Welcome to Back to School Night

Making a Difference TogetherOlney Elementary School2011-2012

Tonights AgendaStaff IntroductionsSchool and System InitiativesPTA President Tanya ProffittClassroom Presentations

Our Mission Statement

The parents, staff and students of Olney Elementary School will work as a team to become life long learners and productive citizens. By putting forth our best effort we will strive to create an environment of mutual respect and academic challenge.

Reading AMO for 2012-90.6AMO for 2011-85.9

MATH AMO for 2012-89.7AMO for 2011- 84.5

Goals for 2011-2012Continue to differentiate instruction for all students in small group instructionContinue to plan instruction at the mastery levelIncrease achievement of students receiving special education and ESL servicesContinue formal intervention and acceleration programs in math and readingContinue to decrease percentage of office referrals

Continued System-Wide Expectations7 Keys to College ReadinessAppropriate and Meaningful AccelerationAccess + Equity + Rigor = SuccessOngoing Data CollectionDifferentiated InstructionEliminating the Achievement GapBaldrige Systems

School-Wide ProgrammingPosted mastery objectives that guide instructionDifferentiated instruction that meets student needs90 minute Rd/LA session that includes daily guided reading groupsCurriculum 2.0Junior Great Books, K-5William and Mary Reading Program, 3-5

Continued School-Wide Programming60-70 minute math session with opportunities for acceleration and re-teachingAbove grade level math class in grades 4-5 (current curriculum)Enrichment and Acceleration for grade 3 (current curriculum)Enrichment and Acceleration for grades K-2 (Curriculum 2.0)Ongoing assessment and data monitoringPeace Day Program

Why MCPS Curriculum 2.0?In 2001 MCPS launched a rigorous new curriculum.As we gathered feedback from parents, teachers, and students we began hearing some of the same themes More science!More social studies!More art, music, and physical education!More time! (mainly from teachers)

What is MCPS Curriculum 2.0?

MCPS and CCSS Strand Comparison

Curriculum 2.0http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/2.0/

Student Instructional DayThe student day is from 9:15-3:30Students will be invited into classrooms at 9:05Students will be considered tardy at 9:15 and need a late pass to enter--morning announcements will begin promptly at 9:15Instruction will continue until 3:25Afternoon announcements will begin at 3:25, students will be called for dismissal following the afternoon announcements

Student Pick Up/DismissalParents who wish to pick up their children to attend after-school appointments should do so before 3:15 pm; students will not be released between 3:15-3:30 pmIf there are any changes to your childs regular pm. schedule, please have all arrangements made before the start of the school day; if an emergency should arise during the day which changes the dismissal plan for your child, please call the school as soon as possible, but no later than 3:00 p.m.---to ensure adequate notice for your childPlease be reminded that the front of the school is a bus lane; parked cars in this area disrupt the normal flow of traffic When picking up students from dismissal, please do not loiter---the front area should be cleared promptly

Proactive DisciplineDiscipline means to teach; we are responsible for reinforcing and modeling for all children, at all times and we need YOUR helpReinforce behavior at home and do not make excuses for students; help them take accountability for their actionsStudents will attend quarterly town hall meetings to celebrate and to review discipline policies and proceduresPeace Days!

CommunicationA Principals Newsletter is distributed every month and will come home in student foldersPrincipal Coffees will be held in November and in AprilThe ConnectED phone system will be used to convey emergency or special information, as neededEmail is used regularly by staff members to communicate to families; staff members will respond to received emails within 48 hours

Meeting with TeachersIt is requested that appointments for conferences with teachers or the principal be scheduled in advance. We can spend more time in your conference if we have prior notice to arrange our schedules. Please do not arrive unannounced in classrooms Visitors and volunteers MUST sign in at the office and secure a visitors badge; we are implementing the new Visitor Management System mandated by the school system

Party PolicyThere are generally three parties celebrated in the classroom which are organized and run by the Room Captains and parent volunteers: Halloween/Fall Festival, Valentines Day, and an End of the Year Party. Room captains are asked to meet with the teachers to discuss party expectations, including party timing, food preferences, decoration needs, activities, parent participation, etc. Funds collected for parties should not exceed $15 per student.Parents and staff will be asked to complete a survey in order to collect data about the current practices and policy for changes in the next school year.Birthdays may be celebrated with a simple snack/treat donated by parents of the birthday child. Parents should contact the teacher directly to make arrangements. Such celebrations should be no more than 10-15 minutes and are held at the end of the instructional day or during lunch.

PTA Updates & InfoSign Up to Sponsor the Staff Lounge and/or Join the Staff Appreciation Committee Andrea RudolphSign Up to be a Room Captain OR Carnival Parent Ruthie LyonCharleston Wrap (Laura Stephens) & Grounds Beautification(Albert Avila) Chairpersons still need bodiesOPEN Positions: Media, Fitness and Civic Awareness ChairsPTA Bylaws available tonight and soon onlinewill vote in Oct.Coming Soon: 9/9 Picnic, 9/15 Dominos, 9/28 Urban BBQ NightSign Up GIANT, SAFEWAY and HARRIS TEETER cards for OESBoxTops Ziploc bags, new Spiritwear Coming Soon, PTA MeetingsIf you arent receiving ListServ Mass PTA Emails, sign up tonightwww.olneyespta.org and olneypta@gmail.com Join the PTAOES Staff almost at 100% > We Need 100% too!

********Math will look different*In 2001 MCPS launched a new curriculum in the major content areas math, reading language arts, science, and social studies. This cause a renewed focus in all areas but primarily reading and mathematics it was the time of new accountability tests in those areas due to the new, at the time, federal law, No Child Left Behind (NCLB).

As we implemented the new curriculum we heard many compliments from parents about the strong reading and math curriculum, but we also heard requests for more - parents and teachers said they wanted to be sure they were developing well-rounded children. Our teachers reported they were having many successes in reading and math, but felt they were not able to reach the same level in science and social studies a major reason being a lack of time. Getting students to reach challenging levels in reading and math meant less time for other areas.

NOTE: A funky YouTube video was created for a Board of Education meeting in 2010 to explain why MCPS started the integrated approach. This might help explain some of the reasoning in a fun way. Be sure to preview to decide if it works for your audience. You can access it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxJHI-jCMD4

*If necessary, use this slide to re-emphasize the point that Curriculum 2.0 is an upgrade to the original 2001 curriculum. Much of what they are used to is remaining the same. Curriculum 2.0 represents important upgrades that will help students compete in the global economy of the 21st century.

*Notice where the differences are: Deeper understanding at the elementary level in Number Sense*Deepen understanding in mathEnrichment/acceleration in math is embeddedSkipping grades does not work

******Ask Ms. Lyons if she needs a minute

**