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WOODLAND HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY • OCTOBER 2015
Principal’s Message
During our first full month of school you may have
noticed that your child has taken a number of assessments. These assessments, though time consuming,
are an integral part in creating a plan for your child.
As a staff, we take the data from these assessments
and use it to guide us in determining what your child
needs. This is the beginning stage of personalizing
their learning for the year.
Meeting the needs of each child takes hard work.
It takes endless hours of planning and time. Our
students at Woodland Heights are in the best hands,
in every classroom. Teachers are looking at data,
showing students how to look at their own data, and
engaging the classroom in important discussions
about how to be successful learners. Our vision of
meeting the academic and social needs of every
student is beginning to take form.
As families, you will see this in a variety of ways:
• Small Group Instruction - This grouping method
is designed to create activities that meet the needs
of each group of students. Sometimes the group is
created based on assessment data while others
are created based on what students feel they need
to be working on. You will begin to hear about Daily
5 reading groups. These groups are used to facilitate the reading and writing activities in the classroom. Many of our teachers have been trained in
Daily 5 and it’s a great way to engage students in
their reading and it also allows for small group
instruction from the teacher. We will also begin
small groups in Math as well.
• Personal PDSA - PDSA stands for Plan Do Study
Act. Though they don’t all look the same, the goal
of a PDSA is to have students take ownership of
their individual goals and then reflect on what
they need to do to reach that goal. Through this
process, students and teachers realize their
strengths and what strategies help them be
more successful in meeting their goals.
• Personalized Learning - You’ve probably
heard of the term “differentiated instruction”
and it is essentially what perso alized learning
is; it’s meeting the need of every child within
the classroom. This challenges students to
be independent learners, regardless of their
current abilities, and to grow both academically
and socially.
Our work has begun. Our first round of very
detailed and analytic testing is complete and
now teachers will be using that data to structure
classrooms and lessons. It is very hard work and
requires time, patience, and determination. I know
that our teachers appreciate the support that they
receive on a daily basis and thrive on working with
you to engage your children in the best education
possible. Thank you for your continued support in
allowing us to teach and care for your children
every day.
Jake Boula, Principal
Woodland Heights Elementary School
Our fall campaign is going on now! You
can now make your contribution online!
www.cheddarup.com/tabs/bridging-thegap-annual-needs-campaign
WOODLAND HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY • OCTOBER 2015
Woodland Heights Elementary Teachers
Become Apple Vanguard Certified
All K-5 classroom teachers are receiving Apple
Foundations training this year. Once they have
attended all the trainings they will be certified
as an Apple Vanguard Member. The professional
development training supports teachers using
their technology in the classroom (6 new iPads for
every K-3 classroom and 6 Mac Books for every
4th and 5th grade classroom). The devices and
training were provided by the ISS School District
and the substitute teachers are covered by dollars
donated by parents to the PTO (approximately
$15,000).
On September 9th, all K-5 teachers attended the
first session on "Becoming a Power User
for Learning and Teaching". This was a back
to basics training on their new apple devices
(ipads and MacBook Airs) and how to navigate
the operating systems. Their next training will
be on capturing and sharing learning through the
use of iphoto. The teachers are very excited to
learn ways to incorporate the Apple devices into
their classrooms.
Teachers will attend 8 sessions total between now
and the end of April and will be "Apple Vanguard
Certified" after attending all sessions. Through the
sessions, teachers learn and create engaging
activities that encourage students to utilize the full
creative learning power of the iPad and MacBook
Air computers. Training topics include things like,
"Becoming Power Users for Learning and Teaching", "Making Data Meaningful with Numbers",
"Capturing and Sharing Learning with iPhoto and
Photo", "Creating Compelling Presentations with
Keynote" and more!
NEW Customer Loyalty Program at WHES!
Jacob Dahl started Kindergarten this
year. Jacob's Family owns Wicked
Kustoms of Mooresville and has
graciously offered to contribute 5%
back on all of the following jobs listed
below that come from the WHE Family!
With an average insurance claim
estimated at $3500.00, 5% back would be
$175.00 per claim. This does not count any other
type of job as well! Wicked Kustoms would write
a check, per job, directly to the school.
Wicked Kustoms will do:
• Insurance work on cars
• Custom paintwork (airbrushing and pin striping,
on cars, motorcycles and helmets), they have
painted numerous NASCAR driver and Crew
helmets.
• “Spectra Chrome” which is a process where
you can chrome virtually any item any color
Scholastic Dollars help out Teachers!
Thanks to the success of our last Scholastic Book
Fair (taking place in May, 2015), every teacher will
be receiving $100 in Scholastic Dollars to use as
they see appropriate. All classroom teachers,
enhancement teachers, ESL teachers, and Exceptional Children staff will receive Scholastic Dollars.
