Piney Ridge Elementary School

Transcription

1 Greetings, Piney Ridge Elementary School April 2018 Newsletter Welcome to April! We hope that you were able to relax with your friends and family during our Spring Break! As the weather continues to get warmer, and your child wants to get outside and play, please make homework a priority. It might be a good idea to have them do it before they go outside. Our Spring Fling is scheduled on Saturday, April 14 th from 10:00-3:00 at Piney Ridge Elementary School. This event is always very successful and very well attended. I would like to give a special thank you to Mrs. Poston, Mrs. Bray and Mrs. Scheiner, who are the Chairs of the Spring Fling Committee. I know a great amount of time and thought goes into making this event run smoothly. Many other parents and volunteers also contribute to this event and we appreciate everyone s support. The money that will be raised at this event will go towards funding cultural arts programs and purchasing student agendas. We are very fortunate to have such an outstanding parent community that is so supportive! If you visit the Eldersburg Branch Public Library this month, please check out the exhibition in the children s book section. One of our 2 nd grade students, Noel, from Mrs. Howe s class has a collection of her artwork on display. Check out how she uses different materials and multiple surfaces to create art. Kudos to our student artist sharing her talent with our school community. April and May are busy months for testing that is used to determine student mastery and growth. Students in fifth grade recently completed The MISA Assessment, which is aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards. During the 2-day test, students worked hard to demonstrate knowledge acquired since the primary grades. We are confident our students did great! Our second graders completed the Cogat test right before Spring Break. This test looks at their cognitive ability and performance in math and reading. Also, the end of April thru mid-may, students in grades 3, 4, and 5 will take the PARCC Assessment. Students will be tested on the computer in both Reading and Mathematics. Testing sessions are long, so please encourage your child to go to bed early for a good night s sleep and eat a healthy breakfast in the morning. The testing schedule is included in this newsletter. Students in grades 2-5 will also participate in SRI testing, which looks at their reading ability based on their Lexile levels. With all of this testing, please encourage your child to be here daily to avoid having to make up any of these tests. As the school year is winding down, the number of field trips starts to pick up. If you would like to chaperone one of these field trips, you will need to be volunteer trained seven school days prior to the trip. Volunteer training in now online on the CCPS website and must be completed in order to volunteer in school or chaperone field trips. We look forward to having a productive end of our school year and we will continue to work together to help all students meet with success. Together, we will build the future! 6315 Freedom Ave Sykesville, MD (410) (410) (410) FAX SCHOOL HOURS 9:15 3:45 pm OUR VISION To inspire a community of caring independent individuals who positively impact our changing world NOTICE OF NON- DISCRIMINATION Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS) does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ancestry or national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, or age. CCPS provides nondiscriminatory access to school facilities in accordance with its policies and regulations regarding the community use of schools (including, but not limited to, the Boy Scouts). The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies: Gregory J. Bricca Director of Research and Accountability 125 North Court Street Westminster, Maryland (410)

2 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 No School/ Offices Easter Closed 3 Schools and Offices Reopen Third Marking Period Ends 2hr and 45 min early dismissal 4 5 PTA Meeting 7:00pm 11 Talent Show Rehearsal 5:30-8:00 12 Talent Show Rehearsal 4:00-8:00 6 Spirit Day Wear sports Team Shirts Movie Night 5:30-9: Spirit Day Dress Like your best friend or twin Spring Fling 10am 3pm Earth Day Talent Show 6:30pm 27 National Arbor Day

3 Nurses Notes Tick season is upon us, which puts us at risk for Lyme disease. To contract Lyme disease, the tick needs to be attached for 12 to 24 hours. Early signs of Lyme disease include fatigue, headache, muscle aches and a fever. Only about 30-40% of infected people develop the characteristic Bull s Eye rash. To decrease your chances of a tick bite, avoid tick infested areas, wear light colored clothing so that the tick can be spotted easier, and perform frequent body checks after being outdoors. There is a vaccine available that your Physician can further inform you about, however it is not approved for children under the age of 15. Please be aware that the CCPS tick policy states that the parents need to contact the school nurse if they wish the removed tick to be saved. The parent will also need to pick the tick up from school, it will NOT be sent home with the student. Hearing and Vision Screening will be done on all Kindergarten, 1 st and 4 th Grade students as well as students new to the state of Maryland during the week of April 11 through the 13 th. If a teacher feels your child would benefit from a hearing and/or vision screening outside of these grades, a consent form will be sent home for authorization.

