The TIGER Times

Dear Lewistown Families,

Together with our teachers and staff, I want to welcome our students and school community back to Lewistown Elementary School! I hope all of our families had a fun summer where great experiences were had and lasting memories made. We are grateful to our amazing custodial staff as they worked all summer getting our school in pristine shape. Our front office secretary, Ms. Kari Shipe, is continuing to work hard to ensure a continued smooth start for staff, students, and families.

Lewistown Elementary welcomed our students back this past week with full excitement! Our school will be stronger with the support of its community, strong PTA, community partnerships & family involvement. We invite you to take advantage of the opportunities to support our students’ learning and experiences.

A few new updates to share:

• Breakfast is free for every student! Breakfast is served in classrooms this year.
• FCPS Code of Conduct- The goal of this document is to ensure all students, staff, and families have a clear understanding of FCPS commitment, how we will respond when challenges arise, and how our support is clear and consistent across all schools. Please also review FCPS Expectations. Paper copies are available in the front office per request.
• We recently received a new .5 position to help support our Grade 1/ Grade 2 classroom in ELA this year! We'd like to welcome Ms. Gottlieb to LES!
• Lewistown is excited to welcome a new Behavior Support Specialist position. Please welcome Ms. Cody to Lewistown.
• Ms. Musselman is our new school counselor! She has made many friends with our students already! Reach out if you or your student need guidance support!
• FCPS Calendars are on their way! Each family will receive only 1 calendar this year.
• As a Catoctin feeder, we continue our commitment to attendance knowing that being at school each day opens opportunities for our students. We appreciate your support in establishing positive attendance habits at home and reinforcing the importance of coming to school on time each day.

Thank Yous from our Lewistown Staff:

• Thank you to our Lewistown Ruritan Club & Playground Specialists for repairing our picnic tables, student bus bench & a fresh coat of paint in the front of our school!
• Thank you to the Lewistown United Methodist Church for a lovely welcome back to school luncheon for staff!! We love this tradition!
• Thank you to Kountry Kitchen for donating a fruit bowl for staff breakfast!
• Thank you to our Lewistown PTA & families for providing lunch for our staff on their first day of school!!!

I am excited to partner with you for another year at Lewistown Elementary School! Let's make this year the best yet!

Yours in education,

Mrs. Belinda Fockler

Principal, Lewistown Elementary School

#TeamLES @ LESFCPS

Attendance= Opportunities

Monday, Aug. 28- Friday, Sept. 1- Lewistown Safety Week!

Team LES will be practicing our safety drills including fire drill, hold, lockdown, ADD, secure, shelter, evacuate this week!

Tuesday, August 29- PICTURE DAY!!

Please email your child's teacher if you did not receive your picture day form

Monday, September 4- Labor Day, schools closed

Friday, September 22- Fair Day, 3.5 hour early dismissal, mid term

Monday, September 25- Yom Kippur, schools closed

FCPS 2023- 2024 Calendar Handbook

Our PTA would like to plan our BACK TO SCHOOL Carnival, but they are still looking for officers and family assistance!

If you'd like to volunteer to support our school, please contact Nicky French ASAP at: nickyfrench1125@yahoo.com

Please donate Staff Lounge Treats. All proceeds go towards our PTA funds:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040d49a9aa2dabf85-fill#/

Happy Back to School Season! 🍎💼

We believe every child deserves the right supplies to succeed, and food is an essential school supply. It's not just about textbooks and pencils; it's about nourishing young minds and bodies on weekdays and weekends. That's where Blessings in a Backpack comes in. They feed children on the weekend right here in our school that would otherwise go hungry.

How can you help? Learn more about Blessings in a Backpack by visiting their website. Every donation of time or money will go towards providing weekend nourishment to local kids, ensuring they have the fuel they need to learn, grow, and thrive. https://frederick.blessingsinabackpack.org/

We Need YOU!

It takes a village to raise a child and Lewistown Elementary needs you! Do have some extra time or a talent you would like to share with the school? We will train you about being a FCPS volunteer and help you along the way to serving as a volunteer at Lewistown Elementary.

Please contact our School Counselor, Joan Musselman at joan.musselman@fcps.org

Schoology Resources

• FCPS Schoology Page for Students and Families
• FCPS Schoology YouTube Channel
• FCPS Schoology Troubleshooting Guide
• How To View Grades in Schoology

Online Bus Information

We know you may have questions about transportation, particularly during the start of the school year. Good news! Our online bus information is live! During the beginning of the school year, transportation delays can happen as everyone gets acclimated to the schedule. Once again this year, we have our FCPS Bus Status page resource, where delays are posted.

Knowing the Calendar

Questions about when schools are scheduled to be delayed or closed? We have you covered. Our FCPS Student Calendar Handbook is back this year with all the information families need. The full calendar handbook is posted online. The printed calendar handbook is slimmed down this year but still features our full calendar and important information for families.

School Meals: The Basics

What's for breakfast? What's for lunch? How do I apply for free and reduced price school meals? It's all available via our FCPS Food & Nutrition Services web site, which includes a link to our Free Mobile Menu app. We are also excited to announce that families, through LINQConnect, will be able to apply for student meal benefits, view menus, add money to student accounts, view student meal transactions, and more!

INFORMATION: Partners for Success Webinars
Attached are the upcoming Partners for Success/Infants and Toddlers events in September. Feel free to include these opportunities for families in your upcoming newsletters. Attendees need to pre-register through the links or the QR codes on the flyers.

• September Support Group 9/5/2023, 6:00-7:30 p.m. at the YMCA, 1000 N Market Street, Frederick MD
• Autism 101 presentation 9/6/2023 @ 6:00 p.m. at Hood College - Hudson Auditorium
• Caregiver self-care 9/14/2023, 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. at The Terrace Guest House
• The Basics of Trauma Webinar 9/21/2023 @ 6:00 p.m., online event
• Learning Disabilities Webinar 9/28/2023 @ 6:00 p.m., online event

FCPS is pleased to offer a new online parent portal -

Go to the parent portal at http://linqconnect.com/ where you can:

- Apply for meal benefits (FARM)

- View menus, meal prices (NO meal price increases from last year!) and a la carte prices

- Add money to student accounts (NO FEES SY'24!)

- Transfer funds between students

- View student meal transactions

- Set low-balance notifications

Meal Benefit Applications:

If your family participates in an assistance program, please verify your student(s) meal benefit status with the FNS Office prior to completing an application.

Online application in the LINQ Connect Parent Portal -

Select Start Meal Application

Click on District and enter "Frederick" to see district list.

Select Frederick County Public Schools (MD) to begin the application.

Student Meal Accounts: FCPS is no longer using MySchoolBucks.

Meal account balances from last school year are now on LINQ Connect.

REGISTER for a LINQ Connect account to see your student(s) balance that will be available to use when school starts on August 23rd. You will then be able to add money, set notifications, view students purchases and more.

The Lewistown Elementary School Learning Community will strive to promote academic success in order to reach our full potential and strengthen our future. Everyone’s unique qualities will be celebrated and valued, and together we will Learn, Excel, and Succeed!

To report child's absence: LEW.Attendance@fcps.org

Mrs. Belinda Fockler- Principal

Ms. Adrienne Mayonado - Special Education Coordinator

Ms. Kari Shipe- Secretary

Ms. Joan Musselman- School Counselor

Email: belinda.fockler@fcps.org
Website: https://education.fcps.org/les/home
Location: 11119 Hessong Bridge Road Thurmont, MD 21788
Phone: 240-236-3750
Twitter: @LESFCPS