Forest Ridge Forerunner
For the Week of September 8-12, 2014
Website: http://fres.hcpss.org
Our phones are answered M-Th 8:30-4:15, F 8:30-4:00
School Hours 9:15-3:45 p.m.
Students may enter the building at 9:00 a.m.
Lunch price: $2.75, Milk: $.50
Dates to Remember
September
12 Professional Learning Day - No School for Students
15 Back to School Night for Grades 1 & 2 6:30-8:00 p.m.
16 Back to School Night for Grades 3, 4, 5 6:30-8:00 p.m.
25 Rosh Hashanah - Schools and offices closed
Principals' Notes . . .
Greetings FRES Community,
We hope you stayed cool this week amongst the humid weather conditions! Our students continue to be a joy! They are navigating their new grade level routines as if they have been in school much longer than 9 days. This is allowing our teachers to dive into differentiated reading and mathematics instruction sooner than expected. Thank you again for your great support!
We invite you to join us at the first PTA Meeting of the new school year next Tuesday evening at
7:00 p.m. in the media center. The FRES PTA is an excellent way to stay connected with your child’s education and school community. Hope to see you on Tuesday!
We are very excited about a new HCPSS system-wide initiative with spelling/word study instruction. A program called "Building Vocabulary" has been purchased for every classroom teacher in grades 1-5. You will receive more information about the specifics of this program for your child’s grade level at the Forest Ridge Back-To-School-Nights on September 15
2) and September 16 th th (Grades 1 &
(Grades, 3,4, and 5). Therefore, please note that teachers will not begin assigning spelling/word study homework until the week after Back To School Night presentations.
Enjoy your weekend,
Anne Swartz Danielle Shanks Jason Ortega
Student News…
Eagle Egg News
We would like to give a "shout out" to our first group of Eagle Egg Winners! They were:
Luke Dillingham, Silas Zathang, Caden Maynard, Brandon Kansagra, David Kim and Azeez
Aloyinlapa.
Our grade level totals were:

K - 756
1 - 484
2 - 673
3 - 326
4 - 521
5 - 182
Summer Reading Program
Congratulations to the following students for completing the Howard County Library's Summer
Reading Program: Gavin Baravik, Kenny Cordova, Diya Daya, Grade Edmondson, Amanda Giles,
Amanda Joseph, Judah Joseph, Jenna Kreh, Delaney Lortz, Madelyn Lortz, Sohan Modi, Timmy
Nguyen, Vincent Nguyen, Ridhi Patel, Nihar Shankar, Vishal Shankar, Sierra Stockstill, Latrice
Washington, Amanda Wickstrom, Emily Wickstrom, Logan Woodward, Molly Zorn.
Forest Ridge News...
From the PE Department
Parents, we need you! The Healthy School Committee is looking to add new members. Staff and parents will join together to provide information and activities to help make the Forest Ridge community a healthy place to learn, work and play. Our school was ranked on the Gold level last year and we want to keep FRES on top. Meetings will normally be scheduled for the second
Tuesday of each month or as needed at 8:25 AM. If you can't make the meetings and would still like to help with events please respond. If you would like more information about joining the group please contact Janice Goodwin at janice_goodwin@hcpss.org. Keep moving!
Reminders:
 Please let your child's teacher know in writing if their dismissal method changes and discuss the change with your child.
 Please remember to give your child a lunch or lunch money.
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If you must pick your child up early
PARENTS OF WALKING STUDENTS - For SAFETY reasons, we ask parents of walking students to review the following with their students . . .
If crossing Gorman Road, students should ONLY CROSS where crossing guards are located
(front of building - intersection of Gorman Rd. & Jean Court and intersection of Gorman Rd.
& Stephens Rd.)
Students are encouraged to walk with a group of friends to and from school.
Students should STAY on the main street routes and sidewalks. PLEASE . . . NO cutting through residents' yards or wooded areas.
FRES 5K Tablet Trot- Saturday, October 11th at 8:30am.
Come walk or run with us through the beautiful Stone Lake community. All proceeds will be used towards purchasing technology for our school. Our goal is to raise enough money to purchase iPads for teams of teachers to share and use for instructional purposes. We need YOUR help to make this happen! Visit: http://forestridge5kfundraiser.weebly.com/ for registration, pictures and more information. Or email: Ashley_Pietryka@hcpss.org

