From the Principal’s Pen October Greetings! Can you believe that we have already been in school for two months? Time certain-ly flies when you are having fun! Speaking of fun, I hope your student has had an amazing start to the school year and has shared with you the exciting learning op-portunities taking place in his/her classroom. Quality instruction is our priority at South Side. Each day we prepare our students with the necessary academic skills and social skills needed to be a successful stu-dent not only at South Side, but throughout his/her education. Our teachers have made a commitment to focus on research-based instructional practices that lead to mastery learning for all students. Meaning, teachers will not leave a student behind who is not grasping the learning material. Instead, our teachers will make sure to re-teach those students that are struggling to master a concept, while enriching those students that need an academic challenge. Socially and emotionally, our teachers support our students through Positive Be-havior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). This means that our teachers focus on the positives that build a student’s social self-esteem. Lastly, this is where you come in. We look to our parents to support the learning taking place in their child’s classroom. South Side hosts several parent nights throughout the school year, in-cluding September 29th’s Johnny Appleseed Harvest Night. During these events we will show parents how to transfer learning in school to learning at home. On October 3 at 7:00PM, please feel free to attend the School Board Meeting at South Side. This meeting will feature our school and our goals for this school year. We look forward to seeing you at Parent-Teacher Conferences on October 25 and 26. Until then, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher about his/her progress thus far this school year. Sincerely, Lisa Kendall

Concord South Side Staff

Lisa Kendall - Principal

Tony Miller - Assistant Principal

Sandy Bauer - Secretary

Cindy Howard - Receptionist

Julie Fell - Counselor

Sue Phillips - Nurse

Kindergarten:

Mrs. Miller Mrs. Martin Mrs. Williams Miss Serwatka 1st Grade:

Mrs. Howenstine Mrs. Puckett Mr. Stevens Mrs. Snyder 2nd Grade:

Mrs. Donaldson Ms. Padgett Mrs. Shetler Ms. Rowland 3rd Grade:

Mrs. Butler Mrs. Hage Miss Tepe Mrs. Wheeler 4th Grade:

Mr. Hughes Miss Lauzon Ms. McEachern Mrs. Molnar ESL Teacher: Mrs. Clark ESL Para: Miss Garcia High Ability Teacher: Mrs. Marsh Resource Teacher: Miss McDowell Multicategorical Teacher: Mrs. McKellar Miss Hershberger Life Skills Teacher: Mrs. Mills Art: Miss Fox & Ms. Coleman Music: Mrs. Teall Physical Education: Mrs. Willard Support Staff: Mrs. Cornish, Mrs. Clark Kitchen Manager: Mrs. Moffitt

Oct. 3: School Board Meeting at South

Side. *Time has been changed from

5:00 to 7:00.

Oct. 7: Read/Write/Move

Oct. 14: CONCORD SPIRIT DAY!

Oct. 17: School Board Meeting, 7:00 at

Concord High School

Oct. 20: Picture retakes

Oct. 20-26: Book Fair

Oct. 25-26: Parent/Teachers Confer-

ences in the evening

Oct. 27-28: Fall Break - NO SCHOOL

Important Dates:

“A PBIS School with a Growth Mindset”

October 2016

Concord Spirit Days

Please join us on Oct. 14th for

Concord Spirit Day! Students and staff are invited to wear their

favorite Concord gear, or Concord colors (green and white).

Your Child’s Attendance in School is very Important: It is imperative that students attend school every day in order to maximize their education. Many important lessons result from active participation in the classroom and other school activities which cannot be replaced bi individual study. We realize that ex-tenuating circumstance sometimes interfere with school attendance. However, the state compulsory attendance policy laws are quite strict. Schools must enforce these laws; this requires the help and cooperation of parents and students. Having Your Child to School on Time is also Important: When a child is late to school, she misses out on important instruction. Every minute that a child is in school is important to her learning. When she is tardy, she faces the challenge of trying to settle in and catch up with what other students are doing. She is behind and has to struggle to understand material the teacher has already explained. Being late is detrimental to her learning, espe-cially if it occurs on a consistent basis. Other Children’s Learning: Other students also suffer when a child is late to school. They have to wait to proceed with a lesson because the teacher is busy trying to catch the late child up. The interruption of a door opening into a classroom and the teacher having to address who is com-ing in is distracting and can cause students to lose their concentration as well. It wastes time to deal with and then recover from an interruption caused by someone coming late to class. Preparation for Real Life: Being on time to school is preparation for the world outside of school. When parents focus on punctuality, students learn that not coming to a meeting or event on time is disrespectful of other people’s time and that they miss out on important information. Con-sider how an employer would view an employee who was often absent or tardy. Ways to Prevent Tardiness: Have your child set out her clothes for the next day the night before. Her backpack should contain all her books, supplies and homework she will need for the next day. Get all of the supplies and equipment needed for after school practices and activities ready. Have your son make his lunch if he brings it, and ensure he is in bed at a reasonable hour. Set the alarm 10 or 15 minutes earlier than absolutely necessary to ensure your child has enough time to get to school before the tardy bell rings. South Side Data: For the 16 sixteen school days in August we had 231 absences and 74 tardies. For the first 14 days of September we have had 248 absences and 104 tardies. In order to provide a better educational program and to help establish good attendance patterns, which will carry over into later life, we hope you will give consideration to this potential problem area and do whatever you can to have your student in attendance each day and on time. Thank you for your assistance in improving your child’s attendance and punctuality so that this year will be a success.

