Weekly Update

Paine Family,

Thank you for all you continue to do for our students and each other!  Going the extra mile doesn't even cover it.  I count you in my blessings each day!

I am so grateful to TCS for providing us with the 2 virtual days (Friday, February 4th & Friday, February 18th) to be able to catch our breath!  I know how much you all need this.  Teachers, please remember to send all students home with their Chromebooks the Thursday before each of these days.  Please make sure lessons/assignments are in Schoology and you have communicated your "office hours" to students/parents.  On both days, certified staff may work from home or in the building, whichever you prefer.  Please remember:  You should not clock in on either of those days. 

I will work with classified staff on your schedules for those days early next week. 

Thank you for welcoming Jared Meads into our school and your classrooms over the past three weeks.  He learned so much while he was here, and I know how grateful he is!  We will welcome Erin Piper, HTMS Assistant Principal, here for her 3-week elementary principal internship the last week of February.

Thank you again for always going the extra mile and making our school great!  I pray you know how loved and appreciated you are!

A Week (January 31-February 4)

Monday, January 31st - PST Zoom Meetings (1st Grade)

Tuesday, February 1st  - PST Zoom Meetings

Tuesday, February 1st  - 2nd Grade Music Program (Group 1)

Thursday, February 3rd - 2nd Grade Music Program (Group 2)

Friday, February 4th - Virtual Day for students

Note:  Our class pictures originally scheduled for 2/18 will be rescheduled for later date.  Please communicate in your weekly parent communication.

2nd Grade Music Program

Wednesday - Collaboration

Wednesday collaboration this week will  be used for lesson planning.

Thursday - Faculty Meeting

We will have a brief faculty meeting on Thursday at 2:15.  Our classified staff will help with afternoon duty so all teachers can be in the library.  Our meeting will begin promptly at 2:15 (and should only last until 2:45).  Please remember to bring your handout from our Wednesday collaboration meeting.

AimsWeb Reading Testing Plan

We will continue with our AimsWeb Reading Assessment testing plan (below).  

 January 26^th – February 3^rd – Paine Kindergarten with Testing Team

 The week of February 7^th will be used for makeups if necessary.  

Special Education Teachers:  Please work with testing teachers to ensure your students receive any accommodations outlined in the IEP. 

Family News

Congratulations to Julia Bickley on her engagement to Hayden Lewis!  We are so happy for this beautiful couple!

Congratulations to Jenni and Brandon Peters on the birth of their precious son, Hudson Burgess Peters.  He was born on Thursday, weighing 8 pounds and is 20 inches long.  Jenni and baby are both doing well.  He is a cutie!!!

Paine Precepts 

• Whatever you are, be a good one.” – Abraham Lincoln
• “Doing your best means never stop trying.” – Benjamin Franklin
• “You must do the thing you think you cannot do” – Eleanor Roosevelt
• “A problem is a chance for you to do your best” – Duke Ellington

Family News

Please keep Jenni and Brandon Peters in your prayers.  Jenni's doctor will begin inducing tonight due some complications.  Praying for a smooth delivery for Jenni and baby.

Family News

Please keep the following teachers and their families in your thoughts and prayers this week:

• Maggie Burns - Her grandmother passed away Sunday night.
• Jessica Bryant - Her grandmother passed away Monday morning.

Weekly Update

 Paine Family,  

I want to start out the weekly update by thanking the entire Paine faculty and staff.  Each of you have made me feel welcome, and have provided me with a great first elementary experience.  This will be my final week at the school, and I am looking forward to serving as the acting principal for the week. Thank you all for the continued hard work you put in for our students everyday.  I also want to give a special thanks to Dr. Lothspeich for allowing me to shadow her for these three weeks.  

Jared Meads

B Week (January 24-28)

January Calendar

* Class pictures have been moved from January 20th to February 18th.  If you communicated the picture date in your parent communication, please let them know about this change.

Monday

Our Paine PTO will be providing faculty and staff with a coffee truck (Travelin Tom's Coffee) on Monday, as a thank you for all of the hard work you are putting in for students at Paine.

