Northwood Hills News

Northwood Hills News is the school newsletter written by campus leadership. You'll find important dates and information about upcoming activities including evening events, school-wide assessments, and RISD area events. The newsletter will go out via email on Thursdays of each week. Please ensure your email addresses and phone numbers are up-to-date in Focus so that you receive each week's updates in a timely manner.

Hello NHE families,

Happy New Year!

I hope you all enjoyed some time to gather with family and friends and had the opportunity to relax and recharge during the holiday season. We are so grateful for all of the volunteers who helped make our last week before winter break so special for our students and staff.

We are excited about our upcoming semester and kicking off 2025 with your kiddos! This week we spent some time each day revisiting procedures and expectations for being safe, respectful, and responsible, as well as doing some reflections and setting new goals for this semester.

All students will begin our middle-of-the-year MAP testing next week. We are excited to see how our students have grown academically since the beginning of the year. MAP parent reports will be sent home at the end of this month. Please be aware that Quarter 2 report cards have been posted in Focus. Thank you for taking the time to review your child's grades and progress. Your involvement plays a key role in their success and helps foster a strong partnership between home and school.

Sincerely,

Jenni Smith

Principal

Richardson ISD schools and offices, including xPlore after-school programs, will be closed on Thursday, Jan. 9 and Friday, Jan. 10. This decision was made after careful consideration of the National Weather Service winter storm warning forecast, anticipated hazardous travel conditions, and expected extreme temperatures. Closure on Thursday, Jan. 9 includes all games, activities, and events.

Some high school athletic events the evening of Friday, Jan. 10 might be played as scheduled based on conditions later Friday. Players and parents will receive more information from their coaches, and spectators should check the district homepage or social media accounts (Facebook, X) before heading out to a high school game.

RISD stakeholders can stay informed of any additional weather impacts by monitoring risd.org and district social media accounts.

• January 9th- report cards published in Focus

• January 13-17 - Middle of the Year MAP Growth Assessments

• January 14- Winter Reading Papers Due

• January 16 - 6th-grade trip to WWJH (rescheduled)

• January 20 - Student & Staff Holiday - No School

• January 28- Progress Reports Shared

• January 30 - Parent Growth Goal Camp 5:30-7:00

Mrs. Lozure challenged all students to read over the winter break. Each received a blue paper to record the books they read over the break. Everyone who participated will win a prize when they turn in their paper! Papers are due on January 14th.

The MAP testing window for the middle of the year is January 13-17. During this time frame, your child will take a MAP® Growth™ test from NWEA® on a computer or tablet. MAP Growth scores help teachers check student performance by measuring achievement and growth. Teachers use results to tailor classroom lessons and set goals for students.

MAP Growth tests are unique, and adapt to your child's responses to measure your child's skill level. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. These results will provide a more complete picture of what your child knows and is ready to learn whether it is on, above, or below their grade level.

Since MAP Growth tests provide immediate and accurate information about your child's learning, it's easy for teachers to identify students with similar scores who are generally ready for instruction in similar skills and topics, and then plan instruction accordingly.

MAP Growth reports also provide typical growth data for students who are in the same grade, subject and have the same starting performance level. Each school year, students will participate in MAP testing at the beginning, middle and end of the year. Following each testing period, you will receive a Family Report showing a summary of how your child is performing academically.

We are Truly excited to focus on your child's individual growth and achievement. For more information about MAP Growth, visit http://NWEA.org/familytoolkit.

MAP Dates

1.13.25 | K-6 Reading

1.15.25 | K-6 Math

1.16.25 | 3-6 Science

We encourage all students to make sure they get a good night's sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, and arrive on time for school on testing days. We would also like to encourage parents to avoid scheduling outside appointments these days if possible.

During times of excessive cold weather, the following precautions will be taken for all outdoor physical activity, including, but not limited to, recess, physical education classes, and/or outdoor field trips.

• If a student does not have adequate warm clothing to participate in the outdoor activity, such as recess, the student will be excused from the activity.

• Students should not have recess or Physical Education classes outside when the temperature or wind chill factor drops below 36 degrees.

• On days when the temperature is unseasonably cold, outside recess will be restricted to no more than 15 minutes.

• Please be mindful when dropping off your students in the mornings that the doors do not open before 7:20am.

AM Arrival (Map):

• Please drop students off AT THE CURB through the circle drive.
• NO LEFT TURNS coming out of the circle drive.
• Both lanes will turn right coming from the circle drive.
• The outside lane is for turning left on Meandering OR heading straight on Cliffbrook toward Hillcrest.
• The inside lane is for turning right on Meandering.
• DO NOT drop students off on Meandering.
• DO NOT drop students off in the Teacher Parking lot.
• Please use crosswalks when crossing the street.

• Doors will open at 7:20.
• Breakfast is from 7:20-7:40.
• The Tardy Bell rings at 7:50.
• Students will enter the building through the front door.
• Students who ARE eating breakfast will go directly to the cafeteria.

• Students who ARE NOT eating breakfast will sit outside their classroom
• in line.
• At 7:40, all teachers will greet students at their classroom door and let
• them into the room to begin instruction by 7:50.
• Students who arrive between 7:50 and 8:59 are considered tardy.
• Students who arrive after 9:00 are considered absent, which can count as an
• unexcused absence on their report card if we don’t receive an excuse note.

