The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

It is also one of the busiest times of the year for us all. Let us not forget to keep calm and do what we do best in the next few days as we approach a much needed two week break. This week's blog has a lot of information. Please keep reading so you can be informed because there are so many things happening this week! 

Important Info to Know:

Fundraiser Pick-up: Orders will be at the school on Wednesday, December 16th in our school's media center for pick up between the hours of 1:30 pm and 5:30 pm. We have communicated this information via paper and email. On Tuesday, December 15th a reminder call will go out to parents via Edulink. It would be helpful for you to communicate this to your class parents as well as some items need refrigeration. 

Fundraiser Incentives: Individual prizes that students earned will be included in with the orders picked up on Wednesday.  The top nine sellers will have the opportunity to slime Mr. Moore on Friday, December 18th. Friday will also be the day for the "Game Day" students earned. See below for the schedule. We have 110 students participating! (We will get a list of students participating to you as soon as possible.) Thanks for your support and assistance to make this winter fundraiser a huge success. 

Third Grade and Barnhill, Thompson, Moore, and Fulbright @ 9:30-10:30 
Fifth Grade and Hughes, Wilkie, Jordan, and Tate @ 10:30-11:30
Each group will be divided into three groups, and will rotate through each station for 20 minutes (game truck, laser tag, hamster ball). Students will finish with Kona Ice before they go back to class.

Class Party: Class parties will be held on Friday, December 18th beginning at 1:40. No one will be allowed to classrooms until 1:40. Parents can sign in through our main lobby area. They will have the option to sign their child out in the classroom at the end of the day. We look forward to a festive time with our students and parents on Friday afternoon! Please let the front office know if you need anything that day or afternoon. Feel free to leave after car riders have been dismissed. 

Chorus and Strings Concerts: Our Chorus concert will be held on Tuesday, December 15th in our school's multi-purpose room at 6:30. Doors will open at 6:00 at which time members of our Chorus are to report to the music room. The Strings concert will be held on Thursday, December 17th also in our multi-purpose room at 6:30. Again, doors open at 6:00. We have very talented students at PVES and hope you can make it to support our students as they perform!

Live streaming and recording: In a previous e-newsletter, we were excited to announce to parents that we would be able to live steam and record events this Christmas season. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we are simply not able to do so. We are confident that we can use the system in the Spring and in the future to live stream and record events. We attempted to use the system to record the third grade performance, but our attempt was unsuccessful. Please make sure any parents who ask know that currently this is not an option. 

Let's Talk Testing

An email went out last week about testing information and updates. Included in this email was a presentation with information the District Office Administration felt our teachers need to know. Mr. Havird has strongly encouraged teachers to view this presentation. Here are some of the highlights:

SC Ready (Grades 3-8) 

• Tentative Test Window: April 27 - May 6
• Writing, Reading, English, Mathematics
• Open ended, traditional multiple choice, selected response items
• Timing (to be determined by the SCDE)
• Grades 5 and 8 will test online
• 100% aligned to 2015 SC College and Career Readiness Standards

SC PASS (Grades 4-8)

• Science, Social Studies
• Optional online
• Untimed
• Science includes field test items for the 2014 SC Science Standards

Please also keep in mind that Tammy Lee will begin working with resource, ESL, and regular education teachers to review testing accommodations to prepare for ordering testing materials, creating small groups, etc. Thank you for working with her and assisting her as needed in this process.

Great Things Are Always Happening at PVES:

Teachers and students have been working hard to Tech the Halls of PVES. Enjoy this quick Animoto video of some of the displays around our school. 

Great job to both our teachers and students for stepping up to donate canned goods. We had 793 items donated last week. Thank you for your generosity. 

Last week Mr. Moore took some third grade teachers to visit Forest Lake Elementary School in Richland 2. This school is doing some great things with PBL and NASA. Teachers came back with some wonderful ideas. 

Third grade students performed their Christmas program and had an excellent turn out by friends and family. Mrs. Turner made sure students were prepared and the musical was a hit. Thank you to third grade teachers for supporting their students and being flexible with some last minute changes in logistics. 

The Christmas Luncheon sponsored by PTSO was a special treat. Please make sure to express thanks for all they do for us at PVES!

Our hospitality committee put together another wonderful Christmas Dinner for staff members and spouses. The evening included dinner, desserts, games, door prizes, and a hay ride to see Christmas lights. A great time was had by all who attended! Check out some pictures from the snowman competition.  

            


On Monday third grade teachers had an opportunity to use half of the day to plan their upcoming PBL unit on bees. It was incredible to hear such rich discussion taking place between teachers, our science lab teacher, media specialist, and school technologist. They were able to tie in all content areas and related arts during the planning process. Third graders will begin their PBL unit on January 19th with a special guest to share their driving question for the unit. Look for updates on this amazing and innovative time for PVES! 

