The Chameleon Connection: RISE

Our Chameleons are fortunate to have PreK-4 teams of caring and skilled teachers who work together, collaborate, and plan for students to thrive!!! Thank you, Kdgn team: Ms. J. Berry, Ms. E. Kremmel, Ms. S. Duvall, Mr. K. Bowman!!! AWESOME!

We want our children to come to school, ready to learn every day! Our students must all follow their teachers' explicit morning routine, which sets the tone for learning and creates a clear framework for success. Students follow their teacher's expectations/routine--- including eating breakfast, putting their belongings away, and completing a morning task before the first recess of the day at 7:40-7:55! Research is clear on when we get our bodies' energy right, our minds can concentrate better! Plus, there are social benefits for students, too!

EXTENDED WALK ZONE (Dismissal): Note the 3 locations: A, B, C as our Chameleon Convoy will walk safely, being escorted by school personnel to each of these street designations for the GQES extended walk zone. Please greet your child at those locations and avoid interfering with our line,to maintain safety. That means, for example: DO NOT try to get your child from location B out of line before the line moves to location B. BE PATIENT and COOPERATIVE. Safety first.

Locations: A(Whitlock/Kent), B (Whitlock/S. Loudoun), C (S. Loudoun/Southwerk). See map above!0-

*Location B has nearly 60 or so students going to that spot.

HUGELY IMPORTANT: Any and all parents/guardians who pick up students, specifically at location B need to be present and find their child if in kindergarten, when the child in kindergarten crosses the street to go home. Children often follow a group of other students who are walking, so parents', it's your responsibility to meet your child offsite from the school at the extended walk zones. If you wish to change and come into school to sign your child out daily, call us at 540-662-3575. Thank you!

Students are working right up to the last minute of the day----as we are maximizing all the available minutes we have daily, to help students learn, grow, progress, and thrive!!!

GQES Vision: Thriving Literacy Community in a STEM School

GQES Mission: Chameleons RISE (Raising Intentionality by Strengthening Expectations)

GQES Belief: Chameleons Got HOPE!

Week 2: 8/19/24-8/13/24

Dear GQES Families,

Thank you for helping us complete a successful first week of the 2024-2025 school year, in spite of the challenges from our division transportation's office with issues on day one. Rest assured, many efforts are being done to alleviate any transporation issues.

We appreciate you cooperating with us to make sure your child is at school, on time, and ready to learn every day! As you know, we have a new morning routine in place for every classroom K-4, whereby the children come in, eat their breakfast in the classroom, complete a small task, and then, head outside the first recess of the day at 8:40-8:55. We are attempting to maximize every minute we have with students including before school starts, to help them learn, grow, and thrive! Just a reminder:

• Official Start Time: The school day officially begins at 7:50 a.m.
• Official End Time: The school day officially ends at 2:30pm
• Arrival: Students are encouraged to arrive at school between 7:20 and 7:40 a.m.
• Dismissal: Students are to be picked up between 2:30 and 2:40 pm(signed out students whose parents come to school may line up at 2:20pm; not before; with A-L last names on one side of the awning and last names M-Z on the other side of the awning.). This is a supervised process daily.
• Check-In and Classroom Routine: Upon arrival, all students (K-4) will check in with their teacher and begin their classroom routine, which includes organizing students' belongings and completing a small task while eating breakfast (if they choose to eat breakfast at school) to help them transition into the school day.
• First Recess: From 7:40 to 7:55 a.m., K-4 students will have their first recess of the day, allowing them to engage in physical activity and socialize with their peers before classes begin.

This routine is designed to help students start their day in a calm, organized manner, setting a positive tone for learning. We appreciate your support in ensuring that your child arrives on time and is ready to participate. Our GQES staff will supervise the morning arrival and first recess to ensure safety. With the passing of the Virginia Literacy Act Law: VA Literacy Act it is imperative that we use every minute to help our students learn to read and thrive!!!

One other routine to help your child is making sure they know their 5-digit code to key in at lunch. We intend to start having students in grades K-4 start keying in their 5-digit codes for breakfast in addition to lunch, over the next 3 weeks. Thank you in advance for helping them learn their 5-digit code.

It has gone well with our parents as car drivers who are TURNING RIGHT ONLY out of our parking lot, from 7:20-7:50am in the morning, at arrival. This avoids long lines, rushed drivers, or adults' road rage while we focus on KEEPING OUR STUDENTS and STAFF SAFE. Due to the crosswalk on Southwark, we are strongly encouraging car drivers to turn RIGHT out of our parking lot. Parents can travel up one block onto Kent Street and go left, right, straight, etc. without any hesitation..

We appreciate the over 200 families who have gotten their online registration process completed. ALL parents/guardians, who have new or returning students at our school, must call our school's registrar: Ms. Tiffany Saville in order for them to obtain a parent access ID and password/key to set up the web-based parent portal. There are important signature forms in that parent portal that need to be signed. Please attend to this important notice, so your child has access to all the WPS materials, devices, etc.

Since week one is completed, we know and expect every parent to know their child's teacher and to stay in contact with the classroom teacher. This way, good communication will prevail.

Thank you for your cooperation and partnership in your child’s education. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to contact us at 540-662-3575. Thank you for partnering with us to help your child thrive! 2024-2025 will be a great year!!!

Sincerely,

Joanie Hovatter

Principal, Garland R. Quarles Elementary School

(540) 662-3575 (Phone)

(540) 662-8449 (Fax)

These littles are following the procedures for 'Signed Out Students' in the gym. Students sit under their letter for their last name until their parent/guardian comes in and 'signs them out'. This is safe, effective, and monitored so everyone gets home safely! This is a good routine!!!

We love our Chameleons smiling faces, listening ears, helpful hands, respecting boundaries, and doing their best in all learning tasks!!!

Parent/Student Handbook 2024-2025

Jonathan Haidt, author of The Anxious Generation writes, A "phone-based" childhood causes "social deprivation, sleep deprivation, attention fragmentation and addiction," Haidt writes. A "play-based" childhood is essential for developing physical and social skills, like conflict resolution.Mar 22, 2024

ELA (Reading) and Math Supports for Parents to Help Students

Then, click on GQES's icon for the lunch menu. The menu is now interactive----you can discover hover your cursor over the food item and you will see nutrition information.

Sometimes, buses or routes can change. Always, verify with our front office for any transportation questions. Thank you!