Otter Families!

This week we celebrated our Band, Chorus, and Strings students accomplishments with a wonderful and entertaining evening concert. We also celebrated students' beautiful and creative artwork. Thank you for Ms. Drake, Mrs. Jones, and Mr. Labows for your work with our students in the Arts. It contributes greatly to our "colorful" year!

Let's also give a big shout out to Mrs. Cummins and her volunteers for hosting another successful Spring Book Fair!

4th and 5th grade students continue to take MCAP this week!

Our end-of-year celebration dates and times have been finalized!

• Friday, May 17th
• PreK - 5th Grade Field Day (9:30 am - 11:30 am)
• All families are welcome to attend.
• 5th Grade vs. Staff Kickball Game (2:15 pm - 3:30 pm)
• PreK - 4th grade students attend as spectators. All families are welcome to attend.
• Thursday, May 23rd
• 5th grade Field Trip - Blue Crabs game - 9:30 am - 3:00 pm
• A separate communication has been sent to 5th grade families
• Monday, June 3rd
• PreK - 4th grade End-of-Year Picnic Celebrations
• PreK - 10:00 am - 11:00 am
• K and 1st Grade: 11:30 am - 12:30 pm
• 2nd and 3rd Grade: 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
• 4th Grade: 2:30 pm- 3:30 pm
• Tuesday, June 4th
• 5th Grade Picnic at Dorsey Park
• 9:30 am - 2:30 pm
• Awards Presentation @ 11:00 am

"Otterly" Yours,

Mrs. Anderson

The office will be open Monday - Friday from 9:00 am - 4:00 pm.

The SMCPS School Board approved the following changes to the calendar for the end of the school year due to unused inclement weather days.

Thursday, June 6th - Last day for PreK students; Two Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, June 7th - Last day for K-5 students; Two Hour Early Dismissal

Tuesday, June 11th - Last day for 10 month employees

Let's celebrate those students who earned "P.A.W.S."itive Office Referrals!

SMCPS will be offering summer meals to go at LHS, CHS, OES, and SRMS offering 5-day meal pick-up on Mondays starting June 10th. Parents must pre-register their children by filling out the form linked below or bringing them to the site when they pick up meals.

PreK registration for the 2024-2025 school year is now open. Please find all needed information in the document linked below.

St. Mary’s County Public Schools, in collaboration with Healthy St. Mary’s Partnership, is hosting a Surf the Mental Health & Wellness Wave: A Resource & Education Fair on May 18, 2024, from 10 AM-3 PM, at the James A. Forrest Career & Technology Center. Come interact with and gather information from over 35 Mental Health & Wellness vendors. There will be numerous guest speakers and presentations on several different mental health and wellness topics. Use the QR code in the health fair flyer to view the schedule of events. In addition, there will be food trucks, door prizes, and lots of fun! Please join us!!

Save the Dates!

Pre-K students, their families, and local private providers are invited to attend an upcoming evening event. The event will be Monday, May 6, 2024, from 6:00-7:00 p.m. and focuses on the Transition to Kindergarten. Both events will occur in the Dohrman rooms at the Dr. James A. Forrest Career & Technology Center.

Please be aware of our MCAP assessment schedule over the next two months.

April 29-May 2

• 5th grade Math/ELA
  
• 4th grade Math/ELA

May 6-9

• 3rd grade Math/ELA

May 13-16

• 3rd grade Math/ELA

SMCPS and SMC R&P have partnered to offer the new Summer Sports Academies. Campers will be instructed by area high school coaches. Camps are held Monday -Thursday. Click below for more information. Registration begins March 1st. Don't miss this opportunity.

• https://www.stmaryscountymd.gov/recreate/camps

• https://www.stmaryscountymd.gov/docs/thescoop.pdf

Parents or guardians of children receiving special education and related services were mailed the Maryland Special Education Parent Involvement Survey from the Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Special Education/Early Intervention Services during the week of February 12, 2024. Parents are asked to complete the survey and return it in the postage-paid envelope by May 24, 2024. The Survey may also be completed online. Your feedback will help guide efforts to improve special education and related services in your local school system. Your voice can make a real difference for your child and many other children across the state of Maryland. To learn more, please visit https://www.mdparentsurvey.com.

Our school's overall attendance rate, as reported to MSDE, for the school year so far is 93.88%. The goal is 94%.

This is the time of year where I switch to sharing data about attendance on a weekly basis and how it changes from week to week. Below are the attendance rates for each grade level for the week of

April 22nd - April 26th.

PreK: 87.03%

Kindergarten: 96.25%

1st Grade: 95.33%

2nd Grade: 91.18%

3rd Grade: 91.4%

4th Grade: 94.67%

5th Grade: 93.62%

Evening Counseling: SMCPS is once again offering School-Based Counseling Support in the evening for SMCPS students. Counseling support focuses on the following areas: Healthy Relationships, Social Skills, Self-Esteem, Stress Management, Worry, Sadness, and Emotional Regulation. Services will be located at Margaret Brent Middle School and Greenview Knolls Elementary School on Tuesday evenings from 4-7:30 p.m. Please complete the Parent Contact Form for Evening Counseling to request services.

All SMCPS laptops come with the same responsibility of care and upkeep as any other loaned resources. Textbooks, novels, laptops and chargers can incur a debt if lost or damaged. Please refer to the student accountability newsletter that has been added to our weekly school newsletters.

All parent(s)/guardian(s) must complete an Acceptable Use Policy each school year. Click HERE to complete the Google form. School staff will be in touch with all families to complete the form throughout the month of August and September.

WE ARE NOW ACCEPTING WINTER EVENTS FOR EDUCATING AND CELEBRATING. You can email Mrs. Curtis directly, kvcurtis@smcps.org, or use the link below to submit events.

B WEEK

Monday, 4/29

8:45 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

• 4th and 5th grade MCAP testing

Tuesday, 4/30

8:45 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

• 4th and 5th grade MCAP testing
• PTA Spirt Night at MOD Pizza/Coldstone Creamery

Wednesday, 5/1

8:45 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

• 4th and 5th Grade MCAP testing

Thursday, 5/2

8:45 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

• 4th and 5th grade MCAP testing

Friday, 5/3

8:45 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

• Community Gathering
• School Lunch Hero Day
• Extra Recess and Popsicles

May 22nd @ 10:00 am and 2:30 pm

Hello OES Otter Families,

I hope everyone is keeping safe and healthy. Be sure to eat right, get plenty of sleep and rest, exercise, cover your cough with your elbow, and wash your hands frequently. Don't forget to get vaccinated against the Flu and COVID.

We are looking forward to a great school year!

President: Beth Johnson Hill

Vice President: Stefanie Wines

Treasurer: Kim Burroughs

Secretary: Megan Russell

One community committed to the learning and safety of all children.

Community is important to us. We strive to have the words "goal-oriented", "fun", "inclusive", and "thriving" used to describe our community. We believe that children learn and adults work best in an environment where they feel respected and safe. We are focused on four areas in our development of community: 1) Cultivating respectful, supportive relationships among students, teachers, and parents, 2) Emphasizing common purposes and ideals, 3) Providing opportunities for service and cooperation, and 4) Providing opportunities for independence and influence.

Email: lpdietz@smcps.org
Website: https://schools.smcps.org/oes/
Location: 26410 Three Notch Road, Mechanicsville, MD, USA
Phone: (301) 373-4365
Facebook: facebook.com/smcps.org
Twitter: @OES_smcps