The link below provides a student calendar of events for the 2023-2024 school year. The calendar informs everyone of dates for school activities, progress reports and report cards, breaks, and celebrations. Please check this calendar out to keep up to date with what's going on at SCES.

We have recently had some complications with our School App that have since been corrected. Please make sure that you are still connected to us online and you are receiving notifications. Attached below is the directions to download the app. If you have any problems downloading, please contact the front office of SCES at 229-524-5235 or email our technology specialist at david.roland@seminole.k12.ga.us.

Accidental Damage Protection Plan

The Seminole County School System provides an Accidental Damage Protection Plan for a fee of $25 per year. Paying the student technology fee each school year enrolls students in accidental damage protection. This plan includes drops, cracks, normal wear and tear, and. hardware failure. This fee should be paid to your student's homeroom teacher.

Repair/Replacement Costs

Students will be held responsible for any damages not covered in the accidental damage protection plan including lost/stolen devices, intentional damage, picked off keys, damage to ports, broken screens and charging cables.

Repair/Replacement Costs:

• Broken Keys: $6 per key

• Broken Touch Screen: $110

• Broken Keyboard/Trackpad: $75

• Broken Chromebook Replacement: $350

• Broken Charger Replacement: $25

The entire agreement plan is linked below.

Seminole County School System Attendance Policy & Procedure:

• Upon enrollment Parents/Guardians receive State Compulsory Law and County Attendance Policy

• 1-3 Unexcused absences parent and student contact made by teacher(s)

• 4 Unexcused absences parent & student contact made by principal designee(s)

• 5 Unexcused absences parent contact via letter

• 6 Unexcused absences parent contact via home visit from school social worker

• 7 Unexcused absences Attendance Support Team meets and creates an attendance contract. A certified letter is mailed to the parents/guardians requesting a meeting to discuss and sign the contract.

• 8+ Unexcused absences which breaks attendance contract; parent contact via home visit from the school social worker with a recommendation for referral to law enforcement and complaint filed with the court system.

• Further unexcused absences will result in continued referral to law enforcement

The full attendance protocol is attached below. Please be mindful of the number of days your students miss. If no action is taken after an absence, it will be classified as an unexcused absence.

Students may now use AR to test on books they have read from the library. We have changed the way we will reward our readers this year. The idea is to work towards a number of books read and a number of words read as a school community. We have set our school goal at 25,000,000 words with at least an 80 average. If our students reach this goal, we will have a reading celebration at the end of the year for everyone. Each grade level and homeroom will also set goals for their students to encourage them to read, read, read. Also, some of their classroom library books may also be tested in AR. Linked below are the AR letter for parents and the AR book find resource to see if your classroom library books are in the AR system. Currently, students at SCES have read a total of over 4 million words at around 75% average. Please encourage your students to read so we can reach our school-wide goal.

At the conclusion of each 9 weeks, SCES celebrates students who have maintained the criteria for attendance, discipline and grades. Listed below are the criteria that should be achieved to be on the Good Standing list:

Good Standing Qualifications (Per Student Handbook)

Attendance:
1. No more than 1 unexcused absence during a 9 week period.
2. A student is only allowed 3 tardies per 9 week period in order to remain in Good Standing.

Grades:
Students in grades 1-5 must have an 80 or above in all classes at the end of each 9 week period.

Discipline:
1. A student who has one major referral or 3 or more minor referrals for the 9 week period will not remain in Good Standing.
2. Any out of school suspension will revoke Good Standing until the following semester.

On Friday, October 20, students on the Good Standing list will celebrate with a glow party during the school day. Please make sure you have sent excuses for all unexcused absences this week.

Fifth grade students will participate in an Annual Design an Ad Competition. Students will design advertisements for the contest’s participating local businesses and organizations. Work on these projects will take place in their classroom. Contestants are judged based on creating effective advertising and marketing strategies for the newspaper and the local business. First place winners are awarded for the most creative and effective for each business. All ads are delivered to the participating businesses and organizations, once they choose the winner of their choice, the ads are displayed in the Donalsonville News with a short bio of the creative student. Mr. David Maxwell will run the winning ads in the paper. The winners will be celebrated with a reception at the Donalsonville News office.

On Monday, October 16, all 3rd grade students will celebrate Dictionary Day. Dictionary Day celebrates the birth of Noah Webster, an American writer and the man who gave us our first dictionary. Our Seminole County Family Connections will provide each third grade student with a dictionary and will play some fun dictionary games.

Don't forget that the 3rd Grade Parent Luncheon will be on October 19. The deadline to sign up was September 29. Parents should park at the gym, enter the building through the auditorium entrance and make their way towards their students classroom. Parents may begin entering the building at 11:45 and lunch will begin at 12:00. Parents may check their students out with their teacher in the lunchroom after lunch.

Fifth Grade Parent Luncheon will take place on November 10. The deadline to sign up for this luncheon will be October 20. The fee for the meal for parents will be $4. The sign up flyer is linked below.

It’s October and that means pumpkins are everywhere! Let’s bring the theme of harvest home and have some reading fun! If you would like to participate, we are asking you to:

• Pick your favorite book and read it as a family.

• Pick your favorite character from the book and create the character on a pumpkin (just remember your student has to bring the pumpkin to school so don’t get one too BIG)

• Decorate it, paint it, glue things on it, just get creative! DO NOT CARVE YOUR PUMPKIN PLEASE

• Fill out the card BELOW

• ALL PUMPKINS ARE DUE THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19th Students will bring their pumpkin to school that morning and take it immediately to the breezeway. Staff or volunteers will be at the bus ramp and car rider ramp to assist students.

• Pumpkins will be judged on Thursday, October 19th. Winners will be announced on Friday, OCTOBER 20th during POW WOW.

• There will be a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winner for each grade level. Every participant will receive a new book to take home to read with their family through a partnership with Seminole County Family Connection.

• All pumpkins can be viewed by families at the Old Firehouse on Woolfolk Ave. during the Harvest Festival on October 21st .

• ALL pumpkins may be PICKED UP Monday, October 23rd from 4-6 PM at the Old Fire House on Woolfolk Ave. Pumpkins not picked up will be discarded.

The Seminole Singers will sing the National Anthem at the SCHS Football game on Friday, October 20. All singers will enter the game free. Parents will be charged admission to enter the game. Please have your student ready to sing before 7:00 PM.

The PTO has sponsored an on-campus Pumpkin Patch for SCES that will take place October 23-27. We need volunteers to help students with games, picking out pumpkins, and monitoring students. Linked below is the sign up sheet for parents and families to volunteer for the Pumpkin Patch. Please sign up when you are available. All volunteers should have a current background check on file.

Once again, parents of students may set up lunchroom accounts and deposit money for lunches and slushies at the convenience of your home. The link below will allow you to sign in to or create your account.