Parent Teacher Magazine Union County Public Schools Sept/Oct 2017 | Page 19
A budding author: Kensington Elementary School student writes book to help other students
Last year, Kensington Elementary School (KES) student Jaxon Glover, like many
first-graders, had a nightmare about a monster hiding under his bed. But, unlike many
first-graders, Jaxon had a plan to conquer his fear.
“I wanted other kids to know how I changed one of the nightmares that I had,” he
said. “So I wrote a book about my nightmare and gave it a happy ending.”
Although illustrator Rayanne Vieira’s vibrant artwork helped bring Jaxon’s book,
The Nice Monster Under My Bed, to life, his mother DeAundra Glover said her seven-
year-old son spent months working on it and going back and forth with the illustrator
to make sure that the monster and characters in the book looked exactly the way he
envisioned them.
“Our plan at first was to just stop the nightmares, but then it turned into something
special,” DeAundra said. “I felt like I had to at least try to show him that there wasn’t
anything he couldn’t do.”
Since publishing his first book, Jaxon has donated 30 copies to media centers
throughout Union County Public Schools. He signed every donated book with his pen
name, J. Cruz.
“Since he’s seven years old, he’s not about the money. He just thought that it was a
great story that could help other kids,” she said. “For Jaxon, he wanted anybody to be
able to check it out of the library and read it.”
UCPS Library Media Services Coordinator Lisa Phillips said other media coordinators
throughout the district have told her that their students love the story.
“His book is an inspiration to the other students,” Lisa said. “Because he is so
young, it lets other kids know that they too can be a writer or author of a published
book if they work really hard.”
Jaxon, who is already working on a sequel to the book, said he wants to be a chef
when he grows up. When asked if he ever plans to write a cookbook, his eyes began to
light up at the thought of the new idea.
“Yes,” he said. “I think I could.”
—This article was provided by the Union County Public Schools Communications
Office.
Bus tracking app is now available
This school year, Union County Public Schools (UCPS) parents will be able to view
the real-time location of their child’s school bus on their smartphones, tablets or
computers.
All UCPS families who have requested transportation services can access Here
Comes the Bus through the free mobile app or website. Parents will be able to see the
location of their child’s bus both before and after school as well as confirm that their
child’s bus has arrived at the bus stop, at school or both. Additionally, parents can
receive push notifications or email messages when the bus is near their child’s stop,
has been substituted, or when UCPS has important information to relay.
Available in three languages (English, Spanish and French), the Here Comes the
Bus app can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play. Please note that push
notifications are only available on iPhone or Android devices.
Here’s how to get started:
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Download the Here Comes the Bus app or visit herecomesthebus.com
Click the Sign Up button
Enter school code 74436 and click “Next” followed by “Confirm”
Complete the “User Profile” box
Under “My Students,” click “Add”
Enter your child’s last name and student ID number
Once you confirm your information, you’re ready to begin using
Here Comes the Bus!
Please be mindful that parents should still adhere to their child’s bus schedule. If
you have questions about your child’s bus schedule or student ID information, please
contact your child’s school. For more information, please visit the Here Comes the Bus
website (www.herecomesthebus.com).
Parent Teacher Magazine • Sept/Oct 2017 • 17