Dear Pittman Families,

It is with great pleasure and enthusiasm that I write this letter as your Pittman principal for the 2023-2024 school year!

This will be my 18th year in education. I taught 2nd and 3rd grade in Branson and Rogersville for a combined 10 years. Then, for 4 years I was the instructional coach at Pittman and this will be my 4th year as the Pittman principal.

Personally, I am a wife and mother. I have three sons; Najem (12), Layth (11) and Jasim (8). They keep us busy with soccer, swimming, and boy shenanigans. As a family, we enjoy playing board games, bike riding, and hiking. When I have free time, you will find me at an early morning workout, reading a good book, or cooking.

One of the most important aspects of my work here at Pittman is to continue building strong relationships with families, students, staff, and community members. You’ll find me in classrooms, hallways, and community activities. I am a leader who is passionate about providing a safe, loving, and academic-rich environment for ALL students.

I am excited to start the 23-24 school year and look forward to seeing all our returning families and meeting new ones at our Meet the Teacher event on August 18th from 3:00-4:30. You can read more about this event below.

I look forward to working with you this year!

High Fives and Hugs,

Mrs. Agnew

Ms. Victoria Johnson - 1st grade teacher

Ms. Valerie Ross - 1st grade teacher

Ms. Whitney Mosley - Instructional Coach

Ms. Amanda Werhan - Math Interventionist

August 1st - Building is Open!

August 17th - Hot Dog Food Truck parked at Pittman from 12-1. They will be offering $5 hot dog kids meals, which includes hotdog, chips and a drink!

August 18th- Meet the Teacher - 3:00-4:30 *See flyer below

August 22nd- First Day of School! *see more details below

August 30th- We will have an all-school, all-drill walk- through. This means we will practice our lock-down, storm drill, and fire drill on the same day for teaching purposes. We notify parents to allow for preparation of loud noise and to reduce any fear or anxiety.

September 4th- NO SCHOOL - Labor Day

September 5th - PTA Meeting @ 6 in the library

September 7th - Fundraiser Kickoff!

September 11th- Pittman SPS U (open house) - 5:00-6:30

October 9th - Fall Picture day. We will take both individual and group photos at this time. There will be no spring picture day this year.

October 23-27 - Parent Teacher Conference Week

October 27 - Family Event: Spooktacular Trunk or Treat

Meet the Teacher

Don't forget to join us at Meet the Teacher on August 18th. Come grab your back to school paperwork on August 17th. You can fill it out on-site, or take home and return during business hours or at Meet the Teacher.

This completed paperwork will get you a fast pass to your teacher's name at Meet the Teacher. We appreciate your help in advance as we gather all the necessary paperwork for Back to School! *For more information see flyer below.

August 22nd- First Day of School! Parents are welcome to walk their students in on the first TWO days of school. Door #1 opens at 7:40. Door #1 will be the only arrival door this year.

Those that arrive between 7:40-7:55 will need to stay in the gym to wait as teachers welcome students in classrooms at 7:55. From 7:55-8:10, families can walk their student straight to their classroom. When the bell rings at 8:10, families will need to exit so students can start learning about their classroom and building relationships with their teacher and classmates. After the first two days, all students will walk themselves to class.

PLEASE PARK YOUR CAR IN THE LOT IF YOU ARE WALKING YOUR STUDENT(S) UP TO THE BUILDING TO AVOID BLOCKING THE FLOW OF CAR DROP-OFF

The government program that paid for students to eat lunch has expired. This year all students will be charged for lunch, unless your student qualifies for free lunch program. At Pittman, we have a program called Breakfast in the Classroom. This program provides free breakfast for all students who want to eat.

Lunch Prices:

Lunch: Full: $3.05 Reduced: $0.40

As part of the back to school paperwork, ALL families (regardless of financial status) will complete the Free and Reduced Meal Application. You can get started with yours HERE. You only need to fill out one form per family. All families must reapply each year.

Meal Payment

Cash/Check: You can send in meal payments in an envelope, labeled with your student's name, in their red folder.

Online Payment: You can pay online HERE.

