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. 

Hero

We have many heroes in our building!

I am so proud of all that we continue to accomplish as a school! Our teachers continue to improve their trade through professional development and collaboration with one another. Our students are actively engaged in the classroom and learning. When you are able to look past some of the "mess" with which all teachers are inevitably confronted, it is really gratifying to walk down the hallway and hear teachers teaching away and students growing as learners. Just remember that when things get hectic and chaos ensues ... our kids are learning thanks to you!

Don't Forget:
As we mentioned at the beginning of the year, there are several changes that we are asking you to keep in mind this year. First of all, no students should be sent to the office after 7:50 A.M. to call for homework or iPad. They certainly can call if they forgot their lunch. Secondly, Tuesdays are dedicated to faculty meetings. Please do not schedule after school conferences or appointments on faculty meeting days. Also, make sure you adhere to our scheduled lunch and recess times. This affects everyone else in the building. Finally, please make every attempt to be on duty at 7:20 A.M. as our doors are opened and students enter the building at that time. I very much appreciate those of you who greet your students at your classroom door in a positive manner each day. Thanks!

GBEs and SLOs:
Everyone should be working on your GBE or SLO documents. We will ask each group to meet with us for the first 10-15 minutes of your planning on Thursday, October 29th to "turn in" your completed GBE form or SLO final and growth templates. Mrs. Tollison, Ms. Wilcox, Mrs. Martin and I have been trained on SLOs and can provide assistance if needed. This is a year of practice and trial and error so do your best but know we will support you!

PVES "New Best":
On Monday, October 19th at 3:15 P.M., we will meet with any teachers who give grades and have parent conferences to discuss end-of-nine-week procedures and grades/comments. Mrs. Tollison will email everyone who needs to attend a reminder and anything you may need to bring.

Let's explore some of the many reasons we have so much #pvespride ...

Mrs. Carey manned the media center on Wednesday this week when Mrs. Fowler was at technology training. No one asked her to step in...she just did it because it needed to be done. This speaks volumes about her and is symbolic of why we can be the best school (not #50) in the state. We are willing to go the extra mile. When we see something that needs to be done, we do it. No need to complain or fret. Just do the best we can and make it happen. Awesome!

Wait, that's not Mrs. Fowler!

Math teachers are exploring the use of math stations and better ways to use their large block of time. Students in 4th grade were enjoying the stations. This again speaks to our ability to change and adapt...to see that a problem exists or a better way exists and find what works. These students LOVED learning in math!

Mrs. Fulbright "getting on their level"

Yep, math is cool!

Our faculty and staff engaged in great conversation about "who we are and what we are all about" and created some fabulous mission statements. This is just the beginning, but it was awesome to hear "us" talk about where "we" are headed as a school. Thanks for taking our time together seriously and staying focused on making us better! In case you were wondering, we have no assigned everyone to a school committee for the AdvancED process. You can see them here.

3rd, 4th, 5th grade teachers ... TMD and nurse too!

Rick Chapman keeping the group on task

Speaking of our faculty meeting, I must extend a huge "thank you" to Mrs. Thomas, Mrs. Barnhill, and Ms. Powell for sharing their learning with us during our faculty meeting. I made a Furman Consortium folder in our shared teacher folder and dropped their presentation in there. Mrs. Tollison and I believe strongly in developing teacher leaders in our building. We also place a high priority on professional development and collaboration. We hope many of you will attend conferences and professional development opportunities. Just be prepared to share with the rest of us!

Teachers teaching teachers

Thanks to Mrs. Martin for dropping some guided reading truth on us this week. Our time spent with her was very helpful and pointed us in the right direction and created additional questions. Guided reading is simply the right thing to do. Call it what you want, but teaching kids at their level and meeting with readers in a small group setting is effective. The book room is open and available for all to use. Please remember to email your guided reading schedule to Mrs. Martin as soon as possible. Also, if you have not already, please email and let her know when she can come to assist you with your guided reading needs.

