THE BEST

December 12 - All Pro Dad

December 16 - Winter Class Parties: Grades K and 3

December 17 - Winter Class Parties: Grades 1, 5 and Program Classes

December 18 - Winter Class Parties: Grades 2 and 4

December 19 - Reading is a Gift Day

December 22 - January 5 - Winter Break

It was great to see our Explorers back after the Thanksgiving break. After a wonderful Chorus performance, we ended the week with the Spelling Bee for grades 3, 4, and 5. Congratulations to fifth grader Mariya Prokopova, who was our school winner; and third graders John-Christopher Dewornu and Edward Staton who tied for second. We had so many talented classroom representatives. The entire event kept the audience on the edge of their seats!

We have many reasons to celebrate the staff and students’ hard work, one of which is the recent release of our school’s CCRPI component scores. The College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) is the Georgia Department of Education measure that looks at how schools prepare students for the next educational level. I am beyond proud to share that Northwood had growth in every indicator! Northwood’s Content Mastery score is 99.4 (up 5.3 from last year). Our Progress Score is 90.8 (up 8.9), our Closing the Gaps score is 100, and our Readiness score is 94.7 (up 2.7). Readiness is very important as it is the indicator that is tied to our school goal to have all our students meet the "at or above" grade level reading measure. Our continuing campus-wide focus on the importance of reading has momentum! We increased that measure by 5.7 to reach 89.2% of our students reading at or above grade level! My goal for that indicator will always be 100, and we’ll continue to do all we can to get there, but we will always celebrate our growth yearly, too!

Also, it is so important to highlight that ALL our subgroups made gains! The scores are tied to the 2025 Georgia Milestones Assessment from students in grades 3, 4, 5 last year. To find out more about each indicator with detailed descriptions and how the scores are calculated you can visit the state CCRPI page linked here and then type Northwood in the search box.

CCRPI components are just one measure of the dedication and hard work of our staff and students. The academic work partnered with a welcoming, safe, positive school environment, and the support of our parents is what makes Northwood so very special.

The dreary weather that’s predicted this weekend could be perfect for a lot of family reading time! Cozy up with some good books and maybe even some hot chocolate!

Proudly,

Heather Rucker

Principal

November was a great month for second graders! The children loved participating in the Fun Run. We had a nice turnout of spectators and received lots of donations. Thank you for all your help and support. Everyone had a wonderful time at the Thanksgiving Feast and Book Fair, too.

The students have been working hard all semester to follow PBIS procedures and expectations and have really enjoyed shopping at the “Explorer Exchange” store. There are lots of cool incentives like toys, fidgets, and coupons. Hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving break!

Before the Thanksgiving break, third graders had so much fun at their in-house field trip with "Miss Noodlehead!" Miss Noodlehead, who works at the Spaghetti Factory, kept taking things too literally, so she was sent back to school to learn about idioms!

At school, Miss Noodlehead needed the help of Northwood's third graders to help her learn. The students loved her performance, were great helpers, and learned more about figurative language!

Our attendance focus this school year is “Strive for 95!” We want our Explorers to be present for 95% of our school days. Excellent attendance ensures the best delivery of excellent instruction. Through the end of November, 77.9% of our Explorers have achieved that standard!

We understand that some absences are unavoidable. If your Explorer is absent from school, please email northwoodattendance@fultonschools.org to notify the proper staff.

Did you know that students can request up to 5 Participate Remote Learning Days per semester, and receive attendance credit by completing academic work remotely? Parents can submit this form to their child’s teacher prior to an expected absence.

Your involvement as parents and guardians is an essential factor in creating a positive and engaging school environment. Together, we can foster an atmosphere where students are excited to come to school, engage in learning, and build a foundation for a successful future.