Mark Your Calendar:

• Tuesday, December 15th- Digital Playground @ 3:15
• Tuesday, December 15th- 4th and 5th Grade Chorus Concert @ 6:30 (MP Room)
• Wednesday, December 16th- Fundraiser Order Pick up 1:30-5:30 (Media Center)
• Wednesday, December 16th- Fire Drill (Time will not be announced) 
• Thursday, December 17th- Strings Concert @ 6:30 (MP Room) 
• Friday, December 18th- Jean Day for Teachers and Everyone's Tacky Sweater Day for Relay for Life ($1 for Sweaters)
• Friday, December 18th- Fundraiser Game Day (see above for details and times)
• Friday, December 18th- Slime Mr. Moore
• Friday, December 18th- Class Parties @ 1:40 

Tollison's Tidings:

• This month's Digital Playground will be the best one yet! Join us in the Media Center turned Coffee Shop at 3:15 for some hot chocolate, coffee, and sweat treats. Use this time to treat yourself, learn about Today's Meet and enjoy great conversations with colleagues. Jessica Preisig also has some exciting giveaways. You will not want to miss! (Be sure to sign into PD Express for credit.) 

• This week's video includes our school Christmas card. We shared this card with our District Office staff and administration as well as other school's administration teams in our district. Thank you for sending in photos and videos. Please share with your parents and students. We will plan to share via social media soon! 

'Tis the Season

And just like that, we're off and running toward Christmas Break. We are less than three weeks away from a well-deserved time away from school. December is crazy busy for educators (emphasis on CRAZY). Still, let's take a moment to reflect on our higher calling and purpose. We can use these last few weeks to make a difference. It's important that our students know that these days leading up to break do indeed count. In the chaos that ensues throughout the next twelve days, let us remain patient and kind and truly focused on our jobs. 'Tis the season, as they say, so let us keep doing our very best so we can say we did everything in our power to make a difference.

And We Have A Test:

*Please do not share this information with parents or students just yet*

From the creators of PACT and PASS comes SC READY! Yes, your new state test for accountability has been voted on and approved. While there is still much we DON'T know about the test, we do not that it will be 100% aligned to the new SC College and Career Ready standards. That's right - teach the standards and we will be fine. We do not expect the test to be timed. We do expect a variety of question types (multiple choice, constructed response, etc.). A test blue print and practice test will eventually be provided. The contract for this test is signed through 2020 so there will certainly be some consistency. One grade level (not grade 3) will be tested online this year with all grade levels being tested via computer beginning next school year. If you are doing some preliminary research, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Michigan have tests that will be similar in make and procedure. If you are like me, you have a million questions. Please know we will release information as soon as it comes available. However, as far as high stakes testing goes, this is great news! 

PASS for Science and Social Studies will still be administered, but to whom is still up in the air. More than likely, our third grade friends will be spared from both but 4th and/or 5th grade students are fair game. We hope to know soon! 

Christmas Fun for YOU:
Our faculty Christmas luncheon will be held on Tuesday, December 8th in the PD Room (102). Parent volunteers will cover your classrooms beginning as soon as they check in at 11:00 A.M. until about 1:00 P.M. Obviously, you will want to leave instructions for your parent that they can easily follow. This is always an enjoyable time for our teachers and staff! Be sure to thank our PTSO board for their hard work in planning the event as well as serving during the event.

Our faculty Christmas party is scheduled for Friday, December 11th at the River Reserve Clubhouse. Information was placed in your teacher box about the event including menu and payment options. As was the case last year, we will have some fun activities and games in store for the party that you will not want to miss. Get your money to Patty as soon as possible. We had our largest crowd ever last year and we would love to top that number this year. Look forward to seeing you all there!

Christmas Calendar:
Please familiarize yourself with the many events taking place at PVES this December. 3rd graders are performing this week. Our 4th/5th Chorus and Strings students have performances soon. Our canned food drive is ongoing as well! It's a busy time of year, but I hope you will consider attending and participating in these events. Check out the smore I created and shared with parents for December!

Relay Fridays:
It's that time again....RELAY Fridays!

This coming Friday, December 4th will be extra recess day.  Every $1.00 your class raises will give them an extra minute of recess!  Plan to spread the minutes out over the next two weeks before Christmas break (if that's feasible).  

Friday, December 11th will be Pajama Day!  Any student who brings a $1.00 donation for Relay for Life can wear pajamas on that day.

The final Friday, December 18th will be Crazy Christmas Day!  Students who bring a $1.00 donation for Relay for Life can dress tacky, crazy, Christmasy..etc.!  The more red and green, the better!

Please get the word out about these Friday events via newsletters, email blasts, etc. Thanks!

If you follow our twitter feed, you know there are so many awesome things taking place in our classrooms. Our teachers are so talented! Here are some cool things we captured on camera.

