I am honored and humbled to be your principal. For the past two weeks, I've seen magic. Magic in your smiles, exploration, and commitment to this calling of being a TEACHER! Then, we saw BIG smiles and BRIGHT eyes as our children came back. The Park Street Magic is alive & well! You, Park Street Staff & Students are MY WHY!

As we begin this first full week of school and wade into sound instructional practice, let us continue to strive for excellence, support one another, and achieve our individual and collective goals. Your dedication inspires me daily, and I am committed to serving you with integrity and passion.

Please welcome our newest staff member this week!

• Mirium Gitau: She has over 20 years of experience in Special Education.
• Dr. Gitau will be in our SID unit.
• Please welcome her to Park Street.

Take the time to review everything, and always reach out if you have any questions. Thank you for all that you do.

Sawubona!

Alex

• Your contract is 7:30 AM - 3:30 AM. We continue to allow 7:50 arrival. Ensure you are arriving no later than 7:50.
• Academic instruction begins at the end of the morning announcements!
• Doors open at 8:00 AM
• Students should go to breakfast first
• Have academic warm-up activities to be keep students engaged during arrival and breakfast time.
• Academic instructions begins at 8:40
• Wit & Wisdom: Give yourselves GRACE! We're looking for preparation & organization - NOT perfection. We are learning this together. A lot of the unanswered questions will be answered with time and from experience - FROM EACHOTHER!
• Kindergarten G-Kids Readiness Assessment Begins
• ESOL Screeners
• Sweep team Structured Lit assessments (End of day Aug. 16th)
• Ensure you are reviewing and completing tasks (if applicable) on the Beginning of Year Checklist.
• Complete your REQUIRED Compliance Acknowledgement from MCS HR.
• Please advise if you have not received this email.
• Staff Meetings:
  
• All staff meeting dates have been added to the master calendar.
• One Tuesday a month
• All staff meetings are required.
• Plan accordingly!

Monday, Aug. 5th:

• Kindergarten: G-Kids Readiness
• PS Sweep Team: K-5 Literacy Assessments
• 1st semester orders due to Brenda
• District/State Count Day #2

Tuesday, Aug. 6th:

• Kindergarten: G-Kids Readiness
• PS Sweep Team: K-5 Literacy Assessments
• Beginning of Year Staff Meeting: 3:45-4:45

Wednesday, Aug. 7th:

• Kindergarten: G-Kids Readiness
• PS Sweep Team: K-5 Literacy Assessments
• District/State Count Day # 3

Thursday, Aug. 8th:

• Fire Drill [AM]
• Kindergarten: G-Kids Readiness
• PS Sweep Team: K-5 Literacy Assessments
  Carrie & Idris: district assessment meeting at CO (out of building AM)
  

Friday, Aug. 9th:

• SGT: 9:00-10:00
• Kindergarten: G-Kids Readiness
• PS Sweep Team: K-5 Literacy Assessments

I ask that all Park Street Staff Members join PTA. They work hard to support teachers and students!

Only $10.

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PSC CERTIFICATES

• Please remember to place your PSC certificate in my mailbox.

STAFF ABSENCES

• Please remember to text/call 770.630.6876 (Carrie) any time if you get ill at last notice.
• Complete “green sheet” for ANY absence reason.

I hope this message finds you well and ready for the week ahead. I am looking forward to supporting your success. Your hard work and dedication have been truly appreciated.

Regarding safety, I am addressing Crisis Go application issues and emphasize the importance of vigilant monitoring and reviewing emergency procedures.

Please let me know how I can assist you better.

Some things to remember regarding students with a Disability:

• We Don't make assumptions regarding a students ability.
• Eligibility does not Determine Placement.
• ALL students are general education students first.
• Some students require special education and aid and services to access and benefit from general education similarly to their peers.

“A student is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our schools. He is a part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so “ - Gandi paraphrased

You are off to a great start just remember the steps to success and the Power of YET!!!

Wit and Wisdom Logins: Wit and Wisdom Logins are live. You can access through https://digital.greatminds.org/login and then click google login. Let me know if you have any difficulty logging in. The demo login is still live. The Great Minds icon will be available on Clever in the near future as well.

SDI Resources: Robyn Magnussen and a team of special educators worked on developing Wit and Wisdom resources for SPED teachers. You will see these resources linked in the bottom of each of the curriculum planners. You will see three exemplar lesson resources for Specially Designed Instruction as well as other general resources.

Parent Connection: Sara Kany created sample blurbs for K-5 Module 1 linked here. Feel free to include that blurb in your parent newsletter to share what the grade level is currently studying. Curriculum docs will also be available on the district website per the Parent Bill of Rights.

RESOURCE ROOMS

The Reading Specialists are excited to announce that starting Monday, 8/5, teachers can come to room 106 or 313 to check-out any phonics or knowledge-based books that they might need.

