GES Families,

As some of you may know, my husband and I are expecting a sweet baby boy in a couple of weeks. We are VERY excited to welcome our firstborn! My plan is to work through Thursday, April 29th, and then be out on maternity leave for the rest of the school year. While I'm away, Mrs. Hale and the rest of the leadership team will cover my duties and continue supporting our students, families, and staff. Thank you for your patience and grace as they take on additional assignments. --Mrs. Shelley

Grade Level Picnics

We are asking all families to please let us know if they plan to attend. You may sign up on the appropriate grade level form below by Sunday, May 2nd.

• PreK Sign-up - May 6 - 10:15 - 10:45

• Kinder Sign-up - May 3 - 10:45 - 11:15

• 1st Grade Sign-up - May 4 - 11:15 - 11:45

• 2nd Grade Sign-up - May 6 - 11:45 - 12:15

• 3rd Grade Sign-up - May 3 - 12:15 - 12:45

• 4th Grade Sign-up - May 4 - 12:45 - 1:15

• 5th Grade Sign-up - May 6 - 1:15 - 1:45

Please be aware of the following procedures as you come to join us on campus:

• You may park on either side of the building and walk towards the large playground.

• We will check parents in at both gates leading from the parking lots to the playground beginning 15 minutes before the assigned lunch time (not our vestibule visitor kiosks).

• All visitors will need to wear a mask at all times unless you are sitting and eating lunch.

• Please bring a blanket or towel for you and your child to sit on. Each space must be socially distanced from other families and children. Parents are responsible for finding their own place on the playground field or court.

• Only members of your family may share a single blanket/towel. Please do not plan to ask other students to sit with you.

• Our cafeteria staff will be providing sack lunches on the day of your student’s class picnic for all students through our lunch line if they choose to eat school lunch. If you would like to bring your child something else to eat that day, please feel free to do so. All visitors will need to provide their own lunch if you wish to eat with your student. Our cafeteria will not be able to provide any guests meals.

• All students will join the grade level picnic on their designated day. This is not dependent on a family member joining them. If you are unable to attend, our teachers will eat lunch with your child.

GES Teachers AND INTERNS are Magical

Recently, I have heard from a few parents about the positive impact our interns are making on your children's lives. I wanted to provide families a way to recognize them just like we do our teachers, so I've added them to our GES Teachers are Magical form. We have had the great opportunity this year to train several future educators. You can find their names and class assignments listed below. Thank you for taking time to recognize the way they have helped create magic for our stars.

Krisha Aghera - Gray

Payton Bagrow - Gray and Fortune

Abigail Brown - Scott and Dodd

Shelby Brownfield - Hickerson and Moore

Briana Harper - Hickerson

Caroline Sild - Killebrew and Hendrickson

Safety Reminders - Arrival and Dismissal

Please remember that students should NOT be crossing the parking lot on their own in either the morning or the afternoon. If you wish to park to drop off or pick-up, please escort your child to the crosswalk and plan to meet them on the sidewalk after school. We have had students nearly hit in the parking lot who were by themselves and hard to see for the drivers backing up. Thank you for your careful attention to this safety concern!

Bad Weather Day - April 30

We do not have school on Friday, April 30. Although we were off for Snowpocalypse, we had enough minutes in our instructional calendar with students to not have to use this bad weather day.

March Star student of the month Flipgrid

During March, students were selected for Star Student of the Month based on RESPONSIBILITY. Please view the reason each student was nominated on the March Star Student Flipgrid!

April Guidance/Star Student of the month Character Quality

Throughout this month, GES staff will be watching for COOPERATION amongst our Stars! Classroom counseling guidance lessons will also focus on cooperation. Please consider discussing what cooperation might look like or sound like at home to further support this character quality!

I am here and ready to help! At any time this year, whether learning remotely or in-person, please click the I want to talk with Mrs. Horn form to request a visit. This form is also be included in grade level newsletters and Seesaws, and stays housed in my email signature, on the GES Counseling district website, and as many locations as possible.

Registration Opens April 12 for Pre-K, Kindergarten and New Students

Registration for the 2021-2022 school year will open on Monday, April 12 for new students, as well as pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students. To register a new student click here. Prior to completing online registration, students enrolling in pre-kindergarten must have completed a separate online application, which may be found here.

If you are awaiting a transfer request, please register for the campus you are currently zoned for. Transfer requests will be processed at a later date. To view attendance zones, visit our School Maps Online.

Returning student registration will open on Monday, May 3 and will remain open until May 21. While parents are able to register up until the first day of school, the District is trying to gather enrollment numbers as early as possible for planning purposes.

Students new to the district (including those entering Kindergarten) must provide proof of residency, birth certificate, social security number, immunization record, emergency contact numbers and a report card from the previous school unless enrolling in kindergarten.

During the registration process, parents will also be able to register as a bus rider for the 2021-2022 school year. If you have specific questions regarding bus registration, please contact Transportation at 817-251-5590.

All are invited to Virtual #GCISDParentCamp!

