Greetings EES Families,

Happy November! We hope you had some time this weekend to enjoy the weather with your family and friends.

There are several important activities going on this week that we would like to keep you aware of:

Math Night:

Our teachers have done a wonderful job of preparing for Math Night, which is this Thursday, November 7, 2024. Our evening will begin at 6:30 in the cafeteria. See below for more information. Please join us!

November Conferences & Report Cards:

We are pleased to inform you about the upcoming distribution of student report cards and our scheduled family conferences.

Report Cards for Quarter 1:

Report Cards: Student report cards will be available for parent view after 4:00 PM on November 8th. Directions on how to access report cards through HCPSS Connect can be found HERE along with report card templates and documents to help you better understand student report cards. The Parent CANVAS Course is also linked to provide you with any additional information you may need to access and understand student report cards. Just a reminder that Related Arts Teachers report grades by semester. Therefore your student will not be receiving grades in those classes for the first quarter.

Report Card Changes: Standards Based Instruction and Reporting (SBIR) Grades 3-5:

The Standards Based Instruction and Reporting Family and Community Resources Canvas course provides important information about SBIR. This includes documents to assist in Understanding Your Child's Report Card.

Academic Performance Codes represent what has been learned - where the student is in relation to the expectation of the grade level standard. It is intended to reflect the progress toward meeting the Maryland College and Career Readiness Standards for their current grade level.

For students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), detailed progress toward IEP goals is provided in the Annual Goal(s) Progress Report that is sent at the same time as the HCPSS report card. A student’s IEP goals address the identified skills that support their progress toward meeting grade level standards.

Additional information can be found at the Elementary Standards Based Instruction and Reporting parent page.

Parent Teacher Conferences:

Parent teacher conferences will be held in person on Monday, November 25th. Teachers will hold all conferences in person and parents may only attend their scheduled conferences in person. Conferences will be held virtually only on Tuesday, November 26th and Wednesday, November 27th. During this conference window you will be meeting with your child’s Language Arts teacher (Grades K-2) and AM Teacher (Grades 3-5). These conferences offer an excellent opportunity to discuss student progress, learn about their school day and address any questions you may have.

Beginning Monday, November 8th at 8:00 am, you can log into HCPSS Connect to view and select from the time slots provided by the teacher on the days identified above. If you do not have access to HCPSS Connect, please call the school for assistance at 410-313-5006. You will have access through Thursday, November 21th at 4:00 pm to schedule your child’s conference.

Each Related Arts teacher will have a limited number of conference times available if you have a specific concern regarding your child’s progress. In addition, each related arts teacher will provide open office hours if you have any general questions or concerns about their specific instructional area. These times can be found here.

Directions to Select a Conference Time:

Login to hcpss.org/connect

Select Conference

Select a time slot for your conference.

Quick Timeline:

• November 8 Report Cards Issued

• November 8: Scheduling will open to everyone at all schools at 8:00 am

• November 21: Scheduling is closed for parents/guardians at 4:00 pm

• November 25: In-Person Conferences

• November 26-27: Virtual Conferences

Please contact your child’s teacher or the front office if you have any questions or need assistance.

As a final reminder, schools are closed for students and staff on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Kelley Powell, Principal

LaShonne Wright, Assistant Principal

Jonathan Swann, Assistant Principal

The EES Math Committee has been working hard to create engaging activities for the EES community. Please mark your calendars for MATH NIGHT on Thursday, November 7th from 6:00- 7:30 pm. MATH NIGHT will begin with a presentation for families to learn about the various resources that are available through the HCPSS site and canvas. You will learn where to find the curriculum as well as where to find supporting resources to use at home. The second part of MATH NIGHT will allow parents and their children to participate in hands on math-based activities focused on primary and intermediate math skills. We hope you will be able to join us for a marvelous math night!

November is American Education Month. To celebrate, the Elkridge Elementary staff is inviting parents to volunteer to read to their child’s class during the month. Each grade level will have 1 guest reader per English Language Arts class on a different day during three weeks in November. We ask that you bring your own favorite children's book to read to your child's class. There are limited slots, but we will be looking for more guest readers in March. If you are interested in being a guest reader in your child’s class, please select your child’s grade level link below to sign-up. Before you come in on your chosen day, please complete the Volunteer training and bring in your training certificate on the day you are guest reading.

• Pre-K: Guest Reader Signup

• Kindergarten: Guest Reader Signup

• 1st Grade: Guest Reader Signup

• 2nd Grade: Guest Reader Signup

• 3rd Grade: Guest Reader Signup

• 4th Grade: Guest Reader Signup

• 5th Grade: Guest Reader Signup

Young Author's Contest:

Calling all writers! The Howard County Literacy Association invites students in grades 1 - 5 to submit their original poems and/or short stories to the annual writing contest called The Young Authors' Contest (YAC).

Please see the attached Young Authors’ Contest Guidelines for information about the rules and guidelines. All entries must have a completed YAC Cover Sheet sent as a PDF. Submissions may be emailed to Katelyn_Barr@hcpss.org by December 20, 2024. Contact Katelyn Barr with any questions. All Young Authors’ Contest information can be found on the HCLA website.

Howard County Literacy Association welcomes parents as members. Visit the HCLA Welcome Page for information about joining!

📚 Book Donations Needed for Literacy Events!📚

We're collecting new or gently used books to support our upcoming literacy events, including our exciting Reading Night in April! If you have books to donate, please drop them off at school in bags or boxes labeled with either Mrs. Cooke or Mrs. Barr's name. Your generous contributions will help foster a love for reading in our community. Thank you for your support! 📖✨

The EES Instructional Technology teachers are excited to announce that Elkridge ES will again be participating in Hour of Code. If you have a career in coding or computer science and interested in speaking to our students about your career (in person or virtual) one day during the week of December 9 please consider completing the Hour of Code 2024 Presenter Interest Form.

Deadline for submissions is Friday, November 29.

https://forms.gle/fZszx5i7To81uCdU8

We thoroughly enjoy when parents come in to enjoy lunch with their child. We ask that you remember the following when visiting:

1. Before entering the cafeteria, please sign in at the front office to obtain a visitors pass.
   
   
2. Food may not be shared with other students in the cafeteria. Food that is brought in from outside sources (fast food lunch, cupcakes, etc. etc.) cannot be guaranteed to be allergen free. Therefore, to protect students, any food that is brought into the cafeteria may only be shared with the child you are visiting.
   
   
3. When dining with your child, please sit at a table that is either empty, or that has a few students at it.

As a general reminder for our students who sit at the allergy table, it is important that the same student(s) should sit at this table everyday. If two friends are going to sit at the table with a friend who has a peanut allergy, it should be the same students. If one student brings lunch that day they will not be able to sit at the allergy/peanut table that day.

If you have concerns about your child's development - whether it's their speech, motor skills, social skills or learning - it's important to act now. Waiting until the summer for a referral can delay crucial support that your child may need before starting kindergarten.

Contact us today to schedule a screening. Let's work together to ensure your child has the best possible start in kindergarten!

Call 410-313-7046 or email ChildFind@hcpss.org