The Eagle Eye

Heards Ferry Families -

Thank you to Eagle Alliance and the Heards Ferry parent community for making our staff feel "out of this world" all week! We have been truly spoiled and appreciate the constant support you provide to us daily. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

Earlier this week, our Eagle Alliance hosted an incredibly informative session entitled, "Parenting in a Tech World" with Titania Jordan of Bark Technologies. Her slide deck from the presentation is included below for your reference, as well as a tech contract (parent-child) that she shared.

Your proud principal,

Karen

Georgia School Climate Survey - LOW PARTICIPATION RATE

At this time we have a family response rate of 33.05%. Please find a moment to take the survey before the March 31 deadline.

https://survey.gadoe.org/FM?sid=A3F7F8E2

Thank you to everyone who has already completed the survey.

Student Success Skills is a program used across Fulton County Schools to support students in mastering and developing essential academic and interpersonal skills necessary for success in school, college, career, and life. The Student Success Skills Inventory is used to measure student growth across Student Success Skill standards as a result of weekly SSS lessons. The SSS Post-Inventory administration window is scheduled for April 14-25. At Heards Ferry, we will give the assessment on Monday, April 21st. Each inventory takes about 15 minutes to complete. The inventory is pushed out to students using the Illuminate platform. Parents can choose to opt their student out of the inventory. To opt out, please submit a written request to Karen Cooke by Thursday, April 17th.

Participate Remote Days NEW LINK

This is just a reminder that per Fulton Board Policy JB Students may participate remotely for 5 days per semester by meeting the following guidelines:

• Must be requested 5 days in advance
• May not be used on a test day
• Work must be turned in within 2 days of the absence for Reading/ ELA and Math
• Work will be asynchronous – Virtual instruction will not take place

Once you request your days, you will receive an automatic reply. This will serve as approval.

New link here: https://forms.office.com/r/pCKYqicAQm

Recess Safety

Parents we need your help. As part of our efforts to ensure a safe and enjoyable recess experience for all students, we kindly remind you that students should not bring lacrosse sticks, footballs, basketballs, or other sports equipment to school. Each class is provided with a recess bag containing appropriate equipment for recess.

Please reach out to Assistant Principal, Mrs. Lori Dunagan , with any questions.

Have a staff member you'd like to recognize? Please submit your kudos HERE and they will be shared with the individual!

Parent Input Form Deadline Extension:

We encourage your involvement in our student placement process for the 2025-2026 school year as it is one of several pieces of information we use to place your child in an appropriate classroom setting. Use the link below to submit your input. Reponses will be collected March 3rd through April 4th. With a hard cutoff on April 4th. We will not honor requests for specific teachers or for your child to be placed with specific friends. Therefore, please refrain from using teacher and friend names on your input form. HFE does not hold meetings, accept phone calls or emails with class placement requests.
https://forms.office.com/r/bC8sHKJXT4

Questions? Please reach out to Curriculum Support Teacher, Mrs. Michaela Ferretti.

I hope you enjoy these tips for launching your young readers and writers at home.

Fluency Tips

From the article: Fluency Matters

By: Reading Rockets

What is fluency and why is it important?

Reading fluency is a child's ability to read a book or text correctly, quickly, and with expression. A fluent reader no longer needs to stop and "decode" a word. They read most words automatically. When a reader is fluent it allows them to focus attention on what the text means instead of how to read it. Therefore, fluency is incredibly important because it is the bridge between decoding words and understanding what has been read.

Here are some fun and simple ways to develop fluency at home:

· Paired or "Buddy" Reading- You go first so your child can hear what good fluent reading sounds like. Then ask your child to re-read the same page. You will notice that your child's reading will start to sound more like yours. Do this for several pages and then when your child is familiar enough with a book, take turns reading page for page.

· Reread Favorite Books- Build a tall stack of books that your child can read quickly and easily. Encourage your child to read these books over and over again. You should notice confidence and expression building as they read!

· Record it- Have your child create his or her own audio books. This can be done with a tape recorder or an app (like Audioboo) on your phone. Have your child practice what they will be reading. Then, have them share their recording with family or friends as a way to motivate them!

In our next newsletter, I will share tips on how to support our 3rd-5th grade students as they prepare for GMAS. I hope these ideas are helpful! 🙂

Please reach out to Jennifer Hidock (Literacy Coach) with any questions.

Did you know there's a PBIS Family App that helps you stay engaged with your student's progress in school? The app is available for free on various app stores and allows you to track your student's Eagle Points, see which teachers awarded them, and monitor how they are spent. If you have multiple children at HFE, you can add each one separately using the QR code provided by their teachers. If you need another QR code, please email your child's teachers. For more information, please watch this video or contact Khaki Janusz.

