WESTMERE CELEBRATION OF LEARNING:

Westmere Celebration of Learning is this Thursday Night, November 20th from 6:30-8:00 P.M.  This is an informal evening for families to take a self-guided tour of the hallways and view learning displays from every grade level Kindergarten through Grade 5.  A list of display areas will be in the front lobby.

GRAND OPENING OF THE SCHOOL STORE:

The grand opening of the new school store at Westmere will be November 17th.  The name is Pawmart School Store.

The store will only be opened on Monday, Wednesday and Friday every other week from 8:05-8:25 A.M.

Monday-only open for shoppers in Grades 4-5 (store will be outside of Mr. Giagni's 5th grade class)

Wednesday-only open for shoppers in Grades K-1 (store will be outside of Mrs. O'Brien's 1st grade class)

Friday-only open for shoppers in Grades 2-3 (store will be outside of Mrs. Mosher's 3rd grade class)

Money is to be in an envelope marked "School Store" to try and avoid spending any lunch money.

Patience is appreciated as we get both shoppers and the Student Council Reps familiar with the new Pawmart routines.

Student Council Reps will work the store along with a Student Council Advisor. 

WESTMERE ELEMENTARY'S 5TH ANNUAL VENDOR/CRAFT FAIR:

The annual vendor/craft fair is this Friday, November 21st from 5:30-9:00.  There will be over 70 vendors.  You can also pick up your Westmere Gear and visit our Scholastic Book Fair!  Grab an affordable dinner-there will be soup by BFS, pizza, drinks and a bake sale.  Start your Holiday Shopping!!

School Banking:

School banking is back...Tuesday during the lunch period.

Important Dates:

November 26th, 27th and 28th-Thanksgiving Recess

Upcoming Events:

Scholastic/PTA Book Fair-November 17th through the 21st from 8 to 2:30.  Also on November 21st from 6-8:00 P.M.

Celebration of Learning is on November 20th from 6:30-8:00 P.M. to view displays of student learning Kindergarten through Grade 5.

The 5th Annual Vendor Fair will be held on Friday November 21st from 5:30 to 9:00.

Celebrating an exciting achievement...
Westmere Elementary School honored as a national Blue Ribbon School of Excellence

8 A school-wide Blue Ribbon Celebration was held on Thursday, October 30, 2008. To read more about the celebration, and to view the event photo gallery, please click here!

On Friday, September 12, 2008, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings named Westmere Elementary School a 2008 No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon School. The award distinguishes and honors schools for helping students achieve at very high levels and for making significant progress in closing the achievement gap. Westmere Elementary School is one of only 20 schools from throughout New York State—and one of 320 schools from across the country—to be recognized with this prestigious designation.

This is the second consecutive year that a Guilderland elementary school has been named a national school of excellence—Altamont Elementary School was recognized as part of last year’s Blue Ribbon Schools program.

The United States Department of Education established the Blue Ribbon Schools award to honor public and private elementary, middle and high schools that are either academically superior or that demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement to high levels. Schools are selected based on one of two criteria: 1) Schools with at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds that dramatically improve student performance to high levels on state tests; and 2) Schools whose students, regardless of background, achieve in the top 10 percent of their state on state tests or in the case of private schools in the top 10 percent of the nation on nationally-normed tests. Westmere was recognized for the latter distinction. Read more...

Visiting Author

Thanks to our generous and supportive PTA, distinguished author Mordicai Gerstein visited with Grades 1-5 on Friday afternoon, October 24th.  He is the Caldecott Award Winning writer and illustrator of The Man Who Walked Between the Towers.  In addition to having written over 30 children's books, he is a filmmaker, painter and sculptor.  He cast a magic spell on all of us as he drew illustrations on the overhead projector while we watched his characters come to life.  He told the story of of his picture book Carolinda Clatter with words and action drawings.  He talked about becoming a writer and learning how to take great care in choosing just the right words to tell a story.  He also modeled how long ago someone must have drawn the "first picture" on a cave wall - that illustration and the framed overhead projection transparencies are on display in the Picture Book section of our library.  Be sure to view Mordicai Gerstein's work on display!

Operation Recognition underway at Guilderland

Guilderland Central School District is proud to be a partner in Operation Recognition, a New York State program which grants a high school diploma to any veteran who left school prior to graduation to serve in the military during World War II, the Korean Conflict, or the Vietnam War. Individuals need not have attended GCSD at the time of service to be eligible for this program. Diplomas may also be awarded to next of kin, if eligibility is established.

Community members interested in participating in Operation Recognition are encouraged to contact Guilderland Superintendent of Schools John McGuire at 456-6200, ext. 3102, or visit our Operation Recognition home page for additional details and eligibility requirements.