Panther Pride Newsletter
November 2023
No School
December 22, 2023 thru January 3, 2024
Superintendent News
Happy Holidays
As we approach the holiday season, I want to take a moment to extend my warmest wishes to each and every one of you. This time of year provides an opportunity for reflection, gratitude, and joy.
As the first half of the school year draws to a close, we reflect on our moments of shared learning and growth within Panther Nation. It has been a year of challenges and triumphs, and we are immensely grateful for the commitment and support of our students, parents, teachers, and staff.
Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year!
Warmest regards,
Bryan Farson,
Superintendent
Primary School
The Primary Staff would like to thank all of the Parent Volunteers that were able to help with the Holiday Shop during the month of December. The two days of shopping were a huge success because of the following parent volunteers: Rhoda Flickinger, Sarah James, Christina Kirkendall, Jessica Salzwimmer, Erin Henricksen, Laura Kelly, Jen Witzberger, and Sarah Juarez. Thank you for the continued support with all of our Little Panthers. We wish you a happy and healthy holiday season!
Elementary School
Literacy
For this month's update, we want to share our progress toward this year's literacy goal in a timeline form. We continue to make strides toward implementing a number of assessment and intervention tools. Thank you for following our progress and asking questions.
Literacy: The Timeline
Here’s a little recap of what we’ve been doing so far this year with our literacy work, and what’s coming up:
Beginning of the year: We began using our new ELA materials (Open Court, Wonders), which use a systematic, structured approach to teaching reading.
September: Students grades 1-3 participated in literacy screening.
October: Teachers reviewed data from literacy screenings, established groups for intervention time, and late in the month, began meeting with their groups on a daily basis. Diagnostic assessments began for students whose screener scores were below standardized benchmarks.
November: Diagnostic assessments continued. Intervention time continued. In late November, teachers gave the first round of progress monitoring checks for students in their intervention groups.
December: Diagnostic assessments will continue. Intervention time will continue, too.
January: Mid-year literacy screenings will be conducted grades 1-3. Intervention groups and progress monitoring will continue.
February: Teachers will meet to review screener scores, along with progress monitoring data and diagnostic data. Intervention groups may be adjusted depending on students’ needs. Intervention time and progress monitoring will continue.
March-April: Intervention and progress monitoring will continue.
April-May: End-of-year literacy screenings will be conducted. The results will help us reflect on the progress made during the 2023-24 school year and also help us plan for the 2024-25 school year.
School Resumes on January 4, 2024
Middle School
Turkey Trot
Norton Middle School kicked-off the holiday season with our third annual Turkey Trot! Students raced a one-mile course, and winners received a turkey for their families. In an effort to help our community, participation fees were used to support Norton Aide. Students had a great time, thanks to the meticulous planning by our PE department and our staff volunteers who helped with snacks, certificates, and course management. See our Facebook page for pictures of our top 30 in each grade. Norton Middle School looks forward to continuing this tradition for years to come! Other holiday events at NMS include the canned food drive, a holiday-themed pep assembly, and our in-school, winter dance to support our PBIS program.
High School
Hall of Fame Induction
The Hall of Fame committee is proud to announce our inductees for this school year. Included are sisters who were dominant on the basketball court, a pioneering doctor, a legendary local educator and theater producer, and the all-time winningest football coach in Medina County history:
Athletics
Natalie Cook
Cara Cook
Distinguished Citizen
William Vaill
Dr. Kurtis Stemple
Athletic and Distinguished Citizen
Greg Dennison
Congratulations to our new inductees and their families! The formal induction ceremony will take place February 10th.
Students of the Month
Congratulations to the following students for their excellence inside and outside of the classroom as they have been chosen as our December Students of the Month. They truly exemplify what it means to be a Norton Panther. Panther Pride!
Primary
Matilda Svetlik
Elementary
Addisyn Brienza
Christian Brienza, Jr.
Middle School
Mallory Brown
High School
Addison Vickery
HS Compact
Kendall Berlin
Technology Exploration
Mrs. Berlin’s 6th grade students are not only learning about how minerals make up rocks, they are also working on some important life skills, whether they realize it or not. The project started with students picking a partner and a mineral to research. From there, they had a list of questions to answer about their mineral. (Ex: Where is it mined? What are some interesting facts about the mineral?) Next, came the research. Once the students had all of their answers, they created a layout for their presentation on paper and then took it to a collaborative Google Slide presentation. They divided up the responsibilities for the project, such as color palette and design, what items to include together on slides and which ones to separate, and so on. Finally, students presented their research to the class on the Clevertouch. Collaboration, communication, researching, planning, contributing, and organization, are all skills we want our students to have as they become adults. What a great way to practice them while learning content at the same time! Way to go students and way to go Mrs. Berlin!
Important Dates
Dec. 21 End of Nine Weeks / End of 1st Semester
Dec. 22 No School for Students / Staff Records Day
Dec. 23 - Jan. 3 Winter Break - No School
Jan. 4 School Resumes
Jan. 8 Board of Education Meeting - 7 p.m.
Jan. 15 MLK Jr. Day - No School
Feb. 8 Parent Teacher Conferences Gr. 5 - 12 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Feb. 19 Presidents Day - No School
March 7 Parent Teacher Conferences Gr. K-4 - 4:00 - 7:00 p.m.
March 8 End of Nine Weeks
Norton City Schools
Norton School Information
High School
Grades 9-12
330.825.7300
Middle School
Grades 5-8
330.825.5607
Elementary School
Grades 1-4
330.825.3828
Primary School
Pre-K thru Kindergarten
330.825.5133
Attendance Hotline
330.706.2760