The Sylvan Sunday Swoop
Week 24 Edition
Week 24: Blue Jays Continue to Soar!
Greetings Sylvan Blue Jay Families!
Last week was amazing as we celebrated our Blue Jays being 100 Days Smarter on the 100th Day of School! Our teachers and staff felt the love as we celebrated our bus drivers for "Love the Bus" week and also Mt. Zion Baptist Church fed all of our staff for our Duty Free Lunch on Friday! We are so thankful for all of the love and support we receive from our community!
This week we will continue to focus on our students growing their skills through small group and whole group instruction as students review their data and discuss with their teachers how to continue their growth!
👀Looking for Volunteers to cover for Duty Free Lunches on February 21st from 10:30-1:00 Please sign up here.
SRO Appreciation Day (2/15)
Saturday (2/15) was National School Resource Officer Appreciation Day. We are so appreciative of all that Deputy Flood does for our school. She builds relationships with our students and families, supports our community, and ensures safety on campus. We could not be successful without Deputy Flood!
Our district's number one goal is to operate schools as safely and effectively as possible, following the published annual school calendar schedule as closely as possible. When there is inclement weather forecast for Alamance County, ABSS is prepared to make adjustments to schedules as needed which may include announcing a later arrival time, an early dismissal time, possible school closure or a remote learning day.
Three Options:
Closed for all students & staff
Closed for all students, staff workday
Delayed Opening/Early Dismissal
Making decisions about closing or delaying school and bus transportation schedules when inclement weather is imminent for our community are among the most challenging ones every school district makes. But, we don't make these important safety decisions alone.
ABSS is in close contact with the National Weather Service about their forecast predictions and with local emergency management officials who also monitor the national weather information and North Carolina Office of Emergency Management forecasts about impending weather conditions.
In addition to consulting with weather and emergency management experts, ABSS performs late night and/or early morning visual inspections and assessments of actual road and weather conditions. We gather input from experienced staff with Alamance County Emergency Management, local law enforcement agencies, North Carolina Department of Transportation and Duke Energy. Our experienced ABSS Facilities and Maintenance staff members and our Transportation experts have years of experience and knowledge in identifying potential issues and potential trouble spots.
Assessments are made on road and bridge conditions in addition to inspecting our multiple campus parking lots, sidewalks and steps to determine if we can operate safely and effectively on a regular or modified schedule.
When a schedule change is needed, notifications to families and staff are made as quickly as possible and include automated messaging notifications via phone, email, and text messaging, the ABSS website, and social media posts and alerts shared with multiple TV and radio stations across the region.
Announcements and Communications to Staff and Families
If at all possible, a decision to close or delay school is made no later than 5:00 a.m., and the notification process begins, within minutes, in the following order:
An email is sent to all ABSS email accounts
Announcement is posted on the district website and all school websites
Local TV and radio stations are also contacted
ABSS reserves the right to designate any workday, vacation day or Saturday as a student day (including spring break) as needed for inclement weather makeup.
👀Looking for Volunteers to cover for Duty Free Lunches on February 21st from 10:30-1:00 Please sign up here.
In order to volunteer on our campus we have a few steps that must be taken before this can happen.
1. Please complete a background check for the district by clicking here. This is the same background check you complete to attend/chaperone field trips.
2. Please complete this form linked here to share with us your best form of contact, availability, and areas that you are comfortable volunteering in.
SHOUTOUT to Kindergarten and 4th Grade for having an attendance average higher than our goal (94%) last week!
Kindergarten- 95.2%
4th Grade- 94.2%
Last week, our attendance average was UP to 91.5% which was a increase of 0.6% from the previous week of 90.9%. Let's stay focused Blue Jays and remember the school is a priority! Remember our goal for the year is to have an average of 94%.