PVES Art Show:
Mrs. Nix's hard work paid off in a tremendous way with her best art show to date! Thanks to those of you who made it a point to stop by and support your students and Mrs. Nix. A special "thank you" to those of you who volunteered during the event. We have some very talented students!

Cleaning Out:
As I walked down the hallway one day, I spotted Mrs. Clary and Mrs. Garrett at the end of the hallway cleaning out a closet. No one asked them to do this. They took it upon themselves to get the job done. They have made a great deal of progress in the closet at the end of the hallway (making their way through black widow spiders and unknown objects) and it will soon be a well-organized space that houses a variety of science equipment and materials. Thanks again, ladies!

Field Trip:
Ms. Marino's class visited the Upstate Children's Museum on Wednesday and had a blast. I was lucky enough to attend and enjoyed bring with that special group of students. The museum was very accommodating and Ms. Marino did a great job of planning the day for her students. It takes quite a bit of work to load up that group of students and hit the road, but we made it safe and sound. Thanks for the invite!

Moore's Musings:

• With so much happening these next few weeks, please make every effort to be at school. It is more difficult to find subs on Mondays and Fridays especially and even moreso as we near the break. 
• Thanks for making sure you are at school by 7:50 A.M. and in your room. Duty seems to be going very well in both the morning and afternoon so thank you all for that! 

Mark Your Calendar:

• December 3rd - 4th (morning)/5th (afternoon) Grade Reading Teachers PD in Room 102 (Lunch Provided). 
• December 4th - 3rd Grade Reading Teacher PD in Room 102. 
• December 4th - Relay Friday - Extra Recess Day
• December 8th - PTSO Faculty Luncheon in PD Room from 11:00 A.M. - 1:00 P.M.
• December 11th - Faculty Christmas Party at 6:30 P.M.

*Please review all upcoming events on our shared calendar. 

Video of the Week

Thankful

Admittedly, being an educator can be a thankless job at times. We are constantly under the microscope. As we near the Thanksgiving holiday, please know that our school community is thankful for our teachers. Our students are blessed to be at Powdersville Elementary because of you. On a personal note, Mrs. Tollison and I appreciate each and every one of you. We know we have experienced change, at times difficult, but everyone has pushed forward for the benefit of our students. Those long hours of planning, grading papers, attending professional development, etc. make your job more difficult than anyone could imagine. We are thankful for you and your commitment to our students and our school. 

Thanks:

Because we are so thankful for YOU, please wear blue jeans on Tuesday, November 24th. Additionally, Mrs. Lee, Mrs. Tollison and Mr. Moore will cover  lunch duty in the cafeteria on Tuesday, November 24th. We invite all teachers to eat in the PD Room during your scheduled lunch period. Perhaps your grade level will work something out and bring food items to share. It's totally up to you. It's not much, but it is indeed the least we can do. 

96.2%: 

We were reminded this week of just how impactful our job truly can be. PVHS's graduation rate of 96.2% for the class of 2015 is an indication of the strong instructional programs present within our school system, the many interventions in place to assist students in need, and the innate ability of our teachers to adapt to the changing conditions present in today's educational climate. In a world that changes more and more each day and in a school like ours where our student population continues to change, our challenge is simply to do what it takes to continue and build on our successes.

Dr. Ferguson presents cookie cake to PVES

Hallway Behavior and Cafeteria Clean Up:
A quick word about our hallway behavior. Many of us have noticed that the hallway behavior of our students is not quite where we want it to be. Let's put extra emphasis on walking in the third block and remaining quiet regardless of where we are in the building. This is usually a point of pride for our school!

Also, a huge thank you to those classrooms and teachers who have made cleaning up after themselves a priority in the cafeteria after lunch. Mrs. Garrett's class has been setting the example for us all by cleaning up at the end of each day. Mrs. Kallin's class was spotted cleaning up their area after lunch and leaving it very nice for the next group to come in the cafeteria. Thanks for your help with this!

PVES Art Show:
Don't forget that our PVES Art Show will be held on Thursday, November 19th from 5-7 P.M. in the MP Room. Please remind your parents and students as well. Feel free to show this interview in class to remind your students! This is always a fun evening and a great way to support our art program and our students.

Canned Food Drive:
We will again hold our annual canned food drive to support the Piedmont Emergency Relief Center (PERC).  Mrs. Lee will be sending information home about this next week. Click here for information about food donation suggestions for the canned food drive event. Tables will be placed in the atrium outside my office on which students and staff can place canned food items. Thanks for putting this information in your email blasts and newsletters. Please see the schedule for our food drive below:

November 30th-December 4th: Grade Level Competition
December 7th-December 11th: Teacher vs. Students Competition

Fundraiser Fun:
Thanks to all for your time and attention in today's fundraiser kickoff. Please get the word out to parents that we need their help and participation to make this a worthwhile fundraiser. More importantly, get your students pumped up to sell items and support our school. Orders are due to the school on December 2nd. If parents ask, all orders will arrive prior to Christmas Break. Remember that any students who have a "coupon" showing they sold enough items should be sent to the atrium each morning between 8:00-8:10 A.M. to retrieve their prize. Thanks for your support!

