Dear Jefferson Families, 

I hope you had a wonderful, restful holiday break! We are excited to have students back in the building and are looking forward to the months ahead. This is the time to see accelerated growth in academic areas! Students will be taking multiple assessments in the month of January to demonstrate their level of proficiency in literacy and math. Those assessment results will be mailed home at the end of the month. 

As we begin 2025, our staff is committed to making sure students are following the Jefferson Way: Being Kind, Helpful, and Safe at school. We are reviewing classroom and school expectations and are creating visuals for students to know what expected behavior looks like. We are also committed to teaching about social and emotional learning, incorporating Harmony lessons (our universal social/emotional learning curriculum) and Conscious Discipline (an adult-first model for understanding how to best meet the social, emotional, and behavioral needs of our students. Please see the information below as an example and how you can utilize Conscious Discipline strategies at home!

Wishing you well,

~Mrs. Ashton, Principal

Conscious Discipline 

Jefferson staff are committed to supporting students socially and emotionally. Staff have spent the last 3 years learning about Conscious Discipline, an adult first model to best support students. Each month we are going to be sharing some tips that staff have been learning and can also be used to support students at home.

Brain States:

• Executive State: Students in this state are ready for learning and are able to problem solve. Students in this state feel happy or calm.
• Emotional State: Students in this state are seeking connection with others. Students in this state feel upset, sad or anxious.
• Survival State: Students in this state are seeking a sense of safety. Students in this state feel angry, frustrated or scared.

DNA Process:

The DNA process helps adults bring students up through the brain states. When a child is in their emotional or survival state it is important that we get them back in their executive state before talking about what happened. We can do this by using the DNA process; Describe, Name and Acknowledge. Here is some language to use when your child is in their emotional or survival state. 

• D: Describe what you see. For example, "Your face is going like this".
• N: Name the feeling. For example, "You seem angry". Use a questioning tone so the child can correct you if you misinterpret the feeling.
• A: Acknowledge their desire. For example, "You wanted a turn and didn't know how to ask".

Feel free to try this process at home! Thanks for committing to support your child socially and emotionally. If you have further questions, feel free to reach out to our school behavior interventionist, Ms. Tigert, rachel.tigert@oshkosh.k12.wi.us.

ALPS (Advanced Learning Program) Application

Hello Jefferson parents!

The application for ALPs (Advanced Learning Program) is open! ALPs is a unique program designed to serve self-motivated learners in Grades 4-8 located within Perry Tipler Middle School. The application is open through March 1st. Please submit if you are interested!

https://perry-tipler-middle.oshkosh.k12.wi.us/alps/alps-enrollment 

Tri County Dental - Last Call

Tri-County Dental has extended their dental registration for an opportunity for students to receive free dental care. If your student is eligible for free or reduced lunch, has a Forward Health card from Medicaid Badger Care, and does not have private dental insurance or receive care at another dental clinic, they may qualify for this service. The online registration is open by using this link. Registration must be filled out to determine if care is eligible. 

We encourage you to take advantage of this valuable program to ensure your child's dental health. Please register by Jan. 13th.

Save the Date: OASD MLK Day Celebration

• Date: Monday, January 20, 2025
• Time: 8 AM
• Location: Vel Phillips Middle School - Atrium

Join us for the inaugural MLK Day Celebration hosted by the Oshkosh Area School District on January 20, 2025. (See Flyer.) This community event will include:

• Continental Breakfast
• Community connections
• Keynote speaker
• MLK essay contest winners
• And more!

RSVP Required: While the event is free, guests must RSVP in advance for planning purposes. Students and children must be accompanied by a guardian. Complete the registration form here: RSVP: OASD MLK Day Celebration 2025 For additional details, visit oshkosh.k12.wi.us/MLK-Day.

Questions? Contact Anthony Miller Jr., OASD Director of Community Engagement & Equity, at anthony.miller@oshkosh.k12.wi.us or 920.718.4309. We look forward to celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy with you!

Patriot Families, Pre-Order Your Yearbook Today! 

Pre-order yours today for just $15! All orders must be placed by March 7th—after the deadline, no additional yearbooks will be available for purchase.

When ordering, please ensure you're selecting Jefferson Elementary and that each student has a separate order if you have multiple children. All ordering and payment is handled through Network Photography.

Get started now by clicking this link: Order Yearbook.

Order today—before it's too late!

Student Headphones

As part of the school supply list, it was requested that students bring in a pair of headphones. With upcoming assessments in January, it is crucial that every student has a pair of headphones to use during these tests.

Please take a moment to ask your students if they still have their headphones from the beginning of the year and if they do not, send in a new pair. The headphones must have a cord with a 3.5mm jack. Bluetooth headphones cannot be used. We recommend over-ear headphones rather than earbuds.

Students can reuse these headphones each year, so they are a great long-term investment! 

Here are some examples of suitable headphones:

• Nilogie A21 Wired Headphones from Amazon
• Kids Wired Headphones from Amazon
• POWMEE M1 Wired Headphones from Amazon
• Jimonyer Wired Headphones for School from Amazon.
• JBuddies Studio Wired Kids Headphones from Target
• JBuddies Pop Wired Headphones from Walmart.

