Montgomery Elementary News
OCTOBER 9, 2020
Contact Us
Dr. Amy Debelak, Principal
Ms. Sally Ganz, Asst. Principal
Office 686-1730
Absence Line 686-1707
FAX 792-6131
School Nurse 686-1733
Cafeteria 686-1735
Transportation 686-1785
Website: http://www.sycamoreschools.org/Domain/13
Location: 9609 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati, OH, United States
Phone: 513-686-1730
Facebook: www.facebook.com/montgomeryelementaryofficial/?fref=ts
Twitter: @Montgomery_Elem
OCTOBER
23 - Virtual Family Fun Night - See Flyer Below for Details
NOVEMBER
6 - PBIS Spirit Day - Wear Blue Shirt to School
9 - Teacher Records Day - No School for Students
19 - Evening Conferences (4pm-8pm)
20 - Day Conferences (8:15am - 4:00pm) - No School for Students
23 - Evening Conferences (4pm - 8pm)
Hello Montgomery Families,
I had the pleasure of having a virtual picnic with first graders from the virtual classrooms this week. We read books, chatted, and overwhelmingly enjoyed ourselves. It was so wonderful to see and talk to them. Since we have started the 2020-21 school year, the theme of belonging has been on my mind a lot. Belonging is something people of all ages seek and need. Know that here at Montgomery Elementary we all belong regardless of the method of instruction. Our virtual and face-to-face families all belong to Montgomery and we all continue to belong to each other.
Best wishes,
Amy
Dear Families,
Hamilton County Public Health requires all close contacts to quarantine for 14 days. As a reminder, close contacts are defined as anyone who has been within 6 feet of a confirmed case for 15 minutes, with or without a mask, in a 48 hour period cumulatively.
While we have not experienced any confirmed cases yet in our building, at any time students or staff may need to quarantine based on exposure elsewhere. We know that being identified as a close contact and the effects of quarantining can elicit a range of emotions for students and their families.
In an effort to address the impact to mental health, our school counselors will begin educating students about what it means to be in quarantine using our PBIS expectations. Additionally, students will receive instruction on how to be a good friend and how to support close contact classmates during any required time away from school. It is our belief that by starting this conversation with students we can destigmatize this critical safety requirement for our students and their families.
If you have any questions or concerns about mental health services and supports in the district, please reach out to Lisa Zelvy, Pupil Services Supervisor, at 686-1700 or zelvyl@sycamoreschools.org.
PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES
ALL conferences will be held virtually, for both Virtual Classroom and Face-to Face students. Parents will receive details regarding the conferences as they get closer. Dates are as follows:
Oct. 15 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 9-12)
Nov. 19 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (K-6)
Nov. 20 (Friday) Daytime conferences (No School-K-8 only)
Nov. 23 (Monday) Evening Conferences (K-4 and 7-8)
Dec. 1 (Tuesday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 5-6 only)
March 4 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 9-12)
New Mealtime Procedures Grades K-6
How will students order meals and be served?
Students will select what they want to eat while going through the lunch line as in a typical school year.
Students will be served most of their meals by the kitchen staff. If necessary, students will grab limited pre-packaged fruits and veggies and milk to finish their meal.
How will students checkout safely?
As a reminder, all meals are free for ALL students until December 31 (or until the allotted program funds are no longer available-whichever comes first).
Students will use a lanyard with a lunch badge and scan it at our new scanners for a contactless checkout. They will not enter their numbers into pin pads as in past years.
What other safety protocols will be in place?
Physical distancing using marks on the floors will be put in place. Students will still be separated by class when coming through the lunch line.
The kitchen staff will be wearing proper PPE and face shields for added safety.
There will be extra sanitation procedures between groups going through the line.
When does pre-ordering end?
The last day you need to pre-order for your child will be Friday, October 9th. The first day for traditional meal ordering will be Monday, October 12.
How do I find out what’s for lunch at my child’s school?
Menus for October 12 and beyond can be found on the Sycamore website or by clicking here
Does this also impact students in Grades 7-12?
No, only for Grades K-6. There are no changes for meal ordering at Grades 7-12.
Kelsey Warren RD, LD
Child Nutrition & Wellness Director
Sycamore Community Schools
(513) 686-1796
twitter: @SycamoreCNS
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Lunch - What if my Child is Quarantined at Home?
If your student(s) are quarantined at home and you would like access to school meals, you can sign up for the virtual meal curbside pick up by registering here and get meals this way until you are back at school. All meals are free to ALL students until December 31st. Find out more information about pick-up times, locations, and FAQs by clicking here.
MESSER MEDIA NOTES
We are excited to announce new school resources ~ PebbleGo (grades K-3) and PebbleGo Next (grades 3-5).
