Star News
November 2, 2020
A Message from Dr. Connery
Dear Simpson Parents,
Happy November! It was wonderful to see many of you last week during Early Release Parent-Teacher Conferences. This is always such a valuable time for you to talk with the teacher to see how your child is progressing both academically and socially. I am confident you found this time beneficial. Early Release conferences are held twice a year. The next early release days will be held on February 17th & 18th. We will again be scheduling conferences online. Also, the Parent Portal is a great way for you to stay informed about your child’s academic progress 24 hours a day/7 days a week. You can monitor student assignments and assessments if you have a child in grades 1st – 5th. Finally, many thanks to our amazing Simpson Elementary PTA for delivering each homeroom their own set of recess sports balls. This is just another way to provide safety and security measures with each class having their own set of play equipment to sanitize daily. At Simpson, we are so grateful for our parent-teacher community for their support. Have a wonderful month and a Happy Thanksgiving. As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you need any assistance.
Proud to be your principal,
Dr. Connery
HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH
~ Dr. Connery
Month At-A-Glance
November Calendar Dates:
November 2nd - United Way/"Cozy Up" Campaign
November 3rd - Election Day/Schools Closed
November 16th-Virtual Book Fair Begins
November 19th-Marlow's Tavern Spirit Night
November 23rd - 27th - Thanksgiving break/Student holidays
Book Fair is Coming! November 16th!
Book Fair will be Virtual this year!
We are excited to offer a Virtual Scholastic Book Fair beginning November 16th and running through December 4th.
All purchases will be sent directly to your home.
More detailed information will be forthcoming.
It's time for the Gwinnett Science and Engineering Fair!
For the 2020-2021 Gwinnett Science, Engineering and Innovation Fair, our elementary students will have the opportunity to design solutions to real problems that we face in Gwinnett County and in Georgia. Students will select a problem that they have an interest in and then work within the engineering design process to create their solution.
STEM Projects differ from most traditional research projects. In a STEM project, students will design a new solution to a problem, build it, and test the outcomes.
This year's fair is completely digital. More information can be found in the Simpson Science Fair Google Classroom. Students must be logged in to their GCPS accounts to join. The classroom code is: qpxddxy
STEM projects must be completed and submitted by Friday, January 15 at 4PM. Winners will be announced by Friday, January 29th. The top 3 winners from our school will proceed to the first round of judging at the county level.
We can't wait to see what you create!
GCPS is looking for Substitutes!
Gwinnett County Public Schools is hiring individuals with two or more years of college to work as part of our substitute team! This involves going out to local schools and providing instruction through an in-person, digital, or hybrid format – you get to choose the assignments that you accept and determine your own schedule! Daily rates range from $98/day to $120/day.
Feel free to contact Kay LaGrone or Rosa Brinkman at the Welcome Desk for more information!
GASP! is Back at East Jones Bridge Park!
A Reminder from Nurse Norris
Hello Superstars! As we head into cold and flu season, please follow these important guidelines so we can continue to have a safe, healthy and fun school year!
Please keep your child home if they have any of the COVID-19 symptoms:
-Fever of 100.4 or above -headache -sore throat
-cough -loss of taste or smell -congestion or runny nose
-fatigue -nausea or vomiting -diarrhea
-shortness of breath -muscle or body aches
If a student has symptoms consistent with those of COVID-19 while at school, they will be sent to the isolation room and you will be notified to pick them up immediately. We will be evaluating suspected cases on a case by case basis according to the Department of Public Health guidelines for when they can return to school.
Medications:
If your child has medication that must be taken at school (inhalers, epi-pens, etc), please call the clinic at 770-417-2405 to schedule an appointment for medication drop off. All medications MUST be brought in by a parent. Students are not allowed to bring medications to school. Forms that need to be completed for medication and health plans are on the Simpson website on the clinic site: https://www.gcpsk12.org/domain/7660
Georgia Platinum Award 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016 and 2019!
2010 Georgia School of Excellence!
2012 and 2018 National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence!
Having A Ball!
Thank you to all the Simpson parents and staff that have donated to the PTA this year...we couldn't do this without your continued support! This is a small glimpse of the PTA's ongoing efforts to support our students and staff. If you haven't had the chance to do so, we would love to have you join the PTA and support all the PTA's efforts to benefit our school.
Yearbook Update!
We are very excited to announce that we will have a Simpson Elementary yearbook this year! It will NOT be like any other yearbook you have purchased in the past. Make sure you plan to purchase this one!
The 2020-2021 Simpson Elementary School yearbooks and 5th grade baby ads will be available for purchase starting December 20, 2020. You must purchase your yearbook and baby ad by January 30, 2021.
Yearbooks will be available for purchase through Balfour (www.balfour.com), which is our yearbook provider. The cost will be $35 per yearbook and $15 per baby ad.
We will send out more detailed information next month. Thank you.
The Yearbook Committee (yearbook@simpsonespta.org)
CONGRATS TO ALL SIMPSON 2020-2021 REFLECTIONS WINNERS!!!
1st and 2nd place winners will both advance to the Gwinnett County Area 2 Council Competition. We wish you luck!
Theme Search
The search is on for the 2022-23 National PTA Reflections program theme! The student who submits the winning entry will receive $100 from National PTA, and his or her theme will be announced at the National PTA Convention and Exhibition in June 2021.
Please review the past themes listed on the form linked below. Past themes and duplicate submissions are not considered.
State Deadline for 2022-2023 Theme Entries: November 1, 2020
Bestselling and Caldecott Award winning author/illustrator visits Simpson
Bike Safety Class
EARN CASH FOR OUR SCHOOL WITH BOX TOPS!
With the Box Tops for Education app, you can turn your everyday receipts into cash for Simpson. Please go to the PTA website for detailed instructions.
- The Mad Italian, JUSTinSELLSPTC, and Duck's Waterproofing for catering a delicious early release lunch for the entire Simpson Staff.
- Our PTA Committee Chair, Jenny Rockett, for stocking the cafe lounge with snacks to keep the staff fueled for day 2 of parent conferences. We love our Simpson Staff and Superstar Supporters!!!!
Here at ‘Cue we have only one philosophy: Make everything from scratch and make it yummy, fill the restaurant with good fun people to serve you, change up the menu utilizing locally grown fruits and vegetables and bring in some unique and inspiring beverages so that each day is a new day....or is that five philosophies? We also offer call-in orders as well as our beautiful private event space perfectly named The Hickory Room.
HOMEMADE EVERYTHING, Y'ALL!
https://cuebarbecue.com(470) 299-5117