Important Dates
February 16 Schools close 3 hours early (12:45)
February 16 7:30 Watch D.O.G.S. Listening Session (see below under PTA News for details)
February 17 FRES Clubs photographed and candid pictures taken for the yearbook.
February 18 "Dress for Success" day-- dress in your best or dress for your future career
February 21 Presidents' Day NOTE: THIS IS NOW A SCHOOL DAY (Now updated on HCPSS Calendar)
February 22 PTA Spirit Day "TWOSDay" - 2/22/22 - Wear tie dye!
February 22 PTA Restaurant Night at Five Guys in Laurel. View the flyer here.
March 7 Kindergarten Registration Opens for 2022--2023 School Year
March 18 Class Picture Day (details to come)
View the HCPSS Calendar in English
View the HCPSS Calendar in Spanish
View the HCPSS Calendar in Korean
View the HCPSS Calendar in Chinese
Dear FRES Community,
We hope everyone had a great week! We were excited to see so many parents sign up for conferences to meet with their child’s math teacher. This is a great opportunity to build a positive home/school connection. If you were unable to schedule a conference, please contact your child’s teacher to reschedule.
This year, the Howard County Public School System will be administering the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) to all students in grade 3 and a selected group of students in grade 5. The CogAT is a group-administered abilities test that measures students’ reasoning abilities, which they develop through in-school and out-of-school experiences. It is not designed to test a student’s academic achievement, but their potential.
The test is made up of three batteries – Verbal, Quantitative, and Nonverbal. Each battery takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. The CogAT helps educators understand a student’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses and assists with adapting instruction to meet the needs and abilities of each student.
All students in Grade 3 will participate in the testing. We will administer CogAT to any 5th grade students who do not have a prior CogAT score as well as all students in 5th grade GT Math. The data will assist with identification for Accelerated GT Math and provide an aptitude measure for students who had no previous administration. No special preparation is required. Just send your child to school ready to learn as you do daily.
Grade 3 - 2/22 & 2/23
Grade 5 - 2/24 & 2/25
Students’ individual scores will be reported to parents in March.
Have a great weekend,
Mr. Conroy and Ms. Pazornik
***Want to receive HCPSS text messages regarding weather-related closing info, late bus info, etc.? You must opt-in. Text "YES" to 67587 from the device on which you would like to receive messages.***
Important - Students are being dropped off too early...students should not be dropped off before 8:55 a.m. Thanks for your help!
From the PE Teachers - Kids Heart Challenge
Our Forest Ridge family is fundraising for the American Heart Association in order to help kids with sick hearts! Our students can win lots of cool prizes along the way and will get to celebrate our donations in PE class at the end of March. The last day to donate is March 25th, so click this link to get your student registered and let's make a difference!
HCPSS Summer Programs
2022 Summer Programs Preview: The 2022 Summer Programs Preview, which contains descriptions of HCPSS’ four summer programs and enrollment information, is available to view here.
Gifted and Talented (GT) Summer Institutes for Talent Development
The Gifted and Talented (GT) Summer Institutes for Talent Development offers additional advanced-level instruction and enrichment experiences not regularly available during the academic school year for students entering grades 1-8. Rigorous instruction focusing on talent development is offered in mathematics, science, social studies, language arts, technology and fine arts. No testing nor prior GT coursework is required for enrollment in these enrichment offerings. Students may attend for Session 1, Session 2, or both sessions. While the program is half-day, before and after care is available on site via Howard County Recreation and Parks.
For more information, please visit the HCPSS Summer Programs page.
G/T Course Listing
G/T Course Matrix
Contact: GTSummer@hcpss.org or 410-313-6671.
Nominate an Outstanding Educator!
Nominations for 2022's Educator Recognition are due by March 4. Please see the link below for full details: https://news.hcpss.org/news-posts/2022/01/g-t-advisory-seeks-nominations-for-educator-recognition/
Howard County Health Department: Covid facts & testing locations: http://www.howardcountymd.gov/health/covid-19
3) Spirit Day - Tie Dye Tuesday, 2/22/2022 (Because it's TWOSday!) - Have your students wear tie dye shirts on Tuesday, 2/22/22! Post photos in the Guardians Group or the FRES PTA Facebook page with hashtag #Twosday
4) The Watch DOGS National Organization is hosting a listening session on Family/School Engagement. The listening session will be interactive and discussion-based and will be held on February 16th @ 7:30 pm eastern time. It will last approximately 75 minutes and all participants who complete the entire session will receive a $50 stipend. All Guardians, Teachers, and School Administrators are welcome and encouraged to attend!
Kids on Campus Summer Registration Open
Brochures are available on the table in the vestibule at FRES, or visit the website here.
New HCPSS Community News and Programs Site:
In response to community requests for resources, HCPSS’ new Community News and Programs website makes it easy for families to find educational and recreational resources, events and after-school programs beyond the school day by non-profit organizations.
Community organizations requesting their announcements be shared in school newsletters should visit community-programs.hcpss.org for more information. Questions should be directed to the Public Information Office at publicinfo@hcpss.org.
Receive HC DrugFree's Free Newsletter: To receive HC DrugFree's free electronic newsletter packed with information for parents and opportunities for students, go to https://hcdrugfree.org/enews-signup/