MUSTANG PARENT ALERT
T. L. Marsalis Elementary STEAM Academy
October 2023 Monthly Parent Newsletter
A NOTE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Hello Mustang Families!
We are fast approaching to the end of our first instructional quarter of the school year. Our students will finish Quarter 1 on this Friday, October 6, 2023, and our teachers will be engaged in analyzing all data to plan appropriately for Quarter 2. Our Fall parent conferences will be held this month and our date is TBD. In addition, our district schools will have a Fall break from October 12 - October 16. Students will return on October 17.
October is a busy month on our campus as we officially kick off our campus clubs and activities. I do want to ensure that everyone knows that participation in any extracurricular activity at Marsalis is a privilege. Students must exhibit our Marsalis standards of "being respectful, responsible and ready to learn" in order to represent our campus in any fashion. Please talk with your child about appropriate behavior, following directions and good sportsmanship. These traits are #1 for participation.
Kudos to all of our grades 3-5 students for a fantastic job on their college research and career pathway projects. We are committed to making sure that our students know about all of the opportunities that await them as they move through their educational years.
We are looking forward to another great month at Marsalis! Please let us know if you have any questions.
WOODS' WORDS OF WISDOM
Mustang Parents:
We recognized September as our Attendance Awareness Month and our focus is to make sure that our Marsalis community learns about the effects attendance can have on academic performance and success. School attendance is essential to academic success and frequent absences, excused or unexcused, can add up to academic trouble. Now that October has begun, those students with excessive absences and tardies have begun receiving mandatory truancy notices. Parents, we can not educate your child if they are not at school. Many of you are asking about specialized services for students but that is unlikely to move forward for a student with extremely high absenteeism. If students are absent, they are not receiving the benefit of instruction.
I ask again for all parents and caregivers to help us ensure that your scholars have every opportunity to be successful by making sure they are at school everyday. In the event that your child has to be absent, please contact the teacher for missed assignments.
I want to remind everyone again of the following:
- Please follow the school zone speed limits when traveling Marsalis Avenue in front of our campus.
- Please follow our crossing guard's directions and allow her to escort your child safety across our main streets.
- Please refrain from turning around in the middle of the street to ensure that no child is injured when they are getting dropped off or picked up.
Lastly, Scottsboro Drive is our bus zone area and is also a ONE-WAY street during school hours. We are requesting that you do not double-park in our loading zone areas or obstruct our buses ability to exit the campus safely in the afternoons.
MARSALIS ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL REMINDERS
- Our school opens at 7:30 a.m. Only bus riders and PK3 students need to enter at the Scottsboro (bus lane) door. All other students must enter at the front entrance.
- School begins at 8:00 a.m. and a student is tardy at 8:15 a.m. Recording of tardies will begin this week and can affect your child's overall attendance.
- Students begin picking up breakfast from the cafeteria with their teachers at 7:45 a.m. and eat in their classrooms. Breakfast concludes at 8:15 a.m. All students who arrive after this time will miss the breakfast period.
Dismissal Reminders
- Dismissal begins at 3:20 p.m. If you would like to pick your child up early, they will need to be picked up prior to 2:45 p.m. Please understand that your child will be missing valuable instruction and parent conferences will be held for students who have frequent early releases.
- If your child is a bus rider or is being picked up by a daycare facility, please be sure to notify your child's teacher.
PARENT PICKUP PROCEDURES
- All persons picking up students will need to have photo ID ready to show. Our scholars will only be released to the persons listed on their enrollment history. If you need to update this information, please contact the main office at 972-749-3500.
Meet our counselor, Ms. Telisa Ingram. Visit her counseling website at
https://sites.google.com/dallasisd.org/thecounselorscorner
One of our STEAM Academy commitments is to the social and emotional learning of our students. Each morning our students participate in a "SEL MEET UP" with their homeroom teachers and fellow classmates. This daily activity is the building block for our classroom communities. Our SEL focus for October will continue to reinforce our September focus and add additional critical socio-emotional practices:
1) Demonstrating an awareness of one's emotions, thoughts, and values
2) Considering the well-being and safety of self and others when making decisions
Parent Workshops will be available throughout the school year, great information for student support. Flyers will be sent home with session title, date and time of each workshop. Parents that attend the most workshops will be recognized at the end of the year awards programs.
Complete your volunteer application if you plan to assist our school in any way. Go to dallasisd.voly.org to create a volunteer account. Make sure you select Marsalis as your school.
EDUCATION GO GET IT! WEEK
Thank you parents for helping to make our "Education Go Get It! Week" a success! Our grade 3-5 students' projects are currently being graded and will be displayed in each grade level's hallway. You will be able to see them during Parent Conference night.
UPCOMING OCTOBER RECOGNITION WEEKS:
October 16-20: Character Counts Week
October 23-27: Red Ribbon Week
Flyers will be sent home this week for our special event days.
STUDENT COUNCIL UPDATES:
Representatives from each homeroom in grades 2-5 have been selected as representatives for the 2023-2024 Marsalis Student Council. These students will participate in a Leadership Camp in preparation for the upcoming officer elections which will be held in November. The students will be making campaign posters and giving speeches prior to the election.
Facts Courtesy of Nurse Poole
STAY CONNECTED TO YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER(S)
- Check out our school website (www.dallasisd.org/marsalis) for our teachers' Google sites. These sites will provide you with specific information and resources for your child's specific grade level. Click on our "Academics" tab and select "Grade Level Classes" to locate the teachers' pages.
student spotlight
each month we will highlight an afterschool club
BUS SAFETY REMINDERS
Please share with your child(ren) the importance of bus safety. Students are to wear seatbelts, if applicable, obey the bus drivers' directives, keep their hands and belongings to themselves and most importantly, stay seated while on the bus. Parents, also remember to be at the appropriate bus pickup locations on time. Our bus drivers routes do not service Marsalis only and must stay on schedule.
WE PROVIDE AN ON-CAMPUS AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAM
Thomas L. Marsalis Elementary STEAM Academy
Email: KR2404@dallasisd.org
Website: dallasisd.org/marsalis
Location: 5640 South Marsalis Avenue, Dallas, TX, USA
Phone: 972-749-3500
Twitter: @marsalis_l