Parent Newsletter

Happy September!!!

Welcome back to the 2020/2021 school year!!! It is with great pleasure that I begin my second year as the principal of Jamaica Children's School. I look forward to collaborating with and serving our Jaguar families. We have a fun and exciting year planned! There have been some changes to JCS physically with our school beautification project. We have two beautiful murals, many school spirit decals, some floor decals and a door wrap. We cannot wait for our Jaguars to come back to the building to see all of the changes.

The first opportunity to engage with JCS staff will be on Thursday, September 2, 2021 at 6 PM. We will be having a Jaguar Townhall for all JCS members. At this townhall, we will explain the procedures and policies that will be in effect for the 2021/2022 school year per the NYC DOE as well as various school policies as well. Please register in advance for this townhall. On the next day on September 3, 2021, join us on school grounds  for our Back to School Community Party from 12 pm to 2 pm.  Masks are REQUIRED and we will be following CDC and NYCDOE guidelines. At this event, families will have the opportunity to:

• meet some of our staff (new and current),
• learn about our school and curriculum,
• learn about and sign up for our afterschool program with Xposure
• play raffles and get free items such as bookbags
• put in orders for uniform shirts or learn how to purchase them online
• listen to music and have some light snacks

An email was sent out to all families regarding completing the online blue form so that we have the most up to date information in case there is an emergency. Please complete this form for each child that you have at our school.  You will be receiving communication from Ms. Ramgulam, our NEW parent coordinator regarding lunch forms. You can complete the form online on you NYSCA (myschools) account as well. Please complete these forms as soon as possible. This is how the school receives funding for various programs and equipment. 

We would like to welcome some NEW staff members to Jamaica Children's School. Welcome to:

• Mr. Leonardo Tabbita - Assistant Principal
• Ms. Sarita Ramgulam - Parent Coordinator
• Ms. Nahed Abdelhalim - Kindergarten Special Education Teacher
• Ms. Ayasha Parvinn  - K to 3 Science Teacher
• Mr. Aaron Samaroo - Third Grade General Education Teacher
• Ms. Bianca Jennings - Third Grade Special Education Teacher
• Ms. Heidi Anthony - Fourth Grade Special Education Teacher
• Ms. Reeva Reyes-Jones - Universal Literacy Coach

You will be receiving welcome letters from your child's individual teacher during the first week of school. In these letters, the teacher will outline the expectations of the class, the Google Classroom code, contact information, and more. Grades 4 and 5 have been departmentalized to prepare them for middle school. Students have one teacher for ELA and Social Studies and another teacher for Math and Science. Please see the list of teachers by class. 

As mentioned above, we have an assistant principal! Mr. Leonardo Tabbita is joining our staff this year from Brooklyn. He is excited to embark on this new journey with us and he is here to support all of the students, families and staff of JCS. 

We are proud to announce that we have partnered with an afterschool program. Their name is Xposure. They will be able to provide service until 5:30 pm. The program includes homework help, music production, 3D modeling/printing, film making, art illustration, broadcasting/podcast, dance, and athletics. The director will be at the Back to School Community Party. 

Important Upcoming Information:

• Commitment Ceremonies for All Students from September 28, 2021 - September 30, 2021
  • Commitment ceremonies occur at the beginning of the school year with students, staff, and families. At these ceremonies, all parties commit to the academic success of our Jaguars through communication, our core values, and support. Students are to DRESS TO IMPRESS at these ceremonies. 
• Check out all of our under events on the homepage Dates to Remember and the Calendar.

Did you know our school is ranked 7 out of all of the elementary schools in District 28 according to GreatSchools.org? Did you also know that we are rated a 7 out 10 according to GreatSchools.org?