Martell Monitor

We are excited to celebrate Halloween together at Martell! On Thursday, October 29, all Martell students and staff will enjoy our annual outdoor Halloween costume parade, followed by classroom celebrations.

Parents and guests are welcome to join us outdoors to view the parade, which will begin at 1:45 p.m. This has become a fun Martell tradition that our students, staff, and families look forward to each year! Students will exit through the main entrance and parade around the pick-up circle.

We encourage students to bring their costumes to school and change before the parade. As we plan for a fun and festive celebration, we also want to make sure Halloween remains comfortable and enjoyable for all of our Mustangs, especially our youngest students.

Please keep the following costume guidelines in mind:

Costumes must be age-appropriate for elementary school.
Costumes should not make fun of or negatively represent real people, human characteristics, or cultures.
Please consider whether scary costumes are appropriate for young elementary-aged children.
Historical costumes should be respectful and accurately represented.
Toy or replica weapons are not permitted at school under any circumstances. This includes toy guns, knives, swords, or other weapons. Hockey sticks, baseball bats, and similar sports equipment should also remain at home due to safety concerns.
Costume masks are permitted as long as students can see clearly while wearing them. Please avoid costumes that include fake blood, gore, or other elements that may be frightening to younger students.

Thank you for helping us make Halloween at Martell a fun, safe, and inclusive celebration for everyone! We look forward to seeing our Mustangs and their creative costumes!

Warmly,
Colette

Our First Mindset Meetup (Huddle)

Dear Martell Families,

We are excited to share how our students continue to build and strengthen character education at Martell Elementary. On October 5, all students will participate in our first MINDSET Meet-Up (formerly Huddle), a multi-grade-level gathering designed to bring students together across our school community.

During our first Meet-Up, students will learn more about the Martell MINDSET and what each of our seven character traits looks and sounds like at Martell:

M – Make Positive Choices
I – Include Everyone
N – Never Give Up
D – Do the Right Thing
S – Show Respect
E – Encourage Others
T – Take Responsibility

Students will have an opportunity to connect with Mustangs from other grade levels as they talk, learn, and participate in activities centered around these shared values.

At Home Activity

The culminating activity for our first Meet-Up will connect our work at school with the values that are important to each of our Martell families.

Following the October 5 Meet-Up, students will bring home a Family Character Project. As a family, you will be asked to share a family picture and identify character traits that are especially important in your home.

Every family is unique, and there are no right or wrong answers! Your family might choose traits such as:

Kindness • Honesty • Respect • Responsibility • Perseverance • Empathy • Courage • Patience • Gratitude • Compassion • Inclusion • Generosity • Loyalty • Fairness • Forgiveness • Hard Work • Integrity • Cooperation • Friendship • Helpfulness • Love • Trust • Acceptance • Resilience

You are also welcome to choose a character trait or value that is not included on this list.

We ask that families complete the project together and return it to school during the week of October 12. These projects will help us celebrate the many values, experiences, and families that make the Martell community so special.

If you have questions about the MINDSET Meet-Up or Family Character Project, your child's teacher will be happy to answer them during Parent-Teacher Conferences on October 8 and 9.

We are excited to begin this journey together and help our students understand that character isn't simply something we talk about—it is reflected in the choices we make and the way we treat others each day.

Thank you for partnering with us as we continue to build the Martell MINDSET!

Warmly,

Colette Ivey
Principal
Martell Elementary

Defeat the Label

Join Troy School District and Defeat the Label for a four-part community series where we will learn together, hear one another’s experiences, and consider how to make an impact in our schools and community spaces. Each gathering will explore a different topic, from raising Upstanders and responding to bullying to moving from empathy to action, building healthy digital habits, supporting young people through difficult social experiences, and more. We want you in the room. Register today! Scan the code or use this link.

Martell FUN RUN

Trunk or Treat

Trunk or Treat Trunk Sign Up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4AADAF29A4F5C61-66189715-martells#/

Trunk or Treat Amazon Wish List Link: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/SEFJAR7DH7J4/ref=hz_ls_biz_ex?

Yearbook Candid Photos Needed

Message from the Martell PTO

Thanks for all of your participation in our Red Robin dining out night - we raised over $468!

Still remembering all the excitement from the Fun Run? We are too! Let’s help make sure we earn the school-wide goal and the Exotic Zoo visit!!

Fundraising is still open - we still need your support to hit our goal of $23,000 - if every student donated $7 we would hit our goal! See the attached flyer for how to donate!
Show us your pictures! We saw the camera snaps happening at the Fun Run. There are two easy ways to choose to share pictures. Start sharing photos now for our end of year yearbook. More details are in the flyer.

See you at our next PTO Meeting: Wednesday, October 14 in the Martell Media Center. Childcare for school age children is provided!

Stay Connected!

Email us anytime: martellpto.contact@gmail.com

Our Facebook Page

must have a Facebook account and be a member of the page - request access now!

