Volume 1, Issue 5

The Eagle’s Eye

OAKLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL

Oakland Primary School 5415 Oakland Drive, Sumter,

SC 29154 803-499-3366

School Personnel

MR. JOSHUA CAMPBELL

PRINCIPAL

MR. WILLIAM AUSTIN

ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

MS. LAWONDA WHEELER

CURRICULUM COACH

MRS. LEE OSBORNE

GUIDANCE COUNSLOR

MRS. BEATRICE BACKMON

GUIDANCE CONSLOR

MRS. SHANNON KNUDSON

READING COACH

MRS. BEATRICE DAVIS

MEDIA SPECIALIST

MS. LAUREN WEATHERS

TEACHER OF THE YEAR

A Year of COVID 2

Media Center News 2

Character Word 3

Reading Coach 3

Math Tips 3

March Calendar 4

In The Spotlight 4

Inside this issue:

The first two months of

2021 have flown right

by here at Oakland Pri-

mary School, and we

are gearing up for a

busy March. January

and February had some

memorable events with

the return of students

for hybrid instruction,

celebrating the 101st

day of school, as well as

celebrating Black His-

tory Month throughout

February within our

classrooms. March

looks to be busy as

well, starting off with

Read Across America

Week starting on

March 1st. It is im-

portant to understand

that at Oakland Prima-

ry School, as in other

educational settings,

parents and guardi-

ans play a huge role

with furthering our stu-

dents' love for read-

ing. Starting in kinder-

garten, if a student reads

20 minutes a day at home,

they will hear 1.8 million

words per year. They will

have read for 851 hours by

6th grade and on stand-

ardized tests, they will

likely score better than

90% of their peers. A

great way to celebrate

reading all month is take

the 21-Day Read Aloud

Challenge. The insert in-

side of this newsletter has

all of the information you

need to get started! This

website is full of great in-

formation regarding the

importance of students

being read to on a daily

basis at home. It also has

great tips about how to

read aloud as well! We

hope you take advantage

of this to help create a

lifelong love for reading

and we thank you in ad-

vance for reading with

and to your child!

From the Principal’s Roost

Mr. Joshua Campbell, Principal

March 2021

Sumter School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or age in

admission to, treatment in, or employment in its programs and activities. For inquiries regarding the policy, contact the

Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources or the Director of Specialized Programs, Sumter School District, 1345 Wilson

Hall Road, Sumter, SC 29150 or call 803-469-6900.

Sumter School District, Sumter, South Carolina

Educating “The Whole” Child

Friday, March 13, 2020 is the day it

all started for us here at Oakland

Primary School. We had heard

about the COVID but little did we

think the Governor would declare a

State of Emergency and order all

schools closed. Since that day, near-

ly a year ago, so much has hap-

pened. We’ve gone from pen and

pencil packets to a full blown virtu-

al and hybrid curriculum. Gradua-

tions were disrupted, holidays can-

celed and our lives have been

turned upside down. Parents are

now experts at the Google Class-

room and how to use SeeSaw. Our

school building has changed as well,

water fountains are no longer work-

ing and have been replaced with

touch less bottle fillers. Students

are restricted to their classrooms for

breakfast and lunch, playgrounds

are still off limits and everyone

wears a mask. Hand sanitizer is

everywhere and students can barely

get in the building without first

decontaminating their hands.

News from the Nest

PAGE 2 THE EAGLE’S EYE VOLUME 1, I SSUE 5

Classrooms have students four days

a week but only half of the class at a

time. Wednesdays are deep cleaning

days and the smell of bleach perme-

ates the building. Busses only have

half the students they use to and car

riders have increased exponentially.

I haven’t had to suspend a student

since last March, instead we send

them home or they are forced to stay

home under quarantine rules. Stu-

dents are separated by Plexiglas and

socially distanced. Some students

only see their teacher through a

computer screen. All of our lives

have changed. Here we are now a

year later and a vaccine is finally

available and everyone who needs

and wants to be vaccinated should

be done by summer. Everyone is

praying for a normal school year

next year, a year without masks and

with playgrounds full of children.

