Tiger Time News
News from the O.C. Taylor Principal, Lisa Young
Young@Heart, March 4, 2018
Dear O.C. Taylor Parents,
Please remember to scroll down and read our PTA newsletter portion and specific grade level newsletters. Click here to see the Tiger Time News, student video version.
We have some exciting events coming this week! First, we have our Portrait of A Graduate Showcase/Open House this Thursday, March 8 from 6:00-7:00 p.m. Please click here to read more.
We will also be having our Boosterthon Fun Run this Friday, March 9! Come out and cheer your child on as they run laps. This week during school, your children are learning about the six virtues of a true hero with the Boosterthon Castle Quest theme. This is OCT's 11th year to participate in Boosterthon, and this year we are trying to raise $20,000 to restore our worn out classroom libraries and purchase enough "just right" books for students to be able to fully participate in Columbia University's Reading Workshop Model. Please help us raise funds for books and reading! Be sure and log onto www.funrun.com to set up your child. Thank you for helping us to help your child!
Come out during your child's time to watch and cheer:
8:00 - PALS/PreK
8:15 - Kindergarten
9:30 - First/Second
10:30 - Third/Fourth
11:45 - PALS/PPCD
1:30 - 5th Grade Color Run
To the BEST of days,
Principal Young
Email: lisa.young@gcisd.net
Website: http://www.gcisd-k12.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=16665
Location: 5300 Pool Road, Colleyville, TX, United States
Phone: (817) 305-4870
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OC-Taylor-Elementary-School-361871583888299/
Twitter: @OCTYoung
OCT Vision: To empower our children today to create a better tomorrow.
OCT Mission: To create life-long learners and develop servant leaders through authentic, real-world experiences.
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Upcoming Dates
Monday, March 5
8:15 a.m. PTA Executive Board Meeting
6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Special Olympics - Triple Threat Shootout (GHS)
Tuesday, March 6
Exercise your right to vote by participating in the 2018 Texas Primaries
Wednesday, March 7
3:00 - 3:45 Yearbook Group A & B
Thursday, March 8
2:55 - 4:00 Choir
5:00 - 6:00 p.m. 4th Grade Sky Ranch Parent Meeting in Learning Commons
5:30 - 7:30 Kona Ice
6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Portrait of A Graduate Showcase/Open House
Friday, March 9
Boosterthon Fun Run!!! All are invited!
8:00 - PALS/PreK
8:15 - Kindergarten
9:30 - First/Second
10:30 - Third/Fourth
11:45 - PALS/PPCD
1:30 - 5th Grade Color Run
Monday, March 12 - Friday, March 16
SPRING BREAK! NO SCHOOL.
Monday, March 19
Tuesday, March 20
5:00 - 8:00 p.m. Pot Belly Fund Raiser
Wednesday, March 21
2:55 - 3:45 p.m. TTT
Thursday, March 22
6:30 p.m. PTA Spaghetti Dinner, Bingo and the OCT Choir Performs
Friday, March 23
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. "SAGE" Coffee Chat (Library)
5th Grade Field Trip
2:00 - 2:50 p.m. Future Explorations 4th Session Begins
3:00 - 3:45 Running Club
OCT Updates
Portrait of A Graduate Showcase, Thurs., March 8, 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Kona Ice
Kona Ice Prices are as follows:
$3.00 - 12 oz
$4.00 - 16 oz
$5.00 - 20 oz
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World Water Day, March 22, Wear Blue
Wednesday, March 22, we are partnering with CHHS PALS to collect money and raise awareness for World Water Day. Please bring your spare change and drop it in the yellow buckets in the morning (Gym/Cafeteria). All money will be donated to Water is Basic. Also, wear blue to show your support!
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Pre-Kindergarten
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Don’t Mess with Texas Art Contest
Students in grades K-12 are invited to participate in this art contest to help promote litter prevention and keep our state of Texas beautiful. Students can create artwork that promotes Keep Texas Beautiful or Don’t Mess with Texas. The entry deadline is April 20, 2018. For more information, please visit the website https://www.ktb.org/don-t-mess-with-texas-art-contest#Entry
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Updates from OCT Counselor, Mrs. Whisman
Please click here to see the March Counselor Corner Newsletter.
