Owl Observer
Community Newsletter
As of Tuesday, we officially reached the end of Quarter 1! Our students have put in incredible effort over these past nine weeks, and we are excited to celebrate all of their progress. Please note that report cards will be available next Friday.
We also want to give a huge shout-out to our entire school community for our outstanding Quarter 1 attendance! Together, we achieved an impressive 96.6% overall attendance rate. Even on our lowest attendance day of the quarter—which fell on a half day—we still reached 93.3%.
As a Community School, attendance is one of our three primary goal areas because daily presence is foundational for learning and academic growth. If your family is experiencing any barriers to attendance, particularly on half days, please reach out to the school. We are here to partner with you and provide support so every student can show up and thrive!
Thank you for your continued commitment to our students and school community.
With You in Partnership,
Natalya De La Cruz-Van Natta
Community Schools Site Coordinator- Ducketts Lane Elementary School
October 30th: Grade Level T-shirt orders and payment due by 12pm
November: Native American Heritage Month
Sunday, November 1st: Daylight Savings: set clocks one hour back
Monday, November 2nd: Morgan State Band Performance, Roving Radish Food Box DistributionTuesday, November 3rd: No School: Election Day
Thursday, November 5th: Fall School Picture Make Up Day
Friday, November 6th: Report Cards available online at 4pm
Wednesday, November 11th: PTA Reflections Art Workshop
Thursday, November 12th: PTA International Night
Monday, November 16th-Friday, November 20th: American Education Week
Monday, November 16th-Monday, November 23rd: PTA Scholastic Book Fair
Monday, November 23: Students are Dismissed at 12:15; no half day PreK, In- Person Parent Teacher Conferences
Tuesday, November 24: Students are Dismissed at 12:15; no half day PreK, Virtual Parent Teacher Conferences
Dental Clinic🦷
Ducketts Lane Elementary School is partnering with a mobile dental program to offer dental cleanings, preventative and limited restorative care* for students at school beginning on November 30, 2026! (*Restorative services may vary between districts and counties based upon legal agreements.)
Parents can enroll their student(s) to take advantage of this opportunity online or by completing and signing a paper permission form and returning it to school by November 27th, 2026.
🔗 Enroll online here: https://www.myschooldentist.com/DLHCMD_schsrm
Need Help or Have Questions? Parents or guardians who need help with enrollment, updating information, opting out, or deciding if the program is a good fit should contact the Patient Support Call Center at:
📞 (800) 409-2563
🕒 Monday–Thursday: 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM ET
🕒 Friday: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM ET
HCPSS Learning Guides
"What Your Child Will Learn" guides provide an overview of the instructional program for your child’s grade, as well as student goals and expectations. The guides include information to help parents monitor and support their child’s progress during the school year.
Individual guides are provided for each grade level. Each grade level guide provides information categorized by curriculum area, e.g., Language Arts, Science, etc.
The guides are available online only; print versions are no longer distributed. Specific guide webpages may be printed from the website.
Specific student programs may differ depending on instructional needs.
Parent Teacher Conference
Important Scheduling Info:
Sign-up Opens: Friday, November 6 at 8:00 AM
Sign-up Closes: Thursday, November 19 at 4:00 PM
Directions: How to sign up from HCPSS
We can’t wait to chat about your child’s progress and growth!
Roving Radish Free Food Box Distribution
🗓️ Date & Time: Monday, November 2nd at 2:45pm
📍 Location: On Ducketts Lane, Side of the School
In partnership with Roving Radish, we are offering 100 free food boxes for our school families on a first-come, first-served basis. To get a food box you will need to walk-up to pick-up area.
Medicaid Check-In
Changes are coming to Medicaid. Have you moved? Changed your phone number? To get important messaging about these critical changes, the Howard County Health Department needs to have your current contact information.
Give the Health Department a call today at 410-313-5845 or email medicaid@howardcountymd.gov to make sure we can reach you with important updates or answer any questions you might have. You can learn more about How Medicaid is Going to Change from the Maryland Department of Health.
Halloween Candy Drive for Our Troops! 🍬
