Abbotts Hill Hilltop Happenings
August 28, 2017
Abbotts Hill Elementary
Important Dates - NO School for Students on Friday, September 1st.
9/1- Full Release Day (students off)
9/4 - Labor Day (schools closed)
9/5-9/29 Fall Box Tops Collection
9/12-Hearing/Vision Screenings
9/14 & 9/15 All Pro Dad Donut Mornings 7:00 am
9/18-9/29 IOWA Assessments for 3rd and 5th Graders
9/29 - Reflections Entries Deadline
A Message From Dr. Stabler
Friday, September 1, 2017 is our first Full Release Day. That means that there is NO SCHOOL for Abbotts Hill Elementary School students that day. We are fortunate to have 4 full release days build into our school year to provide opportunities for teachers to learn and grow. We believe in building our capacity to meet the needs of our students and improving our skills and best practices.
On Friday, our teachers will learn about the 21st century standards and how to use these standards through incorporating technology into daily lessons. They will also learn how to use and analyze data through the use of I Read and I Ready. These are two newly purchased intervention tools provided by Fulton County Schools. Teachers will use this data to determine individual student’s literary strengths and weaknesses.
Hearing and Vision Screenings September 12, 2017
The Fulton County School System recognizes the importance of hearing and vision to our children’s education. In an effort to identify children who may have a hearing or vision problem, the grades to be screened are as follows:
1st grade - Hearing
3rd grade - Hearing & Vision
5th grade - Vision
The screening in our school will take place on Tuesday, September 12, 2017. We are asking that you make a special effort to have your child attend school on this date. If your child wears glasses, we ask that you have your child bring his/her glasses to school on the screening date.
A Message From Ms. Chan - IOWA Assessments for 3rd and 5th Graders
IOWA Assessments for 3rd and 5th Graders
From September 18, 2017 to September 29, 2017, 3rd and 5th grade students will take the Iowa Assessments™. Please mark your calendars so students arrive each day, on time ready for the assessment.
The Iowa Assessments help determine how students are performing on nationwide standards. These assessments measure achievement in several important content areas including Reading, English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.
The Iowa Assessments help teachers identify a student’s strengths and areas that may need additional emphasis. The Iowa Assessments also measure student growth and progress in the content areas assessed from year to year. The assessments produce information that enables sound decision making and provides a focus for teachers to evaluate instruction.
Each test includes sample questions to help students become familiar with the content and format of the tests. Samples help students understand what to do—how to mark answers and move from question to question.
The Iowa Assessments are administered online in Fulton County. For most tests, students read the questions and mark their answers by clicking the correct answer for each question. All test questions are multiple choice, and the subtests last about 10 to 35 minutes each.
Curriculum Corner by Candy Parrish, CST
Curriculum for this Year
If you are interested in knowing the skills your child will be learning this year, here is the link:
https://www.georgiastandards.org/Georgia-Standards/Pages/default.aspx
You will be able to see the current Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) for RELA which is Reading, Language Arts and Writing as well as Math standards we have been using since last year. New this year are the Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) for Science and Social Studies.
You can also go to the Fulton County home page, click on Students and Parents and then Resources. There are links to the GADOE and the Georgia Standards of Excellence (GSE) for all subjects (click on GPS Curriculum).
Reading Strategies
Over the next few months, I will be giving you reading and math strategies that will help your child be a better learner and in turn help prepare him/her for class work and assessments.
Reading and Language Arts:
- Have your child read a variety of books. You can read with your child, to your child, or do shared reading where you take turns. Have them retell the story or chapter to you once you are done, checking for comprehension of the story.
- Learning letters, basic sight vocabulary and phonics patterns – you can use a variety of materials, such as magnets, typing on the computer in different colors and fonts, sidewalk chalk, write with shaving cream in the bathtub, dry erase boards, and many more. You can play basic sounds games where they have to guess the letter or the sound, like “I Spy . . .”; make rhyming words; spell out basic sight words and have them read them to you; give them 5 or more letters and have them come up with has many words as they can, make new words by adding prefixes and suffixes to root words and telling you the new meaning, etc.
