WEEKLY WONDERS

"Adults have not understood children or adolescents and they are, as a consequence, in continual conflict with them. The remedy is not that adults should gain some new intellectual knowledge or achieve a higher standard of culture. No, they must find a different point of departure. The adult must find within himself the still unknown error that prevents him from seeing the child as he is." -Dr. Maria Montessori

Pictured above: 8th Grade students work with the video camera during their Explorations film class.

**Watch "The Erdkinder Experience" video that the students produced at the link below to learn more about the Ellis 7th and 8th grade experience.**

Important Dates

January 16- Dr. MLK Jr. Day- No School!

January 21- SCCPSS Student Success Expo

January 21- Choice Program Application Window Opens

January 21- Family Engagement Discussion

January 21- Choice School Application Window Opens

January 24- School Council Meeting

January 24- Prospective Family Open House (PreK-3rd Grades)

January 25- Prospective Family Open House (4th-8th Grades)

January 26- PTA Meeting

View the SCCPSS Academic calendar at this link.

View the SCCPSS Assessment calendar at this link.

The Erdkinder Experience

What is Erdkinder and what what does the typical Erdkinder day look like?

Watch the video below that was produced by our 8th grade students during their 9-week Explorations Film class to find out more!

Family Engagement Discussion

The next Family Engagement Discussion will be held on Saturday, January 21st, at 9:30am in the Ellis Media Center.

This month, the discussion will be on "Maintaining Limits: Moving from Logical Consequences to Solutions."

We hope to see you there!

Pre-K Application Window

The Ellis Pre-K Application window opens on February 8th.

Visit the SCCPSS website for more information.

Prospective Family Information

Over the next few weeks, we will be conducting classroom observations and open houses for prospective families.

If you know of any families who are interested in learning more about our school, please direct them to the "Prospective Family" page of the Ellis website.

SCCPSS Student Success Expo

Mark your calendar for the SCCPSS Student Success Expo which will be Saturday, January 21st, at the Savannah Civic Center. More information will be sent out directly from the district as the event draws closer.

The application window for the SCCPSS Choice Schools program for the 2023/2024 school year will also open on this day. You can find more information on the SCCPSS website.

Counselors' Corner

Career Days! The school counseling department is excited to be planning for our upcoming career days. These are opportunities to expose our students to a variety of skills. We will be doing this in two informative events:

Career Speaker Day for Upper Elementary & Erdkinder- Tuesday, February 7, 8:30-10:00. Speakers will present brief presentations in 4th - 8th grade classrooms.

Careers on Wheels Day for Primary & Lower Elementary- Thursday, February 16, 9:30-11:00. Vehicles will be parked along McGillicuddy Lane for students to learn about vehicles of the trades.

If you have interest in participating in either of these events, please fill out this form, or online form: https://tinyurl.com/EllisCareerDays23

Ms. Rebecca, School Counselor, Primary & Lower Elementary

912-395-5470 x71201

tinyurl.com/BookMsRebecca

rebecca.burkhart@sccpss.com

Mr. Wes, School Counselor, Upper Elementary & Erdkinder

912-395-5470 x71243

tinyurl.com/BookMrWesC

wesley.cooper@sccpss.com

Ms. Lauren, School Counseling Intern from Georgia Southern University

STEM Event Opportunity

The 11th annual Girls Engineer It! Day (GEID) will be held on January 28th, 2023 at Woodville Tompkins High School. Students will attend the Expo portion of the event, and then break out into classes per age group to attend 3 hands-on STEM activities focused on different types of engineering taught by local engineers.

Registration for GEID is now open for 4th-8th grade students.

Ms. Olivia is trying to organize a group from Ellis to go together. If your student is interested in this event, please email her at olivia.lorenzo@sccpss.com.

Beacon Volunteer Program

All volunteers MUST be approved through the SCCPSS Beacon Volunteer Program.

If you are interested in being a volunteer at Ellis, visit the SCCPSS Beacon webpage to apply.

Grace & Courtesy Emphasis

Throughout the school year, Ellis has a school-wide focus on specific positive character traits. Each teacher may choose to highlight these "Grace & Courtesy" emphases differently, but as a school we follow a general common curriculum.

From January 4-13th, our school-wide Grace & Courtesy emphasis is UNITY & LOYALTY.

The language for identifying/naming TRUST & HONESTY in "The Self-Awakened Child" series by Jonathan Wolff:

Unity

When I think that all animals, birds, bugs, plants, and people are all part of Earth's big family, I am thinking about Unity.
When I look at all the ways people who look and talk different than I do are like me, I am thinking with Unity.

Loyalty

When I choose to be your friend and I am your friend forever, no matter what happens, I am being Loyal.
When whatever I do or say helps our friendship grow closer and better and I never purposely do anything to hurt you, I am being Loyal.
When my words and actions are the same as the love and truth of my heart, I am being Loyal to myself.