Dear GJPS families,

During the 2024-25 school year, students in kindergarten through 10th grade will take the NWEA Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Assessment in the areas of reading and mathematics. The MAP assessment measures student achievement and academic growth over time. It also compares student, class and grade level performance with other students’ performance across the country.

The MAP Assessment is web-based and adaptive to measure your child’s instructional level. The results from the MAP Assessment are one data set that help to provide a more complete picture of what your child knows and is ready to learn, helping staff to better plan instruction to meet their needs.

The MAP Assessment will be given up to three times this year depending on the grade level. Your building principal will share the specific dates for your building before testing begins. Following each testing window, you will receive a report showing your student’s performance and growth.

For more information about MAP Assessments, check out the Family Guide to MAP and the NWEA Family Toolkit. If you have questions, please contact your student’s teacher or building principal

Sincerely,

Tia P. Holliman

Director of Curriculum

Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools

*Please note: Kindergarten will take the Acadience Screener starting next week, while grades 1-5 will take MAP. Kindergarten will take MAP starting in January.

Thank you for your patience with arrival and dismissal. Thursday was our first day with all the Kindergarteners which caused more traffic. Please keep in mind:

• When dropping off and picking up along the curb, all students must exit and enter from the right side of the car to the curb.
• If your child is unable to buckle themselves in, please pull through the line and park in the lot to assist them with this. This will help the line to continue to flow.

KINDERGARTEN PARENTS: Starting Monday, students will be asked to walk to class without the help of parents. We will have staff and student leaders ready to assist them to their class.

You can find almost anything you need on the Gahanna School Website at https://www.gahannaschools.org.

• Infinite Campus: Please log-in to the parent portal and update all Emergency Medical Forms, make sure all contact information is current, apply money to lunch accounts, and more! DIRECTIONS
• Bus Information: find your student's bus route, contact information, and download the bus app.
• District Calendar
• High Point Events Calendar
• Free and Reduced Lunch Applications: To apply for free or reduced lunch prices, please visit this site for more information. If you need assistance please contact Missy George at georgeme@gjps.org.
  
• Volunteer Application-If you are interested in volunteering at High Point this year, please fill out the an application. More information can be found here.

SNACKS: We will not be able to provide snacks for students. If your child needs a snack, they may bring something from home or eat something leftover from breakfast.

If you use Google Calendar, feel free to add our public calendar to your device by using this link.

MONTHLY MEETINGS: PTA Meetings are the second Tuesday of the month at 6:30pm in the High Point Library starting September 3rd (date was changed). This is a great way to get involved and meet families, we would love to see you there!

At High Point Elementary, we believe that learning extends beyond the classroom, and we highly encourage students to engage in meaningful educational activities at home. However, if students are not able to complete work at home, there will not be ramifications at school. If you choose to extend your child's learning at home, here are some options:

• Reading: Students should aim to read for at least 20 minutes each evening. This fosters a love for reading and enhances literacy skills.

• Lexia & DreamBox: These online platforms provide personalized learning experiences in reading and math, supporting your child's growth in these critical areas. These platforms can be accessed through Parent Classlink Letter

• Parent Resources: Teachers may also provide additional resources and assignments tailored to your child’s needs aligned with the curriculum, which can be used to further reinforce classroom learning.

NOTE: Occasionally, students may be asked to finish work from school or complete a project or parts of it at home. These projects and assignments are designed to be engaging and to deepen their understanding of the topics covered in class. Your support in helping students manage these tasks is greatly appreciated.

If you have any questions about what comes home with your student, please reach out to your child's teacher.

To report an absence, please call the front office at 614-478-5545 or email CarrC@gjps.org by 8:30am if possible.

Pursuant to House Bill 410, student attendance is now calculated in hours. This includes absences that have been identified as both excused and unexcused by the school, as well as planned absences. Being late or tardy to school does calculate into the total hours absent.

In an effort to encourage regular, on-time attendance and avoid habitual truancy, families are encouraged to:

• Make getting to school on time every day a high priority.

