Griffins Connect
September 13th #BuildingABetterGriffin #WholeChild
International Dot Day
Imagine the power and potential of millions of people around the world connecting, collaborating, creating and celebrating all that creativity inspires and invites. Sterling School will creatively champion our use of talents, gifts and energy to move the world to a better place as we celebrate International Dot Day! The official day is September 15th, but we are celebrating creativity for two weeks! (Our 4K students are also learning about primary and secondary colors!)
The Dot, a book by Peter H. Reynolds, is the story of a caring teacher who dares a doubting student to trust in her own abilities by being brave enough to “make her mark”. What begins with a small dot on a piece of paper becomes a breakthrough in confidence and courage, igniting a journey of self-discovery and sharing, which has gone on to inspire countless children and adults around the globe.
This year, students will be making their mark in art class over two weeks in our A and B week schedules. All of the dots they make will be displayed in the hallways. This year's dot activities will connect to an exciting art installation of butterflies that is coming to Sterling! Students will be learning about this in art class and more info will be shared with our school community soon!
In celebration of Dot Day, we ask you to wear:
Monday - Red
Tuesday - Blue
Wednesday - Yellow
Thursday - Your Favorite Secondary Color (Orange, Green, or Purple)
Friday - Show Your School Spirit While eLearning!
What's Ahead...
- Monday - Wear Red
- Tuesday - Wear Blue
- Wednesday - Wear Yellow
- Thursday - Wear Favorite Secondary Color (Orange, Green, or Purple)
- September 18: Last day of the PTA Attractions Fundraiser (Pay online with EZPay) // EZPay Code for Elementary is STERLING19; EZPay Code for Middle is STERLINGCTC
Welcome, Nurse Heather!
My name is Heather Garrison and I am very excited to join Sterling School. My nursing career spans 18 years. Thirteen of those years, I served as a nurse in the Children's Emergency Center in Greenville, SC. Caring for sick/injured children has always been my passion. I currently hold two pediatric nursing certifications, Certified Pediatric Nurse and Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse. I graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing. Go Tigers!
When I am not working as a nurse, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends. My husband and I spend a lot of our time attending our children's sporting events. Emma Kate (12 years old) loves volleyball and basketball and Luke (11 years old) loves football, basketball,and baseball. If we get the opportunity, we love to travel and see new places. On Sundays, we enjoy worshiping at Grace Church Powdersville.
I am thrilled to join the Sterling School family and serve as your school nurse. I look forward to promoting the health and wellness of the students so that they may be successful academically.
2020 Attractions Fundraiser: This is the Last Week!
This is the last week for our Attractions Book sale, our sale ends this Friday, September 18th.
This is for elementary school, middle school and our virtual students!! Did you know that our school earns $10 for every book sold. This gives our family and friends ways to save money and helps out our school!
You may purchase books online via EZPay, cash or check made out to Sterling School PTA.
How to register:
Set up your Seller Account at attractionsbook.com and click Seller Registration. You will have a unique page to share with your friends and family via email, text, and social media.
Your EZpay Codes are:
Elementary: Sterling19
Middle School: SterlingCTC
Currently, our top selling classes are:
Elementary: Wallace, Stewart, Merritt, Parks, Pickens, Emmel
Middle school: Kelley, Porterfield, Baiden, Gordon, Newelll and Bohnenberger
Please note, we ask that you do not turn your Attractions orders in to your teacher. There will be a pick up in our front car line, look for us to the left as you enter the parking lot. If you can not pick up your order this way or have any questions, please email us at SterlingCTCFundraising@gmail.com.
Times for pick up: Monday to Thursday 1:30 to 2:45pm, Friday 12:00 to 1:00pm
Bonus:
1. For a limited time, for each 2021 Attractions Book you sell, you get a 2020 book FREE!
2. If your child sells 5 books, they get 1 free! There is no limit! For every 5 they sell, they get 1 free!
3. If you sell 15 books you get a prize!
4. We will have winners for both elementary and middle school. 1st place $100 gift card, 2nd place $50 gift card, 3rd place $25 gift card and for the winning class the teacher gets a $100 gift card and the class gets a popsicle party!!
