Palms Post
March 15, 2026
https://www-ope.stjohns.k12.fl.us/
(904) 547-3760
Office Hours: 7:55 am to 3:45 pm
| "Our focus is the child." | |
Good evening families! I hope everyone had a restful and relaxing spring break. As we head into the fourth quarter, I would like to let you know that the Palms Post will be posted at the beginning of the month and the middle of the month. That way, you will have an opportunity to see all dates and some featured events going on around the school. Teachers will also continue to send their newsletters to give you more specific details about their classroom activities.
This Thursday evening, we will have the pleasure of sitting with Ms. Sierra Boyce and
Ms. Makenna Crim. They are our school representatives for the Outstanding School Volunteers. Thank you for their countless hours and heartfelt work that they put into Ocean Palms. It will be a pleasure to know that they are being recognized at this district event.
Speaking of volunteers...PTO, under the lead of President, Sierra Boyce, have been working tirelessly to plan the Spring Family Night on April 9 from 5:00-7:30 p.m. My wet suit just arrived from Amazon and I cannot wait to see who joins me at the Dunk Tank. We have several teachers and staff participating as well.
Please note that there are many important dates and information as we head into this testing season. Ms. Pellegrino is still looking for proctors and there is a Sign-up Genius, along with a calendar for planning purposes. If you have questions, do not hesitate to reach out to your child's teacher or Ms. Pellegrino.
Thank you for your continued support.
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March
23- Return to school
24- Rising VPK Night (5:00-6:00 p.m.)
25- Character Cup Tocoi High School
26- Battle of the Books
Report Cards to show up in HAC
SAC meeting (3:15 p.m. KRR)
April
2- Autism Awareness month
3rd and 5th grade field trips
3- Student/Teacher Holiday
8- Family Night- no homework/no tests
9- Spring Family Night
10- Individual Spring Picture Day
13- 4th grade field trip
PTO meeting (9:00-10:00 a.m. KRR)
14- 3rd grade and honor choir performance (6:00-7:00 p.m.)
21- Volunteer Tea and Treats (1:15-2:15 p.m.)
29- District Honor Choir BTHS- all day with Ms. Pharis
*Please watch your child's weekly newsletter from the teacher for more specific information as it becomes available.
| | Field Day was a blast! Thank you to all parent volunteers, Coach Korn, teachers and staff! Luckily, the weather was cool enough for everyone to enjoy. Each game allowed all students to participate and have fun. Even the parents seemed to enjoy themselves, especially with the Tug of War.
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Second graders experienced the unique opportunity of watching eggs develop and hatch as they studied embryology. The students participated in a 4-H Youth Development presentation with a hands-on experience. All chicks were delivered back to a farm living their best lives!
| We will have our first VPK Night for all rising VPK students. Please pass the word along on your social media or to friends you may have with rising pre-K children. | | Dear Parent/Guardian,
The Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) is a progress monitoring test that is administered three times per year to track your student’s progress in learning the Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking (B.E.S.T.) Standards. Your student will participate in the third administration (PM3) of the Grades three through five FAST ELA Reading and Mathematics assessment April 27- May 19th. Your child’s teacher will communicate the exact dates your child will be testing. The results from PM3 will show how well your student has mastered the grade level content standards. You will be provided with information about how to see your student’s results after testing is completed.
FAST assessments are computer-adaptive tests taken on a computer or tablet. The questions get easier or more difficult depending on how your student responds, and each student will see different questions from a common item bank. Each test (PM1, PM2, and PM3) has 35–40 items that cover the test “blueprint,” meaning students will see items that measure the standards within the subject and grade level. For more information about the test design, please visit https://www.fldoe.org/accountability/assessments/k-12-student-assessment/best/. You or your student can practice using the online testing platform or review sample items at home at https://flfast.org/families.html.
Please review the following policies with your student before testing:
- Electronic Devices—Students are not allowed to access any electronic devices, including, but not limited to, cell phones, smart glasses, and smartwatches, at any time during testing or during breaks (e.g., restroom), even if the devices are turned off or students do not use them. Students may not wear smart glasses during statewide testing, even if they are prescription glasses. Students with prescription smart glasses will need to remove them or test another day with standard glasses. If your student is found with an electronic device or is found using Bluetooth/wireless headphones/earbuds during testing, his or her test will be invalidated (not scored).
- Calculator Policy—For Grades 7–8 FAST Mathematics, approved handheld scientific calculators may be used. For Grade 6 FAST Mathematics, a handheld four-function calculator may be used. Calculators are not allowed for Grades 3–5 Mathematics.
