Forest Knolls Mustang Message

Email: Jennifer_Taylor-Cox@mcpsmd.org
Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/forestknollses
Location: 10830 Eastwood Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20901, USA
Phone: 240-740-1640

Schools and offices were closed on Monday, Jan. 6, Tuesday, Jan. 7 and Wednesday, Jan. 8. The 2024–2025 MCPS school calendar includes 182 instructional days, two more than the state of Maryland's minimum requirement of 180. As a result, the closures on Jan. 6 and Jan. 7 will not affect the school calendar. However, the closure on Jan. 8 requires using one designated make-up day in the calendar. The school year will be extended by one day, with the last day of school for students now scheduled as an early release day on Monday, June 16. Additionally, Friday, June 13, which was scheduled as an early release day, will now be a full instructional day for students.

See the updated Traditional School Year Calendar.

Building administrators have a strict protocol to follow if an ICE agent or any other non-local law enforcement agent comes to a school to inquire about students. Families will be contacted in the event of such an inquiry or occurrence. Families with immigration status concerns should have an emergency plan in place and designate a trusted family member who can care for their children in case of an emergency. Please read the Standby Guardianship to learn how to create an Emergency plan

MCPS Stance: Our schools are and will always remain safe places where every child—regardless of immigration status—is welcomed, valued, affirmed, validated, respected, and loved.

MCPS Immigration webpage with more resources

Download Flyer: English / español / 中文 / français / Português / 한국어 / tiếng Việt / አማርኛ

Current Testing Updates:

• Kindergarten - Grade 2 students are currently taking two district assessments: Dibels (reading assessment) and MAP-P (math). The window to administer Dibels and MAP-P has been extended to February 7th. Two weeks following the close of the testing window, the system will upload the parent report for MAP-P in ParentVUE. Grade level teams will send home the parent report for Dibels at the close of the testing window.

• Grade 3 - Grade 5 students are currently taking MAP-R (reading) and MAP-M (math) district assessments. The window to administer MAP-R and MAP-M has also been extended to February 7th. Two weeks following the close of the window, the system will upload the parent report for MAP-P in ParentVUE.

• Our Emergent Multilingual Learners (EML) are currently taking the WIDA ACCESS test. This is a state required assessment that measures our EML students' English proficiency in the areas of listening, reading, writing, and speaking. This testing window opened on January 8th and closes March 4th. Individual Score Reports (ISR's) will be mailed to families by the end of the year.

Upcoming State Testing/Survey:

• Maryland Integrated Science Assessment (MISA); Grade 5 only. Fifth grade students will take MISA in the beginning of March. MISA is aligned to the Maryland Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The NGSS integrates three dimensions necessary to understand science. The dimensions are the Science and Engineering Practices, the Crosscutting Concepts, and the Disciplinary Core Ideas. Click here for more information about this assessment. For information on the specific testing schedule, please stay tuned as we are currently drafting the schedule.

• Mayland School Survey; Grade 5 only. In mid-March, fifth grade students will participate in the Maryland School Survey about school climate. The survey will ask students about topics such as student engagement, interactions with adults and with other students in the school, the school environment, bullying, and safety. More information about this survey will be provided in the coming weeks.

• Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP); Grades 3, 4, & 5. Every student in grades 3, 4, and 5 will take the Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP) assessments in Reading/English-Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics online. Students will take four 40-minute sessions of math and four 70-minutes sessions of ELA. This year, the MCAP test will be given during the months of April and May. Stay tuned for more information on this assessment.

The Middle School Magnet Consortium (MSMC) time begins in the fall. All Grade 5 families receive communication from the county regarding available programs and processes. There may be variations from year-to-year. In summary, there are both criteria-based programs and interest-based programs. Programs at Takoma Park Middle School and Eastern Middle School are criteria-based. There is a central-review process and then a lottery for all eligible students. No application is required for the criteria-based programs. Interest-based programs are application-based. These include Argyle Middle School for Digital Design and Development, A. Mario Loiederman Middle School for Creative and Performing Arts and Parkland Middle School for Aerospace Technology. Here is the Grade 5 letter explaining this year's process. For more information visit MCPS Middle School Magnet Consortium.

The Grade 3 Central Review process looks at school system performance data. Students whose data indicate a need for enriched and accelerated reading language arts instruction will be centrally recommended for enriched literacy instruction at their local school and placed in the candidate pool for CES. It is not necessary to submit an application. The central review process will occur in March 2025. Multiple criteria will be used to identify students for the candidate pool. To find out more about this process, please read the full letter here. Please note that this central review process is separate from the GT identification process.

As the weather grows colder, we are collecting donations of gently used coats, jackets, scarves, hats, and gloves to support our school community. If you have any winter items in good condition that you no longer need, please consider donating them to help students and families who may be in need of warm clothing this winter season.

Donations can be dropped off in the main office or if your child brings items to school, they can drop them off in Ms. Schechter's office (Room 46).

If you or your family is in need of a coat or other winter items, please reach out to Rachel Schechter at rachel_j_schechter@mcpsmd.org , Veronica Gonzalez at Veronica_Gonzalez@mcpsmd.org or your child's classroom teacher.

Thank you for your support!

Please contact Mrs. Gonzalez with questions, needs, or ideas at 240-740-4620 (office), 240-550-3254 (cell), veronica_gonzalez@mcpsmd.org (email).