Sunday, August 16, 2020

Week of 8/10 - 8/14

Hey Panda Family,

Welcome back! It was so great seeing everyone this week. You have hit the ground running, and we have been so amazed at how hard everyone is working to make the start of the year as smooth and "normal" as possible. Remember, it may be a rollercoaster at times but we are on this ride together!🐼


Ms. Harman: Please keep Ms. Harman in your thoughts and prayers this week as she undergoes surgery. Her surgery is on Tuesday. Erin, your fight and positive attitude has been an inspiration to all of us! 

Opening Staff Meeting: Here is the link to the Opening Staff Meeting Presentation. It has all the vital information to begin the year - Opening Staff Meeting

Fire Drill: We still must have a fire drill during the first week of school. We will have our fire drill on Tuesday, August 18 @ 8:00. 

Testing Code of Ethics Training on Friday, August 21 @ 2:00: District is requiring that we have a staff meeting the first week of school. We are going to go ahead and complete our Testing Code of Ethics training during this meeting. Other than normal Q & A, this will be the only item on our meeting agenda. The meeting will be @ 2:00 on Friday, August 21. I will send out a MS Teams link. 

NCEES Evaluation Orientation: Certified staff, please complete the NCEES Evaluation Orientation as discussed in the opening staff meeting. Please use August 11 as your orientation date. 

Required HR Videos: Below is information about required training for employees that must be completed by September 1, 2020. 

Environmental 

Safety Data Sheets (GHS) (19 min.) 

https://winstonsalemforsyth-nc.safeschools.com/courses/details/COURSE-SAFETY_DATA_SHEETS 


Health 

Blood-borne Pathogen Exposure Prevention (Teachers and Administration)  (19-23 min.) 

https://winstonsalemforsyth-nc.safeschools.com/courses/details/COURSE-BBP 

  • Please select the video that pertains to your position in the school system.  

Active Shooter (17 min.) 

https://vimeopro.com/rsmanimation/north-carolina-active-shooter 

  • If it asks for a password, use rsmaccess 

Employees are also required to watch 3 videos on COVID-19 safety.   

 

Part I – Employee Health & Safety 

Part II – Updated Health & Safety Information & Employee Leaves 

Part II – Social & Emotional Wellness 


The videos are located on the Employee Safety Training page on the HR website.  After viewing each training, please complete this short acknowledgment of completion form. 


SCC & PTA: Please don't forget to join both SCC & PTA. Both organizations do so much to support our staff. 

Class Dojo: Thank you to those who have shared their Dojo class with me and Ms. Gardner. If you haven't shared yours yet, please do so as soon as possible. 

Lesson Plans & PLTs: Lesson plans will be submitted & PLTs will start the week of August 24. 

Student Attendance: Here is a quick help guide for recording student attendance during Remote Learning - Student Attendance during Remote Learning

First Day of School Parade: If you would like to participate in the First Day of School parade we will meet in the front bus lot at 7:50 on Monday morning (this is optional). Wear your new black PGE panda shirt! I do ask that only staff participate in the First Day Parade. I feel it will send a mixed message to families if we have multiple staff children out of their car standing with us. Thank you for your help with this.

QR Codes: I know there has been some concern and issues with logging in to NC EdCloud. Don't hesitate to print your student's QR code and send them home in your material packets. 

Material Pick-up: Please make sure your grade level has scheduled a material pick-up time for this upcoming week with your families. This is for tangible materials that need to go home (agendas, consumable workbooks, QR codes, manipulatives, etc.). If you plan to leave your items in the office for pick-up please let the front office staff know. 

Color Days: We will have virtual color days to kick-off the year as we help our Kindergarten students learn their colors. Feel free to have your class participate as well as a fun activity to begin the year. Here are the dates: 8/19 Green, 8/20 Yellow, 8/21 Brown, 8/24 Black, 8/25 Pink, 8/26 Orange, 8/27 Purple, 8/28 Red, White, Blue

Staffing Updates: Beginning this week, Ms. Faith from the cafeteria will be assisting Jose with custodial duties for the first nine weeks. District office has reassigned most of the child nutrition staff to work in other roles during Remote Learning. Please join me in welcoming Ms. Faith to this role. It is with a heavy heart that I let you know our EC teacher allotment was reduced by one this past week. Ms. Barneycastle has been transferred to another school in our district. We absolutely hate to lose any of our family members, but I know Ms. B will serve her new students with the same passion that she brought to Piney Grove. Thank you for everything, Ms. Barneycastle. I also wanted to let you know that Ms. Allison Lam will be split between us and the Virtual Academy. Ms. Lam will continue to serve our students in the EC Resource role, but due to our numbers she will also serve students from the VA too. Ms. Lam will continue to work full-time from our building, so if you need her you won't have to go far to find her :) 

Staff Spotlight: I could go on and on and on this week. Here are just a few that really stuck out - Ms. Epperley and the technology distribution team. We gave out well over 300 Chromebooks this week and we couldn't have done it without each of you! Ms. Jones for doing a Class Dojo help session for the staff and helping with this school-wide adoption! Ms. Phillips for making how-to videos to help with MS Teams! Lastly, we got our EL progress data from last school year and we have the 6th highest progress rate among elementary schools for our EL students. Way to go Ms. Pereda and all the teachers that have served these students!  

