Falcon's Nest

Happy October! As the leaves begin to change and cooler weather arrives, we are excited about all the wonderful learning experiences and activities planned for this month. I wanted to take a moment to update you on some important events and initiatives happening at our school.

First and foremost, I’d like to thank our families for your continued support as we transitioned into the school year. The first few months have been filled with excitement and adjustments. I am so proud of the hard work, enthusiasm, and flexibility our students have shown. They have adjusted well to their classrooms and routines, and it’s clear that this year will be full of growth and success.

We have several exciting events this month, so please mark your calendars:

• Fall Break (October 10-14): Alcova will close to allow students and staff to enjoy a holiday break.

• Parent Workshop (October 16th): Parent workshop on homework

• District Assessments (October 16th-18th): Students in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades will participate in math, science, and social studies district assessments. This is an opportunity for teachers to monitor progress toward mastery of the standards taught in the first quarter.

• Parent-Teacher Conferences (October 21st-25th): This is a great opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher, discuss their progress, and learn about how we can work together to make a positive educational IMPACT. You can visit our school website today and sign up for a conference time. Teachers will host in-person or virtual conferences to support the diverse needs of our families.

• Trunk or Treat/Movie on the Lawn (October 25th): Our PTA is bringing back Trunk or Treat and adding a Movie on the Lawn. This is PTA’s premier fall community event. Please see the flyer below to learn how you can support and attend.

• Red Ribbon Week (October 28-November 1): The Student Council will lead a week of activities to highlight the importance of living a drug-free life.

Thank you again for all you do to support our school community. Together, we are creating a strong and positive environment for our students to thrive.

Picture Day has been rescheduled for October 9th.

Link to preorder Fall Pictures.

https://bpiphotography.net/view-order-photos/

Lost & Found items will be cleaned out over Fall break.

Please click on the link below to sign up for Parent-Teacher conferences.

​https://www.ptcfast.com/schools/Alcova

• Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) invites all members of the community to come “Book it for the Bus” on Saturday, November 2, 2024, at the J. Alvin Wilbanks Instructional Support Center (ISC). This Book Mobile 5K and Fun Run will raise funds to purchase new books for the Book Mobile program, putting books in students’ hands.
• The Book Mobile 5K raises funds to put books in kids' hands. Our goal is to promote the love of reading for all.

• Join us for a fantastic morning full of music, door prizes, awards, snacks and of course, the run.

• End of race raffle prizes for 5K runners only.
• Chick-fil-A will sell biscuits and juice at the 5K for $5 with proceeds benefitting the Book Mobile program.
• Leashed dogs and strollers are welcome!

https://www.bookmobile5k.com/Race/Register/?raceId=154591

On Friday's students can purchase ice cream at the beginning of lunch for $1 exact cash.

Please remember school hours are from 8:15 am -2:45 pm. Students may enter at 7:45 am and car riders will begin dismissal at 2:40 pm. Announcements will begin at 8:10 am, so instruction may start promptly at 8:15 am. Students are encouraged to ride the bus daily to ensure a timely arrival to school. Thanks in advance for getting your children here on time and ready to learn.

We will continue to use Parent Square this school year for weekly school and district communication, individual messages with staff, and school-wide alerts. We encourage everyone to download the app and reflect on how and when you would like to receive Parent Square messages. You can customize your notifications in the settings.

Parents/guardians will visit Parent Square to sign off on required orientation agreements and Title I Plan & Promise for all students. Documents for the 24-25 school will be available in the app starting July 22.

Please login to your ParentVUE account (this is the same account used to register your child). This website/app will contain important information all year long.

Beginning July 31st you will be able to log on to ParentVUE, select your student and click 'Class Schedule', then choose 'First Semester' to view your child's 24-25 school year teachers. While you are there, select 'Student Info' to view bus route information and update any contacts and phone numbers.

NOTE: In March 2024, GCPS consolidated the Parent Portal and ParentVUE. If you have not done so already, you must reset your ParentVUE password by clicking 'forgot password'. Please continue to use your email as your username.

*** Please DO NOT create a new ParentVUE account. Visit the district website for detailed information on how to manage your current account.

• All information about the ParentVUE - https://www.gcpsk12.org/Page/26854

We will use MyPayments Plus this year for parents to add money to their child's lunch account, pay for field trips, club fees, order birthday wishes, and more. Parents can make annual contributions towards the clinic, PBIS, our All Pro Dads club, and more. Click below to access the MyPayments plus website and create your account. You will need your child's student number to create an account. You can access your child's student number and more via Parent Vue.

New Smart Snack Compliant Ala Carte items to include:

• Lay’s Baked Potato Crisps
• Doritos Reduced Fat Tortilla Chips
• Whole Grain-Rich Rice Krispies Treats
• Angie’s Boom Chick a Pop Kettle Corn
• Welch’s Fruit Snacks

These items are Ala Carte for $1.00

https://sfnd.io/alcovabirthday

https://www.mypaymentsplus.com/welcome

Don't forget to follow us on Social Media. See what exciting things are going on at Alcova.

Follow us on Facebook!

Follow us on Instagram!

Alcova Elementary School PTA | Facebook

Alcova PTA Instagram- @AlcovaPTA

Each day we strive to dismiss students with a safe organized process to ultimately ensure the safety of each student. In order to keep our procedures accurate and maintain appropriate processes to ensure the safe release of our students, all check outs in the front office must be completed before 2:15pm and all transportation changes must be made in writing with the front office by the parent by 1:00pm. Thank you for helping us keep our students safe.

Safety Procedures

Alcova is committed to ensuring its schools are safe. We take a very proactive approach to ensuring the safety of students, staff members, and campus visitors. We would like to share information with you about our district safety procedures that are implemented at Alcova.

https://www.gcpsk12.org/Page/24293

Parents,

Teachers are engaged with their students and have limited access to emails and Parent Square throughout the day. If you have an emergency transportation change request, you must email 978.transportation@gcpsk12.org to process the change. Please use this email only for "day of" emergency changes, where you did not send a note in with your student. Change requests must be received no later than 1:30 pm to guarantee the change request will be processed.

Just a Reminder: The Car Rider Lane will close at 8:15 am. All students arriving after 8:15, must check in at the front office with the parent. Please do not drop your child off if the doors are closed.