Have you purchased your shirt for Walk a Mile with GCISD? The online store is open through April 10 to ensure delivery by the May 7 event. Walk a Mile is an evening for families & community to spend time together while walking the track at Mustang Panther Stadium.
https://gcisdwalkamile.itemorder.com/shop/home/
The GCISD Walk of Honor is accepting nominations for individuals who have become an important part of the GCISD story. These nominees should be those who have brought distinction, honor and excellence to the district. Do you have someone in mind who fits this description? Nominate them by May 1: https://gcisdwalkofhonor.com/nominate/
Thank you to The University of Texas at Arlington for bringing a physicist to visit with Cross Timbers Middle School ASPIRE students. Dr. Yue Deng shared the science behind the upcoming total eclipse and educated students on how they can use their love of science in their future career paths. #WeAreGCISD
Don't miss out on your chance to make your voice heard! 📢 Tomorrow, April 4, is the LAST day to register to vote before the May 4 election. Visit VoteTexas.gov for information on how to register. #WeAreGCISD
It's time for another Teacher Tidbit Tuesday, and today we're featuring Matt Cooke! Matt was born in Goldthwaite, Texas, and moved to Arlington at age 3. He attended Arlington ISD and developed a love for sports at a young age. He played football, baseball and golf in high school, but his main focus was baseball.
Mr. Cooke received a few small school scholarship offers to play baseball in college, but ultimately decided to walk on at the University of Texas at Arlington where he eventually received his degree.
Mr. Cooke been teaching for 10 years, but this is his first year at Cross Timbers; we were lucky to snag him! During those 10 years, he has coached football, basketball, soccer and track.
Matt is an avid local sports fan of the Rangers, Cowboys, Mavericks and Stars and
he enjoys traveling. His favorite country so far has been Iceland, and his favorite place to visit in the U.S. is Colorado. He also enjoys hiking, playing golf, and generally just being outdoors.
Matt's family is the most important thing to him. He has been married for 5 years to Chelsea, and they have 1 son, Hudson. They love Grapevine and you can often find them around Main Street or enjoying dinner on a patio somewhere.
We are so thankful that Matt found his way to the Wolf Pack!
Are you going to the next Community Bond Presentation? Join us tonight, April 2, at 6 p.m. in the Heritage Middle School cafeteria to learn more about the 2024 GCISD Bond planning process, propositions and tax rate impact. We hope to see you there! #WeAreGCISD
Did you know that GCISD has its own app? The app is your one-stop-shop for all things GCISD. The event section shows a list of events throughout the district. The Live Feed is where you'll find updates from your child's school. Never miss a thing by downloading the GCISD app! Android-https://tinyurl.com/GCISD-APP
Apple- https://tinyurl.com/GCISD-APP-APPLE
It’s time for another edition of Teacher Tidbit Tuesday!
Megan Ferreira was born in Dallas, TX and attended school at HMS and CHHS. While at CHHS she was in band (played the french horn), AV Tech (she got to run the jumbotron at the stadium during football games), and was a spirit sister her senior year. It was always a dream to come back and teach in GCISD.
Mrs. Ferreira attended Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi for an education degree (the school is technically on its own little island!) She quickly realized elementary was not for her, so decided to focus on math and it was the hardest course load she ever experienced, which makes her such a great teacher for those who struggle with maths! While in college she joined Gamma Phi Beta and through that organization was able to take on leadership positions like being the Panhellenic President in 2018 and getting to run recruitment outside of her sorority, which really grew her love and appreciation for organizations like these, providing homes away from home for college students as well as support in academics and professional growth. After graduating Megan taught in Dallas ISD for 2 years until FINALLY getting the opportunity to come back to GCISD (dream come true!)
Megan met her husband in 2020 and they got married in 2023 (they just celebrated their 1 year anniversary in March!) They have a shih tzu named Benny (4 years old) who is their child at the moment and love of their lives. She loves reading, watching reality tv, and puzzles (but like the hard kind that scare this humble, local librarian.)
We are so thankful that Megan found her way back to GCISD and is part of our Wolf Pack!
This week is Hope Week. The purpose of Hope Week is to, in an age appropriate way, bring awareness to mental health and suicide prevention. Fun activities will be hosted by the CTMS Hope Squad throughout the week focusing on promoting health, wellness and building connections.
⭐ Have you heard of the Stars of GCISD program? ⭐
If you know of a GCISD employee who always puts their best foot forward for students, nominate them for this award! Your nomination will be entered into a monthly selection for the Star of GCISD award and the nominee will be celebrated at their campus or in their department. Learn more: www.gcisd.net/starsofgcisd
Have you heard of SMART Tag?
GCISD Transportation Services Department uses the Secured Mobility Authorized Ridership Technology (SMART) tag system to support student safety by providing accurate, real-time updates for students riding the bus. When parents need to know where their students are, this system provides timely updates.
Learn more and sign up for the SMART Tag Parent Portal:
https://www.gcisd.net/page/smart-tag-system
For this week's Teacher Tidbit Tuesday, we're continuing our introductions to our ladies in the Fine Arts department. Today we have our favorite choir teacher, Gina Ramon! Gina Ramon was born in McAllen, TX and was humming tunes before she could talk. Her love of music began when she got her first acoustic guitar in the 4th grade. There was no question when it came time to choose an elective in middle school, she knew Choir would be her second home through her Senior year of high school! As her love for music grew, she began to pick up performing gigs around her hometown and would sing and play covers and originals at local coffee shops and other performance venues. The renowned music school at the University of North Texas brought her to Denton and she began her undergraduate degree in Music Education with a concentration in voice. While at UNT, Mrs. Ramon took supplementary voice lessons, participated in the collegiate choirs, as well as the UNT jazz choirs. She travelled to Budapest, Hungary and spent a few days learning at the Kodaly Institute in Kecskemét, Hungary. Mrs. Ramon and her husband Alex, who is a percussion director in Wylie ISD, enjoy listening to live music whenever they can, camping and being outside, and spending time with their rescue pitbull, Max. They are expecting their first baby this upcoming August! Mrs. Ramon is so grateful for her students and colleagues in the Wolf Pack and is excited to continue to share music with her current and future choir kids, and we are so thankful for her and the program that she's built.
