TRES Retriever Report November 10, 2023

Fri, 11/10/2023 - 9:29am

Message from Dr. TRESler and Mr. Hiel:

Dear Retriever Families,

Happy Veterans Day to all of our TRES community veterans! We are looking forward to welcoming our veterans for lunch today, and we would like to thank the TRES PTA hospitality committee for providing the food. Today, our students will have the opportunity to share in their classroom about veterans in their families. Students will also learn a little about the history and importance of Veterans Day. If you would like to discuss and learn more at home, we have included some developmentally appropriate and child-friendly resources below.

Warmly,
Dr. Tiffany TRESler, Principal TRES
Mr. Kory Hiel, Assistant Principal TRES 

Upcoming Events

Please visit the TRES calendar webpage to view important upcoming dates.

  • November 16 - Visit TRES for American Education Week (see below)
  • November 16 - Teacher Conference Registration Closes, 4pm (see below)
  • November 17 - TRES Spirit Day
  • November 17 - Fall Picture MakeUps/Retakes (see below)
  • November 18 - PTA Retriever Run, 9am 
  • November 20 & 21 - Teacher Conferences (see below). Early Dismissal.
  • November 20 & 21 - Book Fair
  • November 20 - Turkey Trot and Food Drive (Click to Read More)
  • November 22 - Schools closed. Virtual Teacher Conferences.
  • November 23 & 24 - Schools/Offices Closed, Thanksgiving Holiday

News and Information

PARENT REMINDERS:

  • All absence notes must be sent to tresabsence@hcpss.org. Homeroom teachers can be copied on the email. Please do not send notes through Canvas.
  • Please remember that you must bring your Driver’s License in order to sign in any time you’re visiting the building.
  • Parents should send a note with their student if their dismissal will change for that day.  If you need to notify us of a change after the start of the school day you must call the front office.  

Parent-Teacher Conference Registration
Parent-teacher conferences will be held Monday, November. 20th, in person and Tuesday, November. 21st - Wednesday, November 23rd, virtually. See directions how to register.

Parents of students In grades kindergarten, first, second, third, and fifth should register for a conference with the homeroom teacher. Fourth grade parents should register for a conference with their child’s math teacher. If you would like to request a conference with a related arts teacher, please email that teacher directly. If you would like a conference with Mrs. Weeks, our .5 G/T teacher, please follow these directions.

When scheduling conferences for multiple children, please allow one full conference time between your meetings to allow for transitions both in person and virtually.

American Education Week - Visit TRES 11/16
As we recognize American Education Week November 13-17, we welcome parents and family members to visit TRES on Thursday, November 16th. Due to space and school security, we ask that you follow these guidelines:

  • Visitors are welcome all day.  Due to available space and parking, we ask that you limit your visit to 30 minutes.  Ask your child about what part of the day they would like you to visit.
  • Only adults are able to visit.
  • Sign in at the front office with Lobby Guard. Wear your sticker in a visible location at all times. You must bring a driver’s license to sign in.
  • If you are joining your child for lunch, there may not be space for all parents to sit especially in grades with larger numbers of students. Please ensure that all students have a place to sit to eat.

Parking Reminders:

  • No cars can be parked in the bus area from 8:30-9:00 a.m.
  • All cars must leave the bus area by 2:30 p.m.
  • Do not park in the fire lane or car riders pick up/drop off area.
  • Do not park in reserved spots or spots with cones.
  • Please be considerate of our neighbors and do not park in their yards.
  • Parking available in the overflow lot (grass lot).

Fall PIcture Retakes and Make-Up Day 11/17
Fall portraits ordered from picture day last month were sent home this week. If you would like a retake or your student was absent that day, please note that picture retakes and make-ups are scheduled for next Friday, November 17th.  The photographer will begin first thing in the morning and stay just until all requests placed online have been completed.  If you would like to order pictures, please visit HERE.  

  1. Enter your school’s name and select the state in the dropdown.
  2. Click on the link to go to the ordering site for November 17
  3. Review the package, a la carte and enhancement options available.
  4. Place your order!

Scholastic Book Fair 11/20 & 11/21
The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to TRES! The Book Fair will be open on Fall Conference Days: Monday, November 20th, and Tuesday, November 21st, in the TRES Gym. The Book Fair is a great place to buy your favorite books and winter gifts. Profits from the sale are used to purchase new books and materials for the media center and to host a spring author visit. You can also purchase items for teacher wish lists for classroom libraries. This is a wonderful way to support reading in the classroom.

