Elementary ENotes- September 12, 2016

Message from the Principal
Dear Parents,

The PTO Fall BBQ! What a wonderful event for our community. Brian Mason- PTO President has sent a big thank you out to to parents and staff who contributed their time and energy. I’m sure you will agree with, me when I give a shout out to Brian too. With his leadership, the past two community events have been a great success. (I can’t wait to see what UN Day holds in store!)

The raffle closest to my heart, Elementary Principal for a Day was won by: Yu Jeong Lee in Grade 3. Yu Jeong and I will be getting together soon to discuss the event- which will more than likely occur in the Spring.

This week we send our Grade 5 students off to Łopuszna in the Polish mountains. I will be helping at the train station this morning and on Thursday afternoon to send them off and welcome them back. It is a big event for all involved. If this weather holds… it will be a magical trip. Have fun Grade 5!

Warmly,
Jen

Important Upcoming Dates to Note:
September 12-15-

• Grade 5 Students travel to Łopuszna!

September 19-23-

• MAP Testing for students in Grades 3-5

September 21-

• First Homeroom Parent PAC Meeting at 8:45 am in the MPR (the meeting room in the *new* building). All Homeroom Parents are encouraged to attend!
  

September 29 and 30-

• Elementary Individual and Class Photos (confirmed!) Payment information will be sent home this week and in next week’s ENotes

September 28-

• Professional Development Afternoon for Teachers- All Students are dismissed at 11:30 PM

Information and Events in the ES:
Parent-Led Conferences- Thank you for attending Parent-Led Conferences. They were a great help to our teachers who wanted to hear and learn from you- our students’ first and most important teachers.

Teacher-Led Conferences will be help on Tuesday, Oct. 11th (no school for students). Single Subjects (Art, Music and PE) as well as Additional Languages (French, Polish and Polish Culture and Language) teachers will be available for you conference with- by appointment.

MAP- Measures of Academic Progress Testing- Grades 3-5- During the week of September 19-23, we will be conducting the MAP test in the Elementary School. This test is a standardized test students in Grades 3-5 take on a computer. It is also an “adaptive test” meaning the questions change based on how the child answers them. A few important items to note:

• The test is a snapshot in time. The Fall test will give us data points in Reading and Mathematics.
• The MAP test is not used as a grade. Instead, we compare the test result with what we already know about the learner. If there are inconsistencies, the teachers, together with our Literacy and Math coaches will dig deeper into the data.
• Students and teachers do not “prep” for the test. 
• The results of this first assessment will be shared with parents at Teacher-Led Conferences in October. A follow-up assessment will be given in the Spring to allow us to track and discuss growth over time. (Students in Grades 4-10, who have taken the MAP Test at ASW, will have the benefit of seeing multiple years of data in the handout provided.)
• If you have questions about the MAP test, please contact your child’s teacher; Jen Munnerlyn, ES Principal; or Carol Jordan Director, of Teaching and Learning.
• More information can be found at the NWEA site: https://www.nwea.org/assessments/map/

Grade 5 Trip Site - Once again this year, we will be using a web site to share pictures and information regarding the Grade 5 trip. The link to the site is http://aswgrade5trip.weebly.com/. Information will be updated throughout the trip.

Parent Partnership
Endicott Survey to the Community
An Important Accreditation Survey from Endicott Research Center was sent to you via Email. It is confidential and will be completed by the whole community.  Please remember to complete you survey by September 14. The information will help our school!

Counselor's Corner Blog:  
Our ES Counselors, Karen Gentilini and Jamie Hamlin, have been working in classrooms and with students over the past three weeks. The  focus on helping students have a positive start to school. They also have a new Counselor Blog where information about their work and tips/advice for families will be posted. Check it out! http://aswarsawelementary.weebly.com/counselors-corner

REMINDER: If your child is absent...
When your child is absent, please let the classroom teacher or/ and ES Office (esoffice@aswarsaw.org) know as soon as possible. If we do not hear from you by 9:30 and your child is not yet at school, we will call a parent to make sure he/ she is indeed absent. Please remember to call ahead so we don’t need to call you.

“Wheelie Shoes” are not allowed at school. They pose a danger on our stairs and outside. Please do not send your child to school in Wheelies.

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