lil’ phoenix

This is an incredible accomplishment

as we are among a small number of

schools across the state earning this

designation. In fact, there are only

four other elementary schools in the

state to have earned this level of state

recognition!

In addition to this honor, I am thrilled

to announce that we have 14 (and

counting) teachers who have earned

their NC Global

Educator Digital

Badge. This means

they have met a

series of profes-

sional development

criteria and have

successfully completed a global cap-

stone project! This includes Mrs.

Pennington and I as the first adminis-

trators in the state to earn this en-

dorsement as a global educator!

I am very proud of the work of our

school to positively impact student

learning and to provide an enriched

experience for our students to be

prepared for a global society! Thank

you for your continued support of

our initiatives!

The first semester of 2017-18 has

been packed with fun activity and

pathways to learning for our stu-

dents. Our teachers have worked

together on several approaches to

learning, including our emphasis on

digital competencies, use of

student data to inform stand-

ards based feedback and

opportunities to enrich our

program with a global lens.

We have increased the num-

ber of computer devices for

students to use in the classroom.

One HUGE boost to this was a do-

nation from our PTO of $10,000

from the fall fundraiser! We blended

this with school funds to add

Chromebook computers to class-

room settings. We also obtained

replacement projectors and speak-

ers. The collaboration with PTO

has also allowed us to have fun

with activities such as the Scholas-

tic Book Fair, Reading Incentive

Program, Teacher Support, and

the first annual Family

Dance! We are looking

forward to upcoming par-

ent nights, PTO elections

and especially the planning

for Spring Fling in May!

As our community is aware

we have been implementing a

strong global learning program at

Elon. This aligns with our district

strategic plan and State of NC

initiatives. Our school was recog-

nized as a NC Global Ready

School in December. (see pic below)

Many great things are hap-pening at Elon Elementary every day! Teacher are plan-ning creative lessons to inter-est the students and keep them engaged. Students are trying new things through field trips and classroom lessons. Some students are attending after-school activities and clubs. All students have had the op-portunity to experience learn-ing "beyond the classroom."

Many lessons are planning hands-on experiences, and les-sons that incorporate a variety of technology, including virtual reality. Students have taken virtual field trips all over the world. Other classes have been able to interact with visitors that shared experiences from France, Korea, Germany, Africa and Australia. To learn more about the great things that are happening in

your child's class-room, ask your child’s teacher about the best way to stay in touch. Some teachers have Twitter accounts that you can follow, blogs or send home newsletters.

As always, it's a great day at Elon!

Message from our Leader - Mr. Davern, Principal

I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

Pre-K &

Kindergarten

2–4

1st Grade 4-5

2nd Grade 6-7

3rd Grade 8-9

4th Grade 10-11

5th Grade 12-13

Specialty Area

Teachers and

Instructional

Support

14-19

Assistant Principal, Tracy Pennington

E L O N E L E M E N T A R Y

S C H O O L

Li l ’ Phoenix Community News

M A R C H 1 , 2 0 1 8

Spring Break 3/30—4/6

MARCH

22-PTO Meeting/PTO Family

Fitness Night

26—Spring Picture Day

(Group & Individual)

27– End of Report Period

28—PK-1 Field Day (am)

28—2/3 Field Day (pm)

29—4-5 Field Day (am)

30-6 Break

Field Days = Drop off Treat Days!

APRIL

20—Kindergarten Orientation

Mark your

Calendars!

M A R C H 1 , 2 0 1 8

P A G E 2

“We had the opportunity to

learn about Christmas in

Australia from a native

Australian. Our students

have also learned songs in

Spanish and they love singing

every morning.”

Greet ings from Pre-K and Kindergarten

Pre-K has embarked on

establishing a miniature

Outdoor Learning Envi-

ronment. Our initial focus

is two-fold: investigating

the weather and caring for

our feathered friends. We

have raised two shepherd

staffs with homemade bird

feeders attached, precipita-

tion gauges (which we hope

will become a water supply

for the birds), pinwheels to

detect the direction of the

wind and have made wind

chimes to be hung outdoors

in the very near fu-

ture. We are having a

blast observing the weather

and learning how to take

care of the environment.

You know, we are Little

Phoenixes doing things

the Pre-K Way.

word recognition. We enjoy playing word wall games such as Around the World, Cherry Pie, and Grow-A-Flower. In writing, we are learning to write complete sen-tences and use end punc-tuation correctly. As the new year began we set school and home goals, such as learning to read and learning to ride a bike. In math, we are learning to read, write, and make sets for numbers 11 - 20.

We are off to a great start in 2018! We continue to learn and grow in all aca-demic areas. In reading, we are working on sight

We are also learning the concept of greater than, equal to, and less than. We continue to explore our global region of study, Oceania, and integrate information about that region into our lessons when possible. Most re-cently, we learned that New Zealand is home to many sheep and that sheep farming is an im-portant industry there. As the year continues, we look forward to learning more information about New Zealand and other countries in Oceania.

had the op-

portunity to

learn about

Chr i s tmas

in Australia

from a na-

tive Austral-

ian. We

compared how holidays are

celebrated in different

countries. Students re-

searched at home some

facts about their favorite

Australian animal and they

made a project using differ-

ent materials to share with

their fellow classmates.

Also, we have been working

on writing sentences using

punctuation and the vocabu-

lary learned every week.

Students have learned songs

in Spanish and they love

singing every morning. We

have had so much fun learn-

ing a second language and

exploring ways of life from

different cultures.

During the first semester

of kindergarten we

learned about many inter-

esting things related to

the weather and holidays

around the world. We

L I L ’ P H O E N I X

Mrs. Sheppard, Mrs. Fargis & Mrs. Kirby

Señoritas Cruz & Bennett - Kindergarten Splash

Mrs. Dix & Mrs. Huffines

Learning

whether a

group is less

than (<),

greater than

(>) or equal

to (=)

another

group.

