CONCORD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
May 11, 2018 Edition
Upcoming Events
5/15/18 - No School - Teacher In-Service
5/16/18 - Concord Art Show and Ice Cream Social 4:30PM
5/25/18 - No School - Teacher in-Service
5/28/18 - No School - Memorial Day Holiday
6/12/18 - End of 3rd Trimester
6/13/18 - PM Kindergarten Last Day and Progress Report Released
6/14/18 - Last Day of School for Students
Save the Date - Change of Calendar
Soft Pretzel Sale Friday May 18th
The Hearts to Home is running a soft pretzel sale on Friday, May 18th! Pretzels are $1.00 a piece. Students should just give their money to their teachers. The pretzels will be delivered for snack time on Friday! Proceeds will provide support to a family in need!
"Hearts to Home' is a small group of district employees who raise funds through out the school year to assist families right here in our district. We work together with school Principals, Guidance Counselors, Nurses and faculty to discreetly reach out to families dealing with hardships to let them know our school community is here to help and support them through these difficult times. Thank you in advance for your support and participation!
*Please send in the $1.00 by Thursday May 17th.
NEW EVENT TO START THE SCHOOL YEAR!
Dear Parents & Guardians,
We are excited to announce a new event to start the next school year! On August 29th, all three elementary schools will be hosting an Open House in the afternoon so that students and their families can visit the school and meet their teachers before school officially starts. The schedule has been developed with families in multiple schools and siblings in mind. It will be split into two sessions to accommodate the parking needed for this new event. We look forward to starting the school year with our students, families, and all teachers!
The schedule for the Open House on August 29th will be:
Bethel Springs Elementary
12PM-1PM - Students with last names from L-Z
2PM-3PM - Students with last names from A-M
Concord Elementary
12PM-1PM - Students with last names from A-M
2PM-3PM - Students with last names from L-Z
Garnet Valley Elementary
12PM-1PM - Students with last names from A-M
2PM-3PM - Students with last names from L-Z
Concord and Garnet Valley Elementary Schools are on the same schedule so that families may visit both schools in proximity during their assigned times. The Bethel Springs times are assigned opposite of Concord to accommodate families who will need to drive between schools. The time between sessions is to give families a chance to conclude their visits and depart before the next group arrives.
The new Open House will take the place of our previous Sneak a Peek events. We have seen changes in Sneak a Peek in recent years with class lists now being posted online and school supplies being delivered to classrooms. An LEA Committee of parents, teachers, and administrators worked through the Sneak a Peek Survey data to create this new event. Other transition activities like the opening schedule for kindergarten, transition activities for students going from Concord to Bethel Springs after kindergarten and Concord to GVES after second grade, transition camp for GVES third grade, and new family orientations will all continue. We will also continue with traditional Back to School Nights in the fall. Our Home & School Associations will run their usual activities from Sneak a Peek during the Open House times.
We realize that creating a new summer event can create difficulties for families who already have vacations planned or cannot change work commitments. For this reason, we will also be offering tours on Thursday, August 23rd, from 5:00-7:00PM. This day and time would have been one of the traditional Sneak a Peek times. The building principals will host these tours. Please call your school’s office to set up a tour. These tours will be offered this year with the intention of having the Open House on the Wednesday before Labor Day weekend being the only activity in the summer of 2019.
We had 400 people participate in our survey and many offered comments and suggestions as well. Our committee reviewed all of this information and used it to create this exciting new event. While every request could never be honored, we did our best to enhance the opening of school with our priority being finding a way to have all teachers included in the Open House to welcome everyone back for another school year. Thank you.
Young Author Winners
Concord was honored with three winners this year!
HSA News
We need YOU! Please consider volunteering for at least one committee next year- your time is so valuable to us and even just ONE hour makes a BIG difference! In an effort to "go green", eliminate paperwork and streamline our volunteer process, we invite you to take a few minutes to fill out our
2018-2019 Online Volunteer Form.
