Mrs. Gilhooley's 3rd Grade Class - Back-to-School Night

1. Welcome to Back-to-School Night! Mrs. Gilhooley’s 3rd Grade Class

2. About Me • Temple University, dual major in Elementary and Special Education • Began career teaching 6th grade for two years in PA, then switched to 3rd grade in PA • Moved to Alexandria in 2014 and taught 3rd grade for 3 years • Thrilled my path has taken me to NLE for my 9th year of teaching! 

3. Attendance • School begins promptly at 7:50am • Please let me know in advance if your child will be absent for an extended period of time • Make-up work will be provided after the student returns to school • Adequate time will be given to complete make-up assignments

4. Agenda Planners • Provided by the PTO • Homework assignments, tests, quizzes, and reminders will be written daily • Homework will also be posted on the NLE website • Please check that homework is completed and sign nightly • Reading and Math Homework Daily (Monday-Thursday)

5. The Leader in MeOverview • program designed to help teachers develop leadership skills in their students. • helps students discover their unique strengths. • gives ALL students an opportunity to shine—to become leaders. • helps infuse the language of the 7 Habits into all curriculum.

6. The Habits at Home • Survey: emailed at the beginning of the year and at the end of the year  • Once a month: families will be able to complete an activity at home to reinforce the habits. The activity will then be displayed at school! • More Info: NLE website, under the Our School tab called Leader in Me.

7. Habit Hero! • Each month, a child from each class will be nominated as a Habit Hero!  • These are students who display behavior reflective of the 7 Habits.  • The child’s photograph will be displayed on the bulletin board outside of the cafeteria.

8. Birthdays • Please refer to the Student Handbook regarding birthday and party foods, as well as distributing invitations at school • You may bring non-fooditems to celebrate your child’s special day • Invitations may be distributed in school only if every child in the class receives one • Register with PTO for your directory

9. Snack and Health • “Working snack” time in the morning • 1 healthy small snack • Our classroom is Allergy Aware • Water Bottles are allowed Tylenol will not be provided by the School Clinic this year

10. Lunch • Lunch time: 11:30-12:00 • Ice cream day: Wednesday • Lunch money: baggie with name and number, or add money on MySchoolBucks.com • Send in a note if you are joining us for lunch– No restaurant food! • If you would like a school lunch, your child can make your lunch choice in the morning.  • Sign in, in the office, before entering

11. Class Celebrations & Parent Involvement • Fall Festival • Winter Celebration • End-of-the-year Party • Information about volunteering will be sent out as the dates get closer.  • If you have never volunteered before, attend a session on: • 9/17 from 8:00-8:45am • 9/17 from 6:00-6:45pm

12. Transportation • Your child’s safety is of utmost importance! • Students are required to go home each day as indicated at the beginning of the year • If a change is necessary, use the Dismissal Change Form online by 10:00am.

13. Homework • Agenda Planners and Homework Folders • Check and sign daily • Ensure reading is recorded in designated area • Math should be in folder, but is sometimes digital • Check Mrs. Gilhooley’s website  • Study Guides for Tests • linked on the 3rd grade page, by subject and unit • Thursday Folders • Your child’s folder will come home each Thursday with important papers, tests, etc.

14. Jogging Club • Daily (15 minutes) • Monthly & weekly goal setting • Voice and Choice with style of participation

15. Pedometers • Children who are active struggle less behaviorally  • Physical activity builds confidence, sense of teamwork, social skills, and brain development • PTO purchased pedometers for each and every 3rd grader! • Replacement fee: $28 • Students will track daily and set new goals-aligns with the Leader in Me

16. Parent Communication • Class Dojo will be used for communication and whole-class incentives • Positive Reinforcement is the focus—encouraging leadership qualities and the 7 habits • Students earn Dojo Points for individual behavior (ex. helping others) which will contribute to our CLASS goal • Stories will be posted to share our classroom activities • Communication with YOU is key for success for all! 

17. Curriculum Readers and Writers Workshop: third year of implementation for NLE 3rd graders Math: flexible grouping according to student needs, with common unit assessments across the grade level Word Study: individualized lists based on student needs Science & Social Studies: rotating units of study Rotating units of study

18. Reading and Writing Workshop • Shared Reading/Read Aloud • Reading Workshop: Mini Lesson (7-10 minutes), Independent Reading (45 minutes), Strategy/Reading Groups (conferencing), Share Time • Writing Workshop: similar format to Reading Workshop • Word Study • All practice will be done in class • Word lists will be sent home on Mondays for extra practice, at your discretion • Assessments will take place each Friday

19. Grading • Grading will be 1, 2, 3, 4 (with pluses) • Percentages will not be given on tests, instead it will be on the 4-point scale. There will also not be a letter grade assigned. Report cards will still have a letter assigned. • 4-point scale differentiates “mastery” of skill (3) and “going beyond” (application, 4) • Grades will be updated in a timely manner through Phoenix/ParentVUE • Thursday Folders: will include completed/graded work

20. Phoenix • For the 2019-2020 school year, all teachers will continue to use Phoenix Grade Book to enter student grades. Parents and students will also still have access to a new and improved portal called ParentVUE and StudentVUE. • All reportcards will be on ParentVUE this year. • Parents and students will have near real-time access to information on assignments and grades, attendance, class schedules, graduation status and more. • ParentVUE offers a single sign-on to view school information for all siblings, regardless of the grade level or school of attendance. 

21. BYOT • Newton-Lee is still a BYOT school • Initially, will not be everyday • Working towards integration What We Need Prior to Use: • Signature Form and Student/Parent Technology Usage • Students Rights and Responsibilities document has all information

22. SOL Testing • Math and Reading • 2 days per test • CAT (Computer Adaptive Technology) format • MAP Testing (math and reading only) • fall, winter, spring benchmarks • results used for strategy work and instructional purposes • adaptive to students’ responses • Science and Social Studies • Performance Task Assessments done throughout the year following the completion of that unit

23. Communication • E-mail: molly.gilhooley@lcps.org • My email can be checked in the morning before school, most days during lunch, and after school hours • Phone: 571-252-1535 (NLE) • Website will be updated daily with homework • Download the Class Dojo app to for easy communication • Conferences: the sign-up for October Conferences will be available on Phoenix next week!

24. PTBoard • To sign up and become a PTO Board Member: • 1) Browse to “nlepto.ptboard.com” • 2) Click “Sign Up” in the top right corner and you will be prompted to create an account within PTBoard. Click on "Yes" button to confirm that you are a parent, student, teacher or staff at Newton Lee PTO. • 3) You will be sent a confirmation email to verify your email. Click the "Confirm and Enroll" button to go back into PTBoard site. • 4) Log back into, scroll  below the pictures and click on  "Join Newton Lee Elementary PTO"  button.  Enter our school code  S68GTR and hit Join.   •  5) You can now pay for your PTO membership to become an active student directory member and enter student's information. On the main page, you must click on "View" button under Form & Payment, complete form and click on "Add to Cart" button to pay your membership fee. • 6)  Go to class and group and join Mrs. Gilhooley’s class and Third Grace. This will allow our room parent to communicate with you.

25. Thank you for coming! Parent Homework: • MUST DO: • Confirm email addresses on Phoenix • Go to Phoenix/ParentVUE to sign up for conference (available next week!) • CAN DO: • Volunteer! If you’d like to volunteer and have not done so in previous years, you’ll need to enroll in a session—contact Main Office • Sign up for PTBoard on NLE website • Complete Family Mission Statement (sent home on Tuesday in orange folder)