Date: Tuesday, April 27, 2021 via Webex

Time: 6pm-7pm

Click here for more information and to register

The GCISD Language Assessment Center is thrilled to partner with the national non-profit ParentCamp to bring our families-schools-communities together as one team for kids. We will build relationships while lifting each other up as we progress on our journey to make our schools the BEST! Our first ever multilingual, virtual #GCISDParentCamp will have sessions in English, Spanish, Arabic, and Portuguese.

ParentCamps are opportunities for parents, guardians, mentors, grandparents, educators or anyone involved in a child’s life to come together to ask questions, find resources and build a support system. The expertise is the entire room where everyone is seen, heard and valued. The time will fly and you will leave wanting to know when the next one will be held. It is THAT good! Have we convinced you yet? Check out what past Virtual ParentCamp attendees have to say YouTube channel. Interested in learning more about the Nationwide Parent Camp Model? Click here.

Come join the conversation and invite a friend! Register today!

We look forward to seeing you,

The Virtual #GCISDParentCamp Team

Parent Tech Academy - Parent Internet Reporting

To support strong communication with our families beyond the school day, we are pleased to introduce a new resource available to our parents. Parent Internet Reporting is an on-demand tool for parents that allows guardians to view their children's online activity and increases the measures already taken to protect our students while using a District device. Through this platform, parents will receive weekly email reports summarizing internet activity on District devices, as well as the ability to access real-time reporting of what their students are doing online. In an effort to help our parents control screen time while students are home, the system will also allow for a guardian to pause the internet on a GCISD device.

In order to receive access to the Parent Internet Reporting tool, we are asking parents to attend a virtual information session on April 20 at 6:30 p.m. There is also an online course that will explain the Parent Internet Reporting that will be launched on April 21. If you cannot attend the virtual training on April 20, you must complete the course to receive access to the parent internet reporting tool. The course can be found at www.gcisd.net/ParentInternet.

Board of Trustee Election

The GCISD Board of Trustee Election, for the purpose of electing a Trustee for Place 1 and Place 2, will be held on Saturday, May 1, with early voting available from April 19 until April 27. For more information on dates and locations, visit our website.

Mustang Panther Stadium COVID-19 Testing Center Open for All GCISD Students

GCISD has been participating in a statewide program funded by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) offering rapid COVID-19 antigen tests for staff. The District is pleased to share that it will be expanding this resource to all GCISD students. Beginning March 30, GCISD students will be able to utilize the GCISD Mustang Panther Stadium rapid antigen COVID-19 Testing Center. Visit www.GCISD.net/COVIDTesting for more information on the testing center and how to schedule an appointment.

2021 Summer Enrichment

More than 90 different courses will be taught by certified teachers in a variety of areas. These 3-hour courses are designed to be fun, engaging, and educational for students completing K-6th grades.

Full course listings and the brochure can be viewed on the GCISD Summer Programs page: bit.ly/SE2021gcisd.

When: One-week sessions from June 7 – July 16 (no courses July 5-9)

Times: 8:30 – 11:30 and/or 12:30 – 3:30

Cost: $125/course (if noted, a course may have an additional materials fee)

Location: Cross Timbers Middle School

Registration has begun online in Skyward!

Part-Time KidzU Care is available for students enrolled in Summer Enrichment before and after classes.

Technology Assistance

GCISD Technology Resources is committed to serving students and staff, especially during the District's remote learning instruction. Please keep in mind these very helpful resources:

ClassLink - GCISD's single sign-on portal for students and staff. ClassLink allows users to sign in once and have access to all of their accounts at the click of a button.

Help Desk - Students and staff can submit help requests to GCISD's Help Desk at any time. If you need your student's password reset, or are having trouble accessing ClassLink, please call 817-251-5629 during our extended help desk hours. For all other issues with student devices, please fill out a help ticket at help.gcisdstudents.net.

Outdoor WiFi Access - As a reminder, wireless network access is available outside of many GCISD campuses for use by students, parents and staff. Click here for locations, maps and instructions on how to connect.

Volunteers are significantly limited at this time, but there may be opportunities later in the year. Go ahead and apply now so you're ready when the time comes.

In order to volunteer at GES, or around GCISD, all volunteers must:

1. read the Volunteer Handbook (this replaces the previous face to face volunteer trainings held on campus)

2. watch the appropriate video included in the handbook

3. electronically sign the verification Google form for each campus you plan to volunteer

4. complete the volunteer background check. A link is included in the handbook.

The following link takes you to the online Volunteer Handbook and background check: https://www.gcisd.net/cms/one.aspx?pageId=195550

When you are ready to volunteer at GES, feel free to call the front office at 817-251-5735 to verify that both of the required steps have been recorded as completed. We appreciate your support as you complete these steps and volunteer to work with our GES students.

Parents and loved ones are not able to come up for lunch at this time. We are currently limiting visitors in our building.

Lunch Times

• PreK: 10:15 - 10:45

• Kindergarten: 10:45 - 11:15

• 1st Grade: 11:15 - 11:45

• 2nd Grade: 11:45 - 12:15

• 3rd Grade: 12:15- 12:45

• 4th Grade: 12:45 - 1:15

• 5th Grade: 1:15 - 1:45