Greetings SJLES Families,

We did it! The first day is in the books! Thank you all for your support on this unique first day of school. We worked to troubleshoot various small issues throughout the day, but as the day progressed we all seemed to settle into the learning platform and the afternoon went much smoother. Even smoother days are ahead as we all become more familiar with our digital tools. 

Please remember that if your student ever experiences technical difficulties and is unable to login, simply email the teacher and let him/her know.  Your child will not be marked absent.  Please refer to our SJLES homepage to find information that can assist you with technology, as well as other resources for virtual learning. Additionally, you can call the front office at 410-313-2813 and/or you can reach out to our technology teacher Ms. Kennedy (shannon_kennedy@hcpss.org), our Assistant Principal Mrs. Redd (alexcia_redd@hcpss.org), or me (dnotari@hcpss.org) at any time.  We are here to help!

Please follow us on Twitter @hcpss_sjles. We posted a few times today and would love to see your first day of school photos. Be sure to tag us! As you're navigating and balancing so much at home, we wanted to share a few brief items and reminders with you. It sure is a busy first week at The Lane. Thanks again for your partnership, patience, and grace. Here’s to a great 2020-2021 together! 

Sincerely,

Dan Notari

SJLES Principal

NEW NEWS

HCPSS Google Meet Engagement & Behavioral Expectations 

• Adhere to HCPSS Policy 8080 Responsible Use Technology and Social Media and other relevant HCPSS policies.

• Follow the school’s values (ex. Be Safe, Act Responsibly, Respect Self and Others, Keep Focused)

• Students will only be permitted into a Google Meet  session with a HCPSS email account.  All students can be identified through their HCPSS email account.

• Inappropriate/offensive/threatening comments, misrepresentation of identity, and/or disruptive participants (invited or uninvited) during Google Meet sessions will not be tolerated.

• Sharing login information violates the confidentiality rights of other students and places them at risk of having to witness disruptive behaviors from students who are not members of the class or school community. 

• Students who are disruptive and/or “trespass” Google Meet sessions will be immediately reported to administration and will receive appropriate consequences in accordance with the HCPSS Code of Conduct.  Consequences may result in temporary or permanent loss of technology access, which will also result in a student's inability to participate in Google Meet sessions; arrangement for receiving instruction and assignments will be established by administration communicated and arranged with parents.

 Additional information can be found in the  Safety Measures During the Google Meet Session on 20-21 HCPSS Virtual Teaching and Learning Page

PTA Meeting this Thursday and Facebook updates

Hey SJLES Families! We wanted to give a massive shout-out to the SJLES teachers and staff for their flawless coordination of school materials pick-up last week. As always, they threw themselves into the task 100% and got it DONE. Thank you so VERY much!

Shout-out #2 goes to all our SJLES parents putting the final touches on their at-home learning environments over the weekend. This will be a work in progress though – no doubt we’ll learn a lot about what works and what doesn’t over the coming weeks. Don’t stress Families! Your SJLES community is here for you. Not only do we have our incredible teachers and staff, but the SJLES PTA is here to support in whatever way we can. Want to stay in touch? The best thing to do is to follow our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/SJLESPTA) and you can also join the St John’s Lane PTA Families group where everyone has the opportunity to post and connect with our community. 

The SJLES PTA website is also going through an refresh and this will soon be a terrific hub for info & updates so watch this space…

And finally, the first PTA meeting will be taking place in the SJLES parking lot on Thursday September 10th @ 6.30pm. Our key business will be to elect the new PTA board and approve this year's budget. We expect the meeting to go for about 30 mins. Please come along if you can make it. We need to ensure that we have enough attendees to form a quorum - plus it'll be a good opportunity to meet some of our school community, especially if you are interested in volunteering. SJLES Spirit Wear will be on sale at the meeting. T-shirts, Hoodies and track pants are available in sizes S-XXL (although we have varying quantities of each). Hope to see you there!

In the meantime, all the VERY best for week one of 2020-21!

