The Weekly Duck

 

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From School Administration

 

Dear Manor Woods Families, 

Our School Improvement Team has been reflecting on our School Improvement Plan to assess our progress toward the goals we set for this year. We’re pleased to share our quarterly snapshot, Measures That Matter, which highlights key data and provides a window into the state of our school (see section below).

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As we review all of our data, our performance trends are moving in the right direction. In addition to strong performance and growth measures, we are also proud to report an outstanding attendance rate of 96.9% for the first quarter. Learning starts when students are present to learn, and this achievement reflects the shared commitment of our students, families, and staff.

Looking ahead, our upcoming parent-teacher conferences will be especially meaningful. We hope you have taken the opportunity to schedule a conference with your child’s ELA teacher. The conference scheduling window closes on Thursday, November 20th at 4:00 PM. If you need help with scheduling your child’s conference, please contact our front office at 410-313-7165.

As we move through this month of gratitude, THANK YOU to the many students, parents/guardians who have recognized a MWES staff member with a shout out! If you haven’t had the opportunity to do this yet this month, please take a moment to recognize any staff member. The following is the message that has been shared the past two weeks regarding the staff shout out: This is always a great time to share our appreciation, thanks and gratitude. Reflecting on our many blessings and sharing our gratitude with others can truly make a difference. The staff at Manor Woods works so hard every day to make sure our students and families are happy and successful and we would love your help in recognizing our staff during this month of Thanksgiving. Will you join us in recognizing a staff member? Will you recognize any staff member who is making a difference for your child(ren)?

Please take a moment to recognize a staff member who is making a positive difference. Use this link to SHOUT OUT a MWES staff member: #MWES STAFF SHOUT OUT. We will share the SHOUT OUT with individual staff members as they are received. Thank you for your support in recognizing our amazing staff! 

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Kelli Jenkins, Principal
Jennifer Zinn, Assistant Principal

 

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November 

  • 17-21 - American Education Week
  • 18 - PTO Meeting, Media Center, 7:00 PM
  • 20 - Parent Teacher Conference Scheduling Window Closes
  • 24 - Schools Close 3 Hours Early
  • 24 - Parent Teacher Conferences ~ IN PERSON ONLY
  • 25 - Schools Close 3 Hours Early
  • 25 - Parent Teacher Conferences ~ VIRTUAL ONLY
  • 26 - 28 - Schools Closed for Thanksgiving
  • 26 - Parent Teacher Conference ~ VIRTUAL ONLY

 

 

MWES NEWS

 

AMERICAN EDUCATION WEEK

American Education Week is the week of November 17th-21st. Each year, we look forward to honoring public education and the many individuals who contribute to ensuring that every student receives a quality education.

American Education Week is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen our collaboration and partnership with families. We invite parents and guardians to visit the class during this special week. 

Due to school security, student confidentiality, and limited space, we ask our parents/guardians to follow these guidelines:

  • Only parents/guardians are allowed to visit.
  • To allow for the safe arrival and dismissal of our students, we ask for parents/guardians to visit between 9:00 AM - 2:45 PM.
  • All parents/guardians must sign in at the front office with Lobby Guard.
    • Visitors must bring a scannable driver’s license to access Lobby Guard.
    • Visitor stickers are worn in a visible location at all times.
  • Due to space, we ask that you limit your visit to one hour.  Ask your child  what part of the day they would like you to visit. See our master schedule below.
  • Be mindful of confidentiality while visiting. Visitors are responsible for maintaining confidentiality of all private, sensitive, and personally identifiable information they may see or hear while visiting HCPSS schools. Please click here for more information.
  • No photos/videos please.
  • Please silence your phone throughout your visit.
  • If you are joining for lunch, please understand that there may not be space for all parents to sit for our grades with larger numbers of students. Please ensure that all students have a place to sit to eat. ** Please note ~ Visitors are not permitted during recess per HCPSS guidelines.** 

Parking Reminders:

  • Parking will be limited, so please consider carpooling.
  • No cars can be parked in the bus loop between 8:30-9:00 AM.
  • All cars must leave the bus loop no later than 2:45 PM.
  • Please do not park in the fire lane at any time.

We look forward to welcoming you into our school to see the outstanding teaching and learning going on!

 

School Master Schedule

 

 

 

Information Worth Repeating

 

November Parent-Teacher Conferences

The Parent-Teacher Conference scheduling window will open on November 7th. Conferences will take place on November 24 through November 26.

  • In- person conferences will be held on Monday, November 24th only;
  • Virtual conferences will be held on Tuesday, November 25th and/or Wednesday, November 26th only depending on teacher availability
  • For fall conferences:
    • Homeroom/Language Arts teachers will be available for all grades.
    • Mrs. Parker will also be available for Math conferences for 4th Grade GT Math only. (Math conferences for all other grades/teachers will be available in February.) This will help allow for more teacher availability to meet with families in February when slots are limited.

Families will sign up for conferences using Synergy beginning November 7th. Here’s how to schedule a conference:

Log in to HCPSS Connect to view and select your time slot:

  1. Go to https://www.hcpss.org/connect/
  2. Select “Conference” from the left menu.
  3. Choose “Parent Scheduled Conferences” at the top right.
  4. Pick a convenient time slot.

Please view the following helpful guides:

https://www.hcpss.org/connect/guides/

https://help.hcpss.org/when-and-how-can-i-register-for-parent-teacher-conferences

If you cannot access HCPSS Connect, please contact the school at 410-313-7165  for assistance. The scheduling window will remain open from Friday, November 7th, at 8:00 am through Thursday, November 20th, at 4:00 pm. After Nov. 20th, families must call the front office secretaries directly to check availability and schedule a conference.

 

The Young Authors’ Contest

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 information about the rules and guidelines. Stories and poems must be typed and saved as a Word Doc or Googledoc. All entries must have a completed YAC Cover Sheet sent as a PDF. Submissions may be emailed to natalie_miskimins@hcpss.org by December 15, 2025. Contact Mrs. Miskimins with any questions.  All Young Authors’ Contest information can be found on the HCLA website.  

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