Weekly Update

Good evening, Farmland families,

I hope this email finds you and your family well. Everyone here at Farmland continues to prepare for the beginning of the year. Please read through this entire communication. There have been some updates to our staffing due to our Kindergarten enrollment and a few dates on our calendar. You will also see we have received our bus routes. Once your child is assigned their teacher on Tuesday, August 22nd, we will need families to fill out the transportation survey for each child who attends Farmland.  

If you know of a family who is not receiving my emails, please have them check their email address in ParentVue and their junk folder. If there continues to be an issue, please contact, Ms. Auel at Kari_R_Auel@mcpsmd.org.

In this update you will find the following: 

Below you will find the following updates:

  • Farmland ES Family Handbook
  • Changes to Enrollment and Staffing: Kindergarten
  • Free Computers
  • Medication Drop Off
  • First Day of School 
  • Dismissal Board Access
  • Dogs on School Property
  • Farmland Bus Routes Are Out
  • Farmland ES Meet the Teacher: Friday, August 25
  • Teacher Homeroom Assignments: Check Parentvue - Wednesday, August 23rd
  • School Supplies
  • Summer Slide Show
  • PTA Information
  • Upcoming Important Dates
  • Contact Information

Farmland ES Family Handbook:

Click here to access the Farmland ES.  The processes and procedures listed in the Farmland ES Handbook help us in our efforts to provide as safe a teaching and learning workspace as possible. As policies and circumstances evolve, this handbook may be updated during the school year. 

All arrival and dismissal information is in the Farmland Handbook. I will highlight this information in my next communication on Sunday, August 27th.

Changes to Staffing and Enrollment Updates

There have been recent updates to staffing for the FY24 school year. Please click here to access the staff roster and school map. 

Below are our current enrollment numbers. This week I was contacted by our Director, who informed me that we lost a teacher allocation due to lower-than-expected Kindergarten enrollment. Our new Kindergarten teacher, Ms. Little, was the teacher allocation we lost. This means we will have five Kindergarten classes this year. 

If  you know any families who need to enroll, please have them contact Ms. Auel at 240-740-0660 or Kari_R_Auel@mcpsmd.org.)

Grade Level 

Total Students

Number of Sections

Average Class Size

K

108

5

22 students

1

143

6

24 students

2

139

6

24 students

3

127

5

25 students

4

130

5

23 students

5

120

5

24 students

LFI

41

4

10 students

Free Computers!

Click Spanish or English for more information

Medication Drop Off

Our school nurse and health technician will be reporting to Farmland next week. You can email the school nurse if you have any questions or need to drop off medication. 

Nurse or Health Technician 

Nurse: Thamary Pfinayi    thamary_c_pfinayi@mcpsmd.org

Health Technician: Fafali Deegbe     fafali_m_deegbe@mcpsmd.org

First Day of School

The first day of School is Monday, August 28th. Our doors open at 9:15 a.m. and classes start promptly at 9:25 a.m. Students arriving after 9:25 a.m. will be marked tardy. Do not drop students before 9:15 a.m. or leave students unattended on school grounds. 

Adults walking students to school: please drop your children off at the flagpole. Staff on duty will ensure your child gets in the building. If you need to meet with a staff member, call ahead to set up an appointment. 

Please exit the grounds after dropping your child off at school. 

No cars are allowed in the bus loop between 8:40 a.m. and 9:45 a.m.

Dismissal Board Access

We use a dismissal board to call buses. Families can click on the Farmland Dismissal Board to access our bus dismissal board. You can see which buses have been called and when they left Farmland.  

Dogs on School Property

Please do not bring dogs or a pet on school property or the field during the school day. If you plan to walk your child to school with your family pet, please remain on the sidewalk with your pet. 

Please notice, Montgomery County Code requires pet owners to take their pet waste home with them. 

Here are the relevant Montgomery County Codes:

Section 5-203(a)(1)

Section 5-203(a)(2)

Section 5-203(a)(7)

Section 5-203(a)(10)

You can click here to access the MCPS Regulation.