SJLES PTA 

Student Materials Collection & Distribution TOMORROW, Wed 9/9 @ 3:00-6:00

Families, thank you so much for your patience, cooperation, and kindness during today’s Collection & Distribution Extravaganza! It was awesome to see so many of our students and families. A HUGE thank you to our outstanding staff volunteers who helped organize all of our materials over the past few days and took time away from their personal work time today to make the event run as smoothly as possible. Another big thank you to our PTA for providing our volunteer’s lunch and keeping us hydrated throughout the day! 

We will host an additional Collection & Distribution event on Wednesday 9/9 from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm at SJLES. Families can choose to stop by anytime during this three hour window. We will distribute Chromebooks, instructional materials, class pictures, yearbooks, and students’ personal items that were left behind last school year. Just a reminder, all elementary students will be provided and are required to use an HCPSS Chromebook for instruction. You can also return borrowed items such as SJLES media books, instruments, safety belts, and teacher classroom library books.  If you did not visit us during last week’s collection & distribution event please plan to visit SJLES TOMORROW. Our rain date for this event is Thursday 9/10 from 3:00 pm - 6:00 pm.

9/9 Process & Procedures: 

• Items to be returned to SJLES must be placed in a plastic/shopping/grocery bag or box labeled with the student’s first and last name. 

  • Please note that the bag/box will not be returned. 

• Please place a paper with your students’ last name, last year’s grade level(s) and homeroom teacher(s) on the passenger side of your dashboard. 

  • New families please write students’ full name and “NEW GRADE” # on the paper. 

• Students and families should remain in their cars throughout this process.

• Staff, students, and family members must wear a mask while on school grounds and remain at least 6 feet apart at all times.

• Upon entering the bus loop entrance please…

  • follow the directions of staff as you enter the bus loop  

  • roll down your passenger window 

  • ensure the paper with names, former grade levels, and homeroom teachers is clearly visible

  • make space on your passenger seat for items

• At each zone, staff members will provide student belongings/collect school items. 

• Each vehicle will travel through an admin check, distribution zone and collection zone during this process as shown below…

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

All dates will be posted on our SJLES Public Calendar.

• 9/9 @ 3:00-6:00  Collection & Distribution of Student Material 

• 9/9-9/18 - Homeroom Teachers Calls of Care to Families  

• 9/10 @ 6:30 - PTA Meeting  

• 9/10 @ 3:00-6:00  Collection & Distribution of Student Material RAIN DATE

• 9/11 - Spirit Day - Football Friday: Wear your favorite football team colors, jersey, or hat

• 9/18 - Spirit Day - Summer lovin' Day: Grab your sunglasses, Hawaiin shirt, lei or shirt from your favorite vacation and let's say goodbye to summer in style!

• 9/22 @ 6:30 - K-2 Virtual Back to School Night 

• 9/23 @ 6:30 - 3-5 Virtual Back to School Night 

• 9/23 @ 7:30 - 3-5 Virtual Back to Music Night (Band, Orchestra, & Chorus)

• 9/24 @ 6:30 - Gifted & Talented Program Virtual Back to School Night 

• 9/25 - Spirit Day - #JaguarPride: Celebrate our SJLES Pride and wear your Spirit Wear or school colors

• 9/30 @ 6:30 - Virtual Coffee & Conversation With Administration 

REPEATED NEWS

Canvas & Google Meet Tutorials

• Video directions: How to access Canvas and google meetings- video tutorial

• Written Directions:

  • Log into HCPSS.me

  • Go to “G Suite” and click the 9 dots in the top right-hand corner

  • Click “Meet”

  • Enter the session code name 

  • Learn more by click here  

Canvas Information

• Please watch this Canvas video tutorial for parents in preparation for Tuesday

• All parents and students should review this updated HCPSS Canvas Resource here

Password Assistance

Password and Username Self-Service: Allows families to request a password reset or student’s username. New students can use this application to retrieve their account information. This application is also linked off the hcpss.me website, which also includes user directions.

Virtual Learning Student Attendance

Student attendance for Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday will occur as follows: 

• At the elementary level, both the homeroom teacher and mathematics teacher will take attendance, noting whether students were present online for synchronous instruction.

• A student must attend BOTH the ELA synchronous session and the Math synchronous session to be counted present for a full day. 

• If a student attends EITHER the ELA synchronous session or the Math synchronous session he/she will be marked present for a half day. 

