Dear Parents,

We are a busy community school and I want to take the time to thank our PTA members for all they do to support all of our students! The teachers, staff and administration work extremely hard to ensure that your children are growing academically, socially and emotionally. The PTA enriches and enhances everything we do by adding fun to the school day, after school and weekends. We have been observing a small army of parents here at school planning and organizing daily for all the fall events. I urge all of our parents to get involved and help in any small way that you can. Your contribution to these events help make the Julian Curtiss community even stronger!

Please note the following community events coming up:

• Polka Dot Day - Monday, October 9th - please remember to have your child wear some sort of polka dots to school
• Parents in K-2 Raising Lifelong Learners Part 2 - Tuesday, October 10th 6 -7pm - Part 1 was a huge hit! Do not miss Part 2. Babysitting and pizza for the kids available
• sign up for your child's country for UN and mark you calendars for October 19th at 1 pm
• sign up to bring a dish to the International Food Tasting and mark your calendars for October 20th
• sign up for Trunk or Treat on October 22
• sign your family up for Turkey Trot in November. This is a huge Julian Curtiss community event!

Information for all of these events are in this newsletter below.

We need help for our biggest event, the United Nations Day Parade! Please contact stephanie.krupa15@gmail.com if you can donate just a little bit of time!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Trish McGuire and Matthew Hartigan

Our friends at the Greenwich Fire Department recently came to Julian Curtiss School for their annual fire safety presentation with kindergarten and first grade students.

Students had the opportunity to learn about the special gear our firefighters wear, some of the equipment they use, and how they can stay safe in the event of a fire.

They practiced how to "Stop, Drop, and Roll" and were able to use the fire hose to put out a pretend fire.

The Linkit Parent Portal has been updated with SBA scores and the Fall GPS Benchmarks. Student multi-year history is available in the GPS Parent Portal, including standardized assessments and benchmarks, attendance and secondary grades.

A New Account Email will be sent to anyone who is new to the district and needs to log on to the Parent Portal. That email will come from : registration@linkit.com. The subject line is: LinkIt Parent Portal Account Registration - Greenwich Public Schools

LinkIt! is the online platform where students in Grades 3-8 take the District Benchmark Assessments in Math and Language Arts. These Benchmarks are designed to be taken in the early Fall, Winter, and Spring so that students and teachers can gauge progress on grade-level state standards. Each Benchmark Assessment is approximately 30 questions and assesses students on their progress towards END OF THE YEAR MASTERY of grade-level standards. Therefore, fall benchmark data is used SOLELY for instructional purposes as the teacher plans for the whole group and small group instruction.

The Benchmark Assessment is assessing the end of grade level expectations/standards. When viewing the Fall report, as a parent you will notice whether your child has already developed areas of relative strength for the coming year. Again, we do not expect students to have mastery of any standards at this point in the year as the students have only just begun to be instructed on the curriculum. Do not be alarmed if your child does not score well on the Fall assessment. We do not expect them to; this is a pre-assessment for instructional planning purposes.

For further information about the Linkit! platform and all assessments in GPS please use this link- https://www.greenwichschools.org/teaching-learning/assessment

How can I get my account? All parents/guardians designated for “Portal Access” received an email with their initial account information. Search your email account for an email from: registration@linkit.com. The subject line is: LinkIt Parent Portal Account Registration - Greenwich Public Schools

The email contains a unique code that you use to create your account and your password. The code does not expire. Go to: https://greenwich.linkit.com/parent and click on “Have a registration code?” to create your account.

To learn more:

https://www.greenwichschools.org/teaching-learning/assessment/gpslinkit-parent-portal-and-benchmark-faq

Greenwich will be giving all Grade 2 students the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) in October, in advance of ALP Enrichment placement. Because these abilities are closely related to an individual’s success in school in virtually all subjects, data gathered from the CogAT is included as one aspect of the multiple measures which help the staff make decisions regarding students’ instructional needs.

The assessment will be given between October 16 and November 34. Scores will be made available to parents on or before November 17. More information regarding the CoGAT Assessment is available at https://riversideinsights.com/cognitive_abilities_test.

Tickets Tickets can be purchased at the "door" or JC families can purchase : https://juliancurtisspta.membershiptoolkit.com/packet/1995

Trunkers, sign up to decorate your car: https://juliancurtisspta.membershiptoolkit.com/packet/1996

Volunteers, Please help: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0D49ABAC28ABF85-44712310-jctrunk#/

Back for the second year, the JC PTA presents the JC Trunk or Treat 2023, Sunday, Oct 22 from 12pm - 2pm.

This fun fundraiser is a chance for our community to come out for safer, less-spooky "trick or treating" plus Fall craft activities, games, and food and treats. Come join us for a Monster Mash and face painting! Costumes are optional. This is a family-friendly event.

Did you know that many of our JC families live in areas not safe for trick-or-treating? This is a safer alternative and an opportunity to experience how our families decorate and celebrate spooky season, from Halloween to Dia de los Muertos.

Tickets are now on sale for "Truckers" and include FREE admission for 1 child. Participate with any vehicle and kids will have the chance to vote for their favorite decorations! Each spot is $10.

General admission is $5 and covers refreshments and some activities.

Polka Dot Day - October 9th

Wear polka dots to represent making your mark.

When we practice Be Here we are able to make an impact!

UN Day - October 20th 1:00 - 2:30 pm

Dress in a way that represents your culture and country.

Our community strengthens as we share about what makes us all

unique!

Halloween - October 31st 2:15 - 2:45 pm

Bring your Halloween costume to school and change into it for the

Halloween Parade

Every Friday Celebrate Being a JC Eagle by wearing your JC Spirit Wear or

the color Green

Good Afternoon Julian Curtiss Families,

Please RSVP to join us for a two-part program on raising lifelong learners. This is primarily for parents and caregivers of pre-k through 2nd grade students.We had a good turn out for the first session at Julian Curtiss on Tuesday evening. Parents left with hands on resources and strategies to employ that evening. We look forward to part 2 on Tuesday, October 10th. Please consider attending. Babysitting and Pizza will be provided for children if parents need childcare to attend.

Looking forward to seeing you.
Best,

Trish McGuire

Dear Julian Curtiss Community Members:

On Friday , November 10th @ 9 am , JC students and staff will be honoring veterans with a special recognition ceremony. The school will gather to honor our guests. Please consider whether you know any veterans who might like to attend.

If so, would you please contact them and, if they'd like to participate, ask them for the following information so that we can personalize the experience for all participants:

1) Name

2) Which branch of service

3) Number of years served

4) Primary responsibilities

5) Something you're most proud of related to your military experience

6) A contact email

We will introduce each of our veterans and give their bio based on the information we receive. If any of our Veterans would like to take a few minutes to speak to our students at the assembly in an age appropriate manner please let us know that information also. Please email this information to our School Secretary by October 31, 2023.

Contact address: lisa_maniscalco@greenwich.k12.ct.us

October

October 10: Raising Lifelong Learners workshop part 2 at 6 pm

October 14: Krispy Kreme Fundraiser 9 am -2 pm

October 19: United Nations Day Parade 1 pm

October 20: International Food Tasting 5:30 pm

October 22: PTA Trunk or Treat at JC parking lot 12:00-2:00 pm

October 25: Early Release Day 12:45 pm dismissal

October 31: Halloween Parade 2:15 pm

November

November 7: Election Day No School -Election Day Bake Sale at Julian Curtiss

November 8: PTA General Meeting 6:30 pm

November 10: Veterans Day - School is in session

November 22: Early Release

November 23-24 Thanksgiving Recess

November 22: Early Release Day 12:45 pm dismissal