Week of 12/9 - 12/13

Hey Panda Family,

Week 16 is complete! I can hear the sleigh bells ringing 🔔 

 

Staff Meeting: Staff meeting this Tuesday @ 3:30. The agenda items are: Kay Pridgen dedication, AIG Retirement information, SIOP, I-ready updates, Staff awards. 

December 20: On Friday, December 20 we encourage all staff to wear your favorite holiday outfit! You may wear PJs, ugly Christmas sweaters, etc. We hope it will be a fun and festive way to end the week! 

Lesson Plans this Week: Lesson plans will still be due this week. I fully understand that you may have parties/activities that are going on and will take some time away from instruction. If you would please just make it clear in your plans when these activities are occurring.

Family Tree News Story: Click the link to watch the wonderful story Fox 8 did on our family tree! 

https://myfox8.com/2019/12/13/kernersville-art-students-and-faculty-create-family-tree-at-piney-grove-elementary-school/ 

Purchase Pre-approval: Reminder that per district policy we must have a pre-approval form completed for all purchases. The pre-approval form is a yellow form located in the front office. Even if I approve your purchase over email, you must complete a pre-approval form and have me sign off before you make the purchase. Don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions. 

Staff Updates: Please join me in congratulating Caryn Monroe! Ms. Monroe has accepted a behavior specialist position with Iredell-Statesville Schools. We hate to see her leave us, but we know she is super excited for her next adventure. Thank you, Ms. Monroe for everything you have done for your students during your time at Piney Grove! Ms. Monroe's last day will be this Friday, December 20. 

Matt Pisini had to have emergency surgery this week on his heart. The surgery was successful. Please keep Matt in your thoughts and prayers as he recovers. 

PBIS Gaming Truck: The gaming truck will be here this Friday, December 20! See below for your grade level time slot. We will announce when we are ready for grade level participants to come to the truck. The location of the truck is TBD. 

Time	Grade	# of kids	Supervision
8:30	K	15	Pizzino
9:30	1	11+ 6 of Brookshire’s	Musten
10:30	5	20	Medley
11:30	3	24  ** eats in classroom	Vaden
12:30	4	21	Rempe
1:30	2	19	Ball

Safety Update: We will have a community lockdown along with our monthly fire drill before we leave for break.  Please review procedures for a community lockdown with your students.

Spelling Bee (4th & 5th grade only): Reminder that you need to have your class representative selected by December 20. Please see Ms. Sweeney with any questions. 

United Way: This is the online link & the easiest way to donate to United Way: https://uwfc.upicsolutions.org/WSFCS We have met our monetary goal (currently raised $1,563), but we are still working towards 100% participation. As of Friday we had 67% participation from the staff. If we meet both goals then I will cancel the January staff meeting :) 

Winter Parties: If you are planning a winter party for your class please schedule it for the last week before winter break (week of December 16). Make sure to keep the focus of the parties more winter themed (snowmen, candy canes, etc.) than holiday themed; unless you plan to highlight a variety a winter holidays. We want to avoid highlighting one holiday over another. 

Staff Spotlight: Huge Thank You to Ms. Mabe & SCC for planning and hosting such a wonderful staff holiday party! 

Teacher Tuesday Spotlight: Our school Facebook page is highlighting a teacher each week! Our spotlight this past week was Ms. Gant. Check it out! 

Lesson Plans: Friendly reminder that Lesson Plans should be posted to the PowerSchool Wiki the first day of each week by 8:00am.

IF Updates

i-Ready: Diagnostic MOY window has CHANGED! The window is now January 6 to February 7.  REMARK your calendars!  Also, we will start an incentive program that will track hitting usage goals AND to highlight overall percentages of passing scores for each class.  Stay tuned for more details about this super program!

Istation: When writing your lesson plans for the week of January 6, don’t forget to include time for the Istation MOY benchmark!  This should be administered in a testing-friendly environment (quiet in the room, take a bathroom break before you start, etc).  If you need to borrow computers in order to make a complete class set, then just see your buddy class to work out a time. 

