March & April 2025 

Dear Maxwell Families,

Spring is finally here! The past 8 weeks have flown by faster than I could have ever imagined, and it has been incredibly rewarding and exciting to watch your students flourish these past two months:) The weeks leading up to spring break felt like climbing a MOUNTAIN. I want you to know that I pushed your students DILIGENTLY, WILLFULLY, to dig their heels in deep to the content and the work we were doing was incredibly challenging when we were all so fatigued and ready for a break. This week our 3rd, 4th, & 5th grade students completed the MAP assessment and I couldn't be more proud of them for ALL the work they put in this school year and SO MANY of them got to experience the joy of meeting their end of the year growth targets. Their grit and determination shined!

As we move forward in the final few weeks of the school year, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions about the upcoming 25-26 school year. 

For my 5th grade families, I will be meeting with the middle school gifted & talented contacts at each school my students will be attending to discuss their needs moving forward and provide my recommendations for placements in Math and Language Arts courses as offered by each individual middle school. Additionally, we will be discussing your child's strengths and areas of needed supports to maximize academic performance and social/emotional health. For my elementary students rising to the next grade level, I will meet with your child's classroom teacher in the fall of 25-26 to discuss their needs for the NEW school year. Together, we will create a service plan based on their identified strength areas and formal gifted & talented identifications. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

To ensure that all families of students in third grade know what to expect moving forward towards fourth grade after the primary talent pool program ends, I will be offering PTP exit conferences for families either in-person or via zoom to discuss your individual child. At this meeting I will share if your child has met eligibility for a referral in any of the following gifted & talented areas: 

While I highly recommend attending a conference, this is an OPTIONAL opportunity for every third grade family. Click on the link below to sign up for a conference:

3rd Grade Primary Talent Pool Parent Teacher Conferences 

Passion Project Book Showcase

Maxwell Elementary is excited to host the upcoming Passion Project Showcase for students in grades 3rd-5th on Friday, May 2nd in the gym! Thanks to Ms. Depenbrock, our students were inspired to read novels from her after school club reading list, The Page Turners, and create an original project inspired by one or more of the books. Students will be showcasing their projects for student judges from Bryan Station High School and the entire Maxwell student body will tour the gym to see their work! We are eager to see what students have dedicated their time to creating and will be distributing awards for the following categories:

Thank you so much for entrusting me with your students! A HUGE shout out to Maxwell's future problem solving team for winning FIRST PLACE at the Regional competition in March! I am so proud of you and all your hard work this season!

All my best,

Rachel Matthews

Maxwell Elementary

Gifted & Talented Instructional Specialist