Lunch Menus

The lunch menu link will be included in my weekly newsletter. You can find it HERE.

Eating Lunch with your Student

Pittman is fortunate enough to have outside picnic tables. Families are welcome to eat lunch with their student at the picnic tables. Any visitor must check in at the front office first (Door #1).

Read more information about district lunch procedures HERE.

1. Students should not be dropped off at the front doors before 7:40 am to avoid a gathering of unsupervised students.

Door #1 will open at 7:40. Any student who arrives from 7:40-7:55 will sit quietly in the gym.

Door #1 is at our main entrance. This door is accessed by our circle drive. (SEE ARRIVAL MAP BELOW). Door #1 will be the only arrival door this school year.

2. The tardy bell rings at 8:10

3. Breakfast ends at 8:15

**Going to be late or absent? Call the office (417-523-4700), message Ms. Gwen on Dojo, or email gethomas@spsmail.org by 8:10 .

If your student arrives after 8:25, please walk them into the building to sign them in.

Riding a Bike: With permission, students in grades 3-5 are allowed to ride their bikes to school without an adult. Please wear helmets. Bike riders must walk bikes on/off school grounds and have a way to lock their bikes to the racks. Scooters, skates, or skateboards are not allowed on school property. Due to safety concerns, students in grade K-2 are not allowed to ride their bikes to school without an adult present.

Walkers: Should cross only at the crosswalk on Bennett and enter the building using Door #1

Car Riders: Students should remain in cars until the door opens at 7:40. Please do not let your student out of the car until a staff member is present.

Walkers exit the building out door #1 or #6 depending on which direction they walk. Door #1 if they cross Bennett or walk along Bennett; Door #6 if they walk toward the neighborhood area to the south of Pittman. Please make sure your child knows where to exit. Students are responsible for leaving school property and heading straight to their destination.

Walkers are dismissed at 3:05

Car Riders (SEE DISMISSAL MAP BELOW)

3-5 students are dismissed out door #1 to the circle drive, unless they have a K-2 sibling.

K-2 students (and any 3-5 siblings) are dismissed out door #6 on the east side of the building.

Car Riders are dismissed at 3:10

Please help us make car lines go smoothly AND keep it safe:

1. Always display your car tag. Please pick one of these up at our Meet the Teacher event.

2. Always stay in your car. Staff members will load students into cars. If your student still struggles to buckle themselves, please pull over into the parking lot to help them.

3. At the East Parking Lot pickup, we load 10 cars at a time then the line will move. Please keep your car in park until the line moves.

4. Never block the crosswalk in the circle drive.

5. Please be patient.

Students, parents, and patrons need to ENTER THE SCHOOL THROUGH THE DESIGNATED FRONT DOOR by the office (door #1) once school has started. All other outside doors will remain locked, including the door adjacent to the cafeteria. Please enter through the door that has the red #1 sticker on it. Push the buzzer outside of the secretary's office to alert the secretary. Have your ID ready.

Visitors

During school hours, all visitors and volunteers must check-in at the office. If visitors are entering the building they will check-in using our Hall Pass system and will need their ID.

Pets/Birthdays:

We want Pittman school to be a safe and healthy place for kids. Therefore, pets are not to be brought to the Pittman Elementary campus and that includes bringing cats/dogs to the school at dismissal. We have students and staff who are allergic to pet dander. Also, in an attempt to model healthy living, the board of education has adopted new health guidelines. Students may not bring food items on their birthday to share with classmates. Only non-food items may be brought to celebrate.

PBIS

At Pittman, we focus on ways to Be Kind, Be Safe and Be a Learner. We call these three focus areas “The Pittman Way”. At school, students will learn the expectations of their behavior in the hallways, lunch, recess, and more. Teachers and students will engage in activities to practice these expectations. Teachers will give out eagle points when students are caught following the expectations. You will see these points on your child’s Class Dojo account. Every other week, students will be able to buy things with their eagle points at our Nourishing Nest store.

