Hidden Valley Weekly Bulletin
Week of February 1st
Principal Point to Ponder
“We did what a lot of people said we couldn’t do. It’s not over, yet,” said Cam Newton just after the Panthers 49-15 victory over Arizona in the NFC Championship Game. Sound familiar?
As Panther Nation enjoys this euphoric period of pre-Super bowl possibility, it’s hard to even remember the times they struggled. It’s hard to remember a time when Cam Newton was NOT the toast of the town.
Before Newton became a Heisman-award winning quarterback at Auburn, he played football for the University of Florida where he beat a fellow freshman to back up Tim Tebow. The next year, Newton played in the season opener against Hawaii but suffered an ankle injury and had to take a medical redshirt season. Later that same year, Newton was arrested for receiving stolen property and was suspended from the team. It seemed like he couldn’t do anything right. Sound familiar?
Two years later at Auburn, Newton returned to greatness. When a reporter asked Newton about his past mistakes he said, “I think every person should have a second chance.” And now the Panthers have their second chance at winning a Superbowl… In our own way, so do we.
Hidden Valley has had its struggles over the past decade or two, and we are now trying to return to greatness. Remember Cam Newton wouldn’t be where he is without the struggle that made him stronger. Neither would we.
Our time is coming. Until then, #KeepPounding.
Kudos and Acknowledgements
*Shout out to Ms. Beckham for providing contact info for students on the bus that were in the minor accident! She responded calmly and swiftly!
*Congrats to Ms. McSherry for rockin out the TRC scores for second grade. Scoring the highest on the team with a class average of almost 3 levels for the first half of the year.
* Kudos to all teams that met for Data Talks. We are really getting to the bottom of the misconceptions and developing plans for re-teaching and WIN time. I love the way that we are thinking about instruction.
*Kudos to the first grade team for their superb growth in Math!! Keep up the great work!
*Kudos to Mr. Hunter for his growth from common assessment 3 to common assessment 4.
*Kudos to Mrs. Echevarria and Mrs. Jorge for their solicitation of parent volunteers for Access Testing.
Kudos to Ms. Riley, whose class averaged 3.4 levels of growth in TRC from the beginning of the year to the middle of the year. This was the highest growth in kindergarten.
* Kudos to the 3rd grade Literacy team for growing over 14 points from Common Assessment 2 to Common Assessment 3
*Kudos to the 1st grade team for making great gains in Reading and Math on their common assessment 3
Reminders
* PLEASE TAKE CARE OF YOUR PENCIL SHARPENERS, students should not be using them.
* The I:// drive will be re-arranged due to CMS maintenance, once it is done, I will have a follow up email.
* This month is Black History month. all month we will have a Black History Question during the morning announcements and the answer will be given the following day.
* Remember about the GO Fund ME Page that can be added to your Facebook. Please see email from Ms. Roper. We want to raise money for our students to celebrate their accomplishments. Remember that the person that raises the most money will get 1/2 day off campus, and if you get Ms. Roper $10 dollars by Wednesday 2/3/16 you will receive 5 jeans day passes.
* Literacy teachers in grades 3-5 should have 4 novels picked out for next year by Wednesday 2/3/16. Please have those in to Ms Hews by Wednesday. You want to be a part of what you will be reading, teaching and learning. Kudos to the 4th grade who already submitted their 4 books.
*The Little Free Library will be dedicated to Mr. Thomas A. McGee and sit in front of his home in the Hidden Valley Community. As you know, he is our most faithful volunteer and has a special heart for the children of Hidden Valley. He was the mailman for the community for many years. Our school library is also dedicated to him. The HVE eagle, books, reading are all ideas to run with as far as decorations. T
he idea of the Little Free Library is to take a book and leave a book! No due dates, just encouraging the habit of reading in every part of the community.
Visit http://littlefreelibrary.org/maintain/ to learn more about the project! Also the photos of the library coming onto campus are on www.hiddenvalleymediacenter.weebly.com. Please slide all the way down this message to see the other sites.
*The PTO is selling Candy Grams. All staff, parents, and students will be able to purchase a small token of kindness and send smiles along the way. The PTO will be selling Candy Grams for $0.50. All proceeds will help fund activities for our students. Please send money and a message with your children by Thursday February 11, 2016. We will be delivering all Candy Grahams on February 15, 2016. Happy Valentine’s Day! Teachers I ask that you collect the money and messages from students each day and turn them in to me (not Velez and no it does not have to be receipted) when possible.
*Truancy Court begins for the spring semester on Monday February 1, 2016 at 8 am in the Media Center. The orientation session will consist of welcome by administration, short video, an overview of the program, team members informing of their roles in the program and families completing the necessary paperwork for our records. We will have a guest judge this semester, Carla Archie. Parents that request in advance will be allowed to speak with Judge Archie during this time. I have attached the agenda for Monday. At present, there are approximately 20 families targeted, but hopefully we will have at least 8-10 families participate. I have also attached the student list. Students were targeted for excessive absences and/or tardies to school. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thanks so much for all your support with Truancy Court!
*Opportunity knocks for teachers! The spring 2016 Charlotte Hornets Teacher Innovation Grant application is now available. Teachers may apply for grants up to $5,000. The deadline for submitting applications is March 11. The grant program was established through a partnership of the Charlotte Hornets, Lowe’s, FOX Sports Carolinas/SportSouth and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools Foundation. The application can be downloaded from the CMS web site here.
Ms. McSherry and Ms. Porcayo doing some salsa
Ms. Flynt and Ms. McAdam rockin to MoTown
Mr. Blyden being the Hype man for Nas
Instructional Strategy of the Week
ELL Strategy of the Week
What to Expect This Week
Monday 2/1 (Day 1)
- Wear your school colors- we have been slacking lately ( Expect to see everyone in
green and white collared tops and tan khaki bottoms.
- HVES Counselor Week - Counselors visit classes and present Bounce Back Program
- Access testing begins - See email from Mr. Nash
- Mentor Meeting afterschool @ 3:15 in the media center
-Dibels /TRC Assessment- see email from Hews
Tuesday 2/2 (Day 2)
- Tie Tuesday
- HVES Counselor Week - Staff Appreciation - Coffee and Cocoa in staff lounge
- Opera Assembly 9:30 am (3-5) 1:30pm (Pre K -2) see email from Lungarini
- -Dibels /TRC Assessment - See email from Hews
- REPORT CARDS GO HOME IN TUESDAY FOLDER
Wednesday 2/3 (Day 3)
- HVES Counselor Week - Special Announcement on Morning Announcements
- NELC-V Learning Community Walk Through 8-10am
- Good News Club
- Staff Meeting at 3:15 - "State of the School Address"
Thursday 2/4 (Day 4)
- HVES Counselor Week- Special Area Surprise
- Girl Scout Meeting after school
Friday 2/5 (Day 5)
- Support the Panthers - Wear your Panthers Colors- Keep Pounding
- Students can be out of uniform for $1
- Extraordinary Eagle of the Month
- Caught Soaring Award
- Give kids a smile day- See email from Ms. Echevarria
- HVES Counselor Week- Highlight Bounce Back Student and Poster Contest