Crosby Update
CROSBY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Southwest Local Schools
https://www.southwestschools.org/
“Academic and Social Growth for ALL students, EVERYDAY!”
Facebook- Crosby Elementary School, Harrison Ohio
Twitter - @SLSDCrosby
Dear Crosby Parents and Guardians,
Thank you for helping to create a smooth start to the school year! There are a few updates to our Noteworthy Dates, changes or additions are bolded.
NOTEWORTHY DATES- Mark your calendars!
September
4 No School- Labor Day
6 Cub Scouts Classroom Visits
7 Banking Day / Fall Pictures / Cub Scouts Sign Up 6:30 p.m.
11-15 MAP Testing
13 Parent Orientation for Cub Scouts 6:00 p.m.
14 Community Hall Meeting- Harrison Junior School 6:00-8:00 p.m.
13-15 PTO Crystal Clear Science Assemblies
19 Girl Scout Parent Meeting 6-7 p.m.
21 Banking Day / School Board Meeting- HJS
25 PTO Meeting- Crosby Art Room 7:00 p.m.
October
4 Parent-Teacher Conferences 4:00-8:00
5 Banking Day
10 Community Hall Meeting- Harrison High School 6:00-8:00 p.m.
11 Mr. Tracy visits 5th Graders- JS Intro & Opportunities
12 Parent-Teacher Conferences 4-7:30
13 End of the Quarter- No school for Students
16-17 Fall Break
19 Banking Day / School Board Meeting- District Office
20 PTO Trunk or Treat (originally scheduled 19th)
23-27 3rd Grade Ohio State Testing
26 Fall Picture Retakes
31 Halloween Parties 2:00 p.m.
November
1 Pollinator Garden Installation- 3rd Gr
2 Banking Day
7 Teacher Inservice Day- No school for students
9 Veteran’s Day Ceremony- 1:45 p.m.
10 No School- Veterans' Day
13-21 Inview Testing Grades 2 & 5
15 5th Grade Field Trip- iSpace
16 Banking Day
20 5th Grade Field Trip- iSpace
21 5th Grade Field Trip- iSpace
22 No School- Conference Release Day
23-24 No School- Thanksgiving Break
December
3 PTO Breakfast with Santa
4-8 PTO Santa Shop
6 1st & 2nd Grade Musicals (6:00 & 7:00 p.m.)
7 Banking Day
11-15 Aimweb Testing K-3
20 Christmas Parties 2:00
21 End of Quarter- No School for Students
22-Jan 2 No School- Winter Break
January
3 School Reopens
4 Banking Day
8-12 MAP Testing
15 No School- MLK Jr. Day
18 Banking Day
February
1 Banking Day/Parent-Teacher Conferences 4-8
7 Parent-Teacher Conferences 4-7:30
8 JS Counselors Visit 5th Graders to Register for JS
14 Valentines’ Day Party 2:00
15 Banking Day
16 No School- Conference Release Day
19 No School- Presidents' Day
28 Junior School Parent Orientation for 5th Grade Parents 7:00 p.m.
March
1-3 PTO Crosby’s Girls Getaway
7 Banking Day
8 End of Quarter- No School for Students
13 Spring Pictures
18 Variety Show 7:00 p.m. (5th Grade + Choir)
18-22 MAP Testing
21 Banking Day
25-29 No School- Spring Break
April
1 No School- Easter Monday
2-30 State Testing Gr 3-5
4 Banking Day
18 Banking Day
23 3rd & 4th Grade Musicals (6:00 & 7:00 p.m)
May
2 Banking Day
6-10 State Testing Gr 3-5 & Aimsweb Testing Gr K-3
16 Banking Day
17 Teacher Inservice Day- NO school for students
22 Last Day for Students
SAFETY
CAR RIDER DROP-OFF AND PICK-UP
Car riders can be dropped off starting at 8:00 a.m. at the front of the school. Please do not allow your child to get out of the car until 8:00 a.m. when there is supervision and a crossing guard. For security reasons, you may NOT walk your child to their classroom.
If your child needs assistance from you getting in or out of the car, PLEASE park in the lot instead of getting in the lines. If your child is not in the car when we are ready to move traffic, we ask that you circle around and get back in line.
ACADEMIC GROWTH
AIMSWEB TESTING
Last week students in grades 1-3 participated in Aimsweb testing. These results give our teachers a baseline as to where to start interventions or enrichment with students’ reading fluency.
NWEA MAP TESTING
Next week, students in grades 1-5 will participate in MAP testing for reading and math. The results from these assessments allow our teachers to target areas of strength and weakness for each child and provide them with data on interventions and enrichment areas.
RTI/MTSS
You will hear your child and his/her teachers talk about RTI or MTSS. RTI stands for Response to Intervention and MTSS stands for Multi-Tiered Levels of Support. They essentially mean the same thing, but MTSS is the upcoming new term to include both ends of the pendulum. It encompasses both students needing intervention and enrichment. We have always addressed both, so our model hasn’t changed, just the vocabulary.
All students in grades K-5 participate in RTI/MTSS. Kindergarten has 25 minutes, 5 days a week. All other grade levels have 50 minutes, 5 days a week. The whole grade level is divided according to mastery of specific skills. Students who need intervention are placed in smaller groups for more intensive intervention. Students who have mastered the skill are placed in groups for enrichment. Students in between could provided with intervention and enrichment based on their needs. These groups are fluid and students can move in and out of groups throughout the school year, based on students’ individual needs.
