Grapevine Elementary

Monday Message

Welcome back, GES!

We are eager to begin the 20-21 school year with you and your star student(s)! We loved seeing so many families at our Teacher Meet and Greet on Friday! Despite the Disney-sized line, it was a huge success. I hope your students were as excited to meet their teachers as we were to see them. If you missed the drive-thru, please email your homeroom teacher to arrange a time to pick-up your items.

We know this year is going to have its fair share of challenges but we are prepared to support you and your students in every way. We have worked tirelessly throughout the summer adjusting to each new rule and regulation to ensure your students have the best educational opportunity whether in remote or in person learning this year. Thank you for your patience as we continue to learn new things and adjust as needed.

Classlink and Seesaw were updated over the weekend and your child should now see a GCISD Seesaw icon inside their Classlink app. If you do not see it, try restarting your iPad and be sure you are connected to Wifi. For Chromebooks, students use their browser to connect to Classlink. Once students click on GCISD Seesaw icon from within Classlink, all of their courses should appear under their name in the top left corner.

Homeroom teachers will be sending (or already sent) directions to login to Seesaw and Webex for Day 1. Please direct questions to them for technical support. We will help you troubleshoot at the campus level before sending you to the GCISD helpdesk.

Thank you for your support and guidance at home for your stars as we begin this year together in virtual learning. Let the magic begin!

All my best,

Mrs. Hale

As we begin this new school year, we enter it with hope, passion and commitment. That is the theme of this special video message from GCISD's principals.

Campus News and Announcements

School Vaccination Rules

School vaccination rules are in effect for the 2020-2021 school year. Students should be up-to-date, in the process of receiving vaccines, or have a valid exemption on file when school starts on Aug. 17. For a list of vaccine requirements for K-12, and Pre-K, go to the Texas School webpage. For a list of providers who offer low-cost vaccines, go to the Texas Vaccines for Children Provider Locator webpage.

School vaccination rules are in effect regardless of whether the education is received via virtual learning or on campus.

School Supply Lists

If you missed the PTA School Supply order in the spring and will be shopping on your own, here is a copy of the GCISD School Supply list for elementary students. Students will NOT be using community supplies when they return to the classroom for in-person learning this year. Please ensure your child's supplies and pencil box are clearly labeled to help them keep track of their items.

All supplies may not be needed during remote learning. Please check with your teachers if you plan to remain in remote learning about what items may not be needed at this time.

https://www.gcisd.net/UserFiles/Servers/Server_96229/File/Parents/Enrolling/Supply%20Lists/2020-2021ElemSchoolSupplyList.pdf

Click around on this virtual counseling bulletin board for resources and/or requests!

Mrs. Horn is 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 will also be included in grade level newsletters and Seesaws, and stays housed in Mrs. Horn's email signature, on the GES Counseling district website, and as many locations as possible.

Each month, you will receive a PK-2nd and 3rd-5th newsletter in our Monday Message regarding the character trait that students and staff will spend time with that month. This newsletter, as seen here, includes discussions and topics you can use with your GES Star(s) from home to support the Circle Ups, Teacher Challenges, Playground activities, and counseling guidance lessons from GES. This month is EMPATHY!

k2_empathy_family_letter.pdf

k2_empathy_family_letter_spanish.pdf

35_empathy_family_letter.pdf

35_empathy_family_letter_spanish.pdf

Campus Activities and Events

This is a live Google Calendar that we will keep updated throughout the year with campus activities. Click the calendar to open it up so you can switch to week or month view and look at future dates. Please check back frequently for new additions.

PTA Announcements

Join GES PTA - Last week to be entered in drawing!

Grapevine Elementary PTA is focused on making every child's potential a reality by strengthening education and taking a comprehensive approach to community success. And we know there is no commYOUnity without YOU - our members, our business leaders, our decision-makers.

Purchase a PTA membership by August 23rd at www.gespta.org and you will be entered to win a $100 Amazon gift card graciously donated by Jarvis Hill State Farm!