Upcoming Dates:

December 16 - WFU Women's Basketball game for 2nd, 4th, & 5th grade 10:00 - 1:30
December 17 - Staff Meeting @ 3:30
December 17 - PGE Skate Night @ 6:00
December 19 - Gardner @ AP meeting 8:00 - 11:00, Elkins @ Principal Meeting 12:00 - 3:00
December 23 - January 3 - Winter Break! 
January 6 - School resumes
January 7 - PBIS & Wellness Committees meet @ 3:30
January 8 - Spelling Bee @ 8:30
January 9 - FCAE Meeting @ 3:30
January 13 - PTA Meeting @ 6:30
January 14 - ELA Check-In & EOQ Test (3rd - 5th grades)
January 14 - SIT @ 3:30
January 15 - Math Check-In & EOQ Test (3rd - 5th grades)

Winner from last week was Ms. Gant! I will get you your prize :)

We had this discussion at a holiday get together recently: What is your favorite Christmas/Holiday movie? Please share in the comments below! Mine is Tim Allen's Santa Claus 🎅

Week of 12/2 - 12/6

Hey Panda Family,

We can check off Week 15! Inching closer to the holiday break 🎁

PBIS Gaming Truck: Enter your numbers for the Gaming Truck using the following link https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GnoI0AkCXGQeFYoAjF-329fZPk86378TloWIAEVfzgU/edit?usp=sharing by Tuesday, December 10th.

Safety Update: We will have a community lockdown along with our monthly fire drill before we leave for break.  Please review procedures for a community lockdown with your students.

Spelling Bee (4th & 5th grade only): Reminder that you need to have your class representative selected by December 20. Please see Ms. Sweeney with any questions. 

TOY/Classified Nominations: It's time to nominate our colleagues in recognition of the wonderful work they do each and every day for our Panda Family 😊 Please use the google form below to nominate a teacher of the year and/or classified employee of the year. Please communicate with your nominee to ensure they are interested in being nominated. Please complete your nomination(s) by Tuesday, December 10th. We will then vote based on nominations through December 13th. https://forms.gle/vWXnB3HAhnKWkMtk9

Early Release Day: Please complete the Early Release Day planning form that was placed in your box. The ER Day is this Wednesday, December 11. Completed forms should be returned to Mr. Elkins.  

Time Change: The time for the Winter Musical dress rehearsal on December 12 has been changed to 1:00. We will use the early release lunch schedule that day and all classes will eat in their rooms. 

Featured Teacher: I know it's a busy time of year, but if anyone has time to fill out the link and send Mrs. Jones a photo (email or text 407-2197) to use by Tuesday, she would greatly appreciate it! And it would be great to get a few submissions so she can be stocked for Winter Break. Classroom teachers, assistants, specialists, etc. are all eligible! 
Here is the link: https://forms.gle/UXmaMHbCwk2uXABW9

United Way: This is the online link & the easiest way to donate to United Way: https://uwfc.upicsolutions.org/WSFCS We have met our monetary goal, but we are still working towards 100% participation. As of Friday we had 61% participation from the staff. If we meet both goals then I will cancel the January staff meeting :) 

Winter Parties: If you are planning a winter party for your class please schedule it for the last week before winter break (week of December 16). Make sure to keep the focus of the parties more winter themed (snowmen, candy canes, etc.) than holiday themed; unless you plan to highlight a variety a winter holidays. We want to avoid highlighting one holiday over another. 

Staff Holiday Social: Staff Holiday Social will be on December 13th at 6:30 pm at "Liberty Brewery and Grill” formally known as Liberty Steakhouse, located at 914 Mall Loop Rd, High Point, NC. This event will be for staff and their spouse/significant other. Staff Members meal only will be paid for courtesy of SCC. Drinks will not be covered, but can be purchased separately (sodas, tea must also be purchased). Spouse or significant other attending with you will also order from the Set Menu. No payment needs to be made until that night. Please see the email from Ms. Mabe with more information. If you can attend please complete this RSVP - https://forms.gle/EN5yDB2BbjtTvGA79 

Staff Spotlight: Fox 8 is scheduled to air a news story on our Family Tree mural on Monday, December 9 at 7:15. It is also supposed to be featured on their website after it airs. Check it out! 

Teacher Tuesday Spotlight: Our school Facebook page is highlighting a teacher each week! Our spotlight this past week was Ms. Bolchalk. Check it out! 

