CANNON CONNECTION

Last week was Staff Appreciation Week and our Cannon staff felt SO loved and special all week, thanks to our amazing parents, students, and PTA! Thank you for all of our parents and students for making this such a great week! Special thanks to Karen Huff, Mabrie Burgett, and Kathy Wheat for all of your work with PTA to make each day a special celebration! We feel completely spoiled! :)

It's May and there are SO many events ahead during the remaining days of school! Please be sure to read this newsletter carefully, in order to make sure you don't miss any important news.

We could REALLY use your help with two upcoming needs, Career Day & Moving Days at Cannon.

Career Day is a very special day at Cannon, where all K-5 students have the opportunity to learn all about a variety of careers & professions. Mrs. Coburn still needs more presenters and we would love to hear from YOU! Please see information below about Career Day and let her know asap if you can help!

Also, we have several opportunities on upcoming Moving Days @ Cannon for parents to sign up to volunteer for short shifts to help pack and move boxes for our end of the year move-out. Our most critical needs are in the library, helping Mrs. Wagner pack books, in the science lab and helping Mrs. Brenegan pack science materials/supplies. Mrs. Blizzard also has a date on the signup document, in need of some strong arms to help move some items from the attic. Click here to see the volunteer sign up for a variety of dates during May. You can choose a date/time that fits best with your schedule! Please note that the sign-up for this week on Tuesday, May 8th, 5:00-7:00 pm has been cancelled.

Thank you for all that you do to support our wonderful school! We appreciate our Cannon families so much!

Proud to be your principal,

Mrs. Blizzard

We will have our annual school-wide Career Day for all students K-5 on Wednesday, May 23rd and we need your help! If you are interested in being a presenter or know someone that would be willing to present, please let us know! You can sign up here or you can complete and return this page by Friday, May 4th.

We would like to have individuals come talk to our students about what they do and what they had to achieve to get where they are today. There are so many jobs, careers, and professions available and it would be incredible to expose the students to as many of them as we can. I believe it is important for our students to be educated about future careers and opportunities because it can help motivate them to set goals for their future.

Career Day will be all day on Wednesday, May 23rd, but presenters are not required to be at career day all day. Breakfast and lunch will be provided for presenters by our Cannon PTA. Please let me know the duration of time you are available and I will coordinate your schedule to work around your availability. Presenters will speak to students for no longer than 30 min per group. Some presenters may be in a central location and speak to an entire grade level while others will travel around to different classrooms to present. Presenters will present to their child’s class as well as other classes.

We are looking for presentations to be motivating and exciting for the students so feel free to bring visual aids, computer slide shows, pictures, videos, props or more. Thank you so much for your support. Please feel free to call or email me if

you have any questions. (817) 251-5684 amanda.coburn@gcisd.net.

EVENTS THIS WEEK

5/09 Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast - 8:00-9:00 am

5/09 National School Nurse Day - celebrate Nurse Kendra!

UPCOMING EVENTS

5/14 STAAR Math - 3rd & 4th grade; 5th grade retakes for math

5/15 STAAR Reading - 3rd & 4th grade; 5th grade retakes for reading

5/16 STAAR Science - 5th grade

5/17 Cubs Night Out @ Jason's Deli

5/21 CHHS Graduate Walk @ Cannon 9:00-10:00

5/22 Choir trip to Hawaiian Falls

5/22 Cubs Night Out @ Cici's Pizza

5/23 Career Day

5/24 Field Day - we will have this at GMS this year - schedule coming soon!

5/25 Student Holiday - Inclement Weather Day

5/28 Student Holiday - Memorial Day

5/29-5/31 - Grade Level Awards - see information in this newsletter!

5/30 AttenDANCE Celebration - 2:15 in the gym!

5/31 Last Day of School - early dismissal - 11:45 am

Library Books Overdue

All library books were due by May 1st so Mrs. Wagner can start the BIG task of packing the library for our move to the NEW SCHOOL. There are still quite a few students who still have books checked out. Please help us by looking around your house and in your cars for any Cannon library books.

Summer Reading Challenge For Students

This summer Cannon will participate in the Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge, a free online reading program that invites students to log their reading minutes each week during the summer. The goal is for students in our school to keep the magic of reading going and read the most minutes possible in an effort for our school to earn the title "Best in State." All current students have been given an account. Students will get their account information during the week of May 7. The challenge begins May 7, 2018 and ends September 7, 2018. Another bonus is all the reading students do during the summer counts towards their GCISD Reading Challenge for the upcoming school year.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SUMMER READING NEWSLETTER FOR PARENTS with all of the details!

This week's "quick picks" of reminders & information from PTA:

• THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP! Special thanks to Karen Huff, Mabrie Burgett, and Kathy Wheat for all of their help to make Staff Appreciation Week so special for our Cannon staff!! We appreciate you!

