Jonesburg Elementary News

January 4th, 2022

Principal: Ms. Jennifer Krattli

Our Mission:

Motivate to Succeed

Value Indvidual Differences

Prepare for Lifelong Learners

JBE's PBIS Principles:

Rule #1 - Be Cooperative - Follow Directions Quickly

Rule #2 - Be Respectful - Raise Your Hand

Rule #3 - Be Safe - KHFAAOOTY

Rule #4 - Be Responsible - Make Smart Choices

Rule #5 - Be Kind - Treat Others The Way You Want To Be Treated

Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Dates -

January 5th - Classes Resume

January 5th - JBE day at Frumpy Joe's

January 6th - PTO Meeting in Library at 5:30

January 6th & 7th - Dental Days at JBE

January 7th - 2nd Quarter Grades, 3rd Quarter AMI & Free & Reduced Lunch Forms sent home in Friday Folders

January 7th - Student Council Ice Cream Sales $1

January 11th - MCR2 Science Fair Projects due to JBE

January 13th - MCR2 Science Fair at Montgomery Elementary

January 19th - JBE StuCo Change the World Day - PJ's for Dolly Parton Imagination Library

January 21st- JBE PTO Mother & Son Night 6:00

January 24th-28th - Great Kindness Challenge Week

Please help us by using this COVID Home Screening Tool. Please communicate with the school office if your child has symptoms and you are keeping them home.

December 22, 2021

Dear MCR-II Families,

On December 20th the MCR-II Board of Education met in a special session to review the Safe Return to In-Person Learning and Continuity of Service Plan (SRCSP). During this meeting, the MCR-II Board of Education determined that beginning January 5th, 2022 the district will no longer exclude students from in-person learning who are close contacts of an in-school person who has tested positive for COVID-19. The district voted to continue exclusion of Students and Staff Members who are a contact of a household(s) positive COVID-19 case.

A student or staff member who is a confirmed COVID-19 positive case will continue to be excluded from school, school activities, or work for 10 days from the onset of symptoms as identified by your healthcare provider. The student or staff member may return to school or work after the 10-day isolation period provided they are symptom-free without medication for a minimum of 24 hours.

If your child has been in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 at school the district will send out written notification to parents and guardians. You will be asked to closely monitor your child for any new or changing symptoms. If your child develops any of the COVID-19 symptoms, please do not send your student to school and contact your healthcare provider immediately. As long as your child remains symptom-free they may attend school and school activities

Students and staff who are considered in-home contacts (someone in the house they reside in has tested positive for COVID-19) will be excluded and must follow one of the following options:

Option 1: 14-day Exclusion The student or staff member will be excluded from school or work for 14 days from their last exposure to the positive case. They can return to school or work on day 15, provided they have remained symptom-free. This is the safest option and the only option for students in Preschool, Kindergarten, and 1st grade, since most younger students struggle to wear a mask the whole school day.

Option 2: 7-day Exclusion The student or staff member will be excluded from school or work for the first 7 days after their last exposure to the positive case. If they have remained symptom-free they can take a Rapid Test or PCR test (given by a Health Professional) on days 5, 6, or 7 after their last exposure and if the test is negative they can return on day 8 with a mask being worn through day 14. The MCHD and MCR-II nurses provide the rapid test free of charge. (If your student does not want to wear a mask they should choose option 1.)

Students and staff who are fully vaccinated will not be excluded as long as they remain symptom-free.

The MCR-II Board of Education and administration will continue to monitor COVID-19 cases throughout our district and will continue to work to provide a safe environment for our students and staff. If any notable changes in the number of COVID-19 cases occur we will review our options and procedures. We appreciate all the support we have received from our Wildcat families and the community.

Sincerely,

Tracy Bottoms

Dr. Tracy Bottoms, Superintendent

MCR-II Community, as winter quickly approaches, I just wanted to take a moment to remind everyone of a few things. First, when snow and ice arrive in our area, the district begins reviewing roads around 4:15 A.M. The school district hopes to decide before 5:30 A.M. if school is not in session. But, of course, much of that depends on the timing of when that weather enters our area. If school is canceled, the district will communicate to parents through our school communication software. Also, parents can find our closures on our district Facebook page, KOMU, and KMIZ.

