Dec. 13, 2019 Forest Ridge Forerunner

Fri, 12/13/2019 - 4:50pm

Forest Ridge Forerunner
December 13, 2019

Phones answered M-Th 8:30-4:15; F 8:30-4:00

Important Dates:
December
16  6:30 pm FRES Orchestra Concert Begins at Hammond HS
      (Orchestra students need to report at 6:00pm to the auditorium)

      7:30 pm Chorus/Band Concert Begins at Hammond HS
      (Chorus students need to report at 7:00pm to the chorus room and Band
      students need to report at 7:00pm to the Cafeteria).
18   6:00-7:00 p.m. Kindergarten Gingerbread House Night
21-Jan. 1 - WINTER BREAK

January
2    Return from Winter Break
4    Dad’s Club – Wizards Game, Capital One Arena – 8pm
7    PTA Meeting – Media Center – 7pm
10  Skate Night, Laurel Roller Skating Center – 7-10pm
15  FRES Book Club - The book will be Season of Styx Malone (more info to come)
17  Movie Night – 7-9pm
22  Family Fit Night – 6:30-8pm
23  Math Parent Night – 6:30-8pm

February
4   Schools and Offices closed for Special Election Day (see below)

Items of Note:

  • As the weather gets colder, there is the possibility that schools will be closed or open late because of inclement weather.  HCPSS sends out text messages to let parents know.  These messages usually go out between 5:00 and 5:30 a.m.  To receive text messages from FRES or HCPSS, you must opt in.  Please text "YES" to 67587 to receive text messages.
  • The last Chick-fil-A Spirit Day this year will be on March 18.  Proceeds will help to defray the cost of 4th and 5th grade field trips.

From our Administrators...

Dear FRES Community,

  • The latest federal legislation about school accountability is the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), signed into law in 2015. Under ESSA, each state is required to submit a plan detailing how the law will be implemented, including how it will hold schools accountable for student performance. Some parts of the accountability system are required by law - for example, all high schools, nationwide, are accountable for the graduation rate. The law also allows states to choose components of the accountability system that are important to its students and stakeholders. Learn more about what this legislation means for HCPSS here. You can also see the FRES Report Card here.
  • As a reminder students will be bringing interim progress reports home today.  Please note that in cases where students currently have a grade of N/A in a subject area, learning behaviors for that subject area were automatically populated with a 1, instead of left blank as they were in the first quarter.  If you have any questions about your child's interim progress report, please contact his or her homeroom teacher.

Have a wonderful weekend,

Mr. Conroy and Ms. Pazornik

Student News...

Congratulations to our Eagle Egg winners for this week: 5th-Luke D., 4th-Hamaad M., 3rd-David O., 2nd-Monica C. R., 1st-Anna Ball, K-Madison D.

We appreciate you!

Forest Ridge News...

Parents, We Need Your Help
We can no longer allow students to go back to the classroom after 4:15 to retrieve items left behind.  Thank you for your help!

Watch DOGS
Many thanks to Mr. Kim and Mr. Rodriguez who came in this week to serve as our Watch DOGS!

Schools Closed on February 4, 2019
Schools and offices will be closed on Tuesday, February 4, 2020, due to the special primary election to fill the 7th congressional district seat vacated following the passing of Rep. Elijah Cummings. 

From the Media Center

  • The Media Center is soliciting for donations for future maker activities with our students. We are looking for donations of colorful duct tape, stickers, yarn, googly eyes, paper towel rolls, toilet paper rolls and washi tape. This items can be sent in with your student or dropped off in the main office. Thank you for helping us to make learning fun and engaging! 
  • This decision and others unfold as you read our first book club selection of the year, Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon. The  FRES book club will be held on January 15, 2020 in the Media Center starting at 6pm. Registration forms were sent home in November but additional forms are available in the Media Center. Reminder that we will be raffling off 10 free copies of the book for those that register before Dec. 15th. Happy Reading!  For additional information or questions, please contact heather_tordella@hcpss.org 
Attention Parents of Rising 6th Graders
What: Patuxent Valley Middle School Rising Middle Schooler Parent Night
When: January 14th, 2020* at 6:00pm for Gifted and Talented Information; 6:30pm for Rising Middle Schooler Program
(*Snow Date: January 21st, with the same times listed above)
Who: All Parents of current 5th graders planning to attend PVMS in the 20-21 school year. Students are encouraged to attend as well!
Where: PVMS Cafeteria, 9151 Vollmerhausen Rd, Savage, MD 20763
 
Please Join PVMS Staff to learn what you’ll need to know to help your future middle schooler be successful next year. We look forward to meeting with you! 

From Mrs. Schuck, our School Counselor
Many families have expressed the desire to give and help this holiday season. There are many ways to provide help where it is needed most if you feel in the giving spirit.

