Mr. Elkins' Weekly Wrap

Friday, January 10, 2025

Week of 1/6 - 1/10

Hey Panda Family,

Welcome back to a weird winter weather week! Thanks for handling it like CHAMPIONS. Y'all are amazing! Enjoy the beautiful snow that is coming our way and be safe. I will keep you updated with closure information and plans as I get it from the district. Have a wonderful weekend! ⛄

Here are the Weekly Wrap updates for this week:

New Updates

Congratulations: Congratulations to Ms. Lomax! She recently got engaged and will be getting married in the fall. We are so happy for you!

Core Awards Winners: Core Awards voting has closed. We will announce our winners when we return from the snow days. Good luck to all our nominees!

Report Cards: Please plan to send report cards home in next week's Friday Folder. They will go out on January 17.

EC Inclusive Practices Meeting: The EC Inclusive Practices meeting that was scheduled for January 14 has been cancelled. Please remove it from your calendar.

Maker Club (from Ms. Epperley): Calling All Makers! Starting in February, we would like to offer a Monday Morning Maker Club for 3rd-5th grade students. Please fill out this form if you are interested in helping! Maker Club Staff Survey

Makeup Weather Dates: I know there will be more info to come, but please make sure you have adjusted your calendar for March 7 and April 21 to be regular school days. These days will be snow makeup days.

Lunch from PTA: PTA is serving the entire staff lunch on Wednesday, January 15! Please see the flier below with the details.

Updates from Last Week

Indoor Recess: Remember, no outdoor recess if the "feels like" temperature is 31 degrees and below. We will update you daily on the temperatures, but please have a plan ready to go for indoor recess.

Code of Conduct Lesson #7: All K-5 classrooms need to complete the final Code of Conduct lesson. Please incorporate this lesson into your plans.

K-2 lesson - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ChkxuPu9zjLbr8_U93l_S_F-zNuDeRAoAFwtpVLPnVQ/edit?usp=drive_link

3-5 lesson -https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dyHLyCX2X1RsojZXp4L86jLeUd5yIzRw/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=100482846275451887125&rtpof=true&sd=true

Staff Laptops (from district): Technology Services is excited to announce new laptops are here and getting prepared for service. We will begin distribution in January working at multiple sites per week with expectations of district wide completion by April. Please take a moment to read through our official TECH ANNOUNCEMENT – STAFF LAPTOP REFRESH 2024 for detailed information regarding distribution expectations and preparation. The announcement also contains important information pertaining to changes in Windows operating system and software installation processes and approvals.

January Drills: We will only have a fire drill in January.

PGE Substitute List: Here is the updated list - PGE Substitute List.

Committee Minutes: Please review the updated committee minutes.

WS/FCS Interpreter Services: If you need a district interpreter, here is the link to request one. REQUEST FOR INTERPRETATION SERVICES LINK

IEP Minutes Document: Teachers will continue to take minutes during IEP meetings.

Please delete verbs and suggested phrases from the document at the end of the meeting.

Here is a link to the document: IEP Minutes Template

Upcoming Dates:

PGE Event Calendar 2024-2025

Jan. 10 - Mclass opens

Jan. 13 - Gardner off campus until 10:30

Jan. 13 - ACCESS Testing window opens

~~Jan. 14 - EC Inclusive Practices meetings in Media Center~~

Jan. 14 - SIT @ 3:30

Jan. 15 - Gardner off campus @ IF meeting

Jan. 15 - 3rd-5th Reading Check-in #2

Jan. 15 - Lunch for Staff from PTA

Jan. 16 - 5th grade to visit KMS from 11:30-1:30

Jan. 16 - 5th grade parent night - Pathways to Advanced Classes @ 5:30

Jan. 17 - 4th Grade Math Check-In #2

Jan. 17 - Report Cards go home

Jan. 20 - No School - MLK Day

Jan. 21 - Staff Meeting @ 3:30

Jan. 22 - Elkins @ Area Principal's Meeting

Jan. 22 - 3rd Grade Math Check-In #2

Jan. 28 - Class Pictures with Lifetouch

Jan. 31 - Mclass window closes

Friday, January 3, 2025

Week of 12/30 - 1/3

Hey Panda Family,

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful break with friends and family. It is nice to come back to the start of a new quarter. Take time on Monday to reconnect with your students, enjoy stories from their break (share your stories too 😊), and set goals for the second half of the year. Positive relationships with your students is the #1 key to success. How you approach Monday and next week will set the tone for your class for the remainder of the year 💚 Here's to an awesome 2025! 🎉

Here are the Weekly Wrap updates for this week:

New Updates

Sonya Hobson: Please keep Ms. Hobson in your thoughts and prayers. She is at home recovering from shoulder surgery and will be out the next few weeks. We hope for a smooth recovery!

PLTs: All grade levels will pick back up with PLTs next week.

Vision Screening: All 1st grade, 3rd grade, and EC PreK classes will have vision screening next Tuesday, January 7 in the cafeteria. Please see the schedule linked here - Vision Screening Schedule If you have any questions regarding vision screening, please reach out to Ms. Gardner.

Inclement Weather: The weather will be very cold when the students return next week. Remember, no outdoor recess if the "feels like" temperature is 31 degrees and below. We will update you daily on the temperatures, but please have a plan ready to go for indoor recess.

PBIS Updates: Please see the PBIS updates listed below.

When preparing for Monday, please treat it like a first day of school. Review classroom expectations, school wide expectations, and practice procedures. This is a great time to “tighten back up” as we head into the second half of the year.

Classroom teachers should complete Code lesson #7 next week

All Paw Forms for Quarters 1 & 2 should be entered into Educator's Handbook at this time

Code of Conduct Lesson #7: All K-5 classrooms need to complete the final Code of Conduct lesson next week. Please incorporate this lesson into your plans.

K-2 lesson - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ChkxuPu9zjLbr8_U93l_S_F-zNuDeRAoAFwtpVLPnVQ/edit?usp=drive_link

3-5 lesson -https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dyHLyCX2X1RsojZXp4L86jLeUd5yIzRw/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=100482846275451887125&rtpof=true&sd=true

Core Awards Nominations: It is time to nominate for the 2024-2025 Piney Grove Core Awards. Nominations are due today! There are four awards:

Teacher of the Year
Classified Employee of the Year
Certified Instructional Support Person of the Year
Volunteer of the Year

Please use the links below to nominate individuals for these awards. There are explanations listed on each Google Form. We will have nominations open until January 3rd. There will be voting links for each position the week of January 6th. Please see Mrs. Catherine Gant or Mrs. Kendall Rinfrette if you have any questions.

Teacher of the Year Nomination

Classified Employee of the Year Nomination

Certified Instruction Support Person of the Year Nomination

Volunteer of the Year Nomination

Updates from Last Week

January Drills: We will only have a fire drill in January.

iReady MOY Diagnostic Results (1st - 5th Grade): Here are iReady growth results from our MOY diagnostic testing. We will discuss further in PLTs when we return from break.

Math Overall Growth: 58%

Reading Overall Growth: 68%

Top overall classes in Math

Edwards 93%

Honeycutt 90%

Gant 81%

Wise 81%

Musten 79%