the PINNEY post Pinney Website 2013 April Newsletter 9989 Concord Road * Dublin, OH * 43017 * 614.798.3570 * Fax 614.718.8961 Please check out the Eli Pinney website for school calendar events and other important information. Scan the QR code above to access. www.dublinschools.net/pinney Greetings Pinney families! This is the time of year when parents and teachers begin to think about what is ahead for our students in the 2013 - 2014 school year. A hard copy profile sheet will go home with each child (grades kindergarten - 4th grade) on Wednesday, April 3rd. An electronic version will also sent via email on Wednesday. The profile sheet is a helpful tool for the school to gain better insight from you about your child(ren). I will collaborate with this year’s teacher to help place students in the ideal classroom for next year. I encourage parents to fill out one profile per child. All forms are due on Thursday, April 18th. Please check out the enclosed calendar with the many exciting events going on over the next two months. It’s always a busy time of year, but very fun and exciting for the students, parents, and staff! Good luck to our staff and student dodgeball teams this Friday night at Dublin Scioto HS. event starts at 7:00 p.m. so come join the fun and root on the Panthers! The Thank you for your continued support! Please read the enclosed calendar with other events coming up in April and May. Go Panthers! Troy Ehrsam, Principal NotesOffice fromCommunication the Pinney Office • Students may not enter the building until 9:00 a.m. daily. • Be patient in the pick-up line at the end of the day. Cars need to remain in a single file line to pick up students. Also, please drop off your child at the sidewalk or side door in the morning. A Pinney staff member will monitor the side door beginning at 9:00 a.m. daily. We do not want children walking through cars and/or traffic. Student safety is our priority. • Give the buses the right of way during arrival and dismissal. No cars in the bus loop during the following times: 8:45-9:15 a.m. & 3:15-3:45 p.m. • Call the office or the automated attendance line (718-8960) if your child is going to be absent or late. Please send in a note if your child is signing out early for an appointment. • If your child is going to be absent from school, we would appreciate a phone call before 9:30 a.m. of that day. Ohio state law does require us to now have a written note upon a child’s return to school after an absence of any kind. An absence form can be found in the downloads section of our Pinney website (Absence Notification Form). We would appreciate your help by sending in this form or a note explaining the absence upon your child’s return to school. It is also important that you know that absences due to a family-planned vacation are no longer excused absences. • All phone number changes should take place at the building level. Please do not call the district office to change your contact information. Please call the Pinney office for questions (798-3570). • Send in a note if your child’s end of the day arrangements change. Without a note, we will follow typical end of day routine. • Both students need a note giving parent permission when bringing home a friend. New “Note to School” pads can be picked up in the office. • Write your child’s first and last name on the inside of lunch boxes, backpacks, jackets and other items so that we can return them if lost. All lost and found items will be donated to Welcome Warehouse at the end of each trimester. • Check your child’s backpack frequently. School Day AM Preschool 8:45-11:15 am PM Preschool AM Kindergarten 9:10-11:40 am PM Kindergarten Grades 1-5 9:10-3:40 pm ELI Latchkey (7:05 a.m. start & 6:00 p.m. end) 12:45-3:15 pm 1:10-3:40 pm 12:05-1:05 pm Clinic Communication with Mrs. Slack & Mrs. Pagan Clinic Communication The Dublin City School District has developed policies to help insure the health and safety of all our students. These policies have been developed in direct correlation with the recommendations of both Nationwide Children’s Hospital and the Centers for Disease Control. It is even more important that parents familiarize themselves with these policies and adhere to them as we move into the time of year when flu and other contagious illnesses become more prevalent. Please take time now to review the following information. If all of our parents follow these policies, we can reduce illness and absences for your child. • It is important to keep any child home exhibiting signs of illness. Signs of illness include fever of 100 degrees or higher, vomiting, diarrhea, sore throat, chills, irritability, or unusual skin rash. Other signs of illness are red and crusty eyes, as well as, other symptoms that are unusual for your child. If your child has been home ill, they must be symptom free without medication for 24 hours before returning to school. If they have been placed on an antibiotic for a contagious illness, they must be on the antibiotic for 24 hours before returning to school. • Please