Talbott Springs Elementary School
Newsletter - 11/7/25
Greetings TSES Families,
We had a great time celebrating the end of the first quarter by playing schoolwide bingo at the end of the day. We have so much to celebrate! Our year to date attendance rate is 95.8%, our students are doing an awesome job demonstrating their RISE behaviors, and…the results for the Maryland 2025 School Report Card were released to the public yesterday. TSES is one of six HCPSS schools who had an increase in star ranking. TSES is a 4 star school! I am so proud of the TSES staff commitment to students, our students’ hard work, and support from our families and community! We appreciate your continued support and could not do it without you!
We are looking forward to parent/teacher conferences on November 24 & 25. Registration for scheduling opened today at 8am and will remain open until November 20 at 4pm. Please reach out to the TSES Front Office at 410-313-6915 if you need support with scheduling a conference.
Thank you to our PTA for organizing and executing this year’s Trunk or Treat. We had a great turnout from the community, and everyone had a blast! We are already looking forward to our next PTA event!
Carpool safety reminder: Please ensure that your child is buckled into their carseat before leaving the TSES parking lot. TSES staff are not allowed to buckle your child into their carseat, so please let the carpool staff know if you need a moment to secure your child before leaving. Thank you for your help!
Lastly, I returned from medical leave on Tuesday, November 4 and have enjoyed all the hugs, well wishes, and warm welcome back from students, staff, and families! Make sure to ask your child how they answered the prompt, “Mrs. Harmon is missing! Where is she?”. I returned to school with a book full of creative possibilities written by the TSES students. It definitely brought a smile to my face!
Leslie Harmon, TSES Principal
Please see below for this week’s newsletter.
This week's newsletter includes:
Important Dates
Flu Clinic
Young Author’s Contest
Trot for Talbott
Measure of Academic Progress (MAP)
Coats
Flying Eagles Volunteer Program
HCPSS Pre-K Program
Important Dates
November 7 - 20 - Conference scheduling is open for parents
November 10 - Report cards available to parents in Synergy @ 4pm
November 11 - Picture Re-take day
November 11 - Veteran’s Day - Wear Red, White and Blue
November 12 - Schools close 3 hours early. TSES dismisses @12:15
November 13 - World Kindness Day
November 17 - 21 - American Education Week
November 21 - Trot for Talbott during related arts classes
November 24 and 25 - Parent Teacher Conferences - Schools close 3 hrs. Early. TSES dismisses @12:15
November 24 and 25 - Scholastic Book Fair
November 25 - Dress Like a Turkey Day
November 26, 27, 28 - Schools closed for Thanksgiving Break
Flu Clinic
Dear TSES families,
Families were previously notified that HCPSS would not offer in-school flu clinics this year. However, we are pleased to inform you that the Howard County Health Department (HCHD) will provide free flu shots for students in our school as part of our School-Based Wellness Center (SBWC).
Our clinic will occur on November 19, 2025, and be available for any student who is registered for our SBWC and returns the consent form by Monday, Nov. 10.
For those who haven’t already done so, parents/guardians may register for the SBWC online. Once registered, students must return a completed consent form to the Health Room. The consent form is attached to this email.
More information on the vaccine can be found on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Check out the flier !
Estimadas familias de TSES:
Se notificó previamente a las familias que HCPSS no ofrecería clínicas de [vacunación contra la] gripe en la escuela este año. Sin embargo, nos complace informarles que el Departamento de Salud del Condado de Howard (HCHD, por sus siglas en inglés) proporcionará vacunas gratuitas contra la gripe para los estudiantes de nuestra escuela como parte de nuestro Centro de Bienestar en la Escuela (SBWC, por sus siglas en inglés).
Nuestra clínica se llevará a cabo el November 19, 2025 y estará disponible para cualquier estudiante que esté inscrito/a para nuestro SBWC y devuelva el formulario de consentimiento antes del lunes, 10 de noviembre.
Para aquellos que aún no lo han hecho, los padres/tutores pueden inscribir [a su estudiante] para el SBWC en línea. Una vez inscritos, los estudiantes deben devolver un formulario de consentimiento completo a Health Room. El formulario de consentimiento se adjunta a este correo electrónico.
Pueden encontrar más información sobre la vacuna en el sitio web de los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades (CDC, por sus siglas en inglés) de EE. UU.
If you have any questions or problems printing, please reach out to the health room 410-313-6918 or email lindsey_squillario@hcpss.org.
Young Author’s 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 Mrs. Mizia at Christina_Mizia@hcpss.org by December 15, 2025. Contact Mrs. Mizia 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.
Trot for Talbott
Get ready for some fitness and fun at TSES. Students will be participating in the trot during the school day Friday November 21st, at their related arts time. Families are invited to join their children. Parent volunteers are needed. Open the following link for more information and to volunteer: Trot for Talbott info and sign up English and Spanish.
Measure of Academic Progress (MAP)
Our students in grades one through five were recently given the MAP assessment for reading and math. Directions to access your child's scores can be found here.
If your child is missing a score, they were absent on the day of administration as well as the days the make-up assessments were offered. MAP testing will occur again in the winter and the spring. Please reach out to Dr. Lewis @ derek_lewis@hcpss.org if you have questions regarding MAP.
Winter Coats
As the weather gets a little chilly, it is time to pull out the winter coats! Please remember to send your student to school with a coat for outdoor recess. If your student needs a coat, please contact Jenny Rothenberger at jennifer_rothenberger@hcpss.org and we will make sure they receive one!
Flying Eagles Volunteer Program
Please sign up to volunteer at TSES: Flying Eagles Volunteers Sign-Up 25/26 — Signup Sheet | SignUp.com. If you have not completed the Program Trainings, you can do so here: Flying Eagles Kick Off Party - Google Slides. We have daily volunteer opportunities, don't miss your opportunity to become a volunteer at TSES!
HCPSS Pre-K Program
Families that have been affected by the federal government shutdown and who would not ordinarily qualify for the Pre-K program could now be eligible due to their current loss of income. Howard County families who have lost pay due to the shutdown, even those families who have previously applied and did not meet Tier I eligibility, may apply. If your family qualifies, the Pre-K program would be offered at no cost to your family for the remainder of the school year. Please submit a completed application and the required income documentation to: hcpss_pk@hcpss.org. Application submissions must include the required income documentation in order for our office to determine eligibility. If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Early Childhood Program by email at hcpss_pk@hcpss.org or by phone at 410-313-6836.