Skip to main content

McKenny Elementary School

Home of the hawks

Hawk Talk November 2026

Posted Date: 10/30/26 (02:39 PM)
View Original Post

McKenny Elementary written around a blue hawk

McKenny Hawk Talk

November 2026

McKenny Elementary School
Rainbow over McKenny

Important Dates:

November 2-3: Pacific Science Center on Wheels
November 4: Walk N Roll
November 4: Art For Kids
November 5: OSD Board Work Session 6:00 pm
November 6: PTO Movie Night Hoppers! 6:15 pm
November 10: Picture Retake Day
November 10: PTO Meeting 6:30 pm
November 11: Veterans Day/No School
November 12: Veterans Day Assembly @ 1:00pm K-5
November 12: OSD Board Meeting 6:30 pm
November 18: Art For Kids
November 25-27: Thanksgiving Break

Walk N Roll - November 4th

Our school hosts a Walk N Roll event one day each month. These are optional days that students can bike or walk to and from school, and once they arrive, can receive special prizes. Please wear helmets when riding, and make sure students are crossing roads safely. Walking or biking to school is not only amazing for your health, but it is also helpful to the environment! 
The words Walk N Roll
The words every day matters

Attendance Matters

Attendance supports your students' social, emotional, and academic achievement, and it is mandatory by law.

However, cold and flu season is upon us and with that we understand comes absences. If your child is not feeling well, has a fever or vomiting please keep them home. Refer to the document, "When Should Children Stay Home?" for further guidance.

You can excuse their absence daily by calling the attendance line at 360.596.8403 or email mckes-attendance@osd.wednet.edu. You can also send doctors notes and planned absence forms to the email provide to excuse absences.

If you are checking in your student late or taking them out early, please sign them in/out at the office.

News from the PTO

Pacific Science Center On Wheels: Science on Wheels is rolling into McKenny on Monday November 2nd - Tuesday November 3rd, for Space Odyssey! The PTO is thrilled to bring back this exciting, hands-on learning experience to our students, made possible by you, our generous and amazing McKenny community. We’re still in need of volunteers to help with the exhibits on Monday and Tuesday. Click this link to sign up! 

Movie Night Friday November 6th: Save the date for our first movie night of the year featuring Hoppers! Doors open at 6:15pm, head to bit.ly/PTOCU to pre-purchase your tickets and save, and to sign up to volunteer. Tickets are $5 for the first child and $4 for each additional child, or $10 at the door. Pre-K and kindergarten students must have an adult stay in the building for the duration of the film, for all other students movie night is a drop off event. 

PTO Meeting Tuesday November 10th 6:30-8:00pm: Please join us for our November PTO meeting.  We’ll recap recent events and plan what’s next. Everyone is welcome, no membership needed. Can’t make it in person? Join us via ZOOM.  Meeting ID: 813 2348 3890 Passcode: 625598

Hawkwear: We still have some great Hawkwear items available! Check out the latest designs at our CheddarUp page here and show your McKenny pride wherever you go.

Olympia Schools Yard Signs: You can still purchase yard signs to support McKenny, Madison and LP Brown. We would love to see signs throughout our entire Olympia community as a simple but powerful way to show our support for all of our schools.
Text reads around a blue hawks head with wings EST 1993 then below hawks head McKenny Elementary PTO
Follow us on Instagram: @mckennyhawkspto
Like us on Facebook: McKenny Hawks PTO
Visit our website: mckennypto.org
Check us out on CheddarUp: bit.ly/PTOCU 
Reach us via email: mckennypto@gmail.com   

School Counselor's Corner

Happy Fall!

During the month of October, classroom counseling lessons focused on anti-bullying themes and building a safe, kind, and respectful school community. Students learned the Three R’s - Recognize, Report, and Refuse - recognizing bullying behavior, reporting it to a trusted adult, and refusing to participate in this type of behavior. We also practiced using the acronym THING to help students pause before speaking and ask themselves: Is it True, Helpful, Important, Needed, and Kind?  These skills encourage students to make thoughtful choices and treat others with kindness and respect. 

Has your student mentioned a lunch bunch? This is another way I am supporting students' social emotional growth. Students have the opportunity to eat lunch with me in a small group with their peers once a week. During our time together, we build friendships, talk about recess experiences, talk about how school is going and practice positive social skills. Lunch bunch is a fun and supportive space for students to connect, strengthen relationships, and enjoy time together in a small group setting.

Thank you all for your continued partnership and support. I feel very lucky to be the school counselor at McKenny - what a wonderful community it is here! Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. 

Sincerely,
Mrs. Kari Boyd | School Counselor

Principals' Corner

Mr. Havens with a lobster hat
Hello McKenny Families,

As we enter the month of November, once again I want to share with you how grateful I am to be a part of the McKenny family. 

Every single day, I get to witness the kindness with which students treat each other in class, in the hallways, in the lunchroom, and on the playground. In small ways, and large, students are accepting of others, supportive of their peers, and interested in learning about what makes each student unique and special. Sure, there are times when some of the children need some guidance and support in this area, but that is what we do and we are encouraged by the growth we see.

Speaking of kindness, thank you so much to our PTO leaders and other parents who have been so generous and thoughtful in providing support to our staff members throughout this fall. With everything that is going on, it has been a pretty challenging start to the school year. Your words and notes of encouragement and support to our teachers and staff have been invaluable. And the donations of treats, snacks and goodies for the staff room have been both delicious and greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for helping to keep the McKenny Magic alive.

With Gratitude,
Michael Havens