Gravely Connection
August 2019
Welcome to the 2019-2020 School Year
Seadog Families,
We are excited to start the school year with our Seadog Family. During the summer our teachers are working hard to prepare for your return. Classrooms are getting ready, plans are being made for instruction, and teachers are participating in professional development locally and out of state. This summer we celebrated several events with our staff and community, including a literacy event at the Gainesville/Haymarket Library, Kindergarten home visits, Popsicles on the Playground, and our Counselors were recognized with a RAMP designation for an exemplary Counseling Program.
We would like to send a huge shout out to our custodial staff of Mr. Thomas, Mr. Johnson, Mrs. Schmidt, Ms. Solano for all their work over the summer to make the school look phenomenal for our students. We would also like to thank our office staff and teachers for all the work they have already put in to prepare for an exceptional school year.
Our PTO has been collaborating throughout the summer to be able to provide community building events, fundraisers, and after school opportunities for our students. The PTO is still currently looking for additional support, and you could make a big difference for our school. There is one open Board Position, if you are interested to support or learn more please reach out to sammytheseadog@gmail.com. Also, if your interested in becoming a member of our School Advisory Council please complete the attachment at the bottom of this newsletter.
Please take this opportunity to read through our summer newsletter which includes important information such as how to find class placements and bus routes(ParentVue), upcoming dates, procedures, and attachments that may answer any questions you have about Gravely ES policies and procedures (Procedures A-Z.)
We look forward to working collaboratively with you to make this school year memorable for your child. As always, we would like to thank you for your continued support of Gravely! See you soon.
Michael Kelchlin - Principal
Kisha Trammell - Assistant Principal
Sammy the Seadog
Class Placements
This year class placements can be found utilizing your ParentVue App on August 16, 2019. There will NOT be a mailing of this information. If you do not have access to your ParentVue account, please call the school office. Gravely teachers are excited to welcome their students at our Open House on August 22nd. Our current enrollment is around 870 students. This summer we have added additional classrooms to Kindergarten, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade, Autism, as well as a second fulltime PE Teacher. Our staff has placed alot of time and effort into the student placement process. Careful consideration was given to meet the needs of all students, taking into account input from staff along with parents input on learning environment and learning styles. Thank you so much for being positive with your child about the upcoming year and their teacher placement. As always, there is the possibility that your child’s classroom assignments may change based upon fluctuations in enrollment.
Upcoming Dates
August 13- Kindergarten Assessments (by appointment)
August 15 - Kindergarten Orientation (6:00pm)
Come learn what kindergarten is all about, then make some new friends on the playground.
August 16 - Class Placements will be accessable on ParentVue
August 22 - Meet and Greet:
Come visit your classroom, meet your teacher, see your friends, and drop off supplies.
Kindergarten Meet and Greet 9:00am-10:00am
Meet and Greets Grades 1-5
Last Names A-L 10:30am - 11:30am
Last Names M-Z 11:30am - 12:30pm
August 26 - First Day of School
Doors open for students at 8:50am
Bell rings at 9:05am for the start for the day
Dismissal time 3:45
Back to School Nights:
September 23:
5:30-6:15 – 2nd Grade
6:30-7:15 – 4th Grade
7:30-8:15 – Kindergarten
September 25:
5:30-6:15 – 3rd Grade
6:30-7:15 – 5th Grade
7:30-8:15 – 1st Grade
Staffing Updates
We are excited to have the following dynamic teachers join our staff this year:
Marissa Zebatto - 4th Grade
Alexander Hendrix - 3rd Grade
Courtney Taubken - 3rd Grade
Kasey Grundy- 3rd Grade
Nicole Maples - 3rd Grade
Haylee Mozingo - 2nd Grade
Michelle Terhaar- Kindergarten
Betsy Edinger - School Psychologist
Joe White- Physical Education
Carissa Wagner - Autism Teacher
Lori Bonnay - Sped LD
Internal Moves:
Wassila Taylor – Kindergarten
Kelly Giesler - 4th Grade
We owe the following Seadogs a debt of gratitude and wish them great success in their promotions, out of state moves, and/or new endeavors outside of Gravely ES: Mrs. Gill, Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Robertson, Mrs. Welteroth, Mrs. Sarmiento, and Mrs. Murray.
First Week Arrival Procedures
It is always best to begin the first day of school with your child arriving and departing school in the manner in which he/she will do so for the entire school year. It causes great confusion for the child and staff when a student’s transportation is different on the first day.
