The Cypress Village Forecast (8/21/2023)

forecast

Monday, 8/21/2023
Front Office Hours:  9:00am - 1:00pm
No School

Tuesday, 8/22/2023
Front Office Hours:  9:00am - 1:00pm
No School

Wednesday, 8/23/2023
Front Office Hours:  9:00am - 1:00pm
Teacher Assignments Available On Parent Portal After 3:00PM
No School

Thursday, 8/24/2023
Front Office Hours:  7:30am - 3:30pm
First Day of School
Minimum Day (1:20 Dismissal)
PTA Welcome: 8:00am (front of school)

Friday, 8/25/2023
Front Office Hours:  7:30am - 3:30pm
School Spirit Day


CLICK HERE for 2023-2024 school calendar.
CLICK HERE for our events page.
CLICK HERE for 2023-2024 bell schedule.
CLICK HERE for our News Center.

Line Up Map
CLICK HERE for our line up map. In the morning, adults are allowed on campus to accompany their child to their classroom line up location. We will not be utilizing the playground prior to school starting. Please communicate with your child the expectation that there is no playing before school. Students are expected to line up at their assigned location. All classes will line up at their classroom door, unless their room number is at another specified location on the map. At the end of the day, all students will be dismissed from their classroom doors. 

Drop-off and Dismissal
We encourage families to walk to school when possible and utilize the street parking around the school. We are lucky to have many entrance points on our campus. As we did last year, students will be dismissed from their classroom door. Please park in an area that is closest to your child’s classroom. You do not need to drop-off or pick up your child from the front parking lots. In fact, we encourage you to find an area around the school that works for you and your child since the parking lots can become congested during arrival and dismissal. We have opened both parking lots for student drop-off and pick-up. For drop-off and walk-to-school procedures, CLICK HERE.

Morning Arrival:
Please remember that parents and students are only allowed on campus 15 minutes before your child starts school.

  • Upper Grade- 8:00am start time
  • Primary- 8:15am start time 

Afternoon Dismissal:
In the afternoon, parents are allowed on campus only at the time of dismissal. Students are learning all the way up to dismissal time, so seeing parents standing near the classroom door or peering into the classroom windows can be distracting. We appreciate you waiting until dismissal to walk to the classroom. Our front courtyard is a wonderful place to wait until students are dismissed.

  • Primary-2:15pm
  • Upper Grade- 2:37pm
  • Minimum Day-1:20pm

With primary dismissal, please make sure that you are not staying on campus. Our upper graders are still in session and will be using our outdoor learning and physical education areas. You are welcome to visit any one of our beautiful nearby city parks in the meantime. CLICK HERE to view a map of where to stand while you are waiting to pick up your student. The nearby parks are circled in blue and our campus boundary lines are in pink. 

Lastly, as a reminder, dogs are not allowed on campus. We love our furry friends and you are welcome to wait with your pet outside of our school boundaries.

Student Safety
Around any elementary school, there are a few challenges present. Of greatest concern is the automobile traffic around the school and the related congestion at arrival and dismissal times. For this reason, in collaboration with the Irvine Police Department and the City of Irvine, precise procedures have been created and exist for dropping students off, picking them up, and parking. Please read our Parent Handbook, available on our website, for more information. Your cooperation and flexibility are requested with these established guidelines. 

Walk and Roll Challenge
Cypress Village’s Walk and Roll Challenge is back for the 2023-2024 school year! This will be a year long program where each month, the classroom with the highest percentage of walkers (and rollers) will earn a party with Mrs. Lambert, Mr. Forster and Mrs. Rath. What does it mean to “roll?” Rolling to school means riding on a bike, scooter, or skateboard.

One winner will be determined from the kindergarten classes, the primary classes, and the upper grade classes. Live farther away? No problem. Have your family drop you off at one of the two adjacent parks and walk to school with a buddy. We also encourage families to park at one of the adjacent parks and walk to school with their child(ren). It is a great way to wake up your body and start the day fresh and alert! It also helps with morning and afternoon traffic around the school. This program starts the first day of school, with our first winners being announced at the end of August. We look forward to seeing all our walkers and rollers out there! 

If you plan to “roll” to school, may we suggest reviewing IUSD’s article on Bicycle and Helmet Safety. If riding a scooter or bike, students TK - 2nd must be accompanied by an adult for the entire route (to and from school). And please remember that by law, motorized scooters and segways are not allowed to be operated by children under the age of 16. CLICK HERE to learn more.

Meet Our Crossing Guards!
We love our crossing guards and we are so excited to have them return each year! They are a huge part of our Cypress Village family. Welcome back Mr. John Leonard, Ms. Jean Polachowski, Ms. Ruth Bruno, Ms. Kathleen DeKarver, and Ms. Roxanne Glazer. We appreciate you!

Supply Lists
CLICK HERE to view grade level supply lists and to access voluntary monetary donation links on SchoolBucks. Links are listed within each grade level list. Cypress Village Elementary School will provide all of the necessary supplies for your child to have a quality educational experience. You may, however, choose to assist the school by purchasing supplies for your student. The supplies on the grade level supply lists are not required but are optional, or additional supplies you may wish to include for your child. Each list includes a link for a voluntary monetary donation. These donations help us offset the cost of the items listed at the bottom of the list. We greatly appreciate your support!

