The CPES BobChat
July 31, 2022
Where Are the Pinch Points?
There are pinch points in every organization. These are the areas where policies and practices come into conflict with our wants and wishes. We would like to tell everyone "yes" and that we can do things their way. That would be so much easier and would reduce so much stress and conflict. In reality, we know that is not possible because we want to have a school that is safe, secure, efficient and focused on teaching and learning. As a result, we will have pinch points. Here are some guiding questions to ask yourself to avoid those pinch points and a list of some of the common pinch points at the end. 1. What if everyone did that? We have 750 students and at least 1500 adults interacting with our school daily. As you consider your unique request, ask yourself what would be the consequences if every parent did that? Could we stay on mission if we accommodated all those requests? 2. Did you plan ahead of time for this? We know emergencies happen. Your car breaks down. You had an accident. The power went off. A family member had to unexpectedly go to the hospital. You would be amazed how often we hear that from the same family time and time again. Often, others' emergencies are really a result of poor planning. (My wife often reminds me of this for my own benefit.) This year, think of your contingencies ahead of time. Who can pick up your child when he is sick? If school is canceled, who can care for your child? Who is your backup (and are they on your emergency contact list) if you can't pick her up on time? It is easy to say but hard to do: Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance. 3. Did you read the CPES Family Handbook (see button below) or the weekly BobChat newsletter (sent by email, text and district app)? Daily, I hear our office staff respond to questions that were answered in written communication that was already sent. We are so glad to help however we can but staff members lose valuable time responding to questions that have already been answered. We try hard to communicate well and in a timely fashion. We know we don't get everything right but it is not for a lack of effort. Please take advantage of the information available. With these questions in mind, here are some of our school pinch points that we hope you will avoid:
1. Changes in How a Child Goes Home--It is a district requirement that these be submitted in writing by the parent at the beginning of the day or that the parent comes to the office in person to make the change. We cannot accept them over the phone or by email. You can certainly send a note with your child. This is for the security of your child.
2. Picking Up Your Child Early--Needs to be done by 1:45. We begin transitioning children at 1:45 and all staff members are assisting in this. As this process is happening, it is very difficult to get proper communication to a child's teacher to send the child to the office during this time.
3. Allowing Your Child to Exit the Car--We wish every parent could drop their child off at the front door but it is not possible. If a Safety Patrol or an adult opens the car door, we need your child to exit the car and walk down the sidewalk to enter the main entrance. Remember that we have so many students arriving each morning and we want that to happen as efficiently as possible for everyone's benefit. We will heavily monitor students in this process at the beginning of the year until we are sure they know what to do.
4. Drop Off Your Child in the Car Line at the Sidewalk--We will allow all parents to walk their child into the building on the first day of school. After that, they will need to be dropped off in the car lines. We will practice with them what to do on that first day and every day. Parents cannot park and then walk their child to the main entrance. If parents did that, they (and their child) would cross four lanes of car traffic to reach the sidewalk. That is completely unsafe.
5. Leave Five Minutes Earlier--Estimate what time you think you need to leave then decide to leave five minutes earlier. I guarantee you will be glad you did and you will rarely, if ever, have to get out of your car to sign your child in late.
6. Always Bring Your ID and Make Sure Emergency Contacts Are Updated--I have discussed this previously.
Know that the last thing I want to do is to give lots of "do's and don'ts." I promise that the areas mentioned above are for the benefit of your child and your family. We want everyone to transition well and enjoy school. That happens best when we agree to follow the guidelines to ensure everyone is safe and secure and can learn. As always, feel free to provide feedback and ask questions if our policies don't make sense. We are open to improving our procedures and processes to help our families.
Strength and Blessings,
Mr. Maness
Parents, please remember that class assignments will go out on August 3 for all families that have completed their child's registration.
Positions Open
1. Unique Pathways 3 Assistant--Noncertified
2. .5 Related Arts Teacher (Art, Music, or Other Elective Area)--Certified
3. Tutor (25 hours a week)--Noncertified
4. Substitute Teacher--Noncertified. Know that you can select only CPES and you can let us know if you want to only sub for particular grades or days of the week. We have full-time positions and part-time positions.