- Bring your child to the library or have them visit our Learning Commons at least once a week to pick out a book of their choice or participate in the reading programs we have. Check with your child once or twice a week to see how the book is coming and ask them some questions about it. Who? What? When? Where? and Why? are great, easy questions to ask as well as retelling the story to you.
- You can also keep a journal or calendar of all books read over the school year. Set goals and reward when each goal is met.
- Play family board games like Boggle and Scrabble as well as strategic games like Battleship, etc. to strengthen critical thinking skills.
- Have them listen to books online, etc. Ask them to retell you what they’ve heard.
Here’s to a GREAT learning year at Abbotts Hill!
PTA News
Look Who’s POPPING in to PTA: The popcorn buckets are filling up, thank you for joining PTA! The class with the highest percentage participation will get a popcorn party, contest ends on September 15th. Your membership contributions support the many events and programs PTA offers all year. Upper level membership packages include yearbooks. PTA Membership forms are located at the PTA desk in the lobby at school or join PTA online.
Get Involved: Research has shown that events and activities designed to engage families in supporting children’s learning lead to improved student achievement. Abbotts Hill PTA strongly urges parents to volunteer. Visit Abbotts Hill Volunteers to find volunteer opportunities and sign up!
Upcoming School Wide Volunteer Opportunities: (click the link to sign up)
Vision/Hearing Screening on 9/12: We need volunteers to help, training will be provided that day. Questions? Contact: kemitunwashe@gmail.com
Our Learning Commons is a busy place! Volunteers are needed for daily 1-hour spots as early as 7:15am. Sign up to help.
All Pro Dad Donut Mornings on 9/14 & 9/15: Volunteers are needed to set up and serve donuts. These early morning events end at 8 am.
All Pro Dad Donut Mornings are back this year on Thursday, September 14th (last names A-L) and Friday, September 15 (last name M-Z) from 7-7:30am. All Pro Dad’s Breakfast is a simple idea with a profound impact. It’s a 30-minute breakfast held before school where fathers and their children meet with other dads and kids in the school cafeteria. During this time, they discuss a wide range of family topics, spend time together, create fun memories, and are equipped with resources to strengthen their relationship.
AHE Spirit Wear: Show your school spirit! We have some girls and boys shirt sizes in stock and any sold out sizes can be ordered. Download the Spirit Wear Order Form and order by September 30th. Questions? Contact Valli Balamurugan: vallibalamurugan@gmail.com
Have a great back-to-school photo? Submit it for the yearbook! If you have a great photo of your child getting on the bus, at the bus stop with friends, or even holding their backpack we will try to put it in the yearbook for you! Send the highest resolution possible to AHEyearbook@gmail.com
Start Saving Those Box Tops! Our first Box Tops collection of the school year will be in September! This is a fun and easy way to support AHE! Box Tops can be found on many everyday household and food products such as Cheerios, Kleenex, Ziploc, Yoplait and over 300 other products. Click here for a complete list. Questions? Contact Wendy Christerson: wchristerson@gmail.com.
FUN RUN fundraiser is back on October 26th! Funds raised will go toward the purchase of additional technology to support your students personalized learning, classroom and enrichment mini-grants, and 10% goes directly to the classrooms.
Sponsorships Available: Local businesses interested should contact Christine Parks, Boosterthon Chair: claychris320@comcast.net
The Reflections Program is a national arts recognition and achievement program for students. Abbotts Hill Students are encouraged to explore and prepare original individual forms of artwork using this year’s theme: “Within Reach.” Students may submit works in any of six arts areas: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Musical Composition, Photography and Visual Arts. Student Entry Form and Official Rules can be found at the PTA desk in the school front office or can be downloaded.
