Suwanee Elementary Monday Mail
Week of March 26, 2018
March 26th: Backwards Day
March 27th: Crazy Sock Day
March 28th: Twin Day
March 29th: Wacky Tacky Day
March 30th: Dress Like a Teacher Day
March 30th is the last day to order Relay for Life T-Shirts
March 29th: Fairy Tale Ball - 1st Grade
March 29th: 5th Graders will be visiting North Gwinnett Middle School
April 2nd-April 6th: Spring Break - Students Return on April 9th
Little Free Library
Pardon our Progress
Georgia Milestones
Does your child need to practice writing for the Georgia Milestones?
There are three videos – one for narrative, informational and opinion writing on the blue Suwanee eclass page. When your child logs into their eclass page you will see the blue Suwanee page first. To find them, click “Content,” then look under the Table of Contents for Literacy Videos 2017-18.
When students answer the writing prompts for GMAS, we want them to follow consistent steps. These videos take the students through these steps. If your child needs extra practice, watch the videos together. In addition, visit the GaDOE (http://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Assessment/Pages/Georgia-Milestones-Assessment-System.aspx) and find practice writing passages and prompts.
Suwanee Elementary PTA Announcement
The Suwanee Elementary PTA Nominating Committee submits the following slate of officers for the 2018-2019 school year.
Co-Presidents: Jenna Troncalli, Emily Bowman
Vice President: Holly Laddusaw
Vice President: Dena Hunt
Vice President: Janet Richter
Vice President: Kathryn Brown
Secretary: Dely Anthony
Treasurer: Kerstin Wiles
The election will be held at the General PTA meeting on April 10th at 12:00.
Georgia Department of Education Parent Survey- Extended until March 31st.
Fairy Tale Ball Donations!
Fairy Tale Ball - 1st Grade
During the fairy tale unit that the first graders study in school, the children compare and contrast, sequence, retell, recreate, and analyze characters from fairy tales. We also review point of view as we read a variety of fairy tales. After reading several fairy tales, the children will pick a favorite fairy tale character to dress up as. Our culminating activity will be the Fairy Tale Ball. The Fairy Tale Ball will take place on March 29, 2018. Please refer to your teacher's newsletter for additional information or email Ms. Sandi Martinez.
Yearbooks are on sale now!
This school year will hold many precious moments that should not be forgotten. These memories will last a lifetime in your child’s copy of THE SUWANEE ELEMENTARY YEARBOOK! The Suwanee Elementary PTA has put together a book that is filled cover to cover with individual portraits, club portraits, as well as photographs of teachers, friends, special events, classes, activities and candid shots during the 2017-2018 school year. This hardcover yearbook will be a precious reminder of some of the happiest times in your child’s life. You can hold on to these valuable memories by giving your child a gift that will last a lifetime. You can purchase a yearbook NOW for $30.00 online at Balfour.com. You can submit school activity pictures to suwaneeyearbook@gmail.com or through the Balfour Image Share App for possible inclusion to the yearbook.
Snip Its from Sandi
Notes from Nix
Middle School Transition
Parent night for rising 6th graders from Suwanee will be on Tuesday, March 27th at 6pm. Arrive early and visit their Spring Book Fair during parent visitation night. The NGMS Book Fair will be open from 5-6pm on March 27th. Prepare for your student's summer reading assignment by purchasing books from the rising 6th grade summer reading list. Proceeds from the Book Fair support student learning opportunities in the school.
On Thursday, March 29th, our fifth graders will be visiting North Gwinnett Middle School for half of the day. Please return the permission slip this week so your student can participate in this experience.
Georgia Milestones Testing
The Georgia Milestones are coming in April for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. Please take note of these crucial dates. We need students present each day for testing.
Wednesday, April 11th
Thursday, April 12th
Friday, April 13th
Tuesday, April 17th
Wednesday, April 18th
Friday, April 20th
Monday, April 23rd
*Please note that no visitors will be allowed in the building between April 11th – April 24th due to testing and testing make ups.
Please check your calendar and make sure your child does not have a morning appointment during testing. We cannot call into classrooms or get students out of classrooms until testing is completed each day. Testing will begin each day at 8:25 AM and will be completed by 11:00 AM. No check outs will be allowed during the administration of the Georgia Milestones. Please plan accordingly.
