Kelly Newsletter

Dear Kelly Families~

Happy April! As we head into the home stretch of the school year, our calendar continues to be full at Kelly School. North Dakota State Assessments are underway in grades three through five, we are kicking off reading month, and plans are being made for end of the year events.

CROSSWALKS: As we move into spring and more students will be eventually walking and biking to school, please remind you child(ren) to use the crosswalks at arrival and dismissal times. Cherry Street and our parking lots are very busy. As parents, please adhere to our traffic flow procedures and help us ensure your child's safety with us by talking with him/her about the importance of using the crosswalks.

2023-2024 Classroom Assignments: Drafts of class lists for the 2023-2024 school year will be compiled by teachers, specialists, and administration this spring and will be posted in August before school starts. We'd like to ask that parents please refrain from making specific teacher requests as they often make it very difficult to create well-balanced classrooms. Our staff members know each student well and collectively consider his/her learning style, academic & social skills and behavior when making a classroom placement. Thanks in advance for your cooperation and understanding. There is a quite a bit of time and effort that goes into forming classes and our students' best interests are always at the heart of our decisions.

E-Learning Days: Unfortunately, it looks as though we have a blizzard potentially brewing that may impact our school calendar. Please ensure you have your child's E-Learning packet readily available in case school is canceled this week due to weather. Let's hope April snowflakes will soon turn into April showers. We are all in need of signs of spring!

Please see the information below for additional school and district information.

Happy April!

~Kelli Tannahill

Tuesday, April 4th-5th Grade Music Program-6:00pm-Door 6

Friday, April 7th-No School

Monday, April 10th-No School

April 10th-22nd-Artwise Show-Columbia Mall

Wednesday, April 12th-1:30 Dismissal

Thursday, April 13th-Kindergarten Registration-4:00-6:00pm

Monday, April 17th-PTO Meeting-5:15pm

Tuesday, April 18th-Popolino's Pizza Night

Monday, April 24th-Family Classroom Event-2:30pm

Tuesday, April 25th-Chorus Concert-6:00pm-Door 6

Wednesday, April 26th-1:30 Dismissal

2023-2024 STUDENT REGISTRATION

If your student plans on returning to Kelly School please make sure you complete the registration process in the Parent PowerSchool Portal. This needs to be done for every child-new or returning.

How do I get started?

If you have not already done so, you will need to create a PowerSchool Single Sign-On Account that links all your school-age children to the same account. If you need the information to set up your account, please contact the school office. Visit https://grand-forks.ps.state.nd.us/public/ and log into the PowerSchool Parent Portal. From the Parent Portal:

1. Select the student you wish to register at the top.
2. Select the Registration (23-24) link on the left side of the screen.
3. Agree to the terms and conditions.
4. Click Begin Forms.

For schools that have bus routes, parent(s)/guardian(s) will be able to sign up for regular route busing for the 2023-2024 school year while completing registration in PowerSchool. There is an August 1st, 5 p.m. deadline for registration for transportation. Grand Forks Public Schools will contact those who sign up in mid-August with specific information. Those who miss the deadline will not be guaranteed immediate ridership. If you complete the sign-up and require a change to your information later, please contact your respective schools’ main office to update any information.

Individuals requesting transportation beyond August 1st will be required to utilize the sign-up on the Grand Forks Public Schools website, which will be active on August 2nd, 2023. Registration using that process will not guarantee immediate ridership.

I can’t remember my login for the PowerSchool Parent Portal.

If you can’t retrieve your login credentials using the “Having trouble signing in?” link on the Sign In page, please contact your school directly for assistance logging into the Parent Portal.

Do I have to answer all the questions?

Mandatory questions are marked as "required.”

What if I make a mistake?

If you would like to make a change prior to submitting the form, you can either navigate back to the page using the “Prev” and “Next” buttons or if you are on the Review page click on the underlined field. If you have already submitted the form, you will need to contact your student’s school so they can make the changes for you.

I’ve completed the form, now what?

Once you have finished entering your information click “Submit.” This will send all the information you’ve entered to the school. If you cannot click on this button you will need to make sure that you have answered all required questions.

