R.F. Pettigrew Panther Tracks

May 2023

From the Principal’s Desk

Mr. Kevin Dick

We are down to the final stretch. In just a few short weeks, we will be looking at the end of a terrific school year. There have been a lot of great moments throughout this year, a lot of learning and a focused effort to develop our understanding of the 7 Mindsets. It’s been great to be a part of all of these efforts.

Another effort that has been going on this year, that has not been as visible to the public, has been some preparations going on for the implementation of Positive Behavior Intervention System (PBIS) for next year. A group of teachers and other educators have been working since last June on a set of tasks that will allow our school to begin the year with these components ready to be in place and implemented on the first day of school and going forward.

Pettigrew has always focused on social and emotional learning. It is part of our mission statement, was an integral part of the effort to open Pettigrew Elementary 14 years ago, and continues to be an important focus, today. Pettigrew implemented Responsive Classroom efforts for all of its first 14 years, but now as the district and many schools in the nation are turning their focus to PBIS, Pettigrew will also follow suit with this and implement PBIS next year.

Some common language and vocabulary will be important for this transition to be successful. We will be talking about an Expectation Matrix, various expectations will be demonstrated, modeled, taught, and then reinforced. This will begin with some very positive and informative visuals displayed around the building next year. A flowchart of follow-through steps will be used by staff to maintain consistency of expectations and support steps to reinforce the expectations. SWIS, which we have already discussed and utilized a bit this year, will step up its presence and be used more and more for data collection and tracking. Rewards and interventions will become an important tool for our educators, as they work with students.

An exciting development for next year will be the anticipated introduction to the concept of Pettigrew PAWS. These PAWS are coming and will be a simple way for all community members to be able to understand our expectations, remind ourselves and others of these expectations, and follow through with our expectations to develop our sense of good character.

We will be in our third year of implementation of the 7 Mindsets curriculum and materials, so that will be fun to be able to blend and mesh this learning with our PBIS implementation. They will blend nicely, and the 7 Mindsets, and even the earlier Responsive Classroom work have set the stage nicely for all of these efforts to focus on the social and emotional aspect of our educational process. We owe a deep debt of gratitude (Attitude of Gratitude is one of the 7 Mindsets!) to the Sioux Falls Public School Foundation, as they have entrusted us with almost $25,000 of grant money over the past 3 years as we implemented this important component of our school community life.

Next week is Staff Appreciation Week, and I know PTO is organizing some fun ways that we can thank our hard working and very deserving staff. If you get a chance, it would be much appreciated if families would spend some time thinking and talking about what students have appreciated about the teachers they have had this year, and find a way to communicate this appreciation with a quick note or email to these teachers. Have a great May and an even better summer. Be Safe and we will look forward to a terrific school year in 2023-2024.

Fine Arts Feature

Music

Here are some April highlights from the music department:

Kindergarten – Continuing rhythm and introducing beat of silence

Song-“Fiddledeedee”

Game Song-“A Tisket A Tasket”

First Grade – AB form

Notating notes on the music staff

Song-“Little Robin Red Breast” (playing xylophones and glockenspiels to accompany)

Second Grade – Italian dynamic terms (pianissimo-pp, piano-p, mezzo piano-mp, mezzo forte-mf, forte-f, fortissimo-ff, crescendo, and decrescendo)

Game song-“Black Snake”

Alley dance

Third Grade – Treble clef note names

Recorders-learning notes B, A, & G

Fourth Grade – Italian tempo terms (Largo, Andante, Allegro, & Presto)

Staccato and Legato

Song-“Sarasponda” with partner stick game at various tempos

Fifth Grade – Tubano drums

Small group drumming projects

The school year is winding down! Enjoy the last several days! 😊

~Mrs. Wahl & Mrs. Monlux

Art

In the art rooms this month, we’ll be finishing up our last projects for the year and will be reviewing our elements of art!

Kindergarteners will create art inspired by prehistoric art and review lines/shapes/colors.

1st Graders will create art with geometric forms and review lines/shapes/colors.

2nd Graders will create fiber art and make 3D art.

3rd Graders will use visual textures in their artwork and create art inspired by Aboriginal artists.

4th Graders will create paper mosaics.

5th Graders will use 1-point perspective in their artwork.

We are grateful for the amazing turn out for the Art Show on April 21st. It was great to see so many families here to celebrate art! Have a wonderful summer and keep making art!

-Mrs. Meyer and Ms. Pabst