As you may recall, students also participated in AMI (Alternative Methods of Instruction) several times last winter. These are days that school is not in session, but students should be working from home. Listed in the letter is a link that from our webpage that discusses AMI https://www.mc-wildcats.org/page/alternative-methods-of-instruction. Please note that the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education only allows districts to plan for a total of 36 AMI hours (5 days) that don't have to be made up. If you have any questions about Alternative Methods of Instruction, please don't hesitate to contact the district.

Sincerely,

Tracy Bottoms, Superintendent

Just a reminder that your student will be sent home with their 3rd quarter AMI packets in Friday Folders this week. You can discard the Quarter 1 & 2 AMI Packets. AMI stands for Alternative Methods of Instruction and may be used on an inclement weather day to continue learning from an at-home setting. You will be informed if it is a traditional snow day or an AMI day when the inclement weather day is announced. If you have any questions, please reach out to your student's teacher.

Jonesburg Elementary needs your help! Currently, USDA Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) has established waivers, allowing school districts to offer free breakfast and lunch for 2021-2022 school year. While this resource has had a positive effect on closing the gap in food insecurities in our district, it has had a negative effect on the number of free and reduced applications the district has received this school year.

It is important for all families who may qualify to fill out the Free and Reduced Lunch application because just by applying, families can help bring funding to the Montgomery County R-2 District students PK-12. Funding goes directly toward curriculum, teacher salary, family engagement, and more! These funds support student achievement and well-being.

This year, every family that submits an application by Friday, January 21, 2022 will be entered for a chance to win one of two $50 Wal-Mart gift certificates. If you have already filled out a form, we appreciate your help! We only need one application per family. The drawing will include all applications submitted for the 2021-2022 school year. Families will be automatically entered into the drawing, and two winners will be selected at random. Winners will be notified by phone and/or email on or after Tuesday, February 1, 2022.

If you have not filled out a form yet, copies will be sent home in Friday Folders On January 7th!

It's officially winter!!! Please make sure that your students are dressed appropriately for the weather. Fresh air and exercise are good for our students so we go outside if we can. Our handbook states that we will go outside unless outside temperatures are 20 degrees or less or the outside temperature when combined with the wind chill factor is 20 degrees or less.

Congratulations to our para, Mrs. Cindy Orr, and her husband on the birth of their son! Mom and baby are doing well!

Kudos to our students, Mrs. Mabry and Ms. Davis for a job well done. We had a wonderful day of Christmas Concerts. I could not be more proud of our students who worked so hard to host such a fabulous concert and fine arts display.

Our students were very excited and thankful that Mrs. Davis' Mini-Grant was chosen. The grant and PTO support allowed us to purchase four additional Ozobots. On several occasions during library class recently students have had the opportunity to write code to direct their Ozobots. The students love the hands-on learning opportunity. It is amazing to watch them problem solve as a group when their code doesn't work like it is supposed to!

First grade talked about the properties of light in December and took part in several hands on learning opportunities.

Our JBE Larry Richards Club participated in the Jonesburg Lighted Parade. Larry Richards Club partnered with the Jonesburg Optimist to build the float. Mr. Sam Cobb drove the float in the parade for the students and staff.

If you ask most educators, the challenges on TikTok are overwhelming, distracting, and completely unnecessary. At Jonesburg Elementary, we felt very fortunate to have the support of the community as well as state and local law enforcement. For the most part, our students were completely unaware of the challenge and went about business as usual. Officer Olivia did an excellent job of being present at drop-off and throughout the day! She answered several questions and even tried out some of the flexible seating in 4th grade.

We had AMAZING support from many families to make a very memorable December to Remember. Every day had a theme and some type of activity or treat for the students! We are in year two of teaching in a pandemic, it was very important to me and our JBE team to create a month full of positive memories for our students. We still had a lot of learning happening, but we also built relationships and made memories. Below are some pictures of the memories made. Buddy the Elf visited each classroom, we had a snowball fight in the gym, photo opportunities, inflatable fun, a big-screen movie in the gym, hot chocolate, treats, festive headwear and socks, created ornaments, and much more!

