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The Chameleon Connection: RISE
News for Families: Week 2: August 14-18, 2023
A Message from GQES Administration
GREAT START for the 2023-2024 school year!!
Hello!
We are so grateful to have our GQES students back in school! We welcome our GQES families partnering with us to help each child learn, grow, and thrive at GQES!! Please help us by making sure your child comes to school EVERY DAY, ON TIME, READY TO LEARN! This is important.
We greatly appreciate your patience as we adjusted our dismissal procedures. Our students, some can ride buses, some are on regular walk zones, some are on extended walk zones, some are regular car rides, some are at after school care on site and some are at after school care off site.
So, here is our plan:
Option 1: "ON-CAMPUS SIGN OUT"
Students will be in the cafeteria with the last names A-K in the cafeteria and with the last names L-Z in our gym whereby only authorized parents/guardians can sign out a child and take them after showing legitimate state issued identification.
Option 2:" OFF-CAMPUS: Meet my child at the designated corner streets"
GQES staff willl walk students to three locations:
Corner A: Kent/Whitlock,
Corner B: Whitlock/Loudoun,
Corner C: Loudoun/Southwerk.
We so appreciate our parents cooperating with this new change from the division.
Option 3: "OFF -CAMPUS: MY CHILD WALKS INDEPENDENTLY HOME."
This means, the child walks all the way home independently.
WE want to focus on learning, however, your child's safety is our first and foremost concern. Thank you for working through the significant changes to dismissal this school year. As always, when you have a change, please call our main office at 540-662-3575. Thank you!!!
Always update emergency contacts, addresses, custody, and phone numbers as changes arise.
Joanie Hovatter
Principal, Garland R. Quarles Elementary School
(540) 662-3575 (Phone)
(540) 662-8449 (Fax)
Upcoming Dates: GQES
Academic Night #1 at GQES September 7, 2023 from 5:30-7:30pm
School Picture Day
General GQES Information
Important Forms
Student Expectations at GQES
Safe and Welcoming Information
Times:
School starts at 7:50 am
School ends at 2:20 pm
Students arrive every day, on time, and ready to learn!
Parent/Guardian Expectations:
Parents/guardians must provide proper identification(license) through our Identakid security system. Anytime parents/guardians enter GQES, they are expected to cooperate with all WPS and GQES staff members as well as follow all policies, procedures, and protocols.
Student Behavior Expectations:
Students and staff demonstrate:
SMILING faces,
LISTENING ears,
HELPING hands,
and RESPECTING boundaries.
All students will TRY THEIR BEST in all learning tasks by persevering, knowing they can do hard things, gaining confidence, and having fun!
IMPORTANT DETAILS: Anytime there is a change in a students’ address, emails, phone numbers, medical conditions, or custody situations, the main office must be provided with the necessary documentation.
Immunizations:
No student can begin at GQES unless their immunizations are up to date.
First 16 days: (Right before Labor Day):
We need all parents/guardians to help us help our students learn the expectations, routines, procedures to get settled into school and to learn, grow, and THRIVE!!!
Parents should be prepared to say goodbyes before the door.
Parents can call and then, come eat lunch in our cafeteria, after Labor Day after the first 16 days.
Arrival Procedures: (7:20-7:45 am)
Car Riders:
- Cars may drop off students (one line of cars); two or more can drop off at a time SAFELY in our school’s main office. Parents will unload their own children expediently and safely. GQES staff will welcome and supervise students safely onto our sidewalks and cross walks. We need for parents to arrive early and move safely through the process.
- Parents should be prepared to say goodbyes before the door. Parents have the right to park and walk their child up to the main walkway if desired. Students will be greeted by staff and our staff will help guide them to their destination. Again, we expect parents to always be vigilant and pay close attention to driving and moving pedestrians.
Bus Riders:
- Buses will unload students in the back of the school where GQES staff will welcome and supervise students. We teach children to walk on the right to maintain safety and order. Proper bus behavior is explicitly stated in the back to school packet given to every student and on the Winchester Public School website. Riding a bus is a privilege for students.
Walkers:
- When students walk to GQES, especially with the expanded walk zones, parents are expected to get their children safely to school. GQES staff will welcome and supervise students as they enter school property at the streets (Whitlock, South Loudoun, Southwerk, and Kent Streets).
Dismissal Procedures: (2:20-2:30pm)
- When school is over, students will be called over the public address system to exit as walkers, car riders, or buses in an orderly way. Parents of car riders may line up at 2:20 pm under the main awning.
Car Riders:
- Students with the last name of A-L will go to the cafeteria where they will be welcomed and supervised.
- Students with the last name of M-Z will go to the gym where they will be welcomed and supervised.
- Parents must park, come into the building, provide a proper form of identification (driver’s license), await being allowed into the building and sign out their child(ren) in the main lobby. Parents and children will exit the building after the child is signed out. This is for safety.
- Buses will load students in the back of the school where GQES staff will welcome and supervise students. We teach children to walk on the right to maintain safety and order. Proper bus behavior is explicitly stated in the back to school packet given to every student and on the Winchester Public School website. Riding a bus is a privilege for students.
- As students walk from GQES, to one of the r streets ((Whitlock, South Loudoun, Southwerk, and Kent Streets), GQES staff will welcome and supervise students as they exit school property. It is the parents’ responsibility to make sure their child walks safely to home daily. We expect and ask for parents to work with the Winchester Public School’s new policy of extended walk zones.
Eating Lunch at GQES:
- Parents are welcome at GQES to eat lunch with their students AFTER THE FIRST 16 days of school where we are setting up routines, please. . All parents must follow the procedures. Notify our main office of the intent to join the student at lunch by phone. No pictures of other students may be taken. Parents are to sit at the parent table and interact with their child. Parents must exit the building via the office when the child leaves the cafeteria to return to class.
Questions:
Contact our main office at 540-662-3575.
THANK YOU!!!!