August 20th Pony News
Building a Brighter Future!
What An Amazing First Week!
Let's celebrate the success of our 1st week with jeans on Monday and a University shirt.
Let's continue building a brighter futures for our Ponies. :-)
Knowing our New Crew - Ms. Snell
Hello to my new Pony Family! I am so excited to be in your corral. This is my 17th year in education. I taught SpEd (elementary through high school) & elementary school counselor with most of it in Ft. Worth ISD. While there, I was a Behavior Interventionist with a preventative behavioral program called All StARS - All Students are Reaching Success. This was ages PK-5; teaching social skill groups, consulting with teachers, mentors, and parents. Our program was awarded as a Promising Practice by TEA in 2006.
Teaching is a 2nd career for me. Prior to that, I worked in mental health with children/adolescents at the Big Spring State Hospital & a residential treatment center in Lubbock. I also did case management with MHMR. My undergrad degree is in Social Work from Texas Tech and my MEd from Tarleton State. I am originally from Odessa (West TX) and graduated from Permian HS - the school in the movie ‘Friday Night Lights’. Speaking of football, I LOVE watching high school play-off games and especially watching college games on Saturdays. I will root for your team when they are not playing my Red Raiders or TCU. ;-)
I am a proud mother & grandmother (Mimi). My daughter Monica is 27 and a realtor in the Dallas area. My granddaughter Aubrey is a third grader in Carrollton. She gives me lots of teaching advice. My other interests include genealogy, scrapbooking, making jewelry, walking nature trails, and being in or near water, camping, kayaking, canoeing, or jet skiing.
Michele Snell
Title 1 Behavior Interventionist
No Excuses University!
Lewisville ES is a No Excuses University Campus. We will have our No Excuses Assembly/Rally once a month. At this rally, we come together to celebrate our vision and mission.
- Please practice the NEU school chant with your students.
- Click here for Rally dates.
- Integrate into your lessons college conversations. Talk to your students about the college that you represent.
- Last year each each grade level created a grade level chant and they shared it during the Rally. Click here to see grade levels chants. Collaborate with your teams and decide if you will keep the same chant or create a new one as a team. I encourage you to make your chants bilingual.
Staff Learning
You may also find it in our Pony Way 2.0 under professional development.
LVES Committees
Amazing Ways to Implement Restorative Practices
Restorative Practices are differentiated relational approaches to building relationships and managing student behavior.
Relationship Agreement
2 Minute Connections
Restorative Circle
Restorative Circle
Rich Literacy Connections
Rich Literacy Connections
90 Second Spark
Important Information to know:
- Grump Meter: Remember to post your Grump meters in your classrooms. Click here for some examples.
- 2 minutes connections, 90 seconss sparks and checking room temperature should be daily practices.
- Restorative Circles need to happen minimum once every three to four weeks or more as needed.
- Remember to have your lesson plans posted in eduphoria by Friday. Share your lessons with your Special Ed. cluster teacher.
- Please take advantage of the district's learning facilitators and our instructional coaches on campus. They are here to help you with your planning, modeling and observing lessons. It is an expectation that you meet with district learning facilitators at least 4 times during the school year. The instructional coaches are excited to start working with you, too. Click here for a sample menu of how they may help you.
Safety Drills
On this Thursday, around 8:10, we will have a series of mandatory drills. Please discuss and practice the drills with your students.
The drills will occur in the following order:
1. Lockdown drill: This is when you and your students will find a safe place in the classroom (lock your doors, pull down your blinds, and stay out of the view of both the doors and windows as much as possible).
2. Shelter in Place Drill: This drill is to find coverage in the event that we are in the path of severe weather (i.e. tornado). You will come out side of your classes and retreat to your designated locations. (You will receive more information regarding your shelter in place location by Monday afternoon). Please practice the “duck and cover” position with your students.
3. Fire Drill: This is drill is to prepare us in the event that our school has a fire. New changes of designated locations are being made. You will receive that information by Monday afternoon. Changes are being made so that all grade levels are together with their particular grade level.
4. Lock-Out Drill: (Formerly known as the reverse evacuation). We will come inside the building and go back to your classroom and do business as usual.
It is imperative that you discuss and practice with your students the severity of each drill. For every drill, you must have a copy of your roster and your students parent contact information. Please do not photo, text, or call anyone during the time we are doing a drill and/or real emergency occurrence. Our highest priority is to ensure that our students are safe and that you are safe as well.
Thank you for preparing your students by practicing with them. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Simpson.
