Lovettsville Connection

October 2024

Mr. Lani's Monthly Article

RESPONSIVE INTERVENTION

Dear Parents,

An integral part of our instructional program centers around our ability to use reliable student academic data to make informed instructional decisions in real time. On a weekly basis, each grade level team meets with me for an hour to look at student data, unpack instructional standards, and plan for targeted instruction for those students who may require intervention in the areas of reading and math. We call this Responsive Instruction (RI). Responsive Instruction is one component of a Multi Tiered System of Supports provided to each child at our school.

For students who are identified as is need of intervention in reading or math, we provide targeted and specialized instruction to meet each student's individual skill deficit areas. We believe all children are capable of learning and growing and we are invested in the growth of your child. Responsive Intervention is provided during the school day in addition to, not in place of, your child's core instruction. All children receive core instruction in reading, writing, language arts, math, science, and social science. Responsive Instruction is provided in addition to core instruction and is delivered in small groups or even one on one as needed.

If your child has been identified as in need of Responsive Instruction in reading or math you will receive notification from your child's teacher by the end of the first marking period. Responsive instruction is tiered and intended to meet the needs of your individual child. Not all students require Responsive Instruction. For those students who do, their program will include the following components based upon their level of needs.

Students identified as in need of a moderate level of support will receive Responsive Instruction 2-3 days per week for 20 minutes per day in reading, math, or both.
Students identified as in need of a significant level of support will receive Responsive Instruction 5 days per week for at least 20 minutes per day in reading, math, or both.
Any student receiving this specialized instruction will have a targeted instructional goal written by their teacher and will be progress monitored on either a weekly or bi-weekly basis depending on their level of intervention as described above.
For students requiring specialized instruction in reading a reading plan must be developed in coordination with your child's teacher and the reading specialist. If your child requires a reading plan you will be invited to participate in the development of that plan.

We stand committed to continuing to be a school of academic excellence and our staff is committed to the growth and learning of your child. As always, if you have any questions about your child's learning or instructional program please reach out to your child's teacher.

Expecting Success For Lovettsville!

Daniel Lani

Principal

Principal's Coffee Talk

I am excited to invite you to join our first Principal's Coffee Talk. Coffee and treats will be provided! For our first Coffee Talk, Mr. Lani will present on our PBIS program and on how we support positive student behaviors. I hope you can join me on either November 7 at 6:00 PM or November 8 at 8:30 AM. Both presentations will be the same.

Happy Fall LOV Artists!

We had an amazing September and are so looking forward to bringing on all the fall themed art projects!

We have been busy finishing up the Art to Remember artwork for our Art Department fundraiser. LOV students have created beautiful works of art that will be photographed and emailed to each family. LOV families will have the opportunity to purchase items with their child’s artwork on it, and all items will arrive for holiday gifting. A portion of the proceeds will be given right back to our art department. Be on the lookout for future emails about our amazing fundraiser.

Here is what we are up to this month:

Kindergarten: We are creating the color orange and getting very messy! Remember to dress you child for the mess on art days… especially during the month of October!

1st Grade: 1st graders working on a very special fall project and learning about famous artist Yayoi Kusama and her dot pumpkins.

2nd Grade: 2nd graders have been mixing colors and watching the art magic happen! We are creating a fun fall tree project with bleeding tissue paper. Truly magical!

3rd Grade: 3rd graders have been learning all about famous Hispanic artists and celebrating Hispanic Heritage all month.

4th Grade: 4th graders are busy beginning their Elements of Art unit. We are finishing up our fun and calming LINE art projects.

5th Grade: 5th graders have been doing a wonderful job with their first still life drawing! I’m so proud of them and can’t wait to showcase ther artwork in the hallways.

Stay tuned for amazing fun fall art projects and more about our fall art fundraiser. : )

Sincerely,

Michelle Rancourt

LOV Art Teacher

Hello Lovettsville Families ~

It has been a pleasure visiting classrooms and getting to know our students during the month of September. Our classroom lessons focused on Introduction to the School Counselor, Building a Positive Growth Mindset, 5th Grade Leadership, and Growing Our Friendships Through Respect.