From our Band & Strings Teachers, Mrs. Curry and Ms. Ramis
Welcome back to all of the returning band and strings students! Welcome, also, to students who are new to FRES who played an instrument at their schools last year! Students who are in the 3rd grade are eligible to begin an orchestra instrument. Students who wish to learn a band instrument can begin lessons in school in 4th grade.
Fifth grade students who wish to begin learning an instrument: The band and strings schedule may not allow for fifth grade beginning lessons. It is recommended that fifth grade beginners study with an instructor outside of school in order to learn the basics and, when they are ready, join the second year students for lessons in school. Please contact Mrs. Curry to discuss this option.
I recommend that students and their parents take some time to talk with me before deciding which instrument is the right choice. Students need to obtain an instrument, method book, and necessary accessories to begin lessons. Generally speaking, the school does not provide instruments for band and strings students. Please do not purchase an instrument from the Internet or department store, as it will not be of the quality necessary for your child to succeed in lessons. It is crucial to your child’s success that instrument choice and brand is discussed with the teacher before beginning classes at school.
Beginning students will be learning about the various instruments during demonstrations in school during the next two weeks. Information packets will be sent home with all third and fourth grade students, and returning fifth grade band and strings students by September 11th.
Fifth grade students who played in the band in fourth grade will meet for full band rehearsals every
Friday, from 12:20 until 1:10 PM, beginning on September 5th. Small group lessons for fifth grade band students and all other band and strings students will tentatively begin the week of September
29th. All lessons and rehearsals will be held during the school day.
Our Band and Strings Information Night for parents of beginners and students who are new to
Forest Ridge will be held on Tuesday, September 16th, in the Media Center from 5:30 PM until
6:00 PM.
This year, we are delighted to welcome Ms. Catina Ramis to our band and strings teaching staff.
Ms. Ramis is a recent graduate of UMBC.
Please feel free to contact me at any time by email at: Mary_Curry@hcpss.org or call the school and leave a message. I will be glad to answer any questions you have about instruments, etc.
The deadline for registering for band and strings classes is Friday, September 19th.
Lessons are tentatively scheduled to begin the week of September 29th.
Important dates at a glance:
Thursday, September 11th - Information packets will be sent home by this date.
Tuesday, September 16th, 5:30 till 6:00 PM, in the Media Center – Band and Strings Information
Night for parents of beginners and new students.
Week of September 29th, band and strings lessons tentatively scheduled to begin. Each student will receive an individual schedule, which will show his or her lesson days and times.
We look forward to a wonderful and exciting year in instrumental music!
Mary Curry

Catina Ramis
Band & Strings Teachers
PTA News...
From the President
Hello all! This week seems to have flown. I can't believe we're almost done with two weeks of school already. Our PTA booklet should have come home with your child either yesterday or today, please go through it and see all we have to offer and ways to help within the PTA. We have some really fun things coming up in the next couple of months and the best way to get the info about all the happenings is to check out our website at www.frespta.org and also come to our
MEETINGS! These two places are where you will get the most up to date information and also be able to give input and become involved if you wish. Our next meeting is this coming TUESDAY the 9th of September at 7:00pm in the media center. Please come and hear what is coming up and be involved in making decisions on all our events. Look forward to seeing you soon!
Amanda Fields, PTA President
Summer Activity Sheet
If your child did school work over the summer through online sites, library events or with a summer workbook packet, please turn in the sheet that you received at the end of the school year from the PTA. If you have misplaced the form, just send a note with your child's name, teacher, grade and what they did to qualify for this program. Each child that completed the goal will receive a prize. Any questions please contact Archana Neidermyer at archneid@gmail.com.
KidStuff Books
Don't forget to order a KidStuff Book!! The valuable, family-friendly KidStuff Coupon Books are available through our school! We earn 50% or more profit on each book we sell! We are not sending books home this year as the letter states to ease confusion problems we had in the past. You can visit www.kidstuffcouponbook.com to see what coupons are offered or look through the sample books in the office. The cost is $25.00. Make checks payable to FRES PTA. We will not accept more than $50 cash and there is a returned check fee for any check returned by your bank. Include your payment in the provided envelope with your student's name and homeroom teacher and we will send the books home with them. **NEW**We can also take orders on our website at www.frespta.org. We will not ship so put your student's name & homeroom teacher in the note to seller at checkout. Sale ends September 19. If you have any questions email Lisa at frespta12@aol.com
After School Activities
Kidzart--All Grades--Wednesdays from 3:50-5:10pm. Sign up for the first session which starts on
September 10 and runs through Nov. 11. Learn to draw with KidzArt. You can sign up online at www.KidzArtMD.com or use the form to send directly to them. Space is limited and is on a first come first serve basis. See our website (www.frespta.org), if you need another flier. If you have any questions please email Shannon at shannonjmorey@yahoo.com.
Schoolhouse Theater--Grades 2-5--Mondays . Spots are still available for the fall production of
The Little Mermaid. Cost is $160 ($80 registration deposit is non-refundable, balance due at the beginning of the class). Save $5.00/child if you register more than one child per family. No audition preparation needed. All students will receive a part. Complete the registration form and

