Sixth Grade Continuation Request

Greetings 6th Grade Parents!

It is the time of year when we send out details for our Continuation Ceremony.

We would like to invite your families to join us in celebrating your students' accomplishments on Thursday, June 2nd, 2016. We will begin the ceremony promptly at 8:45am. Your students will need to be at school, dressed in their Sunday best, at 8:30 sharp. We will line them up in alphabetical order, so please have them here no later than 8:30 am.

During our ceremony this year, we plan to put together a video, and we need your help. Please begin to look for a baby picture, and a picture of your child in Kindergarten (or about that age). We will need these pictures scanned and emailed to Mrs. Rotherham, at carrie.rotherham@dcsdk12.org, no later than Friday, May 6th.

Following the ceremony, we will gather in the cafeteria for cake and punch/coffee. This is a great time for last day photo opportunities. After the reception, you are free to take your child to a celebratory lunch to begin your summer. They will not be required to stay at school beyond this time.

We look forward to celebrating with you and your families.

Sincerely,

The Sixth Grade Team

Shanna Giraldes

Brenda Holmstedt

David Kenyon

Chad Patterson

Placement Request for 16-17

Parents,

It is that time of year where we are already planning for next year!  I have included the letter that will also go out in the IC blast this week about special request for next year.  We are planning for very little turnover and movement in our staff this year which is wonderful!  Our projected planning focuses on keeping our class sizes small so that all of our students' needs can be met.  Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns moving forward to our new year.

Dear Parents,

PCE Class Assignment Process for 2016-2017

Our staff is now starting to prepare for next year.  One of our first steps is to prepare class lists for the 2016-2017 school year. 

This communication to parents is to clarify the process of class assignments for the upcoming school year, and give parents an opportunity to provide input so we can better address each student's educational experience. Our goal is to always provide the best educational experience to all of our students and do what is best for each and every one of them.  

In an effort to provide balance in all of our classrooms and to promote universal student success, class lists will be developed with attention to the following areas:

· Gender

· Heterogeneous academic grouping

· Learning style

· Special needs and/or accommodations

· Social and/or behavioral considerations

· Parental input

Our staff is involved in the class placement process by communicating individual student needs, but final placement is an administrative decision.   We also understand that children have unique needs, which you as parents would like us to consider in classroom selection as well. While we do not take specific teacher requests, parents may put their thoughts and considerations about their child into a letter that focuses upon your child’s specific needs.  Parents who would like their input considered should submit a letter to me at carrie.rotherham@dcsdk12.org no later than Friday, April 29, 2016.

This year we are planning on having “Meet the Teacher” on June 2^nd.  Where the children will get to meet their teacher for next year and they will get to see who will be in their class for the 16-17 school year.  I know that the parents and students have enjoyed this in the past!

Sincerely,

Carrie Rotherham

PCE Principal

New Elementary Progress Report Format Coming Soon!

This semester PCE will have a new format to report out on student progress.  You can learn more about the new Elementary EPR by clicking on this link.

Teachers will report out on the grade level Content, World Class Outcomes and the 4 C's and 21st Century Skills that they have been taught this semester.  The scoring criteria will be "Does not meet", "Approaching", "Meets" or "Exceeds" expectations.

We are planning an EPR information night for parents so that you can ask questions and hopefully see the parent view before progress reports are released at the beginning of Winter break.

Please look for more information coming soon.

Sincerely,

Carrie Rotherham

Welcome to a New School Year at Prairie Crossing!

I would like to welcome all of our new and returning PCE families to a new school year!  We are so excited to start a new year with all of our wonderful students.

Our staff has been preparing all the classrooms and our enthusiasm is building each day!

I hope that each and every one of you have had a wonderful summer and have had the opportunity to build many family memories to last a lifetime.  

I want to take this time to give our parents some helpful information or reminders for the first days of school.

Crosswalk Safety:

As you know safety is very important to us and we would like to make sure that we do all that we can to keep all of our students safe--but we need your help too.  This year we will continue to have staff members at the two major crosswalks that service our school.  There will be one staff member on the corner of Bradbury Ranch and Auburn Hills and also on the corner of Bradbury Ranch and Firebrick.

There is NO CROSSWALK in the middle of Bradbury Ranch so we are asking that children DO NOT cross and that parents do not make illegal u-turns in the front of the school on Bradbury Ranch. This is extremely dangerous for our students and families.

Parking by the Bus Loop:

We are also asking that during drop off and pick up times that families refrain from parking along Auburn Hills outside of the bus loop.  This is a very narrow street when cars are parked on both sides of the street and our buses have to make very wide turns in and out of our bus drop off area.  It is also very dangerous for children to cross through the bus loop, we would like to keep this area clear until all buses have left the school in the morning and afternoon times.

Kiss and Go Lane:

We ask that parents pull all the way to the end of the first mobile when using our "Kiss and Go" lane in the front of the school.  This allows for as many cars as possible to pull in before children unload and helps to alleviate traffic build-up on Bradbury Ranch.  We will have staff members outside each morning to assist children out of the vehicles.  We ask that children exit on the right side of the vehicles due to the left lane being a passing lane for exiting cars.  Cars should never be left unattended in the Kiss and Go lane, you are always welcome to park and come into the school with your child if needed.

Signing Students In and Out

Remember we do have security procedures inside also.  If you are coming into the building you must sign in and be prepared to show a photo ID when signing out a student.  A person must be on the emergency contact list to sign any child out of the building.  Please check complete and update make emergency contacts for this school year.  

Pre-School Parents:

Pre-school drop off begins at 8:45.  Once the second bell rings and all K-6th grade students have entered the building pre-school parents will be allowed to bring their children to the pre-school rooms.  Each classroom will have a separate sign-in sheet and sign-out sheet.  