Please celebrate with us!

Monday, October 7th 2024

Join us to celebrate World Day of Bullying Prevention® Please wear BLUE clothing!

Please wear ORANGE clothing on Wednesday, October 16th for Unity Day!

LCPS will continue implementing the Second Step Bullying Prevention Curriculum district wide for elementary grades K-5 for the 2024-25 school year. The unit will be taught during our October and November classroom school counseling lessons. As you know from the Second Step SEL curriculum taught daily by our classroom teachers there are wonderful resources available for teaching and discussing these important topics at home. The school and home partnership is a vital component of successful bullying prevention. We appreciate your attention to the grade level family letters below with Second Step activation key codes (different for each grade level) so you can receive wonderful information to reinforce what is being taught in our upcoming lessons.

As always please feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns. Katherine.Routzahn@lcps.org or Stephanie.Kersten@lcps.org or 540-751-2470

Family Information Letters

Kindergarten: English Spanish

1st Grade: English Spanish

2nd Grade: English Spanish

3rd Grade: English Spanish

4th Grade: English Spanish

5th Grade: English Spanish

SAVE THE DATE!!!! Friday, March 28, 2025 is LOV Career Day!!

We are gathering information from parents and community members who may be interested in participating and sharing with our students. Please fill out this survey if you are interested in participating in our Career Day! https://forms.gle/iGLdebisnJL8rSk79

Monday, Oct. 7

Wednesday, Oct. 16

Library is in full swing at Lovettsville. Students in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade have been talking about making connections, book care, and being a good library citizen. Students in K-2 had an opportunity to do MakerSpace centers such as LEGO creations, Magnaforms, ABCs with the Bluebot, and a fall craft.

The students in grades 3-5 were shown how to use Destiny Discover, the online catalog of books that are available in the school library. Students also had the opportunity to explore MackinVIA and Comics Plus. MackinVIA is a collection of eBooks offered through the library. It can be found in LCPSGO. Comics Plus is a new database located in MackinVIA. This database offers a variety of graphic novels for students to enjoy. Students also had the opportunity to complete a digital breakout. The breakout combines math skills, reading, and critical thinking skills.

Several students in grades 3-5 completed the September Reading/Coloring Challenge. This is new this year. Each month a different challenge will be given out. The student will have the entire month to complete it. When they turn it in to the library, they will earn a free book and a prize from the treasure box!

The Scholastic Book Fair will be at LOV October 18-25. Family Night will be Tuesday October 22 from 3:00-6:00. Be on the lookout for more information about the book fair as well as how to sign up to volunteer at the book fair!

Remember, your student has library every week! We are also open in the morning before the bell for check outs.

Happy Reading!

What a great start to our school year! Students have been singing, playing, dancing, and composing music. In the month of October, students in Kindergarten and First grade are continuing to find their voice through vocal exploration activities and singing games. Students are also reinforcing steady beat in music and simple rhythms through body percussion activities and playing on instruments. Second-grade students are engaging in singing and rhythm games to reinforce new rhythm concepts in music. Third and Fourth-grade students will be learning to read complex rhythms for unpitched percussion instruments. Fifth-grade students will be continuing to work on music for their Veterans Day program.

ANNOUNCEMENT:

Veterans Day Music performance - Please join us on Monday, November 11th at 8:30 am as we honor our veterans and members of the armed forces. The performance will be held in the Lovettsville Elementary Gym and will feature our talented 5th-grade Bears.

Mr. Ford thanks all parents for your support of our music program! Please feel free to contact him anytime through email at antonio.ford@lcps.org !

The students have settled very nicely into the daily PE class routines of an exercise warm-up, brief skill practice, and then application of that skill into some fun games/activities. This month they will focus on overhand throwing, fitness concepts, fire safety and cooperation games.