We know next school year seems so far away, but there is a lot of planning that takes place behind the scenes to make things run smoothly and we appreciate your quick response. CONCORD HSA HAS GONE GREEN and there will NOT be a paper volunteer form sent out this year, so please make sure to sign-up HERE:
bit.ly/2HLCaqF
Thank you in advance for your participation!
A huge thank you to everyone that contributed to making staff appreciation week such a special celebration for the Concord Elementary “Tee-riffic” Staff!!
Mark your calendars! Wednesday May 16th is Concord’s Ice Cream Social and Student Art Show!! Pop in anytime between 4:30-6:30pm. Back by popular demand!! Ice Cream Sundae Bar with our Concord Teachers and Staff! Pre-sliced vanilla ice cream squares and a full topping bar will be available for purchase for $3. The student art show will also be on display. Come and spend some time socializing with our Concord Family and Friends!
We are pleased to offer a “Pre-Ordered School Supply Kit” program through SchoolKidz. These kits are available for incoming Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders. Orders MUST be placed online by June 15th. Kits will be delivered to the students classroom for the first day of school. To order your kit visit http://www.shopttkits.com and enter School Account #26399. For additional information and the school supply list visit http://bit.ly/2Is10vf
BACKPACKS are on sale NOW for 2018-2019! Visit our webpage for more info on how to order:
https://www.garnetvalleyschools.com/Page/15311
Mileage Club is back up and running! The club takes place during first and second grade recess (11:30am-1:30pm) every Wednesday, weather-permitting. See the sign-up link below for a complete class schedule. Please consider volunteering, even if only for a 30-minute time slot....every little bit helps!
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c094da5a829a3f58-mileage
Attention 2nd Grade Parents / Guardians!!
We are nearing the end of the school year and are very excited for our 2nd grade send off celebration which will take place during the school day on Friday June 8th.
If you need another copy of the child survey or send-off information letter, please visit our webpage and click on HSA, 2nd Grade Send-Off to download and print at home or click on this link:
https://www.garnetvalleyschools.com/Page/15310
As part of the celebration we will be showing the students a video of their time at Concord as well as a side by side comparison of how much they have grown from Kindergarten to 2nd grade. All photos will be pulled from our yearbook vault but if your child did NOT attend Concord in Kindergarten and you would like to submit a photo to us for use in this video please do so by Friday May 18th. Please send the photo electronically in .jpeg format to Jennifer Sauers at houcky10@yahoo.com. Thank you!
GVES 3rd Grade Transition Camp
For All Incoming GVES 3rd Graders
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
9AM until 11:30AM
- Program includes welcome & introduction, exploring the building, playground time, snack, Q&A session, & a t-shirt.
- Register in 2 easy steps - Click on the link for the registration form then submit your payment.
- $10 registration fee must be received through MySchoolBucks or check payable to GVES HSA by May 15 to guarantee a t-shirt. Please submit checks to the CES Office in an envelope labeled GVES Transition Camp. Student name should be on the check.
- Questions? Please email GVES School Counselor, Ms. D'Olio, at dolioc@garnetvalley.org.
Donations for Music Class Please!
Volunteers Needed for Butterfly Garden
Thanks for sharing your green thumb with us!
Garnet Valley CTC Quick Tip #36 2017-2018
GV CTC Quick Tip #36 Fostering Family Mental Health
Did you know?
“Over the past 15 years researchers have confirmed what parents have known for a long time: sharing a family meal is good for the spirit, the brain and the health of all family members.” by Anne Fishel, Ph.D This is a hectic time of year but carving out some time for a family breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner without electronics is worth the effort!
Call to action… Make the pledge to have more unplugged family meals – Click on the links below for great ideas and information on this low-tech way to improve life for every member of the family.
https://thefamilydinnerproject.org/newsletter/make-memories-family-dinner/
Community Notes, News, and Learning Opportunities
Family Coding Night
Dear Elementary Families,
On May 21st, Garnet Valley is hosting Family Coding Night. Starting at 6:00 pm at Concord Elementary, the event will introduce families to Computational Thinking and share resources that are making it fun for students to develop this essential skill.
