Weekly Message
September 2, 2019
Leonardtown Elementary School
Mr. Greg LaCount, Assistant Principal
Website: https://schools2.smcps.org/les/
Location: 22885 Duke Street, Leonardtown, MD, USA
Phone: 301-475-0250
Twitter: @les_smcps
\ ˈfam-lē /
A family is a group of people going through the world together. Families are often made of up adults and the children they care for.
"Our School Family"
Welcome to the 2019-2020 School Year!
As we looked at the 5 competencies of social and emotional learning this past week, we quickly discovered that our school is doing A LOT in regards to SEL and supporting students. Our goal is to build upon our strong foundation and naturally embed SEL in classroom activities, small group discussions and learning opportunities for students. For example, as a school, each classroom will focus on our building a sense of community through daily participation in "Morning Meetings or Community Circles". Both are where students and staff engage in focused discussions to build community. Circles and Morning Meetings increase motivation and engagement, empowering students by giving them an opportunity to express differing thoughts and opinions in a safe, non-judgmental space . We will continue to purposefully plan learning activities to encourage risk taking, choice, collaboration.
Our goal is to increase our individual and collective capacity to support learning for ALL students through SEL and practices that are inclusionary. We want to make sure that children have equitable access to programming and services, and that families and staff have the opportunity to be involved and feel welcomed. We will strengthen the foundation for this important work this year and as a school community as we look closely at our school mission and vision to ensure we capture the values, challenges, and opportunities for the academic, social, and emotional development of all students.
"Cheers and High Fives"
Parents can meet us where your student will enter the building (see below) for "Cheers and High Fives"! Once the 8:55 a.m. bell rings, K-5 students will enter the building to "Cheers and High Fives"! Please come out and join us!
We encourage students who normally ride the bus, to please do so on the 1st day of school. This will help with any bus riding logistics later in the week.
Grades K-2: Enter through the Main Entrance door
Grade 3: Enter through the Science Lab doors
Grade 4-5: Enter at the far end of the building
PK, AM: 9:30 a.m: Main Entrance (parents and students wait at the Main Entrance)
PK, PM: 1:30 p.m: Main Entrance (parents and students wait at the Main Entrance)
Upcoming Events
September
-2 No School, Labor Day
-3 Cheers and High Fives 8:45 a.m. welcome students back to shool
-3 1st Day of School, Grades K-5; PK Orientation, AM: 9:30 a.m.; PM: 1:30 p.m
-4 1st Day of Pre-K
-6 Jersey Day, (wear your favorite football jersey or any jersey)
-18 Back to School Bash 5:30 p.m. -7:00 p.m.
-19 Picture Day
-20 No School for Students; Staff Professional Development
-25 Back to School Bash (Rain Date)
-27 Grandparents Day Lunch
October
3- PTA General Membership Meeting @ 6 p.m. in the Media Center
8- LES Bike Rodeo 4 p.m. -5:00 p.m.
Arrival and Dismissal
As adults, we must follow predictable patterns and routines, because children can be unpredictable. Parking in a wrong or illegal place creates unpredictable situations, and those types of situations can put students at risk during arrival and dismissal.
Arrival and dismissal safety is everyone's responsibility. Please listen to our staff members who are outside to assist our children when they enter and leave school daily. Please do not park in the bus loop between the hours of 8:00 a.m. -9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. Thank you so much for your assistance in ensuring all our students remain safe.
Car Placard Requests
Placard applications will be sent home in the LES folder on the first day of school. You may also request a placard application in the Main Office at any time.
If you are a placard holder for the 2018-2019 school year, you may continue to use the same placard until Tuesday, September 9, 2019. After this date, your placard will no longer be valid.
All placard applications for the 2019-2020 will be processed 48 hours from receipt of the application. Until your new placard is received, you may send in a Green Note to have your student picked up at the Science Lab entrance. There is a 100% ID check.
1. Placards must be displayed at all times and visible by staff.
2. Dismissal begins at approximately 3:35 p.m. Please wait in your car for your child.
3. All students should enter the car on the passenger side via the sidewalk within the circle.
4. Please do not drive around other cars in the circle unless directed by school personnel.
5. If there will be other dismissal arrangements, please communicate with your child's teacher and the Main Office using the Green Note.
Visiting or Picking Up Students At LES
Additionally, we require a picture ID when you pick-up your child from school.
Volunteer Procedures
All approved volunteers should view and verify the CASH Training located on the SMCPS website. If you are already a volunteer, there is no need to reapply.
Birthday Recognition
Thank you all for your feedback from late spring and summer to support our students' birthday recognition at LES! If you have additional ideas to share about how we can hi-lite student birthdays, please do not hesitate to share.
At LES, we strongly support and encourage the recognition of a child’s birthday during the school day. It is an annual milestone in every child’s life that should be celebrated not just at home, but in school as well, where children spend one-third of their day with teachers, classmates, and peers.
In our school community, we have students with food allergies and other medical needs that require healthy options. The nurse can become inundated with checking ingredients and verifying student allergies that come in on a daily basis.