FOCUS ON FOCUS
Ms. Stockton’s 1st Grade
This week, students investigated magnets and magic tricks. We researched how people use magnets in order to do magic tricks. Then, the students planned, gathered materials, and practiced their trick. We also reviewed author's purpose. We discussed why an author might write a book: persuade, inform, and entertain. We used the books "Earrings," "I don’t want to be a Frog," and "Magnets: Pushing Together, Pulling Apart."
Ms. Stagman’s 2nd Grade
Below are energy facts and tips from 2nd grade FOCUS students that you can implement at home:
"Old light bulbs do not last long, but new light bulbs can last for seven years and it doesn't use as much energy as old light bulbs."
"Some power plants make electricity without fuel. They use wind to power houses."
"Geothermal energy comes from hot rock in the center of the earth. We use it to make electricity and heat buildings. It is clean and reliable, but expensive."
"When you charge your phone, do not leave the charger plugged in empty, since that wastes energy. Unplug it!"
"The United States gets one percent of its energy from Solar Power."
"We use fossil fuels faster than the earth can produce them."
"Only 8 percent of energy used in the United States comes from renewable resources."
"The ultimate source of energy that we encounter on earth is the sun."
Ms. Phillip’s 3rd Grade
Third grade FOCUS students just finished their recycled portable garden planting. Students designed charts to track the growth of their seedlings to the nearest 1/4 inch each week, and we are anxious to see the growth in the last week! Meanwhile, we are building on our knowledge of equivalent fractions to create pixel art. Students had to create a design on a one hundred square grid with the fractions 1/4, 1/10, and 1/5 represented in different colors. Next week, third graders will write and perform a cooking show with different equivalent fractions represented in a snack recipe they create! I can't wait to taste their creations!
Ms. Pristupa’s 4th Grade
Fourth grade focus friends are finishing up their STEM activity on catapults. They have brainstormed, constructed, tested, analyzed, and recorded data into line plots by using centimeters of decimeters (tenths, hundredths). After DA testing, we will have a final competition to see which catapult can use force to push the red ball forward the furthest. For geometry, we have created geometric shapes in which we used protractors to determine the angles within our designs. The designs are quite interesting. Did you know a straight line has 180 degrees? Did you know that is related to a circle, 360 degrees? Did you know that a square has four 90 degree angles, so that makes it have a total of 360 degrees? We do. Ask a focus friend how he/she knows.
Ms. Jones’ 5th Grade
Our deepest thinking takes place when we can analyze our work. Fifth grade FOCUS has worked to analyze numbers (wholes and parts of wholes) as we study mixed numbers and fractions. We have added, subtracted, and created our own riddles to practice this analytical thinking.
Area Board Meetings Take To The Road
2018 Area Board Meetings
Beginning in March 2018, the Gwinnett County Board of Education will go on the road, as it does each year, meeting once in each Board member's district. The meetings provide an opportunity to hear CEO/Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks' annual address on the state of the school district, focusing on the district's strategic direction, recent successes and new initiatives.
The 2018 Area Board Meetings are organized by cluster. Citizens may attend any one of the five meetings, however. All meetings begin at 7 p.m. in the host school's theater, with refreshments served at 6:15 p.m. The North Gwinnett Cluster will attend the March 29 Area Board Meeting.
Date
District/School Board Member
Host high school
March 27
District IV/Dr. Robert McClure
Parkview
March 29
District III/Dr. Mary Kay Murphy
Norcross
April 10
District II/Daniel Seckinger
Mill Creek
April 12
April 17
District V/Louise Radloff
District I/Carole Boyce
Berkmar
Dacula
Transportation Reminders
Attention Car Riders: The tardy bell rings at 8:15 AM. Staff members need to come inside the building to begin the school day. If you are not on time, please park in the back and bring your child in to the front office and sign your child in as tardy.
Transportation Changes:
If your child needs a bus pass, please make sure that the following information is included on the bus note: your student's full name, your student's teacher, the address of the destination, and the full name of the friend your student is joining on the bus (if applicable).
Changes in a student's transportation cannot be made after 1:00 pm. You can find additional information about transportation in the student/parent handbook provided at Open House and on our website.
Thank you for your support with the transportation process.
Safety and Security
All schools have safety and security plans. The plans are designed with the help of school security and support staff members, as well as local law enforcement, emergency management, and public health officials. Plans are reviewed and updated regularly. These plans include procedures to respond to critical incidents such as tornados, medical emergencies and criminal acts. All staff members are trained on procedures to handle issues related to safety and security.