IF Updates

PD Updates: It seems as though most subject areas have posted recordings of their PD sessions on their Canvas pages under Professional Development.  If you need to watch one, check it out there.  

Helpful signs from Ms. Finley: Check out these cute little signs!  You can use them to remind the students of how to use MS Teams.  I have printed a few of the mute/unmute, video on/video off, leave call, and chat signs.  Please feel free to print the entire set of buttons from this link, or swing by my room to pick up a copy of the signs. 


Upcoming Dates:

August 17 - First Day Parade @ 8:00
August 17 - All classes will login for Live meeting @ 9:30
August 18 - Fire Drill @ 8:00
August 21 - Complete Committee Sign-up - Committees 2020-2021
August 21 - Testing Code of Ethics Meeting @ 2:00
August 24 - Lesson Plans submitted by 8:30
August 24 - Live Whole Group & Live Specials begin this week (review instruction only)
August 24 - PLTs begin this week
August 24 - Staff Children may report to socially distance classrooms to be supervised
August 28 - 4th Grade ELA BOY Iready assessment window opens
August 31 - Full Remote Schedule will begin (new instruction can begin)
August 31 - Complete Cumulative Folder Check (share with Elkins & Gardner)
September 1 - PBIS & MTAC Committees meet @ 3:30
September 3 - Staff PD training @ 3:30
September 7 - No School (Labor Day)
September 8 - SIT @ 3:30
September 14 - Iready ELA BOY window opens for K-3 & 5th grade
September 15 - Staff Meeting @ 3:30
September 21 - Iready Math BOY window opens for K-5
September 22 - SCC & Wellness Committees meet @ 3:30
September 30 - Student Progress Reports due 
September 30 - Positive Communication Form due - Positive Communication Form


Watch this video for some wonderful virtual Morning Meeting ideas! Can be adapted for PreK - 5th! 

Virtual Morning Meeting Ideas


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Sunday, June 14, 2020

Week of 6/8 - 6/12

Hey Panda Family,

This is the last Weekly Wrap for the year! We made it 😊 Make sure to get plenty of rest this summer and stay safe in your travels! Check your school email periodically for updates, and don't hesitate to reach out if you need anything at all. Have a wonderful summer vacation, and Thank You again for all that you do! 



Class Dojo: The grade level and department reps met this past week to discuss which tool we plan to use for our school-wide communication with parents next year. The unanimous decision was Class Dojo. We believe that by using one platform it will streamline the communication for our parents, and especially those with multiple children in different classrooms. It will be expected that all teachers use this communication tool to connect with families beginning next school year. 

Please see the presentation linked below to view the many resources Class Dojo has to offer (there are a lot of ideas on the Class Dojo community page on Facebook too). Also, it was recommended that if you are already using Class Dojo that you archive your class from this year. Instructions are linked below to help you with this (thanks Ms. Tall!). We encourage everyone to begin playing with Class Dojo so you are familiar with it come next school year. Please let me know if you have any questions.




Phase 2/EOY Plan: Please refer to the following document linked below for our Phase 2/End-of-Year Plan. It has important dates and instructions. Phase 2/EOY Plan - Piney Grove Elementary

Canvas Training: All certified staff, please make sure you complete the "Preparing to Launch" Canvas training by Monday, June 15. 

Staff Spotlight: Thank you to the technology collection crew for your diligent work this past week in the heat to collect materials, to Ms. Gardner for delivering our report cards to central office for mailing, to our amazing office staff that had all items ready for teachers to stuff their report cards, and to all our teachers and staff that effectively finished up all our EOY tasks in a timely manner. Was a wonderful team effort this past week! 

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

IF Updates

Reading Continuity Project: If you are interested in working on a small portion of our reading continuity plan, please let Jayne know.  She will hopefully be working on it next week and would love to have some more brains to make this the best it can possibly be!  

Surveys: As part of planning for the fall, WSFCS has created several surveys.  You may have seen them trickle through your inbox.  Here are the ones that I know of at this point, all in one place, for your convenience.  