Click here to learn more at Northwood’s Attendance Webpage. In addition, FCS attendance policy information can be found at FCS Attendance Matters Website or by contacting our school social worker, Patrick Hartigan, MSW at hartigan@fultonschools.org

Congratulations to all of Northwood's Kid Chess After School Club participants on another successful fall semester. Below are the Sportsmanship and Club Chess Champion Trophy winners:

First Period

Sportsmanship Award: Aiden Peterson

Club Chess Champion: Emiliano Gonzalez

Second Period

Sportsmanship Award: Bella Jimenez

Club Chess Champion: Declan Caldwell

Kid Chess After School Club teaches right here at Northwood. For more information on our next semester (Winter/Spring) please visit www.kidchess.com or call 770-575-5802.

Northwood is proud to be an AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) school. AVID Elementary equips students with the foundational skills and mindset needed for future success. Our staff is focused on enhancing instructional consistency, fostering a college and career readiness mindset, increasing student engagement and building organizational and study skills.

As part of this, each week Northwood will be focused on one goal as a school. Be sure to ask your child about it!

Next week's AVID goal is: My goal is to ask my teacher if I have a question about my work or homework.

This year, with the new lunch system, our school community has the capability to create a Cafeteria Principal Account Fund. This account would be used to fulfill any meal costs for students that reach an account balance of zero. We often have families and extended family members that ask if or how they can pay off lunch balances or support our students in this way, now the process of doing so is easy!

Should you be interested in adding to the Cafeteria Principal Account Fund, just send a check or cash to school in an envelope to Ms. Cristhal Austin, our cafeteria manager in training, and notate that the funds go to the Principal Fund. Please reach out to Ms. Austin, austinc4@fultonschools.org, if you have any questions.

The Fulton County School Nutrition Program is dedicated to serving all students nutritious, safe and customer acceptable meals in support of academic achievement. Click the link below to see what thery are serving up today.

Nutrition.fultonschools.org/MenuCalendar

Parents, please encourage your students to check regularly for lost items in the Lost and Found. Please mark all student belongings clearly with the child's name so that it can be identified. Unclaimed items are donated to local charities after the last school day of every month. December's date is Friday, December 19.

The Infinite Campus Parent Portal provides quick and easy access to information for all enrolled students in their household. Find grades, attendance, assignments, schedules, ID numbers, school announcements and more. If you haven't already joined, please do so today as Fulton County Schools is transitioning to managing everything via the portal.

For more information, access the Parent Portal Booklet for Infinite Campus here.

Let’s help brighten the holidays for local families!

The Northwood PTA is collecting new, unwrapped toys for children of all ages to support North Fulton Community Charities.

🗓️ Donation Window: Nov 10–Dec 12

📍 Drop-off: Marked bins in the school lobby

Let’s come together to spread kindness and cheer this season! 💛

It’s time to pre-order your 2025-2026 Northwood Yearbook—celebrating our 30th anniversary with this year’s theme: REWIND! Reserve your copy now for just $36 before the price goes up on January 1st.

Click here to order: yearbookordercenter.com/job/26362 — and don’t forget, 5th grade families can purchase a dedication ad to honor their student!

Questions? Email us at Yearbook@northwoodpta.com.

My name is Autumn Dalburg, and I am president of the International Thespian Society at Centennial High School. I’m reaching out to invite your students to see our production of "Junie B. in Jingle Bells Batman Smells.”

This one-act play runs less than an hour and is a TYA (theatre for young audiences) performance, meaning it is geared towards your students' age groups! We’ve put on this show, and our goal is to have those it caters to fill our audience! We would love to enrich your students and provide parents with an activity to entertain their kids.

Junie B. will be shown at Centennial in our black box theatre on December 11th and 12th, at 6 pm, and at 2 pm on December 13th. Ticket prices are reduced for K-5 students, so we’d love to see as many of yours as possible!

Thanks,
Autumn Dalburg

Michelle Levine, Assistant Principal

Together We SHINE!

Email: NorthwoodAttendance@fultonschools.org
Website: https://northwood.fultonschools.org/
Location: 10200 Wooten Road, Roswell, GA, USA
Phone: 470-254-6390
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorthwoodElementaryPTA/
Twitter: @FCS_NWES or @NWES_Principal