All students will need a backpack (no wheels in kindergarten) and a lunchbox if they are bringing lunch/snack to school. We encourage you to pack food items in tightly sealed containers to avoid any issues. Thank you to our Cypress Village community for generously supporting our school program and assisting our students and teachers. 

Teacher Assignments
Class assignments will be available on-line at www.iusd.org through the parent portal beginning at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 23rd. Please be advised that class lists will not be posted at school. If you need assistance accessing the parent portal, please contact our school office. You may also contact helpdesk@iusd.org. Students who are currently registered have been assigned to a classroom. As you know, the number of students assigned to a classroom is limited. Students were assigned to classes with great care based on a number of criteria; balance between boys and girls, equal number of students in each class, academic balance, individual student needs, and enrollment in specialized school programs. Please understand that priority is given to those criteria that protect the integrity of the classroom and ensure the best learning environment for all students.

Data Confirmation
You will receive notification by email requesting you to complete and update information online through our Data Confirmation process. Please CLICK HERE for instructions. It is imperative that this process be completed before school begins. As part of this process, you will be asked to read our Parent Handbook. The handbook covers a variety of pertinent guidelines and policies associated with our school and the district. Please read it carefully and review the information with your child. This information is also available on our school website. 

School Communication - Follow Us on Instagram and Facebook
Every Friday you will receive this email, which we call the “Cypress Village Forecast.” It is also recommended that you follow our Cypress Village Elementary’s Facebook and Instagram accounts. In order for us to effectively communicate with you, it is imperative that we have an accurate email address on file. Changes in your email may be made through the Parent Portal located at www.myiusd.org or by contacting the front office.

Safety Protocols
Your child’s safety is our top priority. We encourage you to read all IUSD Communications emailed to you in order to receive the most up to date information. The Irvine Unified website also provides the latest news regarding COVID-19, as well as many resources for families.

Please keep students home when sick.  If your student is confirmed positive for COVID-19, contact the school office. We will ask you to complete a short google form, which allows us to continue to monitor cases and provide our parent community with appropriate notifications and guidelines to follow. Thank you for your partnership and we look forward to a wonderful year.

Health Guidelines for School Attendance
Please take a moment to read through the Health Guidelines for School Attendance. It is essential that a parent calls the attendance line at 949-936-8901 to notify the school that their child is staying home due to illness. We appreciate your support in keeping our students and families healthy.

On-Campus Volunteers
As we begin the 2023-24 school year, we are excited to have our volunteers on campus. If you plan on volunteering and working with students, we do ask that you complete the volunteer application.                        

Nutrition Services Information
The Nutrition Services Department is excited to share that the State of California has committed to continue serving free meals to all students on campus this upcoming school year. This commitment continues the program initiated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which provided free meals to all students during the pandemic. Therefore, ALL students will receive free meals throughout the 2023-24 school year. 

Please note that Nutrition Services will continue to charge students full-price for an additional second meal or for a la carte items. Check your student’s school schedule for serving times. Breakfast is served during morning recess at elementary schools and during the first break at secondary schools. Breakfast is also served before school at high schools.    

Free and Reduced-Price Meal Applications
While meals are free for all students, families are still encouraged to complete a free or reduced-price meal application to ensure your students receive additional benefits to which they may be entitled. These applications benefit schools by providing increased funding through the Local Control Funding Formula, including funding for support staff, computers and other technology. If approved, these applications may also qualify families for discounted college application fees, discounted Advanced Placement (AP) test fees, discounted school events, and discounted utilities through gas, electricity, internet, or phone providers. The application for free or reduced-price meals is available online by visiting the Parent Portal at my.iusd.org and clicking on the orange Titan icon or at linqconnect.com. The fastest and easiest way to apply for meal benefits is through our online application. If you choose to complete a paper application, these are available in the Nutrition Services office (3387 Barranca Parkway, Irvine), your school’s office, and the District Office (5050 Barranca Parkway, Irvine). 

Operation School Bell Program 
Assistance League® of Irvine is starting our annual Operation School Bell Program, which provides new school clothes, shoes, and backpacks to income-qualified IUSD families. OSB will be done in a safe environment following COVID protocols. To learn more about this program and fill out the online, fillable OSB Application, CLICK HERE.
 

Child Care Inquiries
The City of Irvine provides resources and referrals for Irvine families looking for child care whether it’s for an elementary-age child, preschooler, infant, or toddler. In addition to the Rainbow Rising, we have here on-site at Cypress Village, the City of Irvine can provide information on many other resources including financial assistance for child care, transportation options for school-age children (to allow access to a greater number of after-school options), family child care providers, child care for younger siblings, etc.  For inquiries, please contact the City of Irvine Child Care Resource and Referral line at 949-724-6632. 


Community Mental Health Resources
CLICK HERE to visit our Community Mental Health page. CLICK HERE for Care Solace - Our Mental Health Concierge Services to Connect Families to Outside Resources.


PTA
Our new PTA board is so excited to welcome everyone back for a fantastic 2023-2024 school year! Come on out to our first event and meet the team. We encourage you to sign up and become a member. Every little bit supports your child and our school community. PTA Website: CLICK HERE

August 24th: First Day of School 
Our PTA will be out front welcoming families with coffee, snacks, and other beverages. We highly encourage each of our families to join the PTA.