Patriots Family Newsletter July 2025

Posted Date: 7/02/25 (1:29 PM)

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Patriots STEM Family News

July 2025

Upcoming Dates

July 22nd: PTO Meeting 5pm
August 7th: Open House (last names A-M 5-6pm, last names N-Z 6-7pm)
August 11th: First Day of School
August 26th: 3rd grade Beginning of Grade Reading Test
September 1st: Labor Day Holiday
September 8th-12th: Book Fair
September 8th: PTO Meeting 6pm
September 11th: Back to School Bash (Curriculum Night) 5:30 - 7:30 pm

Save the Date Open House August 7th, 5-7pm

Back to School Information

Dear Patriots families,

We are excited to have students starting back to school on August 11th. It is going to be a fantastic year at Patriots and we can't wait to have our students back!

Just a few reminders to start the year:

Car rider drop-off begins at 7:45am.
The tardy bell rings at 8:15am.
Due to Kindergarten staggered entry, Kindergarten students will only attend 1 day Aug 11, 12, 13, or 14.
Kindergarten Staggered Entry days will be assigned the week of August 1st. Teachers will call to notify parents of the day.
All kindergarteners will attend August 15th.
Parents will not be able to walk students directly to class. Please drop off in the car rider line. We will have staff stationed throughout the building to assist students in finding their classrooms. Kindergarten parents will be allowed to walk students to class on staggered entry days, but we encourage parents to drop them off to foster independence and assist with morning traffic flow.

Thank you so much for being part of the Patriots Family!

Amy Peters, Principal

Car Rider Drop-off & Pick-up at Arrival & Dismissal

Starting on the first day of school, August 13th, all car rider traffic will need to enter at CC Griffin Middle School and travel down the newly paved road into Patriots.

Buses & Staff will still use the main Patriots drive.

Cars will exit the main Patriots drive.

Here are details about the route:

ROUTE MAP

VIDEO 1

VIDEO 2

Note: In afternoon only, we will use both lanes of newly paved service road to enter Patriots.

Also, please allow CC Griffin Staff to pass through to enter their parking lot.

Please note, in the mornings, if you arrive at the school after 8:15am, you will need to park and walk your child in. Students will be marked tardy if they are not in their classroom by 8:15. Drop off is allowed as early as 7:45am.

Additionally In the afternoons, if your arrive at the station where our staff is entering car rider numbers (by the Spirit Rock & gravel staff parking lot) after 3:15pm, you will need to park and come in to the office to pick up your student.

Parent Square Communication App

ParentSquare is the official platform for school-to-home communications in Cabarrus County Schools. Our district, schools and teachers use ParentSquare to communicate directly with families on a daily basis and in case of emergency. We strongly encourage you to download the ParentSquare app and register your account today.

Please visit our ParentSquare for Parents information page to learn more about the free Mobile App, where you can customize notification preferences to fit your needs and schedule, set your preferred language for automatic two-way translation and so much more.

School Supplies

Here is the link for our Student Supply Lists for 2025-26 for Patriots Elementary.

Supply List 25-26

Cabarrus County School Academic Calendar

As you begin to prepare for the upcoming school year, please take a moment to download our 2025-26 academic calendars.

For more information, please visit https://cabarrus.k12.nc.us/districtcalendars

Parent Handbook 2025-2026

Please review our Parent Handbook for 2025-2026 linked here.

Immunization Requirements

Information on required health assessments and immunizations for students are available here

Kindergarten Registration for 2025-2026

Welcome Class of 2038!

Kindergarten registration for 2024-25 is open.

https://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/kindergarten

Lunch Benefits

Click here to apply for free & reduced lunch benefits. We encourage all parents to apply, just in case you qualify for meal benefits!

LINQ Connect opens mid-July for families to begin applying for free or reduced meals for the 2025-2026 school year.

