Lauren Stockard Cusatis
Congrats Theresa! She is the BALANCED C4C April winner!
Milestones Practice
You'll find Milestones ELA practice pages in Thursday folders if you'd like to review. We complete them (mostly) and check them in class, but they can still be reviewed.
Milestones Practice site
If you want to review how the Milestones will look, here's the site. We will be doing this in class next week too. https://www.gaexperienceonline.com/
Here's what's coming up!
April 23 Westward Expansion open notes test- please review notes (game link attached below)
May 2 & 3- Math Milestones tests
May 8, 9, & 10- ELA Milestones tests
May 21st- Virtual Day
Homework 4/22-4/6 Due Friday
Enhanced math-Spiral Review Q4:2 (Milestones prep)
Accelerated math-Spiral Review Q4:2 (Milestones prep)
Reading- Spiral Review "Tropical Rainforests"
Social Studies- Review notes in journal and/or TEAMS- review game link:
Important Info! Please read! Spring Continuous Achievement Window for Math and Reading
Over the next few weeks, all students in grades K-5 will be screened for potential advancement and/or acceleration in reading and mathematics for fall 2024. Students are placed in the appropriate curriculum based on performance on standardized tests, screening assessments, student grades, teacher recommendation and diagnostic placement assessments when applicable. Below you will find a breakdown of the criteria needed for a student to be considered for advanced or accelerated placement in math and reading:
Math- There is no assessment required. The data points below are all screened to assess whether a student qualifies for acceleration in math.
Data Point
Required Criteria
Spring 2023 GMAS Math Level for grades 4-7
Proficient (Level 3) or Distinguished (Level 4)
Beginning of the Year i-Ready Diagnostic
National Percentile Rank of 85 or higher
Middle of the Year i-Ready Diagnostic
National Percentile Rank of 85 or higher
Gifted Testing: Math Mental Ability (if applicable)
National Percentile Rank of 85 or higher
Gifted Testing: Math Achievement (if applicable)
National Percentile Rank of 85 or higher
Math Unit Assessment Average
Average of 85% or higher
- Students who have 60% or more of their data points meeting the criteria are recommended for advanced math curriculum.
- Students who have 100% of their data points meeting the criteria are reviewed for acceleration using the i-Ready National Percentile Rank as the final determining factor.
RELA- The data points below are all screened to assess whether a student qualifies for acceleration in RELA. Students may be administered a writing assessment to determine whether they are eligible to advance.
- RELA Unit Assessment Average
- Previous and current IReady National Percentile Rank
- Gifted testing: Verbal Mental Ability
- Gifted testing: Reading Achievement
Letters will be sent to parents by May 10th. Every student in grades K-5 will receive a letter explaining what math level they have qualified for. Only students who qualify for a placement change in RELA, will receive a placement letter. If you do not receive a written notification for your child’s RELA placement, it means your child did not meet the criteria to advance and will remain in their current placement for RELA for the fall semester. If you are interested in signing a waiver for your child to be waived in advanced or accelerated placement, please follow the guidelines below:
- Email Michaela Ferretti (Curriculum Support Teacher) for a math and/or reading waiver by Friday, May 16th at 3pm ferrettim@fultonschools.org
Important Deadline: No emails for a waiver will be taken after May 16th at 3pm. If you miss the May 16th deadline, there will be another opportunity for your child to qualify and/or be waived into advanced or accelerated placement for both reading and math in the winter of 2024.
May 21st- Virtual Day
May 21st is a Virtual Day for students, due to statewide elections. We will not be sending work home for students on this day, as they will not have any devices to complete this work on. Let me know if you have any questions. Thank you
Returning Student Parent Input Form
Parent input is invaluable in helping HFE’s placement team ensure your child is in the best learning environment. The parent input link can be found at the following link: https://forms.gle/am5btCThfWP21UE66 . The deadline to submit your information is 3pm of April 8th. The document will no longer be available after this date and time. HFE does not hold meetings, accept phone calls or emails with class placement requests. Please do not make specific teacher request but relate the best learning environment and style for your child. Please contact Michaela Ferretti, Curriculum Support Teacher, at ferrettim@fultonschools.org with any questions.
Book Clubs
Students have book clubs in class that will last to Spring Break. They have time in class to complete the weekly reading and discussion assignments due every Friday. However, if absent, or something comes up so they are unable to finish by Friday, books will go home to complete the assignment for homework. Please check in with them for reminders about finishing weekly assignments at home if needed. Please ensure books come back to school each day.
