PQ Tuesday Newsday

PQ is full steam ahead! I am happy to say that we are off to a great start and that the students and staff are adjusting well to the daily routines at PQ.

September is full of events to reconnect and engage with the community. This afternoon at 4 p.m., the PTO will make up the New Family and Kindergarten Social. The weather is looking much better today! Next week, we invite K-2 families to Curriculum Night on Thursday, the 21st, at 6 p.m. We look forward to reconnecting with those families!

The month of September is Citizen Month! PQ is committed to our Profile of a 5th Grader work, and we will work together and explore what it means to be an upstanding citizen in September. Please talk to your student about what it means to be a part of a community and how to be a good citizen of PQ.

Quick reminder for kindergarten parents: The first full day of school is Thursday, September 14th!

Lastly, please be sure to see below for information from Dr. Wilson regarding the school start time.

Be well,

Roy Martin

Please click on the links below to learn more about School Start Times.

School Start Time document

Links to Sleep Studies

• Curriculum Night for Kindergarten, 1st Grade, and 2nd Grade is on Thursday September 21st at 6:00pm. All parents/guardians of students in those grades are encouraged to attend.
• 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, and 5th Grade Curriculum Night is on Thursday September 28th at 6:00pm. Please plan on attending if you have a student in these grades.
• Band Orientation for those parents of students who are taking Band for the first time this year, will also be held on September 28th, but at 7:00pm.

If you have any questions about these nights please reach out to your student's teacher.

If you have a 4th or 5th grade student please read the letter below to learn about PQ's Running Club which is being offered this Fall. This is a favorite after school club for our older students and it is no cost to you!

Running Club Letter

Running Club Permission Slip

Welcome Back Parents!

We ask you to please read the following to make sure information for your student(s) is correct.

• Please make sure that you have set up your School Dismissal Manager account AND checked it so the dismissal plan for your student is accurate. This is especially important for Kindergarten parents since your students will be full time as of Thursday.

• Please go into Parent Portal and make sure the info in it is correct. We also ask that you provide information for a 3rd person who would be listed as an Emergency Contact. Please do not put yourself as the Emergency Contact. Parents will always be called first. The Emergency Contact is a trusted relative or friend who is available to help us with your student if both parents can not be reached.

Thank you so much for your attention to this!

From the Library Media Center: Summer Reading Logs

Please return any summer reading logs to your child's teacher by Wednesday, September 13th. Students who took part in the summer reading program will receive a certificate and be entered into a grade level drawing to win a Con Pollo stuffed toy. The drawing will take place on Friday, September 15th.

After School Enrichment

The ASE committee is excited to offer our Fall 2023 ASE program.

ASE is an after school program that provides safe, fun, educational, and memorable, after school activities for students at PQ.

Registration is open! It will run through September 17th at 8PM. We are using a new registration system this year. Please check the PQ ASE site for sign up details. Link to register here as well.

See link below for offerings and a more detailed explanation of the classes:

Fall 2023 ASE Classes

Email the committee with any questions at pqase@northsalemschools.org.

Thank you!

(The ASE program is run by the PQ PTO)

ARRIVAL at PQ:

Parents who are dropping off students at PQ in the morning can do so between 8:05 am and 8:25 am.

Parents will drop students off from the lower parking lot in front of the gym. Adults will be present to help students out of the car. Parents should NOT drop students off until there is an adult on duty by the drop-off zone. Parents will drop off in a single line ....DO NOT double up cars during drop-off and please follow the directions of the staff who are outside. Parents can NOT drop off prior to 8:05 am.

DISMISSAL at PQ:

Parent Pick-up will be outside the gym for all students.

Parents will line up in their cars outside the gym as they did last year in two lines.

Staff will bring students outside from the gym to get into the car. Parents do NOT come in the building. Please stay in your car at all times and follow the directions of the adults working dismissal. Parent Pick-up will begin at 2:55 pm.

eSD Parent Portal is an important app we use throughout your child's entire K-12 experience. At PQ, you get your child’s teacher assignment and report cards form the Parent Portal. At the MSHS, you will get your child’s schedule, grades, etc. You create this account in Kindergarten and it remains the same for your career in the district.

**Please make sure you have logged into eSD Parent Portal. When you log on, you will be asked to verify/update your information. It is very IMPORTANT that you do this for three reasons: 1) so we have accurate phone numbers to reach you, 2) so we have accurate emails to send you information, and 3) so that we have the necessary emergency contacts in case we are ever unable to reach you in an emergency.

Once you update your information, make sure you CLICK the VERIFY button! This is a very important step!!!

If you are new to the district, you will need your child's ID number before logging into Parent Portal. Incoming Kindergarten parents should have received a letter in the mail by now that contains their kindergartner's ID number. New students in 1st-5th will receive their student ID number via email. If you have not received this information please call the school 914-669-5317.

If you have returning students, you would have already created a login for Parent Portal. We still need you to log in and double check that the information in the system is up to date and correct.