Great group discussion and learning

Field trip to the book room

The school store is now open for business. We have some wonderful students who run the school store for us each morning. Do not forget to encourage your students to stop by and visit the school store. I stopped by yesterday and asked for a hamburger and fries. Unfortunately, they were unable to complete my order.

Open for business

Moore's Musings:

• Field trip plans anyone? It would be great to hear from each grade level as to what your field trip plans, if any, are for this school year. Parents are asking! 
• Afternoon car rider dismissal is going smoothly. Switching to names has worked very well. If you have a student who works in your room after school, please make sure they are sent to the pick up area in time so we don't have to locate them during dismissal. 
• Thanks to our related arts teachers for their hard work. We will "spotlight" them in future blogs, but I walked down the hallway this week and glanced in rooms and just listened. Our students love our related arts periods and benefit from these opportunities! 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• Earthquake drill on 10/15 at 10:15 A.M. Drop, cover and hold on! 
• PVES "New Best" Meeting on 10/19 at 3:15 P.M. in the PD Room. 
• Digital Playground on 10/20 from 3:15-3:50 P.M. in the media center.
• Set up stage for EAFK on 10/21 at 3:15 P.M. 
• EAFK Ceremonies on 10/23 in the MP Room. 

Thanks for being a hero to a student or staff member this year. Your job is so vital and so important. Keep pushing! 

Who's Awesome?

#PVES Teachers Are Indeed Awesome

Final SLO Update:
Mrs. Tollison and I have now been able to meet with everyone concerning Student Learning Objectives and the Expanded ADEPT process. We do not plan to have additional formal meetings concerning SLOs. However, you are free to stop by and ask us questions as needed. Please view the video below to assist you with using the NWEA website to set growth targets using MAP data. Our plan is for the "preliminary meeting" to take place during planning periods on Tuesday, October 27th. Non-homeroom teachers will meet on the 27th at 1:45 P.M. All meetings will take place in the conference room and should take no more than 15 minutes unless there are major questions. We can meet as a whole group versus individually. Please make sure you have your SLO final template form prepared and ready as well as your growth spreadsheet(s). Don't forget the shared SLO Folder for assistance!

ALiCE Drill:

As you know, our one and only ALiCE Drill will take place on Friday, October 9th in the afternoon sometime after lunch. Be prepared to take action based on information provided via announcements over our "all call" system. Hopefully, you have been discussing this with your class. Here is a presentation you can also share if needed. After the drill, I would appreciate you reflecting on the following questions/statements and responding to our padlet wall. By the way, I hear you can run faster in blue jeans so Friday is most certainly a blue jean day! 

1.) What did my class do well during the drill?

2.) What could we have done differently? 

3.) What concerns do you still have concerning an intruder event at our school?

4.) What suggestions or comments do you have?

AirWatch:
Please make sure your students understand the following: You cannot download any app that is not on our white list. It doesn't matter if you are at home, McDonald's or here at school...you simply cannot download an app that is not approved. We plan to share this information with students via a WTLP announcement next week, but it would help if you would again stress this with your students. After our video announcement next week, we will begin addressing issues with unapproved apps being downloaded as discipline situations. Thanks!

EAFK:
We are excited about our upcoming first nine week Early Act First Knight (EAFK) ceremonies to be held on Friday, October 23rd in the afternoon. Remember that your student names, one for each of the three virtues (respect, responsibility, tolerance), are due to Lisa Booth no later than Tuesday, October 13th. We will send out letters to parents on Wednesday, October 14th. Please confirm, via phone or email, that parents are aware of their child's selection and when the ceremony will occur. We ask that you do this because not all mailed letters find their way to the appropriate person(s). This is a secret so we do not want our students being recognized to know!