send in your payment in a sealed envelope with PTA Theater labeled on the front with your student. Make checks payable to STA (Schoolhouse Theater Arts, Inc.). See our website
(www.frespta.org) if you need another order form. If you have any questions please contact Nicole at mrcj327@verizon.net. Space is limited so do not hesitate to sign up. Dates & times of rehearsals are as follows: Rehearsals Monday – 9/22, 9/29, 10/6, 10/13, 10/20, 10/27, 11/10—
3:45-6:00pm; Dress Rehearsals – Thursday 11/13 and Monday 11/17 6:00pm; Shows- Tuesday
11/18 & Wednesday 11/19—Time to be determined.
Bricks 4 Kidz--All Grades--Fridays. Have you ever wondered how things are made? Or wanted to operate the big machines in a factory? Factories rely on special machines to help build, move and package the things we use every day. Come build kid-sized versions of these clever creations, such as a scissor lift, specialized conveyor belts and even a robot! You’ll learn about the engineering challenges involved in machine design and maybe be inspired to invent your own machine. Sign up today at https://my.bricks4kidz.com/index.php?action=location&location=194&view. Cost is
$75. The class starts September 26 and runs through November 7. If you have any questions contact Shannon Crider at scrider@bricks4kidz.com.
Website
Visit our new & improved PTA website at www.frespta.org. Vote for the first movie night at the bottom of our homepage. Votes will be tallied with those at next week's PTA meeting!! We have the calendar, forms, ways you can help, PTA booklet, helpful websites and much more. We are working on getting some opportunities to purchase items online in the future. You can also easily find our Facebook page from the site and email us if you have any questions or suggestions.
Community News
Introducing the Roving Radish!!
A pilot program offered by Howard County to bring fresh food to more people. The Roving Radish sells affordable healthy meal kits sourced from regional farms. The meal kit includes two recipes to prepare two meals for a family of four.
Each week they take orders for the following week until Thursday at midnight or until they are sold out. You can order and pay for your kit online at www.rovingradish.com. When ordering your meal kit you must specify your pick-up location. (Pick-up time and locations listed below). Recipes for the next week will be posted online on Friday. If you have trouble logging on, please feel free to call the number listed below and they'll do their best to walk you through it, or - if need be - take your order over the phone. They are limited on the number of kits at each location so order your kits early.
*To qualify for subsidized price you must have participated in any of the following programs in the last 12 months: Food Stamps/ Food Supplement Program (FSP) or SNAP, Women, Infants and
Children (WIC), Temporary Cash Assistance (TCA), Medical Assistance - Medicaid or Maryland
Children’s Health Program.
Price - $24.00/kit
Subsidized Price - $10.00/kit*
(one meal kit per household)
Questions call James Zoller 443-745-1058 or Jzoller@howardcountymd.gov

Pick Up Location Day and Time
The Bain Center Tuesdays
12:00 noon - 1:30 pm
5470 Ruth Keeton Way,
Columbia, 21044
North Laurel Community Center Wednesdays
4:30 pm -6:00 pm
9411 Whiskey Bottom Road,
Laurel, 20723
Y of Central Maryland Wednesdays
7:30 pm -9:00 pm
4331 Montgomery Road,
Ellicott City, 21043
Monarch Mills Tuesdays
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
7600 Monarch Mills Way,
Columbia 21046
Bridgeway Community Church Tuesdays
6:30 pm -8:00 pm
9189 Red Branch Road,
Columbia, 21045
Community News...
Cub Scout Pack 62, composed of boys from 1st-5th grades from Laurel Woods, Gorman Crossing, and Forest Ridge schools, is hosting a NEW SCOUT NIGHT for all interested boys and their families on:
Wednesday, September 3rd, at 7PM, in the Forest Ridge ES Gym. Meet pack 62 Cubs and leaders and ask all the questions you want.
Visit our Pack Website and check out our calendar at: https://sites.google.com/site/bsapack62
Questions? Talk to:
Bruce Schneider, Cubmaster 301-655-6042, BSA.Pack62.Cubmaster@gmail.com
Charles Carter, Assistant Cubmaster, 501-412-6260, charlescarter@gmail.com
Bob Kruse, Committee Chairman 301-317-7720, drbobkruse@verizon.net
Have a great week!