Lesson Plans: Friendly reminder that Lesson Plans should be posted to the PowerSchool Wiki the first day of each week by 8:00am.

IF Updates

i-Ready: Diagnostic MOY window has CHANGED! The window is now January 6 to February 7.  REMARK your calendars!  Also, we will start an incentive program that will track hitting usage goals AND to highlight overall percentages of passing scores for each class.  Stay tuned for more details about this super program!

Istation: When writing your lesson plans for the week of January 6, don’t forget to include time for the Istation MOY benchmark!  This should be administered in a testing-friendly environment (quiet in the room, take a bathroom break before you start, etc).  If you need to borrow computers in order to make a complete class set, then just see your buddy class to work out a time. 

Upcoming Dates:

December 10 - SIT @ 3:30
December 11 - Testing Team Meeting @ 7:30
December 11 - Early Release Day
December 12 - MTSS Team Training 8:30 - 3:30
December 12 - Use Early Release Lunch Schedule
December 12 - Winter Music Performance 1:00 (dress rehearsal for school) & 6:30 (evening show)
December 12 - FCAE Meeting @ 3:30
December 13 - Staff Holiday Social @ 6:30 - Liberty Brewery and Grill
December 16 - WFU Women's Basketball game for 2nd, 4th, & 5th grade 10:00 - 1:30
December 17 - Elkins at Principal's Meeting 8:00 - 3:30
December 17 - Staff Meeting @ 3:30
December 17 - PGE Skate Night @ 6:00
December 19 - Gardner @ AP meeting 8:00 - 11:00, Elkins @ Principal Meeting 12:00 - 3:00
December 23 - January 3 - Winter Break! 
January 6 - School resumes
January 7 - PBIS & Wellness Committees meet @ 3:30
January 8 - Spelling Bee @ 8:30
January 9 - FCAE Meeting @ 3:30

A holiday prize goes to the first person who can solve this holiday riddle/joke: Santa went to buy his sleigh but he was surprised that it was free. How did Santa get his sleigh for free?

Put your answer in the comments section below with your name! 

Week of 11/18 - 11/22

Hey Panda Family,

Lucky number Week 13 is done! 😊

Early Release Day: Please complete the Early Release Day planning form that was placed in your box. The ER Day is on December 11. Completed forms should be returned to Mr. Elkins.  

Updates from Principal's Meeting: District is working with outside organization to evaluate school choice, looking to increase classified staff pay schedule, sales tax increase should increase teacher supplement, admin is expected to monitor weekly Istation (30+ minutes for tier 1, 40+ minutes of tier 2 and 3) & Iready (45 minutes in both Math & Reading) usage, State is in the process of updating Science and Social Studies standards.

Afternoon Bus Dismissal: We have an extraordinary amount of substitute buses and changes in bus numbers recently. Please help make sure that students are listening carefully to the afternoon announcements so they do not miss their bus.  

Time Change: The time for the Winter Musical dress rehearsal on December 12 has been changed to 1:00. We will use the early release lunch schedule that day and all classes will eat in their rooms. 

SIOP Sentence Frames: Here is the link to the wonderful SIOP presentation that Ms. Pereda shared: https://drive.google.com/open?id=17jTk2MLANevlTzcYkL1F09oEXgLjZQO725GVqP_EKDI

United Way: This is the online link & the easiest way to donate to United Way: https://uwfc.upicsolutions.org/WSFCS Remember if we get 100% participation and meet our goal of $1267, I will cancel our January staff meeting!

Winter Parties: If you are planning a winter party for your class please schedule it for the last week before winter break (week of December 16). Make sure to keep the focus of the parties more winter themed (snowmen, candy canes, etc.) than holiday themed; unless you plan to highlight a variety a winter holidays. We want to avoid highlighting one holiday over another. 

Paw Form Data Collection: The PBIS Team needs to collect data about the reasons we sent Parent Communication Forms (PAW Forms) home during the first quarter. The data will be analyzed and used to plan professional development based on our most high frequented area(s). The link below will take you to the tool.  Please complete by Monday, November 25. Thanks. 

https://forms.gle/C9speSB4Nzp1gS3n9

Paw Store Schedule: Paw Store began on Friday, November 22. Please see the email sent out by Ms. Gardner for your class' time slot. 

