Weekly Newsletter- Week of August 9, 2020

Welcome Families! We are looking forward to seeing all of your children in our first meeting on Wednesday August 19, 2020! Please be on the lookout for more information on how to get to the meeting. It’s already been a whirlwind of a week for us! We’ve been attending trainings on the new platform that students will be using for virtual learning, called It’s Learning. It appears to be all encompassing in that we will be able to post all lessons, videos, correspondence, and even video conferencing will take place on the platform in place of Zoom! Because this is a new platform for all, we ask for your patience and grace as we navigate these new tools and deepen our understanding of the platform. We have also been very busy planning with the Lower Elementary team on a cohesive plan with overarching themes and we are very happy with the results.    

We loved hearing from the families and are so eager to see your children and get to know them! We are also looking forward to seeing our returning friends! We hope to spend the first two weeks building community and getting to know one another before we fully immerse ourselves in the academic schedule we’ve prepared. Those of you that are new to The Learning Community may not be aware that we are Blue Jays and Cardinals!  There are times when our community needs to be split by roster, therefore students on Ms. Jazmin’s roster are the Cardinals and students on Ms. Marianne’s roster are the Blue Jays.  It is important that your child knows if they are a Blue Jay or a Cardinal. If you are unsure, please send us an email or Remind and we’ll let you know! 

If you have not done so already, please update your child’s student verification online. You should have received an email from the district with the following link: https://share.peachjar.com/flyers/1009044/schools/67128

Below we are posting the amended "community building" schedule for the first two weeks of school and below that you will find the schedule for the remaining time of virtual learning.  Please keep in mind that schedules are subject to change based on the needs that may arise within our community. During the work periods students will be asked via the It's Learning platform to watch video lessons and do follow up work. We hope to see each student at the daily Morning Meeting. This serves as a daily check in as well as a way to maintain attendance in virtual school. The "Open Meetings" are held daily immediately after the Morning Meeting and are there for your child to ask for help on lessons received or follow up work they are trying to complete. They are not required to join the open meeting unless they need/want to. The afternoon work period includes two GEP blocks and those only affect students that are part of the gifted program. GEP students will attend one block per day. The remaining students may be called for small group lessons and intervention, and those will appear on their It's Learning platform.

We want all families to know that we are here to best support you and your children during this time. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any concerns whatsoever. We can only provide support if we know that it is needed. Our office hours are from 7:15 a.m. -8:00 a.m. Monday-Friday, but you may email us any time outside of those hours as well. It is our hope that the day is near that we are able to safely be face to face with your children and guide them in person.

We hope to have more specific information regarding the It's Learning platform for you in our next newsletter that will be published next Sunday. We thank you for your patience as we embark on this journey together!

2020-2021 Welcome Letter

Link to Welcome Letter and Supply Lists

Weekly Newsletter- The Week of May 10

Hello Families and Happy Mother's Day! We hope you are spending time with the ones you love and enjoying your time together.

We will be sharing conferences with you this week. We will send out conference notes and end of the year (administered in February) test scores via Transparent Classroom emails. If you have any questions or concerns about the conference items that will be shared with you, please send an email to both Ms. Jazmin and Ms. Marianne.

Please remember that we have a reaccuring community meeting via Zoom every Monday at 11 am.  It is the same link and password every week. That will be sent to your email every Monday morning via Transparent classroom so that you can have it handy.  Please reiterate with your children that we would like for them to make sure their face is in full view throughout the meeting, we ask that they are sitting (not laying down or walking around).  We also want them to refrain from using the chat option, as we have found that it is a distraction for some.

We will also have the share meetings on Wednesday. 1st grade-1PM, 2nd Grade-1:30PM, 3rd Grade-2:PM. We will send out an email reminder for these meetings as well.

On Friday we will have our end of the year Zoom party. Students can decorate their areas, wear whatever (costumes?) they want, and eat whatever snacks they want. We will have a share time when students can share a special item from their home or share a special memory from this school year. We will also include a dance party so the students can dance! 