If interested, you are welcome to reach out to me ( alyssa_schuck@hcpss.org ) saying, “I’d like to help” and I can share a gift item we’re in need of for one of our families. We are also ALWAYS willing to collect gift cards to local stores and restaurants for families. We are hoping to have everything by Tuesday Dec 17th.

Thankful to be part of such a giving, kind-hearted community. We are all in this together!

Science Fair
This year's FRES Science Fair will take place on February 20, 2020. If your child would like to participate in the fair, and is not participating currently in the Science Fair Seminar, please email Kim Clawson at kimberly_clawson @hcpss.org. to request an electronic or hard copy of our science fair packet.  We also have extra packets available on the bulletin board in front of the media center. Please take one from there if you are in the building. All students are invited to complete a science fair project. 

From the Health Room
Hints from the Health Room - When Children Show Signs of Illness
Deciding when a child is too sick to go to school can be a difficult decision for parents to make.  When trying to decide, use the guidelines below to help you.

Stay at Home:  If your child has any of the following symptoms, please keep your child at home or make appropriate child care arrangements:     

  • Appearance and Behavior - unusually tired, pale, lack of appetite, difficult to wake, confused or irritable.  This is sufficient reason to exclude a child.
  • Eyes - thick mucous or pus draining from the eye or pink eye.  With pink eye (conjunctivitis) you may see a white or yellow discharge, matted eyelids after sleep, eye pain and/or redness.
  • Fever - temperature 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.  Remember that a child must be fever free for 24 hours without medication before returning to school.
  • Greenish nose discharge and/or chronic cough - should be seen by a health care provider.  These conditions may be contagious and require treatment.
  • Sore throat - especially with fever or swollen glands in the neck.  (With strep throat, the child may return to school after 24 hours on antibiotics.)
  • Diarrhea - three (3) or more watery stools in a 24-hour period, especially if the child acts or looks ill.
  • Vomiting - two (2) or more times within the past 24 hours
  • Rash - body rash, especially with fever or itching.  Heat rashes and allergic reactions are not contagious.
  • Ear infections without fever - do not need to be excluded, but the child needs to get medical treatment and follow-up.  Untreated ear infections can cause permanent hearing loss.
  • Lice - children may not return to school until they have been treated and are free of live lice.  Make a habit of checking your child’s hair for head lice once a week.
  • Cough – your child may bring in non-medicated (non-mentholated) cough drops with a note from you giving permission for the cough drop. They will be stored in the Health Room.

If your child shows any of the above symptoms while at school, it will be necessary to pick him/her up from school.  Please make sure all emergency contacts are up to date and plan accordingly. Each student should have at least 3 emergency contacts listed. Students should be picked up within 30 minutes of receiving the phone call from the health room staff.

Anytime your child is absent due to illness please notify the school via e-mail at fresabsence@hcpss.org

Please put an extra set of clothes in your child's backpack for unexpected events at school.  Please make sure the clothing is appropriate for the cold weather.

Thank you, the health room staff

PTA News...

Hello FRES families!

We’re getting close to the holiday season and while school activities are slowing down, families are getting busy prepping for winter break and holiday plans. 

Thank you for coming out to the Gardens Ice House for Ice-Skating Night last Friday! 

We had 64 skaters (plus a few chickens like myself, who attended, but didn’t skate) and made $253 from ticket and merchandise sales.

Have a great weekend!

Khaleda Hasan, FRES PTA President

More from the PTA

After School Enrichment Activities
The current enrichment classes will continue through the winter.  We are offering “I'm a Chef, Too” again.  If you have questions or would like to join the committee, please contact Korin Sharp at iamkorin@gmail.com or Monaca Noble at kojothecat@gmail.com.

Dad’s Club
Forms were sent home for the Washington Wizards taking on the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, January 4 at 8pm.  All ticket orders were due today.  If there are any questions, please contact Ed Chrzanowski at edmund_chrzanowski@hcpss.org.

Movie Night
The next movie night is Friday, Jan 17th from 7-9pm.  Stay tuned for details!

Staff Appreciation
We love our teachers and staff at Forest Ridge Elementary School! 

Looking for ways to support our FRES teachers and staff throughout the year?  Need some inspiration as you’re doing your holiday shopping?  We now have an online directory of the FRES Staff Favorite Things open to all interested FRES families and friends.

Community News...

Holiday Ukelele Play Along
On Saturday, December 14, the Howard County Public Library - Savage Branch will have a Holiday ukulele play along from 2 - 2:45 PM. The play along is open to everyone ages 8+ and teens and adults. Beginners are always welcome! Bring your ukulele and come join us for some family fun! Singing is always optional. The holiday music booklet is yours to keep and share with your family and friends this holiday season. If you would like more information about the ukulele play along, please contact the Savage Library or David Petro (dpetro1377@gmail.com).