Captain Kirk

Let's now cover some pure awesomeness happening in our building...

5th grade teachers had a busy week. 5th grade math teachers enjoyed Jet Toy Car training with Pat Bobbitt on Wednesday morning. They are super excited about this unit! Last week, 5th grade teachers honored their best readers in the "Battle of the Badges" ceremony in the cafeteria. This was a great way to get students excited about reading. And to top things off, the 5th grade team was our very first team to have every member sign up for Relay for Life and receive a free blue jean day. Great job 5th grade!

Badges

5th grade readers

Pat Bobbitt - always the teacher

4th grade ELA teachers were recognized by our instructional technologist, Mrs. Preisig, in her latest blog entitled Transforming Teaching and Learning. As she walked our hallways, she noticed that each 4th grade ELA teacher was working with a small group of students while the other students were engaged in fun and meaningful activities (often involving technology). Great job, ladies!

Mrs. Moore meets with a guided reading group

Ms. Jordan's students use technology to TRANSFORM learning

Thanks to everyone for your time and attention in this week's faculty meeting. The AdvancED process continues, and I have been impressed with the conversations and collaboration in each committee session. Don't forget that you need to familiarize yourself with the information we discussed via our shared google slides presentation that was used in our meeting this week. We will send out additional AdvancED information soon. 

A true collaborative effort

Moore's Musings:

• This week, take a moment to tell someone at school that you are thankful for them. I know it would mean a lot to those individuals. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• Tuesday, November 24th - Blue Jean Day and Lunch in the PD Room
• Wednesday, November 25th - Friday, November 27th - Thanksgiving Break
• Tuesday, December 1st - Technology PD with Preisig during planning (PD Room)
• Wednesday, December 2nd - Fall Fundraiser orders are due!
• Thursday, December 3rd - 4th Grade ELA Teachers 1/2 day PD from 8:00-11:30 A.M. in PD Room (lunch provided).
• Thursday, December 3rd - 5th Grade ELA Teachers 1/2 day PD from 11:30-2:30 P.M. in PD Room (lunch provided). 
• Friday, December 4th - 3rd Grade 1/2 day PD from 8:00-11:30 A.M. in PD Room (lunch provided). 
• 11/30-12/4 - Food Drive (grade level competition)
• 12/7-12/11 - Food Drive (teacher vs. student competition)

Video of the Week

4 Questions

This week, our district hosted the Digital Transformation Conference at Palmetto High School. Educators from around the state and other areas attended to hear about ASD1's commitment to digital transformation via our one-to-one iPad initiative. After a break-out session, visitors were taken by bus to other schools on that side of the district to visit classrooms and observe. I was happy to attend and enjoyed the keynote presented by Dr. Philip Lanoue, the national superintendent of the year. He has driven school transformation and reform in Clarke County Georgia (Athens). In his keynote, he offered four (4) questions that drive conversations, planning, and improvement in his district. I wanted to share these questions with you (below) in hopes that you would have some serious conversations with your partner teacher and grade level peers so that we might continue our efforts to improve as a school. See below.

AdvancED:
Speaking of continuous improvement, I am thankful for our entire faculty and staff for their participation in our AdvancED process. This week and last, the faculty and staff met as a part of various committees to discuss our strengths and weaknesses in various areas. I think we can all agree we do a lot well and certainly have room for improvement in many areas as well. During our discussions, I appreciate the "real" conversation and focus on improvement that took place within each group. While I know it is difficult to be pulled out from class for reasons like AdvancED, it is truly amazing to watch our faculty work together. It's what makes you special. A very special "thank you" to our committee chairs who have taken on a leadership role and added responsibility throughout this process!

Fall Fundraiser:
Simply put, our PTSO could use some more money to support our classrooms. While Boosterthon is on the calendar again for March, our PTSO board feels like a fall fundraiser is needed. I certainly agree with this and know the money raised will be spent to support our teachers and students. Therefore, we will hold a quick fall fundraiser and sell items that would make great Christmas gifts for family and friends. You and your students will learn more at our kickoff event scheduled for Wednesday, November 18th. A schedule for the kickoff event, which will be held in the MP Room, is posted below. Orders can be placed through December 2nd and will be delivered on December 16th meaning all items ordered will arrive in time for Christmas! After our kickoff event, it would be helpful for you to talk this fundraiser up with your parents and students using a variety of communication (newsletter, email, text messaging, etc.). I even agreed to be SLIMED by the top 9 sellers at the end of the fundraiser. Thanks for your support!

