Hello NCCAES Families!

Spring has sprung and we are loving this warm weather at school lately!

This past week I had an opportunity to travel to a Principal Networking Conference with our consultant ArtsNOW. They are an arts integration consulting team out of Savannah, Georgia who works with schools throughout South Carolina and Georgia. We brought them onboard last year when we identified the need for onsite professional development in arts integration for our new teachers.

It was a wonderful day of listening, learning and drafting out a five year plan to strengthen the seamless integration of arts into the grade level classrooms to boost engagement, deepen learning and foster creativity.

I urge you to check out their website at https://artsnowlearning.org/ and explore the components we are using everyday to bring learning to life!

On Thursday, March 9th, South Carolina published author Dinah Johnson will present to K-5th grades in our NCCAE multipurpose room. She will share poetry and pictures from her books.

8-8:45am Grades 3-5

9-9:45am Grades K-2

Faculty, Staff and Students had an AMAZING time celebrating Black History Month in the month of February. We began February with World Read Aloud Day where parents and community members came in and read a book to classes that was written and illustrated by African American authors.

Faculty and Staff also participated in our Bulletin Board/Door Decorating Contest. Our Winner was the NCCAE Intervention Team! Below you will see a picture of their submission inspired by the book Martin's Big Words by Doreen Rappaport.

Ms. Olivia Price and our Strings students shared a virtual performance of Wade in the Water, a Negro Spiritual. It is believed that Harriet Tubman, who made thirteen trips to the South and helped free more than 70 people, used this song to warn slaves to get off the trail and into the water to prevent dogs—used by the slavers—from finding them.

Ms. Kimberly Majewski and NCCAE 3rd grade Dance students studied and choreographed movement to the Strings performance of Wade in the Water. Ms. Majewski talks about their experience below:

"Students in 3rd grade dance explored who and why Alvin Alley was important to the dance world, especially African Americans. Students looked closer at his "Wade in the Water" piece. They also studied the water cycle and created words for each part of the cycle. Next students got into groups to create their own water cycle words and movements for each word. The class choose the order and sequence of the groups to create their final dance. The dance was performed to music by the Strings students in 4th and 5th grade." Dance performance video

2nd Grade once again pulled off a phenomenal presentation for their African American Hero Wax Museum. Students were asked to choose a person from history that they feel is an African American hero. This person must have made positive contributions in their lifetime. Students dressed up as this person for the Wax Museum on Friday February 17, 2023. Students posed as their figure with their poster in their classroom and all 2nd grade parents were invited to "tour" their classroom museums.

Wona Womalan West African Drum & Dance Ensemble came to NCCAE to perform for the whole school! Wona Womalan West African Drum & Dance Ensemble honors the authentic integrity of West African musical arts. This group shares its knowledge and appreciation of this beautiful and ancient tradition by bringing the music and dance of Africa to people of all ages. Enjoy the pictures and video of the performance!

Our Scholastic Spring Book Fair just ended and we hit record sales for the school! We were able to purchase multiple books for classroom teachers from the donations received! Thank you to all the AMAZING volunteers that took time to support the daily grind of the student shoppers. Thank you to all the NCCAE Families that supported literacy through student purchases and donations. The Spring Book Fair placed 1000 books into the hands of students and teachers!

Please be advised that our school will continue to review attendance records of students that have accrued more than 3 consecutive unexcused absences or 5 total unexcused absences. If your child's attendance record reflects the above description, they are considered truant and a letter will be sent home to schedule an attendance conference.

If you receive a letter for an attendance conference, please make arrangements to attend. If you need to reschedule the conference, please contact the school to set a new conference date.

When a student is absent, the school office must receive a valid excuse, written by the parent or guardian, within three (3) days after the student returns to school. This excuse must contain: student’s name, teacher’s name, date(s) of absence, specific reason for absence and signature of parent or guardian. Excuses received via email will NOT be accepted, as they must be written and signed by the parent.

"Students who attend school regularly have been shown to achieve at higher levels than students who do not have regular attendance. This relationship between attendance and achievement may appear early in a child's school career."

Visit the following link for more information on the affects that chronic absenteeism has on student success. Attendance Information