Lunch Visitors

We will start letting student have visitors for lunch in September. For the week of September 2nd - 5th, students with the last names A-G may have visitors for lunch time. Visitors must be listed in PowerSchool as approved contact. If you need to add a contact for your child, please contact the main office.

If you are celebrating a birthday, store bought cupcakes may be brought in . Cakes and balloons are not permitted.

Meal Payments on LINQ Connect

What is LINQ Connect?

LINQ Connect is a secure, online portal that allows families to:

• Make an online payment to their student’s meal account

• Remotely monitor their student’s accounts

• Set up automatic recurring payments

• Set up low balance email message alerts

• Submit an online application for free and/or reduced meals

• View online breakfast and lunch menus

How do I get started?

1. Register: Create an account at https://linqconnect.com and selecting Register.

2. Verify your Account: Verify your account by clicking on the email verification link sent to your email address.

3. Sign In: Now you can sign in at https://linqconnect.com using your email and password.

How do I add my children to my account?

You will need to add your student to your LINQ Connect account. Click on + then Type and complete the information to link your student. You will need to complete this process for each student you wish to add.

Where can I get more information or help?

Please see the attached FAQs for both desktop and app versions of LINQ Connect. Contact Maria Antunez in the Cabarrus County School Nutrition Department at (704)260-5554 for further information..

Parent Teacher Organization Links

See new PTO website here for ways to get involved & support our school!

Absences

When your student is absent, please click this link to access absence form. This should be completed for all absences. The form for educational opportunities is also found at this link.

Transportation Change Link

in addition to letting you child's teacher know about transportation changes, please complete this online form by 1:30pm. Click here to send notification about a change in transportation..

School Bus Tracking App

CCS is continuing to use this school bus tracking app. Parents can track their student's bus location on this app. Currently the messaging portion is not active yet, so if a sub bus is running it won’t show the sub bus number or info. But otherwise should be working to track regular buses.

Here are some links to get started using this app:

Edulog English

Edulog Spanish

Edulog Info Graphic English

Edulog Info Graphic Spanish

CCS Policy Code 4318 Student Use of Electronic Devices

On June 10, 2024, the Board of Education updated Policy 4318 Student Use of Electronic Devices. Policy 4318 is attached to this post. Please note the following important updates for the 2024-25 school year:

Elementary School: Students are not allowed to utilize electronic devices from arrival on campus through departure from campus. Students are required to power off and securely store their cell phones away from their person throughout the school day.
Middle School: Students are not allowed to utilize electronic devices from arrival on campus through afternoon dismissal. Students are required to power off and securely store their cell phones away from their person throughout the school day. Students engaged in after-school activities will have access to their electronic devices for communicating with parents/guardians.
High School: Students are not allowed to utilize electronic devices during instructional time. Students may use electronic devices during non-instructional times which may include arrival/dismissal, breakfast/lunch, and class change. During instructional time, students are required to power off and securely store their electronic devices away from their person.

Substitute Teachers Needed

We always need great substitute teachers for Cabarrus County Schools. If you are interested in serving as a substitute teacher, the information about becoming a substitute teacher can be found here Substitute Teaching in CCS.

Let Mrs. Peters know if you apply, so we can follow up. Email - amy.peters@cabarrus.k12.nc.us

How to Set Up Parent CANVAS Account

See directions linked here to set up Parent Account for CANVAS.

Parents can see classroom information & resources on CANVAS.

Rent The Rock

The spirit rock allows you to recognize a student, share your school spirit, thank a staff member, or any other celebratory event. This is a great way to spread positivity at our school. The spirit rock is located across the main drive from the bus parking lot.

See info here to "Rent the Rock": https://sites.google.com/view/psespto/rent-the-rock

Patriots STEM Elementary

Email: amy.peters@cabarrus.k12.nc.us

Website: https://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/patriots

Location: 1510 Holden Avenue SW, Concord, North Carolina 28025

Phone: 704-260-6230