Pre-K students are engaged in

a miniature Outdoor Learning

Environment activity.

M o r e N e w s f r o m K i n d e r g a r t e n

P A G E 3 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1

Number Sense creativity. Stu-

dents had a chance to solve

the math equation by using

their hands and paint. An ac-

tivity like this is always fun

for students because they

can actually learn through

play! Students had a chance

to look at the equation and

think how many fingers they need-

ed to use to represent the num-

bers to make the equation correct.

Having the students think while

learning is always a wonderful sight

to see as an educator!

from home. This was a fun

home-school connection pro-

ject. The students researched

about an Australian animal and

made a model of the ani-

mal. January was a great

month of learning about Austral-

ia! We are looking forward to

learning more about countries in

Oceania!

Our class celebrated Australia

Day on January 26th! Australia is

a country in our region of study

of Oceania. We celebrated with

making skyworks (fireworks),

learning interesting facts about

Australia day, making Australian

flags and by tasting Tim-Tams(a

favorite Australian treat). Later in

the week each student brought in

their Australian animal project

Wow- what a whirlwind the first 100 days have been! We

started our classroom several weeks into the school year and hit the ground running and now it feels like we’ve been

a classroom family forever!

We have been working hard on learning sight words, be-ginning to read and learning how to write. We’re becoming

little math stars as we practice counting to 100 and learn-

ing the basics with numbers 1-20.

Some of our highlights have definitely been celebrating

Australia Day, our animal projects and the 100th day of

school!

Number Sense Activity

Students solve math equations

using their hands and paint

Ms. Harrison & Mrs. Canaday

“The students’ animal

project has been one

of our highlights this

school year.”

Ms. Dawson & Mrs. Vaughn

Mrs. Montgomery & Mrs. Kiser

P A G E 4

“During the

second nine weeks,

frist grade focused

on explanatory or

informative writing

styles. We wrote

how to make a

snowman.”

Students presented

their homework pro-

jects to the class.

1st Grade News

Mrs. Horne & Mrs. Canaday

We cannot believe we recently cele-

brated the 100th day of school! Time flies when you are having fun. Our

awesome group of kids have been working hard in the classroom and

at home. Their 100 day homework

projects and their Oceania animal projects were absolutely amaz-

ing! We were so impressed with all they learned about animals native to

Australia and the different ways

they worked with their families on counting to 100. The stu-

dents worked on speaking in front of an audience and talking

in complete sentences when

they presented both homework

projects to their classmates.

learned about traditional Kimonos

in the Chinese culture. The stu-

dents created their own kimono

design using torn scrapbook pa-

per and imagination. Our class

We have been learning about

cultures and traditions. The

students have looked at tradi-

tions through holidays we cel-

ebrate as well as Asian holi-

days. We recently celebrated

Chinese New Year on February

16th. It is the year of the

Dog! We have looked closely at

what traditional things we wear

for different occasions or jobs

in the United States. We also

informative styles of writ-

ing. For us, that meant snow-

men. Mrs. McGuire helped

them make snowmen out of

paper in art, and then we made

our own drawings. We added

steps in a rational order and

divided our paper into three

sequen t ia l m in i d raw-

ings. Little did they know they

were making a thinking map

like a flow map to order their

ideas to enhance their writing

ability. Finally, we looked at

our maps, talked some more

about opening sentences,

transitional words, and closing

sentences, and then wrote,

“How to make a snowman.”

In first

grade, as

much as

any other,

m a k i n g

school fun

is a great

way to get

kids to work. When our first

taste of snow started making

the class excited, we funnelled

it into our writing. For the sec-

ond nine weeks, first grade

focuses on explanatory or

Students learned about

traditional Kimonos in the

Chinese culture.


Ms. Gould and Mrs. Mullen - Kindergarten

Mr. Agner & Mrs. Vaughn

learned that formal kimonos

are usually made of silk or

other expensive fabric with

embroidery. Every day kimo-

nos are mostly cotton and

not as fancy.

More 1st Grade News


In first grade Spanish Immersion, we engaged students with activities from around the world to increase student cross cultural understanding through listening to typical music

and watching dancing from Spain. We chose several tra-ditional Christmas carols from my country that tell about Christmas traditions. The songs were: “Campana sobre campana, los peces en el rio, Feliz Navidad and Burrito Sabanero.” To improve our speaking and listening skills, we participated in a Google Hangout with a class in Spain. Students con-versed with each other in

English and Spanish. We shared riddles, games and dis-cussed our favorite things.

many interesting

facts. As a part of

our writing the stu-

dents incorporated

the “informational”

wr i t in g ob j ec -

tive. After gather-

ing facts, the stu-

dents were able to

write very informative pieces

about The Great Wall of Chi-

na and created beautiful art

work to go along with it.

In our class we have been

discussing languages, tradi-

tions and holidays of

Asia. We studied The Great

Wall of China and discovered

Every day we learn a

new fact about the

country that I am from,

Britain. We place these

facts on our wall in the

culture corner. The

children are fast be-

coming experts on the

world around them.

In our class we have been com-paring the holidays we celebrate in the USA with holidays cele-brated around the world. We fo-cused on the United Kingdom, learning about the differences between how Valentine's Day is celebrated here and there. We also studied the Chinese New Year. We talked about the cele-brations starting on Friday, Feb-ruary 16th and how it differs from the way we celebrate the New Year.

1st Grade Splash Class

Mr. Lewis & Mrs. Huffines “Each day we

learn a new

fact about

Britian, my

native

country.”

