Pontiac School News

January 11, 2018

News From Our School Improvement Council

Parents,

Our School Improvement Council meets once a month and parent and community stakeholder input is critical to decisions we make for our school. This year we are working closely with community partnerships to increase reading initiatives for our students. These partnerships include Verizon, Richland County Public Library, and The Blake, assisted living home. Stay tuned for upcoming opportunities from these partners!

Another agenda item our School Improvement Council has worked on is improving our practices and procedures to ensure all students are valued and honored. This has included reconsidering our edible treats in school, particularly birthday treats. Please read a draft of a recent revision that the SIC has voted to approve. Please note - below is a DRAFT. We will have a 2nd reading and welcome additional stakeholder input on this DRAFT at our January 18th meeting. Our meetings begin at 7:45am and your input is appreciated. If approved, this practice will go into effect in August 2018. Thank you for your consideration on a very important practice in our school. The revision is:

In order to allow students and teachers to focus on learning and to respect the allergies and

dietary choices of students and their families, Pontiac Elementary requests that students and

parents refrain from bringing edible treats to school as a form of celebration. If you would like to recognize your child on their birthday, we encourage you to share a non-edible item that

supports the learning process. Thank you for respecting this decision. We will continue to evaluate our practices with student equity in mind.

As parents know, dietary restrictions are becoming more common, particularly those allergies that are related to peanut butter. It is our intent, through such a practice, to honor all students and include everyone when celebrating birthdays rather than excluding them as a result of their dietary restrictions. By refraining from allowing edible treats at Pontiac, we allow for inclusive practices to evolve around our school and honor all students. Again, this is a DRAFT and all stakeholder input is welcomed. Please join us on January 18 if you have suggestions for the school to consider around this practice.

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NEWS FROM THE NURSE

As part of the eight components of school health, School Nurses conduct periodic vision, dental, hearing, blood pressure,and other screenings as recommended by SC DHEC, and as needed as part of the nurse's assessment during a health room visit. These screenings are important in early detection of hearing or vision difficulties that may impact teaching and learning. Many times a student is not even aware he/she is having difficulty seeing the board, reading, or hearing classroom instructions. Please contact your child's school nurse if you do not want your child screened.Our school will be having all students screened for vision on January 16th and 17th, 2018.

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Need Your Help

Volunteers are needed for the Daddy/Daughter "Enchanted Forest" Dance on Friday, February 9, 2018. Sign up to volunteer on the following sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YPp-TZORlzYfVyBvlMuY3R4_dfHEhdxBBsepJZAcQIw/edit?usp=sharing

Questions about volunteering? Contact Lisa Rayner lrayner@richland2.org

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Calling All Super Heroes to the Super Hero Showcase!

When: Thursday, January 18, 2018

What Time: 6-7PM

Who: Pontiac Kindergarten - 2nd grade, Lower Montessori, & Primary Montessori

Why you should come:

Learn your child’s super (learning and leading) power!
Your child has been working hard since the beginning of school and they want to show off their work!
We want to encourage our student leaders to take ownership of their learning and projects through this event.

What to Expect:

There will be an art gallery full of students’ masterpieces!
Following the art gallery, students will bring their families to their classroom. Your child will be eager to show you some work samples, and they may even teach you a lesson!
Yummy hot chocolate served by student leaders!

“There are heroes all around us doing ordinary things, in extraordinary ways.”

RICHLAND TWO APPLICATION PROCESS FOR 4K

Strategic Planning Meeting

Parents, we welcome you to join us for our strategic planning meeting on Tuesday, January 16th from 5:30pm until 6:30pm. At our last meeting, we created our goals and determined our outcomes. At our upcoming meeting, we will determine the strategies we will use to achieve those goals. Our strategic plan will guide our school’s focus for the next 5 years. As always, we value your voice and would love your input. Please RSVP with Mr. Robinson (trobinson@richland2.org) if you plan to attend.

IMPORTANT DATES

January 12~ Group Pictures

January 15~ District Holiday -NO SCHOOL

January 18~ K-2 Student Showcase 6:00-7pm

January 19~End of Second Nine Weeks

January 19~ 1/2 Day for Students/Dismissal 11:30

January 25~ Report Cards Issued

January 26~College Colors Day

January 26~Choice Application Online Ends

January 29~Military Monday

February 1~ Box Top Collection Begins

February 2~100th Day of School

Career Day

TRIDAC SUMMER PROGRAM ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2018 Tri-District Arts Consortium Summer Program. Middle school students who attend the public schools of Lexington One, Lexington/Richland Five and Richland Two are eligible to participate. This year marks the 33rd year Tri-DAC has provided students an outstanding and concentrated study of the arts through this summer program.

The program is designed for artistically gifted and talented students who are rising sixth through ninth graders in the summer before the 2018-2019 school year. Students may audition in creative writing, dance, music (strings, vocal and wind/percussion), theatre or visual art.

The Summer Program will be held on the campus of the Palmetto Center for the Arts (PCA) at Richland Northeast High School July 2 through July 21, 2018 from 9:00 am till 3:15 pm Monday through Friday. Wednesday, July 4th, will be observed as a holiday. Cost for the three weeks will be $400.00.

Arts teachers, classroom teachers, administrators or parents may nominate students. Nomination forms may be obtained from the principal’s office at district elementary or middle schools or by contacting the Gifted and Talented Coordinator in one of the three districts: Mrs. Erin Fitzgerald, Lexington One; Mrs. Tami Richardson, Lexington/Richland Five; or Dr. Maria Kratsios, Richland Two. Nomination forms for all art areas, along with general information about the Tri-District Arts Consortium are also available on our web site at www.tridac.org.

The District Coordinator must receive all nominations by January 16, 2018. Applications will be sent to each student nominated. Spaces for qualified students from each district are limited.

Auditions for Theatre, Wind/Percussion and Visual Art students will be held on Saturday, March 3, 2018 at Richland Northeast High School. Auditions for Creative Writing, Dance, Strings, Visual Art and Vocal students will be held Saturday, March 10, 2018 at Richland Northeast High School. There will be no make-up auditions.