BARBER BULLETIN
Pontiac Elementary School
FACULTY FOCUS!
Meet INDIA GRADY! India teaches first grade with us at PES!
India enjoys singing, sign language, and seafood!
She is the middle child of three......
Did you know her favorite sport is BASKETBALL. In fact, there is a girls' basketball award named after her at her highschool in Illinois! During her first year of teaching, she even coached the freshman team at that highschool! Even more cool - DAWN STALEY was one of her favorite players when she played basketball so you know India Grady is a SC Gamecock fan!
What does our SOCIAL WORKER do at PES?
2. Our role is to help bridge the gap between the student, the family and the home. This could include home visits in an attempt to make contact with a parent/guardian, assisting parents in obtaining resources (i.e. glasses), educating parents on various subject matters (ie the IEP process), etc.
3. If a student needs school supplies, clothing, etc PLEASE let us know--we can get it for them!
4. Often we meet with students individually and/or check in with students regarding issues that impact their learning (ie: divorce, death, friendships, self-esteem, etc.).
5. Groups. We try our best to offer small group sessions for students.
6. Crisis Intervention. We collaborate with administrators and our LSS team to address those situations.
7. PARROT PACKS--Parrot Packs are backpacks with food that are sent home for students whom are need over the weekend. PLEASE let us know if you think/know a student may benefit. We are more than happy to contact parents/guardians. They will be delivered to students on Friday and the backpack will be returned Monday.
MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED film screening
If you want to get inspired about the future of education this film will do it! The R2 Innovates team is hosting a screening of "Most Likely to Succeed" film. The screening is open to all Richland Two staff and faculty, parents and community members. Spread the word!
This screening is suitable for children ages 15 and up.
The screening will take place September 15, 2015 at 6:00 PM at Richland Two's District Auditorium. This will be a free ticketed event. Tickets are available through Eventbrite.
You can watch the movie trailer by clicking this link. MLTS Film Trailer
Read more about the film and join us at http://mltsfilm.org/
GRANT OPPORTUNITY
Once again our teachers and school counselors can apply for Grace Life IMPACT grants. The online process is very simple. There are four $500 grants and one $1000 grant that will be awarded in October. Applications may be submitted online at www.gracelifeimpact.org before September 18th.
This is a great way to receive funds for CREATIVE COLLABORATIVE projects in your classroom! Please consider applying!
A look at our week ahead!
Monday: LABOR DAY holiday
Tuesday: B Day
4th grade field study to Lexington Museum
3:30pm Team Leaders meeting in Media Center
7:00pm School Board meeting at Polo Road
Wednesday: C Day
3:30pm Tech Team meeting
Thursday: D Day
1:00pm IAT
6:00pm Watch Dog kick off
Friday: E Day
Fall Picture Day
SCIENCE UPDATES FROM ED EMMER
1) 2014 SC Science Standards: We are continuing our transition to the 2014 science standards.
- Grades K-3 will use the 2014 standards exclusively. There is NO reason for them to use the old 2005 standards.
- Grade 4 will use the 2014 standards with the following modifications: Grade 4 will not teach the new Sound standard this year. They will continue to teach the 2005 Magnetism and Electricity standard for one more year. They will also teach two additional life science indicators that are from the 2005 standards (in addition to the 2014 life science standards)
- Grade 5 will use the 2014 standards with the following modifications: Grade 5 will still teach the 2005 life science indicator for cells and the 2005 chemistry indicator for pollution.
- When in doubt, teachers should follow the Elementary Science Curriculum Alignment Matrix found on the Elementary Science Explorations Google Site. This document identifies the standards for each grade level, aligned resources, links to support documents, and the nine week pacing. It has been updated as recently as the beginning of August.
2) And speaking of the Elementary Science Explorations Google Site...
This is the go-to place for all Richland Two science information, support documents, resources, materials, aligned curriculum materials, updates, etc... I continue to update this regularly as new resources are developed and found. Teachers should look here first when searching for science support.
3) Science Testing.
Grades 4 and 5 will take the SC PASS Science test aligned to the 2005 standards for one more year. This DOES NOT mean they should use the old 2005 standards. If they follow the scope and sequence defined in the aforementioned alignment matrix, they will cover all of the content that should be on the test. Next year, the test will reflect the 2014 standards.
4) Provided the state funds new science materials adoption, we will be reviewing and deciding on new science curriculum materials this spring for use in the coming (2016-2017) school year. Because of funding limitations, it is not likely that all grade levels will get funding at once and it may be a piece-meal adoption over the course of two years. One of the things we will need to do in advance of this is ascertain the status of the various kits we currently use in the district to see which ones can be upgraded to newer versions, which ones need to just be replaced with newer editions, and which titles are no longer aligned and need to be discontinued in lieu of different options. More on this to come...