Our GCISD Rachel’s Challenge Rally will be on April 21, 2018 at CHHS! Start spreading kindness everywhere you go!
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Updates from the Learning Commons, Mrs. Bonacci
Many O. C. Taylor students have completed the GCISD READS Challenge. Remember to submit the list of books that you’ve read this year to Mrs. Bonacci so you can be part of the end-of-year celebration! If you haven’t completed the challenge YET, don’t worry! There is still time. The challenge deadline is May 11th. If you have completed it see if you can do the next challenge. For more information, check out this Smore. Happy Reading!
Access to all of our high quality, subscription-based resources is easy through the GCISD ClassLink app. This tool makes it easy to see what is available and it uses just ONE login. If you need assistance accessing any of these resources please email me at dawn.bonacci@gcisd.net I am always happy to help!
Thank you to everyone who has supported our Green Screen Production Studio! The National Education Associationstresses the importance of developing the “4 C’s” (critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity) to prepare learners for the future and the green screen room helps to do that and more. Our Tigers love being able to share their learning and they are highly motivated to improve with each video they produce.
For information about the Learning Commons Programs and Services visit this link-
https://www.smore.com/wk447-o-c-taylor-learning-commons
Check out our YouTube Channel to see the student version of the Tiger Time News- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNyhxtBhBp-_OPAja5yoffQ
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Updates from Gifted and Talented, Mrs. Griffin
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Watch Dogs
We are so excited to have the Watch Dog program back again this year! Thank you to those who have signed up to be a Watch Dog. The process this year is a little different. Here is the form that needs to be submitted along with your background check and t-shirt purchase. Once those things are taken care, Jennifer Howard will send an email with the Signup Genius so you can choose a day to volunteer. We ask that you plan a week in advance when signing up. The calendar will be closed after Friday mornings for the following week to ensure teachers and the volunteers receive schedules. Thank you for understanding and respecting our process and procedure of this program.
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Math Telescoping Exams
Registration for the April 21 Math Telescoping Exams will open on February 22 and close on March 8. Please click here for more information from the district website. Our second testing date will be June 20th with registration from May 3-23, 2018. Click here to read the flyer.
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Note from GCISD Nutrition Services
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GCISD is Now Hiring! Join the GCISD TEAM!
Do you know someone ready to join the GCISD Team? Please help spread the word! Great opportunities are available in our auxiliary departments:
- Nutrition Specialists –Part Time with benefits – Work while your students are in school!
- KidzU Extended Care Program Site Aides – Part Time with benefits – Great schedule for local college students!
- Night Custodians
- Bus Drivers & Monitors
- Maintenance Engineers
Apply online at: www.gcisd-k12.org
GCISD is looking for new Subs! Apply Online!
Hey parents and community members! Do you find yourself always on campus volunteering and helping out? Want to be more involved in the classroom and get a paycheck? Then subbing might just be for you!
We are hiring qualified candidates to substitute teach for GCISD. If you are looking to impact kids and help make a difference, we want you! You must have a minimum of 60 college hours to apply. Apply online: www.gcisd-k12.org
If you have any questions, contact erica.pasvar@gcisd.net.
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School Health Advisory Council (SHAC)
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REFLECTIONS PARTICIPANTS...PLEASE RSVP!
For our 9 REFLECTIONS PARTICIPANTS, if you have not RSPV'd for the
RECEPTION this Wednesday, March 7, from 6 - 7:30 pm in the Professional Development Education Center (PDEC) on Colleyville Blvd, please do so as soon as possible!
Map to PDEC: http://www.gcisd-k12.org/Page/18852
I appreciate this as it helps us plan for food/beverages.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
And if you have any questions, please email me or call!
Laurie H. Ackermann
O.C. Taylor REFLECTIONS Chair 2017 - 2018
Pizza and Bingo Night
Join us Thursday, March 22nd for an evening of food and fun! The Spring PTA Meeting and Choir Concert will begin at 6:30. Immediately following, we will begin serving pizza and salad. BINGO will being promptly at 7:30.