Parents, we hope to see you at our “Family PE Week”. It is October 7-11. Your child’s class PE schedule is list below. We invite you to attend PE class with your child to play and see what PE is all about. Be sure to dress to move including tennis shoes!! See your child teacher for times.

A few reminders to help us all have the most fun:

· Students must wear sneakers to PE

· Shorts need to be worn under dresses.

· Dr. notes are required to be exempt from PE classes

· Outdoor PE classes will continue as the weather permits

Please contact Hugh.Brockway@lcps.org or William.Harris@lcps.org if you have any questions or concerns

Now that we are a few weeks into school I wanted to share what each Gifted program will look like here at Lovettsville.

SEARCH

SEARCH - K - 3rd Grade

I deliver interactive, bi-weekly lessons to all children in grades K-3. SEARCH lessons encourage students to take intellectual risks and to develop an excitement for learning and discovery across a variety of thinking skills. The curriculum spirals developmentally through five components: reasoning, perceiving, connecting, evaluating, and creating.

FUSION (FORMERLY FUTURA)

FUSION - 4th & 5th Grade

The school-based, collaborative FUSION program is a new model for delivering gifted services to formally identified 4th and 5th-grade gifted learners. FUSION, formerly FUTURA, provides gifted services for students at their home schools. I partner with classroom teachers to challenge gifted learners by enriching and extending the grade-level curriculum. In addition, gifted learners meet in the Innovation Lab for two-hour sessions to collaborate on a variety of challenging, project-based learning activities designed to integrate the five C's of 21st-century learning: Critical Thinking, Creativity, Communication, Collaboration, and Contribution to Real-World Problem-Solving.

This year's focused theme is INNOVATION. :)

DCI - DIFFERENTIATED CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION

DCI - 4th & 5th Grades

Beginning in Spring 2022, the LCPS Gifted Education Department added a new level of gifted services for 4th and 5th grade students. It is called Differentiated Classroom Instruction or DCI. Students who, during the gifted evaluation process, demonstrated exceptional performance in one domain, language arts or mathematics, were found in need of DCI in their area of strength. Students are identified for DCI mathematics and DCI language arts--or, on occasion, both domains.

I will meet weekly with DCI students to provide enrichment via deeper learning, rigor, and hands-on, project-based learning.

EDGE - EMPOWERING DIVERSITY IN GIFTED EDUCATION

EDGE - 2nd - 5th Grades

The EDGE program’s mission is to identify, nurture, and challenge high-potential students who have been historically underrepresented in LCPS advanced academic and gifted programs. The classroom and gifted resource teachers work in tandem to promote academic rigor, to foster a growth mindset, and to prepare these young learners for more challenging and rigorous academic pathways.

EDGE takes place in the Innovation Lab.

In today’s digital age, introducing computer science (CS) to young learners is more important than ever. Computer science integration has numerous benefits, including helping to develop critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving skills. By fostering an early interest in computer science, we are setting our students up for success in an increasingly digital world.

In order to provide students with the tools and experiences they need to thrive in this technology-driven world, grade level teams and I collaborated to come up with at least one idea to integrate computer science into the 2nd quarter. Students are already buzzing with excitement and asking when they are going to use robots, our Lego kits, or Minecraft for Education because these hands-on activities and innovative tools can help make learning more engaging and fun.

