Welcome to the fourth quarter! April showers will definitely bring May flowers... as well as

bunch of awesome things here at GHEMS. As we prepare to end the year strong, we have a lot of really important information to share with our families.

First, we want to remind our families that our state mandated assessments (MCAP) are coming up in the next few weeks. These tests help our teachers and administrators evaluate the quality of education we provide and guide us to how we can better prepare our students for high school and the world beyond. We encourage our students to never leave any problem blank. We want our students to do their very best. As a special incentive, GHEMS will be giving out daily prizes as well as some other big ticket items like bikes and a gaming system. We do this because we want our student to know that hard work has a definite pay off and pay out. Please encourage your students to do their best.

Next, we want to invite our families to come to a special event on April 20, from 5:00 - 6:30 pm. On April 20, 2023, we will have a special meeting to discuss the 2023-2024 school year as many changes will be occurring. In addition to gathering feedback from our families, we need to share important information about our Summer Program for raising students in grades Pre-Kindergartner through 7th grade, building renovations, staffing suggestions, school policies that will change for next year, and share other information about scheduling and our summer events. It is vital that we have as many families there to share these exciting and important Information.

Finally, we want to remind our families and students that GHEMS strives to be a place that is inclusive and supportive of all students. One of the greatest ways we can show this is through positive and kind language. There has been an increase of verbal aggression among our students. We want to remind families that we have supports for kids and families in crisis, or just that need more support. Please reach out to our social worker, school psychologist, guidance counselor, school administrator, and Hope Health, LLC so that one of our staff members can.

Thank you for sending us your leaders. We have high hope for them during the assessment season.

Mrs. Matthews-Traynham

We are approaching State Testing time. Your child will take Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Progressive (MCAP) in April. All 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students will be taking the Math and English Language Arts (reading and writing) sections of the test. 8th grade students will also be taking the Social Studies, please check your scholar's Google Classroom for testing schedule.

We would like to ask for your support as we prepare for this important time. Here are a few things you can do to help your child be successful.

• Avoid scheduling vacations and appointments during the testing window. Students that are absent will be given makeup time, but they generally feel more confident when testing with their peers and their teacher.

• Make sure your child gets plenty of rest the night before the test.

• Make sure your child arrives on time for school.

• Make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast and brings a nutritious snack.

• Make sure your child knows that you believe in them and encourage them to do their best.

• Feel free to contact your child’s teacher or myself if you have any questions regarding GHEMS before the test.

• Students who are on time and ready to participate for all tests will be added to a drawing for a variety of prizes. The grand prize includes a bike and gaming system!!!

https://www.garrettheights212.org/2023/03/29/mcap-parent-info-meeting/

Spring has sprung! We are looking forward to some sunshine and spring flowers! MCAP testing information will be coming soon for grades 3-8. We are experiencing an unusually high number of late arrivals and absences.

Attendance is a part of our Maryland State Report card. Please ensure your student is at school and on time! Attendance matters. Additionally, we are having a few students arriving as early as 8:15 am, please remember staff are not responsible for students prior to 8:50 am. If your scholar is attending coach class please make certain to confirm your scholar's attendance and teacher availability prior to drop-off.

Attendance Reminder

• If you know your scholar will not be attending school due to a doctor’s or dental appointment please provide a doctor’s note upon return to school.

• Please try not to schedule vacations during testing as we must follow the state schedule..

Late to School

We are seeing an increasing amount of students that are arriving late to school on a daily basis. Please be aware that if a student arrives after 9:15 AM, they are considered tardy.

Truancy Reminder

• If the student is tardy an inordinate number of times without a note from a doctor, truancy procedures will need to begin.

• Please be sure your children arrive at GHEMS prior to the 9:15 AM start time.

• Late students should go to the main office to secure a late pass.

• Any students arriving to school after 12:00 pm will be consider absent for the day.

Parent Pick-Up Reminder

• You must come to the main office and sign them out at which point your scholar will be called down.

• You will need to show driver’s license to the office staff upon arrival.

• Students can only be release to an contacts listed on Infinite Campus.

• No student will be called down for early dismissal after 3:15 pm.

