Friday Updates March 2009

Southwest Elementary School
Friday Update
March 6, 2009

While we all are striving to do our best to finish this school year on a good note, we must be aware of the ways in which we can make plans to make next year even better. I have asked you to reflect about what you can do to improve how you meet your students’ needs. I would also like you to begin to think about the “things” that we need to improve for next year. Since I have been at Southwest, we have evolved several parts of our school. Some of these changes have worked well and some have not. That is a natural part of the improvement process. As I have said before, unless 100% of our children are meeting their full potential, we have more changing to do. If you have ideas of how to improve a certain aspect of our school, please feel free to share it with Ms. Cressman, Mrs. Herrin, Mr. Keener, Ms. Zimmerman (SIT chair), your SIT rep or me. Our job is to lead us in the right direction and to address our school’s weaknesses. Your input is vital to this process.

“I had the blues because I had no shoes until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet.”
Ancient Persian Saying

**This is Music in Schools month**

Next Week
Monday 3/9 (Day 6) – Leadership meeting (9:00), Meadowlark Band/Chorus in auditorium (5th grade)[4th and 5th switch lunches], Tutoring

Tuesday 3/10 (Day 1) –Clemmons Middle in Auditorium (5th), Staff Marzano training (makeup from March 3), Big Shotz Night, Noche Hispana

Wednesday 3/11 (Day 2) – Brian Hayes’ birthday

Thursday 3/12 (Day 3) – Principals’ meeting, Tutoring, Computer training-ActiveBoard adv. features

Friday 3/13 (Day 4) – TGIF, Southwest night at Jimmy Mac’s Golf Range

Week of 3/16 - 3/20 – (3/16 Day 5) (3/17 Day 6) Progress reports, SIT meeting (3/18 Day 1) Little Symphony @ 10:15 (K-5) (3/19 Day 2) Tech facilitators’ meeting, musical rehearsal, Tutoring, Skate Haven Night (3/20 Day 3) musical rehearsal

Looking ahead
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr
Progress Report 9/16/08 Progress Report 12/2/08 Progress Report 2/10/09 Progress Report 4/21/09
Interim Report 9/30/08 Interim Report 12/16/08 Interim Report 2/24/09 Interim Report 5/12/09
Progress Report 10/21/08 Progress Report 1/13/09 Progress Report 3/17/09 Progress Report 5/26/09
Report Card 11/12/08 Report Card 2/3/09 Report Card 4/14/09 Report Card 6/12/09
-2009-2010 Kindergarten information – New law in place (all incoming kindergarten students have to be 5 years old by August 31st), Kindergarten screening is April 15

New Duty Schedule
Breakfast – Burke, Womble, Letourneau

Bus – Larson, Kreger, Sutcliffe, Marceron, Burke, Hauhuth

Car riders – Morning – Chamra, Hancock, Salamanca
Afternoon – Caller – Wessell
Inside – Skinner, Vestal, Alexander
Outside – DiSorbo, Atkins, Lawrence, McGhee, Taylor, Weiss
Hall – Everhardt (computer lab), Hauhuth (gym lobby)
Parra (Music Hall), Alexander (Blue Hall), Allen (Auditorium Lobby)

FYI/Reminders
-Congratulations to Jan Hipp who welcomed granddaughter Addison and to Katie Chamra who welcomed new daughter Reese.
-Several staff members are still dealing with long and short-term illness within their families. Please keep them in your thoughts.
-Please remember our energy conservation guidelines (Computers shutdown & TV’s turned off daily)
-If you are unable to fulfill a morning or afternoon duty, please find a replacement
-Keep giving those eggs and reteach your students how to SOAR. 1. You should keep your golden egg(s) from the first semester and display the egg(s) somewhere in your classroom. If you turned your golden egg(s) to me, please stop by and I will return the egg(s) to you. 2. The white eggs that you have earned from the 1st quarter you may do as you wish. Again, you might want to display those somewhere in the classroom for the students to see. 3. 2nd Quarter Egg Count started 2/23/09. That means if you have any eggs dated BEFORE 2/23/09, those eggs must be removed from your nest so that all homerooms have a level playing field.
**Unfortunately, Jan Hipp is going to have to endure another back surgery in the next few weeks and will need some help with days. If you are able to help, please contact Nellie.