Señor Munoz & Señorita Bennett - 1st Grade

New facts about other counties are

placed on our wall in the culture corner.

Ms. Geise & Mrs. Mullen We have been doing amazing things in Ms. Geise’s

first grade class! One of our favorite things to do is

research! We have a lot of great informational texts

in our classroom, and the students love learning

about new topics. Recently, students learned about

pandas, and created booklets that are on display.

Mrs. Carr & Mrs. Kiser

P A G E 6

Ms. McGrath & Mrs. Page

2nd Grade News

In quarter 2, Mr. Edge’s Jaguar class has been

working very hard on:

-Money in math, especially identifying all the

different coins.

-Writing great information texts about jaguars

which will be on display outside our classroom.

-In science, we’ve learned a lot about

sound including vibration, pitch, volume

and parts of the ear.

In social studies, we worked a lot on

compass directions between places.

Maybe your child could help you navigate

somewhere?

In Science, Second Grade was learning about Sound. We en-joyed participating in lots of hands on experi-ments when Science Is Fun came to visit. Blowing bubbles with slime was the favorite.

Christmas Around The World was a lot of fun. We learned about Christmas traditions in England, Mexico, Honduras, Italy, Australia and Kwanzaa in the USA.

Our class loved helping Ms McGrath celebrate Australia Day. We had a photo booth with lots of Australian props, we made lamingtons and drank Milo.

w r i t e

personal narratives and

informational pieces. We

are currently expressing

our opinions through writ-

ing. We continue to work

with addition and subtrac-

tion in word problems and

with 2 digit numbers. Stu-

dents have had practice

identify counting coins and

measuring length. In Sci-

ence, students have gained an

understanding of weather and

sound. We are now learning

about the states of matter. In

Social Studies, we have learned

about government and maps.

Now, we are learning about

historical figures and how they

impacted society. With all of

our core subjects, we are also

incorporating information

about South America.

We have been working hard

to increase our stamina in

reading, writing and problem

solving. In reading, we have

been working with fiction and

non-fiction text to understand

the main idea and story struc-

ture. In addition, students are

beginning to analyze charac-

ters according to their actions.

Students have learned how to

Blowing bub-

bles out of

slime was

Ms. McGrath’s

class

favorite.


Mr. Edge & Mrs. Page

Ms. Herman & Mrs. Page

The class breaks for

a nutritious snack.

Ms. Herman’s

students learn

in a variety of

settings.

2nd Grade News Continued


In Mrs. Howe’s class they had

a great experience with the

Elon University students. It

was World Read Aloud Day on

February 1st. Mrs. Bays ar-

ranged for students from the

university to come and read to

the students. Miss Caylin

Melkrante from the Wom-

en’s Soccer team read a sto-

ry about soccer and inspired

them to follow their

dreams. We also had Grant

Jones from the Elon Cheer

Team read and tell us about

his upbringing in England. He

also read a story of his

choice to the students. The

students asked questions and

were able to hear how the

university students set goals

and were self-disciplined to

reach those goals. Thank you

Elon University for the experi-

ence and exposure to the

world.

domains of learning: reading recipes, follow-

ing directions and sequencing. Further,

learning how to add to double recipes, see-

ing scientific changes taking place in materi-

als and learning the origins of the food we

made was part of the experience. During

the first nine weeks, we made Mrs. Wilson’s

Homemade Buttermilk Cornbread with all of

the 2nd grade classes. Recently, Mrs. Wil-

son and Mrs. Howe’s classes made Mrs.

Wilson’s Homemade Buttermilk Pancakes.

The students enjoyed these activities and

eating the finished products!

This year, we’ve been learning and

having a lot of fun! Some of our favorite

learning experiences have come

through hands on activities and demon-

strations. In the first quarter, we learned

about sound in science. We had so

much fun with our in school Science Is

Fun field trip. Students had the oppor-

tunity to experience what we had been

learning about first hand through hands-

on activities. This year, students also

had the opportunity of having Mrs. Wil-

son cook for them! Cooking in the

classroom stretches across all of the

We have been studying a lot about biographies and creating timelines about important people that have changed history and have been role models that inspire us! We are also understanding how characters respond to different events in their lives and identify their character traits! We took a moment to see what it was like to be in Helen Keller's world!

In math, we are learning our addi-

tion and subtraction facts

throughout some fun games, solv-

ing math

problems

using

different

strategies

and learn-

ing about

arrays!

We are having a lot of fun in Señora Mejia’s class! A lot of things are happening here!

Elon

University

students

volunteer

to read to

the class.

Señora Mejia & Mrs. Coble

Mrs. Gilliam-Wilson & Mrs. Page

Students learned about

sound in science & how to

follow directions and

sequencing for a home-

made buttermilk corn-

bread recipe.

“Grant Jones, Elon

University Cheer Team

member reads to Ms.

Howe’s class and

shares stories about his

upbringing in England.”

Mrs. Howe & Mrs. Page

P A G E 8

“My

students

have been

working very

diligently on

their division

skills.”

Students actively

engaged in learning.

Ms. Doyle & Mrs. Fogleman

Mrs. Ector & Mrs. Fogleman

3rd Grade News

Third grade is an im-

portant year for reading

and for math. We are

working hard daily to

improve our stamina in

reading. We are accom-

plishing this by reading

to self and others daily.

In math we are working

hard to memorize our

addition, subtraction, multipli-

cation and division facts.

We are getting the job done

here by working on Xtra-

Math, Think Through Math

and Prodigy, just to name a

few strategies. We had a

great field trip to Old Salem,

where we learned about changes

in communities over time. We

are enjoying getting to know

our classmates and spending

time socializing with them daily.