Poetry Jam was a HUGE success!! Here's the video.
More pics still to come :)
Space Robots! Check out this amazing video Ms. Severson made! Their robots are AWESOME!
March is Youth Art Month,
March is Youth Art Month, and it's coming up with lots of ways to celebrate! At the Georgia State Capitol, there will be a special exhibition of student work from across the state hosted by the Georgia Art Education Association. Our school is participating this year with Natalie Benifield in 5th grade representing us with her artwork titled "The Botanical Vibes". There are also contest opportunities like the annual Doodle for Google contest where students compete to have their artwork featured on Google.com and win scholarships. Kazoo Toys in Atlanta will also have their annual art show in March and invite local students to participate. The deadline for submissions for the Kazoo Toys contest is February 29th, so act soon. Visit Mrs. Strom's smores page for more details on both contests, to preview Natalie's artwork, and to learn about other happenings in the art room: https://www.smore.com/n/qwr2f-welcome-to-art-with-mrs-strom
Birthday Celebration Info
Participate Remote Days
Having our students in school each and every day is a priority for us here at HFE. We want to share with you information about Participate Remote Days
Approved Participate Remote Learning Days are a new addition to the Fulton County attendance policy as of last year. Each student is able to take 5 approved remote learning days each semester. These can be used when you have a special family event, required travel, etc. These days must be requested at least 5 days in advance and require principal's approval. These days may not be used on testing days. Here is how the process works:
1. Parent notifies student's homeroom teacher of wanting to take remote learning days.
2. Teacher will provide link for parents to fill out requesting remote learning days. •https://forms.office.com/r/0pQ4yzqebM
2. Teachers will provide work that must be completed within 5 days of the absence
Please reach out to Mrs. Dunagan with any questions.
Curriculum Night at Heards Ferry
Here is the link and PPT for those who couldn't make it or want to watch again! :)
Class resources
Student Success Skills
- “Fulton County Schools and HFE strive to use research-based best practices that foster student success, both academically and emotionally. To better help our students learn these essential social-emotional skills, Fulton County Schools and Rethink Ed have partnered to provide parents with access to an online platform full of lessons, discussions and more! Parents can access this online program through creating your own Rethink Ed Parent Account. Please see the attached document to see how to set up your account and learn more about our SEL program!”
How can I find a “Good Fit” book for my child?
A quick method for estimating whether your child has chosen books they can read is the Ten-Finger Rule.
Here’s how it works:
Ask your child to read a page or two aloud from the book.
If your child misses one word out of five on average, the book is too difficult.
Curriculum Night link and PPT
A Little About Me...
Many of you may know me as Mrs. Stockard, but I am officially Mrs. Cusatis this year:) I hope your summer break was full of fun and relaxation. Mine was! I am so very excited to be your 4th grade teacher this 2023-2024 school year. This is going to be a school year like no other, full of excitement and memories to be made. I am ready to learn with you and support you along the way on this adventure we are on together. I hope to meet you at Friday's Open House!
This is my 9th year teaching 4th grade at HFE. (Man, time flies when you’re having fun!!) I moved from Savannah where I previously taught 5th grade and art! All together this is my 11th year teaching and I love it. My husband, Mike and I, have 2 dogs named Douglas and Klaus, a hedgehog named Larry, and a tortoise named Alvin who is our class pet! I love, love, LOVE nature and the outdoors, kayaking and hiking… Oh, and traveling and exploring to learn new things! I am always ready to go on an ADVENTURE, whether it’s in my backyard or somewhere in the world I’ve never been.
I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you and let you get to know me as well. This school year is sure to be an exciting journey as we learn more about each other and explore the fourth-grade curriculum. If you ever have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me via email. I look forward to meeting you and working with you. Let’s have an amazing school year!
Take a look
My favorite companions
My wedding
Fun outdoors on the river!
Important events
Open House
Open House-
8:00-9:00 A-I
9:15-10:15 J-R
10:30-11:30 S-Z
Friday, Aug 4, 2023, 12:00 AM
6151 Powers Ferry Road Northwest, Sandy Springs, GA, USA
Soon you will be learning a lot!
Think about it!
Our class pet!
Hmmm... where’s this?
Lauren Stockard Cusatis
Email: cusatis@fultonschools.org
Website: https://www.fultonschools.org/heardsferryes
Location: Heards Ferry Road Northwest, Sandy Springs, GA, USA
Phone: 470-254-6190