Martell Elementary PTO website

PTO Calendar of Events

ELD Connection Night

Career Readiness, Grades K-5

Dear Troy School District Families,

Career readiness begins much earlier than most families realize. Research shows that children start forming ideas about “what people like me can be” by age seven — and without intentional, positive exposure to a wide range of careers, those ideas can be shaped by stereotypes rather than possibility. That’s why Troy School District begins career readiness in kindergarten, not high school. Our goal in the elementary years is simple: help every child discover the incredible range of careers available to them, build the vocabulary to talk about their interests and strengths, and see the connection between what they are learning in the classroom today and the opportunities available to them tomorrow.

What Career Readiness Looks Like in Grades K–5

At the elementary level, career readiness is not about choosing a job — it’s about awareness. Students learn career-related vocabulary, explore how core subjects like reading, math, and science connect to real careers, and are introduced to people and professions they may not otherwise encounter. This early foundation sets the stage for the more in-depth career exploration and planning students will do in middle and high school.

Introducing Michigan’s Six Career Zones

To make the world of work easier for young learners to understand, Troy elementary students are introduced to Michigan’s Six Career Zones — broad groupings of careers that share similar interests, strengths, and skills. Thinking in terms of “zones” rather than hundreds of individual job titles helps children recognize patterns in what excites them and gives teachers and families a shared language for talking about careers at any age.

Arts & Communication

Careers in the visual and performing arts, literature, journalism, and media — from graphic designers and musicians to authors and broadcasters.

Business, Management, Marketing & Technology

Careers in accounting, business administration, finance, information technology, and marketing — the people who help organizations run and grow.

Engineering/Manufacturing & Industrial Technology

Careers that design, build, install, and maintain the products, machines, and systems we use every day, from bridges to robotics.

Health Sciences

Careers focused on promoting wellness and treating illness and injury — doctors, nurses, therapists, technicians, and many more.

Human Services

Careers that help people and communities thrive, including early childhood education, teaching, social work, public safety, and hospitality.

Natural Resources & Agriscience

Careers connected to agriculture, the environment, and natural resources — from farmers and veterinarians to conservation scientists.

Exploring the Career Zones with Pathful Junior

Troy School District uses Pathful Junior, an online career-awareness platform built specifically for K–5 students, to bring the Six Career Zones to life. Pathful Junior is colorful, interactive, and designed to be developmentally appropriate at every grade band. In it, students can:

Visit Career Central to independently browse careers that interest them

Watch short, kid-friendly cluster videos introducing different careers and career zones

Complete teacher-assigned lessons that combine videos, games, and familiar characters

Take a first interest survey that begins to connect their personal interests to career zones

Earn badges and track their exploration on a student dashboard

The platform is fully accessible and available in more than 50 languages, so every student — regardless of learning style or home language — can take part.

How You Can Support Career Readiness at Home

Families are one of the most powerful influences on how children see their future. A few simple ways to keep the conversation going at home:

Ask your child what career zone(s) they explored in Pathful Junior as the school year progresses

Talk about your own job or the jobs of family members, and how they connect to a career zone.

Point out careers you encounter together in everyday life — at the grocery store, the doctor’s office, or on a walk around the neighborhood

Encourage curiosity rather than a single “right answer” — at this age, the goal is exposure, not decision-making

Thank you for partnering with us to help every Troy student build a strong foundation for their future.

Fall Enrichment Classes

End of Day Pick-up

To help keep dismissal safe, efficient, and moving smoothly, we highly encourage families picking up by vehicle to use the designated pick-up lanes and avoid the side parking lot. Cars entering and exiting the side lot create an additional layer of congestion during an already busy dismissal time.

A few reminders to help keep traffic flowing:

Pull forward as far as possible behind the vehicle in front of you so we can accommodate as many cars as possible.
If using the left lane, please continue all the way to the front before merging.
Please do not attempt to merge two or three cars back from the front of the line, as this can slow the flow of traffic for everyone.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work together to keep our Martell Mustangs safe at dismissal!

Changes to Your Child's Dismissal Plan

If your child's pick up will be different than normal, please ALWAYS send a note to your child’s teacher Red Communication Folder.

Please do NOT rely on email to a teacher. Teachers are teaching during the day, and sometimes cannot get back to their computer if it's a late message! We do not want to miss a dismissal message.

We will not vary your child’s end of the day routine unless we have a note from you.

Should you have same day changes and need to modify your child's dismissal plan, please call the office before 2:30 p.m.

Volunteer Guidelines

The Troy School District values those who volunteer in our classrooms and schools. If a volunteer will be with students for a significant length of time without a TSD employee being present, or will be with students on a regular basis, that volunteer is required to have a Michigan State Police Internet Criminal History Access Tool (I-CHAT) screening annually. All results will remain confidential and will only be used by the TSD administration to determine if you have been convicted of an offense that would otherwise prohibit you from working in our schools.

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2025 New Volunteer Background Check Form 6 11 24 (1).pdf

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Medication

If your child requires any kind of medication either over the counter or prescribed, you will need to fill out a medical form and have it signed by your physician.

If your child has a severe medical condition, please turn in this form and the medication prior to the first day of school.

All medication must be brought into school by an adult.

Below is a link to the forms you will need.

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TSDMedicationAuthorizationForm52222 (1).pdf