GVES Weekly Announcements
January 24, 2020
Principals' Message
Happy Friday GVES families!
Our kids had a tremendous week participating in GVE’s MLK week of service as well as No Name Calling Week. We saw lots of spectacular expressions of self-confidence in our culminating, Proud To Be Me day. Thank you to all of the volunteers who helped organize our MLK project each day. Next week our HSA is sponsoring 3rd and 5th grade Math Night on Wednesday evening @ 6:30 PM. The link to sign up is still active in our HSA updates. The 4th grade will have a special science night in the spring.
Warmly,
Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Conley
Upcoming Events
1/29: 3rd & 5th Grade Math Nights
1/30: Sneaker Thursday
1/31: GVES Spirit Day
2/1: DCIU Spelling Bee
Kids Heart Challenge
Garnet Valley Elementary School will be participating in the American Heart Association's Kids Heart Challenge event during the week of February 3rd -February 7th, 2020. Students will be given fundraising information and hear all about Kids Heart Challenge starting in January! Please join us at GVES in our fight against heart disease!
To see instructions for online fundraising, please use the following link:
https://www2.heart.org/site/TR?pg=company&fr_id=4817&company_id=249399
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FezLiF8ggzq_M9jKp_QdmDczKAu1xau0bDyQXRbITgI/edit?usp=sharing
Winter After School Clubs
GVE HSA Weekly Announcements – 1/24/2019
MOD Pizza Fundraiser
Wednesday 1/29/2020
All day
Mention GVE and 20% of your total will be donated to the HSA!
3rd and 5th Grade Math Night – Wednesday, January 29th
The GVES Home & School Association is very pleased to sponsor the seventh annual Math Night for 3rd and 5th grade students. This special night will be held at GVES Cafeteria (3rdGrade) and Gym (5th Grade) on Wednesday, January 29th from 6:30 to 7:30 PM.
The goal of this event is to encourage the love of math in our children. There will be multiple stations where children can participate in challenging and fun math activities, games and puzzles. Raffles with prizes will be included at each station.
Students require an adult to accompany them and space is limited to 50 students in each grade. Additional students will be added to a wait list and contacted if space becomes available. To register your child for the 3rd or 5th grade Math Night, please fill out the following form: https://forms.gle/bitkqhNJM1aq3rjD6
Any questions, please reach out to:
Laurie Harding – 5th Grade: psunittanylionfan@yahoo.com
Angela Metros – 3rd Grade: angmetros@yahoo.com
Family Bingo Night - Friday Feb, 7th – Volunteers Needed!
Join us for some family fun at GVE! (flyers to be distributed from GVE Tues Jan 21st)
Event Date: Friday February 7th 6-8PM @GVE
We are in need of 10-15 volunteers to help us with:
· Set up
· Checking people into the event
· Kitchen help to distribute food
· Clean-up after the event.
You can sign up to help HERE.
Any help to make this event a success would be greatly appreciated.
Please refer volunteer questions by e-mail to Vicki Hislop: vartim@hotmail.com
School Store – Wednesday, February 12th
Our next school store is Wednesday, February 12th! Students can shop at recess for items ranging from 50 cents to $3.00.
School store needs volunteers at all recesses to assist students with shopping and check out. This is a great opportunity to see your students in action with their friends! Please click HERE to sign up to help. There are tabs across the top for the different recess times, so click the tab for the time you can assist.
Class Valentine’s Day Parties - Thursday, February 13th
Each class will have their own Valentine’s Day party on Thursday, February 13th due to the school holiday on the 14th. Homeroom parents will be sending out sign-ups soon for items needed for the parties.
Lunch Buddies – Friday, February 21st
If you have signed up to be a Lunch Buddy for February, your time is coming! Friday, February 21st is our next Lunch Buddy opportunity. There is one day identified for Lunch Buddies every month between October and March and spots are available on a first come, first served basis. There are still spots available, so check it out and join your student for lunch!
This SignUp Genius is broken out into tabs across the top for different lunch periods, listed out by grade and classroom. Find your child’s grade/class on the appropriate tab…. select from the available dates…and MARK YOUR CALENDAR to enjoy lunch with your student!
PLEASE NOTE: Only one guest per student per school year can sign up.
Book Fair – February 26th – 28th
Save the date for the book fair coming February 26-28! Don’t miss out on this opportunity to grow your at-home library while supporting the school!
School News Winter Episode 2
Garnet Valley CTC Quick Tip #19 – Don’t Suffer, Get Help
The results are back from the 2017 Pennsylvania Youth Survey for Garnet Valley’s 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders. We also have results from 2013 and 2015. The results of this anonymous survey are self-reported and represent 83.9% of our students.
Did you know? For Garnet Valley students in 2017, the most common depressed thought was “at times I think I am no good at all,” reported by 25.2% of students in this district. 23.2% of students reported they felt sad or depressed MOST days in the past 12 months. Overall, 10.9% of students had seriously considered attempting suicide, compared to 16.5% of students at the state level. There have been small decreases in the statistics above since 2013 and 2015, but we need to remain vigilant and ready to assist and support students.
