Valley Viking News
May 1, 2023
Are You Planning to Volunteer for Field Day?
*Field Day is scheduled for May 26, 2023* (raindate 5/30)
Mrs. Finley provided a paper copy of a sign up for volunteers to teachers on Friday. So, be on the look out for this paper to come home with your student(s) this week!
We appreciate our field day volunteers so much! We coudn't do it without you!
Did you know that field day volunteers are required to complete the volunteer training (linked below)?
This process is managed at our central office and can take a few days to process. It is important to complete the training in advance. If you are not approved as a volunteer on field day, you will not be permitted to volunteer. We are unable to expedite an approval.
Valley Spirit Days
If you have any questions, please reach out to your child's teacher.
We look forward to celebrating their accomplishments!!
Attendance Matters
FCPS students have a 180-day school year in keeping with Maryland law. Students should arrive at school no earlier than 30 minutes before instruction begins and leave the grounds within 30 minutes after instruction ends.
Regular daily attendance is expected and critical to a child's academic success. Parents' support of regular daily attendance is essential. Parents are encouraged to notify the school on the day their child is absent by emailing the reason for absence or lateness to ves.attendance@fcps.org . This is required upon students' return, or the absence is automatically classified as unlawful until an approved note is provided. Students who were absent from school have the responsibility to request missed work.
School staff will review each case in which the student has reached more than 5 unlawful absences during a 9-week grading period, 10 unlawful absences during a semester or 20 unlawful absences during the year. School staff will also review, at least quarterly, the attendance of students who are in danger of being chronically absent. Concerns will be communicated to parents/guardians.
One Call Now
We will be using One Call Now to communicate with families that a child is absent from school. The intent is to communicate with families if their child has been marked absent for the beginning of the the school day. This call is automated and it is possible that if a child enters school later in the day the call could occur in error. As always please feel free to call our front office if you feel you have received a phone call in error. This call will be scheduled for the person noted as the primary caregiver for your child. If you wish to opt out of this or any of the One Call Now calls you receive, feel free to listen to the message through to the end for directions to push a code to opt out.
Teachers will take attendance each day right after arrival. It is critical that students arrive to school on time. As a reminder, arrival is begins at 8:30. Classroom instruction begins at 9:00.
News from the PTA
Looking for ways to connect with other families for play dates or birthday parties? Join the PTA and consent to become part of the PTA membership directory. When you complete the form, you do need to opt in to be included. Deadline for the directory is Jan. 31st. Join here!
PTA membership is a fantastic way to help support Valley Elementary School. The PTA organizes amazing events for the students, teachers/staff, and even the community. Everyone is eligible to join Valley Elementary School PTA. Follow this link, https://sites.google.com/view/vespta/home, for more information and to find other ways to help support our Valley Vikings.
Here are just a couple of the ways to help:
1) Valley Spirit Wear earns PTA money for Valley: www.1stplacespiritwear.com;
2) Gift card fundraising through RaiseRight: RaiseRight.com/m/StartEarning Enrollment Code: BF9XY8R2VUNL;
3) Amazon Smile: Valley Elementary School PTA Location Jefferson, MD - https://smile.amazon.com/?ref_=smi_ext_ch_23-7077105_dl; and
4) BoxTops is now automated, https://www.boxtops4education.com/s/.
If you have any questions, please contact our PTA via the email address below.
PTA President - Tina Kettner
PTA Vice President - Rebecca Gedalowitz
Treasurer - Christine Tully
Secretary - Jennifer Mack
Contact the PTA at ValleyVikingsPTA@gmail.com
My School Bucks
My School Bucks is an online way to pay for your child’s lunches that will continue to be used by FCPS Food & Nutrition Services. With My School Bucks, you also have the opportunity to set up recurring payments, track and review purchase history, create low balance alerts, etc. Families still have the option of putting money on thier child's lunch account via cash or check.
School Cash Online
Through School Cash Online, with a few clicks, you can pay for your child’s yearbook, field trips, and so much more from your own home. All you have to do is register an account, attach your children, and in no time you will be able to make payments online. Through School Cash Online, FCPS is able to accept many different payment forms.
https://frederickcounty.schoolcashonline.com/
Find Out First and One Call Now
Mark Your Calendar
May
May 2 Restaurant Night Chick-Fil-A
May 10 PTA Meeting 5:30
May 22 Restaurant Night Panera
May 26 Field Day
May 29 (Monday) Schools and Offices Closed
June
June 2 Last Day of School For Students - 2 hours early dismissal
Our Vision and Mission
Our vision is to have a school community where a sense of belonging exists so that academic excellence is achieved and social-emotional well-being is developed as a foundation for success.
Empower students to take risks, problem solve, and be self-aware.
Prepare students to think independently for their global future.
Respond equitably to meet the unique needs of every student every day.
Valley Elementary School
Website: https://edu.fcps.org/ves/
Phone: 240-236-3000