Let's continue focus on being at school every day this week. We would love to have another 100% attendance day and many more days with no late students to celebrate. We look forward to seeing our students daily and helping them learn and grow. Let's keep making attendance a priority! Remember: If you have barriers preventing you from getting your child to school, please reach out to our wonderful School Social Worker, Ms. Kristine Hahn at kristine_hahn@abss.k12.nc.us
Is your Blue Jay Soaring Up outside of school? If your Blue Jay Student is doing great things in the community and would like for us to share it in the newsletter, please email those details to Mrs. Hamilton at bethany_hamilton@abss.k12.nc.us
Please note: In accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, I can only share good news about your personal student. If you are wanting to share good news about multiple students, each students' parent/guardian must reach out to me and grant permission to share good news from outside of the school day!
- School begins at 7:50 a.m. for ALL students Pre-K-5. If you arrive after 7:50, you must park and walk in with your students to sign them in before they can go to class.
- School ends at 2:35 p.m.
- If you are signing your students out early (before 2:00 p.m.), you must go inside the front office and check them out. If you arrive early, but after 2:00 p.m., to sign your child out, you must wait until the dismissal announcements are made at 2:35 p.m. We appreciate your cooperation with this matter!
- Families may come to eat lunch with your students. Please reach out to your child's teacher 24 hours in advance to let them know you are coming so they can plan for seating. Remember: NO OUTSIDE FOOD OR DRINK MAY BE BROUGHT IN (in advertised packaging). Upon arrival, please sign in at the front office and get a visitor's tag.
- During the afternoon dismissal, all parents/guardians picking up in the car rider line, must have their student's assigned yellow number card visible on the dash or in the window. If you do not have a car rider tag, you will need to park in the overflow lot across the street and come in with your ID to get your student. This is a safety precaution to ensure that ALL students are going home with someone who has permission to pick them up. No passing is allowed in the car rider line. The safety of our Blue Jays is a priority.
- Please note: Traffic turning left into the car rider line cannot block the oncoming traffic on Sylvan Rd. per the Highway Patrol. Please utilize the overflow parking circle to turn around so that you can turn right into the car rider line drop-off.
Transportation Changes
Beginning Monday, September 16th, we will no longer accept transportation changes via email or Class Dojo. All transportation changes must be communicated on the google form linked here. You can also scan the QR code to access the form. Keep in mind that if you child is riding home with another child, this change must be communicated by BOTH parents/guardians. All transportation changes must be communicated on this form no later than 1:00 pm.
Preferred Name
Families, please use the linked form OR scan the QR code to indicate the preferred name for your student. For instance, if your student is named Daniel and you prefer for them to be called Danny, indicate that on the linked form. This is in accordance with North Carolina State Law (S.L. 2023-106; Senate Bill 49) Section 115C-76.45.(5).
Absentee Notes
If you need to submit a note or doctor's note for your student's absence, please use the form linked here. Please note, per board policy, notes must be submitted within 2 school days of the absences. Sylvan will not accept notes after 7 days (1 week).
Blue Jays Before & After School Program
Blue Jay's before and after-school program is designed to provide a safe and supportive environment for children to complete their homework and engage in fun, educational activities. Click here to register or scan the QR Code.
PowerSchool Parent Portal/App Support
Webpage: https://www.abss.k12.nc.us/o/abss/page/parent-information-portal
PowerSchool Overview video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPyZ1xP1MrE
PowerSchool Back to School Forms video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW9tfkFY1Ss
If you are having trouble logging in or accessing your account, fill out the forms below, and our Enrollment Team will assist you.
ABSS Code of Conduct
Please know that we take every incident reported seriously and we investigate to the fullest extent possible. Sylvan does not tolerate inappropriate behaviors of any kind. We are also including the link to the District’s Code of Conduct here. While each of you are familiar with our school handbooks, we wanted to make sure you had access to the District’s Code of Conduct that guides our decisions with consequences. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to our administrative team.
Sylvan Student Handbook
Scan the QR Code or click here to access the 24-25 Copy of the Sylvan Elementary Student Handbook.
We are still in need of bus drivers, although our amazing bus drivers and transportation staff are stepping up and making it work. We are looking for parents, guardians, and/or community members that might be interested in driving a bus. Even if you can only do mornings, evenings, one day a week, etc, it will help us out tremendously. The district provides FREE CDL classes!
