The Elkster
October 14, 2024
Greetings EES Families,
We hope you had an excellent weekend with family and friends. As we move into the fall and winter months, please ensure that your child's cold weather gear is labeled with their name. We have a lot of gear that is in the lost and found. Please check with your child to see if they are missing any gear they may need in the coming weeks. Additionally, we have a lot of updates in this newsletter, so please take some time to go through the following information carefully.
Flu Shots:
Each year, the Howard County Public School System partners with the Maryland Partnership for Prevention to bring flu immunizations into our schools for students. This year, the latest Covid vaccine will also be offered if it is available at the time of the clinic. The clinic at Elkridge Elementary School will be held on Friday, November 1st during school hours. If you would like your child to be vaccinated against the flu and/or Covid at this clinic, please register at this link by October 16th:
https://www.marylandvax.org/appointment/en/reg/2569790321
You are not required to provide your child’s insurance information. If you have any concerns about the new Covid vaccine, you are advised to speak with your child’s pediatrician. All in-school clinics will be closed to registration after Wednesday, October 16th to allow our health room staff time to review and prepare the consents and make sure enough vaccines are ordered. If you wish to cancel your child’s appointment after then, please call the nurse at your child’s school. If you have any questions, please call your school’s health room at 410-313-8506.
Battle of the Books:
The Howard County Library System and Howard County Public School System are excited to bring you a Battle of the Books event for 2025.
Battle of the Books is an incredible reading opportunity available to all Howard County 5th grade students. All you need is an adult coach and a team of three to five 5th grade students. The students will read 10 pre-determined books and compete at Merriweather Post Pavilion in April.
Registration starts at 10am on October 14th. If your student is interested, please register your team using the link below. If your student is looking to join a team, please email Ms. Cliff at nina_cliff@hcpss.org.
Battle of the Books website: https://hclibrary.org/battle-of-the-books/
Picture Day:
Picture Day is Thursday, October 17, 2024. You can place your order on mylifetouch.com using your Picture Day ID: EVT2SSM8Z.
Order before midnight on Picture Day to get FREE shipping!
Your child can also bring their completed flyer with cash or check on Picture Day.
Please see the calendar of events for additional information.
Report Cards:
Report cards will be available in Synergy on Friday, November 8, 2024. As a reminder to parents of 3rd - 5th grade students, the report cards will be based on the updated Standards Based Instructional Reporting (SBIR) format. Below is additional information that will explain what the updated 3rd - 5th Grade report card will look like. Additional information can be found at the Elementary Standards Based Instruction and Reporting parent page.
November Parent / Teacher Conferences:
November conferences are quickly approaching. This year, conferences will be organized a bit differently:
K-2nd Grade - ELA Teacher
3rd - 5th Grade - AM Teacher
The conference schedule opens up on November 8, 2024 at 8:00 am. At that time, please log in through your parent portal account to schedule a conference. The conference schedule is open through Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 4:00 PM.
Monday, November 25, 2024: In-Person Conferences only
Tuesday, November 26, 2024: Virtual Conferences only
Wednesday, November 27, 2024: Virtual Conferences only
Bullying Prevention:
October is National Bullying Prevention Month! We are spending time this month and throughout the year reminding our staff and students about the importance of preventing and reporting bullying. The role of our parents, guardians, and families is essential in addressing this issue with our students. StopBullying.gov has many great resources for adults and children related to preventing and responding to bullying. Please remember to reach out to your child’s administrator or counseling if you’d like to discuss anything further, and any acts of bullying can be reported through this form Report an Instance of Bullying, Harassment, or Intimidation | Stop Bullying | Howard County Public Schools (hcpss.org). Thank you for being our partners in this important work!
Celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month:
Hispanic heritage month ends this week on October 15. At Elkridge we are closing it out by celebrating singer, song writer, actress and businesswoman Gloria Estafan and human rights activist Rigoberta Menchu. Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-American singer. She was in the Spanish-language band Miami Sound Machine. Rigoberta Menchu is a Guatemalan indigenous woman known for fighting for women’s rights. She received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992. We continue to honor and celebrate all the contributions of those with Hispanic heritage.