Even by keeping our students safe, we are building a brighter future for them.
LEAD
During our inservice week, we had the opportunity to review LEAD. We will be sending you a calendar invitation soon to meet with each of you to learn about your goals.
Here is the video that was presented to you during our inservice week on how to create LEAD students progress goals.
Samples of students progress goals. Click here. Remember that as a campus we will be focusing on writing.
Please don't stress about LEAD. This is just our second year implementing LEAD and for many of you, it is your first time. We can do this together. We are building the Ponies future together. You are not alone in this journey.
If you want to learn more about LEAD, you may access all videos and presentations here.
Dismissal Information
Car Dismissal Tags
Dismissal Spreadsheet
Master Calendar
Our Pony Week
- Kindness Week: 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th - Mr. Hicks will be talking with our Ponies during their lunches about kindness.
- Kindness Week: Dr. Rogers Challenge: Send a thank you/complimentary text to a family member or important adult.
- Team meetings in the Think Spot, Room #337.
- Kindness Week: Dr. Rogers Challenge: Text your best friend why you’re lucky to have their friendship.
Wednesday, August 22nd
- Staff Learning 3:15 to 4:30
- Kindness Week: Dr. Rogers Challenge: Send an email to a former teacher saying how they impacted or made a difference in your life.
Thursday, August 23rd
- GT Attributes Training
- Lock-Down Drill, Shelter in Place Drill, Fire Drill, and Lock-Out Drill at 8:10
- Kindness Week: Dr. Rogers Challenge: Text an old friend and tell them you miss their friendship.
Friday, August 24th
- Spirit Day (Wear a Lewisville ES T-Shirt or our school colors: maroon & navy blue)
- Kindness Week: Dr. Rogers Challenge: Text a family member or someone important to you and ask how you can improve or make your relationship with them better.
LVES Biggest Loser Enrollment
LVES is building a brighter future by making healthy choices. Let's do this!!!! Sign up here.
Shout-Outs!
- Coach W. for leading some great team building challenges during In-Service Week!
- To the administration team for laying a thorough foundation on which we can build.
- To all the employees who chose Lewisville as your home. Let's keep the momentum going! You ROCK!!!
- To Principal Valdes for being a leader who demonstrates that ALL means ALL!
- To everyone who came and planned during the summer! It mattered and it worked!
- Congratulations to Mr. Dixson for passing his test!
- Thank you Valley Creek for all the many things you do for our school!
- Thank you to the person who bought me a Pepsi (you know who you are)!
- Thanks to everyone for making Ms. Lawson's birthday so special!
- To Mrs. Burleson for helping me with the #2078 (LOL..)
- Coach W for painting numbers on the basketball court so our little ones will know where to line up.
- Betty Guerrero for her kind and good attitude
- Mrs. Lopez, Mrs. Boston, and Mrs. Hernandez: Thank you for being amazing mentors! You ladies always display exemplary leadership.
- Mr. Ledesma: We appreciate all the great ideas you have brought to the 5th grade team!
- The Entire Pony Family for my amazing 40th birthday celebration! I appreciated every decoration, every song, every treat, and all of the pink and green! You all are THE BEST!
- Thank you Mrs. Vando for continuously taking care of the needs of the Pony Family.
- Specials Team for such a warm welcome for their newest teacher!
- Mr. Dixson, Mr. Reed, Mrs. Ratzlaff, Mrs. Dickinson, Mrs. Hernandez, Mrs. Oden & Mrs. Rutherford for moving, counting & shuffling textbooks for the staff to collect. I could not have done it without you.
- 1st, 2nd & 3rd grade teams for helping to collect textbooks for each other. Team work makes the dream work.
- 4th grade team for helping gather all their materials out of various rooms to make their rooms complete & then helping to hide everything before Meet the Teacher Night. :-)
- Mr. Colon for helping to sort books for his team & then making sure they had what they needed.
- Thank you Mrs. Gray for your lovely donation to our library. Students love to see the stuffed version of our book characters!
- Shout out to Mr. Berg for taking the time to label all of the fifth grade doors with the teachers' names.
- Thank you to Mrs. Vando and Miss Green for setting up our table at Hey Day!
- A big thanks to Ms. Butler, Mrs. Varona, Ms. Snell, Ms. Ramos, Miss Green, Mrs. Rubio, and Ms. Marla Rodriguez for supporting LVES at Hey Day!
- Thank you to the entire LVES Family for making me feel so special for my 40th birthday! You all went above and beyond...I'm blessed to work with each of you!