This week, students should continue to work on the animal choice boards and turn in their work on the Seesaw platform. The expectation remains the same in that we would like for students to complete one language and one math activity each day. We expect our students to be challenging themselves to do the best work they can. If your child has an assignment returned to them, we expect them to read and follow the directions, make corrections, and submit the assignment again. If you can, please help us by monitoring your child's work and making sure that they are doing this.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20ELA%20and%20Math%20Choice%20Boards%20May%204-15.pdf

Please remember, the Explorations choice boards have fun and engaging lessons and are available to students. We encourage students to work on these daily, if possible.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20Explorations%20Choice%20Board%20May%204-15%20.pdf


Dates to Remember:
May 15, 2020----------Last Day of School Zoom Meeting at 11

Weekly Newsletter: The Week of May 3

Hello Families!

This Friday, May 8, Charles Ellis will be celebrating Field Day virtually! Students are not expected to complete choice board assignments or journaling prompts on Friday. Get outside and participate in Field Day activities instead! Coach Lesley has created a slideshow to help students celebrate Field Day at home this year! Please click on the Field Day link on the Explorations choice board to participate. Don't forget to share your pictures on the Ellis Media Center page on Facebook!

Please be on the lookout for conferences to be shared with you the last week of school. We will be sending out conference notes and end of the year (administered in February) test scores via Transparent Classroom. If you have any questions or concerns about the conference items that will be shared with you, please send an email to both Ms. Jazmin and Ms. Marianne.

We are excited to announce that our new choice boards have been completed and students will work on them for the final two weeks of the school year! This time, our cultural curriculum leads us to the study of animals. The expectation remains the same in that we would like for students to complete one language and one math activity each day. We expect our students to be challenging themselves to do the best work they can. If your child has an assignment returned to them, we expect them to read and follow the directions, make corrections, and submit the assignment again. If you can, please help us by monitoring your child's work and making sure that they are doing this.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20ELA%20and%20Math%20Choice%20Boards%20May%204-15.pdf

Please remember, the Explorations choice boards have fun and engaging lessons and are available to students. We encourage students to work on these daily, if possible.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20Explorations%20Choice%20Board%20May%204-15%20.pdf

Also, please remember that we have a reaccuring community meeting via Zoom every Monday at 11 am.  It is the same link and password every week.  That will be sent to your email every Monday morning via Transparent classroom so that you can have it handy.  Please reiterate with your children that we would like for them to make sure their face is in full view throughout the meeting, we ask that they are sitting (not laying down or walking around).  We also want them to refrain from using the chat option, as we have found that it is a distraction for some. This week, Ms. Beth is planning to stay on  Zoom  after our community meeting ends in order to meet with her 3rd Grade Writing Students. If you have a 3rd grade student, please be prepared for a longer meeting this week.

Dates to Remember:
May 15, 2020----------Last Day of School (stay tuned for details on a celebration)

Weekly Newsletter: The Week of April 26th

Hello Families!

We hope you are all staying well during these uncertain times. The ups and downs which have accompanied these unusual circumstances have been a struggle, but we are here for you and your child. If you are having difficulty with the technology we are using, please send us an email so we can get you in touch with someone who can help. If you or your child are struggling in any way please let us know, so that we can be of assistance to your family.

You should have received an email this week which included an invitation to the Epic! website. This is an awesome reading resource for our students to use and we have gotten some wonderful feedback about it. While it might be a struggle to go out and get books for your child to read at this time, there is an entire library for them to explore online! About one third of the class has accepted the invitation, but we have already read for over 13 hours this week! Congratulations to all of you who are reading on Epic! and to those of you who are reading books more traditionally and turning in your reading logs on Seesaw! You are doing a fantastic job!

 The Rocks and Minerals choice boards have not changed and the expectation remains the same in that we would like for students to complete one language and one math activity each day. There are many levels at which your child can participate in the activities and we expect them to challenge themselves daily to do the best work they can. If your child has had an assignment returned to them, we expect them to make corrections and submit the assignment again. If you can, please help us by monitoring your child's work and making sure that they are doing this.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20ELA%20and%20Math%20Choice%20Boards%20April%2020-May%201.pdf

The daily journaling prompts remain optional, but we highly encourage your children to respond at least a few times a week as these writing exercises are helping them to build strong writing skills.  Our main focus is to instill in them the skills for building a strong paragraph and also to learn how to reflect thought on "paper".

