Cannon Connection
A newsletter for Cannon Elementary parents - 2017-2018
Week of December 11, 2017
Hi Cannon Parents!
We had such a GREAT week last week! In addition to all of the wonderful learning our students engaged in at school, there were several out of school events that brought a lot of smiles to the faces of our Cubs AND their families too!
These events included a theater packed with Cannon families to watch the movie, Wonder together; Cannon families bundled up to watch the awe-inspiring 2017 Parade of Lights in Grapevine; and lots of Cannon families enjoying pancakes, holiday music, and selfies with Santa at school on Saturday! Thank you to all of our Cannon families that attended and participated in these events - lots of memory-making at it's best!
Special thanks to all of our Cannon PTA and Dad's Club volunteers who generously offer their valuable time to make these events a reality at Cannon! Our Dad's Club spent days designing & building the incredible float that represented our school in the parade. They earned 3rd place, out of 98 entries this year -congratulations to ALL of you! Click here to see some great photos of this event! It's such a wonderful time to be a Cannon Cub!
Thank YOU for all you do to support our students, staff, and school! We truly create a community of learners when school & home connections are built!
Proud to be your principal,
Mrs. Blizzard
SEEN @ CANNON LAST WEEK!
HOUR OF CODE WEEK = SUCCESS!
CANNON CHOIRS VISIT GRAPEVINE
PARADE OF LIGHTS 2017
ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILD TO TAKE THE DECEMBER CANNON KINDNESS CHALLENGE!
Help us promote KINDNESS at Cannon all month long!! Below is an image of a Kindness Challenge Calendar for our Cubs to use for ideas on ways to do an act of kindness each day of the month! Click here for a PDF version of this challenge and share it with your children. We are doing many things throughout the month to promote acts of kindness for all of our Cubs, including our annual campus-wide community service project! More details about this community service project are coming soon!
Mark Your Calendars.....
12/15 Last day for the nomination window for Kindergarten & 5th grade gifted & talented programs - see information in this newsletter
12/11 Cannon Choirs Holiday Concert - Grapevine High School- 7:00 pm
12/12 Parent information for 5th grade parents about middle school Gifted & Talented programs- 6:00 pm @ PDEC - see information in this newsletter
12/15 Candy Houses With Kindergarten Dads - 8:00-10:00 am - Cannon cafeteria
12/19 Spelling Bee Pre-test for 4th & 5th grade students interested in Spelling Bee - see information in this newsletter!
12/20 Limos & Pizza for students who qualified through Read-A-Thon fundraiser
12/21 Class Holiday Parties 10:15- 11:15 am
12/21 Early Release @ 11:45
12/22-1/8 Student Holiday Break
1/9 Students return to school
IT'S TIME FOR THE SPELLING BEE!
Please encourage your 4th & 5th graders to participate in this event!!
Parent Information For Students Nominations for Gifted & Talented - Kindergarten & 5th grade
Please see information below about the nomination process for Kindergarten & 5th grade students to participate in Gifted & Talented programs. Information about this process for 1st-4th will be provided in the spring semester.
Kindergarten Gifted and Talented Program (GT LEAD)
The two week window for nominating your child for gifted and talented testing opens on Monday, December 4 and lasts until Friday, December 15. If you missed the information meeting in November about this process, please click here to see the presentation that was shared. Please contact the homeroom teacher if you are interested in having your child tested, which will begin after the winter holiday break in January. A digital parent survey and permission-to-test form will be shared through email, or you can pick up a paper copy from the Cannon front office.
GT LEAD classes will begin in February and will be 45 minutes each week for kindergarten.
5TH Grade GT LEAD/ASPIRE/Middle School Gifted and Talented Meeting
There will be a meeting on Tuesday, December 12 at 6:00 pm at the Professional Development Center, at 5800 Colleyville Blvd., Colleyville for parents who are interested in the Middle School GT program for their:
- current 5th grader (non-GT identified) student testing for the gifted and talented program, or
- current 5th grader (Identified GT) student testing for the Aspire Academy, or
- current 5th grader (Identified GT) student looking for their placement options for Middle School.
