Get them here before they sell out (yes, they do sell out)! Each ticket comes with dinner, one set of bingo cards, a drink ticket (alcoholic or non) and free babysitting at Westside Village. But… you’re gonna want to get some extra stuff, because…
Can we take a moment to look at what amazing things you can win at VRB this year??
If you love these places as much as we do, you’ll want to make sure you get your RAFFLE TICKETS, BEADS, and BINGO CARDS! Don’t miss out! There’s also the GOLDEN TICKET that wins cold, hard, cash (only 100 will be sold)!
These extra items will be sold at the event (we recommend bringing cash!) but if you want to skip the lines, buy them online or purchase one of our bundles!
4th – 8th grade families: We are headed to the Oregon Coast May 27 – 29!
Coast Trip information/permission slip packets and VRB credit vouchers came home this week. The cost is $225 this year. Those that worked VRB should deduct their credit amount from $225 to get the total owed. Pay with cash, check or card in the office or use the Friends of Westside PayPal link.
Feel free to call the office if you have questions or if you need a scholarship. Find all of the forms linked below, as well as a Chaperone Interest Form for those of you interested in joining us! Three forms should be signed and returned: permission slip, medication letter (allows us to give emergency treatment and any over-the-counter medications that you approve) and the kayaking release form.
Medication Drop Off: Medication drop off will be in the office Thursday, the 22nd, Friday, the 23rd and Monday, the 26th (yes, Memorial Day 9am-12pm). PLEASE DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE DAY THAT WE LEAVE! You will need one medication form per medication. Please do not send vitamins, melatonin, or other supplements that are not absolutely necessary. Please do not send medication with your student. We will have over the counter medication available if needed.
Vote for Westside Alum as Athlete of the Week
Westside families, consider voting for a former Westside student (and Ms. Leah’s oldest son) as Bend Bulletin’s Athlete of the Week:
Justin Parsons, Caldera Track: At the Twilight Over Caldera track meet on May 9, Parsons had the longest 5A leap in the long jump this season when the sophomore jumped 23 feet, 4.5 inches.
Join us for some pizza on May 21st and support Friends of Westside Village! We are having a MOD Pizza Fundraiser at the 110 NW Sisemore St location. 25% of ALL DAY sales will be donated back to Friends of Westside Village (you must show flyer or tell them you’re with Friends of Westside Village)! Tell your friends, family and neighbors to mark their calendars for pizza on Wednesday, May 21st!
Meet The Author
Rosanne Parry, author of A Wolf Called Wander, will be visiting Westside Village on May 23rd! Books can be pre-ordered to be signed and delivered to school!
8th Grade Celebration, June 9
8th grade families, mark your calendars- it’s time to celebrate these wonderful students heading off to high school! Monday, June 9th from 5:00 to 6:30, we invite you to join us for dinner and a celebration. Please RSVP to the office with the number attending for your student by Monday, June 2nd.
5th Grade Move Up & Welcome Adventure for New WVMS Elders, June 9
We will take our soon-to-be 6th graders and invite our new incoming middle school students to join us at Hollinshead Barn for a getting to know you day of fun and community building. We are excited to celebrate this group of students becoming Elders and welcome some new Elders too! Permission slips to come.
FREE Books and Lost and Found
We have a rack of FREE books out front. Please take any books that your family would enjoy!
Also out front is the ever-growing Lost and Found. Weather permitting, the lost and found will remain outside until the end of the year. Come by any time and take a look! We will be donating any items not claimed by June 12th.
Incredible Opportunities for Next Year
We are so excited for some upcoming Changes to the 2025-26 School Year!
Thank you to the families that filled out our Youth Truth Survey. It gave us some ideas to start our work towards school improvements!
We have been assigned a School District Counselor. This is exciting news for our team. We will have some extra support to provide direct and indirect services to students, families, and staff to support their academic, social, and emotional well-being. This will help our Westside Village Community navigate challenges.
Elders (middle school students) have some exciting opportunities next year! We are thrilled to partner with Caldera’s Youth Program which connects middle school students to mentors to “explore creativity, nature-immersed experiences, intensive community based experiences with guidance on how to harness their creativity.” Mentors will meet once a week starting in October. They will have the opportunity to go to camp on Blue Lake in Sisters. There they will experience “awe and wonder, applied creativity, dependability, safety, failure and resilience, self-reflection, intercultural connection,” and so much fun! You can find out more at caldera.org
More opportunities include:
More Adventure and Environmental Science
Service Learning and Leadership Opportunities
More Technology and Coding
Higher Level Spanish Classes
Continue High Quality Music Classes
News From Friends
Session 6 Extended Care & Clubs started Monday, May 5
It’s time to sign up for Session 6 Extended Care & Clubs, which began Monday, May 5!
Students that are not enrolled in Before Care should not arrive at school before 8:25am. Need to drop off before 8:25? Visit www.friendsofwestside.com to enroll! Thanks for your cooperation.
Hello Westside Village Families! Here are a few things to look out for this week:
Important Dates:
Nov 6 Village Council Meeting, 8:15 Nov 11 NO SCHOOL – Veterans Day Holiday Nov 14 Picture Retake Day Nov 21 Thanksgiving Luncheon & Open House w/Performances 12pm-2pm Nov 25-29 NO SCHOOL, Thanksgiving Break Dec 6 End of Second Six Weeks Dec 7 Winter Bazaar
Help us turn post-election materials into something new and useful! We’re inviting the community to bring their yard signs—both the sign itself and the metal stakes—to the school office for up-cycling. Your recycled signs will support creative projects here at school, turning campaign leftovers into unique, sustainable resources for our students. Thank you for helping us keep our community green!
