Gratz Brown News
April 1, 2019
From the Principal's Desk
Happy Spring Everyone! I wanted to reach out and thank each of you for your support in your child's learning. We had a great turn out for Spring Parent Teacher Conferences. If you were unable to come in or happened to miss the conference time-- please do contact your child's teacher to meet.
We have enjoyed Spring Break and look forward to having your children back in the building to fill us with the sound of learning and excitement. This next month will be busy and packed full of many things for our 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. I am attaching the calendar for up to the last day, and beyond.
Between our end of the year field trips, parent and student involvement activities with our PTO, and pushing our learners to achieve the best they are able-we will be assessing using the MAP state standardized test. We will begin testing the week of April 8th and finish up in May. We want to be sure to give our students the ample time to do their best.
Please do make sure that you are helping your child by ensuring they have a good night's sleep each night, and a good breakfast each morning. We also ask that you work to have your child to school on time and present daily. This is vital, so your child can take the test at the same time as peers, and do not have to do make up testing. If you have to be gone, please call and alert the office so we can plan for your child's absence. We will do daily attendance calls each day as normal, if a student is absent and we have not been notified.
Last, I wanted to show appreciation to all of you that took time to take our parent Climate District Survey. These results are viewed by out teams of educators and your voice is heard. This vital work is your way of giving us feedback on how we can better your child's learning experience in Moberly Public Schools. THANK YOU!! You are appreciated!
Angie Doss
Principal
Moberly Public School Mission Statement:
GBE's Vision Statement created by our Student Advisory Team and Staff:
GBE Students want to be a Champion in:
Attitude
Action
Academics
GBE Partners in Education
Arts Appliances and Furniture
Central Bank of Moberly
Title I News
Gratz Brown Elementary students will be MAP testing at the end of April. Some students tend to get nervous during this testing time. Here are some tips to help your child:
Reassure your child that he or she does not have to answer all the questions correctly to pass. It is not expected that students answer every question correctly. There is always room for error. Knowing that they do not have to be perfect will help eliminate some of the stress that comes with testing.
Tell your child to attempt to answer all of the questions and not to leave any blank. There is no penalty for guessing, and students can get partial credit on the open-ended items. Remind them to eliminate ones that they know are wrong first because it gives them a higher chance of getting the correct answer if they are forced to guess.
Remind your child that the test is important. It sounds simple, but many parents fail to reiterate this. Most children will put forth their best effort when they know it is important to their parents.
Explain to your child the importance of using time wisely. If your child gets stuck on a question, encourage him or her to make the best guess or place a mark in the test booklet by that item and go back to it after finishing that section of the test. Students must not spend too much time on a single question. Give your best attempt and move on.
Ensure that your child gets a decent night's sleep and a good breakfast before taking the test. These are essential to how your child performs. You want them to be at their best. Failing to get a good night's rest or good breakfast can cause them to lose focus quickly.
Remind your child to listen carefully to the instructions from the teacher and to read the directions and each question carefully. Encourage them to read every passage and every question at least two times. Teach them to slow down, trust their instincts, and give their best effort.
Encourage your child to stay focused on the test, even if other students finish early. It is human nature to want to speed up when others around you are already finished. Teach your child to start strong, stay focused in the middle, and finish just as strong as you started. Many students hijack their scores because they lose focus on the bottom third of the test.
https://www.thoughtco.com/essential-standardized-test-taking-tips-for-parents-3194598
**Save the date:
GBE TITLE I ANNUAL EVALUATION PARENT MEETING
When: Monday, April 15, 2019 (During our monthly PTO meeting)
Where: GBE Library
When: 5:30 pm
**Please join the Title I teachers at our Annual Evaluation meeting. Title I teachers will be speaking at the PTO meeting held at this time. We will be collecting your input about our parent policy and plans and sharing information from our parent evaluations, data, Title II and Title IV. Please review the following policy and plans we have in place in order to give feedback at the meeting.
GBE School-Parent Compact (found in GBE handbook on school webpage)
GBE Building Schoolwide Plan (found in GBE handbook on school webpage)
District/LEA Title IA Plan (found in GBE handbook on school webpage)
School Parent and Family Engagement Policy (school policy IGBC found on school webpage)
Online Registration Coming this Spring!