• Discuss the importance of regular school attendance and the negative impacts of excessive absences.

• Create a safe space for students to discuss what is keeping them from school.

• Develop a backup plan for getting your student to school when transportation challenges, illness, or other challenges arise.

• Schedule vacations during a time when school is not in session.

• Monitor your student’s attendance records to identify any disruptions or patterns of change.

• Contact your student’s school to discuss preventative services and supports available to promote regular attendance.

PLANNED ABSENCES (Such as vacation): The time missed will be counted as an authorized, unexcused absence but shall not be a factor in determining grades unless the make-up work is not completed. Students who are absent 38 hours in a month or 65 hours in a school year with or without legitimate excuse are now considered Excessively Absent. These students will receive a letter from the District and will be required to follow the District Truancy Plan.These hours include approved planned absences. Planned absences will not be approved if your child has already met or will meet (based on this request) the absence threshold for Excessive Absence and/or Habitual Truancy.

If you have a planned absence, please fill out this form and send it in to the office. For more information or questions, please visit the GJPS website.

Do you know a staff member who you feel makes a profound impact on students and Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools? If so, nominate them for the GJPS Heart and Pride award. This award is open to any staff member. regardless of position. Each month, the district will take the nominations to the Heart and Pride Committee, which is composed of community members and former staff members. The committee will select two winners a month that will be recognized by our Board of Education at the monthly meeting. If you have a staff member in mind, please complete THIS GOOGLE FORM. Nominations can take place all year.

2024-25 Menus can be found HERE.

Lunch Options this year will be:

• Hot Lunch (menu above)
• Yogurt Entree w/ Grain (Protein Plate)
  
• Turkey Sandwich
• WowButter Pocket

• Garden Salad
  

• NEW THIS YEAR: Cheese Sandwich

Lunch Payments-You may apply money on-line to your student's account. This is done on Infinite Campus. Click HERE for directions.

PIN Numbers Will Be Used-students will need to know their student ID number to access their lunch accounts in the cafeteria. ID numbers can be found on Infinite Campus under your child's profile. Please help them start to memorize this number prior to school starting. Teachers and staff will assist students for the first couple of weeks.

4th and 5th Graders ONLY: Students in grades 4-5 will be able to purchase extra snack items to accompany their lunch as needed. Students must have money on their account to purchase these items separately.

Free and Reduced Lunch Applications: To apply for free or reduced lunch prices, please visit this site for more information. If you need assistance please contact Missy George at georgeme@gjps.org.

Lunch Menu: Monthly rotating calendar attached below as a PDF.

*New Front Door Check In Procedure: There are new procedures for coming in the front office during school hours. Visitors will need to ring the bell on the outside doors, wait for the secretary to unlock the door, then come into the "lobby" area. In the lobby area will be a place for you to insert your driver's license. Once the driver's license has been read, the secretary will let you into the office. If you are simply dropping off or picking up something in the office area only, you may not have to run your driver's license each time.

PLEASE BE PATIENT AND UNDERSTANDING, THIS WILL TAKE A BIT A LONGER AND WE ARE LEARNING TOO!

We are excited to be implementing new Math and ELA Curriculum as district this year in the Elementaries. Our teachers have gone through training last year and this summer to begin the year. With anything new, there is a learning curve and teachers will continue to learn as they dive in this year. Teachers will be sharing information throughout the year on what your student will be learning and more.

Below are the sites for families resources for both if you are interested in learning more:

BRIDGES MATH

WIT AND WISDOM

The elementary Chinese Enrichment Program is now accepting registrations for the 2024-2025 school year. This program is open to all students in grades 2 through 5 with classes taking place before or after school. Please visit our website for more details. Registration will be accepted online now through August 30, 2024.

As a district, we use the Talking Points platform to communicate via text. You can download the app on your phone to receive quick messages as needed.

Sept. 2, 2024: Labor Day - No School