Conference Day:
Conference Day is scheduled for Friday, October 30th. This is a wonderful opportunity to positively connect with parents of our students. Remember, you can share MAP data with parents as well as talk to them about first nine weeks grades, behavior, etc. Don't forget the parents of some of students who perform well academically and/or behaviorally. Sometimes these parents appreciate being invited to a conference and receiving positive feedback as well as information about areas in which they can help their child grow. You can find a conference sign-up sheet in your shared google drive folder or right here. I would also suggest using  http://www.signupgenius.com/ as a means to organize and complete your conference schedule. Don't forget to block out a lunch period for you! Please send your conference schedule for that day to the office by Thursday, October 29th.


Let's take a look at the past week through pictures...

Our PTSO continues to work hard for our teachers and students. They are at school and ready to assist most days we are open. Again, please be sure to thank them for their hard work when you see them!

PTSO hard at work getting t-shirts ready for classroom delivery

Some time ago, we let you know that Ms. Wilkie's DonorsChoose project was funded. Those books have arrived and it appears as though her students are enjoying them!

Ms. Wilkie's students show off their books funded through DonorsChoose

How about our third grade team? They are planning a PBL (project/problem-based learning unit) that I am very excited about! We will share more information with everyone as we get closer to the third nine week period. This type of unit is truly preparing our students to be college and career ready! 

Let's take this profile of a SC Graduate and make it happen!

Mrs. Preisig's Transform session was wonderful! iPads are really but a small part of the equation. Having our students engaged in collaboration and creation is crucial to their success in today's day and age. These sessions are designed to provide you with support while giving you the opportunity to individualize YOUR learning. 

Recording apps anyone?

Don't forget that we want our students reading their way to the big game! Participating students need to submit their forms by Friday, November 6th. Will Coach Thompson be dressed in orange and white or will Mr. Moore be decked out in garnet and black? Encourage your students to participate! A huge thank you to the ladies in the picture below for putting up a bulletin board to remind our students about the Read Your Way to the Big Game challenge! 

Ms. Wilkie, what is that in your hand?

Mrs. Fowler is enjoying the flex schedule. Thanks to many of you for signing up to use her as a resource. It was awesome to see her working with small groups of students throughout the week! Also, the Book Fair was a huge success. She sold around $8,000 worth during the event and will profit around $2,000! 

$50 Book Fair Winners!

This is what it is all about 

I walked in to the cafeteria on Wednesday morning to find a table full of students studying and working on homework. Our tutoring table is a wonderful resource for our students. I hope you are helping to spread the word!

"Mrs. Thompson, I am not sure how to do this..."

Finally, I encourage everyone to talk to students about taking pride in their school. After all, we are the Powdersville PRIDE. Our cafeteria looks like a disaster area at the end of the day. Please remind students to pick up trash and reward those who take the initiative to help make our cafeteria look better! 

And this is a good day

Moore's Musings:

• MAP is still ongoing. Please, please remember to help Mrs. Young sign students in and out of MAP testing. She needs your support...and your SLO is tied to MAP testing! 
• Our fire drill went very well today! The building was evacuated and all students were accounted for in under 3 minutes. Thanks for remembering to close your classroom doors and turn off your lights. The green/red signal card was a success. Don't forget to take with you a class roll and contact information! 
• Please help us save money by turning your LCD projector OFF when leaving the classroom. Bulbs can cost $200-$300 and we have a SmartBoard in nearly every room in our building. Thanks! 
• We are very excited about our upcoming reading meetings with Mrs. Martin. We will be providing a boxed Chic-Fil-A lunch for all reading teachers on the day of your meeting. This will be a beneficial time to discuss our true "next steps" in guided reading. Come ready to discuss and get better! We will meet in the PD Room (102).
• Penny sales tax money is in! I anticipate new laptops being purchased later in the year as there are bigger projects that are higher in priority. Our media center and music, art, and PE programs will be receiving quite a bit of money via the sales tax monies that have been collected. We will also have money to purchase a brand new PA system in our MP Room. Stay tuned for more details. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• EAFK Joust - Friday, October 9th from 10:00 - 10:45ish A.M.
• ALiCE Drill - Friday, October 9th in the afternoon
• Faculty Meeting - Tuesday, October 13th at 3:10 in PD Room (102) - Topic: Mission/Vision
• 3rd Grade Half Day PD w/Martin - Tuesday October 13th from 8:30-11:30 A.M. (lunch provided).
• 5th Grade Half Day PD w/Marin (reading teachers) - Wednesday, October 14th from 8:15-11:15 A.M. (lunch provided). 
• 4th Grade Half Day PD w/Martin (reading teachers) - Wednesday, October 14th from 11:30 A.M. - 2:30 P.M. 
• Student Council Meeting - 2:35-3:15 P.M. on Thursday, October 15th. 
• Next Digital Playground Activity - Tuesday, October 20th at 3:15 P.M. Snacks provided!

