What You Need to Know Now!
You can access the district’s calendar HERE.
School begins at 9:00 AM and dismissal will be at 3:20 PM for students in kindergarten and 3:30 PM for students in grades 1st – 5th.
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· Please be advised that the playground/bench area is off limits until further notice.
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Free Public Benefits Navigation for SDP Families –
Including Health Insurance Support
I’m excited to announce that the Office of Student Health Services established a partnership with Benephilly, a City of Philadelphia program, to provide free one-on-one help to enroll SDP families in public benefits, such as health insurance. The purpose of this partnership is to connect SDP families to needed community resources that benefit students’ health and educational outcomes.
A Benephilly navigator (Stacie Brown) is located at the School District of Philadelphia (440 N. Broad St.) every Wednesdays 9a-3p to help SDP families apply for public benefits. SDP families can register here to make an appointment. Parents/Caregivers who make an appointment should check-in at the F.A.C.E. Office Welcome Center at 440 N. Broad St. The navigator helps families with health insurance, prescription medication cost, groceries, property taxes, college cost, heat and other utilities. This service is open to ALL SDP families regardless of documentation status, immigration status, language spoken or citizenship. ALL families should be encouraged to make an appointment if they have a need. Translation services are available.
SDP’s Health Insurance Resource Webpage.
Flyers are available in all 9 District languages.
The Office of Student Health Services is grateful for the support and collaboration of the F.A.C.E. Team in making this program a reality for our families!
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· All students are required to wear a school uniform:
o Khaki uniform pants, skirts or jumpers.
o Navy Blue or White collared uniform shirts.
o No hoodies may be worn in the school building. Students may wear a Navy Blue or White sweater over their uniform shirts during cold weather.
o Red t-shirts and gray sweatpants are worn on days your child has gym.
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School-wide Information:
School officially begins at 9:00 a.m. The gates will open at 9:00 a.m. to begin admission and students will have until 9:10 to get to their classroom. Your child will be marked late if they arrive after that time. Breakfast will be provided to all students as they enter and will be eaten in class.
Dismissal will begin at 3:20 p.m. for kindergarten and special education programs. Grades 1 through 5 will be dismissed at 3:30 p.m. daily.
All students will be dismissed from the doors that they enter from. Please be sure that all pick up information is current by advising teachers and the Main Office of any changes.
Please ensure that all child care agencies are fully aware of dismissal times, procedures and expectations.
All students should be picked up promptly by 3:30 PM. We do not have staff/programs to supervise students who are picked up late. Students that have not been picked up on-time will be brought back into the building and must be picked up at the front door as the “C” door will be closing promptly. Any family that does not adhere to the pick up time will be required to meet with the principal to discuss further actions.
Academics:
The goal is to ensure that every child is challenged and experiences academic success. This cannot be done by the teacher alone; parents also play a significant role in reaching this goal.
Behavior:
All children are expected to act in a manner that will ensure safety and with consideration for the feelings of others. Students are expected to follow the School District of Philadelphia Code of Conduct (philasd.org) and the Lawton School PBIS Norms. Please ensure that you speak with your child about appropriate school behaviors and expectations continuously so that they are prepared to begin school.
Code of Conduct 2022-2023
Attendance:
Daily attendance directly impacts your child’s success. The District’s and Lawton’s goal is to strive for 95% for our average daily attendance. In alignment with the School District of Philadelphia Policy, all absence notes need to be submitted within 3 days of the student returning to school. Coming to school every day is extremely important for all students. As a reminder, students in Philadelphia are expected to be in school for a minimum of 95% of the time. That means that your child cannot miss more than 8 days of school per school year. Both excessive absences and latenesses can result in a truancy/DHS referral. Please ensure that your child is here every day at 9:00 AM.
Attendance Expectations
The 2023-2024 UNIFORM Policy will function as follows:
No hoodies may be worn in the school building.
Uniforms:
Khaki uniform pants, skirts or jumpers and a navy blue or white collared uniform shirt. Navy blue or white sweaters can be worn over the uniform shirt during cold weather.
Red t-shirts and gray sweatpants are worn on days that your child has gym.
Important websites:
www.philasd.org
Lawton Elementary School Website
Have a safe and relaxing summer break! Enjoy
Sincerely,
Arnetta Imes, Principal
Erin Snee, Assistant Principal
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Health Insurance & Resource Benefits for Students and Parents/Guardians
The Office of Student Health Services is hosting a Health Insurance & Resource Benefits Forum for Students and Parents/Guardians, November 9 5-6 pm. The Forum is virtual and parents can register @ bit.ly/sdphealthforum. Translation will be available and all families, regardless of citizenship status are invited to come and learn about how to sign up for health insurance, the claiming the Child Tax Credit and other free health resources.
Translated flyers in all 10 SDP languages can be found here
Information on Parent/Guardian Engagement Grants can be found here.
Title 1 Parent Information
The 2022-2023 Lawton School Plan is now available for public review. Please provide any feedback here.
If you need to contact your child’s teacher, please send them a message via Class DoJo, Google Classroom, email, or phone call.
Steppers for logging in can be found here and will be provided with chromebooks.
News from Ms. Bender, Lawton School Counselor
Ms Bender’s virtual office hours will be from Monday-Friday between 10 am to 1:00 pm.
She can be reached via email at nbender@philasd.org or by phone at 267-961-3250.
You can also use this form to send her a message.
As a reminder, the Philly HopeLine is available M-F from noon to 9 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. to provide counseling services for students, parents and guardians who may need additional support during these difficult times. Phone or text 1-833-PHL-HOPE (1-833-745-4673).