Information about the Concord Community Schools Grading System:

We have been on a journey at Concord over the past years to give you a clearer picture of how much students know and how hard they work at learning. Read below to learn more about our Skill and Effort Grades. Skills Grades - Skill grades indicate to you how much students know according to their grade level. 90-100% is an A. This means they really know it. 80-89% means they are strong at it - shown with a B. 70-79% is a C and this shows that they have it most of the time but may struggle in some areas. 69% and below indicates they are consistently below grade level. We simply say that is BGL - Below Grade Level. Effort Grades - These grades tell you how hard a student is trying. This is far more important, especially in elemen-tary school. A student’s work ethic and ability to persevere is far more important in their long term learning. Students will have percentages given for effort with students receiving 70-100% as Passing. Students below that receive a Needs Improvement or Failing mark. An example would be that a student with a 94% is giving a lot of effort. Students with a 72% are passing but just by a little bit. They likely have classroom work or homework that was incomplete. Please expect high percentages from your students and expect they try their hardest even when things are difficult.

A request from the Nurse, Mrs. Phillips: We are in need of long pants/sweat pants/blue jeans. We especially need smaller sizes. If your student has borrowed any items from the nurse, we would appreciate having those items returned once they have been cleaned. Two Important Reminders:

Any medication that I sent with a students, either prescription or non-prescription, MUST be brought in buy an adult.

If a child has a fever, her/she needs to stay home until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of Tylenol or Ibuprofen.

If you will be picking your student up for an appointment during the school day, please send a note to the teacher noting the time you will be here. Teachers will not send the student to the office before your arrive to minimize the lose of instructional time, but sending a note will assist in shortening your wait. There is no pick up in the office after 3:15. Students who need to be picked off after that time will be sent to door 6 at dismissal.

PTO News

Thanks to those who came to Urban Swirl Give-Back Night! We raised over $100 for our school just by eating FroYo. Yum! Congrats to our door prize winner, Kain

Chaffee!

We also appreciate those who attended our first General PTO Meeting. If you were unable to

attend, there are sign-ups in the office for some upcoming events. The next PTO Meeting is on

November 17th at 7:00.

Read Write Move is fast approaching on October 7th.

This unique fundraiser offers all students a chance to participate in special activities throughout the day. All monies raised go

directly to our school and will be used towards library improvements this year.

Permission slips need to be signed and

returned ASAP.

Collect money from sponsors in the envelope provided and you could win prizes. Money is due October 3 - 7.

Reach out to local businesses to which

you are connected for sponsorships (letter was sent home with collection

envelope, but if you need another contact the office).

Follow ConcordSouthSidePTO on

Facebook, text 81010 to @concords for text reminders

Attention Kindergarten and 1st grade parents: Coming soon! Later this fall, we will hold our Anne’s Kits for Kids. This is a great no-cost op-portunity for students and their parents to come learn and practice new ideas to become better stu-dents. Activities are fun, snacks and childcare are provided, and your family will receive materials to take home and keep as your own. Be on the look-out for more information to come home with your student. If you would like to be sure your family is considered for this session, please contact Mrs. Gingerich or Mrs. Fell by calling the school at 875-6565.

Mrs. Hage and Mr. Kleiman are pleased to announce the newest members of the South Side Student Council. These 3rd and 4th grade students were selected to lead our school I many projects throughout the school year such as Red Ribbon Week, Pennies for Patients, and a Food Drive. Congratulations!

Mrs. Cornish would like introduce you to this year’s Channel 11 News Team: Blue Team: Anchor - Elise Ergle Jokes - Hudson Glantz Pledge - Kennadie Rumble Camera - Raylee Elsasser Menu - Prashanti Morris Weather - Michael Esparza Birthdays - Ashlyn Lengerich Green Team: Anchor - Tavarius Morris Jokes - Ji Bril Gilbert Pledge - Dea’ana Emerson Camera - Ethan Allman Menu - Regina Spencer Birthdays - Milo Martinez Weather - Erin Hostetler Both Teams: Special Announcements - Esther Williams Sports - Lucas Prough

Tavarius Morris Esther Williams

Elisa Ergle Brady Fales

Brycen Brosamer Noah Williams

Ava Dixon Zane Neterer

Hannah Davis Kaleb Cox

Ivan Castillo Christian Lane

McKenna Crusie Demetrius Wilson

Erin Hostetler Peter Dowd

Cameron Bowman Serena Poindexter

Available now! South Side Window Clings. 4-inch clear static cling with

kelly green and black imprint. Window clings are available for purchase in the office for

ONLY $2! Get one today and show your

South Side Pride!

Picture retakes will be October 20th

Reminder: Text Book Rental Payments are due

October 31st Please contact Mrs. Bauer in the of-fice at 875-6565 should you need to

arrange a payment plan

Book Fair October 20 - 26

Students may visit the Book Fair during their

normal class library time. The Book Fair will be open for

parents during the evening hours of Parent/Teacher

conferences on October 25 and 26.

Parent/Teacher Conferences are

October 25th and 26th.

We will have a full day of school both days, with conferences scheduled in the afternoon

and evenings. Please look for information about your sched-uled conference times to come home with your students soon.

Fall Recess October 27 - 28

NO

SCHOOL

Fuel Your Day, Eat Breakfast! We often hear it said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. What makes breakfast so important? Studies show that people who eat breakfast are less likely to be overweight, especially children and teens. Also, those that eat breakfast do better in school, find it easier to concentrate, and have more energy. Take ad-vantage of the school breakfast pro-gram to fuel the day from the start.

A Reminder About Transportation Changes

If you know that you need to change your child’s transportation home, we ask that you please send a note with your student with specific information

about the change. Phone calls should only be made in the event of an emergency.

Please understand that for the safety of your child, we cannot make transportation changes after 3:00. The end of the day is a very busy time and making changes during this time

can lead to confusion or misunderstanding.

Thank you for your cooperation!