BARBER BULLETIN
JULY 2016
JULY UPDATE!
I hope this newsletter finds you relaxed and recharged!
As we prepare for our students return, we have many exciting things happening this summer!
We have a new hashtag! Thanks for your vote! When you TWEET this summer and during the school year about the great things happening in your classroom, please use the hashtag, #inspire2lead
Imagine if we all spent 2 minutes a day checking out this hashtag to learn more about the awesome things our colleagues are doing with their students! If you need assistance with setting up a Twitter account for your classroom, please let Cheryl Turner know!
Leader in Me training was wonderful. We appreciate all the follow up and feedback you have shared with us! Have you checked in with your accountability partner recently? This is a great way to stay connected and continue to use the 7 Habits in your life. I know many of you are "sharpening the saw" this summer!
Judy Ryan was awarded a $1500 grant from the new Sams Club in our area! Her goal is to engage students in ZUMBA classes each morning to get them energized for the day!
We have recently hired a few new staff members since our last staff newsletter.
Please join me in welcoming Sonya Ramsue. She comes to us from Lee County and will serve as our Reading Coach for the 2016-2017 school year. Previously a reading coach in another district, her experience is plentiful and we are confident she will serve you well! Please reach out to her at smramsue@yahoo.com to introduce yourself and welcome her to the PES family!
We also hired Jessica Ellingsen for a 1st grade position! She lives in the Blythewood area and is getting married this September. She has been teaching in the Fort Mill area and eager to return to the Midlands! You can contact her at ellingsenj2@mailbox.winthrop.edu
As we look ahead to the end of the summer, we will welcome all of our new hires to Pontiac on August 1. Stay tuned for more information about this day and how you can support these newest Parrots!
Kindercamp will be held on August 2-3 and we are thrilled about this opportunity to welcome our newest friends to the school!
Team Leaders are meeting this summer on July 26 at 8:00am. We look forward to sharing lots of information with our grade level leaders and gathering input and making final decisions to rollout this year. We are also engaging team leaders in a very exciting team building experience. Who knows? Perhaps they will encourage their grade levels to participate in the same experience at a later date?
PTO, as you may recall, allocated funds last year for our 25th anniversary for a school mural celebrating the last 25 years! WOW! It is breathtaking and we can't wait for all of you to see it!
And.....lastly, what I'm sure many of you have been waiting for........when should you expect your class lists and when can you finally get into the building to begin setting up your classrooms?
Well our Service Solutions crew has been working SO hard for you this summer and they are ahead our schedule! You can tentatively plan to begin coming into the building on August 1. We will send an email to confirm that closer to the date!
As for your class lists, the PowerSchool rollover is happening TODAY! Once our school registrar finalizes the scheduling our admin team will begin placing students. Certainly, our goal is to put these in your hands when you return on August 10!
We hope you continue to have a wonderful summer break with your family and friends. Should you need anything from us, please don't hesitate to contact us! We are working at the school each Monday-Thursday from 7am-5pm.
Summer Institute: Are you registered yet?
The Sessions booklet for the Summer Institute to be held August 3rd and 4th was emailed to you last month. Let me know if you need it emailed to you again!
Registration in PDExpress is OPEN and will remain open throughout the summer. Each session will have 30 slots available. Elementary sessions will be held at Lake Carolina Upper Campus.
A hard copy of the 2016 Summer Institute Booklet is available at school for reference.
Thanks to all of the teachers who have agreed to present at the Institute and we look forward to seeing you all there.
NEED SCHOOL REPS!
We need you! Please consider joining one of the following:
PTO:
Our PTO meets once a month - the first Thursday at 6:00pm - and teacher input is valuable for this organization! We need teacher voices to help plan events and provide resources to teachers! Please consider being a part of this parent organization!
SIC:
Our School Improvement Council meets once a month at 7:45am. We discuss the school's strategic plan and make decisions about the vision and direction of the school.
Intervention Assistance Team:
Our IAT team holds monthly meetings to make instructional decisions for children not making progress in Tier II with supplemental interventions. This is a great way to share your ideas on effective academic, emotional, and behavioral strategies.
Wellness Committee:
Our Wellness Committee is made up of two parts - our Adopt a Doc Program and our Let's Move initiative! Lauren Fink and Jennifer Larck co-lead this committee. Are you interested in helping others with leading a healthy lifestyle? This is for you!
Golf Tournament:
Each year we plan a community Golf Tournament to raise funds to support PES students. In the past these funds have supported technology purchases including new NEWS ROOM equipment. We need help with silent auction plans as well as meals and community interest. Shauna Gartner is leading this so please let us know if you can help!
Maker Fair (scheduled for December)
Tim Swick and Marissa Young are planning a Maker Fair event! This will be part science fair - part technology expo - part circus fun! It will include activities for students to explore a variety of tools and topics by making things in both the physical and digital world. Even if you don't know much about what a Maker Fair is, don't let that stop you!
Thank you for finding your passion at PES!
Why PBL?
The SC Education Oversight Committee (EOC), has adopted the Profile of the SC Graduate as a guide for such evaluation. Part of the EOC evaluation system has to do with world class knowledge. This is measured at the elementary level by the ACT Aspire (ELA and math) and the PASS (science and social studies).
The world class skills and life and career character skills will be measured by the efforts that the teachers, schools, and district make to provide the students opportunities to succeed in these skills. As a result, PBL is critical to the success of our students, teachers, school, and district.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/emphasize-real-problems-boost-stem-learning-suzie-boss
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/nov14/vol72/num03/Talking-to-Learn.aspx
Stay tuned for a schoolwide PBL project!
If you are interested in learning more about PBL, check out the PBL sessions at the Summer Institute!