Friday Focus

At Meadow Wood Elementary, our mission is to provide the personalized support needed for every student to grow and reach their personal best, taking into account the unique academic, social and emotional needs of each child.

• School starts at 7:55 a.m. instead of 8:00 a.m.
• A different MWE staff member, and a Watch DOG (if we have one) is assigned to car rider duty each week from 7:30 a.m. to 7:50 a.m. and will assist patrols with opening doors. Staff members leave to meet their students, and WatchDOGS go to KMWE for morning announcements.
• Patrols will remain outside an additional 5 minutes until the 7:55 a.m. bell, unless they are on KMWE.
• Shirley Labiosa will be at the front door from 7:50 a.m. until 8:00 a.m. (Because of the construction, we are not marking students tardy until after 8:00 a.m.)
• Mrs. Barry and I will be at the front door greeting students and parents from 7:30 a.m. to 7:50 a.m. (alternating weeks).

• Please do not send your child to walk across the cross-walk alone.
• Please pull up to the spot closest to the flagpole. Do not stop at the front door.
• Remain in your car.
• Children should exit from the passenger side of the car.

We have invested money in signs, have sent personal notes and made personal phone calls, yet a few of our patrons continue to disregard our policies.

Please do your part in helping the morning car rider line to go smoothly. Cooperation from all adults during morning car rider line is especially appreciated.

Meadow Wood students have been working hard on their

dancing skills and they are now ready to perform.

Students may wear western shirts, blouses, skirts, jeans, hats, boots or bandanas.

No spurs, play guns or knives are allowed.

Parents are invited to watch their child dance, play games and take photos

during their Health Fitness class on

Wednesday, March 1 at the following times:

Performance time

Second----------9:00 a.m.-9:55 a.m

First-------------9:55a.m.-10:50 a.m

PK/Kn----------10:50 a.m-11:45 a.m.

Fourth ---------12:15 p.m.-1:10 p.m. (must wear tennis shoes for performance)

Third------------1:10 p.m.-2:05 p.m.

Fifth ------------2:05 p.m.- 2:55 p.m.

Health Fitness Team,

Coach Hollmann, Coach Mendez, Coach Garza

Picture Day --- Watch for information about Picture Day in the Friday Folders.

Mrs. Connie Krebs will be subbing full time in our library beginning March 1. Right now, Mrs. Ana Farris is coming 2 days a week and Mrs. Connie Krebs is coming 3 days a week.

We will begin interviewing for the new librarian after Spring Break.

Congratulations to our MWE Character Without Question winners. We are so grateful to have so many wonderful students here at our school. A special thank you to the parents, grandparents and extended families of these students. We know that they are who they are because of what you have instilled in them.

Congratulations again!

Lizzie Emerson is our MWE Character Without Question Winner for 2017. She will be recognized at the board meeting on Monday, February 27, 2017.

What a GREAT job our boys did! Harrison correctly spelled affectionately, falsetto, libretto, and hemerocallis. Jonathan correctly spelled quandary, crescent, castanets, mukhtar, arabian, nicoine, and sudoku!! WOW!!! We are soooo proud of them!!

We currently have a Playground Committee in place that is hard at work. In addition, MWE has entered the Healthy Playground Makeover Sweepstakes.

Anyone can enter on behalf of MWE to win $30,000 and a new playground for our school. MWE is already registered - so all you need to to is click below and follow the directions. You may enter once a day between now and March 24th.

Please spread the news throughout our community to increase our chances of winning!

The more we enter, the higher our chances of winning!

Our goal in collecting this information is to help us better serve our students. We appreciate your thoughtful and insightful comments.

We had 36 responses to the Parent Survey. You may click on the link below to view the survey responses. Our next steps include reviewing the survey in different groups. Our Campus Improvement Team met this Wednesday, and our MWE staff will meet next week. We will come to a consensus on the areas where improvement is needed and what the next steps will be.

