Hawks Nest
Hancock Elementary School
Week of 12/6-12/10
Fun December Days for the kiddos...
Ms. Windham, one of our 5th-grade teachers created the following list for the kiddos that match the teachers.
Feel free to allow your child to join us.
Tomorrow begins with pajamas. Don't forget shoes for recess or PE.
December 17th-Save the Date
This year, all parties will be held in the cafeteria as a grade level.
Lunches will be "Grab & Go". This means the students will get their lunch and go back to the classroom as a class to eat so that the cafeteria will stay available for the parties.
Each student will receive an informational packet for your review which will include schedules and donation requests. Informational packets were sent home with all children Friday (red paper).
A few things to remember and will help the day to run smoothly for you:
- The key secret is to PRE-REGISTER. This allows you to not wait to have your license scanned but rather to receive a pre-printed sticker for you to enter the party quickly. If you pre-register, you will enter the cafeteria on the bus lane side of the cafeteria.
- If you do not pre-register, you will enter through the front doors and wait in line until your license is scanned. This becomes a long line. Sometimes, parents have waited so long, they only had a short time in the party. Allow us to help you get in quickly so that you can enjoy watching your child have fun with their peers.
- If you have not scanned your license THIS YEAR. Feel free to stop by any day between 8:30-2:00 before the 17th to scan it in the system.
- Parking will still be an issue, plan ahead or feel free to walk to the campus if you live close.
- Limited seating will be in the cafeteria just like the classroom as the entire grade level will be partying at the same time. :)
- School-aged children or siblings will need to attend their own campus or sit in the front office during the party. Younger siblings (below the age of 4) are welcome to attend with the parent but will not participate in the party as it is for Hancock children.
- We do not invite or retrieve school-aged siblings for the parties.
- The informational packet will have further guidance if you plan to sign your children out early.
- If you plan to attend more than one party due to your kiddos in different grades, that is wonderful. We just ask that you leave and come back at the next party time.
Hancock knows how lucky we are to be nestled in the Prestonwood Forest Neighborhood...
Picking up students early
Our Leadership team had the pleasure of working at the front desk while Ms. Sivan was out. We did learn that our procedures are all over the place which is a cause for confusion for you and us. Even if you were able to not follow the below procedures before-it changes now.
Effective Immediately:
- All visitors will show their hard copy of their license to retrieve a child or to enter the building. Phone picture copies will not allow us to dismiss children early or allow adults to enter the building.
Follow these steps to apply for a replacement or duplicate Texas driver's license:
2. Our campus procedures require a note from the parent/guardian if a child is to be picked up early even if it is an emergency contact.
3. If we do not have a note by 2:30 pm, students will be released at the normal dismissal of 3:30 pm. You are welcome to send it with your child in the morning. We will have a blue sticker for your child and they will be sent to the office at the time you requested. Our teachers know to look for the blue stickers.
4. WE DO NOT TAKE EARLY RELEASE REQUESTS OVER THE PHONE. WE REQUIRE A NOTE SIGNED BY THE PARENT OR GUARDIAN.
5. If you come to the school after 2:30 to request an early pick-up without a previous note, we will dismiss your child at normal dismissal. We will not disrupt learning or dismissal procedures to gather children after 2:30.
6. Some parents do not arrive at the time they requested and this causes unnecessary stress to the children and missed instruction. If your child is in PK (napping or learning), 5th grade, out at recess, in large group there will be a wait as searching for a student among 150 takes time. This is why a note is very helpful so that we can work to gather your child at the time you requested.
*Friendly reminder, children that are picked up early are losing instruction and seat minutes according to the state requirement. This is similar to tardies and absences.
*We understand emergencies happen. We are here to help you but more importantly to teach your child. With Covid and the gaps in learning we are noticing, it is imperative that we have your children as long as we possibly can to help them get caught up.
More importantly, please save your frustrations as Ms. Sivan is following our campus procedures.
Vestibule
Because we are polite in Texas...
However, it is for one family at a time.
Please help us keep your children and teachers safe.
Good News
Guess what? Your voices were heard...
You will enter on Schroeder and follow to the right all the way to Middlebury inside the fence. You will snake around and still drop off in the front.
We will be able to have walkers as construction and traffic will be gone. Woohoo
We are so excited!!!
Located in the cafe on the stage
Your child is welcome to look at the items during their breakfast or lunch. If you would like to look for yourself, please call the front desk to schedule to come to the campus between 8:30-10:00 am. We will be glad to have a staff member help you search for your child's items.
At the end of each month, items will be donated.
**Helpful Tip: Please label your child's belongings. If we find it, we will make sure it gets delivered to the student.
Lost and Found
If you are not pleased with a grade, please check out our review of the reteach/redo/retest policy located in the parent handbook.
