Gator Parent Newsletter
December 2024
Message from Mr. Barnes
Happy Holidays to you and your family. I hope you experience great joy, relaxation, and comfort during this holiday season!
Mark Your Calendars
Week of November 25th
Monday: 9:20 Awards' Program 2nd/4th/5th/L4L & 11:00 Awards' Program 1st/3rd
Tuesday: 1:40 2 hour early dismissal
Wednesday - Friday: No School
Week of December 2nd
Inclusive School's Week
Monday: Hat Day
Tuesday: Wear Something Colorful, SMILES Dentistry: 9:00 - 3:20
Wednesday: Wear a Name Tag
Thursday: Interims Sent Home, Wear your comfy cloths
Friday: Wear your Monocacy Shirts
Week of December 16th
Friday: Fire Drill
Week of December 23rd
No School December 23rd through January 1st
You Asked, We Will Provide
Many parents have asked for some after school programming at MoES. This year has been a challenge with reduced funding but we are working hard to meet this request. Be on the look out for information from Parks and Recreations hosting (small fee w/scholarship opportunities) an after school STEM and Arts Program in the winter hosted at MoES.
Also to Come:
Sports after school program in the Spring at MoES hosted by Parks and Recreation
MoES STEM Club
Talent Show
MoES Sports Club
MoES Tutoring Club
MoES 24 Math Challenge Club
MoES Chess Club
Volunteers and Chaperones
Volunteers play a crucial role in the success of our school and truly help to build a strong home-school partnership. Mr. Fowlkes will be coordinating volunteer efforts this year and connecting interested parents with teachers in order to support within and outside of the classroom. If interested in volunteering; please follow the steps below.
In addition, field trips are an important part of our students' learning experiences. In order for us to go on field trips we need chaperones. Chaperones must also complete the volunteer training as indicated below. If you may want to chaperone this year, please complete the steps below so that we can have enough chaperones to attend field trips. Please consider doing this well in advance of a field trip as it will take 72 hours to process after completion of your training. We don't want to be put in a situation because we don't have enough chaperones for trips 3 days in advance.
Steps:
Click here for for directions to complete volunteer training (Spanish directions at bottom after English)
Complete volunteer training through Unified Talent Platform (approximately 1 hour)
After training is completed; you will receive an email with the next steps
Complete 72 hours prior to volunteering or chaperoning (earlier the better)
Mr. Fowlkes or the classroom teacher will be in contact to coordinate volunteering or chaperoning field trips
Important Links
GTJHS Feeder Schools
The GTJHS feeder schools are working closely together to tackle chronic abseentism. The percent of students chroically absent (10% of the school year, 18 days) is around 20% of students for our feeder schools (Monocacy ES, North Frederick, Lewistown, Monocacy MS, GTJMS, GTJHS, Waverly, Yellow Springs). When we pulled data for our GTJHS feeder pattern we found some concerning data trends. Practically every student who dropped out of high school was chronically absent in High School, Middle School, and Elementary School. Most of the students who did not pass a particular grade level were chronically absent. The percent of chronically absent students going to post-secondary school is extremely low compared to the rest of students.
Let's build consistent expectations for daily school attendance and start the foundation for school success now. Together we can and will tackle chronic abseentism.
Students missing just 2 days a month:
*20 days missed for year
*30 hours of missed math instruction
*80 hours of missed reading instruction
*Miss 1 year of school by the time they are a senior.
Reach out for support. We need students to attend school regularly to provide them with an opportunity for future sucess.
Be a Reading Machine
It's time for our "Be A Reading Machine" reading challenge! Please look at the directions for assisting your student with logging their reading minutes via the Beanstack app! Please contact Mrs. Nauman with any questions at Emily.Nauman@fcps.org
PTA
Partners for Success
Front Office Reminders
- If a family has an unexpected financial change, in their income, they can apply for FARM (Free/Reduced Meals) any time throughout the year at https://linqconnect.com/main
- In order to help get lost coats/jackets back to the students, please practice putting your child's name on an inside tag so they can be returned to them.
- Please refrain from picking up your child from the front office after 3:15. Classes are preparing for dismissal and busses are arriving after 3:15. After that time please use the car rider line, around back, for pick up.
- Dismissal Changes: Please call before 3:00, when possible, to make changes your child's normal dismissal routine.
- Our doors open at 8:45am and students should be in their classroom by 9:15 when the bell rings. Being in the classroom before the bell rings allows the students to prepare themselves for the day, eat breakfast if they choose to and socialize with their classmates.