LEADERSHIP: Know the Way, Show the Way Laura C. Blunier, Principal Jacqueline Barber, Assistant Principal Welcome back Vineland Families! Hopefully everyone had a restful summer and made time to sharpen the saw. Congratulations to our Vineland staff and students for a fabulous start to the 2018-2019 school year! The beginning of the school year is a time to celebrate the successes of the last year and start setting goals for the new year. It is also the time to get back to setting the alarm clock, dealing with homework and figuring out how to fit in extracurricular activities. It can be a lot to jug-gle but if we are proactive, we can make for a promising 2018-2019 school year!

VINELAND TIPS for a SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL YEAR

Partners in Education (PIE): Be sure to attend your child’s Partners in Education night. The evening promises to provide pertinent information about what is expected in your child’s classroom throughout the school year. Topics include homework expectations, behavior poli-cies, Title I and specific information about your child’s individual classroom.

PIE Night Dates by grade level:

September 11th – 4th Grade September 12th – 3rd Grade September 13th – 2nd Grade September 18th – 1st Grade

September 19th – Multi-Age Classrooms September 20th – Kindergarten

September 25th – 5th Grade

Stay Informed: Read the information that comes home from school. Check, sign, and return your child’s Monday Envelope each week. Check the school calendar for upcoming events. Like our Vineland Facebook page. Visit the school website: https://www.yourcharlotteschools.net/ves to receive up-to-date school information. Be sure to keep your child’s teacher informed as well. Remember to share any information that may affect your child’s school performance with his or her teacher. Get Involved: We have many opportunities for volunteering throughout the school year. Even if you are unable to be here during school hours there are several evening events as well as tasks that can be done right from home. Ask your child’s teacher for a volunteer form and our volunteer coordinator will contact you about the volunteer process. Encourage Good Homework Habits: Help your child understand the importance of com-pleting homework assignments in a timely manner. Offer your assistance and encouragement but make sure the final product reflects your child’s effort, not yours. Try to set a regular time and place every day for your child to work on homework.

Dates to Remember

September 3 Labor Day—No School 6 PTO Meeting 3;15pm/SAC Meeting 3:45pm 11 Leader of the Month, 9:15am (by invitation only) Fourth Grade Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00pm 12 Third Grade Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00pm 13 Second Grade Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00pm 17 Mid-Terms Go Home 18 First Grade Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00 pm 19 Multi-Age Classes Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00pm 20 Kindergarten Partners in Education, 6:00-7:00pm Individual and Group Picture Day 25 Fifth Grade Partners in in Education, 6:00-7:00pm 26 Take Your Dad to School Papas, Pastries & Paperbacks, 7:30am 28 DEAL Day

October 3 SAC, 7:30am/PTO, 8:00am 12 Fall Festival, 5:30-7:00pm 13 Fall Festival Rain Date, 1:00am-12:30pm 16 Leader of the Month,

9:15am (by invitation only) 19 No School for Students— Teacher Work Day 22 RED RIBBON WEEK 24 Papas, Pastries & Paperbacks, 7:30am 26 DEAL Day 29 Report Cards Go Home

