Gearity PDS
10.24.25 Family Message
Greetings Gearity Families:
Thank you to everyone who was able to connect with your student's teachers over the past two days. Families are an important part of the team that works to ensure your children are meeting grade level expectations. If you were unable to attend a conference, you can contact the school at any time to schedule a meeting with your child's teachers. The next scheduled conferences are at the end of March.
Peek at the week!
Kindergarten:
Reading - Heggerty lessons reinforce early phonemic awareness skills, such as rhyming, identifying beginning sounds, and blending sounds to make words.
Math - Students are working on counting, recognizing numbers, and comparing groups to see which has more or fewer. They’re also learning how to represent numbers in different ways using pictures, objects, and numerals.
Parent tips for at home support: Play sound games — say two words and ask if they rhyme or begin with the same sound. Ask questions like, “Which group has more?” or “Can you show me five?”
Grade 1
Reading - Students are learning how to identify key details that help explain the main topic or idea. Phonics instruction focuses on reviewing letter sounds, blending, and reading words fluently.
Math - Students are practicing addition and subtraction strategies within 20. Lessons also focus on understanding patterns in addition facts and solving simple word problems.
Parent tips for at home support: Practice sight words and letter sounds daily. Play “Make Ten” — for example, if you say “6,” your child says the number that makes 10.
Grade 2
Reading - Students are learning how to use text features—like titles, headings, and pictures—to locate important information. Phonics lessons continue to build fluency and accuracy when reading multisyllabic words.
Math - Students are strengthening their understanding of place value—knowing that digits in a number represent ones, tens, and hundreds. They’re using this knowledge to compare, add, and subtract numbers within 1,000 and solve problems using different strategies.
Parent tips for at home support: Practice finding text features—look at the title, headings, and diagrams and talk about how they help you understand the text. Write two numbers (like 243 and 324) and ask which is greater or less, explaining why.
Grade 3
Reading - Students are learning how to understand nonfiction (informational) texts by: Identifying the author’s point of view and comparing it with their own. Explaining how reasons support specific points an author makes in a text.
Math - Students are learning how to find the area of shapes by counting square units and how to use multiplication and addition to find area.
Parent tips for at home support: Encourage daily reading (15–20 minutes) to build fluency and ask your child to read to you outloud. Discuss when you use area and perimeter in real life—like buying carpet or building a fence.
Grade 4
Reading - Students are reading a variety of fiction and nonfiction texts. They are practicing comprehension strategies, identifying main ideas, citing text evidence, and analyzing authors’ points of view.
Math - Students are practicing multi-digit multiplication and division, including solving word problems. They are using strategies to show their thinking and check answers.
Parent tips for at home support: Read books together and ask your child “What is the main idea of this text?” as well as “How does this character or topic connect to your life?” Practice multiplication and division with real-life examples (like dividing snacks or calculating total items in groups).
Grade 5
Reading - Students analyzed how characters respond to events, compared ideas across texts, identified the author’s purpose, and used evidence to support understanding.
Math - Students worked with fractions—comparing, adding, and subtracting—while solving real-world problems.
Parent tips for at home support: Ask when reading with your child, “What is the author trying to teach?” and have your child point to evidence in the text. Practice adding or comparing fractions with everyday items (slices of pizza, cups of cereal).
Picture Retakes are Monday: Lifetouch will be at Gearity between 10-12 for retakes.
PTA Meeting Tuesday: The PTA will be meeting Tuesday at 6:30 to plan the November Book Fair. You can participate in the meeting using this link: meet.google.com/ohf-pfcz-hqb. We will be looking for volunteers who can assist with set up, break down, and helping with purchases when classes visit the fair.
PAWS Assemblies: The October assemblies will take place next Friday. Students will be recongized by their homeroom teacher for doing their Personal Best, Acting Responsibly, Working and Playing Safe, and Showing Respect. Students will also be recognized for our Character Strong attribute. Your children may dress up in costumes to show how frighteningly good they are!
Mr. Mc Nichols
Principal, Gearity Professional Development School
Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District
Important Links!
School Supply Lists: Gearity Elementary
Food Service: You can see the monthly menus by clicking on this link.
Registration Information: New student registration can be completed online or in person. Find instructions, required documents, and contact information here. Please share the registration link with new neighbors or friends who may need help getting their children registered for the start of the school year.
Student Code of Conduct: Link to the Student Code of Conduct and Anti-Bully forms.
Upcoming Events
October 27th - Picture Retakes
October 28th - PTA Meeting (Planning the Book Fair)
October 29th - 3rd and 5th grade vision and hearing screenings
November 4th - Election Day (No School for Students and PD Day for Staff)
November 11th - Mobile Dentist
November 13th - School Market
November 17th - 21st PTA Sponsored Book Fair (Volunteers Needed)
November 19th - Family Math and Literacy Night
November 26th - 28th: No school for Thanksgiving