There will only be one district-wide meeting, but then a video of it will be put on the Advanced Academics website. The referral window for parents to refer their child for gifted testing is December 4-15, and please contact either your child's homeroom teacher or email me if you are planning to do so. The actual fifth grade testing will occur January 10-17th.
Please contact Melanie Gable, Cannon GT Specialist should you have any questions or concerns. Melanie.Gable@gcisd.net
Cannon Elementary - A Recognized Common Sense Media School!
Common Sense, the national nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids and families thrive in a world of digital media and technology, has recognized Cannon Elementary: A GCISD STEM School as a Common Sense School.
Cannon Elementary has been using Common Sense Education's innovative and research-based digital citizenship resources to create a culture of digital learning and citizenship. This recognition acknowledges our school's commitment to taking a whole-community approach to preparing our students to use the immense power of digital media to explore, create, connect, and learn, while limiting the perils that exist in the online realm, such as plagiarism, loss of privacy, and cyberbullying.
We are honored to receive this recognition! By preparing our students to use technology safely and responsibly, we are providing them with unlimited opportunities to maximize and personalize their learning.
PTA QUICK PICKS!
This week's "quick picks" of reminders & information from PTA:
We had a great week with holiday events!! Thank you to all our volunteers at Santa Shop, Dads’ Club Float, and Breakfast with Santa!
- The Dual Language Game Night planned for Wednesday, December 13 will be re-scheduled for a later date in 2018.
- Cannon Talent Show will be Friday, February 9. Students need to start planning acts. Details being sent home with students soon.
Stay connected by following Cannon PTA on social media. Click here to "like" the PTA Facebook page. Follow them on Twitter @CannonPTA.
TEA SCHOOL REPORT CARD
In addition to the School Report Card, the more detailed Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) for our campus can be accessed online at https://rptsvr1.tea.texas.gov/perfreport/tapr/2017/srch.html?srch=C.
If you have any questions about either report, please contact me. Paper copies of both reports can be viewed in our main office.
Amazon Smile
Holiday Shopping on Amazon? Purchase on Amazon Smile and they'll give 0.5% to Cannon PTA. Bookmark this link and support us every time you shop! http://smile.amazon.com/ch/75-2454480
School Calendar for 2018-2019
On Monday, November 13, GCISD Trustees approved the Student and Staff Instructional Calendars for the 2018-2019 school year.
A few highlights from the 2018-2019 student instructional calendar:
- Students will begin classes on Monday, August 20.
- Students will have a four-day weekend in October for Columbus Day weekend; staff will have a three-day weekend.
- Students and staff will have a four-day weekend in April (dependent on the need to makeup one or both inclement weather days).
- Students are finished on May 30 with graduation following that afternoon and evening.
To view the 2018-2019 student instructional calendar, click here.
To view the 2018-2019 staff instructional calendar, click here.
To view the 2018-2019 iUniversity Prep instructional calendar, click here.
To learn more about how the district develops the instructional calendars, please watch the video below:
I want to make you aware of where you can see information and resources, specifically about the Cannon construction project. Also, check out the awesome exterior renderings of our new school below!!
Please reach out to me to let me know of any questions you may have about this project. This is a VERY exciting time for our Cannon school community and I want to make sure all of our Cannon families stay informed!
Click here to see project updates on all GCISD Bond programs
Click here to sign up for construction updates by email about the Cannon project!
STEM IN GCISD BLOG
This blog will have the most updated information about upcoming events specific to Cannon, GMS STEM, and the future STEM program at GHS.
Cannon Elementary: A GCISD STEM School
Email: tona.blizzard@gcisd.net
Website: http://www.gcisd-k12.org/Domain/1428
Location: 1300 W College St, Grapevine, TX, United States
Phone: 817-251-5680
Facebook: facebook.com/CannonSTEM
Twitter: @canSTEM