Staff Stars (There are too many good deeds to list them all. Over the course of the year, I would like to recognize as many as possible)
Mrs. Herrin, Ms. Cressman & Mr. Keener – Thank you for doing a great job with Principal Pals/Honor Roll recognition.
Southwest Staff – Thanks for your school safety efforts. A visiting principal was asked to check into the office because his badge was not visible. Thank you!
SIT team – Thanks for your leadership.
Kindergarten registration helpers – Thank you for a great job!
Mr. Sereika/Mrs. Hancock – Thanks for your work in the cafeteria.

Southwest Elementary School
Friday Update
March 13, 2009

While we all are striving to do our best to finish this school year on a good note, we must be aware of the ways in which we can make plans to make next year even better. I have asked you to reflect about what you can do to improve how you meet your students’ needs. I would also like you to begin to think about the “things” that we need to improve for next year. Since I have been at Southwest, we have evolved several parts of our school. Some of these changes have worked well and some have not. That is a natural part of the improvement process. As I have said before, unless 100% of our children are meeting their full potential, we have more changing to do. If you have ideas of how to improve a certain aspect of our school, please feel free to share it with Ms. Cressman, Mrs. Herrin, Mr. Keener, Ms. Zimmerman (SIT chair), your SIT rep or me. Our job is to lead us in the right direction and to address our school’s weaknesses. Your input is vital to this process.

"Reflect upon your present blessings - of which every man has many - not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some."
~ Charles Dickens ~

**This is Music in Schools month**

Monday 3/16 (Day 5) – Leadership meeting (9:00), Meadowlark Band/Chorus in auditorium (5th grade)[4th and 5th switch lunches], Tutoring

Tuesday 3/17 (Day 6) – Progress reports, SIT meeting, Parent Advisory Council meeting

Wednesday 3/18 (Day 1) – Little Symphony @ 10:15 (K-5)

Thursday 3/19 (Day 2) – Tech facilitators’ meeting, musical rehearsal, Tutoring, Skate Haven Night

Friday 3/20 (Day 3) – musical rehearsal, W-S Dash Reading assembly @ 1:45 (K-5)

Week of 3/23 - 3/27 – (3/23 Day 4) Musical rehearsal, Tutoring (3/24 Day 5) Musical rehearsal (3/25 Day 6) Musical rehearsal (3/26 Day 1) Musical rehearsal, Nellie at meeting 8-10, Tutoring (3/27 Day 2) Musical rehearsal

Looking ahead
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr
Progress Report 9/16/08 Progress Report 12/2/08 Progress Report 2/10/09 Progress Report 4/21/09
Interim Report 9/30/08 Interim Report 12/16/08 Interim Report 2/24/09 Interim Report 5/12/09
Progress Report 10/21/08 Progress Report 1/13/09 Progress Report 3/17/09 Progress Report 5/26/09
Report Card 11/12/08 Report Card 2/3/09 Report Card 4/14/09 Report Card 6/12/09
-2009-2010 Kindergarten information – New law in place (all incoming kindergarten students have to be 5 years old by August 31st), Kindergarten screening is April 15

New Duty Schedule
Breakfast – Burke, Vernon, Biggam

Bus – Larson, Kreger, Sutcliffe, Marceron, Burke, Hauhuth

Car riders – Morning – Chamra, Hancock, Salamanca
Afternoon – Caller – Wessell
Inside – Skinner, Vestal, Alexander
Outside – DiSorbo, Atkins, Lawrence, McGhee, Taylor, Weiss
Hall – Everhardt (computer lab), Hauhuth (gym lobby)
Parra (Music Hall), Alexander (Blue Hall), Allen (Auditorium Lobby)

FYI/Reminders
-Congratulations to Jan Hipp who welcomed granddaughter Addison and to Katie Chamra who welcomed new daughter Reese.
-Several staff members are still dealing with long and short-term illness within their families. Please keep them in your thoughts.
-Jan Hipp had her back surgery on Thursday and is expected to stay in the hospital for the next few days. She is at Baptist Hospital in room SC-261. Thanks to all of you who donated days.
-Please remember our energy conservation guidelines (Computers shutdown & TV’s turned off daily)

Staff Stars (There are too many good deeds to list them all. Over the course of the year, I would like to recognize as many as possible)
Southwest Staff – Thanks for your school safety efforts. A visiting principal was asked to check into the office because his badge was not visible. Thank you!
SIT team – Thanks for your leadership as we plan for 2009-10.
Kindergarten registration helpers – Thank you for a great job!
Mr. Sereika/Mrs. Hancock – Thanks for your work in the cafeteria.
Can winners-K-2 Mrs. Dosek, 3-5 Ms. Zimmerman, Overall leaders-K-2 Mrs. Gough-7477, Mrs. Tilley-4907, Mrs. Sutcliffe 4006
3-5 Ms. Herko-7800, Mrs. Skinner-3892, Ms. Zimmerman-3728