Additional information and instructions for using Online Registration will be provided in the next few weeks. In addition, new students will be enrolled in August using the Parent Portal. Additional information and instructions for new student enrollment will be provided later this summer. We hope parents find this process convenient and easy to use.
PTO News
We will be meeting at 5:30 in the Library this month on April 15th. If you have an interest in being a part of PTO please attend! We would love to have more parents be a part of this team.
Character Trait for each Month:
October: Cooperation
November: Responsibility
December: Compassion
January: Perseverance
February: Honesty
March: Self-Discipline
April: Positive Attitude
May: Patience
GBE Important Calendar Dates for April and May
April 1st to 5th
Monday 4/1: Welcome Back From Spring Break!!!!
Tuesday 4/2: Spring Pictures @ GBE!!!
Wednesday 4/3: Great teaching and learning occurring
Thursday 4/4: Rainbow Days Salad Bar at Lunch Today for all students
Friday 4/5: Summer School Letters due back- 1st round; Literature Festival Students travel to Truman State; Smile Dental visits GBE from 9 to 10
April 8th to 12th (Small Groups Testing Begins this week for MAP)
Monday 4/8: Happy Monday!
Tuesday 4/9: Board of Education Meeting at CO 5:30 pm
Wednesday 4/10: Mid Quarter
Thursday 4/11: Students rocking out learning!!
Friday 4/12: Second round of Summer School Letters and sign up go home for those not already signed up
April 15th to 19th (MAP ELA Testing All Grades)
Monday 4/15: GBE PTO mtg @ 5:30 pm
Tuesday 4/16: Students learning with a smile!!
Wednesday 4/17: Progress Reports go home
Thursday 4/18: Great teaching and learning occurring!
Friday 4/19: NO SCHOOL
April 22nd to 26th (MAP ELA Make ups & 5th Grade Science)
Monday 4/22: NO SCHOOL
Tuesday 4/23: 4A Field Trip to Jeff City
Wednesday 4/24: 3A Fishing Field Trip
Thursday 4/25: 3B Fishing Field Trip
Friday 4/26: GBE Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast @ 7:45 to 8:30 am in the Library; Spartan Spirit Assembly @ 2:50; GBE Wellness Family Fun Night in Rothwell Park 5 to 7 pm
April 29th to May 3rd (MAP Math testing all grades) *Spring BOGO Book Fair this week
Monday 4/29: Scholastic BOGO Book Fair begins @ GBE
Tuesday 4/30: 4B Jeff City Field Trip
Wednesday 5/1: Great learning happening!
Thursday 5/2: Students rocking it out in the classroom!
Friday 5/3: Great Teaching Occurring!!
May 6th to 10th (MAP Math Make ups)
Teacher Appreciation Week!!!
Monday 5/6: Students smiling and learning
Tuesday 5/7: Hard work being done by all
Wednesday 5/8: Happy Hump Day!!
Thursday 5/9: 5th Grade Field Trip to Arrow Rock (all day)
Friday 5/10: The NED Show assembly 1 to 1:50; GBE Super Hero PTO 5K @ GBE 5:30 to 6:30 pm-- a sign up form was sent home in Friday Folders
May 13th to 17th
Monday 5/13: iReady Spring Benchmark testing for Math and ELA ALL WEEK; GBE PTO mtg 5:30
Tuesday 5/14: Board Meeting at CO 5:30 pm
Wednesday 5/15: Eagles Field Trip; Walk the Hall-- Seniors Visit and Walk GBE @ 9:10
Thursday 5/16: Working hard happening at GBE
Friday 5/17: GBE Field Day from 1 to 3
May 20th to 24th
Monday 5/20: Last Monday of the school year!
Tuesday 5/21: 5th grade promotion 5:30 to 7 pm @ MHS Fine Arts Center
Wednesday 5/22: Happy Wednesday!
Thursday 5/23: Early Out Today-- LAST DAY of School!
June
June 3 to June 28th Summer Adventure @ GBE for incoming 3rd graders to 5th graders
Incoming 6th graders will only attend by invite at MMS
Contact Information for GBE Office Staff and Administration:
Principal's Secretary, Melissa Slater
melissaslater@moberlyspartans.org
Assistant Principal, David Samuel
davidsamuel@moberlyspartans.org
Assistant Principal's Secretary, Dee Noel
Office # 660-269-2670
Address: 1320 Gratz Brown Road, Moberly MO 65270