S.O.A.R Weekly

If you have a 3rd - 5th grade student, it is now time to sign out their laptops. We are excited to be a one to one technology school. That means all students 3rd-8th have been assigned their own laptop. Parents who were unable to sign for their 6th - 8th grade student are also welcome to come. Here is what your student will receive:

• 6th-8th grade - HP 440
  
• 3rd-5th grade - HP 360 (laptop converts to tablet)
  
• A bag for transporting the laptop safely
• Four (4) additional copies of Microsoft 365 to add to any device you like
  
• All classrooms now have the new interactive flat panel Promethean Boards
  
• Access to all school/classroom apps through Classlink
  
• Access to online classroom portal (all classes are gradually moving toward this) Classflow/Teams

Other Information

• The student(s) receiving the laptop does need to be in attendance so they may sign their part of the agreement.
• We will do our best to ensure that we get you in an out in a timely manner. Based on experience from the last distribution, try to limit the number of people you bring with you to pick up the compute. This helps to mitigate congestion (of course we understand if little brothers and sisters have to come because no one is home to watch them).
• All students 3rd-8th have already been assigned their own laptop. They are used everyday and transported by the students to each of their classes (just like a book would be). The purpose of the distribution is to sign documents to allow the computer to be transported home.
  

Did you know that 40 kids are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes (T1D) each day in the United States alone? That's a whole classroom of kids! Donate to find a cure. Those who donate have a sneaker placed on the window at the school in their honor. Then join us November 30th for the JDRF Kids Walk for Type 1.

Donate every morning at the school or online at :http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR/Youth/GeorgiaChapter4147;jsessionid=00000000.app334a?team_id=251058&pg=team&fr_id=7126&NONCE_TOKEN=0A11A632C436023D976A6760601787D1

The PTA Christmas Store will be opening soon. Please take the time to come out and support the PTA. They are a vital part of school success.

Please come out and support our 5th grade students! They are presenting their "Living Wax Museum" December 6th. Students will be dressed as an important figure from the Turn of the Century and demonstrate why they are important in history.

New to Freedom Park? Interested in applying to attend Freedom Park? Join us Wednesday, December 13th from 5pm - 7pm for our annual open house. Learn more about opportunities at the school and how you can register/apply.

The rescheduled Junior Beta Club Ceremony will be held -

Date: December 14th

Time: 5:15 PM – 6 PM

Location: Small Gym

This year we will raffle three (3) items for yearbook sales. Two elementary students (1 boy and 1 girl) and one middle school student will have their names drawn for a prize. The prizes are a 20" bike for the elementary students and a Kindle Fire for the middle school student. All students who purchase their yearbooks before December 19th will have their names entered for the drawings. The pre 2018 price for yearbooks are $30 for a soft copy and $35 for a hard copy. Good luck!

Are you interested in being a member of the school council? The purpose of school council is to bring communities and schools closer together in a spirit of cooperation to solve difficult education problems, improve academic achievement, provide support for teachers and administrators, and bring parents into the school-based decision-making process. We are in need of two parents and one business owner. Please email Dr. Singh if you are interested: singhti@boe.richmond.k12.ga.us

A Prayer for Daddy

Dear Lord,
Please watch over our family Keep us safe while Daddy is deployed.
May you keep Daddy in your loving arms, holding him tight each night.
May you protect him each night and day.
Let him know we miss him and we love him too!
Our stuffed animals he bought us before he left, we hold tight in our beds each night.
We pray for Daddy's safety while he's away.
Let Daddy know that we're okay.
We miss him and love him and will see him soon.
Until then we will pray for him.
In Jesus Name, AMEN - Renee McCallum

We need to hear from you. We have the great pleasure of welcoming our great military families to Fort Gordon. However, we know that transitions are very difficult and we want to help. Freedom Park is working on creating a family "passport" to help students and families transition easier to the school. We really need your help. What information do you think should go in the family passport? What questions did you have that we just assumed you knew? Our heart is to support every student, every day. Follow this link to tell us what families need to know: https://s.surveyplanet.com/SkaqP1UJM

Understanding Aspergers can be difficult. Often times parents are in the process of working through the needs of their students and find it difficult to communicate to educators what they are in the process of learning. Educators can find it difficult to find ways to deliver the required instruction and support the specific needs of a student on the spectrum. This video gives information concerning they why questions some of us may have and ways to support our students. Every child, every day, that is the FPS way!

Special Education:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9ut6FZhnv8

Welcome to FPS passport to knowledge. Student's use their cellphone to scan the QR codes to learn about different countries. Its a big small world.

Let's try to stagger our dismissal. If we do that, it may not be so busy at the end of the day and you may not feel the need to "invent" ways to make it a more pleasant experience. And because my last name starts with an "S" and I am use to being last, lets start backwards. If your last name starts with the letter "Q-Z" try to get to the school around 3:55. We won't release until 4pm, but you will be first and out by the time others come. If your last name starts with the letter "F-P" try to get to the school at 4:07. That is usually after the first wave. If your name starts with the letter "A-E" try arriving at 4:10. Lets see how this works for the remainder of this week. Lets see if more parking spots open up and if the car line is shorter. If not, we can go back to business as usual. Let's just try it to see if it relieves some of the pressure.

We need your help. As you can imagine, the morning intake, lunch, and dismissal are some of the busiest times of the day. How can you help? If you can help at any of these times, please call the front office.

Morning (8:20-9:00)

• Help ensure cars do not park or drop off students in the bus loading area.
• Help ensure students are walked across the street safely (parents should not be letting students out to walk across the parking lot).
• Welcoming students to school in a cheerful manner (high fives, encouraging words, etc).
• Cafeteria helper (breakfast).
• Help students in the morning car line and ensure parents pull as far up as possible to get parents off the street.
• Help teachers get students started (unpacking, passing out items, collecting items, etc.).
• Hall monitor.

Lunch (anytime between 10:55 and 1:20)

• Managing lines and tables.
• Helping students open items.
• Any other assistance teachers or food nutrition needs.

Dismissal (3:30 - 4:30)

• Help ensure cars do not park or drop off students in the bus loading area.
  
• Help ensure students are walked across the street safely (parents should not be letting students out to walk across the parking lot).
• Help students in the afternoon car line and ensure parents pull as far up as possible to get parents off the street.
  
• Help teachers get students ready for dismissal (packed, passing out items, etc.).
• Help teachers get students to designated dismissal area.
• Hall monitor.