TRES Retriever Report November 21, 2023

Tue, 11/21/2023 - 1:24pm

Message from Dr. TRESler and Mr. Hiel:

Dear Retriever Families,

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving with our families, we wanted to share how thankful we are to be a part of the Triadelphia Ridge Elementary School community! We continue to be so appreciative of all of the support and teamwork the TRES staff demonstrates daily to ensure the well-being and academic success of our students. Our interactions with the students bring us joy each day, and we thank you for sharing your TREaSures with us!

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 22 - Schools closed. Virtual Teacher Conferences.
  • November 23 & 24 - Schools/Offices Closed, Thanksgiving Holiday
  • November 27 - Blizzard of Belonging Begins (see below)
  • December 4th through 8th - Hour of Code Celebration (see below)
  • December 11 - Deadline for Young Authors' Contest (see below)
  • December 13 - Early Dismissal
  • December 19 - Winter Advanced Orchestra & Band Concert; 6:30 p.m.
  • December 22 - Pajama Spirit Day

News and Information

Blizzard of Belonging Begins Next Week
Blizzard of Belonging is a school-wide positive incentive to promote classroom engagement as we look forward to the Winter Break. Our Blizzard of Belonging begins Monday, November 27th, and ends Friday, December 22nd.

During the Blizzard of Belonging, students demonstrating empathy and inclusion will receive a SNOWFLAKE, which they will deposit in their grade’s Blizzard Bin. At the end of each week, TRES staff will tally the SNOWFLAKES collected and this number will be shared through a school-wide Blizzard of Belonging (B.O.B.) Commercial, hoping to meet our school goal for the week. Along with this announcement every Friday, there will be the opportunity for a mini school wide celebration of inclusion, belonging, and positivity. In addition, teachers will have the opportunity for Weekly Chill and Stills to reinforce calm and mindfulness during this busy time of the year.

When students demonstrate empathy and inclusion, it reflects our four TRES traits (Responsibility, Respect, Integrity, and Care). Each week we will have a focus word with SEL activities including books, videos, and games. Below are our weekly focus words:

  • Week 1-Belonging
  • Week 2-Differences
  • Week 3-Tolerance
  • Week 4- Empathy

Cozy up and watch the SNOWFLAKES fall at TRES!

Hour of Code Celebration December 4-8
What is Hour of Code? The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. It started as a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code", to show that anybody can learn the basics, and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. It has since become a worldwide effort to celebrate computer science, starting with 1-hour coding activities but expanding to all sorts of community efforts. TRES students will be engaging in activities that week in their homerooms as well as in Technology class. Happy Coding!

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 the Retriever Run such a successful event! More than 330 people registered and over 45 volunteers helped! A big thank you to the PTA Retriever Run chairs, Claire Reinken and Erin Nichols. Thank you to Stacy Johnson and Nicole Rosewag for coordinating volunteer efforts. Congratulations to our Retriever Run 5k winners below!

  • Women: 1st: Maura Saul; 2nd: Julie Peitsch; 3rd: Savannah Knaup
  • Men: 1st: Dwane Morgan, Sr.; 2nd: David Morgan; 3rd: Dwane Morgan, Jr.
  • Kindergarten: 1st: Kate Campbell
  • First Grade: 1st: Lillian Reinken; 2nd: Kieran Gallagher; 3rd: Abbey Sinfield
  • Second Grade: 1st: Zayan Virk; 2nd: Rainan Joshi; 3rd: Joven Bajaj
  • Third Grade: 1st: Alex Jones; 2nd: Orcarsh Bhatia; 3rd: Roshan Gilotra
  • Fourth Grade: 1st: Beckett Marsico; 2nd: Christian Jenkins; 3rd: Mia Morgan
  • Fifth Grade: 1st: Nick Penix; 2nd: Navya Kuppalli; 3rd: Teddy Macri

A special thank you to our corporate sponsors:

  • Platinum Level: Your Journey Nursery and Daycare; Glenwood Acupuncture; and Chick-fil-A Clarksville
  • Gold Level: Technology Resource Experts, LLC; Vision Wealth Partners; CK Electric; Tiny Tooth Pediatric Dentistry; Dermatology and Advanced Skin Care; and Waterworks & Spas, Inc.
  • Silver Level: KidzArt; Western Howard County Soccer; McCABE RUSSELL Leading Family Law; Revive Physical Therapy; Ten Oaks Tavern; I Loves Me Some SnoBalls Sweets and Treats; and Sheldon & Sons Painting
  • Bronze Level: Black Belt Institute; Nora's Kabob; Kid's Time Out Drop-in Child Care; Starcom Design/Build; Mary's Land Farm; EC Diner, and S Martial Arts (SMA)
  • Generous Donations: Turf Valley Resort; The Pearl Modern Spa and Boutique; Sign Dreamers; Feet First; Kona Ice; Travelin' Tom's Coffee Truck; Magnus Chess Academy; Papa Johns; Giant Food; Costco; Autobahn Indoor Speedway; Dream Auto Detailing and Services, LLC; Lewis Orchards; The Charmery; and Mayweather Boxing + Fitness

Upcoming PTA Events:

  • Ending today, 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.
  • Gifts of Gratitude: More information coming soon
  • 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.