I'll leave you with this video. We come to school each and every day to do one thing: give. We give of ourselves. Our time. Our energy. Our gifts. Our students bring so much to school with them. The weight of life is often too much for them to carry alone. We also have much going on in our lives, both professional and personal, that can be very difficult to handle. Instead of letting the feeling of being overwhelmed control my thoughts and actions, I want to focus on giving to our students. Thanks for giving all you have! 

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Ever feel this way?

It appears as if the rain will not leave us be. I know this is frustrating because recess is impacted. I am a firm believer that students need a mental break from the academic side of things. Recess and lunch are important to students. Please make sure we at least provide an "inside recess" so students get that much needed break. I have been so proud of our teachers during Curriculum Nights. Parents have responded in a very positive way via the feedback they have shared. We will get the results of the feedback to you very soon. In the mean time, please enjoy an abbreviated version of the Powdersville Progress...


Kiss of Death:
Well, I postponed our Fire Drill on Wednesday due to wet and rainy conditions. Thirty minutes after I sent the email, the sun came out and we enjoyed a beautiful day. We have postponed the fire drill until next Wednesday, October 7th. I have heard some great ideas from teachers regarding our emergency drill procedures. We will monitor things closely and make changes as necessary. For related arts teachers, we will use our access to PowerSchool as well as the grade level binders of contact information we house in the office to provide you with contact information in the event of an emergency. There is no need to seek contact information from homeroom teachers. The safety and security of our students is obviously a huge priority so please make sure you have discussed various emergency procedures with your students. Review the ALiCE and fire drill procedures we have discussed and be ever prepared.

New Car Name Plates:
Our first day switching to student names in the car line was a success. We still have parents who are requesting that a copy of the new name plate be created. These are shared in the PVES teacher folder. We are asking that you, the homeroom teacher, print out any additional name plates for students in your class and send those home ASAP. It is imperative that we work hard to get everyone in our car line switched over from car rider numbers to student names. Thanks for your help with this!

AdvancED Committee Chairs:
A huge "thank you" to teacher leaders in our building for serving on district AdvancED committees and chairing our school committees. We will begin work at the school level this month. As I mentioned in our  meeting on Monday, you will be assigned to a school committee. These will be announced soon. This is important work that must be accomplished so your time, attention, and hard work is appreciated! See our school committee chairs below:

Standard 1: Purpose and Direction

co - Deb Fowler and Kelley Golden

Standard 2: Governance and Leadership

Brenna Wilkie

Standard 3: Teaching and Assessing for Learning

co - Melissa Wilcox and Jena Putnam

Standard 4: Resources and Support Systems

co - Melissa Freeman and Tammy Lee

Standard 5: Use Results for Continuous Improvement 

co - Brad Moore and Kelle Martin

Action Plan:

Jill Kallin

*Moore, Tollison, Lee will support each committee throughout the process. 

*Tollison will work with Preisig to collect survey data.

Let's examine a few cool "goings-on" from this past week or so....

Mrs. Kallin's "wobble stools" arrived this week. Congratulations again to her for getting her DonorsChoose project funded. Have you submitted one yet?

As I mentioned earlier, Curriculum Nights have been a hit. It was awesome to see parents and students learning and involved. Better yet was watching students presenting to parents. This is what it is all about...