Third grade is a great year and

we are enjoying every minute!

math competition of multiplication

facts, and are working hard to try

to win the multiplication trophy!

In science we had fun learn-

ing about shadows, the solar

system, and landforms.

Students were even able to

take a virtual reality trip to

the desert in Namibia to

explore first- hand a land-

form we have discussed.

We enjoyed a fun trip to Old Salem

to learn about how communities

The first quarter

was full of excite-

ment and learning in

our c lassroom!

Students worked

hard to find charac-

ter traits in stories

and the main idea.

In math we have

worked on a variety

of topics, including

addition, subtrac-

tion, and rounding. Students

have been enjoying our weekly

change over time. We are looking

forward to all the learning and fun

we'll have second semester!

Hear ye! Hear ye! In Miss Doyle’s

3rd grade class we are working,

working, working on our division

skills. As a result we have been

sharing a lot among ourselves to

improve these skills.

We are also doing our

weekly XTRAMATH to

keep our skills sharp.

In Science,

students

have been

learning

about

shodows,

the solar

system and

landforms.


Ms. Derrick & Mrs. Fogleman Socializing

and getting

to know our

classmates.

Mrs. Honeycutt & Mrs. Fogleman


It's been like the Postal Service lately in Mrs. Honeycutt's class - neither snow nor sick-ness is keeping us from our task of work-

ing hard in third grade! We've been practicing our cursive writing and are excited that we're almost through the up-per-case letters. The students are proud to conquer this "grown-up"

skill but have to be reminded that prac-tice will make it easier. Give them oppor-tunities to practice at home - let them make the grocery list!

In Math, we're learning how to cal-culate area and perimeter. Stu-dents are understanding the im-portance of memorizing their multi-p l icat ion facts during th is unit. Please make sure they're practicing those facts every night. Even if they don't have ac-cess to XtraMath or flashcards at home, they can still practice - drill them while you're in the car, or as t hey ' re he lp ing you w i th chores. Practice will pay off! During Read-Aloud/Snack Time, w e j u s t f i n i s h e d r e a d -ing Wonder and we've been talking

a lot about kindness. Now we're read-ing the children's version of Pay It Forward, and I'm going to be chal-lenging the class to find ways to make a difference in their world. The world can be a scary place, but I truly be-lieve that we can affect change in our small corners that will have a ripple effect in far-reaching ways! Encour-age your children to think of ways to help others!

Lastly, thank you for the continued

donations of classroom supplies,

snacks, and prizes. It does indeed

take a village and I am grateful for

your support!

In reading, we learned about

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson

Mandela, two of the most important

leaders in the United States and

South Africa. We compared their

lives, achievements, and character

traits. Then, Mrs. Verma, our amazing

school counselor, did a lesson on

Mahatma Gandhi and shared how his

peaceful protests against inequality

inspired leaders like Dr. Martin Luther

King Jr. and Nelson Mandela.

Third Grade Splash has been busy

learning about Earth Science. The

students researched some of the

most interesting facts about land-

forms and bodies of water all

around the different continents us-

ing our Chromebooks. Then, in

small groups, they created 3D

models of the continents and their

bodies of water to present to the

rest of the class. We had a lot of

fun completing this project!

and currently students are

working on memorizing

facts and learning different

strategies that can be used to

draw or show representation

of a particular fact. This

memorization plays a huge

role in concepts that will be

taught throughout the rest

of this year and continue

into fourth grade. Our class

has various opportunities to

practice their facts on web-

sites such as www.xtramath.org

and www.multiplication.com as

well as work in small groups

playing games and using flash

cards. On Friday afternoons we

meet as a grade level and com-

pete against one another’s clas-

ses in our Multiplication Chal-

lenge to try to win the trophy!

Keep watch for students earning

their multiplication button!

Third grade is a very impera-

tive year for

math. Mul-

t ip l i ca t ion

and division

are two of

the most

e s s e n t i a l

operat ions

that students

need to learn

and understand in math this

year. During the first quarter

We read

the book,

Wonder

and have

been talking

a lot about

kindness.

Mrs. Kellis & Mrs. Fogleman

Señora Ospina & Mrs. Coble

The students share their presentations with classmates.

“We meet as

a grade level

and compete

against one

another’s

classes in our

Multiplication

Challenge.”

More 3rd Grade News

P A G E 1 0

“Could a volcano

appear in your

yard?” Mrs.

Bulot students

were interested

to find out it is

possible.

Mrs. Bays’ students create a

global garden with plants

from various countries.

Mrs. Bulot and Mrs. House

Mrs. Hiatt

Hel lo f rom the 4th Grade

Mrs. Bays and Mrs. House's 4th

graders have been busy this year

traveling around Europe

through virtual field trips,

google hangouts, researching

and reading global books. We

have cooked crepes, celebrated

the Winter Olympics, skyped

with famous authors and had

visitors share their travel experi-

ences all across Europe and

Asia.

One of our favorite activities has

been creating a global gar-

den. This fall we planted vegeta-

bles from Europe. We are excited

to plant our summer vegetables

from North and South American

and Asia soon. It has been so fun

integrating global learning in

math, science, social studies, and

language arts. We are always on

an adventure!

participating. From those

countries, we researched

the athletes and their

events. Throughout the

olympics, we tracked the

number of medals each

country won. Even though

we support Team USA 100%,

we found ourselves support-

ing our country teams as

well!

Our class has been exploring

how magnetism and elec-

tricity works. Stu-

dents worked together

in groups to make a

circuit and see if they

could light up a light-

bulb. With the Winter

Olympics, we divided

into groups and re-

searched the countries

yard?” They were very interested to

find out it is possible. Students en-

joyed collaborating with their class-

mates to learn about volcanoes.