Order forms will be sent home in folders this week; or click here for an online copy. Forms and checks (made payable to OCT PTA) must be turned in my Friday, March 9th. We will have a limited quantity of cheese and pepperoni pizzas available for purchase that evening. Please be sure to preorder so that your pizza is made just the way you like it!
5th graders will be delivering pizza and drinks, as well as bussing table to raise funds for 5th Grade Continuation. They will also be selling cookies, brownies, and candy for $1 to enjoy during Bingo! Please remember to bring cash or checks to help support 5th Grade Continuation.
Questions?
Lissa Critz
PARENTS' NIGHT OUT
Please join us for O.C. Taylor’s first ever Parents’ Night Out!
WHEN: Thursday, March 29th from 6-9pm
WHERE: Sloan & Williams Winery in Grapevine
Sloan & Williams will be giving back 30% of all proceeds spent on wine and food that evening!
We will also be hosting a Silent Auction including a Gift Card Grab, Head or Tails Games, and Fun Packages - including 4 Disneyland One-Day Park Hoppers!!
Childcare will be provided at OC Taylor from 5:30-9:30 for all current students for $10 per child, including pizza, drinks, snacks, and tons of fun! We cannot accomodate children who are not attending O.C. Taylor.
It’s a night you and your kids don’t want to miss! Be on the look out for more details!!
HELP O.C. TAYLOR PTA WIN $1,000 TO FURTHER SUPPORT OUR SCHOOL! JOIN PTA!
Chrysler is partnering with Texas PTA to award three $1,000 prizes to those local PTA's who have increased their previous years membership by 5%. The O.C. Taylor PTA is only 5 members away from being eligible for the contest. If you haven't already, please consider joining the PTA. Plus if you join, you get the super useful O.C. Taylor phone directory!
To join our O.C. Taylor PTA, click on this link: http://www.joinpta.org/
PLEASE DONATE! GALLON-SIZED ZIPLOC BAGS & EARBUDS
As part of our support for Rachel's Challenge, O.C. Taylor has been asked to collect donations of gallon size Ziploc bags and earbuds. All donations will support the 2018-2019 GCISD Back To School Fair.
Please drop all donations in the box in the lobby.
We are excited about the other Rachel's Challenge activity, the Fun Run and Rally on April 21st!
Contact OCT Diversity Council Chair, Rebecca Rodriguez at beckeg@yahoo.com with any questions.
Thank you!
HEALTHY LIFESTYLES: THE POWER OF PREVENTION STARTS WITH YOU!
Immunize: Power of Prevention As news reports of complications and deaths from the flu continue to rise, and as we all see upticks and outbreaks of diseases like measles, immunizations are more important than ever. Yet, more Texas parents said “no” to vaccinating their children in the 2015-2016 school year based on reasons of conscience, according to the Annual Report of Immunization Status from the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). In 2016, Texas Department of State Health Services reported more than 45,000 Texas students opted-out of school required vaccines. While current Texas law requires all children to get immunized, vaccination rates in Texas among preschool-aged children rank 48th in the nation, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. This is why many healthcare professionals believe Texas is seeing a resurgence of diseases such as whooping cough and the measles. Both are preventable diseases with vaccines. Once thought to be eliminated, the number of measles cases reached a 20-year high in 2014 with 667 cases and 20 outbreaks. That’s the highest year-to-date since 1994 when 963 cases were reported by the end of that year.
Starts with You!
And, in October 2015, researchers at Emory University warned that the U.S. could be on the verge of larger outbreaks of measles. According to the researchers, 1 in 8 children under the age of 17 is susceptible. That’s eight to nine million children. Frighteningly, the threat is most severe for children under the age of 3. Out of every 1000 children infected with measles, one or two died. According to Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunizations and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, the majority of U.S. cases are among people who have opted out of immunizations for personal, religious, or philosophical reasons. You wouldn’t support a philosophical exemption for car seats for kids, so there shouldn’t be one for vaccines where the risk of harm greatly outweighs the risk of side effects. By exempting a child from vaccines, parents are putting not just their child in danger, but the community at large. Sadly, this has become a reality evidenced by the number of outbreaks of measles and pertussis in recent years. Without higher vaccination rates, the elimination of certain diseases is impossible. While overall across the U.S. the median percentage of exemptions is 1.8%, several states exceed that by quite a bit. You can learn more about childhood vaccination rates via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Child VaxView website. The bottom line is that children in the state of Texas are now at great risk for measles and other killer childhood infections because parents are choosing not to vaccinate their kids and are doing so because of erroneous beliefs. Learn more about the power of prevention through the development of life-saving vaccines here.