remember that parents are responsible for supplying the school with any medication (prescription and over-the-counter) that needs to be given during school hours. The appropriate forms(s) must be completed for clinic staff to be able to administer the medication. Prescription and non-prescription forms are available on the district web site at www.dublinschools.net or from the clinic. The clinic staff is happy to help you determine which forms are needed for your child. • Please make sure to call the school if you change phone numbers. This information is vital as we often need to contact a parent(s) if there is an injury or illness. When listing someone as an emergency contact, please make sure it is a local person who would be able to pick up an ill child. • Remember that cough drops are considered a medication. They must be kept in the clinic and must be sent in with a non-prescription medication form that has been completed by a parent. Students are not permitted to carry cough drops with them during the school day. • When leaving a message on the attendance line, please provide any symptoms your child has such as student's temperature, cough, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. Please also include if your child has been seen by a doctor or travelled abroad. Please feel free to call the clinic and speak with the clinic aide or school nurse regarding any questions or concerns you have. Thank you for your helping to keep all of our students healthy and safe this season. Clinic phone # - (614) 718-8955 Counselor Corner Mrs. Cellar cellar_leslie@dublinschools.net During the month of April, I will visit each classroom, grades K-4, for one guidance lesson. The lessons will focus on healthy choices and personal safety (K, 2, 3), decision making (1st), and empathy (4th). The fifth grade guidance lesson for this month will be the middle school visit. In kindergarten, we will discuss the many choices we can make to keep ourselves healthy and safe. Students will then be asked to draw a picture of three healthy choices that they can make everyday. In first grade, we will begin the lesson with a discussion of decisions that we make every day. We will then read and discuss Always in Trouble, by Corinne Demas. We will end with a discussion of consequences and taking responsibility for the choices we make, even when we are not happy with the choice we have made. In second grade, we will begin with a discussion of ways we can keep ourselves safe and what we should do if we ever feel unsafe. Students will view a short video on internet safety. We will end by discussing the similarities and differences between online safety and everyday safety in our community. In third grade, we will begin with an activity that requires students to think about how habits get started and how hard they can be to break. We will then discuss ways we can keep ourselves healthy and safe both physically and emotionally. We will close with a discussion of why it is so important to start healthy habits now so they continue throughout our lives. In fourth grade, we will begin with a discussion of empathy, what it is and why it is important. We will read and discuss Wings, by Christopher Myers. We will discuss how we are so fortunate to live in such a supportive and caring community. We will discuss how sometimes it is obvious to us where we need to practice empathy, but how other times it is not so apparent. We will practice recognizing different situations where we need to be empathetic to others. We will end with students making posters to help all students at Pinney remember to practice empathy every day. On April 8, the fifth grade class will visit Grizzell Middle School. Your student must have a signed permission form turned in to their teacher in order to take this trip. Permission forms were sent home the week of March 18. If you have any questions or concerns about the middle school transition, please do not hesitate to contact me at cellar_leslie@dublinschools.net or 718-8953. Pinney Zoo Collaborative Since 2010, 5th grade students at Pinney have had the opportunity to participate in a collaboration project with the Columbus Zoo. During this project, they research an animal from the zoo and make two visits to the Columbus Zoo. They observe their animals, learn about their habitats, identify enrichment activities and the type of care animals require, and evaluate the exhibits' accessibility and type of information provided, or displayed, to visitors. Classes will also have the opportunity to listen to a presentation that focuses on the “behind the scenes” work, education, and knowledge that is involved in operating a zoo. On the second trip, they will observe a Polar Bear Presentation by caretakers at the zoo. A zoo staff member will also be available to answer any research questions from our students through our Eli Pinney/Columbus Zoo Wiki and Blog that was established at the start of the project. At the end of our project, students design and create unique habitats for their animals. They