The night will be appropriate for all experience levels. After a quick introduction to Computational Thinking, families will choose from four different demonstrations:
Introductory: Beginning Computational Thinking with Code.org
Intermediate: Programming and Game Development with Scratch
(Scratch is not compatible with tablets) -or-
Programming Tutorials in Code.org
Advanced: Q & A with Garnet Valley High School Computer Science Students
Families should come with a device that their child(ren) will be able to use at home, and will leave with insight into the importance of the skills and the ways that families can play and learn to develop these.
Space is limited. The event will accommodate 50 adults and the children they will accompany throughout the evening. Please use this Google Form to register your family. You’ll receive a follow-up email with more details.
For questions, please contact Dave Vapniarek (vapniad@garnetvalley.org)
Donate Blood for American Red Cross Blood Drive
Location:
Tinicum School - Cafeteria
91 Seneca Street
Essington, PA 19029
When:
Saturday May 19, 2018
8:30AM to 1:30PM
E-School Learning
eSchool @GarnetValley provides multiple pathways for more learning. The goal of Garnet Valley School District is to offer all students multiple opportunities to reach their academic goals through quality programs and instruction.
Click here to download the 2018 Summer eSchool Catalog.pdfAttendance Procedure Update
New Student Absence Reporting System starting Monday May 21, 2018.
Garnet Valley is moving to a more efficient student absence reporting system called SafeArrival. This system makes it easy for parents/guardians to report their child's absence, reduces the time it takes to verify student attendance and will allow our staff to respond to unexplained student absences more efficiently.
SafeArrival gives parents 3 options to report an absence: by phone, by using an App, or logging into the website (directions for each option are included in this website). The SafeArrival reporting system will be active starting Monday, May 21, 2018, giving the district the last few weeks of school to troubleshoot and address any potential issues.This system will be available 24 hours/day, 7 days a week. Future absences can also be reported in advance. Parents/Guardians who report their child's absences using the SafeArrival website/app will NOT receive a call from our automated attendance system. Additionally, Parents/Guardians who report their child's absences using the SafeArrival website/app will NOT be required to send in an additional absence note as the reporting system will count as the note*.
SafeArrival uses our student information system (ALMA) to verify all accounts so it is important that parents/guardians use the same email address on file in ALMA when creating their SafeArrival account. Please contact our technology support at techsupport@garnetvalley.org if you need help updating your email address in ALMA.
Transportation Procedural Changes for Next Year
Changes are being made for elementary busing for next year to increase student safety. A notification of these changes went out via email this week so that parents/guardians are aware of the changes in planning for next school year. The complete information is on our website.
Reminders from the Office
Attendance
You will receive an automated call alerting you if your child has been marked absent at school. Please provide a signed and dated note within three days of your child’s return to school stating the reason for the absence.
Drop-off, Pickup and Dismissal Reminders
Students arriving after 8:50 AM must be walked to the main office and signed in by a guardian. All changes in dismissal must be accompanied by a note from a guardian as well. If your student attends the YMCA, you must also notify the YMCA of any changes.
Please do not use the Bus Loop during the following times:
8:20 - 8:50 AM
11:15 - 11:40 AM
12:15 - 12:40 PM
2:45 - 3:20 PM
Modified Kindergarten Schedule for 2 Hour Delay
The following schedule for Kindergarten will be in effect when there is a 2 hour delay:
AM Kindergarten - 10:40 to 12:30
PM Kindergarten - 1:20 to 3:10
AM buses will pick-up students 2 hours after their regular times. Midday transportation will be provided but run 1 hour later than usual.
E-Alert Reminders
Please make sure your email address is up to date in your Alma account to receive our weekly E-Alerts. You may log in and update your email address and any phone numbers with your parent log in. For questions about E-Alerts or Schoolwires, please contact schoolweb@garnetvalley.org. For questions regarding Alma please contact the main office.
Concord Elementary School
Website: garnetvalleyschools.com
Location: 114 Station Road, Glen Mills, PA, United States
Phone: 610-579-6100
Facebook: facebook.com/ConcordElementarySchool-GVSD
Twitter: @ConcordGV