We have been learning about

weathering and erosion,

which included an activity

about volcanoes. The stu-

dents plotted the coordinates

of volcanoes around the

world, and discovered that

there is a “Ring of Fire”. They

answered the question, “could

a volcano appear in your

Ms. Hiatt’s

students

explore how

magnetism

and

electricity

work.


Mrs. Bays & Mrs. House

4th Grade News Continued

P A G E 1 1 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1

We have been busy

in room 119! We have

been working through all

of the different ways to

multiply and how to solve

multiplication word prob-

lems.

We have also been look-

ing at how some of the

European countries have been do-

ing in the Olympics and comparing

how those countries did in the

2014 Sochi Olympics. We have

also investigated some of the

sports and learned about how they

are played. In science we are

studying electricity and magnetism

and have been able to explore with

magnets. We spent the first half of

the year reading informa-

tional text and are now in-

vestigating literature. We

have enjoyed several guest

speakers including Elon

Women’s Soccer Player,

Meredith, and our friends

from The Press restaurant in

Graham. We have accom-

plished a lot, but still have

so much more to do!

harder concepts in math that

we will focus on the rest of

the year. In reading we have

worked on summarizing, in-

ferring, characterization, se-

quencing, theme and main

idea. A fun and educational

field trip to Raleigh intro-

duced our students to what

North Carolina social studies

is all about, and science has

focused on the moon, fossils,

and weathering. With our

global focus of Europe, we

learned about holiday tradi-

tions in five European coun-

tries, sang a variety of multi-

cultural songs at Twin Lakes,

and discovered how France

celebrates “Crepe Day” on

February 2nd.

From the halls of the Capi-

tol Building in Raleigh, to

the sporting arenas of the

Winter Olympics, our class

has enjoyed engaging and

diverse lessons thus far in

fourth grade. Reviewing

place value as well as

basic computation and

problem solving skills has

laid the foundation for the

Students

studying

electricity

and

magnetism

Mrs. Weger and Mrs. House “With our global

focus of Europe,

we learned about

holiday traditions

in five European

countries, sang a

variety of

multicultural

songs at Twin

Lakes and

discovered how

France celebrates

“Crepe Day” on

February 2nd.”

Mrs. Moore and Mrs. House

P A G E 1 2

We learned about force and motion

by making and racing K’nex cars.

We have started

studying the Ameri-

can Revolution.

Mrs. Myers

Señora Contreras

Tour of our 5th Grade

In Social Studies we have started

studying the American Revolution.

We started the unit by learning

about The Boston Tea Party and

created digital cartoons to retell the

story. Then we researched the Intoler-

able Acts. We went on to think about all

the causes of The American Revolution

and created google slide presentations

to explain them. We learned about Loy-

alist and Patriots and tried writing from

each point of view. We also read a nar-

rative poem about Paul Revere and

translated it into modern day English.

Currently, the class is gathering infor-

mation about the battles of the Ameri-

can Revolution and plotting them on

self-drawn maps. I look forward to

continuing this topic with my super-

star class!

Our class has been coding not only as a

fun way to work on problem solving but

also as an opportunity to use their Span-

ish language skills. Collaboration, crea-

tivity and meaningful learning takes

place during these sessions. We cannot

wait to share our projects and develop

global learning around it!

Science is Fun. Around

Christmas, students

accepted the gum drop

challenge by creating

the tallest gum drop

structure they could

make. Recently, we

learned about force

and motion by making

and racing K’nex cars.

We’ve learned through

all of our experiments that

math and science are very

much related, and that it’s

important to be able to

read directions!!

From the very first day of

school, I knew I had a

class of super scientists.

We have used our prob-

lem solving skills to save

Fred the gummy worm.

We have sharpened our

observation skills by

making weather predic-

tions by looking at the

clouds and making and

trying out different

weather instruments with

Students

have been

coding as a

fun way to

work on

problem

solving and

an oppor-

tunity to

use their

Spanish

language

skills.


Ms. Diovisalvi

O u r 5 t h G ra d e To u r C o n t i n u e s


Mr. Owens’ class has been work-

ing on Problem Based Learning in

collaboration with Wake Forest

University School of Medicine.

Students are put in groups of three

to five. Students are presented

with problem and ask a classmate

to read it aloud. A student (not the

teacher) reads the problem aloud

to create student own-

ership of the learning.

Students identify what they know

(FACTS). Each small group may

make their own list or the large

group may make a single list.

Students identify what they do

NOT know (NEED TO KNOW).

Each small group then makes

their own list. Students decide

where to find the information that

they need and begin researching.

Each group identifies what could

be going on and creates a list of

possible hypotheses. Groups

consider what information is nec-

essary to support or refute each

hypothesis. Groups organize the

new information that they have

identified in their NEED TO

KNOW LIST and integrate it with

what they already knew. Groups

revisit their list of possible hypoth-

eses. They select the most viable

hypothesis and assemble all sup-

porting information. Each group

presents and defends the solution

identified for the problem.

Acceleration. Students

had a hands-on

demonstration of how

mass and momentum

are connected.

We are currently

studying Forces

and Motion in sci-

ence. To start off

the unit, students worked

together to engineer cars

that had to make it down a

hill, holding two blocks.

Students were able to

make three trial runs with-

out the blocks. Students

had to predict whether their

cars would be faster with

the blocks. This led us into

Newton’s Second Law--

Students

are engaged

in a group

activity.

Mrs. Stiegel “Students

worked

together to

engineer

cars that

had to make

it down a

hill, holding

two blocks.”

Mr. Owens

P A G E 1 4

“To catch the

reader's attention,

place an

interesting

sentence or quote

from the story

here.”

5th Grade students

read Among the

Hidden.