This would not have been possible without the generosity of so many of our families! Thank you for your continued support of our students and staff! We are truly blessed by amazing family and community support at Jonesburg Elementary!

Santa made an early stop at Jonesburg Elementary on December 17th. He and his elf, Mrs. Angel Davis, were able to bring each student at Jonesburg Elementary a new book and lots of smiles for Christmas!

We would like to congratulate Mrs. Amanda Davis. She was awarded a Wildcat Award for December. Each month one certified staff, one classified staff, and one community member are honored with a Wildcat Award. We are proud that one of our JBE team members was chosen for December. Congratulations.

Mrs. Davis' second-grade class is very excited that the flexible seating they ordered from winning the local Mini-Grant has arrived! It is amazing what that little bit of movement can do for a student's ability to stay in their seat and focus!

The Mongomery County Rotary Club visited JBE with dictionaries for our third-grade students. These dictionaries are specially written for elementary-level students in hopes that they will help students discover the richness of language and become better readers. The Rotary Club is part of a worldwide organization committed to service above self. We appreciate the Rotary Clubs' continued support of our students!

On Wednesday, December 15th we hosted Change the World Day as Wear Pink or Hat Day for the Helen Reagan Cancer Fund. We raised $171.63.

On January 19th our Change the World Day is Pajama Day for Dolly Parton Imagination Library.

Nova R., Chloe H., and Ella B. received the Principal's Excellence Award for being honest and responsible. The three of them found money for the Santa Shop another student had dropped in the hall. They promptly turned it in. Because they were so quick to find and return the money we were able to return the money to the student who lost it. Nova, Chloe, and Ella were honest and responsible. They were recognized at morning assembly and were presented with the Principal’s Excellence Award.

We are very fortunate to have an active and supportive PTO at Jonesburg Elementary. This group does a lot of work behind the scenes to provide awesome opportunities for our students. PTO helps support many of the activities that happen at Jonesburg Elementary. PTO also helps buy extra materials for classrooms to support learning and growth. PTO event dates are located in the Upcoming Dates section below. You can support PTO in a variety of ways including attending meetings and events, buying items from the fundraisers, and volunteering your time to help at events.

If you have questions about how to help the JBE PTO or are interested in getting involved, please let your student's teacher know or contact any of our PTO Officers. Stephanie Thomas, Cherysse Tucker, Rachel Hans, and Liana Wilson.

Huge THANK YOU to our PTO Officers for hosting our last day of school movie day! Our students watched Clifford on a 20-foot inflatable screen with nachos, popcorn, fruit snacks and a Capri Sun!

Upcoming Events:

• 1/6 JBE PTO Meeting 5:30
• 1/21 Mother Son Event
• 2/25 Daddy Daughter Dance
• 3/8 Family Fun Night and PTO Meeting 7:15
• 4/24 Spring Carnival & 5K

Terrific Kids is a student-recognition program that promotes character development, self-esteem and perseverance. “Terrific” is an acronym for Thoughtful, Enthusiastic, Respectful, Responsible, Inclusive, Friendly, Inquisitive and Capable. Thank you to the Montgomery City Kiwanis for sponsoring this program at our school.

Mark your calendar for the first Wednesday of the month. Frumpy Joe's has generously offered to donate 10% of their sales to Jonesburg Elementary! We are very thankful for the continued support we get from our awesome community! Thank you to Frumpy Joe's for thinking of our students!

The Science Fair is coming to Montgomery County. There will be a district-wide science fair on January 13, 2022 at Montgomery City Elementary. JBE students participating in the Science Fair should turn in their project to JBE by Tuesday, January 11th.

Although, breakfast and lunch are currently at no cost, milk break still has a cost.

Milk cost is $0.45 per milk. Please send money for your student to participate. If you DO NOT want your student participating in milk break, please send your student's teacher a note.