will present these at our Zoo Exhibition on Thursday, May 16th. In partnership with the zoo, Eli Pinney has chosen to support Polar Bear International. We will be raising money to donate to this group of scientists and their organization, dedicated to the conservation of the polar bears and their habitat. Students will be learning about conservation efforts and why they are necessary. Our students become leaders, here at Pinney and in our community, as they teach others how we can make a difference. On Thursday and Friday, April 4th and 5th, fifth grade students will be holding polar bear wristband sale and raffle to win a zoo stuffed animal during all lunches. Wristbands will be $1.00 and tickets for the raffle will be 4 for $1.00. We hope that students enjoy being a part of a community that does make a difference. Thank you for your support! PARENTS - HERE’S WHERE WE NEED YOUR HELP We are asking for donations of any new stuffed animal polar bears or any new stuffed ZOO animals for our Polar Bear International raffle. The sale will be 4/4 & 4/5 during lunch. We will be selling blue plastic Polar Bear International Wristbands for $1 and raffle tickets for a chance to win a new stuffed animal for .25 cents each. Raffle tickets will be drawn Friday, April 5th, and announced at the end of the school day. The number of stuffed animals we receive will determine how many raffle ticket winners we will have. Each year, Eli Pinney has donated $1,000 to support the Polar Bear International program. This fundraiser helps our fifth graders participate in the Zoo project and become aware of the importance of the conservation of all of our wildlife. Thank you for helping by donating a new stuffed zoo animal for our fundraiser. The 5th Grade Team Parent Information An informational session, facilitated by Marge Mulcahy, Dublin City Schools Gifted Services Coordinator, will be held on April 3 at Pinney Elementary School at 7:00 p.m. This meeting is for parents who may be new to our district, have young children, or wanting to make sure they have a firm understanding of the process of gifted identification and service within Dublin City Schools. The focus of the presentation is on sharing information in order for parents to understand how our district identifies and serves gifted students kindergarten through senior year of high school. This event is open to all parents, not just those who have gifted children. District Information • “Child Find” is the process of locating, evaluating, and identifying children with disabilities who may be in need of special education and related services. Parents, relatives, public and private agency employees, childcare providers, physicians, and concerned citizens are encouraged to help school districts find any child, ages birth – 21, who may have a disability and are in need of special education and related services. If you suspect a child may have a disability, help is available. Please contact: Department of Student Services, Dublin City Schools 7030 Coffman Road Dublin, OH 43017-1068 Phone: 614-764-5913 Fax: 614-761-5899 <www.dublinschools.net> • The Dublin City Schools Community Education Program <http://www.dublinschools.net/communityeducation.aspx> i s o f f e r i n g p r o g r a m s f o r t h e 2 0 1 2 - 2 0 1 3 s c h o o l y e a r. Contact Mary Ann Grimes <grimes_maryann@dublinschools.net> with details. • The Dublin Chamber of Commerce is now accepting Community Champion Awards nominations. Organized in partnership with the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, the Community Champion Awards recognizes students and staff members who exhibit caring, kindness, and a sense of community spirit. Exactly who earns this recognition is dependent upon the participation of our community. The program is open to Dublin City Schools students in grades 4 – 12, & all staff. Winners will be honored at a ceremony on April 20 at Dublin Jerome. <http://www.dublinchamber.org> Panther Pics Physical Education The Pinney students have been participating in a fitness unit. This unit includes discussion topics such as: the importance of warm up and cool down, the ingredients to a workout, and other essential components of a healthy lifestyle such as nutrition and sleep. The 3rd, 4th and 5th graders discussed and put into practice the FITT Principles. They are Frequency (how often we should be physically active), Intensity (how hard we should exercise), Time (how long we should be active) and Type (what kind of activities we should participate in). Of course, we will put those topics into practice by partaking in appropriate warm up and cool down games and engage in fun and exciting workouts. Following the fitness unit, the first and second grade physical education classes are going to work on jump rope skills. The students will be introduced to individual jump rope skills as well as long jump rope techniques. Some of the games that we will play include: snake, ocean, mountain climber, cheese slicer, leap the brook and blue bells. We have also included