Focus

In education, we spend so much time talking data and preparing for standardized testing. This hyper-focus on results can quickly wear us down and create an unwanted climate. Now, don't get me wrong. I want our school to continue our run of excellence when it comes to test scores. Better yet, I have every expectation that our scores will improve. However, I would ask you to take testing and scores out of the equation for a moment. If high stakes testing did not exist, where would you direct your focus? My hope is that we would still say that our collective focus remained on student growth and achievement. I want to believe our culture is strong and that we are dedicated to focusing on changing for our students. If this is true, the results will change and for the better. When we focus we direct our thoughts and attention on what becomes important to us. We are able to block out the negativity and think past the initial roadblocks and chart a course toward success. When our focus is on our students, we have no desire to make excuses or give up. Our focus will propel us to new heights, new ideas and a culture of  high expectations and success. So, yes, let us prepare our students for state testing. Let us equip them through rigor and challenges in the classroom; coupled with support and encouragement. But let us focus on our higher calling ... to build relationships with children and impact them in and beyond the classroom. What's your focus?

As always, our focus this past week was on engaging and celebrating our students...

Our OLWEUS kick-off was a huge success. Thank you to everyone for participating and supporting this bullying prevention program. Again, if we implement this with fidelity and show students we believe in changing our culture, they will buy in! Classroom meetings will occur on Monday mornings meaning our next meetings will take place during PRIDE Time on Monday, February 5th. Non-homeroom teachers will report to the room assigned to you by Mrs. Tollison unless you have spoken to us about a change. OLWEUS materials and lessons can be found in our shared folder. 

#PVES students enjoyed hearing author Lauren Myracle this morning. Myracle is an American writer of young adult fiction. She has written many novels, including the three best-selling "IM" books, ttyl, ttfn and l8r, g8r. Her book Thirteen Plus One was released May 4, 2010. She is currently promoting her Upside Down Magic series. She was engaging and our students certainly kept their focus on her.  Was it not obvious that her focus was on providing the very best literature for children? Thanks to Mrs. Fowler for providing this opportunity to our students. 

Some third graders enjoyed completing a breakout session. Students have been studying rocks and minerals, but their focus was heightened with such an engaging activity. It has also been so fun to watch students enjoy our Powdersville Pizzeria and really focus on fractions. Being a school-wife endeavor has been unifying in a way and certainly the product of great planning and a ton of effort from our teachers.  

On Friday, our focus was again on our students. This time, we celebrated our student writers in our first ever Writer's Wall of Fame Breakfast. Over 70 students and family members RSVPed for the event. We appreciated Mrs. Jane Harrison's attendance and support as well. Mrs. Horn's idea was to focus on improved student writing celebrating this improvement. With a ton of help from Mrs. Fowler and Mrs. Golden, this event was such a wonderful way to celebrate our students and connect with our school community. 

There is no doubt you have seen the tape on the floors and heard the commotion in the hallways. Yes, it's that time of year again...Jet Toy Car time. Our 5th grade teachers have worked hard to make this an engaging learning experience for students. Our students remain focused on completing the various tasks at hand. Who knows? Maybe we will win the district competition this year. 

TDA Review/Training:

Please note that we have asked a few grade level representatives to attend this training and bring back their learning to share with you at the next grade level meeting.

Third Grade- Monday, February 5- 8:30-11:00

Fourth Grade- Monday, February 5- 12:00-3:00

Fifth Grade- Wednesday, Februrary 7- 8:30-11:00

Final SLO Mid-Year Conference Reminders:

It's that time of year again. I need to meet briefly with any and all teachers who have an SLO. The purpose of this meeting is to check on student progress as related to the teacher SLO for the 17-18 school year. It would be appropriate to bring any data and or/concerns to this meeting. We can log in to Enrich and refer to the information you have entered. If you do not have access to Enrich, bring a paper copy or email a copy to us for the meeting. You can sign up for a time by clicking on this link to register for a conference slot. 

Live PD:

Our next Live PD session is Wednesday, February 7th. Please read our agenda for additional information. There is no Live PD scheduled for Wednesday, February 14th. Speaking of Valentine's Day, we have a few surprises in store for you. We will provide more information soon.  

Real Men Read Event:

Our Real Men Read event is scheduled for Thursday morning. Thanks to Mrs. Martin for organizing this event and to our Literacy Committee for locating men to participate. Men will meet in the media center to start the morning and quickly transition to classrooms. They will read aloud to students and talk a little bit about what they do and how important literacy is to them. This will take the place of PRIDE Time on Thursday. Mrs. Martin will provide a reminder/additional information soon. Thanks for welcoming these men to our school and thanking them for their efforts. 

Moore's Musings:

Mrs. Tollison and Mrs. Martin are meeting with grade levels to discuss ELA and Math standards that students did not perform well on during last year's SC-READY testing. This is a great opportunity to begin thinking about test preparations. Have you gone back to take a look at READY scores from last year and determine where your instructional focus needs to be? What are you doing about students who are under-performing? What's your plan of action to make certain students are prepared for May? These are great questions that should be tackled during consistent content-area and grade-level planning sessions. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• OLWEUS Class Meetings - 2/5/18 during PRIDE Time
• 3rd Grade Launch Field Trip  - 2/6/18
• Live PD - 2/7/18 at 3:15 in Media Center
• Real Men Read Event - 2/8/18 - PRIDE Time
• PVES Skate Night - 2/8/18 from 6-8 PM
• Greenville Drive Reading All Stars Program - Begins 2/12
• PD Day - 2/19 - Comp Day for those who attended Summer Academy. If you did not attend, you must enter absence in absence manager of attend district PD. 
• Father/Daughter Dance - 2/23 (Tickets on Sale Now) 

Video of the Week: "One More" - Can we get just one more student to grow, to achieve, to learn?