Gearity PDS

Greetings Gearity Families:

As a reminder, school starts tomorrow for all 1st - 5th grade students. Please make sure your students report before 8:45. Breakfast will be served starting at 8:20. Information for the kindergarten staggered start is shared below. Families that have completed the annual update in Infinite Campus can see their child's homeroom teacher. If you need help with the annual update please call the office at 371-6515. If you can not access Infinite Campus, we will have staff with homeroom rosters at the entrances to assist students with knowing where to meet their class.

Here are a few important reminders to help you and your child have a smooth start to the school year:

Starting next week, the newsletter will be sent to you on Fridays.

Work starts tomorrow: Please make sure students come to school with their class supplies. Let our school counselor know if you need help getting supplies. You can access the supply list here. It is important to get students back into school work habits so we will be starting academic work tomorrow.

Water Bottles: The temperatures are supposed to be moderate for the first several days of school. Students are encouraged to bring water bottles to help them stay hydrated. We have several bottle fillers in the school.

Kindergarten Staggered Start: kindergarten students will come to school following the schedule below based on their last name. Teachers will meet families in the cafeteria prior to taking them to a classroom. We are asking that parents plan to stay for the 1st hour of their staggered start day to learn about the start of kindergarten! At the conclusion of the last staggered start day, the kindergarten team (Ms. Salone and Mr. Lauber) will develop class lists and notify parents which classroom their child has been assigned.

August 19th Staggered Start for Kindergarten (last names A-I)
August 20th Staggered Start for Kindergarten (last names J-R)
August 21st Staggered Start for Kindergarten (last names S-Z)

Daily Pick Up Plan for Students: Mrs. Higham, our school counselor, creates check out lists for the bus riders, car riders and walkers. Teachers supporting these dismissal areas will record when students leave so we have an accurate record for safety purposes. Please complete this form to let us know what your family's plan is for dismissal. We want ensure that all students make it home safely!

Attendance: Teachers take attendance each morning at 9:00 am. It is important that your child is on time so we do not send you an absence call. If your child will be absent from learning you will need to call 216-371-6515 so the absence can be recorded. Attendance is crucial to student academic success. The parents of students who regularly miss school may be required to meet with the school team to develop an attendance improvement plan. Students who are on time and in attendance every day of the week will be entered into a weekly perfect attendance raffle sponsored by our PBIS team.

School Nurse: If your child needs medical support at school, please reach out to Ms. DeLambo, the school nurse, at 320-4854 or via email at l_delambo@chuh.org for assistance.

Communication with Students: Families are encouraged to call the office if you need to get a message to your student. Cell phone use by students is prohibited during school hours. If your child needs to contact you, they can ask their teacher for permission to use the classroom phone or for a pass to call from the office. We understand that some families may provide their students with cell phones for safety reasons when coming to or from school, but use during the school day will result in confiscation of the phone.

Behavior Expectations: Gearity students are expected to meet our PAWS expectations at all times. PAWS stands for Personal Best, Acting Responsible, Working and Playing Safe, and Showing Respect. Teachers will work with students to create agreed upon norms for their classroom and reach out to you if there are any issues that need to be addressed.

Thank you for your continued support. We’re looking forward to a wonderful year together!

Mr. Mc Nichols

Principal, Gearity Professional Development School

Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District

Students need to read for 20 minutes every night!

I am sharing a very brief video that explains the importance of every student reading for a minimum of 20 minutes a night at home. Reading instruction will take place at school while opportunities for home practice reinforces skills that help create life long readers. With our youngest students, the focus is on learning to decode which is the ability to translate written words into spoken language - commonly taught using phonics instruction. By late first grade into 2nd grade students work on building fluency which is the ability to read a text accurately, quickly, and with expression. Students who can decode and read with fluency can transition to developing strong reading comprehension skills. Please support your students in sounding out words, practicing to build fluency and ask questions about the text they read to help them develop comprehension skills. I will continue to share a weekly summary of your student's reading, math and writing work along with at home learning tips in the upcoming week.

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.

District Plan for Communications with Persons with Disabilities

The District has adopted a plan for communications with persons with disabilities, which is available at the following link: Communication Plan. The plan establishes procedures to ensure that the District's communications with persons with disabilities, including applicants, participants, members of the public, and companions with disabilities, are as effective as its communications with others.