If you need additional information, please check out our PTA group on Facebook (Sterling School PTA) or Instagram (sterlingctcpta)
2020-2021 Yearbook
ELEMENTARY:
Elementary School Yearbooks are also on sale for $20. To order elementary yearbooks, use this link: CLICK HERE! Please note that the elementary and middle school websites for ordering are different.
MIDDLE SCHOOL:
Middle School Yearbooks are now on sale for $30 along with FREE icons with personalization until Sept. 6th! Go to the following website to order: CLICK HERE!
8TH GRADE ADS
For our 8th grade students, here's the opportunity to include an ad to this year's yearbook. Just create an account and proceed to order: CLICK HERE!
Picture Day is Coming!
To purchase, parents may go to www.strawbrige.net and click "order pictures" and enter code FM348170. Or, they may send cash or check in their students envelope/flyer on picture day. Packages are 100% guaranteed!
The following link (CLICK HERE!) will allow parents to sign up to receive updates via email regarding your student's school portraits. These updates include promotions, additional deals, and the ability to order more pictures at a later time. When entering student information, parents should be sure to enter the student's name as it is on file at the school.
Vision & Hearing Screening
SC State Recommended Hearing and Vision screens will begin on September 8th, 2020 and continue throughout the school year. Recommended grades for vision screening are as follows: K4-1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th grades; recommended grades for hearing screening are as follows: K3-3rd grades.
All COVID-19 safety precautions will be followed during screening, including disinfecting ear phones after each hearing screen.
If a parent does not want their student to participate in state recommended hearing and vision screening, they should submit a signed letter opting out of the screening program. Should a student fail a vision or hearing screen, they will be retested. If the student does not pass a screening after subsequent attempts, the parent will be contacted.
Free After School Virtual STEAM Experiences w/GSSM
Calling all 6th, 7th and 8th grade CTC students -
Registration is now open for the Governor's School of Science and Math FREE virtual after school experiences, SPARK and ENGAGE!
You can experience everything from learning to code while designing and playing video games, studying French and Spanish culture, and even understanding the universe's fundamental nature, plus so much more!
Space is limited! Classes begin 9/29 and 10/5. To learn more about these opportunities and register, visit scgssm.org/outreach
If you have any questions, please contact Irene Middleton. (843.383.3901 ext 3309)
ENGAGE: https://www.scgssm.org/outreach/engage
School Improvement Council: Call for Nominations
This week, information regarding Sterling School SIC, along with the nomination form, can be found in your child's Folder. (Or you can access here!) Nominations to serve on this year's council are due by 4:00pm on Friday, September 18th. Ballots will be prepared and voting will occur from September 21st until 4:00pm on October 2nd.
If you have any questions, you are encouraged to contact Dr. Patterson. Thank you, in advance, for your willingness to serve our students, parents, and school community.
WYFF Golden Apple Award
Ingles and WYFF News 4 wants to reward teachers who are going above and beyond. Each week, an area teacher will be selected to receive the Golden Apple Award and profiled Thursdays on WYFF News 4. These weekly winners will be chosen by a panel of judges. At the end of the school year, a Teacher of the Year will be selected from the weekly winners.
To nominate an educator for the Golden Apple Award, pick up an official nomination form from an area Ingles store or CLICK HERE, then complete and mail to:
WYFF News 4
Golden Apple Award
505 Rutherford Street
Greenville, SC 29609
For submission details, CLICK HERE.
State Assessment Waiver Feedback
Survey Link: CLICK HERE
The South Carolina Department of Education released an online survey for public input on the requested assessment waiver to the United States Department of Education. As required by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the SCDE must provide public notice and give an opportunity for public input on the waiver request.
"It is critical that students, parents, educators, and anyone with a vested interest in our state’s K-12 public education system take a moment to offer their feedback on South Carolina’s waiver from federally mandated assessments for the 2020-2021 school year,” said Molly Spearman, State Superintendent of Education. “As schools across our state reopen, we must focus on recouping the instruction time lost during COVID-19 school facility closures and ensuring that every member of the school community remains safe and healthy. Administering high stakes assessments in the current environment places undue stress on students, parents, and educators and takes time away from the classroom instruction and individualized support that every child needs.”
