September 21, 2020 - September 25, 2020
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Happy End of the 4th Week of School! Can you believe that we have been purposefully participating in Virtual Learning for four whole weeks? It's hard to believe it, but I'm living it along with you, so I know its true. Given that we are now at the 4 week mark, teachers have been updating their gradebooks in Infinite Campus. On Tuesday (9/22) you will be able to see your child's current grades. If you have not activated your Parent Portal, now is the time. Make sure your child is on track for success.
This week there is a great deal of information being shared, so I hope that you read the entire newsletter. There was also a newsletter sent out by the district that includes some similar information on school re-opening.
The teachers and staff at Kimberly have been working very hard to make this the BEST YEAR YET for your youngsters. We believe that 'Virtually, We Can Do Anything!'
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8/24/20 - 9/30/20
STAR/GKIDS Testing Window
9/8/20 - 9/20/20
GoTeam Elections (Vote Now)
9/21/20
Girls on the Run Practice
4:00p - 5:30p
9/22/20
Progress Reports Day (Parent Portal)
Parent Cafe (DSE) - Overcoming Anxiety
12:00p - 1:00p
9/23/20
Girls on the Run Practice
4:00p - 5:30p
9/26/20
CIS (Communities in Schools) Drive-By Celebration & Backpack Give-a-Way
11am - 12:30pm
@Therrell High School
9/29/20
Parent Cafe (DSE) - Transition Tuesday
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Meal Delivery Service
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has recently announced an extended Seamless Summer Option (SSO) waiver, which allows free meals to all children (ages 1-18) in communities designated as areas of community eligibility. On Sept. 9, the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) School Nutrition Program announced that the entire state of Georgia has been declared an area of community eligibility through Dec. 31, 2020.
Through this new guidance, Effective immediately APS families no longer need to register or order meals through MySchoolBucks. APS will offer free weekly 5-day meal kits (5-breakfast meals and 5-lunch meals) to all children (ages 1-18) in Atlanta. Please visit https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/Page/63224 for bus delivery information. Nutrition will discontinue the Tuesday Express meal service.
Alternatively, curbside pick-up is available from 3 PM – 6 PM.
Therrell Cluster
- Bunche Middle School, 1925 Niskey Lake Rd. SW, Atlanta, GA 30331
For more information, visit: https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/Page/63224.
Parent Portal Access
Parents of students in grades K–12 have access to class schedules, attendance records and grades through the Parent Portal, an easy-to-use, secure communications tool for the district. Additionally, the Parent Portal enables parents to verify household information, including email, home address and telephone numbers.
What you'll need before registering:
- Your child's Student Number (It can be found on your student's report card or transcript.)
- The last four digits of your child's Social Security Number (SSN) or the SSN-like number* assigned to your child.
*If you did not provide your child's SSN at enrollment/registration, they were assigned an SSN-like number. To receive the last four digits of that number, you will need to contact your child's school.
GoTeam Elections (9/8/20 - 9/20/20)
With less than one week to go before all ballots are cast, APS parents and school staff still have time to let their voices be heard in the GO Team elections. All school staff will have an opportunity to vote for their school’s newest GO Team members and ensure APS students have the support they deserve. Each school’s GO Team assists school administrators with decision-making regarding the budget, staffing and curriculum, and their voice truly matters.
Ensure your voice is heard by voting for the candidate of your choice! Voting ends Sunday, Sept. 20. Visit www.apsstrongschools.com for more information. Strong Schools Start With You!
Attendance Awareness Month
September is National Attendance Awareness Month! Help us ensure that your child is getting the best education possible. That is only possible if they are in school day; even virtually. Be reminded that instruction starts at 8:30am daily at Kimberly Elementary School. Students should plan to get online at least 10 minutes early and have already eaten, gotten dressed. We have contests starting today (9/14/20) between the homerooms to see who can meet the 95% Average Daily Attendance for the month of September!
Parent Attendance Handout (ENG) / Parent Attendance Handout (SPA)
APS Partners to Honors Teachers Who Go the Extra Yard
Do you know a teacher who goes above and beyond in the classroom? Atlanta Public Schools has partnered with the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and the College Football Playoff Foundation to honor teachers who are going the extra yard! During the college football season, several APS teachers will be gifted a $500 Donors Choose gift card via a weekly social media drawing. To enter a name for consideration, post a picture of your favorite APS teacher, tell us why they deserve to win on Twitter or Instagram, mention @apsupdate and use the hashtag #TagATeacher.