Tuesday

Famous Americans 2nd Grade Music Program - All programs will take place at 8:30am on the date listed below and will be live-streamed on Paine Elementary School’s Facebook page.

●      Tuesday, January 25: Coshatt, Wilks, Phillips, Kimbrough, Parker, Vickers

Wednesday - Collaborative PD

We will participate in Professional Development on 10 of Hattie's High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS).  We will meet in our grade level collaboration rooms.

Thursday

Famous Americans 2nd Grade Music Program - All programs will take place at 8:30am on the date listed below and will be live-streamed on Paine Elementary School’s Facebook page.

●      Thursday, January 27: Seeley, Weyerman, Enoch, Swann, Hunt

Thursday Collaboration

Early release time should be used for grade level collaboration.  Please be sure to upload/share your updated lesson plans.

AimsWeb Reading Testing Plan

We will continue with our AimsWeb Reading Assessment testing plan (below).  

 January 26th – February 3rd – Paine Kindergarten with Testing Team

 The week of February 7th will be used for makeups if necessary.  

Special Education Teachers:  Please work with testing teachers to ensure your students receive any accommodations outlined in the IEP. 

Paine Precepts 

M: The main factor behind success is self control. - Rig Veda   

T: Self control is strength. Right thought is mastery. Calmness is Power. - James Allen

W:  Don’t speak unless you can improve on the silence. - Spanish Proverb

T:    Master self-control within yourself.

F:    By constant self-discipline and self control you can develop greatness of character. - Grenville Kleise

Weekly Update

Paine Family,  

I hope you are enjoying your loved ones and getting some rest this long weekend!  I know last week was challenging (with modified schedule for 3 days), but everyone handled it with understanding and grace.  When things get tough we really show what we are made of.  I saw everyone supporting each other and doing what was best for students.  Even though we are in the middle of the most challenging time in education, I could not be more proud to be a part of it, especially to be a part of Paine Elementary. In spite of all this, I saw so much great teaching going on last week with some EPIC moments for our students!

Mrs. Swann started a morning prayer group for those who are interested (she will communicate the days).  We have a beautiful prayer box in our Teacher Wellness Room.  Please use this as one way to communicate any prayer requests.  Mrs. Parker continues to coordinate our Friday morning food trucks (which we all really look forward to each week).  We have had Paine family members experience tragedy and hardship, but we are all there for each other!  There is no better place to be!

We will move forward with our own professional learning as we continue to close learning gaps for some students, while challenging all students.  This will include hyper-focusing on 10 of Hattie's High Impact Strategies next week in our Collaboration Meetings, and for the remainder of the school year. You will find we are already using many of these strategies, but there is always room for all of us to become even more proficient in an area, which directly impacts our students.  As soon as all of our Aims Web Data is available, we will work together to analyze all data early February. 

Finally, we have invested so much time, professional learning, and resources into becoming more proficient with how to teach reading and provide interventions, and we will continue to do this!  We can see the impressive impact this is making on our students with their reading growth.  Math teachers, you will see a ramping up of efforts to continue our professional learning in instructional strategies and development of content knowledge in math, with the formation of a Paine Math PLC (Professional Learning Community).   The gaps we are seeing in math (due to the pandemic) have created a sense or urgency for us to go ahead and provide this opportunity for teachers beginning second semester.  We will continue this into next year.  We will offer this two Thursdays per month from 2:15 to 3:15.  

The beauty of the PLC is that anyone may attend a specific meeting, if it is a topic of interest to them.  We would like for all math teachers (new to TCS and/or Paine) to serve as a core group and try to attend every session.  I promise, it will be worth it!  In addition, I anticipate at some point there will be minimal math requirements for students (similar to reading).  Not only do we plan to stay ahead of the game, but our students deserve the best we can provide!  Sometime this week, we will reaching out to anyone who teaches math and provide you with a schedule and the topics for each meeting.

Thank you for your continued commitment to your personal growth and the growth (academic, social, and emotional) of every student in our building.  Every member of our Paine Family is a blessing!  Thank you for all you do each and every day for our students and each other!  

A Week (January 18-21)

January Calendar

* Class pictures have been moved from January 20th to February 18th.  If you communicated the picture date in your parent communication, please let them know about this change.

