Mar 175 min read

ACS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 3/17/24

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear ACS Families & Staff,

Happy St. Patrick's Day! It was another exciting week at ACS! We completed our 2nd trimester Project Celebrations. Students in 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades taught others about cultures around the world, entrepreneurship and helping the community, the great state of NC, and the science of the human body systems. Bravo to the students and teachers for bringing NC standards to life! Check out the pictures below.

We look forward to another productive week with students. With just over 40 days left in the school year, let's work together to encourage students to do their best learning so we can finish the year strong!

Best,

Jamie Miller, Principal

Pictures from 1st Grade's Project Celebration

Pictures from 3rd Grade's Project Celebration

Pictures from 4th and 5th Grade Project Celebrations

IMPORTANT DATES:

March 25-April 1: Spring Break

April 3: Instructional Assistants' Day

April 8-12: PTO Spring Book Fair (Family Night on the 12th from 4:00-7:00)

April 9: Zaxby's Dinner Fundraiser & Kindergarten Competition (5:00-8:00)

April 24: PTO Meeting (6:00-7:00)

END OF GRADE TESTING (EOG) INFORMATION (GRADES 3 - 6)

Dear 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Grade Coyote Caregivers - As part of federal and state legislation, each school year North Carolina students are required to take state tests, including EOGs. The North Carolina End-of-Grade Tests are designed to measure student performance on the goals, objectives, and grade-level competencies specified in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. We are excited to see the growth our students have made during the 2023-2024 school year.

We are sharing this information now, so that you can plan accordingly. Students need to arrive on time each day and even a few minutes early, so your child can get settled and not be hurried or stressed upon arriving at school on the morning of assessment. Assessments will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. each day! Please note: If testing has begun for the day and if we do not have any extra test administrators to administer the EOG to late students, we may request that the parent take the student home for the day and they will need to take the test on the make-up day.

These are additional ways for you to help your child do their best:

Please make sure your child gets a solid night of rest the night before an assessment.
Please make sure your child eats a nutritious breakfast before coming to school.
Students should bring a snack and a filled water bottle to school on assessment days, in addition to their lunch and other items needed for school.
Remind your child they are ready for this, to do their best, and they will do an amazing job!

Our 3rd - 6th grade students will participate in End of Grade Testing at the end of May, according to the following schedule.

Date	Grade Levels	Assessment
Tuesday, May 14	3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th	Reading EOG
Wednesday, May 15	5th	Science EOG
Thursday, May 16	3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th	Math EOG

Attendance for EOGs is extremely important. However, we will have make-up EOGs for those students who were not at school on their designated EOG testing day. Designated Make up dates are:

Wednesday, May 15 for 3rd, 4th & 6th grade Reading makeups
Friday, May 17 for 3rd - 6th grade Math makeups
Monday, May 20 for 5th grade Science makeups
Tuesday, May 21 for 5th grade Reading makeups

If you have questions or concerns about the EOGs, you may reach out to your child’s teacher or please contact Catherine Quick, K-5 Curriculum Director, at cquick@alamancecommunityschool.net or Leslie Jewell, Student Information and Testing Coordinator, at ljewell@alamancecommunityschool.net.

*The Board approved the 2024-2025 calendar in November. It can be found on our website and is included here as well.

Rising 7th Graders: Required Immunizations

Students entering 7th grade are required to have one dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccine and one dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine for individuals who have not already received those vaccines. Please contact your student’s health care provider or the local health department if your child needs those vaccines.

Parents/guardians of students enrolled in 7th grade will be required to provide an updated current proof of vaccination (i.e., Certificate of Immunization from the NC Immunization registry) on or before the first day of school, August 13, 2024.

If proof of vaccination is not provided within 30 calendar days of the first day of school, your child will be excluded from school until a current shot record is provided, as required by law.

Please DO NOT send your immunization certificate to school at this time. You will be asked to provide this later this spring, during our re-enrollment process for current students.

For more information on required immunizations in NC, please visit: https://immunization.dph.ncdhhs.gov/family/nc_immnz_requirements.htm

REMINDERS

5th and 6th grade students should go directly to the cottage in the mornings. They DO NOT need to come into the main building unless they are coming to the gym for the Coyote Cafe on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
Please only use the far right lane when entering the campus for afternoon carline, do not enter in the 2nd left lane. This is a mandate from the City of Graham.
All MUST use the carline unless there are specific situations that require something different (wheelchair, child with special needs, etc.). Those situations are cleared with the front office. Not using the carline because the line is long, you are late for work, etc. are not acceptable reasons to skip the carline.

2023-24 Yearbooks are on sale now!

Order your student's ACS 2023-24 Yearbook!

$23.00 until 3/22/2024

www.strawbridge.net

Online code YB29266 (Note: past newsletters had a typo for the code)

WORLD CHANGERS

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, the Coyote Cafe is open in the gym during morning carline. The Coyote Cafe sells drinks and snacks (ex: water, low sugar juice, lemonade, fruit, muffins, etc.).

All items cost $1.00.
All the money is going to fund World Changers projects (ex: helping with the food pantry, school community improvement projects, etc.)

PTO NEWS

We so appreciate each of you who came out to Skate Night and the Zaxby's dinner fundraiser last week, raising a net total of $495!

Speaking of Zaxby's, our First Grade winning class absolutely knocked it out of the park with a whopping fifty-eight percent of their students in attendance! Congratulations to Mrs. Williams' class! They will enjoy a catered lunch from Zaxby's on Friday to celebrate their win. Our next and final grade level competition will take place on Tuesday, April 9th between our Kindergarten classes.

This Thursday, March 21st, faculty and staff will be treated to a spring luncheon, courtesy of the PTO Hospitality Committee. If you would like to contribute items or volunteer to help with set up or clean up, please email our fabulous Hospitality Chairperson, Ashley McPherson, at Ashley.mcpherson@duke.edu for more information.

UPCOMING EVENTS

April 3: Instructional Assistants' Day

April 9: Zaxby's Dinner Fundraiser & Kindergarten Competition (5:00-8:00)

April 8-12: Spring Book Fair

April 12: Book Fair Family Night (4:00-7:00)

April 24: PTO Meeting (6:00-7:00)

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR 2024-2025

If you or someone you know would be a good fit for ACS, please apply through our website under the ‘Employment’ tab (see link below) and email a resume to Leslie Paynter: lpaynter@alamancecommunityschool.net

LINK TO APPLICATION