Some immediate "things to know" (based on survey responses):

• Playground equipment. We currently have a PTA committee in place and they are working on getting new playground equipment. Also, please enter the Playground Makeover Sweepstakes (see above).
• Playground and Track. With the construction, our fences were torn down. We are currently looking into when they will be replaced. I will forward that information to you as soon as possible.
• Library. The library is covered 5 days a week. Instead of just filling the vacancy with someone we were not familiar with, we wanted to get subs who had worked on our campus in the past and were knowledgeable about our students and the way our campus works. Mrs. Connie Krebs and Mrs. Ana Farris have worked together to cover the library 5 days a week, starting at the beginning of February. Beginning March 1st, Mrs. Krebs will be our permanent sub in the library until the end of the school year.
• Grade Level Newsletters. Each grade level does a monthly newsletter outlining subjects and topics students are learning. This newsletter goes home with students and/or electronically to parents. The monthly newsletters are also available online on our webpage. Go to mwe.springbranchisd.com, Curriculum, and then select your child's grade level.

• PGP - Primary Gifted Program. Per SBISD district guidelines, students in our Primary Gifted Program are served in a pullout program 90 minutes per week, which is currently being taught by our former librarian, Susan Robbins. In addition, the students in PGP are also being taught by a teacher who has GT certification.
  
• Afternoon buses. This concern has been forwarded to the SBISD Transportation department.
• School Lunches. This concern has been forwarded to the SBISD Child Nutrition Department.

Spring Branch ISD Superintendent of Schools Scott R. Muri, Ed.D., was named earlier this week as the sole recipient of a high national recognition, the 2017 Communication Technology Award for Superintendents, by a leading group of communications and public relations professionals and a partnering education technology services firm.

The annual Communication Technology Award for Superintendents recognizes an education leader working in a K-12 system, or in a closely related function, who is “redefining, upgrading and integrating cutting-edge community technology to improve and expand outreach and engagements with education stakeholders – both internal and external.”

After his official start as new SBISD superintendent in July 2015, Dr. Muri began a #VisionLock Twitter campaign to introduce himself to the greater community and leverage the district’s core values as connection points and foundation frame for his leadership, shared focus and reason for joining the school district. Tweeting in both English and Spanish, his near-daily tweets (@ScottMuri) reached more than 9,000 followers.

Some of the initiatives that reflect Dr. Muri’s commitment to strong, two-way communication and engagement include the following:

• Most SBISD schools and administrators are strong Twitter users, with an increase in special messaging in areas ranging from Twitter Meet Ups to Periscope live-stream video activities;
• Superintendent podcasts using SoundCloud digital audio technologies;
• Text messaging and mobile applications with multi-language translation capabilities;
• A District of Innovation (DOI) model website, now used by several Texas school districts considering similar Board process/planning leading up to potential DOI status;
• It’s Learning, a cloud-based learning management system;
• District use of the popular Peachjar online flyer distribution platform;
• Xtra Credit, the new employee perks program offering area discounts and special pricing at businesses;
• A new district website and employee-focused intranet, to be launched this summer.

Dr. Muri’s strong leadership and focused commitment to “think differently” has “allowed SBISD to extend its communications capabilities through new apps, new cloud-based collaboration tools and new parent engagement technologies that are moving the district forward at an impressive pace on its strategic Learner’s Journey.”

In addition to the award announcement, Dr. Muri will be honored this summer in San Antonio during NSPRA’s annual national meeting, where a special session will be held reflecting on the community technology award.

Congratulations, Dr. Muri!

• Karen Lewis, one of the paraprofessionals in our AIM unit, is being transferred to Thornwood Elementary, beginning Monday, February 27, 2017. She is going to work with another special education unit at Thornwood.
• Our Crossing Guard, "Ro" Williams, is out on medical leave, until further notice. We will continue to keep you informed.

February 25

• Expanding Your Horizons Student Conference
  
• Odyssey of the Mind Competition
  
• Robotics Competition
  

February 27

• Writers in the Schools
  
• 6:00 p.m. District Character Without Question Presentation
  

February 28

• 3rd grade Math Practice STAAR
  

March 1

• 3rd grade Reading Practice STAAR
  

March 2

• Group and Spring Pictures
  

March 3

• Hands on Science - 3rd grade
  
• Spiral
  

March 4

• The Magic of Meadow Wood - Spring Auction
  

March 7

• Los Tios Spirit Night
  
• 5th grade Science STAAR practice

March 9

• 5th grade Growth & Development
• CSHAC Meeting after school

March 13 - 17

• Spring Break

Every student, every day, soaring to greatness.

Email: pamela.redd@springbranchisd.com
Website: mwe.springbranchisd.com
Location: 14230 Memorial Drive, Houston, TX, United States
Phone: 713-251-6200
Facebook: facebook.com/meadwwoodelementarysbisd
Twitter: @reddprincipal