Good evening, Waters Landing family!
Waters Landing Elementary School is part of the No Place for Hate initiative, which teachers students to respect everyone's differences. We are getting ready to identify some students to be No Place for Hate Rangers, but we want to hear from parents as we start the new year. During the month of January, there will be focus groups meeting with Principal Hammond to share your family's experiences here at WLES, as well as any thoughts and ideas you have to ensure every child is successful. Please sign up here. We hope you will consider attending. The first in person focus group will be Tuesday, 1/9/24 at 6:15pm. You can attend the focus group, then go to the Media Center for our January PTA meeting, which is at 7:00pm in the Media Center on 1/9/24. We hope to see you there. Mr. DeFelice, our PTA president, really wants your help in rebuilding the PTA to support WLES students.
Here are some reminders as we start the new year...
Attendance
Attendance at school is mandated by law. It is important that students attend school regularly so they can successfully learn the standards for their grade level and participate in the social emotional experiences necessary for maturation. Please notify the school when your student(s) will be absent for any reason on any given day by completing this form. The form is also located on the website under Quick links, Report a Student Absence. If a student is absent more than 3 consecutive days, a doctor's note, written or emailed, must be submitted upon returning to school. If a student is absent for 10 consecutive days, he or she will be withdrawn. Elementary school students with excessive absences and/or tardies, both lawful and unlawful, may be referred for appropriate intervention. At the discretion of the principal/designee, students who demonstrate a pattern of absences may be referred to appropriate staff and/or outside agencies for intensive interventions designed to increase regular attendance. Please see the MCPS Regulation JEA-RA, Student Attendance for additional information.
Signing students in/out of school
If you are dropping your student off late to school or picking your student up early, please come inside the school office to sgn your student in or out using the QR code or virtual log in sheet. Office staff will assist you when you arrive.
Birthday celebrations
Each student will be celebrated with birthday wishes over the announcements and the receipt of a birthday pencil on his/her birthday. Students who have birthdays in the Summer will be celebrated as well, prior to the end of the school year. No food will be shared with the class during lunch, recess or instructional time. However, if you choose to send a birthday treat in for the entire class to take home that day, the treat must be individually bagged with the ingredients clearly labeled, so that parents can determine if the treat is suitable for their student. Personal birthday invitations will not be distributed in school, unless one is provided for every student in the class.
Visitors
We LOVE visitors at the Landing, but please be sure to adhere to our school policies. All school visitors, with the exception of MCPS employees with badges, need to check-in and check-out of the main office and scan their driver's license/identification cards through the Visitor Management System (VMS). Once the visitor clears the VMS, they must wear the badge the VMS creates and remain under supervision of an MCPS professional while with students. Any necessary disciplining of students should be handled by Waters Landing Elementary School staff, not visitors. Family members are free to come visit any time on Mother FIgure Monday and Father Figure Friday. If you want to visit your child's class on other days, please contact your child's teacher to set it up. You are always welcome.
Volunteers
At the Landing we LOVE volunteers! Please complete the necessary steps to become a volunteer as listed on the MCPS website:
- Complete the MCPS Parent/Guardian and Community Volunteer Form. This form serves as an introduction of yourself, your interests and availability in volunteering, and some important reminders about volunteers in school.
- Complete the mandatory online Recognizing Child Abuse and Neglect Training. This training is required for any volunteer who regularly supports schools, chaperones a field trip, etc. and is available in multiple languages. When the course is completed, a report is created to serve as proof of satisfying the training requirement.
- Provide our office staff with a copy of the completed MCPS Parent/Guardian and Community Volunteer Form and your online course grade sheet that will show 100% for completing the online Recognizing Child Abuse and Neglect Training.
There is plenty to do, both at school and in the comfort of your own home that will support Waters Landing Elementary School. Please let our PTA president, Mr. DeFelice (jamie.g.defelice@gmail.com) or your child's teacher know if you are interested in volunteering. Speaking English fluently is not a requirement for volunteering.
Please let us know if you have any questions. Have an amazing week!
Proud to be a Dolphin,
Mr. Kim, Assistant School Administrator
Mrs. Nelson, Assistant Principal
Mrs. Hammond, Principal