Southwest Elementary School
Friday Update
March 20, 2009

The weeks leading up to spring break can be some of the most stressful times of a school year. Our children are definitely ready for a break and we are too! Remember that it is natural to be short on patience right now – especially when Sally isn’t doing her homework and Johnny is disturbing class. Our leadership team will do our best to be even more visible so that we provide you the support you need.
It is also OK to ask us to watch your class for a few minutes so that you can refocus on the difficult task of making sure that “Sally and Johnny” learn what they are supposed to. Thank you for all that you do every day. Hang in there – spring break is just around the corner. Have a great weekend!!

“May you have the hindsight to know where you've been, The foresight to know where you are going, And the insight to know when you have gone too far”
~ Irish Blessing ~

**This is Music in Schools month**

Monday 3/23 (Day 4) – Musical rehearsal, EOQ testing, Tutoring

Tuesday 3/24 (Day 5) – Musical rehearsal, EOQ testing , PBS committee meeting

Wednesday 3/25 (Day 6) – Musical rehearsal, EOQ testing

Thursday 3/26 (Day 1) – Musical rehearsal, EOQ testing, Nellie at meeting 8-10, Tutoring

Friday 3/27 (Day 2) – Musical rehearsal, EOQ testing

Week of 3/30 - 4/3 – (3/30 Day 3) Snow make-up day (3/31 Day 5) Snow make-up day (4/1 Day 0) Spring Break (4/2 Day 0) Spring Break (4/3 Day 0) Spring Break

Looking ahead
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr
Progress Report 9/16/08 Progress Report 12/2/08 Progress Report 2/10/09 Progress Report 4/21/09
Interim Report 9/30/08 Interim Report 12/16/08 Interim Report 2/24/09 Interim Report 5/12/09
Progress Report 10/21/08 Progress Report 1/13/09 Progress Report 3/17/09 Progress Report 5/26/09
Report Card 11/12/08 Report Card 2/3/09 Report Card 4/14/09 Report Card 6/12/09
-2009-2010 Kindergarten information – New law in place (all incoming kindergarten students have to be 5 years old by August 31st), Kindergarten screening is April 15
-Multiplication Tournament – April 6-9
-Easter holiday – April 10
-End-of-grade tests – May 14-20

New Duty Schedule
Breakfast – Burke, Weiss, Aikins

Bus – Larson, Kreger, Sutcliffe, Marceron, Burke, Hauhuth

Car riders – Morning – Chamra, Hancock, Salamanca
Afternoon – Caller – Wessell
Inside – Skinner, Vestal, Alexander
Outside – DiSorbo, Atkins, Lawrence, McGhee, Taylor, Weiss
Hall – Everhardt (computer lab), Hauhuth (gym lobby)
Parra (Music Hall), Alexander (Blue Hall), Allen (Auditorium Lobby)
FYI/Reminders
-Jan Hipp has returned home from her back surgery and is recuperating. Thanks to all of you who donated days.
-YES, we are still part of the paper recycling program. Please make sure that only paper and no trash goes in the green container
-If you leave campus for any reason, please notify an administrator and sign the petty leave book in the office.
-Tutoring timesheets need to be turned in by the last day of the month.

Staff Stars (There are too many good deeds to list them all. Over the course of the year, I would like to recognize as many as possible)
PBS committees – Thank you for your continued work to improve our school safety through PBS.
SIT team – Thanks for your leadership as we finish 2008-09 and plan for 2009-10.
AM and PM Duty helpers – Thank you for all you do to keep our students safe.
Mr. Sereika/Mrs. Hancock – Thanks for your work in the cafeteria.
**We have seen more use of the Marzano High Yield strategies in your classrooms. I have particularly seen more use of “Compare/Contrast” with the use of graphic organizers and elements of “Summarizing/Note-taking.” Great job!
**Keep giving and earning those eggs. Thanks for a great job after our mid-year celebration!


