource for parents
about your school and can also be
viewed on our website.
School of Choice
School of Choice applications for the 2012-
2013 school year will be available starting at
7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, November 15th in all
schools and the Cherry Creek School District
Admissions offices. Forms must be fully
completed before being submitted and will
then be date and time stamped by district
staff as received. All transportation arrangements
become the responsibility of the family
choosing this option.
Requests are approved based on available
space with priority given to siblings of current
students already attending that school and
the children of district staff according to negotiated
employee policies. Notification of
acceptance or denial of the request will be
sent from the schools to parents by March
15, 2012.
If your student is currently attending a school
under School of Choice or IntraDistrict Transfer
to the highest grade level, it is NOT necessary
to complete a School of Choice application
each year. Non-Resident applications
will be available starting on April 1st, 2012.
Fifth Graders Ski Free!
For the past 15 years nearly 200,000 families
have participated in Colorado Ski Country
USA’s 5th Grade Passport Program. The
program provides 5th grade participants with
three free days of skiing
or snowboarding at each
of 21 member resorts,
which translates to 63
free ski days all year!
The 5th Grade Passport
is still the best value in
Colorado! To find out
more information about
this program please call
303-866-9707 or visit the
Colorado Ski Country
website at www.coloradoski.com/
passport.
Welcome back! We hope you
had a wonderful fall break!

Dates to Remember
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
M-Th. Nov. 7-10 Parent Teacher Conferences
Th. Nov. 10 Veterans Day Assembly, Gym, 2:45 p.m.
Fri. Nov. 11 Non-Contact Day, NO SCHOOL
Tues. Nov. 15 4th Grade to Colorado Symphony, 9:15 a.m.
PTO General Meeting, 9:00 a.m., Cafeteria
Wed. Nov. 16 3rd Grade Music Program, 6:30 p.m., Gym
Thurs. Nov. 17 Accountability Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Library
W-F Nov. 23-25 Thanksgiving Break, NO SCHOOL
Wed. Nov. 30 Band/Choir Concert, Gym, 2 Performances, 9:15 a.m. & 7:00 p.m.
M-F Dec. 5-9 Book Fair, Library
W-Th Dec. 7-8 MADD Hatters Performance, Gym, 7:00 p.m.
Save the Date
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Give Yourself a Break. You’re Doing Great.
Celebrate You!
This month’s speaker will be Barbara Stocker,
author of “A Women with a Minute.” More information
about this PIN Presentation will be
forthcoming in the next PEEK Newsletter dated
November 16th.
Plan ahead to take a little time out of your day
or take a few hours off work and come to connect
with other parents, be informed by local
and national speakers, and get empowered to
take a proactive approach to parenting. All
parents, school administrators and community
members are welcome and encouraged to attend
Parent Information Network (PIN) presentations.
Everyone is welcome and presentations
are held on the first Tuesday of each
month from 9:15-11:15 a.m. at the Student
Achievement Resource Center (SARC). SARC
is located at 14199 Briarwood Avenue, Centennial,
80112, (south of Arapahoe between Potomac
and Jordan Roads). For further information
please visit www.PINccsd.org.
2nd Annual Future Bruins Day
The 2nd Annual Future Bruins Day is an opportunity
for 5th-8th graders and their parents to
attend an open house at Cherry Creek High
School. There will be activities, campus tours,
a panel consisting of faculty, students and parents
to answer questions about what it is like to
attend Cherry Creek High School and all that it
has to offer. Please mark your calendars for
Friday, November 11th from 10:00 a.m.-1:00
p.m. (this is a non-contact school day for
grades K-8). There is an informational flyer at
the end of this issue of the PEEK regarding this
event. If you have any questions, please feel
free to contact Chelle Rosales at CCHS, 720-
554-2222. They are hoping to see lots of Willow
Creek 5th graders!
Attendance Line-Please Call by 8:45 a.m.
Parents: If your child is going to be absent or
tardy, please call the Attendance Line at 720-
554-3995 by 8:45 a.m. This line is open 24
hours a day. In addition to contacting your
teacher regarding an absence, please call
the Attendance Line.
Please Note: Kindergarten Enrichment students
must also be called in if they will not be
in attendance at the start of the a.m. or p.m.
school day. We appreciate your help in the
matter.
Tardies ...
are very disruptive, not only to the
late student, but to every student
and teacher in the classroom.
School starts at 9:00 a.m. Students should
be at school by 8:50 a.m. and in their seats
by 9:00 a.m. ready to learn.