Volume XXII / Number 1 / September 2018

LEADERSHIP: Know the Way, Show the Way

SMILE REMINDER! Individual and Class Picture Day is Thursday, September 20th

LEADERSHIP: Know the Way, Show the Way, continued Make Time for Reading: Children benefit enormously when parents read with them. Make reading together a daily hab-it. Students should read for a minimum of ten to fifteen minutes every night. Help your child acquire age-appropriate books about topics that interest him or her. A great way you can do this is to bring your child to visit our Title I Family Center lo-cated in Room A-149. Title I Family Book Check-Out is open every Wednesday morning from 7:55-8:55 as well as by ap-pointment. Each time your child checks out three books, your child can select a keeper book for his or her home library. Encourage Healthy Habits: Whether your child has a free breakfast or lunch from Champ’s Café or brings their own lunch, keep the emphasis on good nutrition. Our school’s Wellness Policy encourages healthy eating habits and prohibits use of food for rewards. Encourage your child to spend time being physically active through play or sports. Make sure your child gets enough sleep and is well-rested so he or she is ready to learn during the school day. Strive for Less than 5 Absences: Regular attendance in school is one of the most powerful ways to prepare your child for success. When attendance is a priority, students get better grades, develop healthy habits and have a stronger chance of grad-uating. When students are absent for less than five days throughout the school year they will perform better in all academic areas. This year every student who has less than five absences each quarter will receive an attendance spirit stick and have his or her name displayed on our cafeteria bulletin board. Students who have demonstrated good attendance in class all week will be able to participate in the atten-“dance” every Friday morning during the V.E.S. News. Please begin good attendance habits by being timely for school every day and only keeping your child home if they are ill. Students are permitted on cam-pus at 8:15am for breakfast only; otherwise students enter at 8:30am with the conclusion of the school day at 2:55pm. Be a Good Role Model: Remember to demonstrate the importance of following school rules and procedures. The student Code of Conduct went home in the first Monday Envelope with your child. Designate some time to review the school rules with your child and discuss the importance of following these rules. Then confirm that you have read and understood these school rules by signing and dating the acknowledgement form located in your child’s planner. What happens in the elementary grades sets a strong foundation for later learning. We embrace the task of developing our students to be lifelong learners and know that by following these Vineland tips we can make the 2018-2019 school year a Win-Win for everyone!

PreKindergarten News PreK is off to a great start! The students are learning their classroom

schedules, rules and expectations. Mrs. Cunningham, Mrs. Martineau and

Mrs. Powers’ students are enjoying the opportunity to meet each other and so-cialize during playground time. The playground has been very hot due to this

summer’s weather so please make sure your child is dressed appropriately. In

the classroom students will be starting their beginning of the year unit using the Teaching Strategies curriculum. In the cafeteria all students are doing a

great job going through the lunch line and practicing their PIN numbers. We

are looking forward to a safe and fun school year!

First Grade News The beginning of our new school year has been very exciting. Students were eager to learn classroom rules and routines.

This is a continual work in progress and there has been a lot of growth since day one. Students are practicing the literacy work stations to gain independence. Students will know what each station looks and sounds like as they progress through the month. In September students will begin guid-

ed reading groups. This means your child will bring a “just right” book home to practice reread-ing nightly. Please return the book with your child the following day. Students will be learning about the earth and the sky in their science studies. The main objective will be what objects are in

the sky and how they move. In social studies students are learning how to say the Pledge of Alle-giance and what the words mean. Students will be discussing Labor Day and how it is celebrated throughout the United States. In math students are focusing on addition and subtraction strategies.

Lastly, please check your child’s Monday envelope and planner for homework and updates. Thank you for being a great partner in your child’s education.

Second Grade News Second grade is off to a super start. We spent time reviewing the 8 Habits as well as working on classroom routines. Teachers are enjoying building rapport with each child. Students are learning new reading strategies including identifying main idea and key details as well as learning about characters, settings and events. As for grammar skills, students will be

learning about different types of nouns and how to identify them in sentences. Students are also enjoying practicing various phonics skills and vocabulary words each week. In math students are going to be practicing solving one-step word problems and understanding the difference between even and odd numbers. They are also going to learn how to add using arrays. Students are working on rules and responsibilities in social studies along with being a good citizen with ways to im-pact their community. As for science, students will be learning more detail about rocks, minerals and the earth’s surface. Parents should encourage their students to continue reading, practice sight words and use phonics and vocabulary words eve-ry night.

Looking forward to a super September!

Kindergarten News Kindergarten is off to a great start. The students are learning routines and procedures.

They have been focusing on learning the 7 Habits of Happy Kids and are applying them in their daily activities. Students are working on letters and sounds daily. Remember to practice with your little one. They are also earning points in Live School for positive be-

havior and showing leadership. Please make sure you have downloaded the Live School app and use your child’s code that went home in the Monday envelope. In addition, please check the Kindergarten website for the monthly newsletters. If you have not already,

please consider joining your child's classroom and school with REMIND.COM. This helps increase communication between school and home. Teachers would like to thank

you for a great start to the school year and look forward to seeing you at our upcoming Partners in Education (PIE) night on

September 20th.

Third Grade News

The year is up and running in third grade and things are going smooth-

ly. The start of the day begins promptly with WIN at 9:00am. Please en-courage your child to eat a healthy breakfast in the cafeteria so in turn they can make their way to their class on time and they are ready to start

their day. Students are starting the year off with the scientific method in science and map skills in social studies. For language arts students are

currently working through a literature unit focusing on key ideas and details and in math students

are focusing on how to add and subtract by using place value which will lead to rounding.