Please provide a note to your classroom teacher on the first day for how your student will be getting home for the year. (Bus #, Walker, Kiss and Ride, Alpha Best)
In the interest of student safety, please refrain walking your child to class. Our wonderful staff will greet your children in the halls and outside their classrooms. This will allow the staff time to remain focused on the children, welcome them with their undivided attention, and set routines and procedures for a successful school year.
As student safety is our top priority, dismissal will take us longer than usual the first week.
KINDERGARTNERS will all meet in the Cafeteria at arrival for the first two weeks of school.
Important Arrival / Dismissal Procedures
Kiss and Ride drop off/pick up:
· When using K&R please enter the school parking lot and follow the assigned arrows
· Student drop off begins at 8:50 when school staff is there to greet you
· Please pull forward to utilize the entire kiss and ride line
· FOR SAFETY NO STUDENT IS TO EXIT THEIR VEHICLE UNTIL SCHOOL STAFF HAS SIGNALED TO DO SO and students must exit on the RIGHT PASSENGER SIDE ONLY.
· THERE IS NO STUDENT DROP OFF PERMITTED ON WAVERLY FARM DRIVE
· The school day begins at 9:05 AM, and kiss and ride staff will enter the building at this time. If you arrive after 9:05 AM, you must park your car and walk your child into the building for a tardy pass.
· Dismissal begins at 3:45
· Be sure your car rider tag number is displayed on your rearview mirror when you pull forward. All families will receive an assigned number.
· Do not exit your car, and please pull as far forward to maximize pick up space.
-KINDERGARTEN Kiss and Ride students will be located near the main entrance
· Students will not be dismissed from the office at the end of the day. You must use the carpool line except for special circumstances.
· Be sure to have a picture ID available.
· We ask you to respect our dismissal procedures as we continue to provide a safe dismissal for over 870 students.
All families will receive a carpool number. We will have these numbers available at Meet and Greet. Please keep this number in the event you need to pick your child up from school versus having them ride the bus home. Remember you must always send a note in if your child is to go home differently than their normal schedule. Please do not notify us by email as we may not receive the notice in time. If your child is going home with another student or if you have a student coming to your house, both parents must send in a dismissal change note.
Throughout the past 2 years Dominion Valley Owners Association as well as residents contacted us in regard to parking in no parking areas. There are no parking signs posted throughout the inside of the gate at Allen’s Mill Blvd, and the DVOA has notified us that Gravely families are parking in these areas during afternoon dismissal and special events. We have also had an issue with Gravely Families parking in the turning lane on Waverly Farm Drive. As a school we strive to be good neighbors to the communities that we serve. Please support us in an effort to work collaboratively with DVOA and follow their established rules of not parking in these designated no parking zones. It is not uncommon to see police presence in these areas writing tickets for illegal parkng.
Walkers:
· A crossing guard has been assigned to our school and will assist our students in crossing Waverly Farm Drive / Allens Mill Blvd.
· Students are to use the crosswalk at the entrance to the school where a staff member will help them safely cross
· If students are riding their bikes, bike helmets are required and students are reminded to walk with their bikes when they are crossing the street and on school property.
-WALKING YOUR BIKES AND SCOOTERS ON WAVERLY FARM BETWEEN ALLENS MILL AND THE SCHOOL IS REQUIRED. Numerous injuries were reported last year from riding sudents crashing into walkers and their families.
Activate Your ParentVUE Account ASAP!
ParentVUE will be the new portal for accessing information about your child(ren). Instructions for how to setup this account were included in an email that was sent on July 15th. If you failed to receive this email, please contact the office as soon as you can! Important information, such as bus locations and times, will be posted in ParentVUE. This is how you will access your class placement.
Bus Routes and Transportation information can be found on your ParentVue Account and at the link below
School Lunches
Go to myschoolbucks.com to put money on your child’s lunch card. You need your child’s student ID number to activate your child’s account. You can also view your child’s lunch choices.
Please review the attached documents below for important information about Gravely Procedures
School Advisory Council members application
Samuel L. Gravely Jr. Elementary
Website: https://gravelyes.pwcs.edu/
Location: 4670 Waverly Farm Drive, Haymarket, VA, United States
Phone: 571-248-4930
Facebook: facebook.com/SamuelLGravelyJr