For the upcoming year, we would like to begin to transition to healthier options and look for ways to hi-lite student birthdays. We will implement the following at LES this year.
- Students will be recognized during our PA announcements
- Students will receive a birthday pencil and sticker from Administration
- Students will be recognized in the classroom by the teacher and their peers
- A parent/guardian can volunteer as a "Guest Reader" to come in to the classroom and read a book
- A book in the students' name can be donated to the library by the students' family
We want this to be a collaborative effort to make the best choices for all our students. Your input is valuable.
Please do not hesitate to let us know if you have other ideas. Thank you
Bus Services
The school and bus locator features an efficient mobile friendly and informative format. Type in your address to see your child's school, bus schedule, and location of their bus stop. This information will be available with 19-20 bus information by August 26th.
For the first week of school, parents are asked to ensure students arrive at bus stops earlier.
We encourage parents to send their children to school on the first day the same way they would each day. On the first day of Pre-K and Kindergarten students will receive bracelets identifying their bus information.
Food Services at LES
Free and Reduced Meals Application
Parents of students who qualify for Free and Reduced Meals must submit a new application every school year. Please look for an application to come home with your student inside the white folder. You may also apply online.
Paying for Meals
- Full Price Breakfast: $1.45 Reduced Price Breakfast $.30
- Full Price Lunch: $2.75 Reduced Price Lunch: $.40
My School Bucks
- You can add money to your child's account through the My School Bucks website.
Cash Daily
- Students can pay daily for lunch, milk, or snacks with cash.
Breakfast
At Leonardtown Elementary, we serve breakfast each morning from 8:40 a.m.-9:00 a.m. Students who wish to purchase breakfast simply need to go to the cafeteria when they arrive in the morning.
If you have any questions about Food Services at Leonardtown Elementary, please feel free to contact our Cafeteria Manager, Ms. Kim Hamilton.
Student Code of Conduct Information
Please click here to learn more about the SMCPS Student Code of Conduct. Please review the Code of Conduct and presentation for your information and as a resource for your child(ren). Thank you
Veteran's Day Float Preparation
It has been a long-standing tradition for Leonardtown Elementary school students to have a float in the parade to honor our Veteran Heroes.
Please mark your calendars for Monday, November 11th, the day of the Veteran's Day parade.
As a "School Family", we are planning ways for our students to take part in our long-standing tradition, while also taking part in community building. We need your support and commitment to make it happen for LES!
If you have a truck and/or trailer you would like to share with us for the day of the event, please let us know. Thank you so much for your support!
A Huge Thank You To Our LES PTA
Also, thank you to our PTA for stuffing 500 folders students will each get to take home with important school information after their first day back.
We could not do what we do without your support!!:)
Message from the PTA President
Dear LES Families,
Your 2019-2020 LES PTA has already been busy planning fundraisers and events for our school community. We are excited for the upcoming school year!
Our fall fundraiser will be a Read-a-Thon, with more details coming soon. One hundred percent of the money raised from this fundraiser will go towards funding after-school activities and clubs, an annual technology grant, literary events and free family events including Donuts with Dad, Muffins with Mom, Family Dance and the Big Idea Fair.
We encourage all LES parents to become PTA members. Membership not only helps fund these events, but gives you an active voice at our General Membership meetings and events. Our goal this year is for 60% of LES families to join the PTA. There will be a membership and volunteer table at the Open House. Stop by and say hello, and also check out our spiritwear.
Please mark your calendars for upcoming events the first half of the school year:
Wednesday September 18th 5:30pm-7pm Back to School Bash (hot dogs, chips and water provided by the PTA)
Thursday October 3rd- General Membership Meeting and Read-a-Thon Kick off
Friday October 18th Read-a-Thon Fundraiser
Thursday November 14th and Friday November 15th - Donuts with Dad
Thank you again for all your support. If you have any questions or would like to become more involved, please reach out.
Warm Regards,
LES PTA 2019-2020 Executive Board
Megs Anderson- President
Shawnna White - Vice President
Amy White- Secretary
Jackie Wimpee- Treasurer
PTA Back to School Bash
Come out for some school family fun! There will be hotdogs, chips, games and best of all you will get to hang out with teachers and staff! We hope to see everyone there for lots of fun!
Stay Connected with LES!
Stay Connected with LES!
- Follow us on Twitter at @les_smcps
- We use Twitter to inform, celebrate, and engage our community
- Twitter is used to share what is going on in our school, our community, and throughout the St. Mary's County School System
- Turn on notifications to get information the second it is tweeted
Website
- Beginning August 2019, our website will have a new look, visit at schools.smcps.org/les
- Our website is updated regularly
- Important news and information is located on the main page of the site including our Weekly Message
- Staff information and email is located under the "Our Staff" tab
- A google calendar is also located on the website, which shares LES Events
- Email is our main form of communication
- You will receive news and information automatically to the email address you provided in your registration packet (if you would like to update, please contact the Main Office). We will not inundate your inbox with email. Look for the Weekly Message on Sunday evenings
- Weekly announcements, important information and updates, and more will primarily be sent through email
- You also have the opportunity to opt-in for text messaging