THE LIONS DEN
Schweitzer Newsletter January 15, 2019
Albert Schweitzer Elementary School
Email: aorlando@neshaminy.org
Website: www.neshaminy.org
Location: 30 Harmony Road, Levittown, PA, USA
Phone: 215-809-6380
Facebook: facebook.com/Schweitzeres
Schweitzer Students Present at NSD School Board Meeting
Second and third grade students from Albert Schweitzer presented at the Neshaminy School Board meeting on Tuesday, January 8th. Below is an outline of what was presented. Students and their families can be very proud of their work. A big thank you also goes to Mrs. Kym Cridland (2nd grade), and Ms. Sarah Garrison, (3rd grade) for supporting their work and promoting technology integration in the their classrooms!
2nd Grade Coding Club
The second grade teaching team at Schweitzer runs a Coding Club on Tuesday mornings. Over 40 students meet every Tuesday morning to learn about coding and other STEM-related activities. Currently they are learning how to code robots, and students will showcased some of the robots and what they can do. Students also asked Board members to be interactive with the presentation to model the robots.
2nd Grade Coding Club Presenters:
- Emily Roberts
- Savannah Rakoczy
- Conrad Jones
- Leland Russo
- Noah Miller
- Logan Devlin
3rd Grade Penpalschools.org
At Schweitzer, we have a site license for penpalschools.org. It is an online platform where students connect with other students around the world to make authentic connections and make learning fun! Teachers assign project-based learning units for students. Our third graders read and analyze non-fiction texts, share ideas with an authentic audience, collaborate using technology, and build empathy, curiosity, and respect for others as they communicate. Students presented what they are doing with project-based learning through PenPal Schools.
3rd Grade PenPal Schools Presenters:
- Nathan Swartz
- Ava Roode
- Jillian Hubbard
PTO Movie Night
The Albert Schweitzer PTO hosted a FREE movie night to view The Incredibles 2! So much fun! There were snacks and drinnks on hand, and it was an opportunity for families to relax and watch a movie together. Thank you to the PTO for supporting such a community-building event!
Counselor's Corner
Confused about what a school counselor does? The role and responsibilities of a school counselor has changed over the years and with those changes also came a change in the name from guidance counselors to school counselors. ASCA’s National School Counselor Week is February 4-8, 2019 and this week is about promoting the new the essential role school counselor’s have on student’s academic success. To help you better understand what I do, I listed some of the services school counselors provide below.
Some direct student services include:
Holding school wide events, such as Unity Day, which is a day dedicated to spreading unity, inclusion and kindness as well as standing up to bullying. This is a part of National Bullying Prevention Month, which is in October.
Providing small counseling groups that focus on topics such as making friends, self-control, managing worries, habits of a happy kid, families in separate homes, etc.
Individual counseling-planned, short-term and goal-focused counseling.
Crisis intervention and referral.
* School counselors do not provide therapy or long-term counseling in schools.
Some Indirect Student Services include:
Consulting with staff or families to share strategies or tools to help support student success.
Collaborating with parents, teachers and other community supports to help student success.
Connecting families with community resources/referrals.
Meeting with school based teams to ensure student safety, academic, social/emotional and career building success.
Managing student referrals to Pupil Services
Here is an article from the ASCA National Model about the role of the elementary school counselor: https://www.schoolcounselor.org/asca/media/asca/Careers-Roles/WhyElem.pdf
Dressed for the Weather
Square 1 Art Fundraiser-We Need Your Feedback!
Mrs. Todd, our amazing art teacher, and the Schweitzer PTO would like your help! They need feedback on the current Square 1 art fundraiser. It will just take 1-2 minutes to answer five quick questions on the survey link below. Please click the link and provide feedback about the fundraiser as well as timing of the fundraiser moving forward. We appreciate your support!
Pets on School Property
Board Policy allows for service animals to be on school property during the school day. If you bring your pet to our school during morning drop-off or afternoon pick-up, the animal should remain in your car. Please do not allow your dog, cat, or other pets to exit your vehicle during our arrival or dismissal unless the animal is a service animal. We have some students that are allergic to dogs and cats. We have some students that are afraid of animals. This is why we generally only allow service animals on school property during the school day. We appreciate your help and support in this area.
New Attendance Policy-Please REVIEW!
In keeping with changes to Pennsylvania law, the Neshaminy School Board has adopted an updated attendance policy which takes effect starting with the 2018-2019 school year. A letter describing this policy can be found by navigating to the link below:
https://www.neshaminy.org/Page/40180
Please be sure you have reviewed the letter and understand the new, more strict guidelines for student absences.
Attached to the Smore is a blank copy of Student Absence Excuse Notes. Please complete these when sending in your absence excuse for your child. There is also a blank copy being sent home with each student. If the absence excuse note is not received within 3 school days, the absence will be marked unexcused.
Integrated Pest Management Information for Parents/Guardians
The Neshaminy School District uses an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach for managing insects, rodents and weeds. Our goal is to protect every student from pesticide exposure by using an IPM approach to pest management. Our IPM approach focuses on making the school building and grounds an unfavorable habitat for these pests by removing food and water sources and eliminating their hiding and breeding places. We accomplish this through routine cleaning and maintenance. We routinely monitor the school building and grounds to detect any pests that are present. The pest monitoring team consists of our building, office, and teaching staff and includes our students. Pest sightings are reported to our IPM contractor who evaluates the “pest problem” and determines the appropriate pest management techniques to address the problem. The techniques can include increased sanitation, modifying storage practices, sealing entry points, physically removing the pest, etc.
From time to time, it may be necessary to use pesticides registered by the Environmental Protection Agency to manage a pest problem. A pesticide will only be used when necessary, and will not be routinely applied. When a pesticide is necessary, the school will try to use the least toxic product that is effective. Applications will be made only when unauthorized persons do not have access to the area(s) being treated. The Schedule for all Neshaminy School District monthly IPM services will be posted in all Main Office sites throughout the year.
Staff and parents or guardians of students enrolled in the school may request prior notification of specific pesticide applications made at the school. To receive notification, you must be placed on the school’s notification registry. If you would like to be placed on this registry, please send a letter to the Neshaminy School District Facilities Department, 2001 Old Lincoln Highway, Langhorne, PA 19047.
If a pesticide application must be made to control an emergency pest problem, notice will be provided via the Neshaminy School District web site and postings in the site’s Main Office. Exemptions to this notification include disinfectants and antimicrobial products; self-containerized baits placed in areas not accessible to students, and gel type baits placed in cracks, crevices or voids; and swimming pool maintenance chemicals.
If you have any questions, please contact the Facilities Office at 215-809-6250.
Like our Facebook Page
We are working hard to keep our Albert Schweitzer Facebook page updated with lots of photos from school events. Please be sure to visit our site often and 'Like' our page!
IMPORTANT DATES
January 18-PTO Spirit Day: Dress as a Superhero
January 21-SCHOOLS CLOSED (Martin Luther King Day)
January 24-PTO Paint Night
February 6 thru February 11-Bucks County Art Mobile
~~ WE BUILD FUTURES ~~