Fifth Grade News What an amazing group of 5th grade students teachers have this year! In August students reviewed the 8 Habits and school procedures. This was a great reminder of what true leadership is all about. During the month of Sep-tember Mrs. Edward’s math class will be wrapping up a unit on geometry by studying the coordinate plane and graphing points in the first quadrant. Students will then move on to place value and exploring powers of 10. In

ELA Mrs. Andres and Mrs. Meadows will present a unit on summarizing informa-tional text and, in social studies, students will be concentrating on geography to in-clude physical and political maps. After working hard to understand the scientific method, Mrs. Sais’ students will switch their focus to that of matter. Students should find it interesting and fun to learn about the physical and chemical changes matter goes through. Students are quickly adapting to their new role as the oldest on campus and are sure to be excellent role models for the younger grades. It’s going to be a great year.

Fourth Grade News Students are off to a great start this year. They have been able to dig into leadership notebooks by setting new goals for themselves and dis-cussed various leadership roles. Teachers have reviewed the Seven Hab-its and are very excited to watch the students become great leaders this year. In language arts students are working on finding the main idea and supporting details in nonfiction text. Students are working through place value and comparing whole numbers in math. In science they are blasting into space to study the solar system. The fourth grade team is excited about this year and the adventures it will bring.

News from our Multi-Age ESE Classrooms The multi-age classes are happy to be back in school. The year may have just begun but the boys and girls are ready for success. During the first few weeks our classes took the time to set expecta-tions, create positive relationships and establish a culture of leadership. Each class synergized to write their mission statement, individual goals and plans of actions. The children learned how they could apply the 7 Habits in their lives at home, in school and beyond. Students are focusing on tools for learning including Thinking Maps, Kagan structures and technology. By taking this time, schol-ars feel a sense of belonging and acceptance. They are motivated to put first things first to reach their goals and set new ones.

We hope you join us for Parents Involved in Education (PIE) Night on September 19th as

well as some of the many opportunities to be involved throughout the year. We are looking forward to an exciting year filled with collaboration, leadership and learning.

News from the Art Room

Mrs. Cotton, Art Teacher All students are busy working on a fundraiser for the Art Department which basically supplies all the paper, clay, markers, paint and art materials for the entire school year. It is called Square 1 Art. Free stickers displaying your child’s artwork along with a catalog where you can order objects featuring their Square 1 Art is coming home soon. Preview your child’s artwork and purchase gifts from the catalog. All online orders and paper order forms are due by the date on the catalog. Unfortunately, no late orders can be accepted. Watch for details on the approximate product distribution date to the school. Square 1 Art is a wonderful fundraiser that celebrates your child’s artwork along with benefiting our school. Grade 5 will be working on the Kids Tag Art Project which is a program to benefit art in all Charlotte County schools. Fifth grade students have the special privilege of creating their own specialty license plate while at the same time learning about design elements and principles of art. Parents will have an opportunity to purchase their student’s tag art through our school. These tags are not to be used as legal identification on the rear of the vehicle but as a decorative plate that can be placed on the front of a car. The top art designs are entered into a county-wide contest. The winner can receive a free tag and key chains along with other prizes. You do not have to purchase a tag to be entered in the contest. Vickie Potts, Charlotte

County tax collector, is the main sponsor of this program and we are grateful for her support. This year I am asking my students to think about performing acts of kindness such as cre-ating ways to earn money for Relay for Life of Charlotte County, Florida. If there is anyone being affected by cancer within our Vineland School extended family, please let me know. The American Cancer Society has many support groups and services.

Counselor’s Corner By Molly Toure

Hello Vineland families! I hope that you are enjoying the first few weeks of school. I am new to Vineland this year and wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Molly Toure and, although this is my first year at Vineland, it is my fifth year working for Charlotte

County Public Schools. In addition, I am a product of Charlotte County Public Schools as I am an Englewood native and a Lemon Bay High School graduate. I hold a bachelor’s degree in psychol-ogy and a master’s degree in professional school counseling. Some of my roles at Vineland in-

clude being on the MTSS and ELL teams along with being the coordinator for stu-dent 504 plans. However, my favorite role

as a school counselor is to work with stu-dents individually or in small groups to de-velop social, emotional and academic skills. I look forward to settling in and get-

ting to know my Heron students and their families.

