Tuesday, October 27, 2009

October 26, 2009

It's hard to believe it's the end of October already, and my what a busy month it has been. Two weeks ago, members of the Macon Rural Fire Department came out to our school to present a program on Fire Safety and Prevention. It was an exciting time to learn from the firemen and see the trucks up close. Thank you to the members of Macon Rural Fire Department who took time out of their busy schedules to come out and present this program to us.

Last Tuesday, we had our first Family Reading Night of the school-year. We had a great turn-out. There were 44 students present with a parent or other adult who read and then took Accelerated Reader tests. Thank you to all the parents who came out and supported your children in this way. Our next Family Reading Night will be held in January.

Last Thursday, we were privileged to be visited by the Mike Hagan Strength Team. We enjoyed watching as Warren Alford and Jeremy Baker performed amazing feats of strength like breaking a baseball bat over their thighs. These world class athletes then presented a program about building strength of character, believing in yourself and working towards goals. Thank you to the anonymous supporters that made this visit possible!

Last Friday our Kindergarten students went to Hill Ridge Farms on a field trip to learn about Pumpkin Farming. It was an exciting time for them to play games an enjoy the many activities of the day! A special thanks is extended to all the parents who went as chaperones. We could not do what we do without your help.

Last week students began taking their First Nine weeks Benchmark Tests. Since Third through Fifth Grades are taking their benchmarks online, the time-frame is extended over a two week period, so benchmarks will continue throughout this week as well.

The next few weeks are a very busy time at our school. Tomorrow night we will be holding our Fall Festival from 5:00 P.M. To 7:30 P.M. A hotdog supper with chips and a drink will be available for $3.50. We will have many games and activities and look forward to seeing many of you there. Don't forget about our two raffles. Students have been selling tickets for our school-wide raffle for several weeks now. Prizes are: First Place - $200, Second Place - $150, Third Place - $125, Fourth Place - $75, and Fifth Place – a $50 gift certificate to Wildwood Nursery. Tickets will be available until 7 P.M., so stop by and buy some tickets for your chance to win some cash. Our second raffle is for a child's bicycle. Tickets are available each morning in the school lobby and at the Fall Festival as well.

Next week Vaughan Elementary will be holding Parent-Teacher Conferences on Thursday, November 5, from 1:30 P.M. To 7:00 P.M. If you have not already set up a time to meet with your child's teacher, please do so. This is a good time to check in on the progress that your child is making and see if there are any areas for concern. Because of Parent Conferences, school will be dismissed at 1:00 P.M. On both Thursday, November 5, and Friday, November 6. Please make arrangements for your children for these two days.

In addition, there has been a change in our normal schedule of events. Our Fall Bookfair has been moved to December 2-9. We normally hold this event during Parent Conferences, but due to other events, a change had to be made. Please mark your calendars for this event and come out to look over an buy some of the great reading material we will have available.


Upcoming Events
October 30, 2009 Teacher Workday – Preparation of Report Cards
November 5, 2009 Early Release – 1 P.M.
November 6, 2009 Early Release – 1P.M.
November 11, 2009 Veteran's Day Holiday – No School

October 5, 2009

We had a wonderful week last week with some exciting things happening on our campus! On Saturday, October 3, we had a Outdoor Work Day. We were awarded 50 azaleas from a grant from NC Beautiful and WRAL TV-5. We had over 30 parents and students come out to help us get them planted as well as do some other beautification and clean up around our school. Words cannot express how much we appreciate all of you who came out and helped! There are too many to name, but a special thanks is extended to the following: Mike Diacont of Wildwood Nursery for donating compost and coming out to help direct where each azalea should be placed, as well as donating two camellias, High and High Brothers for donating mulch, John Ross for bringing his tractor, Matt Moriarty for bringing hole diggers, James Paynter for going to pick up the azaleas and Don Mizelle for for bringing a tiller and a host of other tools.

We also had a beautiful Crape Myrtle tree donated to our school by Delta Kappa Gamma Society in memory of Mrs. Geraldine Spraggins. Members of Delta Kappa Gamma as well as members of the Spraggins family came out for a Dedication Ceremony. Our campus is really shaping up and we are so excited about seeing our blooming beauties in the spring.