These nonfiction databases will help our students learn foundational research skills as they read information rich articles. Look for additional information coming home with your child in the next few weeks. In the meantime, feel free to explore with your child by going to the following link:
Our school user name is: mtreads
Our school password is: mtaves
We are thrilled to pass along information about our October Pilot Kits pick up! For all virtual students K-4, student-specific boxes called Virtual Pilot Kits have been created with materials for their classes.
We will be hosting pick up at the Virtual Learning Commons (11120 Kenwood Road, Cincinnati, OH 45242) next week at the following days and times:
Monday, October 12 from 12pm-6pm
Tuesday, October 13 from 7:30am-1:30pm
Wednesday, October 14 from 8am-12pm
How do I sign up for pick up? Please use the link HERE to reserve your pick up time. While we anticipate the pick up process to be very quick, we want to limit the number of people coming at once for safety and social distancing.
1. Can someone else pick up my student’s box? Yes, Virtual Pilot kits may be picked up by a friend, family member, or neighbor if the parent or guardian wishes.
2. What is the procedure for pick up? The entrance to our building is at the front of the building by the road. Please come to that door. As you enter, you will have your temperature quickly taken. We have a large room - right next to the main door - where student Virtual Pilot kits will be spread out by grade and by teacher, and alphabetized by student. Student names are clearly labeled on each box. Please grab your student(s) Virtual Pilot Kit(s) and then you will exit. We will have staff available to help. All persons picking up boxes will need to be masked and practice social distancing the entire time.
3. What if none of the pick up times work for me or I am unable to pick up the Virtual Pilot Kits? Please call 513.686.1708 so that we can make arrangements with you.
We are so excited to get these Virtual Pilot Kits in the hands of our virtual learners!
Thanks!
Sign up link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c094ca8ae2baafd0-supply
Molly Teszlewicz
Virtual Classroom Administrator
Sycamore Community Schools
5959 Hagewa Drive
Cincinnati, Ohio
45242
www.sycamoreschools.org
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Would you like to be your child’s
Room Parent?
Volunteers needed!
The PTO is looking for one volunteer for each K-4 virtual classroom to serve as the room parent throughout the 2020-2021 school year.
Room parents will work directly with their teacher to determine how to best support their classroom and teacher. Some possible examples (that may or may not be applicable to your classroom) include:
- planning and facilitating virtual celebrations for Halloween, winter, etc. - sending emails to other parents in the classroom as requested by your teacher
-compiling classmates names/contact info to create a classroom directory, if classmates are interested in participating
-assist with virtual material pick up days, if possible
If you are interested in being a room parent for your K-4 virtual student, please complete the online form below by next Thursday, October 15th.
Questions? Contact Elizabeth Miller at elizabethkay2@yahoo.com. Thank you!
VIRTUAL PRINCIPAL'S PICNIC
We are thrilled to debut a special series for our virtual students grade K-4 to connect with their home school! Starting the first week of October, the building principals will meet with one grade level team each week for a Virtual Principals’ Picnic. It will allow for virtual students in grades K-4 to join a google meet with their home school principals and other familiar faces! This is optional for students. All students will get to join (during their virtual lunch time) a google meet to have a picnic lunch, chat, hang out, and spend time during lunch with their home building principals each month! There will be a separate link and a separate Virtual Principals Picnic for each of the 4 home elementary buildings. The home building principals are SO excited to see and spend time with their virtual students and can’t wait for their first picnic with them! Below are scheduled dates and links for Montgomery Elementary.
Kindergarten lunch - (1st Thursday of the month) Kindergarten - 12-12:30
Grade 1 lunch - 12-12:30 (1st Tuesday of the month)
Grade 2 lunch - 11:45 - 12:15 (2nd Tuesday of the month)
Grade 3 lunch - 12 - 12:30 (3rd Tuesday of the month)
Grade 4 lunch - 11:35 - 12:05 (4th Tuesday of the month)
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Parent/Teacher Conferences
ALL conferences will be held virtually, for both Virtual Classroom and Face-to Face students. Parents will receive details regarding the conferences as they get closer. Dates are as follows:
Oct. 15 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 9-12)
Nov. 19 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (K-6)
Nov. 20 (Friday) Daytime conferences (No School-K-8 only)
Nov. 23 (Monday) Evening Conferences (K-4 and 7-8)
Dec. 1 (Tuesday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 5-6 only)
March 4 (Thursday) Evening Conferences (Gr. 9-12)
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Virtual Meal Curbside Pick Up
Effective Wednesday, September 30th the pick-up location for all families for virtual meals is no longer at the High School. You instead will pick up at your student’s assigned school location. IF you have multiple students that attend different buildings, meals for all of your children will be available for pick up at the OLDEST child’s school. You do not need to visit multiple schools.
