Every week the staff at GCMS Elementary catches students that are BUGs (Being Unbelievably Good), and at the end of the week BUG representatives from each grade level are chosen. Here are this week’s winners!

Front Row
K = Ashton Lage, Wyatt Wooton, Hadley Elder, Judd Berry, Beau Augspurger
1st = Roy Schlickman, Lucy Brucker, Izaiah Nugent, Elizyn Marcos

Middle Row
2nd & 3rd = Hunter Weller, Jason Christensen, Ella Reynolds, Evan Killian, Adelyn Davis, Emily Vance, Zoe Wier, Charity Miguel

Back Row
4th = Bailey Grider, Will Mussman, Easton Stroh, Josh Garard
5th = Will Baillie, Ava Rexroat, Lucas Clinton, Keely Williams

The post 11/17/2017 BUG Winners appeared first on GCMS CUSD#5.

Every week the staff at GCMS Elementary catches students that are BUGs (Being Unbelievably Good), and at the end of the week BUG representatives from each grade level are chosen. Here are this week’s winners!

Front row-

The post 11/10/2017 BUG Winners appeared first on GCMS CUSD#5.

GCMS families,

Amazingly enough, winter is right around the corner and I wanted to reach out to you with information for your consideration.  Please take a few moments to read and understand the GCMS considerations for weather related cancellations.  Although last minute weather related cancellations are a burden on everyone they are sometimes necessary.  Please make arrangements for your individual situation knowing that they will occur, it is a matter of when and how often.  

Snow Days

Snow events are the most common days for school closings. Factors that are considered when deciding on whether or not to cancel school:

• Accumulation and drifting
• Icing
• Wind speeds (particularly for the country)
• Temperature
• Road conditions
• Forecast Estimates for continued precipitation

When these conditions are impacted I will consult with a number of different people: Township Road Commissioners, area superintendents, and our Transportation Director. There is no single rule of thumb for accumulation amounts and much of the decision depends on the presence of blowing and/or drifting snow especially on country roads.  Every effort will be made to make a decision and inform families as quickly as possible but a decision to cancel school and/or events will not be made solely on a forecast.

Temperature-Related Cancellations

Extreme temperatures are often a part of our winters. Extreme temperatures impact people as well as our buses. Factors considered when making temperature-related cancellation decisions include:

• Temperature
• Wind
• Duration and Timing of Cold Temps
• Safe Operation of Buses

Our key source of data is the NOAA Wind Chill Chart . When inside the 30-minute exposure area of the graph, attendance is questionable and dependent upon road conditions.

Before/After School Events

As a rule of thumb, if school is cancelled, all events and practices are cancelled.  The rare occasion where this may change would involve extra-curricular tournament play at the middle or high school level if weather conditions improve throughout the day.  Those situations will be communicated directly should they arise and will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.  Again, 99% of the time all events will be cancelled if a snow day occurs.

Parent Responsibility

Student safety is always our first priority, and we ask for your assistance by dressing students appropriately for current conditions.  Though I fully understand that a bad hair day can happen due to wearing a hat, please send your children to school with a coat, hat, and gloves!  

Also, if your child is driving, it is a great idea to equip them with an emergency kit just in case.  IDOT suggests always carrying jumper cables, flares or reflectors, windshield washer fluid, an ice scraper, traction material, blankets, non-perishable food, and a first aid kit.

It is possible that on a snow day your child may have been assigned work to complete.  Through the use of technology and advanced planning, many of our teachers will plan for the possibility of snow days by providing assignments or extra work should the snow day occur.  Hopefully this will help you combat students that are saying… “I’m bored” all day

Finally, making a decision about having a snow day is a difficult one.  We will use our best judgment and appreciate your support as we work to ensure student learning and student safety.

Notifications

We will always try to have a call that goes out by 6:00 am for snow days.  The automated system takes about 20 minutes to complete all calls depending on the number of schools closing at the same time.  We will put information out on our Twitter, Facebook, and website immediately for instant notification.

Sincerely,

Mr. Darnell

Superintendent

The post Winter Weather Cancellation Information appeared first on GCMS CUSD#5.

Every week the staff at GCMS Elementary catches students that are BUGs (Being Unbelievably Good), and at the end of the week BUG representatives from each grade level are chosen. Here are this week’s winners!

Front row-

The post 11/3/2017 BUG Winners appeared first on GCMS CUSD#5.

On Friday, November 10, 2017, the GCMS School District will be honoring Veteran’s Day with a special program. The celebration is open to the public and will take place in the High School Gymnasium, beginning at 9 AM. Veterans and their families are invited to attend a social hour and refreshments starting at 8 AM in the High School Library.

We will also be offering a live stream of the event. Links to the stream will be available on gcmsk12.org and our Facebook page.

As in past years, we will be including a PowerPoint of veterans from our community. If you have submitted a picture for the ceremony in the past years, the picture is already included in the presentation.

View the 2016 Veterans Day Slide Show

• If you would like to submit a picture, please follow these guidelines:
• If at all possible, please submit a digital copy (jpg, gif, png, bmp). Digital photos can be emailed to:
  [email protected]
• If you need to send a paper copy, we ask that you send a copy and not the original.
• Please include the following information with the picture:
  • Name
  • Branch of Service
  • Highest Rank Held
  • Anywhere overseas the veteran has served
• If you have any questions regarding the powerpoint presentation, please send them to:
  [email protected] or call Mr. Willis at the Elementary School – 217-784-4278

Please feel free to contact Mr. Kyle Bielfeldt with any questions at [email protected] or 217-784-8731.

The GCMS School District staff and students thank you for your support.

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