Fall Fundraiser Kickoff Schedule:

3rd Grade, Tate/Jordan, Wilkie/Hughes - 1:30 - 1:50 P.M. in MP Room
5th Grade, Fulbright/Moore, Barnhill/Thompson - 2:00 - 2:20 P.M. in MP Room*
*Please have your classes packed up so they will be ready for dismissal when you return to your rooms.


As usual, we've spotted some wonderful "goings-on" at PVES:

Congrats to our very own reading coach, Kelle Martin, for getting her Donors Choose project funded. She will now be able to order almost $600 worth of leveled reading materials. We have several additional Donors Choose projects still waiting to be funded. Keep up the good work!

Mrs. Leftwich took our 4th grade Launch students to the Greenville Zoo on Monday. Parents and students braved rain and cold to learn a lot and enjoy their time at the zoo. Thanks to Mrs. Leftwich for organizing this field trip and making learning fun for her students!

Third graders enjoyed visiting the Rock Bus this week. Mrs. Clary was there to make sure everything ran smoothly. Speaking of science, I continue to be thrilled with the ownership and creative approach many of our "new" teachers of science have taken with the content. Students enjoyed the Chemical Change Cafe in science this week. The end result looks quite delicious.

Mrs. Tollison and I visited Mrs. Thomas's room this week to observe guided reading and practice using a guided reading observation form. You can view the form here. Mrs. Thomas was, of course, meticulously organized and things ran very smoothly! Mrs. Tollison and I will be visiting your room soon in an effort to practice using the form linked above and provide feedback for our teachers of reading. Please do not forget to use Mrs. Martin as a resource. She will help you structure and plan your guided reading groups, select appropriate leveled materials, etc.

Moore's Musings:

• Mrs. Tollison and I were reflecting on the small number of discipline referrals submitted thus far. This is excellent because it shows our teachers have classroom routines and procedures established and fair and consistent rules in place. Way to go! 
• Our PVES Art Show is next Thursday, November 19th. We have various performances scheduled for December. I hope that our faculty and staff will consider attending these events and supporting both our teachers and students. It means a great deal when parents and students look out in the audience and see a strong representation of our faculty and staff present at these events. 
• Have you joined our Relay for Life team? Get on board today and start raising money. You can join our PVES team by clicking here. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• Read Your Way to the Big Game Tailgate Party - 11/12. Email was sent by Kelle Martin with details. Wear your blue jeans and favorite team shirt. 
• 5th Grade "Battle of the Badges" - 11/13 at 1:40 P.M. in the cafeteria. 
• Fire Drill (re-scheduled from rain-out on 10/29) - 11/16 at 10:30 A.M.
• Faculty Meeting (topic: AdvancED update and more) - 11/17 at 3:10 P.M. in the PD Room. 
• 5th Grade Jet Toy Car Training - 11/18 from 8:00-11:30 A.M. in the room 104. 
• Fall Fundraiser Kickoff - 11/18. See above for schedule. 
• PVES Art Show - 11/19 in MP Room/Cafeteria beginning at 5:00 P.M. 

Video of the Week:

Reflection

I am intentionally providing much less content in our blog this week. Why? Well, simply put, here at the beginning of our second nine week period is a logical time for reflection. I am a firm believer that reflection is both a key element for teachers who are focused on continuous improvement and often times ignored due to time constraints and busy schedules. Reflection is important. After reading through this short blog, I would encourage you to reflect on the year. What has been difficult? What has gone well? What are your challenges? What are your success stories? What do you need to do differently? What students need more of your time and attention? I would also challenge you to consider who/what your positive influences are and acknowledge who/what drains you of your positive energy. To quote a football coach in the area "the only disability in life is a bad attitude."

AdvancED:
Thanks to committees 1 and 5 for their time and attention in Wednesday's meetings. We are framing our school's direction and goals for the present and future. This process is important! Committees 2, 3 and 4 will meet on Wednesday, November 11th next week. Mrs. Tollison and I will send out a schedule for this day a soon as possible. If a sub is needed, we will make sure you are covered. Please note: We will have a faculty meeting on Tuesday, November 17th. This meeting will focus on the AdvancED process so it is important that you make every effort to be present. We had originally scheduled this day for another Digital Playground session, but AdvancED will take precedence. Thanks again to our committee chairs and to all of you for taking this process seriously and giving of your time and effort to get things accomplished.

Moore's Musings:

• I appreciate our teachers who worked so hard to have SLOs ready to turn in last week. I can tell you spent a great deal of time on these documents. One of the positives of this process is the reflection you had to engage in throughout. You have some pretty specific goals for students and have identified a target for them to reach. I look forward to our mid-course conferences in December and January. 
• Speaking of evaluation, Mrs. Tollison and I are in the midst of our own evaluations. I will present to our district office staff this Friday morning as part of my yearly evaluation. Mrs. Tollison will submit her evaluation information to me very soon. We are certainly all in this together!
• Please take time to at least mention Veteran's Day on Wednesday the 11th of November. We will work on hosting an actual Veteran's Day ceremony next year. In the mean time, our students need to hear about the meaning behind the day. We have many brave men and women connected to our school and community who have proudly served our country. Thanks!