Our Monday staff development went very well. I appreciate everyone for coming to school ready to learn and work. ELA teachers worked on SLOs and math teachers discussed using math time wisely, including developing math work stations. Guided math anyone? Thanks to Mrs. Martin and Mrs. Tollison for leading! And a huge "thank you" to Mrs. Fowler for setting us straight on the "flex" library schedule. I am excited about the future of our media center and the collaboration that will take place among our faculty as to how we can use our media center and media specialist to improve the product we offer our students. Collaborating, researching, etc. also address the Profile of a SC Graduate that should guide us educators as we plan, instruct, and assess.

While I am on the topic of our media center, let's not forget to mention our Book Fair. Please continue to advertise this in your email blasts, newsletters, websites, etc. Here is a quick before and after glimpse at the transformation our media ceenter undergoes during the Book Fair! 

Before

After

Tammy Lee is making her way to every classroom to hype up our EAFK program. I observed her lesson on our first three "virtues" (respect, responsibility, and tolerance) and it is outstanding. Please do your best to incorporate the EAFK program in your classroom and be prepared to identify students who will recognized in our first knighting ceremony later this month. We also recognized our Citizens of the Month for September on Wednesday. We post their pictures on our website and on the bulletin board outside my office. We will share a video for you to show in your rooms very soon. Thanks for supporting these programs as it makes a huge impact when the teacher "buys in" and works to positively recognize students who show great citizenship. 

And a special thanks to our PTSO. They are truly working hard for our school and we need to remember to tell them how much we appreciate them every chance we get. And a huge "thank you" for this...

Moore's Musings:

• iPads should be sent home beginning on Monday, October 5th with all students who have paid the protection plan of $29.00. You should be using the "My Homework" app to communicate assignments with parents. I have been so impressed with the communication we pour out on our school community. Many of you use Remind, websites, blogs, and much more! 
• MAP Testing continues and we hope to finish in the next few weeks. Make sure you can log in to Enrich and the NWEA website to access test scores. You will need this to access data for SLOs as well as when you make instructional decisions for your students. 
• A reminder that ACT Aspire and PASS scores will be sent home on Friday, October 9th. Mrs. Lee and I will meet with teachers for the first 15 minutes of your planning on Thursday, October 8th to discuss the score reports that will be sent home. We want you to be able to tackle questions that may come from parents. We will make this as quick and painless as possible, but we need to meet. 
• Our EAFK joust to kick off the program is scheduled for the morning of Friday, October 9th. The plan for now is to call classes outside for the event beginning around 9:45 A.M. for the event to begin at 10:00 A.M. We plan to use the space outside next to the middle school bus circle. The event should last about 45 minutes or so giving third grade time to get to lunch on time. Please talk to your students about being a good and respectful audience.
• Our ALiCE drill is scheduled for Friday, October 9th in the afternoon. We will send a letter home to parents soon about this event. 

Mark Your Calendar (MYC):

• 5th Grade Curriculum Night - Thursday, October 1st.
• Math teachers meet during planning for SLOs - Monday, October 5th in PD Room.
• Final Day of Book Fair - Tuesday, October 6th.
• Technology PD with Mrs. Preisig during planning in PD Room - Tuesday, October 6th. 
• Fire Drill - Wednesday, October 7th at 1:20ish. 
• ACT Aspire Score Report training during planning in PD Room - Thursday, October 8th.
• EAFK Joust - 10-10:45 A.M. - Friday, October 9th
• ALiCE Drill - Afternoon on Friday, October 9th. 
• Next faculty meeting - Tuesday, October 13th. 

Next week's calendar is crazy busy. Thank you for remembering to be present and on time where you are expected. And for that, Friday is definitely a blue jean day. We appreciate you! 

Sail Away From the Safe Harbor

Whether it be "techbook" training, Furman Consortium, or professional development, this week (and this year) has been marked by our ability to "unlearn", attempt new things, and "sail away from the safe harbor" in an effort to improve who we are. I am proud of our faculty and staff for remaining positive in the face of adversity and putting our students first in all we do. You are more than simply educators. You are difference makers. There is no higher calling.