What if I have more than one student in the district? Do I need to do this for each student?

Yes, you will need to provide information that is specific to each student. We recommend that you complete and submit one form and then start another. This will allow you to “snap” (or share) selected family information, which saves you time.

Help! I’m on the form and I’m having technical difficulties.

For technical support, visit our PowerSchool Community help center or click “Help” from any form page.

On Thursday, April 13th from 4:00-6:00pm you and your child are invited to Kelly School for Kindergarten Registration. You will complete paperwork, meet the teacher, do a little shopping for Kelly Cougar Spirit Wear and get a tour of the school. If you have not already done so, we would like you to take a few minutes to complete our online Pre-Registration form. This Google Form https://form.jotform.com/gfschools/KRegistration2023 will allow us to capture information so we can begin your student’s enrollment now and cut down your waiting time at school that day.

Children who will reach the age of five before August 1, 2023 are eligible to enter kindergarten. For links to required forms and additional information that will be needed at registration, please visit https://bit.ly/2022KClass.

Student Absence: If your child is absent or late, please call the attendance line by 8:30am.

701-746-2269-attendance line

701-746-2265-school office

Telephone Calls: Calls do not ring into the classroom during school hours to minimize interruptions. Messages for students can be left on the teacher’s voicemail.

Peanut/Nut Free School: When sending a snack or packing a lunch, please remember to check labels to make sure it does not contain or have traces of peanuts/nuts.

Birthday Snacks: Due to the increase of students who have severe food allergies and the higher levels of severity, we no longer celebrate student birthdays with a “birthday snack” in our schools. Parents are welcome to find other non-food items to send to school if they wish. Please discuss with your child’s classroom teacher for ideas or preferences.

Arrival:

The first bell rings at 8:20 am. School begins at 8:25 am. Breakfast is offered 7:40-8:15 am. All students coming to breakfast must use door 16.

Dismissal: The safety of our students is a top priority for us at Kelly School. As per district policy, schools will have parents meet their child(ren) at a designated location outside the school at dismissal time.

• Teachers will bring their students to a location outside the school at their classroom’s assigned door. Students will meet their parent or person picking them up at a prearranged meeting place near the assigned dismissal door.

• Older siblings meet youngest sibling at youngest sibling’s assigned door.

• Bus/Daycare van students will walk through the school to Door #1 to board their bus or van.

We ask parents to pay for Chromebook cases, Device Protection and intramurals online through MySchoolBucks. This will help minimize the amount of cash/check deposits being handled throughout the day.

Create your free account today and never worry about having to send cash/checks to school with your student again. Visit myschoolbucks.com or download the app today to get started.

How do I enroll?

• Go to www.myschoolbucks.com and click enroll now.
• Create an account for yourself and your children. You will need to know your student’s district ID number, date of birth, school and grade.
• Provide credit or debit card information.

Why should I sign up for this service?

• You can view your child’s cafeteria purchases.
• You can sign up for free e-mail notifications when the lunch account is low in funds.
• You may prepay their lunch account without sending money to school.
• My SchoolBucks will charge a $2.49 service fee when adding money to a lunch account.

Tips for Being a Good Listener.
As a parent/guardian, sometimes you may feel as though your child does not listen to you. It is important that you communicate your needs and feelings to your child in an effective way. A simple suggestion to improve communication between you and your child is to use “I” messages rather than “You” messages (which often create an oppositional situation). For example, instead of
saying, “You always leave your dirty dishes on the table. Can’t you pick up after yourself?” say, “When you leave your dishes on the table, I get frustrated because it makes extra work for me when I get home and I’m trying to make dinner.” Visit www.parentslead.org for more information.

Talk with your child about friendship.
Explain to your child what it means to be a good friend and that true friends protect, look out

for one another, and have each other’s back. True friends do not ask each other to do things that they know are wrong and will get them in trouble, or things that are harmful. Talk often to your child about who their friends are and the things they do with their friends. Encourage them to stick to their beliefs and values and look for friends who share those values.
Source: www.parentslead.org