Mark Your Calendar (MYC): 

• Anderson County Rotary to deliver dictionaries to grade 3 (schedule already sent to teachers) on Thursday, November 5th. 
• 5th Grade "Battle of the Badges" (tentative) in cafeteria on Friday, November 6th at 1:40 P.M.
• 3rd Grade Rock Bus - Monday, November 9th. 
• 4th Grade Launch to Greenville Zoo - Monday, November 9th.
• Veteran's Day - November 11th 
• If you are reading carefully, Friday is a blue jean day. 
• Committees 2, 3 and 4 to meet (schedule to come) - Wednesday, November 11th 
• Read Your Way to the Big Game Tailgate Celebration (see calendar for times) - Thursday, November 12th. 
• Faculty Meeting - Tuesday, November 17th at 3:10 P.M. in PD Room. 
• PVES Art Show - Thursday, November 19th from 5:00-7:00 P.M. 
• Thanksgiving Break - Wednesday, November 25th - Friday, November 27th. 

Video of the Week - Teacher Reflection and Continuous Improvement

Failure and Perseverance

We have reached the end of the first nine week period. Think about that for a moment. The school year is 1/4 of the way over. If you are like me, you are thrilled that the school year is progressing but anxious that there is so much yet to cover! Regardless, make sure you continue to persevere. Michael Jordan is widely known one of the best basketball players of all time. Look over his list of "failures" above. He credits those failures as the reason why he became so successful. Teachers are a lot like athletes. We have to constantly fine tune our skills and persevere through the difficult times in order to find success. We are in this together and great things are happening at PVES. Don't lose sight of that!


Relay for Life:
For those of you are who are new to PVES, one of our major areas of focus when it comes to supporting our community is Relay for Life. The event is usually held in May at Wren High School. We raise thousands of dollars and donate the money to help fight cancer. Jill Kallin has done a remarkable job as our team captain through the years and we want this year to be our best ever! To help us get started, join our team by clicking here. Then, support our many fundraising efforts throughout the year and spread the word to collect more donations. Finally, make sure you plan to attend the actual Relay for Life event this Spring. We had the BEST crowd and tailgate area last year and will need your help to pull this off again. Thanks for your support!

Transform Sessions:
Our next Transform sessions are scheduled for next Tuesday, November 3rd during planning. We will meet in the PD Room as usual. Jessica Preisig continues to support all of us as our instructional technologist. Please use her as a resource. We are asking that everyone plan to attend these sessions as they are a priority to support our district's technology initiatives. Don't forget to sign up in PD Express to receive credit.

AdvancED Accreditation:
November is the month where we will get a large portion of our AdvancED accreditation work done. Our first few committees (1 and 5) are actually meeting next Wednesday, November 4th. Thank you in advance for attending and being a positive and active participant in this process. It is crucial that we work hard to define the direction of our school for the future. Mrs. Tollison will secure subs for teachers who need to have classes covered when our various committees meet. Continue to stay tuned for more information.

Let's get to the good stuff...

Last week, Mrs. Tollison met with our "New Best" group to discuss end of nine week procedures and conference day information. We will meet with teachers new to our building several more times throughout the year to provide support for them and a forum in which they can ask questions. Thanks to Mrs. Tollison for orchestrating this opportunity. I must say, we have quite an impressive group of teachers who make up our "New Best" group. We again welcome you to PVES and are so glad to have you as part of our family!

Our Early Act First Knight (EAFK) "knighting ceremony"  was a huge success last Friday. A huge "thank you" to Coach Thompson, Stacey Turner, Lindsay Nix and Michelle Young for always being willing to set up our stage and MP room for the event. Thanks to Lindsay Nix for creating a superb and professional tri-fold program for parents and to Stacey Turner for providing music for the event. The ceremonies are so touching and mean so much to all the teachers, parents and students involved. Many of our students may never win an athletic award or even make the honor roll, but being recognized for citizenship and being a good person is equally, if not more, important. Teachers, thank you for your continued support of this program and for finding ways to integrate our "virtues" in your classroom.

Speaking of our EAFK program, Tammy Lee, her daughter Olivia, and I had an opportunity to speak to the Rotary Club of Greenville at the Commerce Club on Tuesday evening. Olivia and I talked about the program to the members of the club. We are thankful for the Rotary Club of Greenville for providing financial support so we can provide this program for our students. Tammy Lee visited each classroom during the first nine weeks to discuss the program and virtues. I am so thankful for her willingness to make this program worthwhile and meaningful for our students. 

