Meadows Welcome Back Message
July 10, 2023
Welcome - July 10, 2023
Dear Magnificent Families of Madison Meadows,
Welcome to the 2023-24 school year! The first day of school will be here before you know it. We have been diligently working this summer to ensure smooth sailing as we open our doors for the new year.. Please take some time to read the information below and/or print it out if you don’t have time to read it right now so you have it as a reference.
Please mark your calendars for the following events:
Walk-Thru
July 26 (11:30 am - 4:00 pm in Building C - 1st floor) OR July 27 (7:00 am - 11:00 am in Building C - 1st floor)
Students and parents can pick up a copy of their class schedule and walk around campus to find classrooms. Teachers are not scheduled to be on campus at this time but we want you and your student to walk around and get comfortable with the campus.
PTM will be on site to sell spirit wear, PE uniform shirts, and share information about volunteer opportunities.
Clubs and athletics will be present to share information about extracurricular opportunities.
A representative from transportation as well as food & nutrition to help you sign up for transportation and/or a lunch account.
It is also a great time to drop off classroom school supplies so students are not carrying them onto campus on the first day of school.
Computers will be available for parents to complete the online annual check-in required in PowerSchool.
All families must complete the online student check-in process even if they cannot attend Walk-Thru. The check-in process is completed by accessing your child’s PowerSchool account. If you need assistance with PowerSchool login information and/or online check-in please call the office at 602-664-7600 or email meadowsoffice@madisoned.org.
Step 2: Pay Activity Fee in PowerSchool - There is a Governing Board-approved School Activity Fee of $50 per student. Activity fees are used for club activities, guest speakers, recess equipment, Spelling Bee registration fees, and more! If you made your payment through the district donation page, please submit a copy of your receipt with your child’s name on it to the school office or forward it to Maria Rowell at mrowell@madisoned.org.
FYI… Field trip fees will be assigned to PowerSchool separately as they arise.
Please consider a tax credit donation to the school of $200 for single households and $400 for married households. For more information about tax credit donation please visit Tax Credit Donation.
Step 3: System will open up for new applications on August 1st. Free and Reduced Meal Application If you would like to apply, please use this link Free & Reduced Meal Application form so that we can make sure that your child is receiving the appropriate food service. Take a look at some of our menus!
5th Grade Parent Night
August 7, 2023
5th grade parents (especially those who are new to middle school) are invited to join us on campus for this event. Our fifth-grade team of teachers will be there briefly at the start for introductions, and then Katy Clark (Principal), Amber Sherman (Assistant Principal), Adam Smith (Dean of Students), and Becki Williams (Social Worker) will take parents through some need-to-know information that will be helpful in supporting you as you, in turn, support your student through middle school.
First Day of School
August 8, 2023
Parents are welcome to walk students onto campus. We ask that you leave promptly at 8:25 am when the bell rings for 1st period.
Staff members as well as National Junior Honor Society students will be monitoring hallways between classes to guide students who need assistance.
Extra hard copies of student schedules will be available for 5th and 6th grades in the cafe commons and for 7th and 8th grades in the C building hallway by the stairs before school.
Communicate your pick-up plan with your student. Ensure they know their bus route number, home address and phone number.
Curriculum Night
August 17, 2023
Parents will follow their student’s schedule and go from class to class. Teachers will be sharing information about themselves and their curriculum as well as some schoolwide information that you’ll need to know.
For families with more than one child at Meadows, you may choose to divide and conquer or simply follow the schedule for the student who has teachers you have never met. We will also be sure to share the information on our Meadows website.
There will be an additional session this night for 5th-grade parents about our annual trip to Camp Friendly Pines.
Future Events
We will share updates regarding future events as they loom closer. The district as well as PTM will have a yearlong calendar. We have attached for you as well.
Communication
Other important information
Please opt-in to SMS messages in PowerSchool when you complete your online check-in. We may send some text messages to alert you of an email (especially because madisoned.org emails sometimes get sent to spam). Please also make sure that your contact information is accurate and up-to-date in case of an emergency.
We are going to increase our social media communication in order to give families ‘bite-sized’ bits of information throughout the week. Please be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
We are going to partner more heavily with PTM (Parents & Teachers at Meadows) for email communication. Please visit the PTM Website and sign up for their mailing list to receive PTM updates regarding events and campus happenings that they fund and support. https://meadowsptm.org/
We will send out the Med-O-Gram once a month. This is a longer publication with a variety of amazing information.
Teachers will be shifting away from grade-level websites and will load all information related to classwork and homework into PowerSchool so you only have one place to monitor. We will be taking parents through how to properly use PowerSchool during Curriculum Night.
Transportation
You have three options for getting to and from school. Please be sure to talk to your student about your pick-up plan prior to the first day of school!
Sign up for bus transportation.
Bike or walk. We have crossing guards at 3rd Avenue and Maryland as well as Central Ave and Ocotillo. In addition, there is a HAWK light at 3rd Avenue where students can safely cross and then access the alley bike path to our bike lot. We strongly recommend students lock their bikes!
Parent drop off. We have two main locations where you can drop off and pick up your student(s). 3rd Avenue has a large drive-through lane. We organize two lanes of traffic to keep the flow of cars moving. Staff is present to ensure student safety. Parents may also set up a meeting spot in the Celebrations Church parking lot off of Central and Ocotillo. We ask that you be mindful of our neighbors and use the designated areas for pick up and drop off.
Supplies
If you didn’t order supplies through PTM, you can still get everything you need by using the supply list links at the bottom of our Parent Resources page.
Attendance
We cannot express to you enough the importance of being at school every day possible on time. Our daily attendance rates over the past 2 years have declined and our number of students who are labeled as chronically absent has increased (miss 10% or more of school days). Check the district calendar for breaks and holidays so you can plan accordingly.
If your student must miss a day of school, please report the absence to meadowsattendance@madisoned.org or leave a voicemail at 602-664-7600. Please provide a doctor’s note whenever possible.
TCT
Every Wednesday is a 2:10 pm release for Teacher Collaboration Time (TCT). We use this time to provide professional development to instructional staff as well as analyze learning data. Please be sure to make a note of this in your calendar to ensure you pick up and/or meet your student at the correct time at the end of the school day!
Visitors and Volunteers on Campus
Parents are welcome on campus in the courtyard from 8:10 - 8:25. Once the 8:25 bell rings, parents are to exit campus. Any parent that has previously scheduled a volunteer opportunity with their child’s teacher or staff member on campus must then go directly to the office to check in with the front office, obtain a visitor badge through the Raptor Visitor Management System, and follow all the school rules, including refraining from photographing and posting to social media other children and remaining in the designated visitor area.
Summer Hours
As a reminder summer hours are from 8 am – 2 pm Monday through Thursday through July 27th. On Monday, July 31, we return to our regular school hours of 8:00 am-4:10 pm, Monday through Friday.
If you have any questions please feel free to call the school office at 602-664-7600 or email us at meadowsoffice@madisoned.org
It’s been awfully quiet around here and we look forward to the energy that students and staff bring to campus! Let’s gear up for a great school year!
Katy Clark
Principal
Amber Sherman
Assistant Principal
Adam Smith
Dean of Students