During the month of November 2021, the District began using a bus tracking application for all parents at all three schools. Denoted below is an excerpt from an introduction letter from the Principal at Pine Road School:

Lower Moreland Township School District has partnered with FirstView which is an app for

parents that allows for direct access to the status of your child’s bus. FirstView GPS tracks the bus on a map and allows you to set up a customizable geo-fence around your pick-up/drop-off location, so you can be alerted when the bus is close. You can customize your notifications on the app. This is a free app for parents that can be downloaded from Google Play or the Apple App Store.

The District is excited to offer this technological tool that will hopefully allow parents to plan

properly for bus pick-ups and drop-offs. We are very happy to have this implemented especially as we head into the winter weather season. Please note that the District will endeavor to continue to send out late messages to all parents as not all folks will have downloaded the app.

Here are the instructions for getting started with the app: FirstView Bus App. The instruction

sheet has the district code and a list of the bus routes that are needed to register. Using this app is optional.

If there are any questions, please contact your building principal. Thank you.

Act 158, which defines graduation requirements in Pennsylvania, was amended in 2018 to provide students with multiple pathway options to demonstrate academic proficiency and fulfill the state requirements. The implementation of the Act was deferred until the 2023 graduating year. Beginning with the graduating class of 2023, all students must demonstrate proficiency in Algebra, Biology, and Literature. Regardless of the pathway, a student follows to earn their diploma, the Keystone exam remains a federal requirement. Religious opt-out remains the only way that a student can be excused from taking the Keystone exams. The majority of Lower Moreland students are anticipated to meet the graduation requirement through performance on the Keystone exams. Keystone scores can fulfill the requirement in one of two ways. First, if the student is proficient or advanced on each of the Keystone exams, they meet the requirement through the Keystone Proficiency Pathway. There is also the possibility of the Keystone Composite Pathway for students who are not proficient on all three exams but have no scores of below basic and at least one score of Proficient or Advanced and the total score for all three exams is 4452 or better. If a student does not fulfill the requirement through one of the Keystone-related pathways, they must pass the Keystone-related course to fulfill the local graduation requirement and then meet additional data points. The school counselor and/or high school administration will assist in determining the best pathway based on the student's academic profile. For students who attend ECAT, the requirement can be fulfilled by attaining an industry-based competency certification. For non-career and technical education students, alternate assessments can be used, such as ACT, SAT, ASVAB, PSAT/NMSQT, or AP. Additional alternative options include successful completion of a dual enrollment college course or acceptance into a four-year, non-profit institution of higher education, an industry-recognized credential, service-learning project, satisfactory compliance with the NCAA requirements, minimum GPA, or guarantee of full-time employment. Please reference additional information posted on the district's website for the specifics related to the various pathways, as this serves as a basic summary of the options.

The Technology Department supports information technology systems and instructional technology programs and practices in the district. Each month, we highlight how our students and teachers engage in 21st Century learning activities. We also share updates on new initiatives and tips and tricks related to devices and technology tools used in the district.

Students in Mrs. Siciliano’s Accounting I class put on their entrepreneur hats to reinforce concepts and skills in the accounting cycle for sole proprietorship. Students collaborated using a twist on the traditional Monopoly board game as a source of business transactions. Players started with money in their account from an investment by the owner and had the chance to purchase property and charge rent while learning about assets, liabilities, owner’s equity, expenses, and revenue. Students used Google Sheets designed as general journals and ledgers to record, post, and create financial reports for a final snapshot of how their team performed. Take a look at our students communicating and using critical thinking skills to participate in the game: https://youtu.be/U2XEdLVMQdc.

After reading The Giver, sixth-grade students created board games based on the novel. Some students designed board game pieces using TinkerCAD. TinkerCAD is a web-based design tool that allows the user to develop models for 3D printing. Students printed their pieces in the Murray Avenue Library with Ms. Grosso. Most characters in the book only see in gray, so one student chose to create their pieces using shades of white, black, and gray.

First-grade classes took a virtual field trip with the Humane Society to the Montgomery County SPCA. They learned about the SPCA and got to meet some of the dogs, cats, and guinea pigs that are waiting to be adopted. First graders asked questions about the organization and the animals and listened to a story about a family that fosters kittens.

With December comes a very festive time of year with many reasons to celebrate. However, during these celebrations, both in and out of school, many opportunities arise for students to become distracted and lose focus on their academics. Maintaining a consistent focus on schoolwork is vital for all of our students with special needs. In order to assist students with IEPs in remaining focused on school work, and to avoid regression in skills, the Office of Student Services urges all parents of students with IEPs to remain in communication with their child’s case manager. Open communication can go a long way towards providing the consistency between home and school that is necessary to help students remain current in their skills. Your child’s case manager can provide skills practice activities to assist with skills retention during the extended winter break. Additionally, since many of the District’s intervention programs are web-based there is a component to each that typically can be completed at home which allows for continuity and consistency. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s case manager. If you do not know who your child’s case manager is, please contact the Office of Student Services at 215-938-7426.