Stonegate Elementary Newsletter

• August 20 - Parent/Guardian Curriculum Night (Teachers will host virtually this year.)
• September 7 - Labor Day - No School
• October 12-16 - Fall Break - No School
• November 2- Student/Parent/Teacher Conferences; E-Day
• November 25-27 - Thanksgiving Break
• December 19-January 3 - Winter Break

• January 18 - MLK Jr. Day (No School)

• January 19 - No School
  

• February 15 - Presidents Day - No School

• April 2-9 - Spring Break

• May 26 - Last Student Day of School

• May 27 - Teacher work day

• May 31 - Memorial Day

Dear Families,

What an incredible week it's been! It started out with rain but after that it's been all sunshine and rainbows here at SGE! We wanted to share out our First Week Reflections . . .

• Children are resilient. The masks have been worn with great cooperation and they've adjusted beautifully.
• Solutions forward. We have been in awe of how our students and staff have solved some tricky issues due to masks and social distancing. One of the unseen benefits to our current situation has been witnessing the creativity and can-do attitude by all.
• Grace and compassion. We thank you for the kind notes, extra smiles in the drop-off line, and procedural compliance. NONE of this is easy, but ALL of it is worth it.

Regardless if you're in-person or remote, we are overjoyed you are with us. We have our kids back!

With much respect,

Mrs. Largent and Mrs. Farley

(this is an old picture of us taken several years ago)

Stonegate Curriculum Night, 5:30-8 pm

Thursday Evening, August 20th

During this event, each classroom teacher will present a half hour session to parents/guardians highlighting the curriculum, events, and expectations for the year ahead. Each grade level has a designated time, indicated below.

Your child's classroom teacher will share contact information/ZOOM link prior to the event.

5:30-6:00 Kindergarten

6:00-6:30 1st Grade

6:30-7:00 2nd Grade

7:00-7:30 3rd Grade

7:30-8:00 4th Grade

Why Do We Give the NWEA Assessment?

We often get questions from our families about the NWEA assessments which we give in the fall of each year to our students in grades K-8 (and again in the spring to our K-4 students and some middle school students in order to determine academic growth in math and literacy skills). NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association) is a non-profit organization that has developed brief (40-50 question) assessments in math, reading, and language arts which teachers can give to assess their students’ knowledge/skills. At ZCS, we have chosen these standardized assessments to supplement our state-required test for several reasons. First, NWEA gives us instant results that we can use to adjust instruction and group students for learning. The tests are computer-based and yield a score which the teacher can see in a report as soon as the student finishes. Second, unlike the state required test which assesses only grade-level standards, NWEA has a bank of thousands of questions ranging far beyond grade level. The test is “adaptive”—meaning that as a student takes it, the test adjusts the level of questions he/she is presented with based on correct/incorrect answers, so that a student is always working on questions at his/her most appropriate level of difficulty—rather than “one size fits all” questions. Also, as a high-performing school district, we have many students learning and working far beyond their grade level standards. NWEA assessments allow us to see their level of performance and compare it (and their growth from fall to spring) to that of similarly-abled peers nationally. Finally, NWEA is based on one large bank of questions (not different tests divided by grade levels). Thus, the score a student receives each time he/she takes the test can be compared from fall to spring and year to year—producing a graph of a student’s growth over time (a lot like the way we mark a child’s height on a door in our home as he/she grows taller). Even when a student has a one-time drop in a test score, we are still able to see the whole pattern of his/her emerging growth as a learner. Although we typically give the tests in fall, spring and optionally in the middle of the school year, NWEA can be given additional times during the year in order to monitor progress in a goal area. For all these reasons, we are glad to be able to gather this data (and the more specific information it gives us about strengths and areas of challenge) to help us plan learning experiences for our students. Please know that your child’s NWEA scores are available in PowerSchool (under test history) for you to see any time you desire. Scores for most recent tests will typically be added to your child’s data when our testing window closes.

As you know, maintaining a healthy environment is a priority for ZCS and a duty of all individuals on campus.

Please follow the process below each day prior to sending your child(ren) to our school.

• Parent/Guardian should access the screener tool on their smart phone or computer prior to their child(ren) coming to school each day and complete the screening questions individually for each of their SGE children.
• Form Link: https://forms.gle/f99YU5XPdoNrSLZ38
• If the screening tools tells you to not bring your child to campus based on the responses, please contact the office at 317-873-8050 during normal office hours for assistance.

Now that are school days are becoming routine, we want to remind families about transportation changes. If your child needs to have a dismissal change, please be sure to call the office (317-873-8050 ext. 0) before 1:30pm. You can also call anytime and leave a message on the attendance line (317-873-8050 ext. 2) as this is checked throughout the school day. Please be sure NOT to leave a message after 1:30pm. Thank you for helping us keep all our students safe.

If your child has forgotten something at home (i.e. water bottle, lunch) and you want to bring it to school, you are welcome to do so. When you arrive you will see a large plastic bin by the front doors. Please place your child's items in the bin with his/her name, fill out the log book, then ring the bell letting us know there is an item waiting for your child. We will be sure to get the forgotten item to the student in a timely manner.

Please be sure you are sending a water bottle (plastic or reusable) in with your child every day. Our drinking fountains are not able to be used, but we do have water bottle fillers that students can access. On warmer days, students definitely go through their bottled water quickly. Thank you!

In order to showcase our SGE FAMILY SPIRIT, we would love to have a 4x6 photo of every family, in-person and remote! Please send in a 4x6 photo (no larger please in order to ensure there is space) with your child's teacher (or one of your child's teacher if you have more than one child). If you are remote, you can email your photo to Ms. Benefiel at mbenefiel@zcs.k12.in.us.

Please click here to see Indiana required immunizations for the 2020-2021 school year.

Just a friendly reminder of our school start and end times:

• 7:30 AM - Office opens
• 7:50 AM - 1st - 4th Grade - arrival time
• 8:00 AM - School begins
• 8:05 AM - Tardy bell
• 8:50 AM - Kindergarten - arrival time
• 9:00 AM - Kindergarten - school begins
• 2:20 PM - Student dismissal time
• 2:30 - School ends
• 3:30 - Office closes

ZCS Food Service Associate SUB positions available at our cafeterias at a pay of $11.40 per hour! Work when it suits your schedule! After you try us out, perhaps you’ll want to join us on a regular basis! Click here to apply directly and call 317-873-1232, ext. 11630 with any questions!