Pickup times below:
Blue Ash- 10:00-11:00 am
Maple Dale- 1:30-2:30 pm
Montgomery- 10:00-11:00 am
Symmes- 10:00-11:00 am
EH Greene Intermediate- 9:30-10:30 am
Junior High- 10:00-11:00 am
High School- 11:00-12:00 am
Maps for pick up locations at each school are located here. If you have not already signed up and would like to do so, please sign up here. Please note, the cutoff each week to sign up is Sunday at Midnight.
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Free and Reduced Forms for Virtual Families and P-EBT
All families that qualify for free and reduced-price meals or feel like they might qualify this year need to fill out their application ASAP. Ohio Department of Education in conjunction with the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services is running another round of Pandemic-EBT cards, but ONLY for families who have children learning virtually 5 days a week.
The P-EBT program provides families eligible for free or reduced-price meals with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as food stamps, in the amount of $5.86 (the federal reimbursement rate for breakfast and lunch) for each day a school has remote learning provided for the month of September. All children eligible for free and reduced-price meals are eligible for these benefits, including children who were approved through Direct Certification and children approved based on a free or reduced-price student meal application, as long as the student has remote learning periods lasting at least five consecutive days.
IF you want to be included on this list that will be sent to ODJFS early next week, you need to have your free and reduced applications for the 2020-21 school year turned in by 8:00 am on Monday morning either online OR o the Child Nutrition Office - 5959 Hagewa Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45242. We encourage whoever is able to do their application online to do so by visiting www.payschoolscentral.com. Online applications will have an automatic response. Find more information on filling out a free and reduced meal form by visiting https://www.sycamoreschools.org/Page/2292.
Dear Montgomery Families,
We are off to another great school year at Montgomery Elementary and whether your child is attending school face to face or virtually the PTO continues to strive to make sure you are kept up to date with information. Thank you for your patience and please see all the new information below in the S'more and also on the PTO website and Facebook!
The Montgomery PTO is an organization that consists of parents, teachers, and school staff that works together to enhance the education of every child. We support the school and teachers with volunteers, provide a forum for two-way communication, happily fund many school items/teaching tools, and host a variety of events. This year, obviously, looks much different than any other school year, but we want to let you know that the PTO is working hard to provide the same support as we always have.
Please make sure that you fill out the Membership Google Form (link below) as soon as possible! There will be no membership fees this year in the hopes that all families and staff will join and stay connected (whether your family is face-to-face or virtual). We do ask however that the Membership Goggle Form is completed by each family! The DirectorySpot App will be available again this year to all members but once again we ask for patience updating this as it requires data from the district (that may be delayed).
We also ask that you consider (if you are able to do so) making a donation to the PTO for this school year. Our typical membership fees usually only cover about the cost of our yearly DirectorySpot membership! In the past few years the PTO has been fortunate enough to donate a new sound system for the gym/cafeteria, a new kindergarten playground, technology like chromebooks/iPads, and countless activities/programs for our students, such as the Author Visits this past school year. A link for PayPal is available after completing the Google Form and can also be found on the PTO Website if you wish to make a donation. This school year will not have the traditional fundraisers (Boosterthon and Carnival) so we ask that you please take this into consideration as we are not able to do what we do without the generosity of our families. We are brainstorming ideas for additional Hassle-Free donations, in addition to Kroger, Box Tops for Education, and Pipkins (see below for more information) and considering adding a spring fundraiser if possible, but nothing has been finalized.
As always please make sure that you are following updates from the PTO via these three ways:
1) Montgomery Elementary Facebook Group
2) Sycamore District Montgomery Elementary PTO Page (https://www.sycamoreschools.org/domain/648)
3) Montgomery Elementary Weekly Newsletter (S’more)
Building a strong Montgomery Elementary Community for ALL is a goal for the PTO. We are working hard on ways to increase student/teacher support this school year and thinking of ways to still have fun (and some FUN-Draising) activities throughout the year.
I, and the rest of the executive board, look forward to working with you this year as we do our best to make a positive difference for our children, the staff, and our school. Please contact me anytime with questions.
Sincerely,
Kristy Felss
Montgomery Elementary PTO President
If you are part of the Montgomery Elementary family, we encourage you to join us in making our school a great place for all of our kids! PTO membership offers you many opportunities to learn about what is going on at the school, to be involved and make some friends along the way. PTO members can vote on the PTO budget and receive access to our directory via the DirectorySpot app (More info coming soon!) Joining the PTO does not obligate you to volunteer; it's just a great way to show your support of Montgomery Elementary!
Joining the PTO is a simple process! Please just fill out the Membership Form!
Also, to be included in our private Montgomery Elementary PTO Facebook Group, please contact Kristy Felss at mtpto@sycamoreschools.org to be added.