This equals more than a $5,000 contribution to
teachers and staff. Scholastic Dollars can be used
for fiction and non-fiction books, bookshelves,
items for the classroom and more!
Please visit our Fall Scholastic Book Fair Thursday,
October 1 from 7am-2:30pm and Friday, October 2
from 7am-1pm. All students had the opportunity
to attend the Book Fair with their class this past
week!
This book fair’s monster-inspired theme
is “Reading is so much fun,
you’ll get Goosebumps!”
Hope to see you there!
visit us at our new website http://whepto.org/ or on facebookwww.facebook.com/whepto
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WOODLAND HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY • OCTOBER 2015
Nurses’ Corner
It is Flu season, please vaccinate your child against the Flu. Here is a simple chart to identify whether it
is the Flu or the common cold.
Cold and Flu Prevention
It's hard to tell the difference between a cold and the flu. Use the chart below to figure out what's making
you sick. A cold and the flu can have similar symptoms. Your doctor can help you fight the right kind of
infection, especially if it's severe. Stay home when you're sick to help stop viruses from spreading. Talk
with your doctor if you have any questions or concerns.
Symptoms
Cold
Flu
Fever
Rare
Usual; high (100°F to 102°F, occasionally higher,
especially in young children); lasts 3 to 4 days.
Headache
Rare
Common
Aches and pains
Slight
Usual; often severe
Fatigue,weakness Sometimes
Usual; can last up to 2 to 3 weeks
Exhaustion
Never
Usual; at the beginning of the illness
Stuffy nose
Common
Sometimes
Sneezing
Usual
Sometimes
Sore throat
Common
Sometimes
Chest pain,cough Mild to moderate;hacking cough
Common; can become severe
Treatment
Antihistamines,
decongestants,nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs
Prevention
Wash your hands often with soap and
water; avoid close contact with anyone Yearly vaccination; antiviraldrugs - see your doctor
with a cold
Complications
Bronchitis, pneumonia; can worsen chronic conditions;
Sinus congestion, middle ear infection, can be life-threatening. Complications more likely in the elderly,
asthma
those with chronic conditions, young children
and pregnant women.
Antiviral drugs - see your doctor
!
Fourth and Fifth Grade Teachers
attend Math Foundations Training!
Thanks to our AMAZING PTO, we were able to send
all of our 4th and 5th grade teachers that had not
received the training to our Fall Sessions!
A few years ago a group of educators from
across the state began the process of reviewing
and evaluating research related to evidencebased math instruction. The information gleaned
from the research provided the conceptual
framework for the development of the Foundations of Mathematics Training. This research
indicates that number sense must be developed
through a carefully sequenced set of learning
opportunities in a scaffolded approach. Our
district has been involved in the trainings over
the last few years and we now have employees
that have received the Master Trainer status.
visit us at our new website http://whepto.org/ or on facebookwww.facebook.com/whepto
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WOODLAND HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY • OCTOBER 2015
Meet Mrs. Land!
Upcoming Events
Mrs. Land is the Instructional
Facilitator here at WHES.
What does that mean? She
acts as a coach to all teachers, grades K-5, in planning,
developing, and implementing
lessons that coincide with the North Carolina
curriculum and standards. Mrs. Land has
resided in Charlotte, North Carolina since she
was five years old. She and her husband,
Patrick, are the proud parents of Madison, an
eighth grader at the Mount Mourne IB School.
They also have Jake, a one year-old chocolate
lab! In her spare time, Mrs. Land enjoys reading,
traveling, and shoe shopping! Mrs. Land truly
feels the enthusiasm and compassion exhibited
by students, staff, and parents at WHES are
remarkable!
8/19-6/2016:
WHE Annual Fund
Campaign
9/28-10/2:
Scholastic Book Fair
10/15 & 10/16: Discovery Place on-site
2/12/16:
SAVE THE DATE:
Father/Best Guy-Daughter
Dance
WHE Community Spirit Night
at Chick-fil-A
2015-2016
PTO Board
President
Jennifer Christian
704-999-3398
[email protected]
Vice President
Angela Yeh
704-799-2866
[email protected]
Parent Communications
Director
Theresa Busa
617-543-2283
[email protected]
School District/
Legislative Liaison
Stef Storm
704-519-7025
[email protected]
Staff Liaison
Amy Metzgar
704-881-3884
[email protected]
Treasurer
Shawna Knutson
612-220-4739
[email protected]
Teacher Representative
Diana Mullen
[email protected]
Recording Secretary
Emily Gilligan
704-799-9746
[email protected]
Fund Raising Directors
Kisten Hunter
704-363-4852
[email protected]
Family Events
Jessica Johnson
704-491-0224
[email protected]
Shannon Stanley
704-450-1826
[email protected]
Community Relations
Krista Perrine
704-779-9918
[email protected]
visit us at our new website http://whepto.org/ or on facebookwww.facebook.com/whepto
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