- Testing Rules Acknowledgment—All tests include a Testing Rules Acknowledgment that reads: “I understand the testing rules that were just read to me. If I do not follow these rules, my test score may be invalidated.” Prior to testing, test administrators read the rules to students, and students click a box in the test to show that they understand the testing rules.
- Discussing Test Content after Testing—The last part of the testing rules read to students states that because the test content is secure, students may not discuss or share details about the test items and passages after testing. This includes texting, emailing, or posting test content to social media sites. While students may not share information about what questions were on their test, this policy is not meant to prevent students from talking about their testing experiences with their parents/families.
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Working Independently—Students are responsible for doing their own work during the test and for protecting their answers from being seen by others. If students are caught cheating during testing, their tests will be invalidated (not scored).
- Leaving Campus—If your student leaves campus before completing a test (e.g., for lunch, an appointment), he or she will not be allowed to return to that test. If your student does not feel well on the day of testing, it may be best for him or her to wait and be tested on a make-up day. Please remember not to schedule appointments on testing days.
- Testing Accommodations—If your student has an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), a Section 504 Plan, or is an English Language Learner (ELL) or a recently exited ELL, please contact the school to discuss any testing accommodations that will be provided for your student.
- Testing Irregularities—If a testing irregularity occurs in your student’s testing room, as part of a school investigation, your student may be asked questions to provide information about the incident. In addition, your student may need to retake the test if a suspected irregularity is reported that may affect the validity of the test results.
- Extra Time—Any student still working at the end of the allotted time for the session will be provided extra time, as allowed, to complete the test. However, based on directions from the district, students who are not actively working (e.g., sleeping) at the end of regular time may be dismissed rather than being given extra time.
If you have any questions related to this test administration, you may contact Faie Pellegrino at Olivia.pellegrino@stjohns.k12.fl.us or 904.547.3772
For more information about the FAST program, please visit the portal at https://flfast.org/fsa.html.
Thank you for supporting your student and encouraging him or her to do his or her best on the test.
Sincerely,
Ms. Altick
Principal
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Attendance, Early Dismissal Forms, and Change of Transportation Forms now go through Parent Square. There are quick links on the OPE website: https://www-ope.stjohns.k12.fl.us/
Request for Early Dismissal Form
Please fill out this form by 10AM on the day of early dismissal to request that your student be dismissed from school early.
Change of Transportation Form
This form must be submitted BEFORE 12 PM - No changes over the phone.
As per SJCSD regulations, students are NOT permitted to ride an unassigned bus.
Request to Excuse a Student Absence
- Submitting this form does not guarantee an excused absence.
- Please allow 24-48 hours to see changes in Home Access Center (HAC).
- Only a parent or legal guardian may complete the absence form.
- The form must be completed within 48 hours of the student returning to school.
If your student has accumulated 15 total absences (excused and/or unexcused), a doctor’s note is required for additional excused absences. Doctor’s notes can be uploaded on this form or can be sent to the school.
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Important Information Regarding Medication
- All medications (prescription and over-the-counter) must have a completed Medication Authorization Form or Medical Management Form for a chronic condition
- All medications (prescription and over the counter) must have a completed Medication Authorization Form or Medical Management Form for a chronic condition.
- All medications must be brought to school by a parent/guardian and received in the original container with current Rx label (if prescribed). All over the counter medications must be unopened and in the original pack.
- No medication will be given if presented at school in a plastic bag.
- Medication brought to school by a student will be kept in the clinic until a parent/guardian comes to the school with the required paperwork. Without the required authorization, the student will not be given the medication during school hours.
- At the end of the school year, parents are responsible for picking up their child’s medication.
All forms can be found on the OPE website under "Health Clinic". See the link below.
Health Clinic – Ocean Palms Elementary School
| Voluntary Pre- Kindergarten Lunch Menu | Kindergarten- 5th Grade Lunch Menu | |
Battle of the Books is coming up this week and Ocean Palms has several 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders participating. In order to qualify, students had to read at least 10 of the 15 SSYRA books for this year. There was a tryout process, where students took a quiz to determine their overall knowledge of the books. Ms. Happel built the team based on students who scored the highest on the tryout quiz. OPE will face off against the north end K-5 schools on March 26th via a virtual battle. The battle includes three rounds and students have 10 minutes to answer 15 questions per round. Each round contains random questions from all 15 SSYRA books.
Best of luck to our fantastic readers!
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Please join us for the next SAC meeting at 3:15 on 3/26 in the KRR.
The grade level with the highest participants by grade level was Kindergarten!
Thank you to all parents/guardians who completed the survey.
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To join PTO or get more information, please visit the webpage here.
Ocean Palms Elementary PTO - Home Page
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