Updates for PST

All January PST New Referrals and Monthly Updates are due by Friday, January 21^st by 3:15PM.

 

PST New Referral Google link (for students who have NOT been brought up to PST this year):

January Referral Link: https://forms.gle/VXe9w19uC5qh8rSs9

 

PST Grade Level Google links (for students who have been referred to PST this year):

Kindergarten Update Link: https://forms.gle/kzUfUu26PN5kwhPu7

First Gd Update Link: https://forms.gle/iyDrNcvi1TbPHfjc9

Second Gd Update Link: https://forms.gle/SQeGNux7pd5wUd2i8

Third Gd Update Link: https://forms.gle/P8UVvEXDVX2SHZEL9

Fourth Gd Update Link: https://forms.gle/74fu9e8kt5CkwgaK9

Fifth Gd Update Link: https://forms.gle/ddR9oy29TGnugjF57

Tuesday - Student Assemblies

Our assemblies for December student recognitions will held Tuesday on the PE Field.  Please refer to the schedule below for your grade's assembly time.

Kindergarten - 8:30-9:00

1st Grade - 9:30-10:00

2nd Grade - 10:30-11:00

4th Grade - 11:30-12:00

3rd Grade -  12:30-1:00

5th Grade - 1:30-2:00

Wednesday - Collaboration

We will use our this time for planning this week.  We will utilize our time next Wednesday to discuss Hattie's High Impact Strategies (areas we will focus on for the remainder of the year).  Please use the time this week to work on lesson plans for the next two weeks (and share them electronically).

Thursday - District PD

Early release time will be used to complete District PD this week.  

Reminder from C&I:  Please remind teachers. They should have the “Spark”, “Reflect” and “Tinker” components of their Learning Target LincSprings PD completed. They should implement their “Tinker” (plan) they chose over the next couple of weeks. On 1-20-2022, during district PD time, teacher will meet in PLC’s to review and discuss their plans with one another and complete the “Grow” section.  

PLC - Location     
LETRS - Library (If you choose to meet with this PLC you must also complete District PD)

Content Knowledge - 3rd Grade Collaboration Room

Differentiation - 1st Grade Collaboration Room

Formative Assessment - 5th Grade Collaboration Room

Learning Targets - 4th Grade Collaboration Room

Rigor & Relevance & Discourse - Kindergarten Collaboration Room

Positive Classroom & Well Managed Classroom - 2nd Grade Collaboration Room

Note:  If you were unable to attend the January faculty meeting, we will meet and update you after District PD.  You should have received a calendar invite.

AimsWeb Reading Testing Plan

We will continue with our AimsWeb Reading Assessment testing plan (below).  

 January 26^th – February 3^rd – Paine Kindergarten with Testing Team

 The week of February 7^th will be used for makeups if necessary.  

Special Education Teachers:  Please work with testing teachers to ensure your students receive any accommodations outlined in the IEP. 

STAR Testing

Our deadline for STAR testing was Friday, January 14th.  If a student was out last week, please go ahead and have he/she take the assessment early this week.

Family News

Please continue to keep the following Paine Family Members in your thoughts and prayers:

• Hannah Puryear and her entire family
• Suzanne (Sam) Bush as she recovers from surgery.
• Andrea Barker's mother who has been ill
• Buffy Bland's daughter, Audrey, who will have surgery on 1/27 to remove a small mass).

We offer a prayer of gratitude for the following who were in accidents last week, but are doing fine:

• Lauren Weller's daughter
• Tiara Carlson

Note:  If you have anything you want included in our Family News, please email Dr. L directly.

Paine Precepts 

In honor of the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., our Paine Precepts will be some of his famous quotes:

T:    If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.

W:  The time is always right to do what is right.

T:    No person has the right to rain on your dreams.

F:    Life's most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?

Family News

Please keep Jenni Peters in your thoughts and prayers.  Her father passed away today.

Please keep Suzanne Bush (Sam) in your thoughts and prayers as she recovers from knee surgery.