If you have any questions regarding RTI/MTSS, reach out to your child’s teacher.
HOW TO ACCESS YOUR CHILD'S GRADES AND REPORT CARDS
An official ProgressBook Parent/Student mobile app is now available in the iPhone App Store and the Google Play Store. With the ProgressBook Parent /Student mobile app, students and their families can track grades, view homework assignments, monitor attendance, and more. Please review the instructional sheet for more information. If you have any questions, please email parentaccess@southwestschools.org.
Frontline-ProgressBook-Parent-and-Student-Mobile-App-Instructions (1) (1).pdf
23-24 STUDENT FEES
All students in half day Kindergarten – 5th grade have a school fee set by the Board of Education, which is used to purchase educational materials and other items used by each student. The fee for the 2023-24 school year will be $70.00 ($60 + $10 tech fee). Full day kindergarten is tuition based. Deadline for payment of fees is October 2, 2023. Checks should be made payable to “Southwest Local School District”. Or you may log in to our Parent Portal https://mywildcats.me. Click on the 9 squares (top right of your screen) and click PayForIt.
SOCIAL GROWTH
CHESS CLUB
Chess Club is returning! This year we will be running a K-2 session and a Grades 3-5 session. See the attached flyer for details and the sign-up genius links.
YOGA CLUB- GRADES 3-5
Wildcat Warriors yoga club is back! Tuesdays in Sept/Oct @ 3:30-4:15pm
Open to Crosby students grades 3-5. No experience is necessary! This will be a very fun, general introduction to yoga and mindfulness. Enrollment is first come, first served - complete the attached form and waiver. Payment is $30 cash or check made out to Jill Sheehan. Scholarships available - contact elizabeth.miller@southwestschools.org for information.
LEGO CLUB- 3RD GRADE ONLY
Lego Club is a place for legos lovers to get together and create new ideas. This year we have room for 50 third graders. We will meet on the first Wednesday of each month (except Oct. and Feb.) in the Crosby Cafeteria. Students should be picked up in the carpool lane at 4:15. When you sign up please leave your students full name in the comments.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090C4DA4AA22A7F49-third#/
COUNSELING SERVICES
At Crosby Elementary, we have several levels of mental health support for students. Mrs. Lee, our full-time school counselor, is the first line of contact for any of your student’s social or emotional needs. We also partner with Best Point (formally Children’s Home) to offer school therapy to students. Best Point also offers Care Coordination to help parents in the home as well. Best Point services run through your personal insurance. A Best Point referral can be made by Mrs. Lee or by you as the parent or guardian:
Online – www.tchcincy.org or
Over the phone – 513-272-2800 Ask for the Intake Department
CROSBY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PTO
PTO is a program that helps support your Students and Staff at Crosby. Every penny goes back to our school! It requires no commitment on your part; however we’d love for you to be involved any way you can throughout the year. Some things, like class parties, you must be a member to volunteer.
First you’ll want to head to our PTO website here. https://crosbypto.membershiptoolkit.com/home
You’ll create an account but you’re not finished yet. Follow the steps attached to complete your membership!
MISCELLANEOUS
DISTRICTWIDE TOWN HALL EVENTS
Last school year, we kicked off an organized districtwide engagement campaign with the purpose of listening to the community. Listening to YOU. We collected hundreds of survey responses and hosted three unique Town Hall events at our elementary schools that had excellent turnout from the community. We talked about important topics for our kids, staff, and district, such as school safety, academic excellence, school finance, and mental health resources. Reports and recaps of all these events can be found on our website, southwestschools.org/community.
We are excited to continue our focus on engaging with our entire community, to ensure the future of our school district reflects what our community wants. Please click HERE to view a short video from Superintendent John Hamstra, recapping what we've accomplished so far and looking ahead to what we have on deck in the weeks to come.
This fall, we are going to continue our process of listening to the community - we can’t move forward as a district and provide the level of service your kids deserve without your input and involvement. We encourage you to do a few things. First, if you haven’t already, click HERE to take our survey to make sure your voice is heard. Second, click HERE to RSVP to one of our two fall Town Hall events. The first will take place at Harrison Junior School at 6:00 PM on Thursday, September 14th. The second will take place at Harrison High School at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, October 10th. We want to pack the buildings for these events, so make sure you RSVP ASAP.
We are fortunate to live in a community that cares so much about our schools and our students, and we want to hear from you on how we can continue to improve.
We look forward to seeing you at our Town Halls. Thank you.
COMMUNICATION
How does the district/school communicate information?
District- email using School Messenger, Facebook, Twitter, website
School- Principal- Monthly Email/Text sent using School Messenger
Facebook and Twitter is used to post reminders only- all new information will be communicated through email/text.
Teachers- Progress Book, weekly newsletters, Clever
PTO- Membership Toolkit: https://crosbypto.membershiptoolkit.com/ or Facebook: Crosby Elementary PTO
How do I email my child’s teacher?
All staff member’s emails are firstname.lastname@southwestschools.org
Or this page will link you to our staff directory: https://www.southwestschools.org/crosby-elementary-school/staff-directory-13/