Below is our Pittman PBIS Behavior Matrix. PBIS stands for Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports. This Matrix helps clearly define our expectations and allows us to systematically teach these expectations and procedures throughout the building. You will read more about our matrix in the Pittman Press this year.

Conscious Discipline

In addition to PBIS, Pittman also utilizes Conscious Discipline. Conscious Discipline is a caregiving philosophy that teaches adults to regulate their emotions so that they can help kids to do the same. Some routines & rituals you might hear your student talking about are our breathing techniques, our wish well ritual, classroom jobs, friends and family board, and safe place. To learn more about Conscious Discipline, reach out to our school counselor, Ms. Crystal.

District Discipline

At times, discipline may occur when a behavior incident arises. Mrs. Agnew and Ms. Dickerson refer to the district scope & sequence for discipline. This is located in the Student Handbook starting on page 56. This year, all grown-ups will receive a paper copy of the student handbook along with a document to sign and return stating that the handbook has been read by a parent/guardian.

Kindergarten students will have iPads and 1st-5th graders have Chromebooks.

Students will not be bringing home their devices this year.

On the above PBIS matrix, you will see our expectations for Digital Citizenship. Students are responsible for their devices and their online behavior while at school.

Devices from Home:

All electronic devices, such as but not limited to, cellular phones, cellular watches, headphones, or iPods may be in the student’s possession as long as they are on silent and in the student's backpack. If a student is found with their device during school, the teacher will ask that the device be put back in the backpack for the first offense. During a second offense, the teacher (or office) will safely store the device until the end of day. The School District will not be responsible for lost or stolen items.

If you need to provide a message to your student during school, please call the office.

My goal is to provide clear and consistent communication. I will send out the Pittman Press each week on last day of the week. Included in the Press will be information that will help the school year run smoothly. It will be sent out on Class Dojo, posted on Facebook, and sent out in a text. If you need to receive a paper copy of the Pittman Press, please contact your child’s teacher.

Please make sure to call the office when you have an email, phone number, or address change. I will be using a text/email system called Blackboard Connect. This year, you will need to receive timely updates. Please make sure your contact information is up-to-date and that you are signed up to receive these texts. Here are the directions on how to do that.

If at anytime a problem should arise, please contact your child’s teacher first. Teachers will communicate with parents via Class Dojo, phone, and email. If you wish to speak to your student's teacher, please call the 417-523-4700 during school hours. If the teacher is available, Ms. Gwen will put your through or if it is an instructional time, she will put you through to their voicemail.

Feel free to contact me or the office through Dojo, phone or email.

School—417.523.4700

Mrs. Agnew Email—mragnew@spsmail.org

Ms. Gwen (school secretary) Email - gethomas@spsmail.org

The office is open from 7:30-3:30 each day.

**Mrs. Agnew answers emails and dojo messages from 6:30am-4:30pm as quickly as possible.** Other hours are reserved for family time and rest. I appreciate your understanding.

Check out the PTA's Pittman Eagle Team Wear site HERE. Deadline to order is September 24th.

Check out PTA's table at Meet the Teacher to join the PTA and get a sweet treat!

This year's officers are:

President: Maggie Cornell

Vice President: Courtney Goings

Secretary: Brandy Mahan

Treasurer: Cicely Kimball

Have questions about PTA? email them at pittmanptarocks@gmail.com

Our goal is for your student's attendance rate to be 95% or higher. Our building goal is to have our attendance rate 95% or higher at all times. We understand that things come up, but please make every effort to have students to school on time. With an early dismissal time, please try to make appointments after 3:10. In order for you student to be most successful, they need to be at school, all day and on time. Please let us know how we can help!

When your student does have to be absent, call Ms. Gwen in the office before 8:10am each day your student is absent to let us know why they are not present at school.

Transfer Policy:

If you are at Pittman on a transfer, please remember that in order to stay on transfer, your student needs to:

*Keep their attendance rate higher than 90%

*Have no more than 3 discipline referrals that result in ISS or OSS

In the event that either of these actions occur, you will be issued a warning letter to keep you informed of the situation. Transfer is a privilege and we want to hold ALL students to high expectations.