On Wednesday this week, we hosted Jennifer Brown from the state department of education and our ASD1 reading coaches. Thanks to Kelle Martin for planning and organizing their visit! The reading coaches split up and visited two reading classrooms to observe guided reading to improve on their abilities to provide feedback as reading coaches. Ms. Wilcox and Ms. Wilkie were chosen for "visits" and did an incredible job. Brenna and Melissa then had to engage in a "debriefing" in the PD Room with all the reading coaches. Jennifer Brown actually said she was pleased that she now had two model classrooms that she could send teachers to visit who needed to see guided reading in action. The entire group of reading coaches heaped so much praise in the direction of our two teachers. Mrs. Tollison and I are proud of their hard work and leadership. I could go on, but I will simply suggest that you stop by their classrooms and ask them about their experience being observed and then meeting with the group of reading coaches. Both teachers had taken suggestions given to them by Kelle Martin that were noticed by the observers. Don't forget to invite Kelle to your room to assist you with your guided reading needs!

Integrating iPads in the classroom as a tool to better instruction is still a priority in our school. Some fourth grade teachers are using the app SeeSaw to gather student work and information in an online portfolio. Parents can easily be invited to view student work as well. It's so easy to use and very student-friendly. Mrs. Fulbright and Mrs. Moore have received a great deal of positive feedback from parents who enjoy seeing and hearing what goes on in the classroom. In my opinion, this is an app I can see us all using in the future. Take the time to give it a try this year! 

It's been rainy this week. Let me thank the duty teams who have embraced the cold and rainy weather to get our students in their cars and loaded safely. It's not an easy job, but I was proud that while other schools experienced delays in their car lines, we just kept right on doing what we do. Thank you!

Moore's Musings:

• Veteran's Day is coming up on November 11th. Let us not forget the brave men and women who have served our country and defended our freedoms. If you are doing something special for veterans or if you have any ideas, don't hesitate to let us know! 
• Students needs to download the latest version of iOS as soon as possible. I sent an email to third grade asking for them to provide an opportunity for their students to do so this week. 4th and 5th grade teachers, please make time next week for your students to download the latest version of iOS on their iPads. This can be done at home, but sometimes doing so at school will mean that it gets done sooner. 
• I will not be at school on Friday. I am flying to Houston, Texas Friday morning to visit my brother and his family for the weekend. Mrs. Tollison and Mrs. Lee will be at school on Friday and can assist you with any parent concerns or questions. I will be working on Monday next week. Please do not come to school on Monday. Enjoy your well-deserved time off! 

Mark Your Calendar:

• SLO paperwork (Final Template and Growth Spreadsheets) and GBEs are due by Friday, October 30th. Most of you will turn these in on Thursday when we meet during the first few minutes of planning. However, some of you who will be out of the building can turn these in to Mrs. Tollison on Friday. Please share them via Drive with me and have a hard copy of the Final Template ready for us to sign. 
• Friday, October 30th - No Students. Conference Day. 
• Monday, November 2nd - No School. Fall Break. 
• Tuesday, November 3rd - Transform sessions with Preisig in PD Room during planning. 
• Wednesday, November 4th - AdvancED Committee 1 meets in PD Room from 8:15-11:15 A.M. Committee 5 meets in the PD Room from 11:30 A.M. - 2:30 P.M. Bring your laptop if you have one. 
• Friday, November 6th - Reading Your Way to the Big Game forms are due!

Video of the Week:

Resilience

As a closing activity at my first year AP program meeting, we were challenged as group of administrators to think about the word resilience. We were asked to share what came to mind with this powerful word.The first thoughts mentioned included athletes who have overcome difficult situations to achieve success. Next, we discussed the student who against all odds becomes a model success story. After sharing student success stories, the program leader started posing questions for us to ponder. What about the staff member in your building who comes to work every day with a smile on his/her face despite the fact that his/her life is crumbling at home? What about the self-contained special education teacher who is daily hit and kicked by a defiant student? At the end of the day she reflects on the day and new things she can try because she will show up and try again tomorrow. How about the single parent who has to be a parent to her own kids while loving and caring for the troubled students walking in her classroom each day? Quickly we were all reminded that the people in our building are the perfect examples of resilience. All of you have "life" happen and yet you never quit or give up. You come to work tired, sick, and/or overwhelmed and give it your very best. You know that the children in our building need and deserve someone who cares and will encourage them to give their best each day. Thank you for your resilience and for modeling this for our students. It is because of you and your willingness to give that our children are set up for great success. 

Here is a reminder that it is all about the students. Some of our PVES teachers and staff went out this past Monday night to support 10U Patriots in their playoff game. The boys won 42-6. Thank you to those who attended it definitely made the night even more special for these young men. 