PE Department News
Welcome back! I hope everyone had an active and fun summer! The Physical Education teachers this year are Mr. Morris (Friday only), Mrs. Johnston (M-F), and assistant, Coach Tayler.
Currently in Physical Education the students are working on their fitness. They are doing this by practicing Fitnessgram exercises, and fitness type activities. The students in grades Kindergarten- Second grade are practicing spatial awareness, locomotor and non-locomotor movements. Your child should be practicing skipping, jumping, galloping, hopping, and side sliding at home also. These skills will be necessary for your child to engage in more advanced activities and games as they get older.
Students in grades 3-5 will start the Fitnessgram pre-assessments next week. They will begin with the pacer test which measures their cardiovascular endurance. The other assessments include push-ups (upper body strength), curl ups (abdominal strength), and sit and reach (flexibility). Please let me know if you have any questions regarding the assessments. It is a state mandated test. You can also go to: www.FITNESSGRAM.net/faparents for more information. Fitnessgram post assessments will take place during the 2nd semester and scores for 4th and 5th grade will be sent to the GA DOE. Parents of 4th and 5th grade students will receive their child’s scores with their final report card in May.
Please make sure your child wears comfortable clothing and sneakers on their PE days. Also, if your child will need to “sit-out” due to illness or injury, please provide a note to the PE teacher from the parent or physician.
We look forward to working with your children this year!
PE Staff
TAG Tidbits
- TAG classes will be delayed until 1:00 PM this week.
- TAG classes will resume their regular schedule starting September 5, 2017.
- Our TAG Lunch Time is 12:05 PM daily.
Clinic News
The coughs and sniffles have started here at school. Please remember that if your child has a fever of 100.4 F or greater, they need to be kept home until they are fever-free without fever reducing medications for 24 hours before returning to school. We are teaching children to cover their cough and are encouraging hand washing. Adequate rest, healthy meals & frequent hand washing are the best ways to stay healthy during the school year.
Also, please report back to your student’s teacher or to me in the clinic if your student is diagnosed with a communicable disease, including strep throat/scarlet fever. While strep throat is usually not serious for most of our school population, it can be for some. A student diagnosed with strep throat should only return to school after receiving at least 24 hours of antibiotic treatment and have no fever for 24 hours.
News From the Counselor, Ms. Shannon Demons
Welcome back!! I am so excited to be starting another year here at Abbotts Hill. As a school counselor, I perform the following duties in order to promote positive development in academic, career, and social/emotional domains:
- Individual counseling
- Small group counseling
- Monthly core curriculum lessons (formerly known as classroom guidance)
- Consult and collaborate with parents, teachers, administrators, social workers, and students
- Respond to school crises or emergency situations
- Provide information and resources to parents on a variety of issues
This month, I will be conducting core curriculum lessons on the role of the school counselor. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at DemonsS@fultonschools.org.
Career Presentation on Jammin’ with the Jaguars
Abbotts Hill’s long term goals are to improve academic achievement and increase students’ 21st century skills. We invite parent volunteers to develop a brief script to speak to students about their college and career experience on the morning news. Studies show that early career exploration sets a solid foundation for successful life/ career planning in the future. Please contact our school counselor, Ms. Demons at DemonsS@fultonschools.org for more information.
Cafeteria/Lunch Reminders
Parents are welcome to eat lunch with students at the visitor table on the stage except for designated times during our testing windows due to test security (these times will be posted in advance). Please be reminded:
We promote healthy lunch options and fast food cannot be brought in by parents and visitors.
Wait for your child’s class on the benches outside of the cafeteria
Ensure that your child gathers everything he/she may need as he/she walks through the line. Please do not send your child back and forth for water, spoons, forks, napkins, etc.
If you are just dropping off lunch for your child, please have the lunchbox labeled with your child’s name to be left on the pickup table.
Check your child’s lunchtime before arriving.