March 24, 2023

CALENDAR DATES

March 28 - Spring Pictures - Class and Individual

April 3-7 - Spring Break

April 12 - Volunteer Appreciation Lunch

April 14 - STEM Day

April 18 - Northwood Kindergarten Round-Up

April 21 - All Pro Dads

Key News for Explorer Families

Principal Rucker will not be sharing key news today. She is busy racing around the Fun Run track in a blow up suit because we EXCEEDED our Boosterthon goal of $30,000!

A huge thank you to all of you who contributed to make this happen! Stay tuned for more details, and pictures, in next week's BEST.

Health and Physical Education with Mr. Pearch and Mr. Konigsberg

Did you know that jump roping offers children a wide variety of health benefits including building muscular strength and endurance, strengthening bones, improvements in balance and coordination, and allows students to practice their creativity! Northwood students learned basic jump rope tricks including the single bounce, double bounce, jog and jump, hop, and backwards jumping. Students also had opportunities to practice more immediate and advanced skills such as the straddle, bell, rocker, skier, crossovers, and double unders.

Students also participated in the Northwood Endurance Club. Students set consecutive jumping goals, then attempted to complete as many consecutive jumps as possible (with a partner counting). Students were able to sign their names on different Endurance Club posters around the gym for achieving 10, 25, 50, 100, 200, or 300+ consecutive jumps. One student completed 650 consecutive jumps!

Smile: Spring Picture Day IS This Tuesday

Spring Pictures will take place this Tuesday, March 28th. Class pictures must be ordered ahead of time. Order forms were sent home with your Explorers this week.

STUDENT SUCCESS SKILLS STUDENT INVENTORY

FCS message for 3rd, 4th and 5th grade parents:

The Student Success Skills Inventory is used to measure student growth across Student Success Skill standards as a result of ReThink Ed lessons. Students complete the inventory by indicating if they almost always, always, sometimes, or never apply the skills being taught in the areas of Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Competence, Collaborative Problem Solving, Reflective Learning Strategies, and Sense of Belonging. The SSS Inventory is about 15-20 items and is administered to students in the Fall and Spring. It takes about 15 minutes to complete. Students complete the SSS Inventory using the Illuminate platform.

Spring Inventory Administration: April 17, 2023 – April 21, 2023

If you have any questions about the SSS Inventory, please contact your school’s Student Success Skills Champion. Parents can choose to opt their student out of the inventory. To opt out, parents must submit a written request to the school principal.

Please click the link for more information. Student Success Skills - Parent Packet

Georgia Milestones Promotion Information for 3rd and 5th Grades

Northwood would like parents of 3rd and 5th graders to have information about the Georgia Milestones promotion requirements. Please see the attached letter below from Fulton County Schools.

Get Ready for Georgia Milestones

What can I do to help my child prepare?

Be certain your child gets plenty of sleep and has a healthy breakfast.
Be certain your student is at school on time, so they are not worried about being late.

Remind students that cell phones and smart watches will be collected and stored in the secure testing room during test administration times. It’s best for students to leave them at home if possible.
Please have students bring their fully charged device every day.
Get information and practice using this link: Georgia Milestones Resources (gadoe.org)
Experience the online testing session using this link: http://www.gaexperienceonline.com/

What happens if my child is absent?

There will be rolling make-ups throughout the testing window. Please do not send your child in if they are sick.

Can visitors be in the building?

During GMAS testing, we will not be allowing visitors in the building before 11:30 am, and there will also be no lunch visitors these days.

Parents Needed: School Governance Council 2023 Elections

Parents, we would love to partner with you on ways to improve our school. Northwood is seeking two parents to fill upcoming vacancies for the School Governance Council. Please see the details below for more information; and to declare your candidacy.

What is a School Governance Council?

The purpose of a School Governance Council (SGC) is to provide parents, school staff, and community members with a leadership role through monitoring and implementation of the strategic plan.

What is the commitment?

All School Governance Council members serve two-year terms. Time commitment varies from school-to-school, but expect 4-5 hours per month which includes meetings, trainings, and school and community events.

When are the 2023 elections?

Candidate Declaration: February 1 - March 24

Elections will be held from April 12 -19

Where to declare candidacy?

Visit the SGC website and click on Elections for a candidate guide and/or declaration.

www.fultonschools.org/sgc

MISSING SOMETHING?

Parents, please encourage your students to check regularly for lost items in the Lost and Found. Please mark all student belongings clearly with the child’s name so that it can be identified. Unclaimed items are donated to local charities after the last school day of every month. March’s date is Thursday, March 30th.