MUSTANG PARENT ALERT
T. L. Marsalis Elementary STEAM Academy
Hello Mustang Families!
November is here and we have a little over three weeks left in the Fall semester of instruction. Our teachers are working hard to ensure that our students are mastering all grade level skills that our students should know by the end of December. Please make sure to reach out to your child's teacher(s) for ways that you can support your child's learning at home. You can also check out their grade level websites for tips and educational tools. Check out a few tips on creating a successful study environment at home: https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/school-help-elementary.html
We are also excited to be celebrating Marsalis's 65th anniversary during our November 14-18 Homecoming Week activities. Please see our flyer below for our special activities that will coincide with our Anti-Bullying Week programs.
We are working to plan several events and will need YOU to help us out. In order to help, you will need to have clearance to volunteer. You can follow the steps below if you are a new volunteer:
- Visit https://dallasisd.voly.org.
- Create a Voly account.
- Complete an application, background check request, and orientation (e-signature required).
- Await volunteer clearance email notification.
- Once cleared, sign up for volunteer opportunities!
If you are a returning volunteer, please follow the steps below:
- Log in using your Voly account.
- Update application, submit a new background check request, and orientation (e-signature required)
- Await volunteer clearance email notification. (This can take up to 72 hours.)
- Once cleared, sign up for volunteer opportunities!
With Students in Mind,
Kimberly M. Richardson, Principal
WOODS' WORDS OF WISDOM
Mustang Parents:
We have had another great month of attendance for October. So, let's keep up the good work. We are having quite a few absences now due to illness as we enter flu and cold season. However, please make sure you send your doctor's notes so that we can document these absences correctly.
Thank you parents for your support thus far in helping your child to follow our school's expectations. I have had several parent conferences and appreciate the partnerships that are being formed for our students' success. Please continue to remind your child about the importance of kindness, courtesy and personal space. Help them to remember to keep their hands and feet to themselves, as well as refrain from making unkind comments to their fellow classmates. It is also important for our students to follow our #1 expectation at Marsalis - Follow directions the first time they are given. If we continue working together, I am confident that Marsalis will remain one of the top elementary schools in our district!
Your Assistant Principal,
Wendell Woods
COMMON ASSESSMENTS NEXT WEEK
Mid-Quarter Assessments for our Quarter 2 instructional period will be held the week of November 14-18, 2022. All grade levels will take mid-quarter assessments and we need students to be in attendance every day. Please make sure that your child is present and is well-rested. We only have three weeks remaining when we return from Thanksgiving Break and are looking forward to seeing how our students have progressed at this point. All data will be shared with you.
Meet our counselor, Ms. Telisa Ingram. Visit her counseling website at
https://sites.google.com/dallasisd.org/thecounselorscorner
One of our STEAM Academy commitments is to the social and emotional learning of our students. Each morning our students participate in a "SEL MEET UP" with their homeroom teachers and fellow classmates. This daily activity is the building block for our classroom communities. Our SEL focus for November will focus on:
1) Kindness - One Kind Word is all it takes! This is our theme for this year's Anti-Bullying Week.
PARENT WORKSHOP: 5th Grade Magnet Application Process
I will be hosting two parent workshops on Monday, November 14, 2022 regarding the upcoming DISD Magnet/Academy application process for all students will qualifying scores. The sessions will be from 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. All sessions will be held in the auditorium. If your child has qualifying scores based on last year's STAAR scores in reading and math, they will receive an invitation to bring home. I hope everyone can make it. If you are unable to, please contact me for assistance.
UPCOMING NOVEMBER RECOGNITION WEEKS:
November 14-18: Anti-Bullying Week and Homecoming Week
Flyers will be sent home this week for our special event days.
STUDENT COUNCIL UPDATES:
Congratulations to our newly elected 2022-2023 Student Council Officers. They are ready and eager to work on behalf of their peers and our school. Student Council's first big community service project has begun and is DISD's Common Cents Coin Collection. The project will follow the same format as last year and will occur during our Homecoming Week. Top male and female student will be crowned our 2022 Homecoming King and Queen!
Who Will Be our 2022 Homecoming King and Queen???
Congrats to our Chess Club on their first competition of the season!
MARSALIS ARRIVAL AND DISMISSAL REMINDERS
Arrival Reminders- Our school opens at 7:30 a.m. Only bus riders and PK3 students need to enter at the Scottsboro (bus lane) door. All other students must enter at the front entrance.
- School begins at 8:00 a.m. and a student is tardy at 8:15 a.m. Recording of tardies will begin this week and can affect your child's overall attendance.
- Students begin picking up breakfast from the cafeteria with their teachers at 7:45 a.m. and eat in their classrooms. Breakfast concludes at 8:15 a.m. All students who arrive after this time will miss the breakfast period.
Dismissal Reminders
- Dismissal begins at 3:15 p.m. If you would like to pick your child up early, they will need to be picked up prior to 2:45 p.m. Please understand that your child will be missing valuable instruction and parent conferences will be held for students who have frequent early releases.
- If your child is a bus rider or is being picked up by a daycare facility, please be sure to notify your child's teacher.
PARENT PICKUP PROCEDURES
- All persons picking up students will need to have photo ID ready to show. Our scholars will only be released to the persons listed on their enrollment history. If you need to update this information, please contact Mrs. Garcia, CRC, at 972-749-3512.
STAY CONNECTED TO YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER(S)
- Make sure to download the Class DoJo app to your phones or other technology devices and join your child's class to receive real-time communication and alerts with your child's teachers.
- Our Marsalis grade level Google sites are officially live now. Check out our school website (www.dallasisd.org/marsalis) for access. These sites will provide you with specific information and resources for your child's specific grade level. Click on our "Academics" tab and select "Grade Level Classes" to locate the teachers' pages.
BUS SAFETY REMINDERS
Parents,
Please share with your child(ren) the importance of bus safety. Students are to wear seatbelts, if applicable, obey the bus drivers' directives, keep their hands and belongings to themselves and most importantly, stay seated while on the bus. Parents, also remember to be at the appropriate bus pickup locations on time. Our bus drivers routes do not service Marsalis only and must stay on schedule.
Thomas L. Marsalis Elementary STEAM Academy