The Harvest Party Was Great!
We had a fabulous harvest party! Thank you for everyone that volunteered to help make the day go smoothly. The kids had fun on their costume fun run, baked some delicious treats and created some festive crafts.
Join Us for Our Winter Bazaar on December 7!
Get ready for an exciting day as our school community comes together to host the Winter Bazaar! This event offers a unique opportunity for students to flex their entrepreneurial skills by setting up tables to showcase their projects, crafts, or items for sale. Students can either purchase their own tables or choose to work with classmates on a school project, allowing them to collaborate, create, and contribute. Preparations are in full swing, with dedicated time at school and the option to work on projects at home.
In addition to student tables, we welcome community vendors! If you’re interested in reserving a spot to share your products with our vibrant community, you can book a vendor table. For all details and to reserve a table, visit friendsofwestside.com/events.
Every student will also be working on a business plan, offering a chance to gain hands-on experience in planning, organizing, and executing a project from start to finish.
Mark your calendar for December 7, and come support our young entrepreneurs and community vendors. We can’t wait to see you there!
In Case You Missed It
Student Checklist We recently shared our student checklist with families. This tool helps track student progress and participation in academic and extracurricular activities. We encourage families to review the checklist with their students regularly to support their goals and growth. Check out the link above for some strategies to better understand your students’ progress.
Family/Student/Staff Agreement Our Family/Student/Staff Agreement outlines the shared responsibilities and expectations for everyone in our community. This agreement plays a crucial role in fostering a collaborative and supportive environment for all. We invite families to sign this pageand return to it to the office if you haven’t done so already.
Restorative Practices & Collaborative Problem Solving As part of our approach to building a strong, inclusive community, we continue to use restorative practices and collaborative problem-solving techniques. These strategies help resolve conflicts constructively, allowing students to learn from experiences and repair any harm done.
NO SCHOOL Days in October, November
Nov 11: NO SCHOOL in observation of the Veterans’ Day holiday. We would like to give our thanks to those that have and continue to serve our country. Thank you!
Nov 25-29: NO SCHOOL for Thanksgiving break. We hope you are able to enjoy some time with your loved ones, rest, and get outside in nature.
Many of our students enjoy riding their bikes to school and bringing scooters to ride during safe play. We allow this, but we must ask that families send locks for the bikes and scooters and have them locked to the bike rack outside the main office. We are no longer able to store bikes or scooters in the building. Thanks for your understanding.
Oregon Health Plan Open Enrollment (November)
News From Friends
Blue Bags
Did you know that you can help support Friends of Westside Village just by collecting your refundable bottles and cans? Get a blue bag from the office and start today!
School Improvement Early Release Wednesdays allows time for teachers and staff for collaboration and educational growth. When teachers have the chance to discuss effective teaching methods, cooperatively design teaching materials and coach one another, our schools make significant improvements.
Providing consistent school improvement time is advantageous for students as it results in fewer interruptions of the school year.
Early Release Wednesdays for 2024-25 begins September 11, 2024 and ends on June 4, 2025. Early Release Time at WVMS: 2:05pm
The Village Council develops and leads the work, follows articles of organization (bi-laws,) and makes decisions based on budget, finances, and input from our families and community members. Our open meetings are once a month during the school year. We highly encourage our families to attend. Please check the WVMS online calendar for Village Council Meeting Dates.
Friends of Westside Village is our nonprofit organization that supports and guides our school improvement. It is a group of parents, guardians, community members and staff that works together to develop and monitor our school improvement plan. This includes finances, curriculum, programs, and events. The Village Council is made up of Friends Volunteer Board Members and elected families, students, and school staff (traditionally known as Site Council.)
Friends of Westside Village also develops, directs and supplements our Extended Care Programs, Clubs, Adventures, Artists in Residence, and other enhancement academic and social activities.
We are excited to announce the winner of our Pre-VRB Raffle, 4 Lift Tickets to Hoodoo!
Congratulations!! (For those of you that don’t know, that’s Noey in the middle!)
Make sure to mark your calendars for Village Rhythm & Bingo, Thursday, April 25th! We will have LOTS more raffles like this, dinner, drinks, games, and BINGO!
Students from Bend Tech Academy came to our school today to promote their 3 v 3 Basketball Tournament for Middle Schoolers, BTA Madness. The event is Saturday, March 16th and registration is open until February 14th. Check it out!
Get ready to join the festivities at the Winter Bazaar Saturday, Dec 2
Students are excited about working at the bazaar, selling their own goods and/or helping our school with community projects. All students are learning how to develop a business plan in math. This requires a lot of higher level thinking and skill application.
Many students will be bringing home permission slips to either sell their own product or help sell school concessions and products. If your child does not bring home a slip, encourage them to participate. Also, all students will have an opportunity to participate in getting ready for the bazaar.
If students are working on their own product, Thanksgiving break is a great time to encourage your students to work on their projects.
We need parent volunteers!
This event takes a lot of coordination to get off the ground and we would love some help from our generous community on Friday afternoon before the event and throughout the day on Saturday, December 2. Scan the code to check out what we need most help with. As always, you can also reach out to Ms. Alice directly at 415-516-5074.