For further information, please reach out to Khaki Janusz.

• Cookies for Character: The learner profile attribute for the month of March is Risk-taker. Teachers will be looking for students who have consistently shown confidence in trying new things, or approaches to problem solving. Our celebration will be held March 24th!

• International Inquirer Program: During the month of March, HFE students will be researching “fun facts” about their country of study! Research will be placed in the halls, along with previous month’s investigations.

• We will also continue the effort to learn words and phrases in the official language of their country of study. The phrase this month is “Have a nice day!”

• Our International Week Celebration will be May 12th – 16th! Our students will be “travelling” to Canada, New Zealand, Greece and Spain this year through immersive, cultural experiences in our media center!

For questions regarding our IB program, please reach out to Mrs. Allie Yancey.

Career Month – Volunteer Spots Still Available!

March is Career Month at HFE, and we still have openings for Pre-K through 2nd-grade classroom volunteers. Sign up HERE! Special thanks to our sponsor, Karate Atlanta.

Atlanta Braves Spirit Night (April 18)

Join us at Truist Park as the Braves take on the Twins! Get your tickets HERE and enjoy a fun night with HFE friends and family. Deadline to purchase: March 28.

Join HFE’s School Governance Council

We need YOU! Submit an Election Declaration Form by March 28 to be part of HFE’s School Governance Council. Learn more on our SGC website or the FCS Charter System Overview.

Eagle Walk Brick Campaign – Limited Time!

Leave your mark at HFE! Purchase a personalized brick for the Eagle Walk to honor your family or a loved one. This special opportunity happens only once every two years!

Spring Kindergarten & New Student Registration

Enrollment for the 2025-2026 school year is now open! Register new students and incoming Kindergarteners HERE.

March is College & Career Month at HFE!

During the month of March, Heards Ferry will provide students the opportunity to gain insight into various careers and expand their college awareness. Several exciting events are in the works including:

• Career on Wheels (PK-2 ) – On this special day (3/25), our students in grades Pre-K – 2nd grade will have the opportunity to be exposed to careers that utilize vehicles as a part of their profession. We already have some fun vehicles lined up including a bucket truck, a Coke truck, and a fuel delivery truck just to name a few.
• Career Stations (PK-2) – Students will get a hands-on experience when they visit the Career Stations classroom to learn about different career clusters. Some past stations have included careers in healthcare, architecture/construction, visual arts, and STEM.
• Career Speakers (Grades 3-5) – During the month of March, each class will have several parent speakers come in to speak to the class about their career. If you are interested in speaking to your student’s class, please reach out to the room parent.
• HFE College Display – On their way to lunch, students will be able to view a large display that features the various colleges/universities that staff attended. The students love looking for their teachers and finding out where they went to school! HFE Live will also feature fun and informative college & career facts throughout the month.
• Door Decorating Contest – School pride will be on display as teachers and staff decorate their doors with fun facts about their colleges/universities!

For any questions, reach out to School Counselor, Mrs. Anna Aronowitz.

Dear Heards Ferry Elementary School Community,

We wanted to reach out on behalf of the Heards Ferry School Governance Council (SGC) to quickly introduce ourselves as well as to remind those interested in serving that the application window for parents and teachers is now open.

The SGC is a part of the Fulton County school leadership model meant to further collaboration with Heards Ferry (HFE) parents, staff, and community members to drive our school and student’s success.

We hope to empower all HFE stakeholders to actively participate in key decisions, including approving the school’s strategic plan, managing the budget, allocating Charter school dollars, and providing support to our school’s leadership team.

This school year, we have funded expanding the administrative team by providing more resources for salaries, improving teacher training by allocating dollars for specific off campus trainings, and even partnered with HFE’s Eagle Alliance to purchase a high-definition laser projector for the gym to create an immersive learning experience for our students.

This year, we have 2 parent seats as well as 1 teacher seat open. For those interested, please visit (https://www.fultonschools.org/our-district/charter-system/elections). If you have any questions on the SGC in general or on applying, please reach out to Nathan Madigan (madiganna@fultonschools.org).

Sincerely,

Nathan Madigan – Chair

School Governance Council

Father of Poppy (2nd grade) and Lottie (Kindergarten)

Parent Handbook

The 24-25 Parent Handbook can be found on the Heards Ferry website under "Students and Families" https://heardsferry.fultonschools.org/

Volunteer Training

ALL volunteers in the school must complete mandatory volunteer training before being allowed in the classroom. Upon entering the school to volunteer you will be asked to show your ID, sign in on our computer, and wear a name tag for the duration of your visit. Please make sure the name tag is clearly visible at all times.

Volunteer training must be completed every two years.

Visit the Fulton County Schools Volunteer site for more information and to complete the training.