SAC and PTO Meeting Schedule 2018

• 9/6 PTO 3:15pm/SAC 3:45pm • 10/3 SAC 7:30am/PTO 8:00am • 11/1 PTO 3:15pm/SAC 3:45pm • 12/5 SAC 7:30am/PTO 8:00am

Some Musical Notes

Ms. Sue Betz

Classes are going well! Students are working on steady beat and synergizing. Chorus for 4th and 5th grade students will be starting September 4th. Rehearsals are every Tuesday from 3:00 to 3:45pm. All third, fourth and fifth grade students need to have a recorder and they need to bring it to every music class. Chorus permission forms and recorder order forms can be found on the Music website or in the Music Room. I look forward to a very musical year with you all!

PE News from Coaches Dando, Prummell, Walsh, Heeg and Faith Welcome back Herons! This is going to be an exciting year in PE. Coach Dando, Coach Prummell, Coach Walsh, Coach Heeg and Coach Faith are all back and ready to go. We are all very excited for the upcoming year and many of the special events that we will have in PE.

It is important for everyone to remember is to bring water bottles to PE. It is very hot and humid right now and students as well as your coaches all need to stay hydrated. Remember to drink that water throughout the school day as well as bring those water bottles out to PE.

We are all looking forward to this school year and the exciting times we will have in PE!

Family Engagement

Start the year off with attending the grand opening of Papas, Pastries & Paperbacks on Wednes-

day, September 26th

from 7:30-8:30am. For the first 30 minutes you will learn about the habit of

the month, interact with your child and those around you, create an amazing “special” handshake along with many more new and fun ideas. You will

then be able to visit the Family Resource Center and share the love of reading with your child. Food and beverages will be served at this event.

We hope to see many of you there!

STEM Mrs. White, STEM Teacher

STEM class students will borrow from the Native American culture and focus on the four elements of earth, wind, fire and water, which are also the four main units of the science curriculum. Fifth grade will be exploring the waters around them to include the Myakka and Peace Rivers along with the Gulf and the types of fish that can be found in the different waters. Students began the year dis-cussing the red tide crisis and how and why it is having such an impact in the Englewood area. Fourth grade will be discovering the world of pollinators and the important role they play in providing for trees and plants which, of course, include our fruits and vegetables, Third, second and first grade will be studying plants, what plants need, how they respond and the functions of their parts. Kin-dergarten will also be discovering the world of plants to include learning about

our native trees, many of which are on our very own school campus. Please note: Due to our rotation schedule, this plan will remain in place for the entire first quarter.

Come and Join the HERON HANGOUT!

The Heron Hangout is Vineland’s extended day program where VES teachers and staff provide before school childcare and after school enrichment activities for Kindergarten through to 5th grade students. If you are in need of an extended day for your child, or if you are looking for some exciting en-richment activities for your child, we hope you consider this beneficial program. The Heron Hangout provides the following: daily homework help; health and fitness; arts and crafts; leader-ship opportunities; organized sports with the VES PE staff for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders; computer activities; reading, math and science learning activities; and much more. If you have questions about the program, please call the VES Main Office (941) 697-6600, or email Gina Dickerson (Heron Hangout Site Director) at gina.dickerson@yourcharlotteschools.net.

Before school child care:

7:00am -8:15am Breakfast provided by Champs Café

After school enrichment: 2:55pm – 6:00pm with snack provided by

Champs

Price Information Yearly Registration Fee: $25. Mornings Only: $25. /week Afternoons Only: $55. /week Mornings & Afternoons: $65. /week *Sibling Discount

The Library: Check It Out

Ms. Dickerson, Library Media Specialist

It is going to be another great year in the VES Media Center. The focus of Media class is to foster a love of reading that will stay with students forever. In addition, Florida Standards will be integrated into all library lesson plans in order to support the classroom curriculum and to increase student success. Many new books, including e-books, have been added to the VES library collec-tion. You can access Destiny, our online catalog, from home. Simply go to the VES website (https://www.yourcharlotteschools.net/ves) and select the Media Center tab at the top. From this webpage you can search the Destiny catalog to find your next book, create a list of books to read and even check out e-books from home!. You can learn about our reading programs, SSYRA and Accelerated Reader (AR). Additional-ly, on the webpage, you will find many links for popular book websites, reading activ-ities and reference sources. The Media Center is open every morning from 8:30-8:55 for book checkout. Students may also use this time to take an AR quiz on a book. See you in the Media Center!

