Otter Outlook
October 26, 2017
In this issue...
A Message from the Principal
Need to Know!The Coaches’ Corner, from Ann Scott Hanks, Problem-Based Learning Coach and STEAM Lab Instructor
Stop-Animation, Super Heroes, and Stellar Technology and Reading going on in the Learning Commons!
Ryan's Resource
Lost and Found
Saddle Up and Read
Remembering One of our Own
From Our PTA
Ocee Night at the Gwinnett Gladiators
Spiritwear Available for Sale
PTA Reflections Contest Additional Winners
Community News
The Great Cupcake Challenge
Reminders
Save the Date: Ocee's Thanksgiving Feast Nov. 15 & 16
Ocee Elementary Career Day - Gr. 3-5 - Postponed to May 4 - Still Need Volunteers!
Parent University
Think First and Stay Safe
Dates to Remember
Oct. 27 - Red Ribbon Week - Ocee Bands Together Day
Oct. 27 - SGC Outreach and Communication Committee Mtg. - POSTPONED
Oct. 27 - PTA Cultural Arts Program - Diwali - K-2 8:15 a.m. 3-5 9:15 a.m.
Oct. 31 - Mix-it-up Day in the Cafeteria
Nov. 1 - Ocee Spirit Day
Nov. 1 - Giving Tree Kick-off
Nov. 1-3 - Collecting Candy for Troops
Nov. 2 - Dedication of Annemarie's Garden 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Nov. 3 - Career Day for Gr. 3-5, 8-10 a.m. - Postponed to May 4
Nov. 3 - Chorus Performs at Gwinnett Gladiators' Game
Nov. 3 - Business Partners Summit 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Nov. 4 - FALL BACK - Don't forget to set your clocks back!
A Message from the Principal
Good Afternoon Ocee Families!
We have had a wonderful Red Ribbon Week celebration this week! Tomorrow is Ocee Bands Together Against Drugs Day and we encourage all of our scholars to wear their Ocee Spirit Wear to school. We were also so thankful to our EIP parents and teachers for their attendance and participation at this week's EIP coffee. There were several resources shared with parents and we value this program as a strong support for our students.
Our SGC team met to discuss student achievement in a district strategic planning session last week. There was incredible discussion and I feel confident that our new plan will provide strong instructional foundations for our students in literacy and S.T.E.M. while also providing better focus for our staff. Please stay tuned to the school website and review the SGC minutes for more information about our strategic plan!
I hope everyone has enjoyed this week as much as I have! Thank you for your continued support of Ocee ES!
Best Regards,
Ryan Moore
Principal & Ocee Parent
Need to Know
The Coaches’ Corner, from Ann Scott Hanks, Problem-Based Learning Coach and STEAM Lab Instructor
What do a turtle shell, fossil oyster, camera obscura, tuning fork, tricorn hat, sweetgrass basket, and portable microscopes have in common? They are all items in the newly created Discovery Kits! Using money Ocee was awarded through a grant process last May, we are creating bins of hands-on resources for many Science and Social Studies units.
These materials allow teachers and students to explore concepts as an expert would. For example:
Acting as a physicist, what types of motion can you show using this marble run? (Kindergarten)
- Acting as a sound engineer, how can you use this drum to show that a material must vibrate in order to produce a sound? (1st grade)
- Acting as an historian, what do these presidential campaign buttons tell us about Jimmy Carter? (2nd grade)
Acting as an anthropologist, what can you infer about Native American Indian cultures from this wood totem pole, potlatch drum, clay pot, leather pouch, and buffalo tooth necklace? (3rd grade)
- Acting as a biologist, how can analyzing x-rays help us classify animals? (5th grade)
The materials also allow students to take the perspective of others. For example:
What can we learn about Thomas Jefferson by wearing clothes similar to his? (1st grade)
- How could I have navigated to the New World using only the wooden telescope, brass sundial compass, and astrolabe sextant used by the European explorers? (3rd grade)
How could I have survived the American Revolution with only the items contained in my soldier’s haversack? (4th grade)
- How would I have felt wearing dog tags and a steel helmet as a World War II soldier? (5th grade)
At home, you can also encourage your young scholar to analyze their world. Here are some examples of questions you might ask:
On a family field trip to the High Museum, “Why do you think the curator chose that painting to include in this exhibit?”
On a family field trip to the Fernbank Museum, “How do you think the paleontologists dug up the dinosaur bones?”
On a family field trip to the Cumming Aquatic Center, “If you were to design a water park, what would you include and why?”
On a family walk, “How could a park ranger decide which trees to cut down in order to create the path?
Stop-Animation, Super Heroes, and Stellar Technology and Reading going on in the Learning Commons!
Ryan's Resource
This week's article discusses how leaders can potentially fail their organizations. Whether we accept it or not, we are all in positions to lead every day. How we engage others can have a drastic impact on those that we interact with on a daily basis. Checklists are always easy, so I encourage you to read through this list and see how it may change your day-to-day interactions. It certainly made me reflect!
I hope you enjoy this week's article: https://www.inc.com/lee-colan/top-10-reasons-leaders-fail.html
Sincerely,
Ryan Moore
Lost and Found
Has one of your children lost a sweatshirt, jacket or waterbottle? There is a good chance it is in the Ocee Lost and Found which is overflowing! Please ask your child to look as they arrive in the morning....or take a peek yourself. We are also in possession of a well-loved bear someone left in the front office.