Southwest Elementary School
Friday Update
March 27, 2009

The weeks leading up to spring break can be some of the most stressful times of a school year. Our children are definitely ready for a break and we are too! Remember that it is natural to be short on patience right now – especially when Sally isn’t doing her homework and Johnny is disturbing class. Our leadership team will do our best to be even more visible so that we provide you the support you need.
It is also OK to ask us to watch your class for a few minutes so that you can refocus on the difficult task of making sure that “Sally and Johnny” learn what they are supposed to. Thank you for all that you do every day. Hang in there – spring break is just around the corner. Have a great weekend!!

“Rest when you're weary. Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit. Then get back to work.”

Ralph Marston

**This is Music in Schools month**

Monday 3/30 (Day 3) – Snow make-up day

Tuesday 3/31 (Day 1) – Snow make-up day

Wednesday 4/1 (Day 0) – Spring Break **PBS Playground rotation begins after Spring Break**

Thursday 4/2 (Day 0) – Spring Break K, 1, 2 – A Week – Top, B Week – Bottom

Friday 4/3 (Day 0) – Spring Break 3, 4, 5 – A Week – Bottom, B Week – Top

Week of 4/6 - 4/10 – (4/6 Day 3A) PLC meetings, Multiplication Tournament (4/7 Day 4A) Pincipals’ meeting, 2nd to Zoo, PLC meetings, Multiplication Tournament (4/8 Day 5A) PLC meetings, Multiplication Tournament (4/9 Day 6A) Principals’ meeting, PLC meetings, Multiplication Tournament (4/10 Day 0) Holiday-No School
Looking ahead
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr
Progress Report 9/16/08 Progress Report 12/2/08 Progress Report 2/10/09 Progress Report 4/21/09
Interim Report 9/30/08 Interim Report 12/16/08 Interim Report 2/24/09 Interim Report 5/12/09
Progress Report 10/21/08 Progress Report 1/13/09 Progress Report 3/17/09 Progress Report 5/26/09
Report Card 11/12/08 Report Card 2/3/09 Report Card 4/14/09 Report Card 6/12/09
-2009-2010 Kindergarten information – New law in place (all incoming kindergarten students have to be 5 years old by August 31st), Kindergarten screening is April 15
-End-of-grade tests – May 14-20

New Duty Schedule (after Spring Break)
Breakfast – Burke, Sereika, East

Bus – Larson, Kreger, Sutcliffe, Marceron, Burke, Hauhuth - (Allen, Burke, Freshwater, Hauhuth, Vaughn, Vest)

Car riders – Morning – Chamra, Hancock, Salamanca - (Coffield, Overby, Twyman)
Afternoon – Caller – Wessell - (Sherri LeCompte)
Inside – Skinner, Vestal, Alexander - (Barnes, Biggam, Tilley, Vernon)
Outside – DiSorbo, Atkins, Lawrence, McGhee, Taylor, Weiss - (Bowser, Chadwick, Everhardt, Herko, Pennington, Roberts)
Hall – Everhardt (computer lab), Hauhuth (gym lobby)
Parra (Music Hall), Alexander (Blue Hall), Allen (Auditorium Lobby)
FYI/Reminders
-Jan Hipp has returned home from her back surgery and is recuperating. Please keep Jan in your thoughts and prayers.
**Several staff members continue to care for loved ones who are ill. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
-YES, we are still part of the paper recycling program. Please make sure that only paper and no trash goes in the green container
-If you leave campus for any reason, please notify an administrator and sign the petty leave book in the office.
-There will be a Hospice Walk/Run on Saturday, April 25. Volunteers are needed. For more info contact Kiki Hutcheson.
-1st grade is planning to have a diaper drop for Sarah Baldwin starting March 30 and going until April 9th. We want to help her welcome the new baby with diapers and gifts for anyone who wishes to do so. I will have a box labeled with Baby Baldwin in the teacher's lounge.

Staff Stars (There are too many good deeds to list them all. Over the course of the year, I would like to recognize as many as possible)
PBS committees – Thank you for your continued work to improve our school safety through PBS.
SIT team – Thanks for your leadership as we finish 2008-09 and plan for 2009-10.
AM and PM Duty helpers – Thank you for all you do to keep our students safe.
Mr. Squires – Thank you for all of your work to keep our school clean during a time with so many people out.
**We have seen more use of the Marzano High Yield strategies in your classrooms. I have particularly seen more use of “Compare/Contrast” with the use of graphic organizers and elements of “Summarizing/Note-taking.” Great job!
**Keep giving and earning those eggs. Thanks for a great job after our mid-year celebration!