Call to action… Help a phone call away. The Mobile Crisis Unit is free in Delaware County. They are a 24/7 service that can come to you and/or help over the phone @ 855-889-7827.
There are Student Assistance Teams in our Garnet Valley schools that can help. We have guidance counselors, our district Social Services Coordinator and Home and School Visitor and school psychologists. You can call the SAP Coordinator, Carolyn Falcone to access student assistance help @ 610-579-5186. Please don’t suffer in silence. See the hotlines and other resources below.
https://www.pacarepartnership.org/resources/crisis-and-hotlines
Elementary Handbook & GVSD Procedural Manual
Communication Procedures
Early Dismissals - Early dismissals due to weather or unforeseen circumstances will be announced through the phone number you provide in Alma, email, district-level social media, and websites. Please keep your Alma contact information current. You can update this information in your account.
Absence Reporting - Launched at the end of the last school year, the new School Messenger (Safe Arrival) Absence Reporting System makes it easy for parents/guardians to report their child's absence, reduces the time it takes to verify student attendance and will allow our staff to respond to unexplained student absences more efficiently. Please click here for directions on how to use your phone, app, or computer to report an absence.
Social Media - GVES is on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram! Our handle is @GarnetValleyES on all three platforms. We also podcast on iTunes. Just search iTunes for "Jaguarmax."
GVES Calendar
The view the full calendar on our website, click here or go to https://gves.garnetvalleyschools.com/calendar.
Attendance Information
State law establishes conditions under which any child may be excused from attendance at school. In keeping with these statues and recommendations of the State Department of Education, pupils in the Garnet Valley Schools may be excused temporarily from school attendance for the following reasons:
Sickness
Quarantine
Death in the immediate family
Weather so inclement so as to endanger the health of the child or make roads impassable
For observance of a major religious holiday
College visits, pre-approved educational trips
In order for an absence to be excused, a parent/guardian must respond to the Safe Arrival phone call, use the Safe Arrival app to report the absence ahead of time, or submit a written note to the office within three days after return from an absence. The absence of any student failing to comply with this time period will automatically become unexcused and illegal, and the school laws of Pennsylvania shall be applied accordingly.
Raptor Information
The Raptor system is used to enhance our ability to monitor who enters our buildings by screening visitors, contractors, and volunteers. Upon entering a district building, visitors will be asked to present an ID such as a Driver’s License, which can either be scanned or manually entered into the system. If a parent or guardian for any reason does not have a US government-issued ID, the school staff member can use any form of identification and manually enter the person’s name into the Raptor system. The Raptor system will check to ensure that registered sexual offenders are not entering our school campuses without our knowledge. The Raptor system checks the visitor's name and date of birth for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. The registered sex offender database is the only official database checked by the Raptor system. No other data from the ID is gathered or recorded and the information is not shared with any outside agency. Once entry is approved, Raptor will issue a badge that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of his/her visit.
Please adhere to the following regulations:
1. Enter the building at the main office door.
2. Go directly to the office, sign in through Raptor and inform the school secretary of your
destination.
3. PLEASE DO NOT GO to any area of the building without receiving permission from the office.
4. Do not attempt to go to a classroom to pick up a child. Students who are being dismissed early
will be sent to the office.
5. Return the visitor badge at the conclusion of your visit to sign out.
Volunteer Clearance Information
Legislation in Pennsylvania requires community members and parents to obtain clearances in order to volunteer in our schools. If you have previously submitted your clearances to the Human Resources office, they are good for five (5) years from the date of the clearance.
Governor Wolf has waived the fees associated with the Pennsylvania State Police—Criminal Background Check and the Child Abuse History Clearance. Since the FBI clearance is a federal program, those costs still remain; however, the district has decided to permit individuals who have resided in Pennsylvania continuously for ten years or more to sign a certification form that saves the volunteer the expense of the fee, ensures compliance with the law, and allows the district to maximize student safety.
Jaguarmax Radio Podcast
Jaguarmax Radio is changing formats! We will be a student-run podcast created through the after school club program starting in the fall. Check us out on iTunes!
Jaguarmax Radio Podcast on iTunes
Important Links
After School Activity Dismissal Procedures - Dismissal Locations
VEFLS - Foreign Language Contact Person, kgardler@yahoo.com or 610-717-2755
Cafeteria Information - Menus and Payments
GVES Yearly Calendar - Important Dates
Safe Arrival - Attendance Reporting App
GVSD App - Download app here
MySchoolBucks - Online Payments
District Text Messaging Opt-In - Registration Info
Handbooks & Manuals - GVSD Resources
Parent Right to Know Information
Connect with GVES!
Garnet Valley Elementary School
"A Caring Community of Learners"
Est. 1997
The mission of our learning community is to maximize the potential of all students by empowering them to do their personal best.
Website: gves.garnetvalleyschools.com
Location: 599 Smithbridge Rd
Phone: (610) 579-4150
Facebook: facebook.com/GarnetValleyES
Twitter: @GarnetValleyES