Here is the website with all the information. https://www.abss.k12.nc.us/page/bus-classes
If there are any questions, please email chad_aharon@abss.k12.nc.us
GOAL 1: 3-5 EOG Proficiency Goal
An important school improvement goal this year is to increase the percentage of students in 3rd-5th grade who show proficiency on the NC EOG by 7%. In the 23-24 School Year we had 43.8% show proficiency. By June of 2025 we would love to have 50.8% or more show proficiency. We believe in our teachers, staff, and students that we can reach and maybe even surpass this goal.
Our Action Steps to Achieving this Goal:
- All K-5 Teachers will participate in Professional Learning monthly during PLC time for Whole Group Reading with ABSS Unit Maps.
- All K-5 Teachers will implement best practices for reading instruction consistently and with fidelity.
- All K-5 Teachers will provide strategic daily small group instruction.
- Teachers in grades 3-5 will have "Breakfast Brunch" groups to work with students on building their capacity with reading and math skills from 7:30-7:50, 3 days a week.
Your Action Steps at Home:
The NC EOGs are standardized tests. Standardized testing assesses students' strengths and allows teachers to determine which topics need attention. Students in 3rd and 4th grade will take EOGs in reading and math. Students in 5th grade will take EOGs in science, reading, and math.
Here is how you can help your child with this at home:
Standardized tests can measure the knowledge your student has gained in the classroom, plus life skills such as critical thinking and comprehension.
Before the Test
Standardized testing is different than typical classroom testing. Luckily, you have the whole school year to prepare. The following tips can help your student confidently enter their standardized testing session.
Understand the Test Format
Understanding standardized test structure will give a student an idea of what to expect. These tests often include various question types, including multiple-choice, drag and drop and gridded response.
Parents should help students review specific subjects before evaluation. You can also discuss strategies such as quickly moving on to the next question to save time when they do not know an answer.
Try Some Study Techniques for Standardized Tests
Here are a few tips for effective studying for standardized tests:
- Study for a few hours every day.
- Get enough sleep the day before the test.
- Practice reading comprehension.
- Create a study schedule to balance practice time and your regular studies and family time.
Some standardized assessments provide practice tests. Students can use these tools to become familiar with the test process. Let your student know that those exact questions won’t appear on the tests so they don’t waste time memorizing specific questions and answers. To access released NC EOG tests and practice at home, click here.
Use a Timer
Since standardized tests often have multiple timed sections, it’s a good idea to have your student take a practice test with a timer. You can also use a timer to see how long it takes your child to complete specific sections and use this as a baseline to help them lower their times with each practice run.
Test Day Tips
When the day of the test arrives, it’s normal for your student to feel nervous. Here are some testing tips they can follow.
Try to Help Your Student Manage Anxiety
If your learner feels anxious, that’s OK. Encourage them to use the following tips to handle anxiety:
- Try relaxation techniques.
- Close your eyes and breathe deeply.
- Get enough sleep each night.
- Exercise to ease stress and tension.
- Speak to a parent or teacher for help.
Follow Test Day Best Practices
Use these guidelines to prepare your student for the big day:
- Eat a healthy meal before the test.
- Have snacks and water on hand for energy.
- Get to school on time.
Plan Break Time for Your Student After the Test
Continue supporting your child after they complete the standardized test to recognize their accomplishment.
Because standardized tests can be stressful, plan some unstructured free time after school for your child do relax. Whatever hobby or activity they choose to do after their test, make sure they leave the testing space for a change of scenery so they can return feeling refreshed.
Reflect on the Results
Depending on the standardized test your student completes, you may have to wait a days or months to receive the results. During the waiting period, you can ask your student how they thought the test went and if they had trouble with any specific concepts or questions.
Once their results arrive, take the time to sit down with your child and go over their score together. As you review the report, you can use it to identify any future growth areas and set goals with your student.