Breakfast and lunch are free this year. If students want a second entree, it will be charged as a full lunch. Please notify Mrs. Chris by sending a note or e-mailing cfuthey@mc-wildcats.org if you give permission for second lunch.

If your student brings lunch, but takes a milk, there is a $0.45 charge. Kindergarten and 1st grade students have the option for milk break.

This milk also costs $0.45. Please send money in a clearly labeled envelope if your student plans to eat a second lunch or have additional milk. They will only be allowed a second lunch if they have money on their account.

It is important that all families fill out a free and reduced lunch application. If you need another copy, please let the office know.

Charges

It is important that you pay off any balances due on your child's account

Full Breakfast- $2.75

Reduced Breakfast - $0.30

Adult Breakfast - $2.75

Full Lunch - $3.15

Reduced Lunch - $0.40

Adult Lunch - $3.75

Extra milk -$0.45

Below is the approved calendar for the 2021-2022 school year.

Don't forget that your student can log onto their Moby Max account from home as well as school. If you need your student's login information, please contact your student's teacher.

This online remediation and practice program is one way that we can continue closing the gap on lost information from last spring.

The Box Tops program has made it easier to collect Box Tops and support your school. Download the Box Tops App, select Jonesburg Elementary (our zip code is 63351), then scan your receipt after you go shopping. No more clipping and saving. You can track our progress on the app. We appreciate your support!

You can find the most up to date breakfast and lunch menus on the district website on the left side by clicking on the green box that says school menus. Make sure you choose Jonesburg Elementary! You can also click on this link to see the menus.

This year, more than ever, it is important to keep your child home if they are sick. Please communicate with our office when you are keeping your student home. We may reach out and ask about symptoms etc. We are in constant communication with the Montgomery County Health Department for guidance and support.

I know that there is a certain amount of anxiety involved with receiving attendance letters from the school. Please know that we are mandated to mail attendance letters after your students 3rd, 5th and 8th absence. This DOES NOT mean that we are going to call the truancy officer. On the back of the letter you will see the dates of your students absence and the detail that we noted when you called in. As always, we will be in touch if we have specific concerns. Please continue to communicate with our office about your students attendance.

The Montgomery County R-II Schoolwide Program Plan is available for parents, staff and community members upon request. If you are interested in viewing MCR-II, Jonesburg Elementary, or Montgomery City Elementary’s Schoolwide Program Plan please contact Mrs. Jocelyn Schluss, Assistant Superintendent, at (573)564-2278 or jschluss@mc-wildcats.org. A copy can be printed and mailed, or instructions to access online can be shared.

January 5th - Classes Resume

January 6th - JBE PTO Meeting 5:30

JBE 6th & 7th - JBE Dental Days

January 7th - 2nd Qtr Report Cards sent home

January 7th - 3rd Qtr AMI sent home

January 7th - Student Council Ice Cream Sales $1

January 7th - Optimist 5th Grade Student of the Month

January 9th - Law Enforcement Appreciation Day

January10th - PD Day Monday

January 13th - BOE Meeting 7:30 pm @ MCE

January 13th - MCR2 Science Fair

January 19th - JBE StuCo Change the World Day

January 21st- JBE PTO Boys Winter Game Night 6:00

January 24th-28th - Great Kindness Challenge Week

January 28th - Kiwanis Terrific Kids

February 3rd - JBE Science Day

February 4th - Student Council Ice Cream Sales $1

February 4th - Optimist 5th Grade Student of the Month

February 4th - Mid-Year PDP Due

February 7th - 11th - School Counselor Appreciation Week

February 10th - 3rd Qtr Mid-Term

February 18th - 3rd Qtr Mid-Term Progress Reports sent home

February 10th - BOE meeting 7:30 @ MCHS

February 11th - Friendship Parties 2:30 pm

February 14th - PD Day

February 16th - JBE StuCo Change the World Day

February 22nd - School Bus Driver Appreciation Day

February 25th - Kiwanis Terrific Kids

February 25th - JBE PTO Sweetheart Dance 6:30

March 1st - 100th Day of School - Tentative