Math Telescoping
Testing opportunities for telescoping in Math for the 2024-2025 school year are available in the summer for GCISD students who are completing Grades K-7.
The Parent Information Packet will be available on the District website under the Parents tab by selecting the link for Acceleration Exams, Grades K-7.
The packet will contain the registration form. Payment is made online following the submission of the form.
Parents will also be able to view the TEKS on the TEA website and download Study Guides for the exams purchased from the University of Texas at Austin, UT High School.
Registration for the June exam administration is March 18 - April 1, 2024.
Matemáticas Telescópicas
Registration for the July exam administration is June 10 - 21, 2024.
Las oportunidades de exámenes para “telescoping”(*El término 'Telescoping' se refiere a un proceso por el cual un estudiante puede avanzar en matemáticas más allá de su nivel del grado inscrito.) en matemáticas para el año escolar 2024-2025 están disponibles en el verano para los estudiantes de GCISD que están completando los grados K-7.
El paquete de información para padres estará disponible en el sitio web del distrito en la página de los Padres seleccionando el enlace para Exámenes de aceleración, grados K-7.
El paquete tendrá el formulario de registro. El pago se realiza en línea después del envío del formulario.
Los padres también podrán ver los TEKS en el sitio web de TEA y descargar guías de estudio para los exámenes comprados en la escuela secundaria de la Universidad de Texas en Austin, UT.
La inscripción para la administración del examen de junio es del 18 de marzo al 1 de abril de 2024.
La inscripción para la administración del examen de julio es desde el 10 al 21 de junio del 2024.
Last night, the first community bond presentation was held at Colleyville Middle School. Community members joined us to learn more about the 2024 GCISD Bond planning process, propositions and tax rate impact.
Are you ready to learn more? Our next community presentation will be held on March 26, at 6 p.m. at Cross Timbers Middle School. #WeAreGCISD
Calling all dancers! Silver Dancer auditions are right around the corner!
Congratulations to the two Cross Timber Middle School teams that recently participated in the Affiliate Level Mid-Cities Destination Imagination tournament hosted by Haltom Middle School. The teams placed first and second in their challenges, which qualified them for the Lone Star Finals State Tournament. The tournament will be held at The University of Texas at Arlington on April 12 and 13. Congratulations wolves! #WeAreGCISD
Now that Facebook is back up and running, it's time for Teacher Tidbit Tuesday!
Courtney Robertson was born in Graham, Texas, and began Theatre at age 3 in Theatrical Ballet. She participated in productions of Swan Lake, The Wizard of Oz, and more, and started musical theatre in 4th grade by participating in Theatre with the local high school.
Mrs. Robertson, or as she's known around CTMS, Mrs. Robo attended Texas Tech University in 2006, and gained a BA in Theatre Arts with a minor in Education. She taught in small high schools such as Graham and Krum before coming to work at GCISD.
In addition to Theatre, Robo is passionate about cooking and travel. She participates in yearly challenges to push herself culinarily (this year she is working on pairing meals with her favorite movies and television shows!) She especially loves to cook with her husband, Craig, who is also a middle school Theatre teacher, and her daughter, Dot.
And, your humble, local librarian can attest to those baking and cooking skills. Robo is the defending champion in our Annual Cookie Competition for Most Unique Cookie, and this year, in our inaugural Dip Dip Hurray event she won Most Unique Dip!
We are so thankful that Mrs. Robo has brought her unique skills (both in Theatre and the kitchen) to the Wolf Pack!
It's time for another Teacher Tidbit Tuesday!
Michelle Marinangel was born in Florida, but moved to Southlake, TX at age 7 and grew up attending school close by in Carroll ISD. With a love of the ocean since she was little, Ms. Marinangel chose to study Marine Biology at Texas A&M University at Galveston and enjoyed all her classes and finally found friends that loved the unique creatures in the ocean and its mystery just as fascinating as she did.
Michelle spent about 7 years in informal science education and the world of marine biology before coming to work at GCISD. She worked to make sure baby sea turtles made their way to the ocean on the shores of Alabama, educated guests at Walt Disney World about animals and the environment, and spent many summers snorkeling, swimming, and trekking through swamps in Florida while educating young kids about marine research, Florida's wildlife, and nature.
Michelle loves to travel and has been blessed to travel to many beautiful countries and places! She tends to gravitate towards visiting beautiful landscapes and nature and seeing wildlife (especially cetaceans!). This past summer, she did a three week road trip through the western USA, and visited Yellowstone, Glacier National Park, Colorado, and New Mexico. One of her favorite parts of the trip was seeing 10 different geysers erupt within about a 6 hour time span. It was magical!
Ms. Marinangel has loved teaching our students biology here at Cross Timbers for the past 4 years, and we are so thankful that she's part of the Pack!
Join us for the CTMS PTA General Meeting on Monday, February 26 at 8:30 a.m. in the CTMS library. In addition to typical business, we will have a short presentation over the GCISD bond.