Mrs. C. Johnson - Physical Education

Mrs. Rust - Music

Speciality Area Teachers and Instructional Support

We have had a wonderful learning

time in the library so far this year!

Kindergarten has grown a lot

already and I can see progress in

the way they use the library each

week. We have had so much fun

with their snowman books. Please

ask them to tell you their favorite

snowman story.

1st grade has had fun with Henry

and Mudge. We have been

scared with Henry when he lost

his dog and have laughed with

Henry and his silly dad.

2nd graders are venturing

into Folklore. Tell them a

story orally so they can get an

ideas of how folklore started.

3rd grade has just finished

The Chalk Box Kid from our

realistic fiction genre. Ask

them why Mrs. Day thinks this

is one of the saddest stories

she’s ever read.

4th graders are working on

our Incredible and Unusual

Schools Around the World.

I’m excited to see their product

as they begin finishing up their

research and reports from this

project. Not to worry it was all

done in the library at school:}

5th grade has been reading

the novel Among the Hidden.

(see cover picture) This is a

fascinating book that makes

the students think about other

cultures and how different they

can be, but also how alike we

are as people.

student is expected to bring

his/her recorder to each

music class. Four 5th grad-

ers qualified to play “The

Longleaf Pine” on recorders

at the North Carolina Sym-

phony concert on January 4.

Congratulations to Laney

Danzeisen, Kaylee Fogle-

man, Kaelyn Gallagher and

Danielle Johnson. Sadly,

this concert was cancelled

due to snow. Our 4th grad-

ers gave a concert at Twin

Lakes in December to a

standing room only crowd.

We are always grateful for

the opportunity to spread

the musical joy to our com-

Students have been

singing, playing instru-

ments, dancing and

creating music in The

Magic Music Mobile!

We have 30 brand

new ukuleles thanks to

many who supported a

Donors Choose Pro-

ject in August and

September 2017! Stu-

dents in grades 3, 4

and 5 have learned

uke basics as well as

some songs to play

and sing. Students in

grades 4 and 5 are

always working on

recorder skills; each

munity.

All students enjoy playing

Orff instruments (xylophones

and metallophones) as well

as drums. They love to play

instruments! Students in K-2

often celebrate songs of dif-

ferent cultures, singing and

dancing. Currently 3rd grad-

ers have learned

“Kokoleoko”, an African song

with a hand clapping game.

Have them show you! We

are looking forward to skyp-

ing with 3rd graders from 5

other ABSS global schools,

sharing songs and dances

from other cultures with each

other.

work skills! Next up for

students will be basket-

ball skills!

I would like to introduce

my student teacher

Jordan Valentzas!

Jordan attends Elon

University and will be

student teaching this

spring semester.

In PE our students are

busy with activities that

increase their heart rate!

We are currently working

on our jump rope skills

with both short and long

jump ropes. The long

jump ropes have provid-

ed an awesome oppor-

tunity for students to

showcase their team-

Symphony

Recorder

Players:

Kaylee,

Laney,

Kaelyn and

Danielle


Mrs. Day - Media Center

Speciality Area Teachers & Instructional Support Continued


The Firebirds have been busy this

school year! We marched in the Bur-

lington Christmas Parade and also sang

for the Tree Lighting at Beth Schmidt

Park in Elon. We have performed the

national anthem at two Elon University

basketball games, and at the ACC Wom-

en’s Basketball Tournament March 2.

We were very proud of the 6 Firebirds

who auditioned for the prestigious NC

Honors Chorus which was in Winston

Salem in November. Two of our Fire-

birds were selected by a panel of col-

lege voice teachers! Nevy Fisher and

Kaelyn Gallagher proudly represented

Elon Elementary School at the 2 day

event which culminated with a concert

at the Stevens Center.

In Classroom Guidance, I am excit-

ed to incorporate Growth Mindset

concepts in my lessons at all grade

levels. Infusing the Growth Mindset

theory into the counseling program

can help the students increase

achievement through greater self-

esteem. We have learned about,

determination, self talk, everyone

is unique and teach others what

you know.

This year, I have created and found

some engaging resources to help

instill a Growth Mindset in our stu-

dents. I believe that elementary

grades are the most important years

in a child’s life. They are developing

in so many ways that will affect the

rest of their life. I hope to play a

small part in helping your child be-

come the best that they can be as

they learn important social, academ-

ic and life lessons.

Parents, you can reinforce your

children that it’s okay to be wrong.

This will free your child up to try a

new challenge. In the process of

making that effort, they will learn

what works and what doesn’t.

Teach them to keep trying to solve

a hard problem, even if they can’t

see the end solution. Teach them to

try out new ideas and approaches

to problem solving. Teach them the

Coders are working

hard on their projects as

we have been selected

to present at 3 different

venues this school year:

(1) NCTIES (North Car-

olina Technology in Ed-

ucation Society) Confer-

ence on March 1 in Ra-

leigh; (2) Graham Maker

Faire at Graham Middle

School in May; and (3)

ISTE (International Soci-

ety for Technology in

Education) Confer-

ence in Chicago on

June 26. We are

very proud of our

coders! Mrs. Rust

and Mrs. Stiegel

are also presenting

coding workshops

for ABSS teachers.

Coding is a global

language!

We are excited to have

22 fifth graders in the

Boys and Girls Coding

Clubs this year! Each

club meets on alternate

Thursdays to learn

about coding and work

on their projects. We are

very thankful for the

Elon University comput-

er science students who

come and assist each

week.

Firebirds at Holly Hill Mall

on December 12, 2017.

Mrs. Rust & Mrs. Stiegel - The Coding Club

Ms. Verma - Guidance Counselor

“Coding is a

global language.”