We LOVE our books! Please take care of them! Remember to keep books away from water bottles in your backpack.

News from PTO Greetings from the Vineland PTO! We are looking forward to seeing new faces as well as re-turning parents at our meetings this school year which are both before and after school on an alter-

nating basis. Hopefully you can find a meeting that works for your schedule. The Fall Festival will be upon us soon and we will be looking for volunteers to make this fundraiser a success. Look for meeting times and dates within this news-letter as well as on the VES website and on Face-book.

Family Resource Center Welcome back to school, Vineland Herons. I hope you all had a fabulous summer and took some time to Sharpen the Saw, Habit 7. This is personally my favorite of the seven habits. It is important to balance our busy lives and take time to relax and spend time doing the things that we enjoy most. We are very excited to kick off another year in the Family Resource Center. I would like to share some information with you regarding the Family Center and look forward to welcoming our families to our Grand Reopening on August 29th. The Title 1 Family Center is an integral part of the school-wide effort to offer educational support to our families. The atmosphere of the center is friendly, fun-filled, comfortable and informative. Families are encouraged to come and talk with Ms. Fetzer about their child’s reading. The Family Resource Center is open every Wednesday morning from 7:55am to the first bell at 8:55am. We are located in Room A-149 in the A building. You and your child may look over a wide selection of books that are “just right” for your child’s current reading level and interests. Having books on the correct level provides the greatest oppor-tunity for reading skills to grow. During each visit to the center you may check out up to three books. Each time your child visits the center they will receive a free “keeper” book for their home library.

In addition to the great books, we will also have many special guests and prizes throughout the school year. We look forward to visiting with each Wednesday morning!

Sponsor Permission Form

School: Vineland Elementary School Date: _________________________ Dear __________________________, You have indicated you are not able to bring your child, _____________________________________________, to our Family Center for Family Reading Experience on a designated weekly date. I am willing to be your child’s sponsor and with your permission will volunteer to bring your child into the Family Center each week. On a weekly basis, your child will be brining home three check-out books for you to read with him/her or listing to him/her ready to you. Your child will also bring home a “keeper book” for his/her personal home library and use. Please be sure your child reads the books. Please sign and return the bottom portion of this form to indicate your approval and your permission. Thank you for your support and cooperation. __________________________________________________ Sponsor’s Signature —————————————————————————————————————————————————— Cut and return bottom section I hereby give ___________________________________________________ permission to sponsor my child, Sponsor’s Name _____________________________________________, to the Family Reading Experience. I agree to help my Student’s Name child read the books and make sure he/she returns the books the following week.

Vineland Elementary School Laura C. Blunier, Principal

Jacqueline Barber, Assistant Principal 467 Boundary Boulevard, Rotonda West, FL 33947

1-941-697-6600 or 1-941-743-0188 and Fax: 1-941-697-5902 School Hours: 8:55am - 2:55pm

https://www.yourcharlotteschools.net/ves (school website) https://www.yourcharlotteschools.net/Domain/8 (county website)

Vineland Elementary School Vision—Student Success

Vineland Elementary School Motto—LEADERSHIP: Know the Way, Show the Way

Vineland Elementary School Mission— We are a community of leaders and learners who empower greatness and celebrate successes.

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey Habit 1: Be Proactive - You're in Charge

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind – Have a Plan Habit 3: Put First Things First – Work First, Then Play

Habit 4: Think Win-Win – Everyone Can Win Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood – Listen Before You Talk

Habit 6: Synergize – Together Is Better Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw – Balance Feels Best

Charlotte County Public Schools School Board 2018

Ian Vincent Chairman Lee Swift, Vice-Chairman

Kim Amontree Wendy Atkinson

Robert Segur

1-800-628-8938 or 1-941-255-0808

Charlotte County Public Schools, Florida do not discriminate in educational program activities, or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, or handicap. S.B.C.C.R.4.30(1)

The School Board complies with all federal laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination and with all requirements and regulations of the U.S. Department of Education. It is the policy of the Board that no person in this District shall, on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, marital status, disability, or legally-protected characteristic, be discriminated against, excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to, discrimination in any program or activity for which the Board is responsible or for which it receives financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Education.

Policy 1122