JOIN PTA TODAY

GES Wise Guys Spirit Night

Our first Spirit Night of the year is Monday, August 17th from 4 - 9 PM. You can order your $10 Take and Bake Pizza Kit ahead of time at www.wiseguystx.com or call 817-488-0001. You can find the kit under the "Specialty Thick Pizza" tab on their website. Thank you for your support!

GES Kona Ice Spirit Day

Stop by Glade Landing Park on Friday, August 21st from 3 - 5 PM to grab a Kona Ice treat and a portion of the sales will be given to GES PTA!

First Day of School Signs

First Day of School signs for each grade level are available to download and print on our home page at www.gespta.org. Don't forget to use the hashtags #GESshineon and #GCISDFirstDay when you post!

Reflections Award

GES PTA would like to give a huge congratulations to Zishan Lakhani who won FIRST PLACE in his category in the Texas PTA's Reflections Contest. Last year's theme was "Look Within." Way to go, Zishan!

Thanks to last year's GES PTA Reflections Coordinator Amber Robinson for organizing our campus competition. Be on the lookout for details for this year's competition.

GES Spirit Shop

We will be holding Virtual and In-Person Spirit Days this year, and cannot wait to see your Stars in their new spirit wear!

Order your spirit wear on our website today!

The deadline for all spirit wear orders is September 4th.

Join PTA and order your Spirit Wear by August 21st and use

Coupon Code: Back2School to save 10% on your order!

All orders will be placed online this year to avoid exchanging paper and cash/checks. We will coordinate delivery with you, or deliver to your student’s teacher depending on your enrollment status.

Dad's Club

The Dad’s Club is an integral part of the GES PTA and provides a world of support to our staff and students. We are so excited to welcome Chad Milligan as the new GES PTA Dad’s Club President. Dad’s Club helps with all of our events, hosts our annual Chili Cook-Off, holds special events like movie nights, assists with the drop-off line monthly, assembles the float for the Grapevine Carole of Lights Parade and much more!

If you’d like to join the Dad’s Club click here.

For more information, email dadsclub@gespta.org

GCISD News

Daily Attendance During Remote Learning

As a reminder, per Texas Education Code (TEC) 25.092, students must attend 90 percent of a course in order to be awarded credit for the course and/or to be promoted to the next grade. While we are operating remotely, and for our families who have chosen to stay remote after September 8, there are two ways in which your student may earn a daily attendance credit.

The first way is to attend a live webex with the teacher. Staff will take attendance during these live sessions each day. The second way to receive credit for attendance is to complete a daily exit ticket. We understand that some students may not be able to attend the live learning opportunities and will need some flexibility in their schedule. These students will be able to complete a daily assignment, or exit ticket, each day in order to receive credit for their attendance.

If you have any questions regarding how your student may earn a daily attendance credit, please contact jessica.rickman@gcisd.net.

Steps for Being Successful on Day One

As families prepare for the first day of school on Monday, GCISD has created its Foundations for Success checklists (Printable) to prepare families for the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

From charging your device to logging into ClassLink and Seesaw or Canvas, the steps outlined in the checklists will ensure students are equipped with everything they need to remotely begin the school year with success.

Counseling Resources

As a unique school year begins, GCISD counselors and student advocates are prepared and are adapting to meet the social, emotional and academic needs of our students, and they have a message to share with the GCISD community.

The District's counseling website, www.GCISD.net/Counseling, as well as campus counseling websites, are full of resources that students, parents and staff may need.

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.

NOTE: The GCISD Help Desk will have extended hours this weekend as families prepare to return to school. The Help Desk will be open 12 p.m. - 4 p.m. on Sunday.

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.

First Day of School Pictures

Monday will be a first day of school unlike any other we have ever experienced, but that doesn't mean all traditions will be missed out on.

We know you love those "First Day of School" pictures! Be sure to share your first day of remote learning photos on social media the hashtag #GCISDFirstDay and they may be featured on district pages in the near future!

Volunteer Requirements

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:

read the Volunteer Handbook (this replaces the previous face to face volunteer trainings held on campus)
watch the appropriate video included in the handbook
electronically sign the verification Google form for each campus you plan to volunteer
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.

Lunch Reminders

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