PTA Fall Festival:
The PTA is getting ready for the Fall Festival. This awesome event will take place on Friday, October 25, 2024 from 6:00 - 8:00 PM. Please see the PTA Newsletter for additional information!
Car Loop:
Please be sure not to have any cell phones in your hands as you move through the car loop, as this is against the law. Moving through the car loop, it is important to stay alert to the staff members guiding you safely in and out of the school in the morning and afternoon. Please support our staff and students by ensuring that we are refraining from using cell phones while driving on campus. Several staff members have almost been hit by cars with distracted driving on campus. Please be aware of the motion path and movement throughout the school campus.
Recess:
We have observed students attempting to play touch football during recess. While we encourage active play and fun, we kindly ask for your support in reminding your child that football is not allowed during recess for safety reasons. Our goal is to ensure that all students have a safe and enjoyable recess experience. Thank you for partnering with us to reinforce this important safety message. We appreciate your support in keeping recess safe for everyone.
Early Pick-up From School:
Please know that on a full day of school, the end time to pick your child up early is at 3:15 PM. Please make sure to have your ID with you when you come in to pick your child early from school.
As a final reminder, there is no school on Friday, October 18, 2024. This is a professional work day for staff.
Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Kelley Powell, Principal
LaShonne Wright, Assistant Principal
Jonathan Swann, Assistant Principal
HOT LINKS
Math Matters
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!
Literacy Corner
Phonological Awareness:
This month at Elkridge Elementary, we will be focusing on phonological awareness. Phonological awareness is the ability to hear, recognize, and play with the sounds in spoken English. Strong phonemic awareness is one of the strongest predictors of later reading success!
Throughout the month of October, teachers at Elkridge Elementary will be taking advantage of phonological awareness activities that will be posted throughout the hallways in our building. During transitions, the teachers will practice these activities with students. For example, in our 1st grade hallways, teachers will say a posted sentence and students will hold up on their hands the number of words that they hear in that sentence. In our 4th grade hallway, students will be asked to change sounds in words to make new words. Ask your child what hallway activities they have enjoyed this month.
You can find out more about phonological awareness and engaging activities that you can do at home or in the car with your child by accessing the following links.
Primary Grades: Reading Rockets Phonological Awareness
Intermediate Grades: 20 Phonemic Awareness Activities for Students
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!
School Lunch
HCPSS participates in the Free and Reduced-price Meals (FARMs) program. Qualification. is based on family size and income, and enrollment is confidential.
Participation in FARMs qualifies students for a wide range of opportunities and resources beyond breakfast and lunch, including free college applications, free or reduced JumpStart tuition, discounted internet through the Comcast Internet Essentials program, and more.
Families must submit a new application every school year by Oct. 31. During the first 30 school days, students with FARMs eligibility from the prior school year will continue to receive benefits. Any student whose family has not filled out an application by the 30th school day will have their status changed to full pay until a new application is received.
Parents/guardians are highly encouraged to fill out the applications as soon as possible. It is very important that applications are filled out accurately and completely. Families can:
- Apply Online by clicking the link below
- Apply by mail: Paper applications can be picked up in the Food and Nutrition Service Office (5451 Beaverkill Rd, Columbia, MD 21044). Applications can be returned to your child’s school or mailed to: HCPSS Food & Nutrition Service Office, 10910 Clarksville Pike, Ellicott City, MD 21042.
If you have questions regarding the program, please visit www.hcpss.org/FARMs or call Food and Nutrition Services at 410-313-6743.
Lunchtime Visits
We thoroughly enjoy when parents come in to enjoy lunch with their child. We ask that you remember the following when visiting:
- Before entering the cafeteria, please sign in at the front office to obtain a visitors pass.
- 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.
- 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.