The eSD Parent Portal can be found on the school website. Click the button in the middle of the PQ homepage called Parent Log-ins. There is a link and a tutorial there. Here is a direct link to the eSD Parent Portal.

Be sure to do this in advance of August 18th. Your child’s teacher assignment will be posted late afternoon on this date!

At PQ, Family ID is an app used by parents to sign-off on district policies that impact your child. These include the district Code of Conduct and Attendance Policies, Use of Media/Photos, Internet Acceptable Use Policy and Chromebook Loaner Policy. Please use this link to access Family ID.

Notes About Logging Into Family ID

1. If you created an account in the past, click log in and type in your username and password.

2. If you are new to the district, click Create Account.

3. For Organization Name, type North Salem

4. Under the North Salem Central School District, click on "2023-2024 Beginning of School Information for PQ Elementary."

5. Click Register Now.

6. IMPORTANT - In the beginning, you don't have to fill in more than the first two sections - Participant Information which is your child's name, school, and graduation year and grade and the Parent Information for whoever is filling out the form. Your next step is to review the policies that need to be signed off on.

7. You need to do this for each child. If you have children in both the MSHS and PQ, make sure you are using the correct form for each child.

8. Follow the directions at the end of the form to complete the process.

Please complete this by the start of the school year for each child. Thank you!

PQ FAMILY ID LINK

District App

There are several vehicles we use to communicate important information to parents. The first is the District App that you can download onto your phone. Click the link below for a video on how to do this. The app includes notifications, the lunch menu, and other information from the district website.

https://www.northsalemschools.org/Domain/1357

Emergency and Reunification Guide for Parents

Safety is, of course, our top priority. The link below will bring you to our district's "Emergency and Reunification Guide for Parents" which will explain our district wide and school level Emergency Response Plan. Please take some time to read through it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-Dl_r5Hnr2dMj1Xj4-IC-d8D5nyKoyDc/view?usp=sharing

For cafeteria purchases we use an app called "My School Bucks." It is an easy and secure prepayment service for all cafeteria purchases. Through this app, you set up a lunch account for your student(s). You can replenish funds, view your account balance, and see your child's purchase activity. If you already have an account, you will just continue to use it. Please take a look at your account to make sure there are funds available for your student(s).

If you need to create an account, all you need is your student's name, ID number, and school zip code (10560). The link to the app is here: My School Bucks

Please set up an account if your child plans on purchasing food items through the cafeteria.

If you have any questions, feel free to call Karen Seikovsky, the Food Service Director at 914-669-5414 ext. 2030.

School Dismissal Manager is an app that allows you to provide us with information about your child's attendance as well as their dismissal plan.

You will be receiving an email from School Dismissal Manager with your credentials to log on to this important app. Please follow the directions to gain access to your child's account. We no longer use notes of any kind for absences or for dismissal changes. This is the best way to notify us. This is also used to alert us that your child is absent, going to be late, or needs to be picked up early!

**Please be on the look out for this email which will arrive by the end of the week.

The District website explains how families can apply to the state to see if they qualify for Free or Reduced meals. Please click the following to link to our website for this information:

National School Meal Program Information

Please read this week's IMPORTANT TASK #4 section for information on how to sign up for My School Bucks. This is the program we use to set up lunch accounts so that your student can buy breakfast, lunch, drinks, and/or snacks.

September BREAKFAST Menu

September LUNCH Menu

September 13 - Kindergarten Early Dismissal 11:30am

September 14 - Kindergarten FULL Day

September 20 - Board of Ed Meeting 7:30pm

September 21 - PQ Curriculum Night for Grades K, 1, & 2 @ 6:00pm

September 25 - No School

September 28 - PQ Curriculum Night for Grades 3, 4, & 5 @ 6:00pm

• PQ Band Orientation 7:00pm

October:

October 4 - Board of Ed Meeting 7:30pm

October 6 - Emergency Management Plan Drill 15 minute Early Dismissal

October 9 - No School

October 10 - PQ PTO meeting 9:00am

October 11 - PQ Picture Day

October 15 - PQ Harvest Fair

The North Salem Soccer Club In House program will be here before you know it. If your little athlete would love to get involved this year please use the link provided to sign up. The season starts on September 16th. https://system.gotsport.com/programs/E58780522?reg_role=player

El programa interno del North Salem Soccer Club estará aquí antes de que se dé cuenta. Si a su pequeño atleta le encantaría participar este año, utilice el enlace proporcionado para registrarse. La temporada comienza el 16 de septiembre. https://system.gotsport.com/programs/E58780522?reg_role=player

Attention kids 8 and 9 years old! Brewster Youth Football registration is still open. Please contact Gina Accurso at gaccurso404@gmail.com if you are interested in playing. Now is the time to get started and become part of the football family!

https://southeastrecreationny.myrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=29828

Website: www.northsalemschools.org
Location: 173 June Road, North Salem, N.Y., USA
Phone: 914-669-5317
Twitter: @pq_elementary