• If a student DOES NOT attend the ELA synchronous session or the Math synchronous session he/she will be marked absent for the day.  

Student attendance for Wednesday instruction will occur as follows: 

• A student will be counted as present for Wednesday if they do one or more of the following since the previous Wednesday: 

  • Submit an assignment to one of their teachers 

  • Engage in synchronous instruction with an HCPSS teacher 

  • Complete work in the Canvas learning management system, DreamBox or Lexia Core5

School Meals

The food services program during the first semester of the 2020-2021 school year will consist of Grab-and-Go breakfasts and lunches served Monday through Friday from 8–9 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.–12:45 p.m., beginning Tuesday, September 8. 

Breakfast and lunch can be picked up at either meal time. Meals will be provided free of charge for all students, subject to USDA funding availability. SJLES is a food site and students may access Grab-and-Go meals at our front door each school day. Additional information regarding food services can be found on the HCPSS website.

Band & Orchestra Updates

Band and Orchestra registration has opened for the 2020-2021 school year! Please visit https://musicaljaguars.weebly.com/ to register your student. On this website, you can access instrument demonstration videos for all band and orchestra instruments, as well as learn more information about the band and orchestra programs. Please contact Ms. Kalivretenos at alexis_kalivretenos@hcpss.org if you have any questions.

Virtual Back to Music Night 

We will host a Virtual Back to Music Night for students in grades 3-5 who may be interested in joining Band, Orchestra, or Chorus. Virtual Back to Music Night will follow our Intermediate Back to School Night on 9/23 @ 7:30. More details to follow. 

Student Absences

Please email all student attendance notes SJLESabsence@hcpss.org to ensure that your student's lawful absence is marked as excused and they will have the opportunity to make up work. In your email, please include your child's name and grade. Please remember that you have up to 5 days after your child's return to school to submit an absence note. When emailing a note, you will receive an automated message to verify that your email was received. Please do not send attendance notes to your child's teachers. If you have any questions about your child's attendance, please email SJLESabsence@hcpss.org.

FAMILY FILE REMINDER! 

HCPSS utilizes Family File for parents/guardians to complete emergency information. Your Family File must be completed and updated in order for you to access the names of your child’s teachers prior to the start of the school year. Regardless of virtual or in-person learning, parents/guardians must verify and/or update information for each child. Parents/guardians can complete Family File by logging in to HCPSS Connect selecting the More Options tab on the left and then selecting Family File in the center column.

Once logged in, parents/guardians will be asked to update or provide the following information:

• Student Information

• Parent/Guardian Contact

• Emergency Contacts

• Medical Information

• Arrival/Dismissal Procedures (for when in-person classes/supports resume)

• Photo Approval

• Data Confidentiality

• PTA/PTSA Directory

Changes of address may not be made through Family File. If you have recently moved, please contact Mrs. Wolfrey at robin_wolfrey@hcpss.org as soon as possible.

Resources on how to access Family File may be found online, including instructions on how to reset passwords. If you need additional assistance, please complete this Connect Help Form.

Free Vaccine Clinics

Free vaccine clinics to be held at several HCPSS school locations during the week of September 21 from 4–6pm.

•      September 21, 4–6pm Howard HS Hollifield Station ES 

•      September 22, 4–6pm Oakland Mills MS Longfellow ES 

•      September 23, 4–6pm Cradlerock ES Bushy Park ES 

•      September 24, 4–6pm Deep Run ES Ducketts Lane ES

•      September 25, 4–6pm Howard HS Laurel Woods ES

Parents/guardians may make appointments at any of these locations; whichever is most convenient for them. Multiple vaccines, many of which are required for school entry, will be offered. These vaccines will be provided at no cost. Upon registration, parents will be able to choose which vaccines their child needs. 

Clinics will be held outdoors, and will utilize a virtual queue program so families can wait in their cars or away from the clinic. Families are encouraged to wear a face mask or other face covering. Families can check md.myir.net to see which vaccines your child has already had, or contact your school nurse at florence_hanssen@hcpss.org to determine what is needed. Pre-registration online (due to Covid-19, we will be paperless at these clinics) is required; go to www.vaccineconsent.com Registration is open from August 25-September 9.