NORWOOD NEWS

Our community is a community of superstars! Here are some updates as we work to bring out the best in our students and help them all reach for the stars.

Norwood Elementary provides relevant and challenging learning for all of our students. We believe all students are capable of achieving grade level standards, and provide the needed supports for each child on their learning journey. We strive for all of our superstars to reach their fullest potential in our ever-changing 21st century world.

• Reminder - Monday March 31, 2025: No School for Students
• Wednesday April 2, 2025: Family STEM Night (more information below)
• Friday April 4, 2025: Schools Close 3 Hours Early (Norwood will dismiss at 12:20PM & See Mr. Taylor's message about half-days below)
• Monday April 7, 2025: School Picture Day
• Friday April 11, 2025: Spring Break Begins at the End of the School Day 3:20PM
• Tuesday April 22, 2025: Students Return to school from Spring Break
• Thursday April 24, 2025: Pre-K/Kindergarten Round-Up - Registration for incoming Pre-K & Kindergarten students for the 2025-2026 school year (9:00 - 2:30 pm & 4:00 - 8:00 pm)
• Friday April 25, 2025: Pre-K and Kindergarten Conference Day - No Preschool-3, Pre-K or Kindergarten Sessions
• Monday, April 28, 2025: Pre-K ONLY Conference Day - No Preschool-3, Pre-K sessions
• Wednesday April 30, 2025: Community Produce Market

Reminder: School Hours

8:20am arrival / 8:35am late bell / 3:20pm dismissal (no drop-off prior to 8:20am as there is no supervision outside before then)

PK Schedule: AM session (8:20am - 11:05am); PM session (12:40pm - 3:20pm)

For the safety of our children, please do not bring pets into the school building. In addition, for the safety of everyone during the arrival/dismissal process, pets are not allowed on school property.

Please read carefully below for reminders and make note of the 3 messages marked *Very Important*. Thank you!

• Arrival Reminders

• The doors to the school open at 8:20 a.m. and arrival takes place until 8:35 a.m. for all students. If you are dropping off your child in the morning, please pay close attention to the no parking signs on Delvale Ave., as it’s unsafe and interrupts the flow of traffic when cars are parked in the no parking area.
• *Very Important* - Staff are on duty starting at 8:20 a.m. to supervision both outside and within the building. Families are encouraged to use the car loop starting at 8:20 a.m. when staff is present. Staff supervision is not provided prior to 8:20 a.m. so students should not be waiting for the doors to open without adult supervision. Recently we have had an increase of student injuries before 8:20 due to lack of supervision by whoever is bringing students to school.

• Early Child Pick-up Reminders

• If it is necessary for you to pick up your child prior to the end of the school day:

1. Communication (note, email, Talking Points) should be sent to each classroom teacher which includes the date and time of pickup.
2. *Very Important* - This was communicated in newsletters earlier in the year, but early dismissals will occur prior to 2:50 p.m. Students will not be called to the office for dismissal after 2:50 p.m. Phone calls to request an early pickup must occur prior to 2:50 p.m. The main office must be contacted. This is not only for safety reasons, but to ensure our dismissal process runs as smoothly as possible, parents/guardians attempting to early dismiss their child after 2:50 p.m. interferes with our dismissal procedures within the school building.
3. When you arrive, the office will need to see photo identification before calling your child to the office for dismissal. Students will not be waiting in the office for your arrival but will be called once you arrive.
4. Please sign the dismissal log in the office and include the reason for early dismissal.

Reminder - Due to the busy preparations for our school’s afternoon dismissal, we ask that you do not request your child for early dismissal after 2:50 p.m. After 2:50 p.m., all students will be dismissed at the regular dismissal time.