Chinese jump rope, helicopter, run through, and jump rope rhymes. The year will conclude with a kicking unit. The students will experiment with effort and force while participating in activities such as: dribble relays, shark, passing, shooting, end line soccer and small sided kickball games. Currently, our older students are working on a floor hockey unit. We begin most units with an introduction and practice of skills. In our hockey unit, we are practicing skills such as passing, puck/stick handling, and shooting. Once we have practiced the fundamentals, we will discuss and implement offensive and defensive strategies into game play. We plan to culminate the unit with a small tournament. Hopefully the weather will dry our fields so we can finish out the year with a short track and field unit. Music Notes with Mrs. Casto Parents and friends: A huge thank you to all of you that supported the first Pinney Elementary School dance-a-thon. Students raised over $15,000, all of which will be used to support technology improvements for our school. The students worked so well together and demonstrated their understanding of dance and movement, all while having a lot of fun. This spring brings lots of exciting events for our students in the music classroom. First graders are diving into the foundations of music literacy. They have a clear understanding of steady beat and have been exploring pitch and rhythm. By the year’s end, they will be able to read, write and perform rhythmic patterns that contain quarter and eighth notes and quarter rests as well as melodic patterns containing so, mi and la. Students will continue to expand their musical skills through singing, dancing and playing. Second graders continue to expand their song, game and dance repertoire. Additionally, they have added do to the list of known pitches and by June, will know the entire pentatonic scale. Rhythmically, students can read, write and perform quarter and eighth notes and quarter rests and will add sixteenth notes and half notes to their “rhythm bank.” Students will continue to explore the four main families of instruments and see and listen to a variety of instruments. Third graders will continue to expand their list of pitches and rhythms, adding low la and eventually low so to the already mastered pentatonic scale. Rhythmically, they will be discovering eighth-sixteenth note combinations. Students will also be working on songs, games and dances learned throughout the year to share at our Third Grade Music Performance being held on May 22 at 7:00PM. Save the date. More details will be sent home following the first week of April. Fourth graders are being challenged to identify form and meter in songs and dances. They have been practicing pieces that utilize the extended pentatonic scale and are beginning to master syncopated rhythms. Students in fourth grade will also take their knowledge of form and apply it to composing an original song. Fifth graders are spending a lot of time preparing for their zoo project compositions. After completing research and writing a poem about a selected animal in their classes, students will rhythmically set their poem, add musical accompaniment and then record their composition. Recordings will be made available for purchase at the 5th grade zoo exhibitions on May 16th and 17th. All proceeds from the compact disc sale will go to the Polar Bear Foundation. More details to come in mid-April. Library Lingo * Mrs. Riley A Day in the Life of the EPES Library Here’s what we’ve been working on recently in the library... First Grade Students in first grade have been using the new library ipads. They began by learning the expectations for using ipads in the library, including how we can use them to read, learn, or create. Then they learned to use an app called Explain Everything. Students used the app to write words, take photos, and record audio. Second Grade Second graders have been practicing fluency as they read stories with partners from the You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You series of books. They practiced their stories and also used Pixie to create a background for the story. Then they presented their stories to their classmates as they stood in front of the Smart board as it projected their background. Third Grade Third grade students are working to create digital learning objects that teach others how to use the library or to help make the library easier to use. Students chose a topic of interest and also a technology tool to use to best create their project. These digital learning objects will be used to help other students as they learn to use the library. Fourth Grade Students in fourth grade have been working to give their input regarding the library space. They have participated in a focus group and also have given their input through a survey. Their ideas will help to make the library space one that will better meet the needs of all students at Pinney. We look forward to seeing changes in our library space soon! Fifth Grade Fifth graders