Mrs. Rust - The Firebirds

‘Mantra’ “Mistakes help my

Brain Growth.” When someone

easily finds an answer, they

have shown the knowledge

they already have. When they

make mistakes, they are

forced to find out why and

then they learn something new

in the process. It takes away

some of the fear of failure. It

Validates the effort required

in making a mistake.

P A G E 1 6

“AIG

reading

students

have

been busy

reading novels,

Scope Magazine

and Junior Great

Book selection.”

We are seeking vol-

unteers to organize

and catalog our sci-

ence equipment and

supplies cabinet.

Mrs. Davis - AIG

Mrs. Robertson - Resource

Mrs. Cauley - Academic Coach

Many thanks to all our won-

derful parent and community

volunteers who assist us here

at Elon Elementary to organ-

ize materials, provide clerical

help and tutor students. Our

leveled library of instructional-

ly leveled texts that teachers

use during reading instruction

is kept organized and up to

date by Mrs. Vera Barker, a

grandparent of 2 of our former

Elon students. She is currently

working on organizing our

reading basals and supple-

mental texts in another area of

school. I have also noticed

several parents assisting with

bulletin boards and other cleri-

cal duties.

Some volunteers have com-mitted to being a part of our

1st grade tutoring program called “Partners in Reading.” These volunteers meet once a week with 2-3 students in first grade one at a time for about 20 minutes to help them in-crease their reading abilities. Several of these volunteers including Gil Boylston, Michelle Wood, Amy Neal and Cath-arine Cook have volunteered for this program for several years and all of these volun-teers have made a huge differ-ence in students’ reading pro-gress. We are still in need of at least 10 volunteers for this pro-gram. If you are interested or know anyone who may be, please contact me by phone, 336-538-6000, or email, [email protected]

You will need to commit to 1

hour per week of tutoring time and I will train you to do the tutoring. We have several other vol-unteer opportunities for any-one who is interested. We are in the process of organ-izing our math manipula-tives closet and would like to begin organizing and cat-aloging our science equip-ment and supplies. This could be done any time dur-ing the week and you could come as little or as much as you were able. Let me know if you are interested in help-ing with these projects by using the contact info above. Many thanks to all our vol-

unteers! You do make a

difference!

questions. They use dif-

ferent colors to answer

varying questions to

help them see under-

stand the overall se-

quence of a passage. In

math, all grade levels

have been identifying

key words in word prob-

lems and using that

In the resource room, Kinder-

garten through 2nd grade stu-

dents have been using learned

decoding strategies to read

books out loud to each other to

gain more confidence in their

reading. 3rd - 5th grade stu-

dents have been learning strat-

egies to help them answer

higher level comprehension

knowledge to choose

which operation is need-

ed to solve the prob-

lems. Great progress is

being made in the re-

source room and we are

all proud of our achieve-

ments so far this year!

AIG reading students have been busy

reading novels, Scope Magazine, and Jun-

ior Great Book selections. Students have

been working on projects to support their

learning such as fourth grades museum

project and fifth grades Phantom Toll-

booth projects.

AIG math students are improving their

problem solving skills, multiplication

and fraction knowledge.


mailto:[email protected]

Mrs. Baker - Speech and Language Therapist


In Speech and Language, our PreK students

have been learning about snow! We made

edible snowmen while following directions

to create these, requesting items, and using

our best vocabulary and language skills to

describe the items used. We also made a

“blizzard in a bag” by following directions,

requesting necessary items, and then blowing

our snow to make a blizzard! Finally, we made “snow” by measuring

and mixing baking soda and hair conditioner. The students enjoyed

describing the texture of the “snow” while also making tracks in their

snow like the character, Peter, in The Snowy Day.

Señorita Cruz and Señor Muñoz use a Spanish pe-riodical to teach students about famous Hispanic inventors. Then students discuss the effects in our world as a result of these inventions.

In ESL this 4th grade stu-dent shares her home culture while working on her “How To” expository writing piece. She teach-es others how to make homemade tortillas. In Spanish club, native Spanish speakers learn how to read and write in their home language.

are also working on responding, in

written form, to texts they read.

They are sharpening their writing

skills by writing about the beginning,

middle and end of a text they have

read, as well as answering compre-

hension questions in complete sen-

tences.

In math, we are working hard to im-

prove number sense skills. To do

so, students have been working non-

stop with number lines! They

have been placing numbers in

the appropriate places on a giv-

en number line as well as figur-

ing out the difference between

two given numbers on the num-

ber line.

It has been a wonderful year of

learning so far, and we are excit-

ed for more great learning to

come!

Students have been working so

hard this year to strengthen their

reading, writing and math skills!

In literacy, students have been

increasing their reading fluency

by reading a variety of texts: po-

ems, decodable readers, books

that rhyme and more! Students

are trying their best to read

smoothly, with the appropriate

speed and expression. Students

Ms. Black - Interventionist

Mrs. S. Johnson - ESL Students

learn how

to make

home-

made

tortillas.

P A G E 1 8

“Is it a cold or flu?”

Ms. Troxler, our school

nurse has listed a few

helpful hints.

School psychologists

provide support and

serve students.

Mrs. Troxler - School Nurse

Mr. Peterson - School Psychologist Hello! Some of you

probably don’t

know who I am or

what I do, and that’s

ok! This is my sec-

ond year as a

school psychologist

with the district. I

moved from Iowa

after working for an

agency in the special

education depart-

ment for a couple

of years. My wife

and I love North

Carolina! I am as-

signed to support Elon

Elementary and other

schools within ABSS. As

a school psychologist, we

are uniquely qualified

members of school

teams that support stu-

dents’ ability to learn and

teachers’ ability to teach

in several different ways.