PM Dismissal (Map):

There are 5 ways a student can be picked up.

Day Care, Bus, & Xplore:

• A designated staff member will walk the students from each grade level to the cafeteria to wait for their daycare bus, school bus, or join Xplore.

Car Riders:

• Please get in the car line by turning onto Cliffbrook
• from Coit.
• The line is long, but we are usually done with
• dismissal by 3:25.
• Students will wait in the building for their names to be
• called.
• Students will load cars at 6 colored cones in the front
• circle drive.

Walkers:

• Walkers (who walk by themselves home):
• Students will leave out the doors at the end of
• the hallway immediately after dismissal.
• Older siblings will pick up younger siblings at
• their walker line.
• If your child walks home alone, please
• remind them of these important safety tips.
• Use the sidewalk.
• Cross the street at crosswalks.
• Alert an adult if you see anything
• suspicious.

Parent Walk-ups (parents park their car and walk up to the door):

• Please park along the side streets (see map).
• Do NOT park on the main roads surrounding the
• school.
• We need buses and other traffic to be able to navigate safely.
• You must walk up to the end of your child’s hallway to pick them up.
• Students cannot walk across the street by themselves to get into a car.
• Please use crosswalks (see map).

Students not picked up by 3:25 will be brought to the office to call a parent. Please ensure that you have a plan to pick up your student at 3:10 daily.

NHE parent and community volunteers are essential for supporting our staff, implementing programs and events, and nurturing the learning experience for our students.

From Homecoming to Teacher Appreciation Week to Field Day, there is something for everyone. Any contribution of time helps, no matter how big or small. If you'd like to help on campus this year, we'd love to have you!

Please visit this link to see the various opportunities we have available this year and select those that interest you. You will need to sign up as a user on the site before completing the form.

Thanks in advance for your support!

NHE PTA

Every January, RISD recognizes our elected board of trustees, who volunteer many long hours each in their work to set the vision, mission, and goals for the district and determine the resources and budget necessary for RISD to operate in a way that supports every student, every teacher, and every leader every day.

The RISD community is grateful for the servant leadership of Board President Regina Harris and Trustees Eric Eager, Rachel McGowan, Vanessa Pacheco, Chris Poteet, Debbie Rentería and Megan Timme. Thank you, RISD Board of Trustees.

Enrollment for the 2025-26 school year opens Feb. 25. Save the date, and visit the online enrollment page for information and what to have ready.

• Create a Focus account – RISD provides electronic access to a student’s attendance, grades, and other information via the Focus school software system. . https://web.risd.org/focus/

• Please go to RISD Voly to fill out an application. Please make sure you select NHE as your school. This process needs to be completed every year!

• All of RISD will be utilizing Talking Points for classroom communication. Please download the free app to get started communicating with your child's teacher!

  You can find more information online at this link

• Download SchoolCafe app – RISD’s school cafeteria payment system is called SchoolCafe. https://www.schoolcafe.com/

• Download RISD Mobile Parent app – Access student information, view the latest news, receive important alerts, review archive of parent messages sent by RISD, view school menus and lunch account balances, find your bus stop, access student schedules, assignment grades, attendance and more via the RISD Mobile Parent app.

• Support our amazing school by joining the NHE PTA!

Beginning next week, visitors are welcome to join their students for lunch. Here are a few reminders when planning to visit for lunch.

• Due to space in our cafeteria we are asking that parents who wish to have lunch with their child do so only once per week.
• Arrive before your child's scheduled lunchtime.
  
• Bring your ID to be screened at check-in. You will be given a visitor badge to wear at all times while on campus.
• Visitors should sit at the designated visitor table with their child and are not permitted to sit at the class cafeteria tables.
• Lunch visitors may eat lunch with only their child. Friends will not be permitted to join another parent for lunch.
• We request that visitors follow a no-cell phone policy to ensure student privacy and quality time with their child. Taking pictures or videos in the cafeteria that include any other students or staff is not permitted.
• When your child’s lunch period is over, visitors should exit the building from the front or office doors. Lunch visitors should NOT walk their child back to class.
• If a visitor who is not a parent or guardian comes to eat lunch with a student, we must have permission ahead of time from the parent or guardian or they will not be permitted to eat with the student.

These guidelines may need to be adjusted from time to time. Updates will be communicated as needed.

All visitors must show a government-issued ID every time you are either visiting school or volunteering and will need to have a Verkada Badge. The great thing about our new system is that you can use the QR Code from home in the morning, and your badge will be waiting for you when you arrive. Please wait to access the code until 7 am the day that it is needed so that the badge doesn't time out. This is a requirement for any activity we will have during the school day.

Before entering the building, you will need to push the doorbell. Our office staff will ask how they can help you before letting you in. This is a requirement for everyone even if our office staff knows who you are. We appreciate your support and patience with this process.

With the increased need for security on all campuses, NHE will continue to use Verkada to sign in all visitors on campus. If you plan on visiting campus, please make sure to bring your driver's license to the front office to be scanned by our RAPTOR system.

During occasions when we have a big event, we will send out a QR code ahead of time for you to complete to help speed up the check-in process.

If you plan to volunteer on campus, please complete the additional background check with VOLY. It is best to complete the VOLY application as soon as possible. VOLY requests can take up to 72 hours to complete. Please call the Northwood Hills office for any help needed with completing VOLY. Sign up to volunteer at risd.voly.org