Thank you for your attention to this!

Reminder: Dressing for the Weather - Outdoor Recess Requirements 🧤❄️

Please help our students remember to come to school appropriate clothing for outdoor recess. Students go outside for two recesses during the day and one before school, unless it is raining, storming, or the temperature drops below 10 degrees.

Here are the guidelines for outdoor attire based on the temperature:

• Below 50 degrees: A coat is required.
• Between 50-60 degrees: Long sleeves are needed.
• 61 degrees and above: Students may choose what they wear (shorts are allowed).

Please ensure your child has weather-appropriate items like coats, hats, mittens, snow boots and snow pants. While we do have some extra coats and hats available to borrow, these may not always be on hand, so it's best to come prepared. 

Jefferson PTOOur next meeting is on January 6th at 5:30 PM in the media center. See this link for Monday's agenda. Stay up to date on upcoming PTO events on their Facebook page here.

The PTO plays a vital role in supporting our students through various events and activities, including field trips, Opera for the Young, and school events. We’d love to see you there and share how you can help make a difference!

Field Trips

Your student's "Walking Field Trip" form is now available to be signed in the School Store in Infinite Campus. 

The permission slip will be completed on your parent portal under school store. If you don't have access to your parent portal, please reach out to the office directly. The walking field trip form is needed so that we can complete our ALICE training to our evacuation site, 5th Grade Field Trip to South Park Middle School, all school field trip to South Park, etc. 

Please have this permission field trip signed no later than 

Instructions : Field Trip Sign-Up

A Note from the Office:

Attendance:

All reports of a student absence must go through the office. If your child(ren) are sick multiple days, please let us know each day they are absent.   All communication regarding your student's attendance (appointments, late arrival, early departure, etc.) must go to the office. You can copy in your child's teacher in the email or the office will then pass this information on to the classroom teacher.  Our school secretary's email is: katie.ascher@oshkosh.k12.wi.us and the school phone number is 920.424.0165. Thank you for your help with this important communication.

Free Meals for All Jefferson Students:

Jefferson Elementary is qualified as a Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) school. What does that mean? Every student at Jefferson can receive a free breakfast and a free lunch each school day, regardless of your family's free/reduced application status! 

For families who qualify, or think they may qualify, we encourage you to still complete the application! Snack milk (served in the classroom) is not part of the CEP program, so if you don't have an approved application on file, your child's snack milk will still be charged. You can apply in the Parent Portal, or contact the office for a paper copy! 

Complete the 2024-2025 Application Online!

• Log into the parent portal to complete the application.
• Instructions on how to fill out the application-English   Spanish   Hmong
• Frequently Asked Questions-English   Spanish    Hmong

Please note that milk taken with cold lunch is charged for all students, regardless of their family's free/reduced status. 

After School Dismissal and Parking:

Please avoid crowding the concrete area right next to door 1, as this can create congestion and make it difficult for all students to exit safely. To ensure a smooth and safe dismissal process for all students, we kindly ask that you wait on the blacktop area for your child after school. Teachers will confirm with your student once they see you and will dismiss them to you directly from there. Your cooperation in this matter is greatly appreciated and helps us maintain a safe environment for everyone.

This is a general reminder about our parking zones around Jefferson Elementary to ensure a safe and streamlined drop-off and pick-up process for all students. Attached is a map outlining the designated parking areas.

• Green Area: You may park in these zones and leave your vehicle to drop off or pick up your student.
• Blue Area: Please refrain from parking here. This area is reserved exclusively for bus loading.
• Yellow Area: This zone is designated for loading only. It should be used briefly for dropping off students. To keep the process efficient, please do not park and wait in this area.

For students who bike to school, a bicycle rack is available. Please make sure your child has a lock to keep their bicycle secure.

Upcoming Jefferson Events

January

• 1/6 - PTO Meeting 5:30 in Media Center
• 1/17 - End of Semester 1
• 1/20 - No School | Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• 1/21 - No School | Professional Development Day
• 1/31 - Jefferson Interest Hour Celebration Event

February

• 2/1 - 2-28 - Black History Month
• 2/3 - PTO Meeting 5:30 in Media Center
• 2/5 - World Read Aloud Day Celebrations
• 2/7 - No School | Professional Development Day
• 2/18 - As Needed Parent Teacher Conferences
• 2/19 - Recess with Relatives

Volunteer Reminders

As a reminder, if you are interested in volunteering by helping in your child's classroom or chaperoning a field trip, you must have a pre-approved volunteer application on file before the volunteering event. Applications are good for 3 years, and are effective for all OASD schools. You can find the application HERE.

Important!: Once you have completed your application, let the office know so that we can request that the application be processed; this does not happen automatically, and can take up to 48 hours, so please plan accordingly! 

Important Information

2024-2025 Jefferson Family Handbook

Pre-Planned Absence Form

2024-2025 Jefferson School Supply List

2024-2025 OASD School Calendar