1. FIll out the PTO Membership Form!!!
2. Consider making a "Hassle-Free" donation...
The PTO is not charging Membership Fees this year and we will be unable to hold our traditional fundraisers such as Boosterthon and Carnival (though we are considering other FUN-draising options potentially this school year nothing is set in stone due to Covid). If you are able, please consider making a donation to the PTO so we can continue to support our Students, Teachers and Staff at Montgomery Elementary!
3. Looking for a way to Volunteer this school year? There is no obligation to volunteer for the PTO, but we would love to have your help! It's a great way to meet other parents and to stay more directly involved with your child's experience at Montgomery Elementary. Due to the unique school year please contact Kristy Felss, PTO President, directly for more information about volunteering at mtpto@sycamoreschools.org.
General PTO Virtual Meetings:
Wednesday, October 21st 9:30-11am
Wednesday, January 13th 7-8:30pm
Wednesday, March 10th 9:30-11am
Wednesday, May 12th 9:30-11am
Virtual Family Fun NIghts:
October 23rd (6-6:45 K-2nd and 7-7:45 3-4)
January 29th (6-6:45 K-2nd and 7-7:45 3-4)
April 23rd (6-6:45 K-2nd and 7-7:45 3-4)
More information to follow! Links for these meetings/events will be posted in advance.
We apologize again about not being able to distribute yearbooks, for Face to Face, Virtual, or Fifth graders, on October 2nd. Please read the following message from Dr Debelak:
Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control, we needed to postpone the yearbook pick-up which had been scheduled for October 2nd. The rescheduled date is October 23rd at 10:30-11:30 and 1-2. Artwork pick-up for our graduates who are currently at EH Greene School (last year’s 4th graders) will be on October 23 at 10:30-11:30 and 1-2 also.
Thank you for your understanding!
Please contact Kristy Felss at mtpto@sycamoreschools.org if you have any questions.
Thank you to everyone who has dropped off bottle caps and lids to help make buddy benches for Montgomery Elementary! Due to the date change for yearbook distribution we will also be collecting them on October 23rd.
Many have also asked about whether families should continue to collect and since we do not know if we have met our goal weight yet we would please ask that you continue to collect bottle caps! After we have a final weight we will let everyone know and if we need to have another collection we will do so in a few months. So for right now please keep collecting Montgomery! We were almost there for our first bench last time around but we need roughly 400lbs to make 3 benches for the school.
HASSLE FREE MONEY FOR OUR SCHOOL
KROGER COMMUNITY REWARDS
You can earn money for Montgomery Elementary PTO just by using your Kroger Plus card at Kroger. But first, you must log onto your Kroger account and designate Montgomery Elementary as the organization you want to receive Community Rewards. Here is how…
1. Log onto your Kroger.com account
2. Click “My Account”
3. Click “Community Rewards”
4. Choose Montgomery Elementary PTO (Organization # VP832)
5. You can verify if you are already set-up by looking at the bottom of your most recent Kroger receipt. It will indicate that you have designated Montgomery Elementary PTO as the organization you chose to receive your rewards.
BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION
GOT CLIPS? Drop off all your unexpired Box Tops at school in the Healthy Drop Box (outside the front doors) between 10am-2pm Monday-Friday! Please make sure they are in plastic ziplock bags and at the school before October 19th!
GOT LABELS? Use the Box Tops app to scan your store receipt within 14 days of purchase. The app will automatically find the products and instantly add Box Tops to your school’s earnings online. No clipping required! NO MORE CLIPPING! SCAN YOUR RECEIPT! SEE HOW AT BTFE.
Click here for a video demonstrating how to scan your receipts and receive credit via the App. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-bNcykyK5Y
PIPKIN'S MARKET
Anytime you shop at Pipkins Market they will donate a percentage of your spending to Montgomery Elementary PTO. All you have to do is bring your receipt(s) to school just like the box tops!
Bring Box Tops and Pipkins Receipts to school between 10am-2pm in a plastic bag and drop them outside the front doors in the Healthy Drop Box! Please do not send them to school with your child at this time or drop them off during Morning Drop Off or Afternoon Pick Up!
Questions about any of the Hassle Free programs or alternative ways to turn in your Box Tops and/or Pipkin’s Receipts before October 19th please contact Molly Duffey at mduffeyrn@yahoo.com
Sycamore High School’s speak up AVES student group invites you to join our team for the annual 1N5 Warrior Run. This year’s event is a virtual “choose your own path” event that encourages participants to complete a 5K - YOUR WAY! The challenge runs from September 26 through October 10. Registration proceeds support the work of 1N5, our community partner, committed to mental health education across the state, city and our district. Sponsorship funds raised come directly back to Sycamore Schools to support mental health programming. Additionally, if Sycamore High School can win the high school challenge, they earn additional funds and opportunities to support mental health at Sycamore High School, and most of all, bragging rights! Visit our team page for more information and register or donate today!