Galloping Gazette
A newsletter for the Faculty and Staff - Week 6/10 - 6/14
Put Students First • Seek Growth • Be Open to Change . Do Great Work Together • Value Differences
Principal's Message for the week:
As I reflect on the realization that this is the last week of the 2018 - 2019 school year, I cannot help but consider each of you and the unique role you have played in making this school year a success for our students, each other, and our entire school community. You are a dynamic group of educators who embody the phrase, "It takes a village." The Christopher Farms village is strong. While we have many data points to prove that our students became stronger in their academics, there is much more that they gained this year.
- Because of you, our students experienced joy
- Because of you our students experienced love
- Because of you our students learned how to be proud of themselves
- Because of you our students learned how to forgive
- Because of you our students realized there is always something to be grateful for
- Because of you our students will walk away for the summer more equipped than they did in the fall
Let's finish this week strong!
-Robyn
8 Hysterical things that teachers have actually said..
2. "Yes sharing is good, but not when it comes to boogers."
3. "Why are you smelling her?"
4. "Yes it is true. Uranus smells like frozen farts."
5. "No, you are not allowed to wear your Chewbacca mask all day."
6. "No, I don't know what the 7th largest reptile in the world is."
7. "Why were you even holding scissors? This is a writing assignment!"
8. "No, I was not alive when Abraham Lincoln was president."
I am sure this list could go on and on. If you have a funny kid statement, send it our way.
Staffing update
Jennifer Pleasant will be joining the farm as our new Office Associate!
Schedule for upcoming weeks
June 10th - June 14th
It is here! The last week of school!
Monday, June 10th
· 5th Grade Family Life Lesson
Student of the Month Lunch with Mrs. Backer and Mrs. Yoshida on the stage
· SOL Make Ups/Expedited
· 1:00p 5th Grade Author's Tea
Tuesday, June 11th
Voting Day - Please be mindful of this as your plan your morning commute!
· 9:15a 2nd Grade Animal Habitat Expo
· 9:30a - 1:30p 5th Grade Field Trip (VB Field House)
· 9:45a - 10:50a Pre-K Nursery Rhyme Parade - please come out and watch our Pre-K students show off!
Yearbook signings in the cafe:
2nd Grade 8:30 - 8:45
4th Grade 8:50 - 9:05
3rd grade 9:10 - 9:25
1st Grade 9:30 - 9:45
· SOL Make Ups/Expedited
Wednesday, June 12th
· Hump Day! We're almost done!
· SOL Make Ups/Expedited
3:00 All faculty/staff meeting in the library
Thursday, June 13th
· 8:30a Kindergarten Celebration (All Kindergarten students dismissed after celebration)
· 1:30p Grad Walk
· 12:00 - 2:30 5th Grade Celebration Events
Friday, June 14th
· Last Day of School (Adjusted Dismissal)
· 9:30 5th Grade Celebration - Please be out in the hallway to celebrate our fifth graders
Report Card timeline
The DOT timeline for report cards is as follows:
- Friday, June 7th - Art/Music/PE grades/comments finalized by 5:00 p.m. Send Robin an email when complete and turn your form in.
- Monday, June 10th - Homeroom teachers finalize grades/comments by 5:00 p.m. Send Robin an email when complete and turn your form in
- Report Card Comments: Comments are required for the final report card. Much thought should be given when creating report card comments. Teachers also have the opportunity to use pre-populated comments. Statements included should be meaningful, positive, and accurate, yet tactful. Begin with something positive and include achievements earned by the student.
Grad Walk
***Staff members can wear jeans with a college shirt***
The End of the School Year: A Time to Pause and Celebrate Successes
"The walls of the classroom look emptier than they looked a month ago and a few remnants of the presence of students remain: a pencil here or a sticky note there containing a past thought. As the last student leaves the room in which you’ve built a community, many emotions can fill the empty space. The end of the school year invites an opportunity to pause and celebrate successes."
Click on the article below to access the rest of the article from Responsive Classroom.
Changes to Recess
In the 2019-2020 there will be changes to Recess in accordance with the School Board Policy. We will discuss specifics when you return in August. For now, here is what the memo outlines:
Recess in all elementary schools will increase to 40 minutes daily for full-day kindergarten students and to 30 minutes daily for students in grades 1-5. The remaining schools with half-day kindergarten should maintain the same kindergarten recess schedule as this year. When developing master schedules for the 2019-2020 school year, the following expectations regarding recess should be implemented:
1. For full-day kindergarten, students will participate in 15 minutes of recess immediately prior to or immediately following their physical education class, with the PE teacher and PE teacher assistants serving as monitors. The remaining 25 minutes of recess will take place at the opposite time of the day from physical education during core instructional time (language arts and math), with the kindergarten teacher assistants serving as monitors.
2. For grades 1-5, students will participate in 15 minutes of recess immediately prior to or immediately following their physical education class, with the PE teacher and teacher assistants serving as monitors. The remaining 15 minutes of recess will take place at the opposite time of the day from physical education during core instructional time (language arts, math, science, social studies), with the classroom teacher serving as the monitor.
All staff who will monitor recess will be required during teacher workweek to participate in a 30-minute online mandatory professional learning module, which will review expectations and best practices for recess activities and monitoring, recess safety, and weather guidelines for outdoor recess. Principals will receive more information regarding how to access the modules via memo prior to the end of summer.
In addition, a recess implementation guidelines document will be available at the start of the 2019-2020 school year for all elementary school administrators and teachers.