• Dismissal Reminder

• Please bring your ID whenever picking up your child

• For the safety of our students and families, during dismissal, only those on your child’s designated pickup list are allowed on school property
• *Very Important* - Norwood students are learning until the very end of the day at 3:20 pm. As the weather gets warmer, we have seen an increase of middle school & high school students on Norwood's property during dismissal. I need your help to ensure a safe and smooth dismissal process for all students and families. PLEASE be sure that if your Norwood student is being picked up by an older sibling, only the older sibling is on Norwood property, and they DO NOT bring friends or cousins. Most older students picking up on a regular basis are respectful to staff, but not all older students are respectful to staff and families picking up. Often, we have a large number of middle/high school students hanging out/playing on the student playgrounds prior to the 3:20 dismissal time. Recently, there are many middle/high school students meeting a friend or cousin on Norwood property who is picking up, when they should be meeting at a location that is not on Norwood property. Finally, as I stated above, Norwood students are learning until the very end of the day at 3:20 pm and very often their learning is being disrupted by many additional older students who are making noise playing on Norwood property while they are waiting to pick up.
• For those parents/guardians who are always making sure their older children who are picking up are following Norwood rules and being respectful, I thank you for making Norwood safer during our busy dismissal time. 🤩

• Dismissal Changes

• If you wish for your child to leave the school with someone other than the parent/guardian, you are required to write a note/email stating the name of the person who will be coming for your child. The note should be given to your child’s teacher, who will send it to the office. Your child should be aware of the change in routine prior to coming to school. Photo identification is needed for anyone other than the parents/guardians when picking up a student. Anyone who picks up must have a form of ID, if the person is under the age of 18 we must have a photo of that child in the student file and classroom. In addition, if your child’s dismissal is different than the usual routine plan, please send a note stating the change. It is important that your child is familiar with his/her daily dismissal routine and that the routine is as consistent as possible. Please note that students may only ride the bus if they are assigned as a bus rider to that bus. These procedures ensure the safety of our students, decrease the number of classroom interruptions, and avoid any confusion. In the case of an emergency, please contact the office at 443-809-7055.

As a reminder - Over time we have noticed many Norwood students miss school on half days, but as your Principal, I’m here to tell you student attendance on half-days is very important. At Norwood this year, we have been trying very hard to beat our half-day attendance numbers from last year.

o This will be our 5th half day of school for the school year and we will dismiss at 12:20 pm. See below our attendance percentages on the first 4 half days of school and help us reach our goal of 90% attendance on half days.

• Our 1st half day attendance percentage on 10/31/24 was 81%
• Our 2nd half day attendance percentage on 11/27/24 was 75%.
• Our 3rd half day attendance percentage on 12/20/24 was 82%
• Our 4th half day attendance percentage on 1/24/25 was 79%
• PLEASE help us beat our record of 82% and strive for 90% attendance on Friday, April 4, 2025.

For dismissal on the half day of school - IF your child will need to go home a different way or if someone different needs to pick up your child since we dismiss at 12:20, please be sure that you communicate this change in writing for the half-day dismissal to your child’s teacher. We always want to ensure a safe and smooth dismissal process at Norwood, so we need your help to be sure this happens on our first half day of the school year. If there is no change for your child’s dismissal on this day, you do not need to contact your child’s teacher they will dismiss as they normally do each day.

The safety and well-being of our students remains our top priority, and we are committed to ensuring that all students – regardless of background, language, or country of origin – receive a world-class education in a safe and welcoming environment.

Baltimore County Public Schools has created a new webpage to provide additional resources and information regarding immigration enforcement action in public schools. We encourage families to review the important information on the webpage. BCPS, in coordination with the state, is providing timely updates and guidance for school administrators and staff, including information on responding to a request from an immigration or law enforcement officer seeking to enforce immigration laws at a school or to access a student or student records. Families are reminded to review and update emergency contact information in the Focus parent portal to ensure we have accurate contact information. If applicable, parents/guardians are encouraged to identify a “standby guardian” to care for their child, by completing this Maryland Judiciary form and providing a copy to the school.

Picture Day is Monday, April 7th! All students will be photographed, and after the session, proofs will be sent home so families can preview the photos. This gives you the opportunity to review the proofs before placing an order. Be sure to mark your calendars and get ready for a picture-perfect day!

With each monthly newsletter you will gain access to unit overviews for math instruction at each grade level. Below are the unit overviews for unit 7 of math, available in both English and Spanish. The overviews share the main learning goals of the unit, show sample problems that students might see with instructional notes for family members, and include frequently asked questions.