Here is the parent survey.  Please consider forwarding it to your parents!   We really need all parents to complete this so that the district can have appropriate input from them.  

All of the surveys will close on Tuesday, 6/16 so please complete them ASAP.  Encourage others that you know to do the same! 


Upcoming Dates:

June 15 - Last day to complete "Preparing to Launch" Canvas training
June 15 - Certified Teachers last day of Employment for this school year
June 16 - All district surveys close
June 30 - Last day to access your PowerSchool Learning page
July 20-23 - Tentative dates for Math and Reading Textbook training
August 14 - Last day to complete "K12 First Day Ready" Canvas training
August 17 - First day of school for 2020-2021

I think this says it all! Have a wonderful summer! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQYtGUQ8Ld8


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Sunday, June 7, 2020

Week of 6/1 - 6/5

Hey Panda Family,

We are headed into the last full week of the year! What a rollercoaster it has been at times, but we have made it 😃 Congratulations, and thank you for making this such a successful year regardless of what has been thrown our way! Go Pandas! 🐼

Phase 2/EOY Plan: Please refer to the following document linked below for our Phase 2/End-of-Year Plan. It has important dates and instructions for this upcoming week. Phase 2/EOY Plan - Piney Grove Elementary

Report Cards: Here is a list of all the items that need to go in the report card envelope that is being mailed home:

Narrative Report Card
Transportation letter
Grade Level at a Glance
Attendance Report
Istation Report (K-3)
IEP Progress Report (EC students only)

Featured Teacher/Staff: Thank you to everyone who has participated in our weekly Facebook "Featured Teacher/Staff" post. Our school community has enjoyed getting to know more about each of you. If you haven't joined the fun, please make sure to fill out the Google survey linked below. We plan to continue this into the summer. Thank you Ms. Jones for putting this together each week! 


Canvas Training: There will be “Get Started In Canvas” sessions offered everyday for the next 3 weeks at 8am, 10am, 12pm and 2pm.  These overview sessions will last 2 hours and will give teachers the information they need to get started with virtual training in Canvas and how to export/import their PSL classes into Canvas.  There is a signup for teachers in the link with a capacity of 200 in each session. Please make sure you attend at least one of these sessions. 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PtADKcNTC-sMqFu89oaELP60dvNfsXXfgPqNKcL9TCw/edit?usp=sharing

Class of 2020 Pandas: Thank you to those sharing photos & leaving a message for the Panda Seniors. Just a reminder to go share a favorite memory, inspirational quote, or special message if you'd like.  There are photos on the 1st, 4th, & 5th grade pages if you are trying to remember who is in this class. We are trying to get photos for each year. Many panda teachers that taught this group have retired, please share with them if you have a current contact. Contact Ashley Pollard with questions. 

Staff Spotlight: This week's shout-out goes to Ms. Flynn. See the video and message linked at the bottom of the page! 

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

IF Updates

Istation report: There are two copies of your student reports, one of for cum folder and report card, in your box.  I printed these for you to save you some time.  However, if you notice a problem with any of your Istation reports, or want to reprint for any reason, here are the steps to follow.  First, log into the Istation "For Educators" part.  Go to the Reports tab across the top.  Choose the report (I printed Student Summary Handouts for you).  Click the blue Run Selected Report button, noting that sometimes you have to "Customize Report" first.    Once you pull up the report, choose the printer if you are at school.  If you want to get these ready to print at school, then at home, you can choose "Print to PDF" (and then you can reopen the report at school and quickly print it).  Either way, I usually print two pages on one page under "More settings" at the bottom of the print dialogue box.  

SSP/ISP data UPDATE: All K-5 teachers, you MUST enter all data into plans before the end of the year.  The plans automatically close over the summer, so we do not have the option to enter it in August.  Please make sure you do this before you leave for the summer.  Email me when this is complete so that I can check you off as being complete.  Need help?  Just let me know! 

More about PD: When you go to school for your assigned days, please plan to take your computer so you can evaluate the workshops evaluations while on the school wifi.  


Upcoming Dates:

June 8 - Report cards are due to Ms. True by 5:00
June 8-18 - Window for parents to return eLearning technology items & pick-up student personal items
June 9 - 5th Grade Students Pick-up Graduation Goodies and take pictures
June 11 - Scheduling Team Meeting @ 9:00
June 12 - Report cards are mailed home
June 12 - Instructional Assistants last day of Employment for this school year
June 15 - Last day to complete "Preparing to Launch" Canvas training
June 15 - Certified Teachers last day of Employment for this school year
June 30 - Last day to access your PowerSchool Learning page
July 20-23 - Tentative dates for Math and Reading Textbook training
August 14 - Last day to complete "K12 First Day Ready" Canvas training
August 17 - First day of school for 2020-2021

I hope you will watch the video below with the read aloud for "Our Class is a Family". It goes perfectly with our family school theme. Ms. Flynn has purchased this book, and if you would like to record yourself reading it to your class it will be available in the office this week for you to do so. Just come by, check it out, record yourself reading it, and then bring it back for the next person. Thanks MaryBeth!