Weekly Update

B Week (January 10-14)

Thank you for your participation in our Faculty Meeting on Thursday.  The research on the impact of the pandemic on teaching & learning was eye opening.  We discussed how we can refocus on what is most important (our big rocks), making sure every task is purposeful and contributes to learning, and the importance of making every moment count (teaching bell-to-bell).  Our refocus will help us overcome some of the challenges from the pandemic and move closer to achieving our vision...maximizing the potential of every student.  

The following is the link to the PowerPoint from our meeting:  

PES FACULTY MEETING JAN 6 2022

Note:  If you were unable to attend the faculty meeting, you will receive an invitation for a makeup session at 2:30 on 1/20 (following district PD time).

January Calendar

Classroom Schedule & Discipline Plan

Please remember to place your updated classroom schedule outside of your classroom by Friday.  Please make sure your classroom discipline plan is posted in your classroom and that it contains a component for when to contact a parent.

Place a copy of your schedule and your classroom discipline plan in Dr. Lothspeich's box by Friday.

Monday - 3rd Grade Spelling Letters

As part of the Alabama Literacy Act Requirements, we will be implementing new spelling lists and requirements for 3rd grade.  The office will be preparing parent letters along with the spelling lists.  These will be sent home with students on Monday.

Wednesday

We will participate in Professional Development on 5 of Hattie's High Impact Teaching Strategies (HITS).  We will meet in our grade level collaboration rooms.

Thursday

Early release time should be used for grade level collaboration.  Please be sure to upload/share your updates lesson plans.

AimsWeb Reading Testing Plan

We will continue with our AimsWeb Reading Assessment testing plan (below).  

 January 5^th – January 7^th – Interventionists will be assessing ORF for 2^nd and 3^rd grade.

 January 6^th – January 12^th – Paine 1^st Grade with Testing Team

 January 26^th – February 3^rd – Paine Kindergarten with Testing Team

 The week of February 7^th will be used for makeups if necessary.  

Special Education Teachers:  Please work with testing teachers to ensure your students receive any accommodations outlined in the IEP.  

AimsWeb Math Winter Assessment

Our interventionists will finish up AimsWeb Math Testing for any K & 1 students who were not tested.  Teachers in grades 2-5, please make sure all of your students have completed this assessment.

STAR Testing Window

Our STAR testing window is this week.  Testing should be completed by Friday, January 14th.  All students in grades K-5 should complete this assessment.  You may use time during your IE block to complete this if needed.

Welcome - Mr. Meads

We would like to welcome Jared Meads to Paine Elementary.  He will be with us for the next three weeks as he completes the first half of the TCS Principal Mentorship Program.  

Board Appreciation Month

We will be constructing a tree for Board Appreciation Month.  We will place copies of a template of leaves in your boxes on Monday.  Please have each of your homeroom students decorate (color) a leaf and write a message of thanks, their name and grade.  Please return your classroom set of cutout leaves to the office by Friday, January 14th.

Paine Precepts 

M:  You are always responsible for how you act, no matter how you feel.  Remember that - Unknown

T:  I cannot trust a man to control others if he cannot control himself. - Robert E. Lee

W:  Mastering self-control, the act of restraining one's emotions is the true key to success. - Timothy Pina

T:  Silence is not always a sign of weakness; it's also a sign of strong self-control. - Unknown

F:  Self-control is a key factor in achieving success.  We can't control everything in life, but we can definitely control ourselves. - Jan McKingley Hilado

Family News

A Celebration of Life for Hannah Puryear's mother, Casey Collins Stephens, will be held Friday, January 7th at Faith Community Church in Trussville. Visitation at 5 pm and memorial service to follow at 6 pm. In lieu of flowers, they have set up a college fund for Hannah's youngest brother, Cole. Please continue to lift this precious family up in prayer!

Family News

Dear Paine Family,

Please lift Hannah Puryear and her entire family up in prayer!  Her precious mother, Casey Como Stephens passed away today.  

Weekly Update

Happy New Year!  

We are so excited about the great teaching and learning that will occur during our second semester.  We will refocus by evaluating the impact the pandemic has had on student learning and well-being, evaluate our specific data, develop plans to continue to close learning gaps, and focus on high impact teaching strategies to help us achieve our vision.  

Steven Covey, Author of "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" coined the phrase:

The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing!

