Dear Garfield Families,
The Gecko Run is today at 1:00pm and we are so excited! Parent volunteers are invited to come mark laps as kids run. It is a great opportunity to see your kid in action and meet their classmates! If you would like to help out, please sign in at the school office at 12:45pm. We will have a PTA volunteer to direct you out to the field. Please make sure you have an up-to-date background check to volunteer in the school!
If you would like to view your child participate in the Gecko Run but do not have an up-to-date background check, you may sign in at the office as a visitor and a PTA volunteer will direct you to a special viewing area by the back fence for families to watch.
Conferences
Hopefully, you have had an opportunity to sign up for a conference with your child’s teachers. Conference sign-ups were posted on Monday afternoon. If you need help with signing up or haven’t seen this on Parentsquare, please contact the front office.
Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC)
We are pleased to confirm that free meals, including breakfast, will continue to be provided to all children.
Our goal this year was to maximize instructional minutes by relocating the Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) program to the cafeteria prior to the school day. Despite logistical adjustments, this shift resulted in a significant and unintended reduction in student breakfast participation.
Therefore, to ensure every student has the opportunity to eat, we are moving breakfast service back into the classrooms at the start of the school day.
Teachers will be diving into instruction first thing in the morning after attendance and lunch orders. So, it will be important for students to arrive on time. School starts at 8:00 a.m.
Arrival will change
We will be changing our arrival procedures back to what we had last year because it is no longer necessary for all students to come into the building through the cafeteria. Here are the details about arrival:
Beginning on Monday, October 20th:
Kinder and first grade students will come in through the Dixon Street gate. Drop off is at the gate. Staff will be there to support.
*This includes all bus riders (K-5)
2nd and 3rd grade students can be dropped off at the front of the building and enter through the main doors.
4th and 5th grade students will enter through the 4-5 gates and can be dropped off on the 11th street side of the school.
Supervision staff arrives at 7:45 a.m. so, please avoid dropping off before that time.
Traffic Safety
The following are reminders about the request that came from our traffic safety check from last year:
- Please drop off on the school side of the road (not across the street)
- This applies to both Dixon for K-1 and 11th Street for 4-5.
- Please drop off on the school side of the drop off lane out front for 2-3 students – pull up as far as you can to make room for more cars.
- Don’t allow your children to cross the road by the buses – walk them to the crosswalk on Garfield and Dixon and to the gate – they are little and hard to see by those big buses
- Use crosswalks: Including in the parking lot
Child Protection Lessons
Each year, our teachers and the counselor teach the required Erin’s law lessons which are designed to teach children about personal safety, boundaries, and how to recognize and report unsafe situations. The lessons will be age-appropriate and will be delivered in a thoughtful, sensitive manner to ensure that all students feel comfortable and supported throughout the process. We have attached a letter with more information about these lessons.
Upcoming Events:
10/16/25 Garfield Gecko Run 1:00 p.m.
10/17/25 October Assembly: 8:15 a.m. Please feel free to join us!
10/29/25 Extra early release day (12:30 p.m.)
10/30 & 10/31 Fall Parent/Teacher conferences (no school on these days)
2025-26-School-Year-Calendar-Elementary-EN.pdf
Please feel free to reach out with any questions.
Kind Regards,
Nancy Davila-Williams, Principal