Early Dismissals…
are strongly discouraged after 3:15 p.m. as
this is a very busy time for teachers and students
as they give final instructions and prepare
to leave for the day.
School Grounds Supervision…
is only available beginning at 8:45 a.m. unless
your child is eating breakfast, which begins
at 8:30 a.m. Supervision ends at 3:50
p.m. after school. STUDENTS SHOULD
NOT BE ARRIVING TO SCHOOL BEFORE
8:45 A.M. AND SHOULD BE LEAVING BY
3:50 p.m. EACH DAY, unless you are enrolled
in daycare, eating breakfast, attending
intramurals, choir/band or in a morning club.
WILLOW CREEK LUNCH SCHEDULE
Kindergarten 11:45-12:35 p.m.
1st Grade 12:05-12:45 p.m.
2nd Grade 11:00-11:40 a.m.
3rd Grade 1:05 - 1:45 p.m.
4th Grade 12:45- 1:25 p.m.
5th Grade 12:25- 1:05 p.m.

CCSD Café
Food and Nutrition Services is excited to introduce
our new website, CCSD Café at
www.ccsdcafe.org. It’s a user-friendly and
engaging site that communicates and highlights
the Food and Nutrition Services Dept.
Whether you are a parent, student, teacher
or administrator, you will find a wealth of information
on this new site. A few highlights:
Apply for free and reduced meals
Pay for meals online
Access carbohydrate and allergen information
for meals
Schedule catering for an event
Find nutrition education information
Learn about the programs led by Food
and Nutrition Services
On the site you’ll also find the Virtual Café.
This feature is an interactive tool for student
and families to take a deeper look at the
CCSD meals. Using this tool, students are
able to create meals and see the nutritional
value of these meals. The Virtual Café is
programmed to show the actual meals
served in the cafeterias on the days they are
served. After dragging menu items to your
tray, you can see the nutrients in the meal
chosen and how this meal compares to the
USDA standard for a lunch meal. In addition,
view the allergens and price of each meal.
Create your own account to track your student’s
meal history. At home, this will allow
you to discuss daily meal choices with your
student, learn more about the meals served
at Willow Creek and keep an open conversation
about the food choices your student is
making. Our goal is to provide students with
healthy and appealing meals and to encourage
healthy lifestyles.
Challenge School
The Challenge School is now accepting applications
for the 2012-2013 school year.
Challenge School is a KG-8th grade magnet
school in the Cherry Creek School District
designed to meet the needs of academically
advanced, motivated and gifted students.
Application and information are available on
the school’s website at
www.challengeschool.info. Applications
are due by January 13th, 2012.
Tours of the school are available on selected
days at 9:00 a.m. There is a parent information
night on December 7th at 7:00 p.m.
No reservations are necessary. If you would
like to sign up for a tour or for further information
please call 720-747-2100.
Cherry Creek High School Theater
The Cherry Creek High
School Theater Department
will present two plays
this November. Alice in
Wonderland will be performed
in the Fine Arts
Theater from Nov. 10th,
11th, & 12th at 7:00 p.m. and on Nov. 12th at
2:00 p.m. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for
students and senior citizens.
William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing
will be performed in the Fine Arts Theater
at 7:00 p.m. from Nov. 16-19th. Tickets are
$10 for adults and $8 for students and senior
citizens.
For more information or to find out about purchasing
tickets online, please visit the Cherry
Creek Theater website at: www.wix.com/
cchstheater/cchstheater/Home.
CCSD Care Line
After the 1999 tragedy at Columbine High
School, the CCSD established the Care Line
(720-554-2273) or
careline@cherrycreekschools.org as part of
its ongoing school safety efforts, which emphasize
the importance of prevention, positive
school climate and physical/psychological
safety measures.
“Nothing is more important than the safety of
our students, our staff members and our families,”
said CCSD Superintendent Mary Chesley.
“The academic excellence that exists in
our district stems from the fact that people are
safe and feel safe in our schools, allowing
them to focus on teaching and learning.”
In the past 12 years, the Care Line has been
used by many students, parents and community
members to report potentially dangerous
behavior or unsafe situations. Reports can be
made anonymously. When a call or e-mail
comes into the Care Line, a team of district
administrators and safety and security personnel
are alerted to the message and read the email
or listened to the phone call. The situation
is investigated in a variety of ways depending
upon the nature of the information.
“The Care Line is an important part of our
comprehensive commitment to safe, respectful
and inclusive learning environments,” said
Janise McNally, Wellness Coordinator for the
CCSD. “It’s another way we can work together
to ensure the safety and well being of our
students, staff, families and community.”