THE VOICE: TEXAS PTA NEWSLETTER - CHECK IT OUT
KINDERGARTEN SUPPORTS GRACE CEREAL DRIVE!
MARCH is KINDERGARTEN'S TURN
TO SUPPORT THE GRACE CEREAL DRIVE
Collection baskets will be outside KINDERGARTEN classrooms for the month of March. Buy an extra box of cereal and SPREAD THE LOVE!
This O.C. TAYLOR PTA-sponsored projects ends in March, so, if you haven't given a couple of boxes of cereal already-or if you have and want to give more-no matter WHAT YOUR GRADE, PLEASE DONATE AND HELP ANOTHER PERSON JUST LIKE YOU!
WE THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS FOR SUPPORTING THIS WORTHWHILE PROJECT THAT HELPS OUR COMMUNITY!
Questions? Concerns: contact Athena Wiginton at apw@thewigintons.com
APPLE TREE PROJECT
Don't forget the O.C. Taylor Apple Tree! Teachers need items from the Apple Tree. Apple Tree is an easy way to donate items teachers and staff need at the school.
Simply click he link below to see different "needs" around the school. If you choose to help, please make sure to mark as taken! Once taken, please send your item(s) to school with your child, attaching the name of the staff member for who it is intended.
Apple Tree List
Thanks so much! If you have any questions, please contact:
Jenifer Richards – Apple Tree coordinator
Jennifer Ditto - VP Volunteer
March
3/8 6:30 pm OPEN HOUSE
3/9 Boosterthon Fun Run
3/12 - 16 SPRING BREAK
3/22 6:30 Choir program & PTA General Meeting and Pizza & Bingo night
3/29 6 - 9 pm PARENTS NIGHT OUT!
3/30 No School (if no Inclement Weather Days)
April:
4/6 WALK TO SCHOOL MORNING
4/19 - 4/13 STAAR TESTING (4th & 5th grades)
4/18 - 4/20 Sky Ranch Trip (4th Grade)
4/19 EARLY RELEASE DAY
4/23 - 4/26 Earth Week
4/24 Egg Drop Entries Due
4/26 Egg Drop (or possibly 4/27 if we need to use the Inclement Weather Day)
4/27 Inclement Weather Make-Up Day
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Thank you!
We think your kids are..... G-G-G-G-reat!
GCISD - Building Excellent Schools Together
GCISD LEAD 2021- BUILDING EXCELLENT SCHOOLS TOGETHER!
The mission of Grapevine-Colleyville ISD is to be THE BEST and through the district’s strategic plan, called LEAD 2021, we continue building on the foundation started in 2011-2012. LEAD stands for Leading Excellence – Action Driven. For more information about LEAD 2021, please visit the district website. There are some exciting educational experiences going on in GCISD!
GCISD’s WHY?
Redefining Education because your future matters today!
GCISD’s Portrait of a Graduate
Skilled Problem Solvers
Communicators
Global Citizens
Self-regulated Learners
Collaborators
Stay Connected at O. C. Taylor Elementary School
We have a number of ways to keep in touch with our school. Be sure to read, subscribe to and join these resources to get all the latest news.
Facebook: If you’re a Facebook member be sure to join the O.C. Taylor Elementary Facebook Group to get updates in your feed. This group is meant to provide another way to get news and updates.
Website: The school’s website has the latest news, updates, and calendars, as well as general information about the school, resources for parents, volunteer opportunity information, event information and ways to donate.
Twitter: We regularly post events and upcoming news on Twitter. Follow me on Twitter: @OCTYoung and follow our hashtag #OCT4U.