4 Counselors Corner We have recently seen an increase in students experiencing issues with Cyberbullying. Although this occurs outside of the school, posted events on Instagram and Snapchat and other social media websites and by text message create problems and distraction for our students in the school environment. Cyberbullying consists of using the internet or mobile phones or other technology to send or publish textual or media content to hurt or offend another person. Follow these tips: 1) Cyberbullying Ask your child: Do you know what to do if you re cyberbullied? Go over the rules: Don t respond- unless it s to say stop if it continues, you can press charges against the individual for harassment Save the messages if possible Tell a trusted adult Adults should notify the school and authorities A child may be a victim of cyberbullying if he or she 1. unexpectedly stops using their electronic devices 2. appears nervous or jumpy when a text or appears 3. appears uneasy about going to school or outside in general 4. appears to be angry, depressed, or frustrated after using their device 5. avoids discussions about what they are doing on their device 6. becomes abnormally withdraws from usual friends and family members Your child may be a cyberbully if he or she: 1. quickly switches screens or closes programs when you walk by 2. uses the computer or device at all hours of the night 3. gets unusually upset if he/she cannot use their device 4. laughs excessively while using the computer 5. avoids discussions about what they are doing on the electronic device 6. uses multiple online accounts or using an account that is not their own 2) The Social Media- Ask your child: What social sites do you visit? Check these things with your child: Screennames- should not reveal gender Privacy settings (should be on friends only ) Friends list- friend is someone they know in person Comments- should not reveal age, address, school, etc 3) Meeting Offline Ask your child: Has anyone online made you feel uncomfortable by offering you gifts, talking about something inappropriate, or asking you to meet offline? Visit for more information and safety tips as well as videos and games to help you further engage your children with internet safety issues.

5 F.Y.I. Gifted and Talented Program Information When students are screened for gifted and talented intervention, outstanding academic ability and certain characteristics and thought processes are observed and documented. Teachers look for students who possess a wealth of information about selected topics and/or are able to grasp information quickly and remember it with little practice. They observe students who are able to understand general concepts and make abstractions and connections between seemingly unrelated topics and ideas. If a student possesses some or all of these abilities, he or she can be screened for identification. Components of the Gifted and Talented Education Program Individual Student Profile All data in each of the following areas are rated as strong, moderate or weak evidence that gifted and talented services are needed or appropriate. Multiple Data Points Teacher Observation Checklist includes characteristics of gifted students Parent/Guardian Observation Checklist includes characteristics of gifted students as seen by parent Primary Thinking Skills (PTS) Individual Checklist includes data from second grade thinking skills instruction Content Specific Checklist observations from teachers on content specific behaviors of gifted students Production Data work samples provided by teacher and/or parent Cognitive Ability Test aptitude test given to all second grade students PARCC achievement test taken by 3 rd, 4 th, and 5 th grade students Academic Instructional Reading Level Academic Instructional Mathematics Level Report Card Grade and Work Habits Once all of the data have been reviewed by the Gifted and Talented Referral and Review Team, one or more of the following recommendations are made in order to differentiate instruction: ELA/Math Enrichment Services Provisional Placement in ELA/Math Enrichment Services (reevaluation of placement to occur after each unit or mid-year) Differentiated Support Services (classroom teacher receives resources from GT resource teacher to help meet needs of student in regular classroom) Monitoring and annual review (student is reviewed again mid-year and end-of-year or when new data is available) No GT interventions needed at this time The Referral and Review Team usually convenes 3 times a year fall, winter, spring or as needed.

6 PARCC Testing Dates - Times are subject to change. Date Time Teacher 4/23/2018 1:20 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 4/24/2018 9:15 Broome, Fieni, Keiffer 1:20 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 4/25/2018 9:15 Broome, Fiene, Keiffer 1:20 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 4/26/2018 9:15 Broome, Fieni, Keiffer 4/27/2018 9:15 Hinkel, Tyler, Broome 4/30/2018 9:15 Hinkel, Tyler, Broome 10:50 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 5/1/2018 9:15 Broome 10:50 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 5/2/2018 9:15 Hinkel, Tyler 10:50 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 5/3/2018 9:15 Broome 10:50 Earp, Carey, Yohe, North 5/4/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 10:30 Hinkel, Tyler, Fieni, Keiffer 5/7/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 10:30 Hinkel, Tyler, Fieni, Keiffer 5/8/2018 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 10:30 Hinkel, Tyler, Fieni, Keiffer 5/9/ :30 Hinkel, Tyler, Fieni, Keiffer 5/10/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 5/11/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 5/14/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty 5/15/2018 9:15 Nave, Reda, Riggin, McNulty To allow time for testing 4th grade will be switching schedules with kindergarten on testing dates. 4th Grade Lunch will be 11:45-12:15 4th Grade Recess will be 12:15-12:45 4th Grade Specials will be 2:30-3:30 Kindergarten Lunch will be 12:50-1:20 Kindergarten Recess will be 1:20-1:50 Kindergarten Specials will be 10:15-11:15

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