Penguin Press News
The Week of April 22nd
A MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL BAME
Dear Laurel Park Families,
Happy Earth Day 2019!
What a beautiful start to the school week! Our students have been enjoying their recess today (and always). As we enter warmer months, please remember to dress your child in layers, and apply sunscreen before school. We want all of our students to feel comfortable and enjoy the outdoors as much as possible.
Please take a moment to review upcoming volunteer opportunities found embedded in this newsletter, including Field Day and Garden Club events. We always enjoy having our parents and extended family support student learning. Remember to complete volunteer registration, if you have not done so already. This can be done before or after school in our Media Center.
If your family will be moving to another school next year, please take a moment to complete the following form: https://forms.gle/aAjMGQCH5rWapoPE9
Highlighted Dates:
Teacher Appreciation Weeks:
Tracks 1, 2, 4 - Week of May 6th
Track 3 - Week of May 13th
- Track 1 Step Up Day (not a parent event): June 3rd - 12:00 - 12:30 pm
Family Fun Night: May 31st
Track 2, 3, 4: Step Up Day (not a parent event): June 28th - 12:00 - 12:30 pm
Rising Kindergarten Parent Orientation Night: May 8th, 6:00 - 7:30 pm
Rising Kindergarten Playdate: June 15th
Thank you for supporting Laurel Park Elementary School!
Kind Regards,
Raleigh G. Bame
#LPESWAKE
#CultivatingLearning
#EquityMatters2Peak
#OtherPeopleMatter
5th Grade Moving Up Ceremonies Dates and Times
Track 2 & 3: June 27, 2019 at 1:30 PM
Track 4: June 27, 2019 at 9:30 AM
2019 Field Day Volunteers Needed!
Field day dates and times.
Tracks 1 and 2 - May 2nd (3rd - 5th: 10:00 - 11:30, K - 2nd: 1:00 - 2:30 pm)
- Rain date on May 3rd, same times
Tracks 3 and 4 - June 6th (3rd - 5th: 10:00 - 11:30, K - 2nd: 1:00 - 2:30 pm)
- Rain date on June 7th, same times
****Sign up link for tracks 1 and 2 field day on May 2, 2019 only
Tracks 3 and 4 will be sent out in early May
Garden Club Updates!
One of our primary goals is to provide every student at Laurel Park with the opportunity to engage with our school’s edible garden. Currently, we are developing garden "mini lessons" that align with the LPES science curriculum and will be piloting these lessons to the 1st and 4th grade classes this spring. We plan to roll out garden mini lessons across all grade levels during the 2019-2020 school year and will be seeking parent volunteers to facilitate mini lessons.
We hope to identify one "garden parent" per classroom to lead two mini lessons (approximately 30 minutes each) in the garden, one lesson in the late summer/early fall and the second in the spring. This will be a very low time commitment and previous gardening experience is not required! Each lesson kit will include step-by-step instructions for the activity, discussion questions (with answers!) and all needed materials. We are excited to offer this new opportunity to engage with your child’s class!
If this volunteer opportunity is of interest to you, please let us know at lpesgardenclub@gmail.com.
Single Subject Acceleration (SSA) Nomination and Testing Information for the 2019 - 2020 School Year
Single Subject Acceleration (SSA) is the practice of assigning students to a higher grade level for a single subject, than is typical, given the student's age, for the purpose of providing access to appropriately challenging learning opportunities. SSA is an accelerative practice that allows students to show mastery of an elementary or middle school course.
Students must meet qualifying Single Subject Acceleration (SSA) criteria in grades K‐7 to take advanced academic content in Mathematics or English Language Arts. Nominated students for Single Subject Acceleration (SSA) will be assessed at their school, based upon their current grade level. Depending on their grade level and subject, this could include a multiple-choice test and/or a writing sample.
Students can be nominated for SSA by either their teacher or parents. Students are allowed to take one SSA test, either ELA or Math. Students must score an 80% or higher to pass the Math SSA test and an 85% or higher and a level 2 on the written ELA test. Schools are only allowed to take SSA nomination forms during the nomination window and all testing is to be completed on the testing windows. No exceptions will be made.
If you are interested in your students being tested for SSA, please complete, sign and return the SSA nomination form during the nomination window. If you should have any questions, about whether your student should be tested, please see your student's current classroom teacher. If you have questions about SSA and the process, please feel free to email anyone on the LPES AIG team.
Sincerely,
Amy Stone at astone@wcpss.net
Ann-Marie Taranto at ataranto@wcpss.net
Sandy Sandel at ssandel@wcpss.net. Thank you!
SSA Students Video Talking About SSA
Moving Schools for the 2019-2020 School Year?
Apex Middle School Band Meeting!
Apex Middle School Band sign-up meeting will be held on Monday, April 29th at 6:00 p.m. in the AMS Cafeteria. There will be a general information session as well as an Instrument "petting zoo" for all interested students.
Grocery Store Rewards Cards
Laurel Park Elementary School
Website: wcpss.net/laurelparkes
Location: Laurel Park Elementary School, Laura Duncan Road, Apex, NC, USA
Phone: 919.290.2333
Twitter: @LaurelParkElem