The CS tools we have available at Lovettsville include:

Blue Bot: These friendly, programmable robots help students understand basic coding concepts. By inputting simple commands, students can navigate Blue Bot through mazes and challenges, fostering problem-solving skills and logical thinking.
Ozobot: With Ozobot, students can draw paths and color codes that the robot follows. This introduces them to the fundamentals of programming in a creative and visually appealing way.
iRoot Robot: This versatile robot allows students to explore coding through different levels of complexity, from simple drag-and-drop interfaces to more advanced coding languages. It’s a great way to cater to students’ varying skill levels.
Makey Makey: This inventive kit turns everyday objects into touchpads, teaching students about circuits and conductivity. It’s a fantastic way to blend creativity with technology, encouraging students to think outside the box.
Minecraft for Education: This popular game-based learning platform allows students to build and explore virtual worlds while learning coding, problem-solving, and collaboration skills.
CS First with Google: This program offers a variety of themed coding projects that make learning computer science accessible and fun. Students can create stories, games, and animations while developing their coding skills.
Lego Spike Kits: Combining the beloved Lego bricks with programmable elements, these kits allow students to build and code their own robots and machines. It’s a hands-on way to learn about engineering and computer science.

We are excited to see our students’ enthusiasm for computer science grow as they engage with these innovative tools. By integrating computer science into our elementary curriculum, we are not only enhancing their learning experience but also equipping them with essential skills for the future. Stay tuned for more updates on our computer science adventures!

Hello Lovettsville Elementary Families! Happy Fall🍁

The first part of October is the last half of “Hispanic Heritage Month”. I will continue sharing stories from our library weekly to honor these Americans.

“Culture Corner” has already started with so many children volunteering to share their unique family and cultural traditions. Every Friday we are sharing this special segment. The form children will need to fill out to get on the morning show for this segment are below. Parents, if you would like to come and share with your children during Culture Corner, please reach out to me!

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me at rhorton@lcps.org.

Thank you again for your support!

Printable form

Google form

LCPS Commitment to Equity

LCPS centers equity as one of its foundational core values. For our community, equity means being committed to providing a safe, supportive, inclusive, affirming, and respectful environment for each student and staff member that fosters success, growth, and academic rigor.

The cultivation of this environment requires us to reject and condemn the use of hate speech, racial slurs,antisemitism, and any action or behavior that discriminates based on race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, orientation, gender expression, socio-economic status, religion, ability, or other cultural identities or expression. Such noninclusive speech, behavior, and actions do not reflect who we are as a learning community.

We embrace and value the unique identities, backgrounds, experiences, perspectives, and needs of each student and employee. Celebrating our diversity is important and helps define us as a school division. Demonstrating the courage to address inequities and remove barriers represents an integral part of our collective effort towards excellence in education. Equity is the vehicle that leads to greater access, opportunity, and equality so that each student is

empowered to make meaningful contributions to the world.

October 2 - PTO Meeting (LOV library)

October 2 - Custodian Appreciation Day

October 3 - No School

October 4 - No Schools

October 5 - Photo Fundraiser

October 7-11 - Family P.E. Week

October 7 - Wear Blue for Bullying Awareness

October 14 - No School

October 16 - Wear Orange for Unity Day

October 18 - 50th Anniversary Celebration

October 21-25 - Book Fair

October 21-25 - Spirit Week

October 22 - Family Night at the Book Fair

October 23 - Bus Driver Appreciation Day

October 25 - Spooktacular

October 30 - No School

October 31 - No School

We are reviving the WatchDOGS Program for LES dads!

WatchD.O.G.S. (Dads Of Great Students) are fathers, grandfathers, uncles, and other father-figures who volunteer for a day at the school at least one day each year (or as many as you'd like!). During the day, WatchDOGS will greet the students coming off the busses in the morning, help teachers with things like reading, ﬂash cards, etc, eat lunch with students, play at recess, and any other assigned activities where they actively engage with students. On the day of their participation, WatchDOGS are provided a schedule for the day, an official WATCH D.O.G.S. shirt, and may even get a shoutout on the morning show to let all the students know you’re there for the day.

You can read more about the program here: https://dadsofgreatstudents.com/about/

If you’re interested (or know someone who is!), please contact Spiro Ballas at spirob7@gmail.com

Lovettsville Elementary

Email: daniel.lani@lcps.org
Website: lcps.org/lovettsville
Location: 49 S Loudoun St, Lovettsville, VA, USA
Phone: 540-751-2470
Twitter: @LovettsvilleES