Weekly Hoots

Dear Wise Owls Family,

We are geared to welcome another aWESome week at WES! Last week was outstanding, we welcomed over 450 grandparents/parents/guardians/family members over our 2 Grandparent Lunches. We held our Curriculum Night, inviting over 400 families from Preschool - 5th Grade to visit their Wise Owls' classrooms and get a sense of a day in the life at WES.

We are excited about this week with our first early release day on Friday, September 20th. Our early release days provide our faculty and staff much needed opportunity to plan, to receive professional development, and to prepare for the remainder of this quarter.

We are also more than excited to welcome our new faculty:

• Brianna Lovergine - New CERDEP Lead Teacher from Cane Bay Elementary School
• Brittany Miner - New CERDEP Assistant from Cane Bay Elementary School
• Amanda Nairn - New Kindergarten Teacher from Nexton Elementary School
• Sarita Goods - New 1st Grade teacher who is joining WES after serving as a certified substitute for multiple years
• Stephanie Rose - New 2nd Grade Teacher from Boulder Bluff Elementary School
  
• Madison Reed - New 4th Grade Teacher from Mount Holly Elementary School

Our process for adding new classes during the school year.

• Our administrators and coaches have built our new classes utilizing student data to include (but not limited to) test scores, behavioral data, and (current) teacher feedback. We will be sharing rosters for a final look with our teachers on Monday and we will be communicating with families on Monday, September 16th.
• Our new teachers are currently on campus and will be setting up their classrooms to welcome their new students, plan with their teams, and getting familiar with WES.
• On Wednesday, September 18th, our new teachers will welcome half of their students to begin building relationships, sharing expectations, and building their classroom community.
• On Thursday, September 19th, our new teachers will welcome the second half of their students to also begin building relatinoships, sharing expectations, and building their classroom community.
• On Friday, September 20th, we will welcome our families into the classrooms to meet their student's new teachers from 7:30 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.

Although we are not adding teachers to 3rd and 5th grade, we will be looking to moving students given our current class sizes.

Our process for supporting student moves.

• Our school counselors, teachers, coaches, and administrators will be available to support our students and families with the move to new classes.

Moving students during the school year is not ideal, and we are aware of the questions and concerns; however, we are excited that we have highly qualified educators joining our staff and that we are able to put forth a plan to support our teachers and students throughout the process.

B. Gantt

#AllforONE!

Our mission is to cultivate a caring community that utilizes a multitude of teaching and learning experiences to prepare children for their next adventure.

1. We believe that everyone deserves to feel safe, valued, and appreciated.
2. We believe that all children deserve a high quality education.
3. We believe in collaboration and making connections.

Staying Safe

Owning Your Actions

Acting Responsibly

Respecting Everyone & Everything

Sunday, September 15th

1st Day of Hispanic Heritage Month

September 19th

Dress Like a Pirate Day

September 20th

Early Release Day for Students

Dismissal is at 10:50 a.m. - There is no Owl's Nest

Wednesday, September 25th

Watch D.O.G.S. Night (5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.)

Monday, September 30th

Monday Morning Parliament

International Talk Like A Pirate Day is a parody holiday annually held on September 19. Celebrated for the first time in 1995, the fun holiday encourages people to talk and dress like the sea plunderers of yesteryears.

All of our Wise Owls are encouraged to come to school dressed like a pirate, mermaid, merman, or sea creature 🦜 to celebrate WES's first Pirate Day! In accordance with our district policies, weapons (real and/or fake) are not permitted on school campus. Please refrain from sending students with swords or different accessories (weapons) that are normally associated with pirates.

Tuesday, October 8th - Thursday, October 10th

CogAT Testing

Thursday, October 10th

PTO Meeting

End of Quarter 1

Friday, October 11th

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Saturday, October 12th

PTO-Sponsored Fall Carnival @ WES

We are the FIRST SCHOOL IN THE ENTIRE LOWCOUNTRY to be a part of Run Hard, an 8-week after school program to prepare our students to run (or walk) a 5K race. Click the link on the image (below) for more information. It's a great way for our students to set goals and get fit 🏃. If you are interested in volunteering as a coach, please let me know asap (email me 😁).

Our students will participate in the 5K run at the Reindeer Run in Charleston on Saturday, December 14th. Once we recruit at least 4 more schools, we (the schools) will be able to host our own 5K. This is going to be A LOT of fun and support our Health & Wellness initiative.

Sign Up is $90 per student. The sign up cost covers all Run Hard swag and entry into the Reindeer Run.

RUNNER REGISTRATION OPENS - September 1st @ 8AM
REGISTRATION CLOSES - October 7th @ midnight
FIRST WEEK - October 14th

RACE DATE: December 14, 2024
Location: Reindeer Run - downtown Charleston. *program participation fee includes entry into the 5k*
Start Time: 8:00 AM

Do you think you have a student that could be gifted in any of the arts? Please sign them up for STEP auditions coming in January 2025. The forms will be open from Aug. 23 through Nov. 22 to accept nominations.