• In room 106, you will find materials for grades K-3 that align to your Wit and Wisdom units as well as Geodes.
• In room 313, you will find materials for grades 4-5 that align to your Wit and Wisdom units as well as decodable book sets arranged by phonics skill.
• Below is a picture of room 313 to show you what materials you might find:

Teachers are welcome to come by at any time to grab what they need. All we ask is that you sign materials in and out using the “Book Room Resource Sign-out” sheet pictured below.

You will find this sheet in each of the two rooms. The location of that sheet is circled in yellow in the picture above. When you return materials, if you cannot remember where you got that resource, please feel free to leave it on the empty bin near the sign-out sheet and we will put those back for you!

We are excited to share these resources with you. If you have any questions or are looking for a resource, please don’t hesitate to come by our rooms or email us. We are happy to help.

The Benefits of Math Vocabulary Word Walls:

• Reinforcement of Key Concepts: They help reinforce key math terms and concepts that students are learning. Seeing these terms regularly helps students remember and understand them better.
• Building Math Literacy: Vocabulary walls contribute to building math literacy by familiarizing students with the specific language used in math. This is crucial for understanding word problems, following instructions, and communicating mathematical ideas.
• Supporting Diverse Learners: They provide visual support for students who may struggle with language or who are English Language Learners (ELLs). Seeing the words and their definitions or examples can aid in comprehension.
• Encouraging Independence: Vocabulary walls encourage students to become more independent learners. Instead of always asking the teacher for definitions, they can refer to the wall to find the information they need.
• Creating an Engaging Environment: A vocabulary wall can make the classroom more engaging and interactive. It can be a place where students actively contribute by adding words, they find challenging or new terms they encounter.
• Integrating Multiple Subjects: Math vocabulary walls can integrate literacy with math instruction, showing students how language and math are interconnected and reinforcing the idea that strong reading skills are important for understanding math.
• Assessment and Review: They can be used as tools for informal assessment and review. Teachers can refer to the vocabulary wall to quiz students, review concepts, or prompt discussions.

The newsletter includes:

• An overview of the changes in the K-5 math curriculum
• A daily pacing guide with selected lessons
• Links to resources for aligning lessons with the new math instructional framework
• Additional tips and tools to support lesson planning and instruction

Monthly Grade Level Guide

The expectation for the Monthly Grade Level Guide is for teams, including support staff, to complete it together by 3:00 PM Friday of each week. It is located on the One Pager under Instructional Support. When you click the link, it will take you to the Panther Hour folder. Your document will be in your grade level folder. Please be sure to leave the document in this location so admin can easily access it. If you are a support staff member, please type a short blurb for each classroom you serve.

Sweep Team

As a reminder, the Sweep Team will be administering the BOY SoR Assessments this week. The link above will indicate what Sweep Team members will support your grade level. Please let Courtney or Stormi know if you have any questions or concerns.

Having a fun and functional classroom starts with building a strong foundation. Here’s how to be very intentional about the routines you set up—and give students a chance to practice them authentically.

Great things happening at Park Street.

Sawubona (I See You) Shout outs can come from anyone to anyone.

• Jocelyn Sebastian: Having great connections with friends and donating many Spanish book titles for our DLI Spanish teachers.
• Vanessa Barrios: The endless phone calls and registering all the families with the new system!
• Elena Prestwood: Contributing your Spanish skills to helping families with lunch applications. Thank you for pivoting!
• Madeline Kuranda: Thank you for answering every question and more! You are a great team lead!
  

• First Grade and all involved: What a great first 2 days!! Y'all are the best grade level ❤️.
• Daniela Salado: Congrats on an awesome first few days!!! You did AWESOME YAY.
• Marilyn Gonzalez: What a perfect partner teacher 🙂 ❤️ We are going to have a wonderful year.

• Kat Staphylaris & Beth Kinney: Making the car rider line safer with your painting skills.
• Shannon Carter: Taking your time to make the stencil for our Panther Paws. THANK YOU!
• Amanda Cobb: Being the faithful leader of the car rider tags to ensure safety for all our families!
• Car & Bus Rider AM/PM Teams: For braving the heat and humidity!

• Tressa Banks: All of her students happily & highly engaged on a writing task! Raising the bar for what SHOULD BE EXPECTED - IS EXPECTED!

• Shelby Baker: Day 2 - Introducing students to different types of graphs and having students discuss and create!

• Jocelyn Sebastian: Students having fun organizing their Wit & Wisdom notebooks to ensure she's ready to begin next week!

• Jessica Rosales: Engaged in small group instruction and support: Students writing "All About Me!" in Spanish

• Courtney Brown: For helping a colleague in need. The smallest and kindest gestures leave the biggest impact.

• Staff Members who have paid their Sun Shine dues! Thank you!

• Courtney Oz, Stormi Johnson, Elizabeth Martinez, Asha Armstrong, and Sharon Worley: Amazing help during Sneak-A-Peek at the PTA table. We broke the PARENT PTA Membership record for this time last year and almost SOLD OUT of all remaining Spirit Wear!

• OFFICE STAFF, 1ST GRADE, and EIP team for having 100% PTA membership. It's not too late, please JOIN TODAY!

Email Mr. Soto to add your Sawubona to the MMM.