New Biliteracy Strategy

At PSI, we are starting our 28th year of Spanish immersion education! As a school, we continue to evaluate, reflect, and make changes based on best practices. During the past year, we have been working with Dr. Amy Young, Multilingual Learners Educational Specialist from the Minnesota Department of Education, to look at our practices for teaching both English and Spanish at school to each of our learners. Based on research and aligned with many other language immersion schools, we are making some changes to our program to support each and every learner’s biliteracy journey. 

At PSI, for about the past twenty years, we have been introducing English Language Arts class formally at second grade (reading, writing, speaking, and listening). We will continue to do this, and we are implementing some additional strategies to support language acquisition and cross-linguistic transfer between English and Spanish. 

One new strategy that we are implementing this year is teaching English phonics in first grade via “mini-lessons” for 45 minutes per week (3 classes of 15 minutes) to intentionally bridge what students know about sound spelling correspondence from Spanish to English. This will bridge the metalinguistic awareness around what sounds and spelling are transferable or not transferable between the languages. These lessons will not replace the foundational skills instruction in Spanish; however, they will highlight, reinforce, and support the development of both languages. Sra. Harris and Sra. Wieber will partner with our first grade classroom teachers during these lessons and help make connections between English and Spanish. We will share more information with our first grade families shortly.

We are excited to implement this new strategy, and like all of our programs, we will continue to evaluate and make changes to best support our learners.

September is Attendance Awareness Month!

Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school—and themselves. This Report to Parents offers school families strategies they can use to help their kids build a habit of good attendance.

Picture Day is Coming!

Mark your calendar for Lifetouch picture day (September 20) and retakes day (October 26). You may PRE-ORDER online by clicking here. Watch for reminder forms coming home in your child's backpack.

Please note, all students are photographed and families are provided , so all students are in the class composite photo and yearbook. Please note, yearbooks are ordered in the Spring, and will be distributed the last weeks of school.

Label Everything!

Every year we collect and donate mountains of unclaimed Lost & Found items.

Please take time now to LABEL EVERYTHING... your child's clothing items, water bottles, shoes, boots, etc. etc. Inexpensive labels can be purchased at minimal cost. HERE is one example.

K-5 A-E Specialist Calendar

In our SLP elementary schools, our specialist classes rotate on an A, B, C, D, E day schedule. We do this so that students do not consistently miss classes on a particular calendar week day. Please see the September rotation schedule.

Pick-Up and Drop-Off - Kiss & Ride

Thanks to everyone for their patience as we are implementing our routines to ensure safety for all. 

Please see here for reminders about our procedures. For student safety, please only drop off in the morning at door 3; please do NOT drop off at the main entrance (door 1).  Due to buses, walkers, and bike riders, we need everyone to drop off in the line and not in front of the office. Please remember to pull all the way forward in line, and use the proper turn lanes when exiting. Note that there is only one entrance lane and two exit lanes.

Prevent Sickness this Fall

We want to remind staff and families about the importance of self-care while the flu and covid are present. Help keep our school communities healthy!

• Stay home when sick
• Wash your hands often and use hand sanitizer
• Cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze

St. Louis Park Public Schools follows the guidance from the Minnesota Department of Health for when people should stay home. 

COVID-19: Students/staff testing positive for COVID-19 should stay home a full 5 days and return to school on day 6 if their symptoms have improved & they have been fever free for 24 hours without taking fever-reducing medication. They should wear a mask through day 10.

Influenza-like-illness: Students/staff with symptoms of influenza should stay home until their fever is gone for 24 hours without taking fever-reducing medication. They should also be feeling well enough to participate in school before returning

Shout Out Loud Wellness Fair

We invite St. Louis Park Public School families to join us on Saturday, Sept 30 for a family-friendly event at the Rec Center--ROC in St Louis Park promoting mental health and wellness in our community. This event will run from 11am - 3 pm and is free for all. Watch great entertainment and interact with community organizations. Be sure to stop by the St. Louis Park Public Schools booth highlighting the unique role schools play in promoting mental health and social-emotional wellness. Visit https://shoutoutloudmn.com/ for more information.

2nd Annual PTO Kickoff and Family Picnic

We hope to see you at the 2nd annual PSI Family Picnic on September 26th from 5-7pm at Oak Hill Park. The PTO does not have regularly scheduled meetings. We typically meet once at the beginning of the year to kick things off. Then teams form to work on specific projects (for example: conference meals, read-a-thon fundraiser, spiritwear, book fair, silent auction fundraiser, spring carnival). So come for some fun, meet the new amity interns, and stop by the volunteer table to learn more about how you can get involved!

Friends of the Arts (FoTA)

The Susan Schneck Arts for Life Scholarship Fund

APPLY ONLINE

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EN ESPAÑOL

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

The Arts for Life Scholarship program is rooted in our belief that creativity is inherent in all people and the arts should be affordable and accessible. We know that when you invest in creativity, the community reaps the rewards.

Scholarships are awarded quarterly to St. Louis Park residents with financial need to enrich their lives through a creative experience. Funding is available for private music lessons, art class enrollment fees and materials, and other arts activities that develop creativity.



Read the full program guidelines here.