Principal Wheeler’s Weekly Update

Hello Viewlands Families!

May is Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage month. AAPI Heritage month recognizes and acknowledges the history, culture and contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islander individuals and communities.

We started the day listening to Poly Pride by Norm, a song celebrating the Polynesian community, during our Friday morning announcements.  This song was recommended by one of our 5th graders.

Tomorrow, Saturday May 6, a celebration is planned at the Seattle Center in the Armory Food and Event Hall from 11am-5pm. A schedule for the event

Some families have reached out about plans already scheduled the end of June that would require their child to miss school. There have been questions about the last week of school. As a school community we will have some end of year activities and exploratory learning opportunities planned, but no critical learning activities and assessments. 5th grade promotion will be that last Wednesday, June 28. Aside from the 5th grade promotion, if your family has important family events or other activities planned given the change in the school year dates, we completely understand. Please communicate with the office team and your child’s teacher so we are aware and can make sure your child takes home anything important from school. We understand the need for flexibility and that there are other family events already planned. 

P.E. Biking Program for 3rd-5th Grade

Our 3rd, 4th and 5th graders will be participating in a biking unit during their P.E. classes Tuesday, May 9 through Tuesday, May 30. This is a partnership between Seattle Public Schools, Cascade Bicycle Club, and Seattle Department of Transportation. The bikes are provided for use during this unit by Cascade Bicycle Club! Next year when we do the bike unit, we will have a traffic garden painted on the playground! Coach Lauren is excited to continue to teach bike safety and bike riding at Viewlands.

We will need volunteers to support during P.E. classes with our 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. You must be an approved volunteer to support this activity. If you are an approved volunteer and willing to support during one or more of our classes, we would greatly appreciate the support. You can sign up on this link. You can sign up to support the class with your child, but we also invite anyone interested and available that is an approved volunteer to sign up to support other classes. We would love to have volunteers to make this as successful and supported as possible.

Sign up to volunteer

 If you have any questions, you can reach out to Coach Lauren at lmbangasser@seattleschools.org

VEPTSA Updates

Viewlands Staff Appreciation Week – the Week of May 8

Every year, VEPTSA and all our families come together to help celebrate our Viewlands staff. I am grateful for this partnership to help our educators feel loved and valued.

Message from VEPTSA:

Viewlands Staff Rocks! Help celebrate our amazing staff with a fun week. Staff Appreciation Week is May 8-12. See our calendar of events, and how you can be part of the fun.

• See all the activities planned
• Sign-up to Contribute an Item to the Bagel Bar and Sweet and Savory Bar
• If you can donate a small gift item for the raffle, please email family volunteer, Funda at: fundapn@gmail.com

Save the Date: Viewlands Evening of the Arts Open House

Please save the date for our evening of the arts open house. This will be a time for families to walk through displayed art from students and meet and greet our ARTSWA muralist that will be painting a mural in the new building.

Wednesday, May 31 from 5-7 p.m.

This is a family event. The event is open house style, meaning you drop in and visit anytime. We estimate families will want to be here 30-45 minutes to view the art and participate in the event. Students must attend with and be supervised by families. Please plan to arrive no later than 6:30, as we will need to end the event at 7pm.

We will need some family volunteers to help at this event. Our VEPTSA partners will be helping us coordinate this event. More information about volunteers coming soon.

Save the Date: Viewlands Field Day

Please save the date for our Viewlands Field Day. We will need a lot of parent/family volunteers at field day. This is a fun event of outdoor activities for all students. Like last year we will have a K-2 and a 3-5 time in the morning for field day. We need a lot of family volunteers to make field day successful. Please save the date if you can volunteer at this event. Field day will be Friday, June 23.

Important School Calendar Dates

• Monday May 15 – Friday June 9 – Spring End of Year District and State Assessments
• Monday, May 29 – No School, Memorial Day holiday
• Monday, June 19 – No School, Juneteenth
• Friday, June 30 – Last day of school, 1 hour early dismissal, 1:25

There are always highlights when listening and learning with and from our students. This week I enjoyed reading with 1st and 2nd graders; hearing 3rd graders explain the rules of different games and create persuasive arguments for how the games support inclusion and community; celebrating School Lunch Hero Day today as students brought cards to Ms. Alishni in the lunchroom; and talking about AAPI heritage month with a few students. Your children are bright, inquisitive, and creative thinkers. 

In Partnership,

Carrie Wheeler
Viewlands Principal