Class Science Fair Project: Just a reminder all classrooms should complete a science fair project as a modeling activity for students. Projects are due on December 3rd, the same day student projects are due.  Only K-2 classroom projects will be entered in the Science Fair for judging, but all K-2 and 3-5 classroom projects will be on display in the Science Lab.  Remember that pictures should not include faces and names should not be on the front of the board. (You can write your name on the back left at the top.) Board headings are Question, Hypothesis, Materials, Procedure, Data, Results, and Conclusion. Notes, research, bibliography, and special thanks should be in a folder and on display. Contact Bonnie Adams if you have other questions.

Staff Holiday Social: Staff Holiday Social will be on December 13th at 6:30 pm at "Liberty Brewery and Grill” formally known as Liberty Steakhouse, located at 914 Mall Loop Rd, High Point, NC. This event will be for staff and their spouse/significant other. Staff Members meal only will be paid for courtesy of SCC. Drinks will not be covered, but can be purchased separately (sodas, tea must also be purchased). Spouse or significant other attending with you will also order from the Set Menu. No payment needs to be made until that night. Please see the email from Ms. Mabe with more information. If you can attend please complete this RSVP - https://forms.gle/EN5yDB2BbjtTvGA79 

Staff Spotlight: I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone! You have all worked so hard this year and you keep plugging away each day for our kiddos. We are a true family, and I could not be more proud! You deserve this much needed break! 

Teacher Tuesday Spotlight: Our school Facebook page is highlighting a teacher each week! Our spotlight this past week was Ms. Medley. Check it out! 

Field Trip Calendar: Our Master Field Trip calendar is filling up fast! Remember, each grade level is allowed 4 trips per year or 1 per quarter.  Try to avoid Fridays.  All trips requests for the year should be in to Gardner before Winter break.  See the FT calendar across from Gardner’s office for open dates.

Lesson Plans: Friendly reminder that Lesson Plans should be posted to the PowerSchool Wiki the first day of each week by 8:00am.

IF Updates

Science and Social Studies standards: Science and Social Studies standards are being revised!  There will be a public comment time from December 13-January 13.  Please be on the lookout for district comment sessions so you can attend.   

African-American and Hispanic Infusion lessons: Rebecca McKnight is looking for teachers to work on infusion lessons for the district.  If you are interested, please email Rebecca and share a sample lesson plan that includes an element of infusion.  There will also be a short interview.  I hope that some of you will take part in this!

READWS presents “Why millions of kids can’t read”: This is an opportunity to hear from the author of the article “Hard Words” that went viral on social media, Emily Hanford.  She wrote and did a podcast about the reading change in Bethlehem Area School District in Bethlehem PA.  Free tickets for this event  Here is a link to reserve your free ticket.  I hope to see you there!

Is a student’s reported time on iReady not reflecting the time you know was spent in the program? If this is the case, then the student may be playing a game and not doing the lesson.  ONLY the time on the lesson would be counted in the time reported.  Please see me if you want more information about this. 

Upcoming Dates:

November 27 - 29 - No School/Thanksgiving break
December 3 - PBIS & Wellness Committee Meetings @ 3:30
December 6 - PTA Breakfast cart
December 6 - EFHS Holiday Program @ 8:40 (all grades)
December 9 - Testing Team Meeting @ 3:30
December 10 - SIT @ 3:30
December 11 - Early Release Day
December 12 - MTSS Team Training 8:30 - 3:30
December 12 - Winter Music Performance 1:00 (dress rehearsal for school) & 6:30 (evening show)
December 12 - FCAE Meeting @ 3:30
December 13 - Staff Holiday Social @ 6:30 - Liberty Brewery and Grill
December 17 - Elkins at Principal's Meeting 8:00 - 3:30
December 17 - Staff Meeting @ 3:30
December 19 - Gardner @ AP meeting 8:00 - 11:00, Elkins @ Principal Meeting 12:00 - 3:00
December 23 - January 3 - Winter Break! 
January 6 - School resumes

Share below your favorite Thanksgiving traditions or what your plans are for this year! I hope everyone has a wonderful break with their family :)