We still have three more months of

school to navigate but most of us can

see the light at the end of the tun-

nel. What makes everything worth-

while, are the kind words of encour-

agement from our parents and the air

hugs from our students. Life will get

back to normal sooner now rather

than later. At some point in the fu-

ture we will look back on this time

and laugh about all we had to do to

survive. Until that day keep those

kidos reading, use the Capstone Li-

brary, and make sure your students

are signing in every day. Keep an eye

on your children for signs of stress

and give our guidance folks a call if

you need advice on helping them

through this difficult time. Hug them

frequently and reassure them things

will return to normal soon. We are

almost there, stick with your preven-

tions and stay healthy and know that

your children are safe here with us

and we can’t wait to get them all back

in the classroom.

A Long Hard Year By Mr. Austin, Assistant Principal

March Media Center News Mrs. Beatrice Davis, Media Specialist

The Spring Scholastic Book Fair begins on

March 1st and runs through March 14. Our

Spring Book Fair will be a virtual event again to

ensure that everyone stays safe while you shop for

fantastic books for your young reader. We are us-

ing the eWallet feature that allows you and your

friends and family to provide funds for your child

to purchase books from the online catalog. Teach-

ers will also have an eWallet so that you can help

support their classroom library. Be on the look-out

for information about our virtual book fair on

Facebook and in your child’s folder.

Some Words from the Reading Coach Mrs. Shannon Knudson

PAGE 3 THE EAGLE’S EYE VOLUME 1, I SSUE 5

Guidance News

April 2 — Virtual Day

April 5 — 9 — Spring Break

April 14 —Purple Up Day for the

Military Child

April 22—Earth Day

April 30—Multicultural Fair

April 30—Spirit Day Wear Red

April Look Ahead

The Character Word of

the month is “Honesty”

There is an old saying: "Honesty is the best policy." That means that the best way to live your life is to be truth-ful and fair. Integrity goes hand- in-hand with honesty. It means that people can count on you to do the right thing, even when no one is watching.

What Does it Take to Become a Strong Reader?

1. Understanding what print is and the parts of a book - Print awareness is the understanding that print carries

meaning and that in English it reads from left to right. It also means learning that books contain letters and

words, have front and back covers, and are handled in a certain way.

2. Recognizing the sounds in spoken words - Phonological and phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, identify,

and play with the sounds in spoken language — including rhymes, syllables, and the smallest units of sound

(phonemes).

3. Connecting the sounds of speech with letters - Phonics is a systematic way to teach the alphabetic principle —

the idea that letters represent the sounds of spoken language — and that there is a predictable relationship be-

tween letters and sounds.

4. Reading with accuracy and expression - Fluency is a child's ability to read a book or other text with accuracy, at

a reasonable rate, and with appropriate expression. A fluent reader doesn't have to stop and "decode" each word.

5. Knowing what each word means - Vocabulary is word knowledge. Word learning is an ongoing process. Children

are always adding to their "word banks" in order to recognize and understand the meaning of spoken and written

words.

6. Understanding what you read - Comprehension is the goal of reading! It is the thinking process readers use to

understand what they read. Strong vocabulary, background knowledge, and an understanding of how language

works are keys to comprehension.

Visit https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/tools-tips/reading-101-guide-parents for

more information.

Tuesday, March 2nd

Dr. Seuss’ Birthday

Oakland Primary School welcomes

Mrs. Malaysia Loney to the Eagle Fam-

ily. Mrs. Loney is our new receptionist

at Oakland, answering your calls and

greeting you when you visit. Mrs. Loney

is a native of Sumter, holds Masters

Degrees in Health Care Management

and Criminal Justice from St. Leo’s

University. She is a loving mom to

three beautiful girls and one handsome

boy. In her spare time she loves to

scrapbook and play with her five dogs. Her favorite sweet is

Twix, (Left or Right). She is a welcomed addition to our front

office crew. When you see her please welcome her to Oakland.

Educating “The Whole” Child

Oakland Primary School

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Join us on our Official Facebook Page

Or

School Website: http://ops.sumterschools.net/

MARCH DATES TO REMEMBER

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Crazy Hat Day

2 Crazy Sock Day

Dr. Seuss’ Birthday

3

4 Character

Dress-up Day

5 Character

Dress-up Day

6

7 8 9 10 11

Spring

Pictures

12

Spring

Pictures

13

14

Pi Day (3.14)π

Turn Clocks

Ahead

1 Hour

15 16 17

St. Patrick’s

Day

18 19 20

Last Day of

Winter

21

World Poetry

Day

22 23 24 25 26

Spirit Day

Wear Red

27

28 29 30 31

Read Across America Week

Spring Pictures

March 11th/12th

Information

will be sent and

posted soon.