Simonton Parent Newsletter
Friday, October 15, 2021
Every Student, Every Day, Deserves to Learn, Lead, & Excel!
Message from Ms. Perkins
Thank you to everyone who has supported the Simonton ES PTA fundraiser. All money and order forms are due on Monday, October 18, 2021. We can't wait to announce the names of our cash prize winners and those who will be participating in the pizza and game truck party.
Next week our schedule will be a little different. On Wednesday, October 20, 2021 all schools will be holding a digital learning day. All students will learn from home. It is not a day off and students are expected to log into their eCLASS course page to complete their assignments. There will be no live instruction but teachers will be available via Zoom for assistance. Check their eCLASS page for office hours.
Thursday, October 21, 2021 students will be dismissed from school at 12:15 pm (Pre-K will dismiss at 11:15 am). If your student needs to go home a different way, please send a note or complete the Simonton ES Afternoon Transportation Form and return it to the school. Without a note indicating a change in transportation, students will go home their regular way. Please make sure an adult is at the bus stop to pick them up.
Have a wonderful weekend!
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
October 20, 2021 ~ No School. This will be a digital learning day for all students. There will be no live instruction. Teachers will be available to provide help. They will post their office hours.
October 20, 2021 ~ Curbside lunch will be available from 11:00 - 12:00 pm.
October 21, 2021 ~ Early Release. Students will be dismissed at 12:15 pm.
Pre-K will dismiss at 11:45 am.
Upcoming Events:
October 16
- Saturday Intervention ~ 9:00-11:00 am
October 18
- PTA Spirit Night at Culvers ~ 5:00-8:00 pm
October 18 - 22
- Book Fair
- Great Days of Service
October 20
- Digital Learning Day #2 (No School) Online learning for all students. No live instruction
- Curbside lunch pick up (11:00 - 12:00 pm)
October 21
- Early Release ~ Student will be dismissed at 12:15 pm (Pre-K will dismiss a 11:45 am)
October 25-29
- Red Ribbon Week
October 28
- 5th Grade Skate Night ~ 5:00-7:00 pm
October 29
- PTA Halloween Hair ($1.00)
October 30
- Saturday Intervention ~ 9:00-11:00 am
November 4
- Fall Picture Retake
- Literacy Night ~ 5:30-7:00 pm
November 6
- Saturday Intervention ~ 9:00-11:00 am
PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
If you have not already done so, please navigate to the Simonton ES website, you will be able to schedule a conference with your child's teacher. Navigate to www.gcpsk12.org/SimontonES and you will encounter the following pop-up message that appears on the screen:
It is time for our first round of Conferences!
Please click the following link: Simonton Conference Schedule
Parents, you will need to select your child's teacher, register by putting in your information on the next page (Student's Name, Your name, Email Address), and then press "Submit". You will receive an email that contains a link which will take you to the screen where you can select your desired conference day and time.
Please follow the steps and sign-up for a conference!!
Missing Pop-Up Message on Simonton Website
Device Request for Digital Learning Days
Devices will be pulled for students who have returned their signed forms. They will be checked out and given to students on Tuesday, October 19th and will need to be returned on Thursday, October 21st. Please ensure that the power cord is also returned.
PBIS Students of the Week
SIMONTON BOOK FAIR~ Next Week
The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to Simonton October 18th -22nd.
Please click on the following link to access our Book Fair homepage: https://www.scholastic.com/bf/simontonelementary
LIFETOUCH FALL PICTURE DAY RETAKES ~ RESCHEDULED!
Our retake Day was scheduled for Friday, October 15th. Lifetouch rescheduled this event for Thursday, November 4th. If your child(ren) are in need of having their pictures retaken, please mark this date change on your calendar.
AKS at Home ~ Unit 2 Sessions
AKS at Home is a Gwinnett County Public Schools’ family engagement initiative that empowers parents with tools to support the learning of their children at home. This initiative highlights foundational skills and activities taught in the areas of Math and Language Arts for grades K-5.
YOU ARE INVITED!
We invite all our families of students in K-5 grades to sign up for our AKS at Home virtual sessions.