Howdy partners!!! It's time to wrangle up your cowboy hats and your cowboy boots, and join the hootenanny at our annual Scholastic Fall Book Fair. This year's theme is "Wild West" and we are ready to SADDLE UP AND READ!!! But we need your help, too.
Please take a moment to view the sign-up links below and pick a time to help our kids find and purchase amazing new books for their home libraries. There are 5 volunteer sign up links, including set up and break down days:
Volunteers for Set Up on 11/3: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-scholastic4
Volunteers for Preview on 11/8-11/10: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-wild
Volunteers for Shopping Week on 11/13-11/17: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-wild1
Volunteers for Literature Night on 11/14: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-wild2
Volunteers for Break Down/Clean Up on 11/17 and 11/27: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-scholastic7
**NOTE: If you would like to volunteer when your child will be coming to preview or shopping, you may view the class preview and class shopping time Sign Up Genius links provided here for your reference and sign up for the slot/s that overlap your child's preview and/or shopping time. But please know that times may be subject to change if the teacher decides another time may work better for her class. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Class Preview Times: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-scholastic5
Class Shopping Week Times: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080b4eafa62ca02-scholastic6
Thank you for helping to make our Wild West Book Fair a Rootin' Tootin' Good Time!
Thank you,
Marcy Morantz
Remembering One of Our Own
We will be dedicating the garden on November 2nd from 5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Please join us as we celebrate Ms. Hodge's memory with friends, family, and colleagues.
From Our PTA
Ocee Night at the Gwinnett Gladiators!
Ocee Elementary School Night at the Gladiators is coming up on Friday, November 3rd 2017 at 7:35 pm! The Atlanta Gladiators will take on the Kansas City Mavericks. Support our Ocee Chorus as they sing the National Anthem and enjoy a night cheering on the Atlanta Gladiators Hockey Team! Order online securely: GROUPS.ATLANTAGLADIATORS.COM (no www. In front). Enter code: OCEE. Group discount offer will not be available at the box office the day of the game. TICKETS WILL BE EMAILED IN ADVANCE OF THE GAME. Tickets are not refundable after purchase. Questions: Heather Herndon heatherherndon@msn.com. Gladiators contact: Jordan Ikner http://jikner@atlantagladiators.com
SPIRITWEAR AVAILABLE FOR SALE!
The PTA has a limited number of Ocee spiritwear shirts available for sale. If you missed the opportunity earlier in the year to purchase spiritwear, or would like to add a longsleeve shirt to your collection now that the weather is cooling off, here is your chance. Click the link to be taken to our online store where you may purchase a shirt.
https://www.myschoolanywhere.com/cart-new.a5w?cart=OceeElementarySchool109922
PTA Reflections Contest Additional Winners
We inadvertently left off the name of two winners last week. Congratulatons to:
Literature:
Victor Huang & Ahana Singh (4th)
Neil Lothe & Aanya Pandey (5th)
Community News
Reminders
Save the Date! - Ocee's Thanksgiving Feast Nov. 15 & 16
Ocee will be celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday with our annual family feast days. Family is invited to join the children for lunch on Nov. 15 for grades 1, 3 and 4 and Nov.16 for grades PK, K, 2nd and 5th. Please note that lunch times will be different for those two days (more details to come). On the day your child is not feasting, they will be eating sack lunches (from home or the Café) in their classrooms and parents will not be able to eat with their child that day.
Ocee Elementary - Career Day
Grades 3-5
Now Friday, May 4
8:00 – 10:00 AM
Please note that the date of Career Day for grades 3-5 has been changed to Friday, May 4th. We are still looking for parent volunteers. If you or someone you know is interested in speaking at Career Day, please click here.
Think First, Stay Safe
Think First & Stay Safe™ enables students to take an active and necessary role in protecting themselves from harassment, abduction, bullying, exploitation, and various forms of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional). The Health Advisory Committee reviewed and approved this program and selected components will be implemented through the elementary health curriculum by teachers and school counselors.
Please contact our counselor, Anna Aronowitz at 470-254-2960 to schedule a preview or if you have any questions. The materials will be available for preview from November 1, 2017 to November 17, 2017. In late November and early December, Think First & Stay Safe™ prevention lessons will be implemented for all K-5 students. You can also learn more about the detailed lesson plans and research behind this program at www.childluresprevention.com. Please be aware that more information is provided on the website than is actually used in Fulton County Schools.
If you prefer that your child not participate in the Think First & Stay Safe™ program, please fill out our Think First, Stay Safe curriculum opt out form. Unless opt out documentation is received by Friday, November 17, 2017, your child will participate in the Think First & Stay Safe™ program. Please click here to access the Think First, Stay Safe opt out survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LQ2CQZJ
Outstanding Character Educational Excellence
Ryan Moore, Principal @oceeprincipal
Jennifer Rosenthall, AP
Shannan LaPorte, CST
Anna Aronowitz, Counselor
Email: fowlerjj@fultonschools.org
Website: www.oceeotters.com
Location: 4375 Kimball Bridge Road, Alpharetta, GA, United States
Phone: 470-254-2960
Facebook: www.facebook.com/OceeElementary
Twitter: @oceeotters