Greeting SJLES Families,
As we begin American Education Week, I want to once again thank you for your continued support, encouragement, and collaboration. I was able to visit several 4th and 5th grade classrooms this morning to start my day and it is great to see our students engaged and ready to learn bright and early on a Monday morning. With your help, dedication, and perseverance our Jaguars are attending school at a rate of 98.85%, the vast majority of our students’ cameras are on during instruction, students are actively participating, they are engaged with their learning, and are demonstrating true responsibility by ensuring they have completed their synchronous and asynchronous assignments.
Mrs. Redd and I continue to be proud of our families, our teachers, our Education Support Professionals, and especially proud of our Jaguars during this time of virtual learning. Thank you for all you are doing at home to put our Jaguars in a great position to learn and grow each and every day!
Just a reminder that report cards will be made available to families at 4:00 this afternoon. Details can be found below in our New News section. Here’s to another great week of teaching, learning, growing, and connecting here at The Lane. Happy American Education Week, SJLES!
SIncerely,
Dan Notari
SJLES Principal
NEW NEWS
Report Cards Issued Online TODAY!
Report cards can be accessed later today at 4:00. Parents/guardians may view/download report cards by taking the following steps:
Select More Options from the left panel
Select Report Cards from the middle
Select the report card you wish to access
Parents of students receiving special education services can expect to receive their child's IEP progress report no later than Friday, November 20 through email. If you have any questions about your child's progress or what to expect as we fulfill requirements for progress reporting, you may contact your child's case manager.
Additional details regarding First Quarter Report Cards can be found below in our Repeated News section.
American Education Week
We are celebrating American Education Week from November 16–20, 2020. Every year we look forward to honoring public education and the many individuals who make a difference in ensuring that every student receives a quality education.
American Education Week is a wonderful opportunity to encourage our collaboration and partnership with families. This year, during this time of virtual learning, unfortunately we will not be able to hold all of our traditional American Education Week activities, but we still invite families to participate in morning meetings with our students on Tuesday and help recognize the tremendous impact our Educational Support Personnel make each and every day.
We also want to invite you to join our classroom Google Meet sessions to see our incredible teachers and students in action. To ensure student safety, please understand that outside email addresses will not be allowed into Google Meet sessions. Parents/guardians should sit with their child and use their HCPSS email account to log into Google Meet sessions. In addition, we ask that all parents/guardians adhere to these Google Meet privacy guidelines:
Do not video record, audio record, photograph, live stream or transmit in any other way any part of a Google Meet, including not posting on any social media platform.
Any confidential or personally identifiable information related to students participating during Google Meets should not be collected, discussed or shared.
During this incredibly unusual and often stressful school year, it is even more important that we celebrate the team of people at our schools, including our teachers, administrative and support staff, food and nutrition employees and so many more. At the same time, our families are working closer with us to ensure our students succeed with virtual learning.
As part of American Education Week, Wednesday, Nov. 18 is Educational Support Personnel Day (ESP). ESP staff includes secretaries, health room staff, paraeducators, custodians and food service staff. We are encouraging families to email a message of thanks to the SJLES ESP staff. You can locate all ESP staff emails from our school website at https://sjles.hcpss.org/school-staff.
We look forward to our families getting involved in the spirit of the week. Together, we can move forward in empowering each of our students to achieve and thrive.
Message From Our Related Arts Team
Our Related Arts team truly appreciates your support regarding your child’s completion of music, art, technology, physical education, media and band and orchestra assignments. We recognize managing asynchronous lessons can be challenging, at times, especially for our youngest learners! Please know that each of our Related Arts teachers provides instruction for hundreds of students each week and therefore, assignments may not be graded daily. Our team appreciates your understanding as we balance instruction, grading, and feedback. Be assured that all assignments will be graded in a timely manner and can be viewed via the Canvas grade book. As a reminder, Related Arts courses will only be included on the report card in Quarter 2 and Quarter 4 during virtual learning. Thank you SJLES families for your continued collaboration and support!
Family Support and Resource Center Newsletter
Do you have a child with an IFSP or IEP? The HCPSS Family Support and Resource Center (FSRC) offers a weekly email just for you! FSRC communications include helpful workshops, resources and community information specifically geared to supporting your journey. As a parent of a child with an IFSP/IEP, you should already be receiving the email, but if not, let us know so we can include your contact information in our database. You can also email specific questions to FSRC@hcpss.org.
SJLES Technology Support Form Reminder
Please find below information regarding technology support for fall virtual instruction that includes both self-help resources and how to request technology support.