The Special Talent Enrichment Program (STEP) serves Berkeley County School District students in grades four through 12 who have been identified through auditions as gifted in dance, music, theatre, visual art and creative writing. The program currently consists of a two-week summer session and Saturday programs at Goose Creek High School. Middle school STEP students are also eligible to enroll at Marrington Middle School of the Arts.

AUDITION REGISTRATION

FULL STEP DESCRIPTION

If there is a change of transportation, a note with a parent/guardian's signature MUST be provided. Any student that tells staff that his or her parent/guardian told them to go home by another means will not be honored. For the safety of our students, a change in transportation must be submitted in writing to the student's teacher AND to the Front Office.

To ensure that our students remain safe while off-campus, we are asking families to purchase a WES School Spirit Shirt. Students will be able to wear their School Spirit Shirt on all of their Field Studies which has our 2024-25 AllforONE! logo and our school's contact information (on the front of the shirt). Also, 100% of the proceeds will go back in our field trip budget to ensure that we can keep costs down for families.

Shirts cost $10

Order your shirt using the link below

*shirts will come white with the blue logo or blue with the white logo

Show your school spirit and support our students by grabbing your WES Car Magnet! Every purchase helps fund exciting programs and activities, enriching your child's school experience. Plus, you are showcasing your WES pride in your community. Join us in making a difference—buy now and roll with school pride!

Car Magnets cost $10.

Read to Succeed Parent Communication Letter will include:

• The students overall performance on the i-Ready Reading Diagnostic

• Proposed reading plan

• Suggestions for at-home academic reinforcements

• Please sign and return the letter ASAP.

• Kindergarten
• 1st Grade
• 2nd Grade
• 3rd Grade
• 4th Grade
• 5th Grade

• Kindergarten
• 1st Grade
• 2nd Grade
• 3rd Grade
• 4th Grade
• 5th Grade

• Kindergarten
• 1st Grade
• 2nd Grade
• 3rd Grade
• 4th Grade
• 5th Grade

• Kindergarten
• 1st Grade
• 2nd Grade
• 3rd Grade
• 4th Grade
• 5th Grade

Saturday, October 12th - Fall Carnival

Saturday, February 8th - Sweetheart Dance

Friday, March 7th - Boosterthon Fun Run

Thursday, April 10th - Spring Fling (a part of STEAM Night)

Friday, May 23rd - 5th Grade Celebration

What is a School Improvement Council (SIC)?

An SIC is a broad-based body intended to advise the principal and school, and is focused on helping to achieve school improvement.

What do SICs do?

SIC duties focus primarily on the school improvement process.

Whitesville Elementary School SIC:

• provides input and feedback during the development of the School's Five-year renewal (improvement) plan and annual updates;
• assists in implementation of school improvement programs and activities;
• monitor and report on progress toward improvement goals in the annual SIC Report to the Parents and with the principal in the narrative to the SC School Report Card;
• provide other assistance as requested by the principal.

Why take the time to serve on an SIC?

• Because when parents are engaged in their children's education, their children do better in school and the quality of the school improves.
• Because parents bring wisdom to the Council. They have in-depth knowledge about their own children's strengths and needs as well as the perspectives of other families in the school.
• Because community members who are NOT parent of children in the schools still benefit from good schools in the form of a stronger local economy and property values.
• Because citizens who are NOT parents of children in the schools also have unique contributions to make to School Improvement Councils. Senior citizens, business people, members of the faith community, staff of social service agencies, and others all have knowledge, experiences and resources that can benefit their community's schools.

Learn more about South Carolina School Improvement Councils here.

Breakfast and lunch will be served on every day. If your student wants to eat breakfast at school, they should arrive to school between 6:50 a.m. - 7:18 a.m. Breakfast will no longer be served after 7:45 a.m.

“South Carolina Compulsory Attendance Law requires that a parent or guardian shall require his child to attend regularly a public or private school or kindergarten of this State which has been approved by the State Board of Education, a member school of the South Carolina Independent Schools and Association, a member school of the South Carolina Association of Christian Schools, or some similar organization, or a parochial, denominational, or church-related school, or other programs which have been approved by the State Board of Education f rom the school year in which the child is five years of age before September first until the child attains his seventeenth birthday or graduates from high school.”

• Our school's website is found at https://www.bcsdschools.net/o/wes
• WES Facebook page is Whitesville Elementary School Wise Owls
• The Weekly Hoots newsletter will be emailed & texted to families every Sunday evening. Please be sure to have your updated information in PowerSchool.
• Our PTO's website is wiseowlspto.com.
• Our PTO's Facebook page is Whitesville Wise Owls PTO.
• Schoology: Teachers will update their grades weekly.
• Rooms: Our two-way form of communication at WES. Every teacher at WES will use Rooms as a tool for communication.