I have several different

hats that I wear within

schools and the district.

My major role is to sup-

port the Exceptional

Children’s department. I

also have a big role with

the Multitiered Systems of

Support (MTSS) where I

analyze data, consult with

team members, problem-

solve, etc. Those are just

to name a couple. I have

included an infographic

from the National Associa-

tion of School Psychologists

to help briefly show some

of the things that school

psychologists are qualified

to do. Please contact me at

Elon Elementary if you have

any questions or concerns!

●Wash hands often with warm

water and soap for at least 15

seconds, especially before eating

and after using the bathroom.

●Use tissue to cover coughs and

sneezes. Wash hands after wip-

ing noses.

●Do not share food, drinks, cups

or eating utensils.

●Do not touch the spout of the

water fountain when drinking.

●Get plenty of sleep, exercise

regularly and eat healthy foods.

The BEST thing you can do is to

keep your children home when they

are sick. This will help stop the

spread of illness to other children

and teachers. Children need to be

kept home when they have any of

these symptoms:

●Fever of 100 degrees or higher

●Nausea or vomiting within the last 24

hours

●Severe headache

●Diarrhea within the last 24 hours

●Red, watery eyes with yellow drainage

●Confirmed flu from a medical provider

( Please contact your school nurse)

Children should stay home

until they have been without

fever for at least 24 hours.

Children should not be given

Tylenol or Advil (ibuprofen) to

reduce the fever and then sent

to school. The child may be

highly contagious to others.

At this time of year, we are

trying to help stop the spread

of illnesses due to viruses.

Viruses spread from person

to person when breathing in

droplets from a cough,

sneeze or runny nose.

Here are some easy steps to

help protect yourselves from

colds and flu (as well as many

other contagious diseases).


Mrs. Cabrera - Social Worker P A G E 1 9 V O L U M E 3 , I S S U E 1

Elon Elementary School has such wonderful

support from our school family and Com-

munity Partners. As the old saying goes, “It takes a Village to raise children”, and

this is exemplified in the support that Elon receives from parents, PTO, and multiple

Community Partners. Once again, our Christmas Angel Tree was a huge success,

we were able to sponsor four families this

year. The overwhelming joy and thankful-

ness expressed by these families is a tes-

tament to the support we receive each and

every day here at Elon. A contribution made

by one of our community partner is food

bags provided for those in need of food over the weekends and holiday breaks. If

you find yourself in need of assistance for food, please reach out to me and we will

discuss this program. From your School Social Worker, thank you families for your

eagerness to help when there are needs

within our school. I am Looking forward to

a successful 2nd semester!

Anything, accompanying the storyline with

tambourine, woodblock, triangle and drums.

Second graders hopped to collaborative

conversations as they acted out “Cookies”

from Frog and Toad Together.

Third graders danced the “Charleston,”

sang the song lyrics, and thought about the

1920’s as they watched a flapper dancer.

Kindergarteners explored character de-

velopment in the Beatrix Potter’s Tales; they

were on the lookout for Mr. McGregor, mak-

ing sure to keep cover!

First Graders dramatized the picture book

The Little Old Lady Who was Not Afraid of

Fourth graders read and acted a scene from

The Indian and the Cupboard, trying out voic-

ing and movement principles of drama.

Fifth graders acted out excerpts from Ras-

cal, identifying with the eleven year old Ster-

ling North and his pet raccoon.

1st Grade created snowmen from all viewpoints. They

cut shapes and drew details to show snowmen looking

left, right, up, and down. They were inspired by reading

the book, Snowmen at Night by Caralyn Buehner.

2nd Grade used their painting skills to illustrate red

birds on a snowy branch after examining the style of

renowned American artist, Charley Harper.

3rd Grade drew tall snowmen from a foreshortened

perspective after reading the book, The Biggest, Best

Snowman by Margery Cuyler. They also learned all

about how to stay healthy after reading the book,

Germs Make Me Sick by Melvin Berger. Then

they became lab artists, pretended to look

through imaginary microscopes, and creat-

ed colorful bacteria and virus paintings.

4th grade used radial symmetry to make

colorful “snowflake” designs using markers,

crayons, and colored pencils to draw their

beautiful creations.

5th Grade used chalk to create value and

form for their Snowmen at Night drawings

inspired by the book written by Caralyn

Buehner.

Students have been getting creative

with winter themed art!

Kindergarten cut and glued triangles,

circles, and rectangles to build snowmen

in an evergreen forest. Then they counted

their shapes and printed snowflakes. We

also counted with the book, 100 Snowmen

by Jen Arena.

Mrs. McGuire - Art

Mrs. Palethorpe - Drama

to participate in Smith High School ’s Annual Step Show. We stepped at Grove Park Elementary School’s Multicultural Night. We will also be participating in Elon University’s Annual Yard Show on May 5, 2018.

Step Club has been off to a wonderful start! This year, we participated in the Burlington and Gibsonville Christmas Pa-rades. Under the direction of Ms. Dawson we have collabo-rated with Western Middle and Western High School’s Step Club. We were invited

Ms. Bivens, Mrs. Carr, Ms. Dawson & Ms. Gilliam-Wilson

Elon Step Club performed in the 2017 Burlington Christmas Parade.

510 E. Haggard Ave.

Elon, NC 27244

Phone: (336)538-6000 Fax: (336)538-6002

Principal: Jack Davern

Assistant Principal: Tracy Pennington

Secretary: Jennifer Langley

Data Manager: Carol Apple

Receptionist: Marti Rudisill

Elon Elementary School

“A Global School Network Member” We’re on the Web

www.abss.k12.nc.us/ece

Elon Elementary School

510 E. Haggard Street

Elon, NC 27244

Mail to:

lil’ phoenix

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