🐴 Introducing Kennedy Colt Cash!

Beginning this month, students can earn Kennedy Colt Cash for positive behavior, attendance, arriving on time, and following school expectations throughout the day—including right before dismissal!

Teachers and staff will award Colt Cash when students demonstrate our 3 Be’s: Be Safe, Be Respectful, and Be Responsible, along with our social skills of the month.

Students will save their Colt Cash to purchase items once a month at our Kennedy School Store!

🛍️ Opening Week: November 2–6
The store will be open from 7:45–8:10 a.m. on each grade level’s assigned day:

Monday, November 2: Second Grade

Tuesday, November 3: Third Grade

Wednesday, November 4: Store Closed

Thursday, November 5: First Grade

Friday, November 6: Kindergarten

Families, please celebrate your child’s positive choices and reinforce our 3 Be’s at home. We look forward to recognizing our Colts for being safe, respectful, and responsible! 🧡

Our third-grade Wellness Club invites ALL students to create a poster promoting kindness and standing up against bullying!

Students may work individually or with one partner, begin in art class, and finish at home. Families are welcome to help!

Posters are due Thursday, October 29, to Ms. Kurtz, School Social Worker, or the front office.

All posters will be displayed at our next Student of the Month assembly. This is not a competition—every participant will be celebrated! 🧡

📚 October Academic Focus: Growing Strong Readers and Mathematicians

As we begin Quarter 2, we are helping students explain their thinking, build strong reading habits, and strengthen their Math skills. You can support this learning through simple activities at home!

📖 Read and Talk Together: Spend 15–20 minutes reading with your child each day. Ask, “What happened?” “How do you know?” and “Why do you think that?” Encourage your child to answer in complete sentences and use details from the story.

🔤 Practice Early Reading Skills: For younger learners, practice letter sounds and blending sounds into words. For developing readers, reread a short passage to build accuracy and expression, then discuss its meaning.

🔢 Make Math Part of Everyday Life: Count objects, compare amounts, and solve problems while cooking, shopping, or playing. Ask your child, “How did you figure that out?” Younger students can practice counting and adding or subtracting with objects. Older students can practice place value, addition, subtraction, and making equal groups.

🗣️ Build Language: Invite your child to explain an idea using “I think ___ because ___.” Conversations and reading in your home language also support learning!

🤝 Stay Connected: Ask your child’s teacher which reading or Math skill needs extra practice. Consistent attendance helps your child build on these skills every day.

Help us spread the word!

Invite families with a future kindergartner to the Kindergarten Enrollment Pumpkin Patch.

When: Saturday, October 17, 2026

When:4:00–7:00 p.m.

Where: Spaces of Opportunity at 1200 W. Vineyard Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85041.

Join us for an evening of pumpkins, family fun, and kindergarten enrollment!

🎟️ Refer a Family and Enter to Win! Anyone who refers a family that enrolls at Kennedy for the 2027–2028 school year will be entered into a raffle to win a prize!

Please share the flyer with friends, neighbors, and loved ones. 🧡

 “Unidos, Somos Más”    “Together, We Are More”

From September 15 through October 15, we celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month. This is a special time to recognize the history, heritage, traditions, achievements, and cultural diversity of Hispanic Americans.

We honor the rich cultures rooted in Spain and 19 countries and territories: Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic.

Throughout the month, Kennedy students will have opportunities to learn about and celebrate the people, stories, traditions, music, art, and contributions that enrich our school community and our nation.

Together, we celebrate the cultures that make our Kennedy community strong!

📅 October Important Dates 📅

🍬 Candy Donations | Now–October 23rd : We are accepting candy donations for our Trunk-or-Treat event. Donations can be dropped of in our front office!

🚚 Trunk-or-Treat | Friday,  October 23rd , 4:30–6:00 p.m.: Join us for treats, decorated cars, and fun Math and literacy activities!

📣 Classified Job Fair | Saturday, October 24th , 9:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.: Looking for a job? Roosevelt School District is hiring! Visit the Roosevelt School District Office to explore available opportunities.

🎀 Wear Pink Day |Wednesday, October 28th : Students and staff are invited to wear pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

🏆 Student of the Month | Thursday, October 22nd , 2:00–2:45 p.m.: Join us as we celebrate our outstanding students!

👻 Fall Costume Parade | Friday, October 30th, 8:15–8:45 a.m.: Students may participate in costumes or free dress.

Reminders:

-Breakfast is served from 7:30–8:00 a.m.

-Our regular school day is from 8:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

-Every Wednesday is an early-release day, with dismissal at 1:00 p.m.

-School gates close promptly at 8:00 a.m.

-Students arriving after 8:00 a.m. must report to the front office and will be marked tardy.

-Daily, on-time attendance is essential to student success. 

Campus Safety and Visitor Procedures

The safety of our students and staff remains our highest priority. All visitors/parents or guardians must enter and exit through the front office, present a valid photo ID, sign in, and wear a visitor badge while on campus.

Parent and guardian lunch visits must be approved in advance by school administration.

Pre-K and ALC families may continue walking their students to class.

During morning arrival, families may walk students to the designated gate but may not enter the instructional areas of campus.

If you would like to meet with a teacher, please schedule an appointment with our front office team.

Thank you for following these procedures and helping us maintain a safe and secure campus for everyone.

Student Identification Badges

As part of our commitment to campus safety, ALL students will be required to wear their school ID badges at all times during the school day. They help ensure that we are accountable for who is accessing our schools at all times

🚌 Student ID badges will be used to:

Access RSD bus transportation and school meals during lunch

💳 Lost or damaged ID cards?
There will be a $5.00 replacement fee for any lost or damaged badges .

Please help us by reminding your scholar to wear their badge daily and to treat it with care. Thank you for partnering with us to keep our school safe, organized, and running smoothly! 

🌟 Explore, Learn, and Grow at Kennedy!

Our programs are underway! Students are exploring their interests through Art, Band, Sports, Cheer, and Garden Club, while Reading and English Language Development tutoring provides additional learning support.

Interested in getting your child involved? Contact the front office to learn about program availability and participation.

Students must attend school regularly and remain in good academic standing to participate in clubs. Students enrolled in tutoring must attend every session.

Every day matters at Kennedy! Strong attendance helps scholars build routines, friendships, confidence, and academic success. When students are at school each day and on time, they are able to participate in important learning, classroom discussions, and activities that help them grow.

For the 2026-2027 school year, we ask families to make attendance a top priority beginning on the first day of school.

The class with the best attendance each month will receive free dress down, class recognition, and  bragging rights with a trophy.

Together, we can help every scholar start strong and stay on track for success.

Welcome to Quarter 2! October brings opportunities to learn, show kindness, and connect. During National Bullying Prevention Month, we encourage our Colts to include others and practice our 3 Be’s: Be Safe, Be Respectful, and Be Responsible.

Thank you for supporting daily attendance, on-time arrival, and reading at home. We look forward to celebrating positive choices with Colt Cash and seeing you at our October events!

Warmly,
Principal Britne Hart
Britne.hart@rsd.k12.az.us
602-232-4220