Afternoon Pre-School parents will be greeted by a staff member when for afternoon drop off.

Our annual Flag Raising

We are growing! With over six hundred students this year we have decided to move our flag raising ceremony to the playground to give us more space!  I will send more details as we get closer to next Wednesday! I hope to see you there!

Come visit our PCEA-Prairie Crossing Educational Alliance
Our PCEA officers will be in the library to greet all of our new families Wednesday morning after the flag raising and afternoon kindergarten drop off!  Come find out how you can be a part of PCEA and volunteer at Prairie Crossing! 

Save the Date

August 26th --PCE Back to School Night---5pm -7pm.


We are looking forward to a great year!!!

Carrie Rotherham
PCE, Principal

Spring Fever!

Its hard to believe that Spring is here when the snow keeps falling!!  

Hopefully the next two weeks brings lots of sunshine for our kids as they take a much needed break from all the hard work they have been doing in class!

Our third through sixth graders have finished the first round of testing with our new PARCC system. I can't tell you how proud I was of all the effort and determination I saw from students and teachers to do their best on this test.  I know that they are glad to be finished!

I wanted to also take the time to thank all the students and families for taking care of our teachers this past week during PCE teacher appreciation week.  We have a great staff and they loved receiving the thoughtful gifts from their students.  The challenge of bringing in a gift that starts with the same letter as the students name brought out lots of creativity!

I hope that everyone enjoys spending time with their families over the break and enjoys spending some time having fun!  When we return I hope the sunshine stays with us as we finish out the year.  It is jammed packed with activities so please be on the lookout for important dates!

Sincerely,

Carrie Rotherham

Welcome to 2015!

Happy New Year PCE Families!

I hope everyone enjoyed some much needed family time these past few weeks.  It will be good to have the halls filled with our teachers and students once again!

As we begin a new calendar year, we want to remind all of our students of our PRIDE expectations and also remind everyone of the resources that we have available to support our students and families.

We want to renew our commitment to reinforce positive behavior.  For all of our new families, PRIDE stands as a reminder for our student to continuously show a Positive attitude, Respect, Integrity, Determination and Effort.

We encourage all of our students to show their PRIDE behavior in the all areas of the school!

We hope to challenge all students to take PRIDE in the the new year!

Sincerely,

Carrie Rotherham

Staying Safe and Happy

Staying prepared always helps! At PCE we take the security of our students seriously. I want to remind our returning parents, and update any new families, of the security features we have in place at Prairie Crossing.

• We will continue to keep our front doors locked throughout the day. 
• You will have to ring the doorbell and be “buzzed” into the building. 
• In addition to the doorbell, visitors are screened by our security cameras that we view in the front office. 
• We are asking that all parents please help us by ensuring that the door closes behind you when you enter or exit the building. 
• Please be aware of allowing other adults entering the building with you.  
• Remember to check in at the office anytime you are in the building, this is an one easy step that helps to keep the our students and school safe and secure at all times.
• Adults that are outside supervising children will have a very bright orange vest on so children will know who to go to for help.  They will  be equipped with Walkie-Talkies that will call directly into the office if assistance is needed. 
• We will have crossing guards at both crosswalks on South Bradbury in the morning and in the afternoon to assist our walkers.  They will wear safety vests so they are easily identified by children and parents. 
• We will conduct at least one safety drill a month throughout the year.  Our drills consist of fire, severe weather, lock-down and lock-out drills.   The difference between lock-out and lock-down drills: 
• Lock-out:  this takes place when there is a "threat" outside of the building.  For example: a gas leak, police activity or a wild animal sighting.  This will include all children coming inside and it will be business as normal until all is clear outside the building. 
• Lock-down: this takes place when there is a "threat" inside the building.  We will announce Locks, Lights, Out of Sight!  Teachers will lock their doors, turn out their lights, and all children will be gathered together away from doors and windows so they cannot be seen. 

• Teachers will be aware when we practice ANY drill.  They will review rules and procedures ahead of time and prepare the children for all types of drills.  When the actual drill takes place we will clearly state that it is time to practice the "type of" safety drill.  When we practice drills there will be no "reenactments" or "actors" pretending to be bad guys.  Our drills are not intended to scare our children but rather to prepare them for emergencies.  

Other safety procedures we want to remind everyone about are morning and afternoon drop-off and pick-up. 

•        There is NO SUPERVISION on the playground before school---PLEASE do not encourage your children to play on the playground before school.  Walkers, bike riders and car riders can go to either the front door or the "bus loop" door and wait for the bell.  Those doors will be opened at 8:30 for student arrival.

·       Morning Drop-Off:

o   Parents using the drop-off in the morning must drop their child off along the curb.  This area is two lanes wide so that parents can stop along the curb and then pull out into the left lane when exiting.  Students should only exit the car on the passenger side.  Parents using this area should always drive as far forward in the lane as possible before stopping. 

·       Afternoon Pick-Up:

o   When picking students up in this area, parents SHOULD NOT double park NOR leave the car unattended.  Students should, again, only enter the car on the passenger side from the curb.  There is to be NO PARKING in the drop off lane as it is an emergency vehicle access lane.

o   Please remember to pull all the way up in the drop-off zone to pick up your children.  It is a safety concern for our teachers and our students to cut in the line, or to pull in against traffic flow.  We know that the line can sometimes be long but the safety of our children is worth the wait! 

General Safety Rules:

Please remember there are no u-turns on South Bradbury Ranch Drive. This is dangerous for all of our community.

Please have students cross with the crossing guards.

Thank you for helping to keep our PCE students and community  safe and happy!

Carrie Rotherham
Prairie Crossing Elementary

Principal

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