Sexual Health & Responsibility Education
Our middle school will be (virtually) hosting the district’s health educators from October 12th-26th for the legally required sexuality education unit. Parents may preview the lesson materials by appointment. Parents with questions or concerns may call or email Mr. Murphy to set up an appointment to preview the materials and/or to select an alternative, health-related assignment for their child during this time if they find the material or lesson plans objectionable.
September is Attendance Awareness Month
DID YOU KNOW?
Missing 10 percent (or about 18 days) increases the chance that your student will not read or master math at the same level as their peers.
Students can still fall behind if they miss just a day or two days every few weeks.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Set a regular bed time and morning routine.
Prepare for school the night before, finishing homework and getting a good night’s sleep.
Don’t let your student stay home unless they are truly sick. If you question this, feel free to bring them to our school nurse for a second opinion.
Students/COVID Steps to Return to School
We encourage all families to become aware of the steps they should take in the event of COVID-19 concerns. These concerns include COVID-19 symptoms, exposure (within six feet of a positive case for more than 15 minutes), positive test, etc. The following graphic should help provide possible next steps. To be safe, we ask families to notify Dr. Patterson anytime there is a concern related to COVID-19 so we can provide guidance based on DHEC regulations. Keep students at home if they present with any of the following symptoms:
- cough or shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing;
- fever (of 100.4 or higher) or chills;
- muscle or body aches;
- vomiting or diarrhea; or,
- new loss of taste or smell.
We also ask families who have traveled internationally to follow all quarantine directives they receive when re-entering the country. Anyone who has been directed to quarantine when re-entering the country should not attend school for the period of the quarantine – usually 14 days. Additionally, we encourage you to test your knowledge by taking the following quiz (no worries, it's annoymous) to help your understanding around school exclusions, quarantines, isolation, etc.
COVID Exclusions and Notifications Quiz: CLICK HERE!
GCS will follow DHEC guidelines regarding the notification of families when COVID-19 cases are present in schools. Under current guidelines, anytime a student or staff member in any GCS school receives a positive test for COVID-19, a notice will be placed on the GCS website, alerting the school and community. Additionally, parents will receive a personal phone call if the positive case was in their child’s classroom or part of another school group to which their child is connected. Please note the importance of social distancing.
Per DHEC regulations, any staff or student identified as having spent 15 minutes or more within six feet of a positive case are considered close contacts and will be excluded from school for a minimum of 14 days. Absences due to documented COVID-19 infection will be an excused absence and will not count against a student’s required seat time/attendance. Students and staff who were not close contacts will be allowed to remain at school. We will be sure and let you know if these notification requirements change. Additional information is available on the GCS Parent Resource webpage.
Thank you for all your support in helping us keep our faculty, staff, students, and families safe!
ICYMI: In Case You Missed It
College Colors Week 2020
#SterlingSchoolWeGotThis #BuildingABetterGriffin #WholeChild #SchoolSpiritLivesOn
NEW Breakfast/Lunch Menu
A Note From the Middle School Team:
The middle school team is revising their Google Classroom organization to be more consistent and uniform across core content classes. We hope this will make attendance expectations, assignment deadlines, and navigating the various Classrooms easier for students and parents. Please CLICK HERE for details.
Thanks,
The MS Team
Plan 2 MORNING & AFTERNOON TRAFFIC PROCEDURES
AM Drop-Off remains the SAME:
- ALL students (4K-8th) will drop off at the front car line when on Attendance Plan 2.
Do not let your child unload before school doors open at 7:10am.
The tardy bell rings and the instructional day begins at 7:45am.
PM Dismissal:
ALL students (5K-8th) will be picked up at the front car line when on Attendance Plan 2.
4K students (and any older students that ride with them) will be dismissed in the BACK BUS LOOP along with bus riders.
Elementary pick-up begins at 2:15; Middle school pick-up begins at 2:30.
Elementary pick-up should line up in the right-hand pick-up lane upon entry. Middle school pick-up should line up in the left-hand lane upon entry beginning at 2:30.
If a student is picked up late, parents/guardians must come to the front office.
3 Under 3: Reminders & Looking Ahead (Plan 2)
MySchoolBucks.Com
This year, parents are encouraged to make online payments into their children’s meal account using their debit or credit card. In a time of social distancing, utilizing this service will minimize hand-to-hand contact and ensure a safer, more convenient transfer of funds.