Please remember, the Explorations choice boards have fun and engaging lessons and are still available to students. You can follow the instructions provided on the journal prompt for Thursday to have your child join the Explorations Seesaw classes and submit work.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20Explorations%20Choice%20Board%20April%2020-May%201%20.pdf

Also, please remember that we have a reaccuring community meeting via Zoom every Monday at 11 am.  It is the same link and password every week.  That will be sent to your email every Monday morning via Transparent classroom so that you can have it handy.  Please reiterate with your children that we would like for them to make sure their face is in full view throughout the meeting, we ask that they are sitting (not laying down or walking around).  We also want them to refrain from using the chat option, as we have found that it is a distraction for some. This week, Ms. Beth is planning to stay on  Zoom  after our community meeting ends in order to meet with her 3rd Grade Writing Students. If you have a 3rd grade student, please be prepared for a longer meeting this week.

Dates to Remember:
May 15, 2020----------Last Day of School (stay tuned for details on a celebration)

Weekly Newsletter Week of April 20

Hello Families!

We have new choice boards with our new theme, Rocks and Minerals, ready for your viewing pleasure in Seesaw and below when you click the link!  We will send them out as an announcement in Seesaw. These choice boards will be used by your children over the next two weeks!  The expectation remains the same in that we would like for students to complete one language and one math activity each day.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20ELA%20and%20Math%20Choice%20Boards%20April%2020-May%201.pdf

The daily journaling prompts remain optional, but we highly encourage your children to respond at least a few times a week as these writing exercises are helping them to build strong writing skills.  Our main focus is to instill in them the skills for building a strong paragraph and also to learn how to reflect thought on "paper".

Our explorations teachers have been creating some really fun and engaging choice boards as well!  They have special instructions for submitting the work on their own Seesaw class.  Please follow their instructions at the top of the choice board.  We will be posting the Explorations choice boards in Seesaw, but will not create "activities" for them as those should be submitted on their Seesaw class.  If there are any questions regarding the Explorations choice boards, please email Ms. Angie at Angela.Laplante@sccpss.com.

http://internet.savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us/schools/Ellis/LE/Shared%20Documents/Lower%20Elementary%20Explorations%20Choice%20Board%20April%2020-May%201%20.pdf

Also, please remember that we have a reaccuring community meeting via Zoom every Monday at 11 am.  It is the same link and password every week.  That will be sent to your email every Monday morning via Transparent classroom so that you can have it handy.  Please reiterate with your children that we would like for them to make sure their face is in full view throughout the meeting, we ask that they are sitting (not laying down or walking around).  We also want them to refrain from using the chat option, as we have found that it is a distraction for some.  We are going to try something new this time to allow for some more share time amongst the students.  We will have what is called breakout rooms in Zoom, at the later part of the meeting.   There will be a teacher in each room.  Please be patient with us as we this will be our first time having breakout rooms and we are sure there will be kinks to work out.

Dates to Remember:
May 15, 2020----------Last Day of School (stay tuned for details on a celebration)

Weekly Newsletter Week of April 13

Hello Families!  We've all made it through another week!  We hope everybody was able to find some sort of rest and relaxation over this long weekend.  We also want to thank you all for doing your best in guiding your children through these times.  We know it's been challenging to say the least.

Choice Boards
This coming week we will continue with the same choice boards.  We ask that you guide your child to choose different activities they may not have gotten to, create their own extensions for the posted activities or chose a different extension (the language choice board activities had different choices/directions with which to take the activities), and the math choice board has seven activities to choose from.  They may also go back and make work they already turned in even better!  Also, if you find other engaging activities, go for it! 

The week after next we will introduce new choice boards, with a new theme, for math and language arts that will span two weeks!

Letter Exchange
We will be sending everyone a message with their pen pal's name and mailing address today, Sunday. We are so excited for this project!  Please remind your child that letters have a specific format that needs to be followed.

Seesaw

We have been enjoying seeing your children and their work on Seesaw!  We have just a few reminders regarding Seesaw.  

• Please help your child find the correct assignment to turn the work under. 
• When responding to a journaling prompt please remind them to begin with a topic sentence, add supporting details, and end with a conclusion (beginning, middle, and end).
• Before they turn in/upload and assignment they should ask themselves if they did their best work.  If they didn't, then they should not turn it in until they feel they gave their best effort. 
• Reading logs are to be turned in at the end of the week, not daily. 

Zoom

We will use the same link and password for or weekly community meeting.  We hope to see everybody again, and those that were unable to join us last week.  The link and password will be sent out via Transparent message that goes to your email Monday morning. 

Dates to Remember

May 15, 2020----------Last Day of School (stay tuned for details on a celebration)