School Messenger
Add 1-844-248-6644 to your contact list as Gwinnett County Public Schools. Go to go.schoolmessenger.com to manage your messaging preferences.
If you do not want to receive messages from Gwinnett Count Public Schools via SchoolMessenger, please manage your messaging preferences using the SchoolMessenger app or by accessing SchoolMessenger through the Parent Portal. In addition, at any time while listening to a message broadcast, you can press "5" on your phone to initiate the opt-out process.
FREE AND REDUCED LUNCH APPLICATION
The application for free and reduced lunch is still available. If you received this service last year, and you feel you still qualify, you must complete an application again this year.
Free and Reduced Lunch Application
https://www.nlappscloud.com/Welcome.aspx?api=78f8fee54716f21218e523747d37a13c
Frequently Asked Questions about free and reduced lunch
GIVE FEEDBACK ON PROPOSED INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES IN OCTOBER
Staff, parents, students, and community members are invited to review and provide input on proposed curriculum resources for select grades and courses in Language Arts, Social Studies, Career and Technical Education, and Foreign Language. This year’s virtual review will begin Oct. 1 and will run through Oct. 31. Additional supplemental materials will be added to the review on Oct. 15.
Before adopting instructional resources for classroom use, Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) holds an extensive review. The curriculum content offices and Instructional Resources and Support jointly convened multiple committees involving various stakeholder groups to select resources to consider for adoption submitted by publishers. The resources were reviewed for alignment with the school system’s Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS) curriculum. During the review process, resources are piloted in GCPS classrooms. Data from the reviews and pilots will be considered in making adoption recommendations to the Board of Education in early 2022.
To begin the review, please visit this link.
For more about the instructional resources review process, contact the Office of Instructional Resources and Support, at 678-301-6828.
Spotlight on Digital Citizenship:
Next week, October 18th- 22nd, is Digital Citizenship Week.
Attached below are K-2 and 3-5 Conversation starters for parents in regards to digital citizenship.
The following links are Family Tips for digital citizenship:
Day 1
Help Kids Balance Their Media Lives: https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-5-media-balance-and-well-being
Day 2
Help Boost Kids' Safety, Privacy, and Security: https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-5-privacy-and-security
Day 3
Help Kids Post, Comment, and Upload Responsibly: https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-5-digital-footprint-and-identity
Day 4
Help Kids Fight Cyberbullying and Other Mean Online Behavior: https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-12-cyberbullying-digital-drama-and-hate-speech
Day 5
Help Kids Spot Fake News and Decode Media Messages: https://www.commonsense.org/education/family-tips/k-5-news-and-media-literacy
Parents, please talk with your children about these different topics each night and use the conversation starters as a resource...
Trusted Reviews
Common Sense Media provides trusted ratings created with families in mind. Reviews for what your kids are into (before they get into it)...
Movies & TV, Books, Apps & Games, etc.
#GoodDigitalParenting Video Series
(Family Online Safety Institute)
Strong4Life Campaign
Gwinnett County Parent Mentors Present
English Meeting Flyer Link:
Spanish Meeting Flyer Link:
Mystery Science Videos:
Annual AKS Review - Extended
SIMONTON ELEMENTARY ~ WHAT WE STAND FOR
Vision
Simonton is committed to dynamic high quality instruction resulting in a passion for learning, leading and excelling.
Core Belief
Every Student Every Day, Deserves to Learn, Lead, and Excel
Commitments
We commit to giving our students a fresh start every day.
We commit to preparing quality and engaging lessons that will prepare our students to be successful in school.
We commit to teaching, modeling and holding our students accountable for appropriate school behavior.
We commit to providing our students with a structured and safe learning environment.
We commit to a great year of learning, leading, and excelling
Simonton Elementary School
Superintendent- Dr. Calvin J. Watts
Assistant Superintendent- Dr. Terry Watlington
Board Member- Mr. Steven B. Knudsen
Principal- Tamara G. Perkins
Assistant Principal- Tifferney Dodd
Assistant Principal- Daphne Miles
Assistant Principal- Emily Young
Website: gcpsk12.org/SimontonES
Location: 275 Simonton Road Southeast, Lawrenceville, GA, USA
Phone: (770) 513-6637
Twitter: @SimontonPride