To sign up to make online payments through mySchoolBucks, parents establish a user ID and password. They select their child’s school from a drop-down list and enter the student birth date or student identification number (available from the student’s school), and provide the debit or credit card information. Payment into an account is usually credited within one hour. Parents can check their child’s account balance and transaction history on the mySchoolBucks website, which is updated every night.
Parents can make one payment for multiple children, designating the amount per child. A single processing fee of $2 is charged for each payment, regardless of the number of student accounts included in the payment. Parents can also choose to make recurring payments on a regular basis.
To Sign Up for Online Payments Into a Student’s Meal Account
- Go to the Online Payment Website.
- Create your user ID and password by following the step-by-step instructions. Online payments can only be made for meals. The service is not provided for any other payments to schools.
Questions: Call Food and Nutrition Services at 355-1249.
Information about mySchoolBucks: CLICK HERE to visit their website.
Free/Reduced Lunch Application
Online Free and Reduced Price Meal Applications are now available for the 2020-2021 school year. CLICK HERE! The online Free and Reduced Price Meal Application process is the quickest and most accurate method to apply for Free and Reduced Price Meals. Please note: interested families must reapply each school year.
If you have any questions about the Free and Reduced Price Meal Application process please contact Bonnie Hogue, Free and Reduced Project Manager at 864-355-1251 or by email at bhogue@greenville.k12.sc.us.
Take Home Meals for eLearning Days
For families who are interested, our school's FANS team will provide home meals for eLearning days. If you register, FANS will provide meals for students to utilize on the days students are NOT in attendance at school. CLICK HERE to register!
For example, if a student is scheduled to attend in-person on Monday and Wednesday, they will have the opportunity to take home breakfast and lunch for Tuesday. Then, on Wednesday, they will take home meals for Thursday and Friday.
If interested, a separate form must be completed for each student in your family/care.
Set Up Parent Backpack - An Amazing App for Parents & Guardians
Parent Backpack is an online application that replaces the PowerSchool Parent Portal. With Parent Backpack, you are able to view your child's grades, school attendance, and any discipline incidents when you are logged into the system. Best of all, Parent Backpack works on any device and is mobile friendly.
To access Parent Backpack, CLICK HERE and create an account. Please access directions by clicking on Creating a Parent Backpack Account.
Student Chromebook Repairs
If you're need of Chromebook repair this year, look no further! Please see the following information for both face-to-face and virtual option students.
Chromebook Repairs – Face to Face/E-Learning Students
On days that students physically attend school, students may turn in their Chromebook for repair at their school and receive a loaner device. Once repaired, the Chromebook will be returned to the school and must then be returned to the student.
On days when students participate in E-learning, students may call (864) 355-4357 for assistance with minor issues. If the Chromebook is not functioning properly, students should bring Chromebooks to the nearest career center (Mon-Thu, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM) for repair and to receive a loaner device. Once repaired, Chromebooks will be returned to the student’s home school and must be returned to the student in exchange for the loaner Chromebook.
Chromebook Repairs – Virtual Students
Virtual students may call (864) 355-4357 for assistance with minor issues. They may also bring Chromebooks to the nearest career center (Mon-Thu, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM) for repair and to receive a loaner device. Once repaired, Chromebooks will be returned to the student’s home school. The school staff will then contact the student to notify them that the Chromebook is available for pickup.
Career Center Locations
Donaldson Career Center
100 Vocational Drive
Greenville, SC 29605
(Use the “B” parking lot entrance located behind the school off Perimeter Road)
Enoree Career Center
108 Scalybark Road
Greenville, SC 29617
Golden Strip Career Center
1120 East Butler Road
Greenville, SC 29607
Harley Bonds Career Center
505 North Main Street
Greer, SC 29650
(Use Main street entrance)
Sterling School
Email: jpatterson@greenville.k12.sc.us
Website: www.greenville.k12.sc.us/sterling
Location: Sterling School, John McCarroll Way, Greenville, SC, United States
Phone: 864-355-4480
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theSterlingSchool
Twitter: @SterlingSchool