Monday, September 28th:
Monday's staff development day comes at a great time for us. We will have some much needed time to work together without interruption as well as work in our rooms. I hope everyone will come focused and ready to accomplish a great deal! Please feel free to dress casual on Monday. Yes, this includes blue jeans if you so desire. For the morning session, we will provide coffee and water. Please see the schedule below to help you plan your day:

8:30 A.M. (Media Center) - General Meeting with all faculty and staff. Quick discussion re: student health w/ Nurse Jamie and fire drill procedure with Mr. Moore and Mrs. Tollison.

8:45-9:30 A.M. (Media Center) - "Flex" library model. This session will be led by Mrs. Fowler as she works with us to explain what this model looks like in action. Have your laptop with you.

9:30-10:00 A.M. (Media Center) - Group concerns and/or restroom break.

10:00-11:00 A.M. (PD Room - 102) - 3rd Grade SLO Workshop. We will address questions pertaining to SLOs, discuss the documents that need to be completed, and work on a time line for completion. Bring your laptop and any F&P and MAP data you have collected.

10:00-11:30 A.M. (Tate's Room) - 4th/5th Math Teachers Workshop. Please bring your laptop and iPad to this session. We will discuss appropriate use of your math block and work on building a unit of instruction. Look for an email from Mrs. Tollison soon with additional information.

11:30 A.M.-12:30 P.M. - Lunch. Feel free to bring your lunch and work in your rooms or head out with your crew and enjoy some time away from school.

1:00-2:00 P.M. (PD Room - 102) - 4th/5th SLO Workshop (ELA Only). We will address questions pertaining to SLOs, discuss the documents that need to be completed, and work on a time line for completion. Bring your laptop and any F&P and MAP data you have collected.

1:00-2:30 P.M. (Wilcox's Room) - 3rd Grade Math Teachers Workshop. Please bring your laptop and iPad to this session. We will discuss appropriate use of your math block and work on building a unit of instruction. Look for an email from Mrs. Tollison soon with additional information.

2:00-3:00 P.M. (PD Room - 102) - Related Arts/Specialty Area SLO Workshop. We will address questions pertaining to SLOs, discuss the documents that need to be completed, and work on a time line for completion. Bring any pre-assessment data you have collected.

*All teachers are welcome to leave at 3:00 P.M. if you are prepared for Tuesday.

A Final Note About Our Upcoming Curriculum Nights:
We are genuinely excited about our opportunity to communicate with our parents via curriculum nights. We have advertised these events a great deal including EduLink, Remind, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. I hope you will send out a final reminder to parents soon encouraging them to attend! Please refer to my previous email (with attachment) to make sure you are comfortable addressing the required topics with your parents. Parents will expect to learn about homework, assignments like tests and quizzes, how they can help their child study, and iPads.

Make sure our parents know about the white list and that if an App that is not approved is downloaded, it will shut down their child's device. This would be a good time to educate parents on iPad use at home. Parents should know they are in charge. We encourage parents to set limits and have rules pertaining to iPad use at home. Let's promote iPads in a positive light and show them how we are using them to promote collaboration and creativity. If you have any last minute questions about our expectations regarding your Curriculum Night, please let us know ASAP. I appreciate our non-homeroom teachers being willing to assist on these nights. Thanks!

*Please Note: We will begin to send parents to your rooms around 6:15-6:20 so you can begin promptly at 6:30 P.M. You may want to lock your door and our of sight until that time.

iPad Reminders:
Speaking of iPads, please note the following reminders:

• Our tentative date to send iPads home will be October 5th. 
• Please continue to remind parents who still owe $29 for the iPad protection plan. 
• Make certain you have spent ample time discussing rules and expectations with your class concerning the iPads. Devote class time to teaching the digital citizenship curriculum. 
• Make sure students have deleted all items not on the white list. We hope to have all iPads "clear" by some point tomorrow (Thursday). We will then turn on the compliance policy and any iPad with an unapproved app will be locked down. Make sure our students understand this. A huge "thank you" to Mrs. Fowler and Mrs. Preisig for taking on the monumental task of deleting apps and getting iPads prepared. 