This week Macon Rural Fire Department will be visiting us on Friday, October 9, at 9 a. m. to present a program for Fire Prevention and Safety week. Ident-a-Kid pictures will also be offered on Friday. If you would like for your child to take a picture to be made into an ID for emergency use, please send your form with payment on Friday.

Upcoming Events
October 13, 2009 7pm PTA/4th and 5th Grade Concert

Thursday, October 1, 2009

September 28, 2009

It's hard to believe that it is almost October! The school-year is rolling right along and things are going very well at Vaughan Elementary. We are excited to announce that a beautification project for our school has been selected as a winner in the 24th annual Azalea Celebration from NC Beautiful and Capitol Broadcasting Company. We want to take this opportunity to thank High and High, Inc., for donating the mulch for our project and Southern States Farm and Garden for donating fertilizer. We would like to invite any interested volunteers to come out and help us in planting and mulching these beauties. We will be meeting at school at 10 a. m. on Saturday, October 3 to get started. We hope to see you there!

Parents of Pre-Kindergarten students, please be reminded that there will be no school for your children on this Thursday and Friday, October 1 and 2. This only applies to our Pre-K students.

We currently have two fundraisers going on simultaneously. Some of you may have received letters asking you to purchase magazine subscriptions. This is part of a program called Computers for Education. Money that is raised through this effort helps us purchase badly needed computers for our school. Students also have order forms from Cherrydale for various products. This is our annual fundraising program sponsored by the PTA which allows us to raise funds for various supplies needed at our school. These order forms need to be turned in on Tuesday, October 6. Thank you for your support in these efforts. We could not do all the things we do here without it!

We have some great things happening in the weeks ahead. We invite all of our parents out to our first PTA meeting of the school year to be held on October 13, at 7 p. m. The Fourth and Fifth grade students will be presenting a concert that we know everyone will want to see. Also, we would like to invite our parents and students out for our first Family Reading Night of the school year to be held on October 20, from 6:00 to 7:30 p. m. Family Reading Nights are designed to allow parents the opportunity to read with their children, then watch as students take Accelerated Reader tests. It is a great way for parents to see this program in action and encourage your children to read at the same time. We look forward to seeing you at these two events!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

September 14, 2009

It doesn't take long for things to get really busy here at Vaughan. Students and teachers are already well into their routines for this school year. On Monday, September 14, Mrs. Barnes and Mrs. Watson with our Pre-K students hosted “Graham Crackers with Grandparents”. Over half of our Pre-K class had a grandparent come to share a special breakfast with them at school, both in honor of Grandparents Day which was September 13, and to share information with the grandparents on how they can help their grandchildren in their educational journey. Grandparents, thank you for coming out. We know that you do many things to help our youngest students. Thank you for all you do to help both your grandchildren and our school!

We held our annual fund-raising kick-off on Monday afternoon. Thank you in advance to all of our supporters in the Vaughan community as well friends and family members that will support us by ordering products from students. Without your help and support, we could not do many of the things we do at Vaughan School.

This morning our Fifth grade students will be leaving for their annual Sound-to-Sea field trip. Almost fifty students and chaperons will spend three days in an environmental education program at Trinity Center in Salter Path, NC. We look forward to hearing what the students will learn and experience while they are away from us.

Last Friday, September 11, our student body participated in “Fight the Flu Friday”. This day was set aside to learn simple techniques to help our students stay as healthy as possible with viruses and colds running rampant already. Students were taught to cough or sneeze into their elbow instead of their hands where germs can easily be spread. Students were also taught the importance of washing their hands as often as possible. Parents, thank you for encouraging these same habits at home. As a reminder, students who run a fever should not come to school for 24 hours after they no longer have fever, without using fever reducing drugs. If your child has a fever of 100 degrees or more, they will be sent home. Thank you for your help in this effort at keeping our entire student body as healthy as possible. Thanks for all you do to help us continue to make Vaughan Elementary School a school where students are Valued and Empowered with the skills to Succeed in the 21st Century!

Upcoming Events
September 16, 2009 Early Release Day
September 23, 2009 Progress Reports Sent Home
September 23, 2009 Early Release Day
September 25, 2009 Picture Day – Students MUST wear school uniforms.