Student Technology Resources: Provides guides, resources and videos for HCPSS student technology. Below are some direct links to commonly used resources:
Canvas Orientation - includes how to navigate Canvas
Google Meet - includes a video overview of how to login
Chromebooks - provides a variety of resources for using an HCPSS Chromebook
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.
HCPSS Connect Parent Resources: Provides HCPSS Connect—including Synergy, Canvas, and Family File—guides and videos for parents.
If after reviewing these resources, your family continues to need support, please complete the Student and Family Technology Support Request Form and one of our staff members will reach out to you as soon as possible. If you cannot access the online form for any reason, please call the school at 410-313-2813.
Staff will attempt to resolve the issue, and if unsuccessful will provide directions for exchanging the broken device for a working one at the school system’s Onsite Technology Center. This information is also posted on our SJLES Website
Archived Video of HCPSS’ Virtual Town Hall on the Spring Semester
If you were unable to watch HCPSS’ town hall, an archived video of the town hall can be viewed online. Panelists answered 53 questions in the two-hour time frame. Additional information on the 2020-2021 school year and the proposed hybrid model can be found online and on the HCPSS Help site.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Access our SJLES Public Calendar at https://sjles.hcpss.org/calendar
11/16 @ 4:00 - Report Cards Issued
11/16 - 11/20 - American Education Week
11/17 - Parents Invited to attend Morning Meetings
11/18 - Educational Support Personnel Day
11/20 - #JaguarPride: Celebrate our SJLES Pride and wear your Spirit Wear or school colors
11/23 & 11/24 - Schools Close 3 Hours Early - Parent/Teacher Conferences
11/25 - Schools Closed for Students - Parent/Teacher Conferences
11/26 & 11/27 - Thanksgiving Holiday - Schools Closed
12/2 @ 6:30 - Virtual PTA Meeting
12/4 - Rainbow Day: Wear as many colors as possible!
12/11 - When I Grow Up Day: Dress up as an occupation you would like to be when you grow up
12/18 - Sweater Day: Wear your ugliest, most interesting or favorite sweater
12/23 - PJ Day: Wear your favorite pjs to celebrate the last day of school before Winter Break
12/24 - 1/1 - Winter Break - SCHOOLS CLOSED
REPEATED NEWS
SJLES Virtual Parent Teacher Conference Overview: Fall 2020
Conference Structure
Fall Conferences can be scheduled with your child's English Language Arts teacher.
GT Math Teachers are available for conferencing with the families of their 4th graders.
Related Arts teachers have a limited number of conference times available in comparison to the large number of students they teach. We encourage you to schedule a conference only if you have a concern or if there are assignments you would like to discuss with the teacher. Parents of students making satisfactory progress should not feel as though they need to schedule a related arts conference.
Conference blocks are scheduled in 20 minute windows...
15 minutes dedicated to the parent teacher conference.
5 minute buffer for teachers to thoughtfully conclude their conference and prepare for their next conference.
Conferences will need to begin and end on time.
Scheduling a Virtual Parent Conference
Conference scheduling will open on Friday 11/13 and close on Thursday 11/19 so that teachers will have an appropriate amount of time to prepare for their conferences.
Any additional conferences beyond the times offered must be scheduled after the window has closed through direct contact with your child’s teacher.
To sign up for an ELA, 4th Grade GT Math, or Related Arts conference, please login to HCPSS Connect and click on "Conferences" in the navigation pane.
Refer to the Quick Reference Guide for more information and detailed steps to sign up for a conference.
Virtual Parent Conference Schedule
Monday, 11/23 from 1:20-7:20 p.m.
Tuesday, 11/24 from 1:20-7:20 p.m.
Wednesday, 11/25 from 8:20 a.m.-3:40 p.m.
Most teachers will host conferences on the evenings of 11/23 and 11/24.
Teachers who do not host evening conferences will offer conferences on 11/25.
There is no school for students on 11/25.
Logging onto Google Meet for your Conference
You will use your child’s HCPSS credentials to join the conference.
Google Meet Codes: You will see the meeting code for your conference in Synergy when you sign up for a conference. You will receive a reminder email with the room code from the Synergy system a few days before your conference.
To prevent “overlap” of conferences, teachers will be using Google Meet room joining security features.
You may have to wait to be admitted into the Google Meet room.
Quarter One Report Cards
Quarter one report cards will be available online via Synergy beginning at 4 p.m. on Monday November 16. Printed report cards will not be issued.
Parents/guardians may view/download report cards by taking the following steps:
Select More Options from the left panel
Select Report Cards from the middle
Select the report card you wish to access
HCPSS Grading Updates
Learning Behaviors will not be graded for SY20-21.