Farmland Bus Routes Are Out: Transportation Survey Coming Soon! 

Click here for Farmland's bus routes.

Learning for Independence (LFI) bus routes will be coming soon and will be shared with LFI parents.

Click here for a letter from the Depot Manager (available in English and Spanish). 

Please click here to access the MCPS Transportation Website where the routes and information from the Bethesda Depot will be posted. Please do NOT contact the school for information about bus routes; all issues related to buses and routes are handled by the Bethesda Depot at 240-740-6580 with any questions.

Farmland ES Meet the Teacher: Friday, August 25th 

Meet the Teacher/Open House for Kindergarten

Friday, August 25th, 9:00 a.m. - 9:40 a.m. in the APR. Followed by Kindergarten classroom visits. 

This is a change from past years. Kindergarten Parents and students are invited to the APR from 9:00 a.m. until 9:40 a.m. Please enter through the cafeteria/Kids After Hours entrance. This is for Kindergarten families ONLY. 

The Meet the Teacher replaces Back to School Night FOR KINDERGARTEN FAMILIES ONLY.  

Meet the Teacher/Open House for 1st through 5th grades and Learning for Independence Program

Friday, August 25th, 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m.  

Parking 

Please park on Farmland Drive, Hitching Post Lane, or Old Gate Road.

Do not park in the bus loop or the staff parking lot in front of the school or block neighbors' driveways. Thank you!

School Map

Click here to access the Farmland School Map. On the first page of the Map you'll find a link to the staff roster, which you can use to help find teachers' classrooms. If you need help during your visit, please look for a blue-shirted Farmland staff member who will be happy to point you in the right direction. 

Teacher Homeroom Assignments: Check Parentvue - Wednesday, August 23th

On Wednesday, August 23rd, families will be able to check ParentVue to see their child's homeroom teacher assignment. Classroom teachers will email their students using Synergy and Outlook on Tuesday, August 22nd. 

Requests for classroom or teacher change will not be considered. 

To ensure you receive all notices, please check your ParentVue accounts to ensure all email addresses and phone numbers are up to date. For ParentVue technical support click here or contact Ms. Auel at Kari_R_Auel@mcpsmd.org.

School Supplies

Please click here to access the suggested school supply lists. 

Families in grades 1 through 5 can bring school supplies during Meet the Teacher. 

Kindergarten families, please hold onto your school supplies until classes have been finalized.

Summer Slide Show

We are collecting pictures of all the summer fun your family and staff have had during the summer. If you are interested in sharing some of your adventures with us, please click here to add a picture or two to the slide show. We will run this slide show during the first week of school to see all the exciting adventures students and staff had over the summer. 

Upcoming Important Dates

Click here to access the event calendar for the entire school year. 

PTA UpdatesReturning and New Families - We Need Your OpinionsPlease fill out this survey to tell us what you think about Farmland PTA (Parent-Teacher Association) communications, activities, and volunteering so we can use your feedback to make this school year a great one! Join the PTAAs you go through your back-to-school to-do list, please click here to join the PTA. Visit our website to learn about how the PTA supports our school and stop by to say hi at our table at the Open House and at Back to School Night.Popsicle Party on August 31, 5:30-7:00 pmGather with new and old friends and enjoy a cool treat at Montrose Park (451 Congressional Lane, Rockville, 20852) at our welcome-back popsicle party. Free for all Farmland Elementary families.Follow the PTAFollow the PTA on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates on what is happening in and around the school. Participate in the conversation in our Facebook group! 

Contact Information

Mrs. Longest, Principal, April_D_Longest@mcpsmd.org

Ms. Davis-Jones, Assistant Principal, Aara_L_Davis-Jones@mcpsmd.org

Ms. Harrison, Administrative Secretary, Theresa_T_Harrison@mcpsmd.org

Mrs. Auel, Registrar and Attendance Secretary, Kari_R_Auel@mcpsmd.org

Looking forward to meeting everyone soon!

April

April D. Longest

Principal

Farmland Elementary School

Office Phone: 240-740-0660