  • Credit card preferred. Cash, checks and Scholastic eWallet accepted as well.
  • Visit the Book Fair Homepage
  • Monday, November 20 - 12:45 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
  • Tuesday, November 21 -12:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Students Invited to Participate in The Young Authors Contest
It’s back!! The Howard County Literacy Association invites students in grades 1-5 to submit their original poems and/or short stories to the annual writing contest called The Young Authors' Contest. Please see the attached Young Authors’ Contest Guidelines  for rules and submission requirements. All entries must have a completed YAC Cover Sheet sent as a PDF. Submissions (and cover sheets) may be emailed to our TRES Reading Specialist, Lauren Rifkin at lauren_rifkin@hcpss.org by December 11, 2023. In order to allow time for judging to take place to submit our winning school entries to the HCPSS level of competition, late entries cannot be accepted. All TRES student participants and winners will be recognized at a spring Authors’ Tea. Please feel free to email Mrs. Rifkin with any questions. Young Authors’ Contest information can also be found on the HCLA website.

Howard County Literacy Association welcomes parents as members.  Visit the HCLA Welcome Page  for information about joining.  

Order Your TRES 2023-2024 Yearbook Now
See TRES 2023-2024 Yearbooks. Please visit HERE to order.

  • You can order through March 22, 2024.  No orders will be accepted after this date. Please be sure to place your order if you would like a yearbook for your child.
  • This year all purchases will be assessed a $1.99 charge that the vendor must pay for credit card transactions.
  • Yearbooks will be distributed toward the end of the school year, once they have finished in production and are received at TRES.

Read And Earn A Sweet Treat
Nothing Bundt Cakes, located at 10730 Little Patuxent Parkway in Columbia, is offering a special incentive for students.  “Books and Bundts” is a youth reading program through which students can earn a free Bundtlet and an award certificate for each month they read 400+ minutes. Students should track their progress on the attached form below and bring the completed tracker to the store to receive their sweet treat.  Happy reading!

Books & Bundts.PDF 

Tracker.PDF 

Volunteer Training Required for Volunteers and Visitors
Anyone volunteering at school in any capacity, and parents joining their children for lunch, are required to complete volunteer training prior to their first visit.  Please visit HERE for more information.  Thank you in advance for your gifts of service and time.

TRES PTA

Thanks to everyone who made Reflections such a successful event. A big thank you to the PTA Reflections chairs, Janki Patel and Shilpa Jain. Congratulations to our Reflections winners below! Trophies were handed out at the Reflections Ceremony on November 8th.

  • Visual Arts - Primary: First Place: Sophia Zhang; Second Place: Norine Xiao
  • Visual Arts - Intermediate: First Place: Juliet Zhang; Second Place: Riaan Mehta
  • Photography - Primary: First Place: Walter Fliehman
  • Photography - Intermediate: First Place: Neel Kothari
  • Dance Choreography - Primary: First Place: Sophia Zhang
  • Dance Choreography - Intermediate: First Place: Juliet Zhang
  • Music Composition - Intermediate: First Place: Rhutam Kashalkar

Upcoming PTA Events:

  • Now thru November 16 - Square One Art: Students have created unique artwork that can be ordered through Square One.  Look for the catalogs coming home soon.  Get ready for the holidays, and order your child's art on a variety or products. Enter your child's access code or use the search button.
  • Now thru November 21 - The Giving Tree: Help support our community this holiday season with wrapped gifts and gift cards for families that need a little extra support and love! Labeled and wrapped gifts can be dropped off at the TRES front office along with all gift cards. Thank you to the TRES community for all your generosity and for making our Giving Tree a long standing tradition! Sign up HERE.
  • Friday, November 17– TRES Spirit Day: Wear TRES colors or purchase spirit wear HERE.
  • Saturday, November 18 - Retriever Run 5k and 1 Mile Fun Run: 9:00am. URGENT: Per the 5k police permit, we need 20 course marshals (we currently have 7). Please consider volunteering: sign up HERE. As a course marshal, you will stand (or sit if you bring your own chair) at a designated location on the race route; as soon as all race participants pass your spot on the course, you are released. NEW: A few volunteers will be randomly selected for 5k prizes. Register for the race HERE.
  • Friday, December 22 - Pajama Spirit Day
  • Wednesday, January 10 - PTA Meeting: 7:00pm (TRES Cafeteria)
  • NEW DATE - Friday, February 23 - Culture Night: 6:30-8:30pm. Please save the date for an exciting celebration of cultures represented at TRES and in our community! We are looking for participants to perform, provide a food dish, or host an activity. Sign up HERE.

Volunteers Needed for Walking Wednesday: Walking Wednesdays is a PTA-sponsored walking/running program that gets our K-5th graders' hearts beating faster as they run/walk for prizes during recess. This is 100% volunteer led and a great opportunity to encourage our children to be active as well as set goals and meet them. Please sign up HERE.

Collecting Photos for Yearbook: Email any photos for yearbook consideration to tresyearbookphoto@gmail.com. When you email images, please include some context in the message, including name of people in the picture, grade level(s), and event.

Finally, the TRES Lunch Volunteer Sign-Up has been updated to include November and December school days. Please consider sharing your gift of time and sign up HERE.

Community News and Events

The HCPSS 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.