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Sunday, May 31, 2020

Week of 5/25 - 5/29

Hey Panda Family,

Week 37 & Week 10 Online. We did it! 🙌 Whew, what an interesting end to the year. Only a few more tasks left for this school year, and then we want everyone to rest up so we can tackle whatever the start of next school year has in store. We got this! 

Staff Meeting: We will have a staff meeting this Friday, June 5 @ 2:00 via MS Teams. 

Phase 2/EOY Plan: Please refer to the following document linked below for our Phase 2/End-of-Year Plan. It has important dates and instructions. Phase 2/EOY Plan - Piney Grove Elementary

Yearbooks: In case you have any parents that may ask, our Yearbooks have been delayed because the production company has been working reduced hours with reduced staff. When they are delivered to us we will let all families know. 

Canvas Training: There will be “Get Started In Canvas” sessions offered everyday for the next 3 weeks at 8am, 10am, 12pm and 2pm.  These overview sessions will last 2 hours and will give teachers the information they need to get started with virtual training in Canvas and how to export/import their PSL classes into Canvas.  There is a signup for teachers in the link with a capacity of 200 in each session. Please make sure you attend at least one of these sessions. 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PtADKcNTC-sMqFu89oaELP60dvNfsXXfgPqNKcL9TCw/edit?usp=sharing

PGE Senior Panda Walk: If you are interested in helping plan the Senior Walk for former PGE students who are graduating from high school, please join the MS Teams planning meeting on Monday @ 11:30. See email from Ashley Pollard. 


Staff Spotlight: Ms. Crews, Kolby Nelson and Zayden Atkins' grandmother, asked to tell the staff many thanks for the cards.  She and the boys feel grateful to be part of the Piney Grove family. The boys' grandfather (primary caregiver) has an aggressive form of cancer and we let all their current and former teachers know. Even if you didn't teach the boys but you would like to send them something, please let us know and we will share their address with you. 

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



IF Updates

Daily Updates: Please make sure to review Ms. Grubbs' daily update emails. They have important information regarding end of year tasks, CEU credits, and instructional information. 

Heggerty materials: All K-2 teachers, please let me know where your Heggerty materials are.  Refer to the email Jayne sent for specific directions about how to pack them up. 


Upcoming Dates:

June 1 - 5th Grade Stuffing Party for Graduation Gifts @ 10:00
June 1 - Senior Walk Planning Meeting @ 11:30 via MS Teams
June 5 - Staff Meeting @ 2:00 via MS Teams
June 5 - Last day for students to turn in missing eLearning work
June 5 - Virtual Field Day & Virtual Awards Celebrations posted
June 5 - All Certified & Classified Evaluations must be completed by this date
June 8 - Report cards are due to Ms. True by 5:00
June 8-18 - Window for parents to return eLearning technology items & pick-up student personal items
June 9 - 5th Grade Students Pick-up Graduation Goodies and take pictures
June 11 - Scheduling Team Meeting @ 9:00
June 12 - Report cards are mailed home
June 12 - Instructional Assistants last day of Employment for this school year
June 15 - Last day to complete "Preparing to Launch" Canvas training
June 15 - Certified Teachers last day of Employment for this school year
June 30 - Last day to access your PowerSchool Learning page
July 20-23 - Tentative dates for Math and Reading Textbook training
August 14 - Last day to complete "K12 First Day Ready" Canvas training
August 17 - First day of school for 2020-2021

In honor of Virtual Field Day that is approaching - watch below! This video is not Ms. Fox approved 🤣

https://youtu.be/Fpz1xBVbXeE


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Sunday, May 24, 2020

Week of 5/18 - 5/22

Hey Panda Family,

Week 36 & Week 9 Online. We are almost at the finish line! 🏁 Y'all have been rockstars navigating this pandemic while providing support for your students. We are so proud of your hard work and we are excited to think about the future where we will be back in the building with our students next year (whatever that looks like 😊)! 
Canvas Training: There will be “Get Started In Canvas” sessions offered everyday for the next 3 weeks at 8am, 10am, 12pm and 2pm.  These overview sessions will last 2 hours and will give teachers the information they need to get started with virtual training in Canvas and how to export/import their PSL classes into Canvas.  There is a signup for teachers in the link with a capacity of 200 in each session. Please make sure you attend at least one of these sessions. 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PtADKcNTC-sMqFu89oaELP60dvNfsXXfgPqNKcL9TCw/edit?usp=sharing