Related Arts courses will be graded only twice per year, during Quarter 2 and Quarter 4.
Health will be graded only twice per year, during Quarter 2 and Quarter 4.
Students in primary grades will earn an I (Independent) or W (With assistance) if they have engaged in synchronous instruction. Students in intermediate grades will receive A, B or C grades if they have engaged in synchronous instruction. As a result, Canvas grades may not align with quarter 1 report card grades.
These changes are in place for 1st quarter report card grades only. Asynchronous assignments complement and support synchronous learning, please support your child with task completion and with attending support sessions as needed.
Parents of students receiving special education services can expect to receive their child's IEP progress report no later than Friday, November 20 through email. If you have any questions about your child's progress or what to expect as we fulfill requirements for progress reporting, you may contact your child's case manager.
Accessing MAP Results
Fall 2020 MAP test results are entered in Synergy the Friday after a student takes the test. It can take up to 24 hours to become visible for an individual student.
To access previous test scores:
Log in to HCPSS Connect
Select More Options from the left panel
Select Standardized Test Scores from the middle
Detailed PDF home reports are available in Synergy. To access home reports:
Log in to HCPSS Connect
Select More Options from the left panel
Select Report Cards from the middle
Select the applicable report from the Student's MAP Reports section.
Google Play Information
In an effort to continue expanding our authorized set of digital tools for virtual instruction, HCPSS has curated a new set of supplemental digital tools that are available only through Google’s menu of additional services. These supplemental digital tools are approved by HCPSS and comply with federal, state and Howard County Board of Education student data privacy policies. Due to Google’s settings, students must access this set of tools by utilizing Google’s menu of additional services, which requires consent by a parent or guardian.
To provide consent:
Log in to HCPSS Connect.
Select More Options from the left panel.
Select HCPSS Google Menu from the middle of the page.
Click the check box to provide consent. Changes are saved automatically.
A parent or guardian must provide consent for each student by selecting the student’s name at the top of the page.
The digital tools currently included are: Book Room, Word Work, Scratch BluBot, Scratch JR, Sketch-Up, Collector Classic, JamBoard, Google Earth and Minecraft: Education. After a parent/guardian provides consent, students using a HCPSS Chromebook can access the tools through the Google Play Store icon on the Chromebook when logged in with an HCPSS account. There may be a delay of up to three days before the apps appear in the Google menu and some tools may automatically appear on the Chromebook once consent is provided by a parent or guardian without the need to install them. If your child has not been issued a Chromebook, please make the request following the information found online.
Please note:
HCPSS cannot guarantee that apps are available on devices other than HCPSS Chromebooks.
Teachers may or may not choose to use any or all of these apps during instruction. Students will be notified when a particular app will be used for instruction.
If you do not provide consent for your student’s access to these digital tools, your student’s teacher will provide alternative enrichment activities.
In addition to these Google tools, HCPSS has approved a robust set of supplemental digital tools. Your child’s teacher will notify you of the particular supplemental digital tools being used in each class via email or on their Canvas course page.
For more information, please contact Ms. Kennedy at shannon_kennedy@hcpss.org.
Young Authors' Contest
The Howard County Literacy Association invites students in grades 1-5 to submit their original poems and/or short stories to the annual writing contest called The Young Authors' Contest. Please see the links below for information about the rules and guidelines. All entries must have a completed cover sheet sent as a PDF. Submissions must be emailed to Mrs. Taylor by December 2, 2020. (elizabeth_taylor@hcpss.org) Contact Mrs. Taylor with any questions.
Young Authors’ Contest information can be found at http://hocoreads.weebly.com/young-authors-contest.html. Howard County Literacy Association welcomes parents as members. Visit http://hocoreads.weebly.com/ for information about joining.
Residency Reminder
Even though HCPSS is currently operating in a virtual learning environment, families need to alert their school if they move, especially if they move to another attendance area. While in the spring transfers between schools were minimized, it is now the 2020-2021 school year and all students should be enrolled at the school for their assigned attendance area. Please visit our SJLES website at sjles.hcpss.org or contact Mrs. Wolfrey at robin_wolfrey@hcpss.org for more information.
Monitor Donations
Many teachers have discovered that using a second computer monitor can enhance their ability to teach virtually. If you have a computer monitor that you are not using and would like to donate to our staff, please feel free to drop it off at SJLES. You can do this by bringing it to our school Monday - Friday between 8:00 - 4:00 and leave it inside our front entrance vestibule. Please wear a mask and follow all social distancing protocols. Thank you very much!