5. Lunch Supervision Positions--Noncertified. We are working to limit our staff's lunch supervision responsibilities so they can have unencumbered time during their lunch time. As a result, we are hiring two people to help with lunch supervision from 10:30-1:30 each day. These will be new positions for us this year.
Summer Notes and Reminders
Openings for Kindergarten and First Grade French--Currently, we still have some openings for kindergarten and first grade French for this fall. (Students do not have to know French to enroll.) Please let friends and family members know about this amazing opportunity for their children to learn a second language. According to the Fluent U French and Culture Blog, here are five great reasons (that are "clickable") for learning French over other languages:
- 1. French has secured its status as a top international language
- 2. Learning French gives you access to the world
- 3. French is on the rise
- 4. French is a favorite among language learners
- 5. For an English speaker, French has a great difficulty-to-benefit ratio
For the complete article, click here: https://www.fluentu.com/blog/french/why-learn-french-language/#:~:text=Spanish%20grammar%20is%20sometimes%20simpler,demand%20factors%20in%20as%20well.
The application window opened on Wednesday, June 1. Please sign up quickly before the slots are taken. Here is the link for the Choice Application: https://www.rock-hill.k12.sc.us/Page/6855 (and it is below.)
Summer 2022 Reading Bingo--Summer Reading Incentive sponsored by Media Center at Cherry Park Elementary!
This summer students are invited to play "Summer Reading Bingo!"
This is a fun way to keep up those good reading habits all summer long! Here's how students can play:
- Take home a "Summer Reading Bingo" card from school.
- Place it in a prominent place where you'll be reminded to mark your card!
- Complete the tasks on the card in any order.
- Have a parent or guardian mark the card with his or her initials once you complete a task.
- Get "BINGO" across, down, or diagonally for a small prize.
- Cover the entire board for a chance to win a "Back-to-School" prize pack including brand new books! A drawing will be held in late August.
- Claim your prize by returning the card to Mrs. Austin in the Media Center by Friday of the first week of school in August.
- The Bingo Card will be sent home during the last week of school and a copy of the card will be available under the Media Section of our schools' Website and it is linked below.
- Have a fun Reading Summer!!
Battle of the Books (Rising Fourth and Fifth Graders) The Rock Hill School District School Librarians are excited to announce that Battle of the Books is back! Battle of the Books is a fun club that introduces our 4 th and 5 th grade students to a variety of literature while at the same time allowing them to work with other students, improve reading skills, and enjoy the thrill of competition. Battle of the Books is perfect for students who love to read! During the 2022-2023 school year, all Rock Hill School District elementary schools will participate in Battle of the Books. Each school will develop teams of students who will compete for a school level Battle of the Books winner. The school winners will advance to a district level competition. To begin preparing students, we are providing a list of books that will be used for this program. We encourage students to begin reading these books this summer:
A Boy Called Bat
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library
Esperanza Rising
Hoot
A Million Ways Home
The Sisters Grimm (Book 1)
Serafina and the Black Cloak
Zane and the Hurricane
If your 4 th or 5 th grader is interested in participating in Battle of the Books, your reader can contact Dr. Austin, our Media Specialist, when school begins in August!
PTO Officers--At our last PTO Meeting, officers were elected for 22-23. Stephanie Greer--President, Amanda Winters--Vice-President, Liz Lowery--Secretary and Erica Smith--Treasurer. We appreciate all that these ladies did this past year and for their willingness to step into these leadership positions for next year.
Need Tech Support? Call 803-324-TECH
School Calendar
Summer Office Hours--8:00-4:00 Monday through Thursday (Through July 30)
August 3--Class Assignments Sent Out (To families who have completed returning student registration)
August 8--First Day Back for Teachers
August 11--Open House (5:00-7:00 PM)
August 15--First Day Back for Students
September 5--Labor Day Holiday
Previous Newsletters for 22-23 School Year
"How Can You Help Us Keep Our Children Safe and Secure?" July 24, 2022 https://www.smore.com/6bweq
"How Can We Get Ready for the Fall?" July 17, 2022 https://www.smore.com/hcp2q"What Do We Need to Know" July 10, 2022 https://www.smore.com/y35p6