have been working on completing research in the library. They have been learning about an animal related to their upcoming zoo field trip. The students used books and websites to answer their questions about their chosen animals. They worked hard to use the best keywords for searching, to choose reliable sources, and to read closely to find the information they needed. MOPA museum of pinney art News from the art room... Below is a little description of what the different classes have been working on in the past few months. Each grade level is exploring a different big idea and creating art that demonstrates their thinking, learning, reflecting and creativity. Relationships-Kid Culture The first grade students are in the beginning stages of their last project of the year. Continuing with the big idea of relationships, we are focusing on culture and its role in establishing relationships. As a group, we are focusing on kid culture. This is the culture all kids are a part of. To begin the lesson, we discussed what it means to be a part of a kid culture. We looked at artwork that depicts kids doing “kid” things, and that all kids share some commonalities no matter where they are in the world. Universally, kids like to play, hang out with friends and eat delicious foods. We also discussed some of the differences within the kid culture as well. What games kids play, how they hang out with friends and what they eat may differ by region or location. We used this concept as the main idea for the art making portion of the lesson. As a class, we learned that in order to build strong relationships within and outside of a given culture, it is important to recognize both our commonalities and our differences. For that reason, the focus of the ceramic sculpture the students made had two parts. One part of the sculpture had to represent something the student was particularly good at, interested in or could teach someone about. The second part of the sculpture had to represent something different, new or something the student wanted to learn more about. The purpose of this lesson was for the students to recognize that even though all kids enjoy some of the same commonalities, we must learn about, understand and respect our differences as well. Community-Games The second grade students are beginning to create games as a part of our community big idea. The students understand that a community is made up of a group of people that live, work and/or play together. For this lesson, we are focusing on the idea that communities play together. We began this lesson looking at the work of a 9 year old designer named Caine. If you have not yet seen Caine’s Arcade on Youtube, it is worth watching. After the students watched this inspirational video, we began discussing the design process and brainstorming possible ideas for game designs. The students also spent some time practicing their creative, communicative, critical thinking and collaboration skills in a variety of short exercises designed to help them develop these skills. The next step will be to sketch out ideas, test them and then build the ideas each group has created for their game design. Lastly, we will share these games with other students and have a game playing day at the end of the lesson. Communication-Color/Sculpture The third grade students are still hard at work finishing up their color stop-motion animations in the computer lab. They are putting in sound effects, recording voices and writing their artist statement as well. Once these students are finished, we will hold a movie premier day to watch all of the future Spielbergs, Copolas and Scorceses creations. Once they are finished with everything, they will need to bring in a flash drive or CD to copy their movie to bring home for you to see. I will make sure to copy it as a Quicktime so that any computer will be able to play it. For the last project of the year, the third grade students will be creating a ceramic sculpture. We will begin this lesson shortly. Identity-Product Design The fourth grade students are currently working on a product design project. To continue on with the big idea of identity, the students are moving onto a more empathetic project where the focus is on the identities of others. We looked at the work of IDEO, an internationally recognized design firm in California. We looked at how this design firm approaches problems, how they collaborate, research, build and refine their product designs and what makes this firm so successful. Using this design process, the students are currently researching and brainstorming possible ideas for products to create. This stage is moving slowly so that the students can generate many ideas before selecting one to run with. I gave them the example of winning the lottery. They understand that the chance of winning the lottery is better the more tickets you buy. The same can be said of a really good idea. The chances of finding an amazing idea increase with the more ideas they come up with. This also represents the students