Medications can be administered a school only if the conditions listed below are met. All medications to include Over the Counter (OTC) medications such as allergy medication, Tylenol, and cough drops must follow the conditions listed below.

• The school shall have received written permission to administer the medication from the student's health care practitioner with prescriptive authority under Maryland law.

• The school shall have received written permission from the student's parent/guardian to administer the medication to the student.

• The parent/guardian shall be responsible for providing all medication to be administered

to the student.

• Parents must bring in the medication to the main office.

• Students are not allowed to carry or use medications that have not been approved for self carry.

• All prescription medication, the student's name, name of the medication, dosage, how often it is to be administered, and name of the prescribing health care practitioner shall be printed on the container.

The Summer School applications will be coming out soon brochures will soon be sent to parents via the email address we have on Infinite Campus. If you would like a paper copy, please contact Ms. Moreland. Summer programming will be held June 25 - August 3 from 8:30 - 3:30 Monday - Thursday no classes on Friday as all City Schools offices and schools will be closed on Fridays during summer break.

Classes are one, two or three weeks in length. There are also some class options in early August. To register your students, a Google Form will be emailed to parents on April 11th. A form will need to be filled out for each student. Online Registration closes May 4th at 6:00 p.m. The Google Form is time stamped so it will make it easier to determine the class limit. Make sure you sign-up as soon as possible to ensure your class choices.

Last month's House Challenge was to decorate 2 Doors and for our older scholars to support our younger scholar's with reading. While all of the doors looked wonderful the following HOUSES won this year's Dr. Seuss:

1st Place - Reveur (Blue)

2nd Place - Amistad (Red)

3rd Place - Onraka (Orange)

In the month of April we will be focusing on Green Apple Day of Service (Saturday, April 19th) which is a day of service focused on greening and beautification of the GHEMS Campus and being of service to the GHEMS Community through supporting Math Day and Spring Night (Thursday, April 20).

The student of the month is awarded to students that exhibited the following behaviors:

• Respectful – The student treats classmates, teachers, and staff with respect by valuing each as an individual, respecting differences, and valuing the work that others do.
• Responsible – The student embraces the responsibility required to maintain progress in their schoolwork and other personal goals.
• Positive – The student contributes to the success of the school by promoting a positive school climate through their actions and words.
• Honest – The student communicates truthfully and in a respectful way with classmates, teachers, staff, and refrains from dishonesty in completing academic work.
• Committed to success – The student strives for success in all they do and works to the best of their ability.

This Month's Students are:

• Kindergarten - Yasielle Kidd Johnson
• 1st Grade - Nyana Furr
• 2nd Grade - Ryheim Brockinghton
• 3rd Grade - Michael Marr
• 4th Grade - Alahni Scott
• 5th Grade - Madison Kent
• 6th Grade - Akira Coleman
• 7th Grade - Robert Williams
• 8th Grade - Shanaya Phillips

Parent of the Month - Anne Ramey

Green Apple Day of Service is an annual event for our GHEMS Community, this years event will take place on Saturday, April 29 from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. This is a time were we focus on tending to our wonderful green space and playground. During this time our scholars in grades 5th - 8th grade will have the opportunity to earn service learning hours. This year we will be working on the following projects:

• Mulching the Playground
• Planting Herbs
• Painting our Blacktop
• Painting our Calming Path
• Installing Musical Instruments

We are playing basket ball this quarter and the GHEMS Lions are ready to hit the court. Students participating will need to participate in after school practices and competitions off- site. Each quarter students will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports. If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to Mr. Rose acrose@bcps.k12.md.us. Mr. Rose will be sending out the application for those students interested in participating in:

• Quarter 4 - Volleyball (Girls), Bocce (Outdoor), Soccer, Frisbee, Track & Field

• Thursday, April 13 - 3rd Quarter Report Cards Distributed
• Thursday, April 20 - Math Day & Spring Back to School Night
• Friday, April 21 - No School Due to Teacher Professional Development
• Saturday, April 29 - Green Apple Day of Service
• Saturday, May 12 - Love on the Lawn

Email: hello@garrettheights212.org
Website: garrettheights212.org
Location: 2800 Ailsa Avenue
Phone: 410-396-6361
Facebook: facebook.com/GarrettHeights
Twitter: @GarrettHeights