Race to Read Kick Off - An Evening of Enlightenment
The citywide Race2Read Challenge, now in its third year, aims to erase the critical literacy gap by uniting schools, families, churches, businesses and public and private sectors to help increase reading proficiency of APS students. APS is partnering with Urban League of Greater Atlanta to challenge students, teachers, staff, parents, community members and business partners to read daily to help collectively reach 10 million minutes of leisure reading this academic year.
As the official kick-off event of the citywide APS Race2Read 2020-2021 challenge, the special virtual town hall event will air on Monday, Sept. 21, 2020 at 7 p.m. EST via cbs46.com and through Facebook and Instagram @CBS46. "An Evening of Enlightenment —Race & Healing: A Community Conversation" will be moderated by CBS46 Anchor Shon Gables and will bring together students and families with community leaders, educators and prominent authors to address racism, anti-racism and healing. APS Superintendent Dr. Lisa Herring will join the panel that includes best-selling authors Tiffany Jewell (This Book Is Anti-Racist), Jewell Parker Rhodes (Ghost Boys) and Nic Stone (Dear Martin).
This event will not only help shepherd a collective mission to promote understanding and justice through literacy, but work toward creating equity in our schools, communities and workplaces through free-flowing conversations and actionable steps in creating pathways for empathy, kindness, compassion and literacy.
Back to School Internet for Families
Your families may qualify if they are eligible for public assistance programs such as the National School Lunch Program, Housing Assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, and others. Learn how to get them connected today!
- Free for Two Months to New Customers Now Through December 31: We are extending our offer of 60 days of complimentary service for new customers through December 31. Internet Essentials is available to all qualified low-income households for $9.95/month.
- For all Internet Essentials customers, the speed of the program's Internet service has increased to 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream.
- Households with outstanding debt owed to Comcast may be eligible for Internet Essentials. We are waiving this qualification if you apply and are approved by 12/31/20. After 12/31/20, standard eligibility rules apply. Click here for all details.
- Xfinity WiFi Free For Everyone: Xfinity WiFi hotspots in business and outdoor locations are available to anyone who needs them for free – including non-Xfinity Internet subscribers. For a map of Xfinity WiFi hotspots, visit http://wifi.xfinity.com/#find-a-hotspot.
HOW TO HELP FAMILIES CONNECT?
Communities in Schools (CIS) & Roark Capital: Back to School Kick-Off
We are excited to announce the official kick-off of Communities In Schools of Atlanta's new partnership with Roark Capital. Roark is responsible for our expansion into three (Kimberly ES, Bunche MS and Therrell HS) additional schools for the 2020-2021 school year. Please see the attached flyer announcing our Back-to-School School Event for caseload students and their families. The Backpack Give-Away Event and Lunch will be held Saturday, September 26th from 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. at D.M. Therrell High School.
APS Internet Safety
All APS students must adhere to Internet Acceptable Use and Information Security Policy and the student code of conduct/student discipline policy. The Student Handbook has guidance on digital citizenship included (page 3) for parents and students; this information will be reiterated in the classroom as well. Some important points include the following:
- Be respectful. If it is inappropriate face-to-face, then it is inappropriate online as well.
- Be careful with humor; make sure it is not offensive, rude, or disruptive to class.
- If in doubt, before posting, message your teacher for guidance.
- Never share meeting IDs or meeting passwords outside of class.
- Never post inappropriate messages or content in classroom chats or privately.
- Never post what appears to be a threat of violence to any student, staff or school.
Students who commit acts considered to be criminal in nature may face disciplinary action. Click here for a copy of the 2020-21 Student Handbook to review virtual guidance, behavioral expectations, and consequences.
As a reminder, students (grades 3-12) at traditional schools (not including charter/partner schools) are required to authenticate (log into the APS Zoom account), before entering a virtual Zoom classroom. Students (grades 3-12) who do not authenticate will not be admitted into the virtual classroom. This increased security measure should alleviate the potential of outside disturbances and add an extra layer of protection and accountability for students and staff.
Students can find step-by-step authentication instructions here.
If your child experiences any difficulties logging into Zoom, please review the login options with them or contact 404-802-1000 for assistance.
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Morning Announcements (9/21/20 - 9/25/20)
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