practicing their critical thinking strategies that will be essential throughout the process. Once the students have moved through the research and inspiration stage, they will begin generating idea sketches, experimenting with the design and begin building their innovative visions. Leadership-Student Designed Lesson The fifth grade students have begun their last project of the year. This project is a student designed art project. This lesson represents the students taking on a leadership role and taking charge of their own learning. To begin the lesson, the students completed a “sketchonaire” that had several different idea prompts. The purpose of this sheet was for the students to have a starting point for their lesson idea. The next step was for the students to learn about one-point perspective and practice this three-dimensional rendering technique. The students will then have to create a lesson that could be individual or collaborative that they would present to me for approval. The lesson needed to show the idea for the art project, materials, tools, processes, purpose of the art project and what they were expressing. They all had to use one-point perspective in some way in their project as well. This lesson represents the students applying all that they have learned over the years into a student-designed lesson. The students are in charge of their learning and will demonstrate both student voice and choice when it comes to the art making and creative process. It will be great fun seeing what amazing ideas they come up with! The Gift Mr. De’s class has been hard at work finishing up their first Gift art project in time for the mid-point exhibition. I was unable to attend the exhibition as I was in Texas at the National Art Education Association’s annual conference presenting Mr. De’s class and others work to a national audience. Everyone in attendance was amazed at the skill and thought that each student exhibited. As we transition into the final project of the year related to the Gift project, the students are hard at work brainstorming, researching and utilizing the design process to help them create their final gift. Can’t wait to see you all at the final exhibition! IMPORTANT DATES * April - May * ELI PINNEY ELEMENTARY * You can also check out the Pinney calendar on the website for updated events and times. Mon., Apr. 1 Wed., Apr. 3 Thurs., Apr. 4 Fri., Apr. 5 Mon., Apr. 8 Tues., Apr. 9 Tues., Apr. 9 Wed., Apr. 10 Wed., Apr. 10 Wed., Apr. 10 Thurs., Apr. 11 Tues., Apr. 16 Thurs., Apr. 18 Thurs., Apr. 18 Fri., Apr. 19 Sat., Apr. 20 Wed., Apr. 24 Thurs., Apr. 25 Tues., Apr. 30 NO SCHOOL - Conference Comp Time Gifted Services Presentation 2013-14 Kdg Registration District Dodgeball Tournament 5th Gr. Middle School Visit Student Council Meeting 5th Gr. Field Trip Lifetouch Spring Pictures APE Field Trip (Swimming) 2013-14 Kdg Registration Bus Driver Appreciation Breakfast 5th Gr. Field Trip General PTO Meeting Healthy Community/Healthy Youth Family Night NO SCHOOL - Staff Waiver Day Community Champion Awards Market Day pick-up Take Your Child to Work Day Gr. 3-5 OAA (Reading) Wed., May 1 Gr. 3-5 OAA (Math) Thurs., May 2 Gr. 5 OAA (Science) Thurs., May 2 Preschool Field Trip Fri., May 3 Gr. 3-5 OAA Make-ups Fri., May 3 Eli Pinney Memorial Celebration Mon., May 6-Fri., May 10 Teacher Appreciation Week Mon., May 6-Wed., May 15 Spring Book Fair Mon., May 6-Fri., May 10 Gr. 3-5 OAA Make-ups Fri., May 10 Mrs. Howell’s Class Play Tues., May 14 Moms & Muffins Tues., May 14 Student Council Meeting Wed., May 15 Moms & Muffins Thurs., May 16 Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast Thurs., May 16 General PTO Meeting Thurs., May 16 5th Gr. Zoo Exhibit Fri., May 17 Pinney Walk for the Cure Fri., May 17 5th Gr. Zoo Exhibit Tues., May 21 Mrs. Givens Field Trip Wed., May 22 Mrs. Johnson Field Trip Wed., May 22 Market Day pick-up Thurs., May 23 5th Gr. Celebration Thurs., May 23 5th Gr. Pool Party Fri., May 24 5th Gr. Celebration (RAIN DATE) Fri., May 24 5th Gr. Pool Party (RAIN DATE) Mon., May 27 NO SCHOOL - Memorial Day Tues., May 28 Mr. DeMatteis Field Trip Wed., May 29 Last day for Preschool Wed., May 29 Mrs. Pizzino Field Trip Commons Commons Dublin Scioto HS Grizzell MS Music Rm. Columbus Zoo Gym DCRC Commons Commons Columbus Zoo Commons 7:00-8:00pm 7:00-8:00pm 7:00-10:00pm 9:20-11:00am 8:15-9:00am 9:30-1:00pm All Day 10:30-1:30pm 7:00-8:00pm 9:30-11:00am 9:30-2:15pm 9:30-10:45am Dublin Jerome HS Commons 10:00-12:00pm 5:30-6:45pm Classrooms 9:30-12:00pm Classrooms Classrooms Stratford Farms 9:30-12:00pm 9:30-12:00pm 8:45-12:30pm Commons 2:00-3:15pm Library All Day Commons Commons Music Rm. Commons Commons Commons Commons Playground Commons Indian Village Indian Village Commons Commons Tartan Fields Commons Tartan Fields 6:00-8:00pm 8:00-9:00am 8:15-9:00am 8:00-9:00am 9:30-10:30am 9:30-10:45am 1:30-3:30pm 11:30-1:30pm 1:30-3:30pm 9:30-2:00pm 9:30-2:00pm 5:30-6:45pm 9:30-10:30am 10:30-1:30pm 9:30-10:30am 10:30-1:30pm Indian Village 9:30-2:00pm Indian Village 9:30-2:00pm