During the reflection period, you should also take the time to recognize the hard work your child has put into the school year and express that you’re proud of them for completing the test regardless of their final score.
Standardized Testing Resources and Support
Click the links below to access these resources.
Understanding Assessment: Resources for Parents
Khan Academy- A great resources for students to practice with curriculum content at home.
It's a Muscle! 7 Effective Strategies for Test-Taking Skills
GOAL 2: K-2 Reading Proficiency Goal
One of our school improvement goals this year is to increase our reading proficiency (fluency, comprehension, decoding, etc). Early intervention in the younger grades is critical to ensure we are able to support our students as we grow each year. Below are our specific goals for our youngest learning in grades (K-2).
By June 2025, 80% of students in grades K will be at grade level proficiency as measured by mClass. At the end of the 23-24 school year, we had 77% of our Kindergarten students on grade level.
By June 2025, 70% of students in grades 1st will be at grade level proficiency as measured by mClass. At the end of the 23-24 school year, we had 67% of our 1st grade students on grade level.
By June 2025, 65% of students in grades 2nd will be at grade level proficiency as measured by mClass. At the end of the 23-24 school year, we had 62% of our 2nd grade students on grade level.
Our Action Steps to Achieving these Goals:
- All K-2 teachers will provide strategic daily small group instruction.
- All K-2 teachers will provide daily Fundations and Heggerty whole group lessons with fidelity.
- The school will use Title I funding to supplement with materials needed to support early literacy.
- All K-2 teachers will progress monitor quarterly Nonsense Word Fluency and Correct Letter Sounds.
Your Action Steps at Home:
Read to or with your child for at least 20 minutes every night.
Log your reading on Beanstack,
Listen to your child read.
Identify letters, sounds, and familiar words in your environment (environmental print ex: McDonalds sign, road signs, store signs, etc).
Practice writing at home.
If you would like to explore more early literacy resources, click the links below.
1st Grade Family Involvement Guide
GOAL 3: Attendance Goal
Another school improvement goal this year will be to increase our average daily attendance to 94% or higher. While we know life can be hectic, we want to emphasize the importance of students being on time, being present, and ready to learn.
Our Action Steps to Achieving this Goal:
- Teachers and/or Staff will make contact with families after 3, 6, and 10 absences.
- Monthly attendance averages will be posted by the cafeteria.
- Attendance policies/procedures were shared with families in the beginning of the year and communicated throughout the year as needed.
- The school social worker will have monthly attendance challenges.
- Student with chronic attendance issues will set attendance goals to work towards.
Your Action Steps at Home:
Prioritize school and talk positively with your child about the benefits of being at school everyday.
Set up nightly routines for bedtimes and waking on time for school.
Reach out to the school's Student Support Services Team if you have barriers keeping you from getting your child to and from school.
Students who are chronically absent--meaning they miss at least 15 days of school in a year--are at serious risk of falling behind in school. Missing a day of school here and there may not seem like much but absences add up!
When a student misses 2 days a month:
- they will miss 20 days a year.
- they will miss 30 hours or more of math over the school year.
- they will miss 60 hours or more of reading and writing over the school year.
- they will miss over 1 year of school by graduation.
When a student misses 4 days a month:
- they will miss 40 days a year.
- they will miss 60 hours or more of math over the school year.
- they will miss 120 hours of more of reading & writing over the school year.
- they will miss over 2 years of school by graduation.
Lateness=Lost Learning
Students who are late or tardy are also greatly affected too. Every minute counts!
- 5 minutes late each day = 3 days lost!
- 10 minutes late each day = 6.5 days lost!
- 15 minutes late each day = 10 days lost!
- 20 minutes late each day = 13 days lost!
- 30 minutes late each day = 19 days lost!
We want our families to know that we are here for you as partners in your child's education and we are here to support their success. We feel strongly that their success starts with their attendance. This school year we will be implementing the attendance flowchart below to notify and work with families when we are concerned about attendance. We are here to help, so please do not hesitate to reach out!