Grades
NINE WEEK GRADING PERIODS
Report cards will be issued every nine weeks for elementary students. Progress reports will be issued for all students (Pre-K-5) after the fourth week of the grading period. Student achievement in the mastery of grade-level Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) will be reported to parents through report cards every nine weeks. The school uses a computerized report card system. When you receive your child’s report card, please examine it closely.
Parents of second through fifth graders are encouraged to use the Home Access Center system to stay current of their child’s grades throughout the marking period.
In an effort to communicate progress to parents, work samples are collected and graded to show a student’s mastery of a specific skill. However, all assignments that come home are not necessarily graded. In addition, some assignments that come home with grades may not be recorded in the teacher’s grade book. A student may occasionally receive a holistic score on a scale of 0 – 4 for projects or writing assignments. Not all grades are averaged equally. Daily grades may count toward a higher percentage of the student’s final average than tests and quizzes. Specific criteria regarding grades will be shared by the teacher.
In grades Pre-K – 1st, teachers assess student work samples and record their achievement. At this end of the nine weeks, each student’s work is applied to a rubric that determines a nine weeks grade.
In grades 2nd – 5th, graded work is recorded by the teacher and averaged each nine weeks to determine your child’s nine weeks grade. Numeric grades may be converted as follows:
A = 90 – 100,
B = 80 – 89,
C = 75 – 79,
C-= 70 – 74,
F = 0 – 69.
Uh oh...What if we do not like the grade on an assignment?
Oops...we understand our grades are not always what we want so we have an opportunity to set your child up for success. See below.
REDO WORK
Students may have three opportunities each nine weeks to redo assignments/major grades for which he/she earned a grade of 69 or below.
The three opportunities will include one major grade and two daily grades. The highest grade a student can earn on the “redo/retest” will be a 70.
***Parents must request the redo opportunity within one week of the grade being posted on the Home Access Center or the assignment coming home in the Take Home folder.
All reteach/ redo opportunities will take place before school at 7:40 a.m. The redo date will not be changed or postponed for students who do not attend the re-teaching date. District Progress Monitoring Assessments (DPM) and district benchmarks are not included in the redo/retest opportunities.
Tutoring
We provide tutoring daily during Hawk Time.
- Teachers will volunteer if they choose to tutor before or after school.
- A teacher's personal schedule may not allow them the time to tutor before or after school so your child may receive help from another educator.
- We will gather all names and create a roster. We will inform you and give you contact information.
- Depending on the number of educators that choose to tutor, we may have a waiting list.
- If the student misses or is late arriving or being picked up, their spot will be released and a student on the waiting list will be selected.
UPDATE: Lunch Visits STILL ON HOLD!!!!
We were hoping that November would be the month we could begin with lunch visitors. Unfortunately, our locations for our families to sit with their children are not ready.
Our numbers for Covid are getting better. So between Covid and construction, we are still on hold.
Our cafeteria is full when the children are eating, so we will be allowing lunch visitors to eat on the stage with their child. We had to back up because the lighting and electrical work for the stage is not ready. Soon, very soon! We are hoping after the Christmas break it will be ready.
Thank you for your patience as they get areas accomplished.
Hi Hawk Families:
Please click the link below and fill in the Google Form.
As events get closer on the calendar, you will be contacted as a reminder.
Thank you!
Birthday Options
Birthdays are celebrated at Hancock during lunch.
We celebrate your child's birthday at Hancock by:
- Wishing them a Happy Birthday over the announcements. You should hear the cheering and clapping around the campus. It is so sweet.
- We allow the birthday student to come to my office to select a birthday book.
- We celebrate weekend and summer birthdays too.
- Teachers may choose a different way to celebrate the birthday student in their class.
- Goody bags-(NOT REQUIRED) that are brought to campus will be passed out to students at the end of the day. We ask that the items be safe for all children. Please check with your child's teacher for an updated class count.
If you would like to purchase the items for your child and their class, please talk to the cafeteria manager: Marisol Rodriguez at 281-897-4523. She will be happy to set you up on the day of your choosing.
Please check often, as the calendar is subject to change.
Important Dates coming up:
December 2:
- 4th grade Math checkpoint
December 3:
- Day of Awesomeness-Parents may attend if they have signed up to volunteer
December 6:
- Fire Drill
December 7:
- 2nd Grade Science Unit Test
- 3-5 RLA Checkpoint
December 8:
- Cy-Creek Band Performance during 5th-grade lunch
December 9:
- Fall Picture Retakes
- School Board Work Session
December 13:
- CPOC Meeting
- School Board Meeting
December 15:
- 5th grade Field Trip
December 16:
- Reindeer Run
- 5th grade Tradition Day
December 17:
- Hancock Christmas Parties-See informational flyer
December 20-January 4:
- Christmas Break
Hancock Elementary
Website: http://hancock.cfisd.net/en/
Location: Hancock Elementary School, Schroeder Road, Houston, TX, United States
Phone: 281-897-4523
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/T.S.HancockElementary
Twitter: @Hancockcfisd