• MOVING! The new Cannon is getting closer...and we need help to pack up for the move. Could you help us pack the science labs, library or attic (heavy lifting)? PLEASE sign-up today!

• Field Day is May 24! We need your help purchasing waters for the day, loaning a canopy tent, or volunteering during field day. Does anyone have face painting skills? Sign up here.

All Volunteer Sign-up links are available at cannonpta.com/volunteer

Stay connected by following Cannon PTA on social media. Click here to "like" the PTA Facebook page. Follow them on Twitter @CannonPTA.

On Thursday, May 3, at 9:00 a.m. registration for the June 20th administration of math telescoping tests opened. The registration window will remain open through midnight on May 23, 2018. Parents must complete a two-step registration process by going online from this webpage to register their child and then printing their online confirmation to attach to their fee payment. Payment is due by 4:00 p.m. on May 24, 2018. Payments may be mailed or hand-delivered to the Administration Building but MUST arrive by the deadline in order to be accepted. No exceptions.

On Monday, May 7, at 8:00 a.m. the personalized programs application system will re-open. Interested parents can fill out an application by clicking on the online application system link at this website. Applications will be placed in available seats or on waitlists for personalized programs. There are seats available in Kindergarten dual language programs for students whose home language is English. There are also seats available in our high school STEM program for grade 9 or grade 10. All other programs will have a waitlist to which applications will be added in the order they are received.

The GCISD Counseling Department would like to welcome all GCISD parents, teachers, staff and community members to attend an informative presentation by David's Legacy Foundation on May 17 from 6-7 pm at Dove Elementary. We will have David's mother, Maurine Molak, speaking to parents regarding David's Law, David's Legacy Foundation and how parents can help. This is open to everyone who would like to attend. See flyer below for this event.

The results of the 5th grade reading and math STAAR tests will be available this week. Please see the information below about how to access this information online. As a reminder, due to the state's Student Success Initiative, any 5th grade student who was not successful on one or both sections of the STAAR will participate in the 2nd testing administration in May. Parents will be notified this week by teachers if their student will need to re-test.

Results for April Grades 5 and 8 Reading and Math STAAR will be posted at www.texasassessment.com in the FOR FAMILIES section in the STUDENT PORTAL on May 1, 2018. Parents will need their student's unique access code to retrieve the scores. This code is located in SKYWARD or on any previous STAAR Report Card at the bottom of the page. Parents can also go to www.texasassessment.com and retrieve the unique access code with their student's first name, social security number, and date of birth.

The performance labels and descriptors are as follows:

Masters Grade Level: Students at this level have exceeded the assessment requirements and TEA expects students at Masters Grade Level to succeed in the next grade or course with little or no academic intervention. Students in this category demonstrate the ability to think critically and apply the assessed knowledge and skills in varied contexts, both familiar and unfamiliar.

Meets Grade Level: Students at this performance level have met the assessment requirements and have a high likelihood of success in the next grade or course but may still need some short-term, targeted academic intervention. Students in this category generally demonstrate the ability to think critically and apply the assessed knowledge and skills in familiar contexts.

Approaches Grade Level: Students at this level have met the assessment requirements for purposes of Student Success Initiative grade promotion and graduation and are considered to have met at least the minimum passing standard. A student achieving Approaches Grade Level is likely to succeed in the next grade or course with targeted academic intervention. Students in this category generally demonstrate the ability to apply the assessed knowledge and skills in familiar contexts.

Does Not Meet Grade Level: Students at this level have not passed since performance indicates a student is unlikely to succeed in the next grade or course without significant, ongoing academic intervention. Students in this category do not demonstrate a sufficient understanding of the assessed knowledge and skills.

Summer Enrichment Courses (June 11-July 20)

KidZU Camps (June 4-August 17)

Cross Timbers Middle School

2301 Pool Road Grapevine, Texas 76051

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I want to make you aware of where you can see information and resources, specifically about the Cannon construction project. Also, check out the awesome exterior renderings of our new school below!!

Please reach out to me to let me know of any questions you may have about this project. This is a VERY exciting time for our Cannon school community and I want to make sure all of our Cannon families stay informed!

Click here to see project updates on all GCISD Bond programs

Click here to sign up for construction updates by email about the Cannon project!

This blog will have the most updated information about upcoming events specific to Cannon, GMS STEM, and the future STEM program at GHS.

Click here to read this STEM blog!

Email: tona.blizzard@gcisd.net
Website: http://www.gcisd-k12.org/Domain/1428
Location: 1300 W College St, Grapevine, TX, United States
Phone: 817-251-5680
Facebook: facebook.com/CannonSTEM
Twitter: @canSTEM