The PRES Press
Principal's Monthly Newsletter, November 2017
A Message from Principal Amy Fishkin
CARE Assembly & School Spirit Day
We will hold our next monthly CARE assembly tomorrow, Thursday, November 16. Students and staff are invited to wear PRES clothes or the school color, green, for our school-wide assembly on November 16th. At this assembly, we will focus on what “CARE” looks like on the bus. Be on the lookout for a “Bus Safety Contract” that will be sent home following the assembly outlining our bus safety expectations and consequences.
On Friday, November 17, we will celebrate our school spirit with Crazy Hat Day!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 22 = 11:30 AM Early Dismissal
(Lunch will NOT be served)
Thursday, November 23 = No School
Friday, November 24 = No School
Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy Thanksgiving holiday!
Report Cards Go Live December 1st
How and when can I view my child’s report card?
Your child’s first semester report card will become available online via the eSchool Data Parent Portal on Friday, December 1st, at 3:00 pm. To access the Portal, click on the following link: https://www.bcsdny.org/domain/90 or go to the District homepage and click on the “Parent Portal” link in the lower righthand corner. Click below for directions on accessing your child’s report card vial the Portal (these directions are also available on our District website):
Understanding the Writing Indicators on the Report Card:
Throughout the year, your child will be exposed to three types of writing genres: narrative, informational, and opinion writing. After each writing unit, students will be assessed on their writing craft, conventions, and understanding of writing concepts taught. These writing indicators are based on end-of-year grade level expectations. It is not uncommon for students to receive a level 2 for a writing indicator in the first semester. A level 2 represents that a student is developing a skill being taught but is not expected to master that skill until the end of the school year. You should expect to see these grades change as the year progresses.
Should I review the report card with my child?
This is child-specific. Parents should highlight the strengths of the child(ren). Parents may want to identify one or two areas that can be worked on together at home, such as reading. All children have strengths and areas for growth. Report cards are written with a parent audience in mind. Consider what information you feel would best help your child to feel proud of him/herself and provide small child-specific feedback for reaching the next steps in his/her learning.
Science Fair was a Hit!
5th Grade Pancake Breakfast
A Success! Thank you!
Thank you to all the fifth grade parent volunteers and student servers who made the fifth grade pancake breakfast on Saturday, November 4th such a success. The food was delicious and the activities were wonderful! A special thank you to Lisa Herman and Julie Levitt, fifth grade parents, who coordinated the entire event. Your hard work and endless hours of planning and preparation are greatly appreciated!
Honoring Chief Ryan for first annual Hero Day at PRES!
In collaboration with the fifth grade parents, we felt it was important to make this event more than just a fundraiser for our fifth grade class. We wanted the event to be something bigger, something to serve a greater purpose in our Pound Ridge community. As a result, the event became known as the first annual “Hero Day,” during which we honored a local hero who has made a significant contribution to the PRES community. For those of you who missed it, here were my remarks thanking our Chief of Police, Chief David Ryan...
Good morning everyone and thank you to the fifth grade families for doing an incredible job planning, coordinating, and facilitating this wonderful pancake breakfast. I want to welcome all of our Pound Ridge community members who are here with us today. There are many things that make our Pound Ridge community special. We have special events, such as the Harvest Fest and trick-or-treating in Scotts Corners that bring our families together. The Pound Ridge pool and park in the summer time give our children a place to play and a wonderful community in which to grow up. And, of course, this quaint little school, that fosters a love of learning, a genuine curiosity about the world, and a place for children to develop their purpose and their passions.
But there is something else... more than our parks, our brick buildings, and our finger pointing street signs that make Pound Ridge unique and special. It is the people that make a culture. When we watch the news or look at celebrities in the world, it seems to get harder and harder to find positive role models for our children. Who can our children identify as heroes to admire and emulate in their lives?
The Oxford English dictionary defines the word “hero” as: A person who is admired for their courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. So we ask, where do you find someone like that? Do we look to our concert halls and playing fields? Do we look to our movie screens and our televisions? Do we follow them in magazines and newspapers? Sadly, far too often - young people do. Today, however, we can focus on the real heroes all around us – those that live on our streets, in our neighborhoods, and sometimes even in our own homes. People who truly give of themselves to serve others. People who work each day to help other families live healthy, meaningful lives. People who put their own lives at risk for the safety of others. We don’t need to look farther than our own backyards to find the true heroes in our lives that exemplify the selfless, compassionate, and hard working spirit we all want for our children. Those who dedicate their lives to protecting us and keeping us safe are our true heroes. Most of the time, we see them coaching our sports teams, shopping at the food store, or spending time with their families in their homes or at the park. We see them helping others before helping themselves. We can look to our own community workers, our firefighters, police officers, ambulance corp. volunteers, librarians, and teachers who give of themselves to serve others. Make no mistake about it: we have many heroes here with us today. True heroes live right here in Pound Ridge.
So today, at our PRES fifth grade pancake breakfast, we would like to begin a new annual tradition. We would like to declare this day as our PRES Hero Day… and today we would like to honor our first recipient...Chief David Ryan.
PRES Senior Luncheon
On Thursday, November 9th, the PRES school community hosted our senior citizens of Pound Ridge for a special luncheon. Thank you to the PTA and parent volunteers for arranging the delicious food. Thank you to ECT, Erika Volpe, for coordinating the schedule for the event. Thank you to Mrs. Donnavan, our music teacher, for sharing your music room and for showcasing the talented singers of second grade and the 4th-5th grade chorus. Beautiful placemats were designed by kindergarteners and delicate flowers made of tissue paper were designed by our first graders. It was a beautiful, collaborative celebration of our community.
Food Allergy Awareness
Our school nurse, Sue Novak, works hard everyday to ensure that all children are safe at school. Across the country, there is a growing number of students who live with life-threatening food allergies. It is important to educate our students each year about how to keep children with food allergies safe and healthy. Throughout the school year, Nurse Novak will be visiting classrooms to educate the children about food allergies. Managing and preventing food allergies requires a team approach. It involves all school staff, parents/guardians, nurses, and students themselves. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Nurse Novak. May 13-19, 2018 marks Food Allergy Awareness Week. Be on the lookout for more information about ways we can shine a light on the seriousness of food allergies:
https://www.foodallergy.org/education-awareness/food-allergy-awareness-week