End of the Nine Weeks Reminders: 

• Related arts: We will begin the second nine weeks related arts rotation next week. This Friday will be the last rotation for the first nine weeks. During the second nine weeks your Tuesday related arts will be your Friday one as well. 
• Report cards: The schedule for grades and report cards will follow what is posted on our shared calendar. 
• All grades are due on Monday, October 26th due by 8:00 a.m. and verifications will be printed on this date. Be sure to review and return verifications to Ms. Patty. 
• All grade changes must be in the computer on Tuesday, October 27th by 8:00 a.m. and report cards will be printed on this date. Report cards will go home on Friday, October 30th.
• If you plan to meet with parents on this date you will give them the report card at the conference. If you have already met with the parents prior to this date or conducted a phone conference, they may pick up the report card in the front office. Please be sure to have report cards labeled, grouped together by class, and in alphabetical order. You can drop these off at the front office first thing Friday morning. Any report cards not picked up on Friday will be placed in your boxes. You may send these home on Tuesday, November 3rd. 
• Remember ESL students cannot receive below 70 on their report cards.
• Any student receiving accommodations needs to have this noted in the comment section of the report card. 
• Conference Day: Friday, October 30th is our parent teacher conference day. Be sure to get a copy of your conference schedule to the front office by Thursday afternoon. Remember to block out a time for lunch and feel free to use the PD Room for lunch or leave to grab a bite to eat. 

Great things are happening at PVES! Here is a look at a few of the happenings from this past week...

Our second Digital Playground was a success. Thank you to the students for presenting and teachers for taking the time to grow professionally and learn about technology. The treats were awesome too! 

Teachers learning from students

Mrs. Redmon is working hard to make speech fun and exciting for all students. We feel blessed to have her and love what she is doing at PVES. Ms. Marino's class had great fun creating and speaking about fall with their pumpkin project.

Ms. Marino's Class Pumpkin Projects 

Everyone did a great job with our Earthquake Drill last week. Here are few pictures from related arts classrooms.

Way to take cover Mrs. Nix!

Fourth grade social studies teachers had some visitors join us last week. Coach Thompson even found a few of them on his rock wall that day. Be sure to check out the iMovie Mrs. Moore made recapping her team's 2015 Explorer Day. 

Advanced ED Updates:

Thank you for working so hard to complete the staff surveys and making sure that students completed their surveys as well. We had great numbers and 100% of our staff completed the survey by the due date. You are amazing! Last week's blog included committee assignments for the school level. Committees 1 and 5 will be meeting on Wednesday, November 4th in room 104 (science lab). Committee 1 will work that morning and committee 5 will work that afternoon. Be sure to bring your laptop to work in Google Drive. Subs have been arranged for this day if needed.

SLO Updates:

Remember that SLOs and GBE are due to Mr. Moore by Thursday, October 29th. All templates should be completed by teachers by this date. These items have been shared in our shared teacher folder. Plan to meet as group in the conference room at the beginning of your planning period to review this document. This will be our preliminary conference. This process should be quick and consist of a brief discussion and turning in your completed templates. Please share the templates through Google before coming to the meeting.  

Sub Login Change

Subs now have their own district logins and will no longer use a generic sub login or your teacher login. This information will be made available to subs when they sign in at the front office. For most of our subs it is their last name and first initial. Most of our regular subs also have a district email address. It is username@apps.anderson1.org and you can send plans, announcements, etc. to this email address. Let Mrs. Tollison know if you have questions or issues. 

Tollison's Tidings:

• Keep in mind we want all parents to feel welcome and informed about their child's education. The district has purchased Language Line which connects you with a translator. This is an excellent resource and will come in handy during parent teacher conference. Ask our ESL teacher, Melissa Thomas if you need assistance. The link provided will take you to directions you may print out. 
• Let's get the word out! Mrs. Harrison has challenged us to brand our schools. Many of you are so great about posting to twitter the wonderful things going on in your classroom. Be sure to use #pvespride and brag on your kids. We will also be working on getting some things out to our media contacts for the newspaper. 
• You all have worked very hard on scheduling conferences and wrapping up SLOs. We want to give you time to continue focusing on these items so please note that we will not have a faculty meeting next Tuesday. 
• Nurse Jamie has definitely been missed! She will be back in our building on Friday, October 23rd. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• EAFK Ceremonies on 10/23 in MP Room
• Third grade 12:05
• Fourth grade 12:50
• Fifth grade 1:35
• Grades due 10/26 by 8:00 am
• RTI Team Meeting 10/26 at 3:10
• Read 180 Demo (4th/5th Teachers with ESL students) 10/27 in PD Room
• Visit from the State Department of Education and Reading Coaches 10/28
• Furman Consortium 10/29
• SLOs and GBE due and conferences with Moore and Tollison during planning 10/29
• Fire Drill 10/29
• Conference Day 10/30

Parent Teacher Conferences can bring trepidation and anxiety. As a teacher it is the most important time for you to connect and gain insight into your students' lives. Be sure that all our parents feel respected and valued because they are such an important part to the partnership we need for student success. Keep that in mind as you watch this week's video which will hopefully make you laugh a little.