Our MAIN THING is our vision and we will be more strategic than ever before as we move past the challenges due to the pandemic and the impact it has had on our students.

Our collaboration meetings and faculty meetings will be hyperfocused for the remainder of the year and communicated well in advance.  We will alternate Wedneday collaboration meetings where every other week is PD/analysis of data and the opposite week is grade level lesson planning.  We will also alternate Thursday afternoons where we will have a faculty meeting (for certified staff) the first Thursday of the month and we will continue to participate in district PD the 3rd Thursday of the month.  The second and fourth Thursdays will be used for grade level lesson planning.

It is imperative that all certified staff attend these meetings.  We will ask classified staff to cover afternoon duty on our monthly faculty meeting day so we can begin promptly at 2:15.  We will be covering important information, so we will offer a monthly make-up session for certified staff that cannot attend a faculty meeting or PD/Data Meeting session.  Please do not schedule parent Zoom conferences or IEP meetings on these days.  A typical month is reflected below.

You are the key to us working toward the achievement of our vision.  Please let us know how we can support you.  You are so appreciated and we are here to partner with you on whatever you need!

A Week (January 5-7)

Tuesday - Required Training

1) All Teachers on the Evaluation Cycle this Year and Assistant Principals - will attend required training at the Board from 7:45 - 8:15.  You will learn about the new state teacher evaluation tool.  This tool will be used for your 2nd formal evaluation this year.

2) All K-3 Teachers - will attend state required dyslexia training at the Board.   

Kindergarten/1st grade teachers will attend the 8:30-11:00 session.

2nd/3rd Grade Teachers (both reading & math) will attend the 12:00-3:00 session.

All special education teachers who services students in grade K, 1, 2, or 3 should also attend this training (please pick session above based on where most of your students fall).

3) 4th/5th Grade Classroom Teachers will meet with PES Admin at 1:30 in the PES Media Center.

Team Member of the Month

Please use the link below to vote for our Team Members of the Month for December.  This is for demonstrating the PACE character trait of Service.  Voting will close Thursday afternoon, and our Team Members of the month will be announced Friday morning.  

TEAM MEMBER OF THE MONTH NOMINATION FORM

Wednesday - January 5th

Students will return to school.  There will be required grade level collaboration on Wednesday.

Thursday - January 6th

We will have a faculty meeting for all certified staff in our media center.  At this meeting we will discuss the impact the pandemic has had on teaching and learning, assess where we are, and review ten high impact teaching strategies as a focus for the 2nd semester.  We will begin promptly at 2:15.  We will ask classified staff to cover car line Thursday afternoon.  Teachers closest to the library, please bring your chair.

AimsWeb Reading Testing Plan

We will begin AimsWeb Reading Testing January 5th.  Teachers in grades 2-5, please make arrangements to administer this assessment. This should be completed by the end of January, so please start early to allow for any student absences.  Interventionists will be administering ORF for 2nd & 3rd grade students.  Our district testing team will be administering AimsWeb Reading to our Kindergarten and 1st grade students.

 January 5^th – January 7^th – Interventionists will be assessing ORF for 2^nd and 3^rd grade.

 January 6^th – January 12^th – Paine 1^st Grade with Testing Team

 January 26^th – February 3^rd – Paine Kindergarten with Testing Team

 The week of February 7^th will be used for makeups if necessary.  

Special Education Teachers:  Please work with testing teachers to ensure your students receive any accommodations outlined in the IEP.  

Family News

Please continue to keep Mary Rountree in your thoughts and prayers.  The visitation for her father, Tommy Rountree, will be on Thursday, January 6th at Lemley Funeral Home from 10am to 11am.  A celebration of life will follow at 11:00 am.  

Please continue to keep Hannah Puryear's mother in your thoughts and prayers.

Special prayers for each of you as we embark on a new year!

2nd Semester Calendar

A snapshot of our tentative PD and collaborative planning calendar for the remainder of the year is posted below.  We have also included other school events.  Please use this to help you plan meetings, etc.  We will provide updated versions to the calendar when there are revisions.

Happy New Year!  Prayers for many blessings for each of you in 2022!