MAP Testing Update:

We have been cleared to begin MAP Testing once again tomorrow (Thursday). Our district technology team has provided a new way to test students and Mrs. Young has worked hard to get our computers updated and prepared for testing. We are the guinea pig here so I am hopeful we will test without further interruption. Mrs. Young has placed a new sign-up sheet in the front office so you can sign up for additional testing slots. 

Always Perfecting Our Craft:

We have three teachers attending the first Furman Consortium event on Thursday. This reminded me that I wanted to express to everyone my desire for us to always grow as professional educators. One of the best ways to do this is to attend conferences and workshops. Please take time to review Anderson One Conference Information and consider if you might be interested in attending a conference this year. Check out the Furman Consortium for future PD opportunities as well. Mrs. Tollison and I will discuss a fair and equitable way to choose teachers to attend conferences. We do ask that you be prepared to share your learning with our faculty when you return!

Big Things Poppin':
Let's take quick look at some great things happening at PVES!

Congratulations to Mrs. Kallin! Her Donors Choose project was fully funded ... all $2,163 of it! 25 donors contributed to make this happen. Her project, entitled Teach Me to Wobble, enables her to provide "wobble stools" to her students so they can actively move while being seated. Great job, Mrs. Kallin!


Our science teachers enjoyed training on the new science "techbook" on Monday. I think we found a a great resource through Discovery Education with many assets (inside joke for those in attendance). It was great to see everyone learning!

Tammy Lee presented to us during our faculty meeting and shared an overview of her comprehensive guidance program. We also discussed RTI procedures and paperwork. More than anything, my "take away" from Ms. Lee is that she is here to serve our students. What an incredible resource to have!

Free tutoring! I am so happy to see students seeking (and receiving) tutoring/homework help in the cafeteria each morning. Please discuss this opportunity with your students and make sure they know this resource is available!

Ms. Lockaby Offers Homework Help

I am also excited to see our students actively listening to an adult read to them each morning in the MP Room. I think this offers our students a way to stay current on some of the best children's literature out there and encourages them to read. 

Mrs. Martin Reads to Students

Moore's Musings:

• Just a friendly reminder that rain is in the forecast. If you have duty outside, you know you will eventually run into a bad weather day. We do have umbrellas in the front office. It wouldn't hurt to bring a change of shoes, your own umbrella just in case, and a rain jacket on those days. Be prepared! 
• Thanks to Mrs. Tollison for working so hard to secure subs each week. She does a fabulous job with this. As we discussed in our faculty meeting, please update your preferred sub list ASAP. If you have any questions, please let Mrs. Tollison know. 
• Our plan is to have new car rider name tags (with student name and color coded) ready to send home to parents on Tuesday, September 29th. It is our hope that using car rider names will speed up our dismissal time by 7-10 minutes. Thanks for your help with this! 

Mark Your Calendar:

• Thursday, September 24th - 3rd Grade Curriculum Night from 6:30-8:00 P.M.
• Friday, September 25th - Book Fair Begins! Spread the word and support Mrs. Fowler!
• Friday, September 25th - "Gold/Yellow-out" to support the fight against childhood cancer. Bring $1.00 for Relay for Life and wear gold or yellow. Make sure our students know this!
• Monday, September 28th - No school for students. We have a PD day. 
• Tuesday, September 29th - 4th Grade Curriculum Night from 6:30-8:00 P.M.
• Wednesday, September 30th - Fire Drill at 1:30 P.M. (weather permitting) 
• Wednesday, September 30th - RTI Meetings after school (email Tammy Lee if you want on the agenda)
• Thursday, October 1st - 5th Grade Curriculum Night from 6:30-8:00 P.M. 

Yes, Friday is a blue jean day!