Here are the current Math overviews below, both in English and Spanish for each grade level.

Kindergarten | Kinder

English | Español

Grade 1 | Grado 1

English | Español

Grade 2 | Grado 2

English | Español

Grade 3 | Grado 3

English | Español

Check out this amazing interactive family resource for math. This provides models and examples of what students are learning in class and can be used to sharpen their skills.

Grade 3

Grade 2

Grade 1

Kindergarten

We will be having our monthly free community produce market on Wednesday April 30th at Holabird STEM Middle starting at 4:00pm until supplies last.

***Please bring your own bag***

Join us on Wednesday April 2nd, for our family STEM night! Students will explore hands on activities with the Maryland Science Center, watch the 3rd graders exhibit their Safe Racer cards, and much more!

We are officially in allergy season. Encourage students to not touch or rub their eyes in order to prevent germs from infecting eyes. For itchy eyes, wash hands and face with cool water and use a cold compress to reduce redness and swelling. If there is eye drainage or irritation of just one eye, consult your child's doctor for treatment.

We are still seeing students with sore throats and fevers. If your student has had fever with sore throat recently, we recommend a doctor visit to rule out strep, which can lead to scarlet fever. If you do not have access to a doctor let us know so we can help. For any fever, vomiting, diarrhea or eye drainage please keep your student home until they have not had any of those symptoms for at least 24 hours before returning to school. If you need to consult with the school nurse, you may call the nurse or bring your student in for the nurse to check. If your student is absent due to illness, please send a note to the teacher or a doctor's note.

Remember to follow up with your student's pediatrician if you received a notice that your student did not pass hearing and/or vision screening at school. If you have any questions or any problems finding an eye doctor, please call the school nurse.

As the weather is changing, it is best to send a jacket or sweater to school with your student. Students should also have a change of clothes in their locker. Remember to label all articles of clothing with your student's name. If you are in need of children's clothing or jackets, please contact the nurse. There are churches in the area that can also help with clothing.

Come check the lost and found, which is located in the Health Suite. We still have unclaimed hoodies and jackets!

Eastern Assembly of God church on Wise Avenue will hold their Blessing Closet on Saturday April 5th, and on the first Saturday of every month, from 10-12:00 Noon. They only have children's clothes and there is no charge. They also take donations of lightly used children's clothing. Anyone is welcome.

Address: 7923 Wise Ave, Dundalk, MD 21222

Thank you!

NORWOOD ELEMENTARY CLOSING AND EARLY DISMISSAL 2024-2025 CALENDAR

Access the yearly calendar of closings and early dismissal for Norwood Elementary students by clicking here

ATTENDANCE REFERENCES

Access a quick guide to better understand your students absences and codings by clicking here.

PARENT RESOURCE HUB

Access a variety of resources available to our superstar families by clicking here.

FOOD PANTRY DISTRIBUTION LIST

Access a list of food pantry distribution sites by clicking here.

BALTIMORE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY MONTHLY EVENTS-APRIL

Access the monthly calendar of events that are happening at the local library by clicking here.

Baltimore County has released a resource guide for New Americans! This guide contains valuable information and contact details for families regarding education, legal resources, housing, health, mental health, how to obtain a driver's license without an SSN, enrolling children in BCPS, and more! Its also available in the top 5 languages spoken in Balt. County.

https://www.baltimorecountymd.gov/departments/county-executive/immigrant-affairs

Global Refugee has key information and resources for newly immigrant families. Take a look at them by clicking the links below:

MMH Program

Reunified Families

Norwood Elementary School is a Title I community school within the Baltimore County Public School system. We are located in Dundalk, MD, and we strive for all of our superstars to reach their fullest potential in our ever-changing 21st century world.

If you have any questions regarding any of the information on this newsletter, please contact Diego Ramos (Norwood Bilingual Family Services Liaison) at dramosquinteros@bcps.org, or by calling his direct line at 443-809-1505.

Website: https://norwoodes.bcps.org
Location: 1700 Delvale Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21222, USA
Phone: 443-809-7055
Facebook: facebook.com/NorwoodES
Twitter: @NorwoodES