Final Evaluation & PDP Sign off (Certified Staff): Please make sure you sign up for a time slot on the Google form linked below to review your final PDP and sign off on your final evaluation performance. 
https://docs.google.com/document/d/11acoAPk_mQIeTYj8l5DjuYcGxw2MH6W5k6dPV9w2GWQ/edit?usp=sharing
Updates from District Office:
  • The transfer window is now open for certified teachers. You are only able to transfer if you marked it on your Teacher Intent form. The transfer window is open until June 30. 
  • Schools may begin working on end of year plans now that we have entered Phase 2. More information to come.


STC Inventory (from Ms. Adams): Grade Chairs, we need your assistance in inventorying the WS/FCS Science Department supported materials. This helps the Science Department order and ship the materials that will be needed for the next school year.   

The inventorying process will look very different this year since many classrooms still have materials that were not able to be returned to the Science Lab, and the physical inventory of kits had not started.

Please do the best of your ability to identify how many kits your grade level has and what they used during the year. You may want to meet digitally to discuss.

Grade level inventory sheets will be shared with you to use, fill in, and then send back to Bonnie Adams. Once she has received all of the information from grade chairs, a school inventory will be sent to the Science Department so they can hopefully fill and ship orders to the school by the end of July.

Please complete and return grade level inventories to Bonnie by Friday, June 5th, 2020.
PGE Senior Panda Walk: If you are interested in helping plan the Senior Walk for former PGE students who are graduating from high school, please contact Ashley Pollard. 

Priority Standards: The district wants all grade levels to focus solely on "Priority Standards" for 4th Quarter eLearning. These standards have been selected by the district as the most important standards for instruction as we prepare students for their next grade. Here is a list of the "Priority Standards" for each grade level in this document.

Morning Announcement Links:
Monday (5/25): None/Holiday
Tuesday (5/26): https://youtu.be/bB7tiMpoefY
Wednesday (5/27): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmkh9Ygg8AU
Thursday (5/28): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pjc1j7AEt8
Friday (5/22): None/eLearning is over
Summer Birthdays: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLrSax_k8u0

Daily Assignments: As discussed, please make sure your PSL page Elearning assignments are broken down into daily requirements (Monday do..., Tuesday do..., etc.). 

FLEX Fridays: Reminder, there will be “FLEX” Friday each week. During the remainder of this school closure, students will only be assigned academic work Mondays-Thursdays, allowing Fridays to be used as a flexible day to engage in fun, leisure, building/strengthening social-emotional connections, and catching up on previously assigned work and/or connecting with teachers for additional support. See the eLearning Instructional Guidance document for FLEX Friday resource to attach to your PSL page.

Staff Spotlight: This week's shout-out goes to Ms. Rinfrette and Ms. Fox. Ms. Rinfrette had a terrible leak in her classroom ceiling from all the rain this past week. By the time we caught it the water had already destroyed a lot of her read aloud picture books. She handled the news so gracefully and we worked together (with Jose, Leslie, and Pam's help) to salvage the ones that had little damage. I was extremely proud of how she handled this situation. As we worked to get creative to help Ms. Rinfrette replace her damaged books, Ms. Fox graciously donated the remaining money in her PTA allotment so Kendall can buy some new books for her class to replace the ones she lost. This was a true act of kindness and how family helps each other out. I was extremely proud of Ms. Fox in this moment as well. Thank you to you both!  

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

IF Updates

Heggerty materials: All K-2 teachers, please let me know where your Heggerty materials are.  Refer to the email Jayne sent for specific directions about how to pack them up. 


Upcoming Dates:
May 25 - Memorial Day (no eLearning)
May 28 - Last day to assign eLearning assignments
May 29 - Virtual Awards Day Videos due to Ms. Epperley
June 5 - Last day for students to turn in missing eLearning work
June 5 - Virtual Field Day
June 5 - All Certified & Classified Evaluations must be completed by this date
June 8 - Report cards are due to Ms. True
June 12 - Report cards are mailed home
June 15 - Last day to complete "Preparing to Launch" Canvas training
June 30 - Last day to access your PowerSchool Learning page
July 20-23 - Tentative dates for Math and Reading Textbook training
August 14 - Last day to complete "K12 First Day Ready" Canvas training
August 17 - First day of school for 2020-2021

Here is a little funny for your day! 

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