September 7, 2009

Last week was an exciting and busy week and this week promises to be as well. Last Thursday night we held our annual Accountability Meeting. At 6:00, our teacher's assistants and resource teachers served supper which consisted of hotdogs and trimmings, chips, drink and desert. We estimate we had almost 180 parents and students in attendance. Thank you is extended to the teacher's assistants and resources teachers who served for us. They were: Mrs. Carolyn Richardson, Ms. Latoya Alston, Ms. Aquilla Alston, Ms. Laquisha Taylor, Mrs. Lynn Paschall, Mrs. Cindy Salmon, Mrs. Donna Liles, Mrs. Trina Paynter, and Ms. Brooke Comer. In addition, a special thank you is extended to Ms. Carolyn Laster for making the chili for us, Mrs. Paynter for making slaw for us and most especially to Mr. John Ross for grilling the hot dogs for us. There are many others who helped out behind the scenes with set-up and clean-up and we thank you for your help and efforts!

At 6:30 p.m., our Fifth grade teachers started their meeting to discuss our upcoming Sound-to-Sea field trip. We know the students are looking forward to this exciting time to get hands-on experience with the various habitats found in and around the beach. At 7:00 p.m., Mrs. Mizelle welcomed everyone in the multi-purpose room and presented general information about school rules and policies. Ms. Brooker Comer, our Guidance Counselor, discussed the Attendance Policy, Mrs. Liza Adcock, our school nurse, discussed the Medication Administration Policy and forms that need to be turned in for this, and Mrs. Trina Paynter, our Media Coordinator, discussed Accelerated Reader and our Media Center. We also had Mr. Robert Parker, the county Food and Nutrition Director discuss our school's new Nutrition Tracking Program. Parents were then released to go to grade level meetings being hosted at 7:30 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. Thank you parents for being committed to learning about your child's school and education. We know it's hard to come out after work and stay focused for several hours when you are already tired.

This week, we all enjoyed Monday as a holiday for Labor Day. Our new Pre-Kindergarten students joined us in staggered rotation with half of them coming on Tuesday, half on Wednesday, and all of them on Thursday. We look forward to watching these new "baby eagles" learn and grow. We know that Mrs. Barnes and Mrs. Watson have lots of fun and learning in store for them!

Next week, our Fifth Grade students will be leaving on Wednesday for their three-day Sound-to-Sea Field trip. We look forward to hearing about all they will learn and experience while they are gone. Parents, just a reminder to keep a check on all the forms that come home. Please look through your child's bookpacks to be sure all have been filled out and returned. At the back of the Student Handbook, there are a couple that need to be filled out and returned as well. Thank you for your help in this! Thanks for all you do to help make Vaughan Elementary School a school were students are: Valued and Empowered with the Skills to succeed in the 21st Century.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Welcome to a New Year!! - September 3, 2009

Welcome back students and parents. Our school-year opening has been outstanding. Students and staff are doing a great job of getting "back in the groove." Parents, thank you for everything you have done and are continuing to do to make our school year a huge success. There are just a few reminders: Please remember the school uniform dress code policy. For our school, top colors are: white, light blue, black or burgundy. Bottoms should be black, navy or khaki, belts must be solid black, brown, white or navy, and shoes must be solid white, black or brown. Light jackets that can be worn in school must be solid in color and can be white, light blue, navy, black, khaki or burgundy. Parents, please be sure your child is in compliance.

Our school would like to welcome a new principal, Renee Mizelle. While she is new to the position, we are all familiar with her as she previously served as our Reading Specialist. We would also like to welcome Deborah Foster to our school. Ms. Foster has many years of experience in education and will be serving as kindergarten teacher here at Vaughan. We are glad to have you both here and in your new positions.

Vaughan will be hosting our annual School-wide Accountability meeting on Thursday night, September 3 beginning at 6 p. m. with a hot dog supper provided for students and parents. The fifth grade meeting about Sound-to-Sea will begin at 6:30 p. m. and then the school wide information session will begin at 7 p. m. in the multi-purpose room. Individual grade level meetings will begin shortly afterward. Information that will be presented will include: Attendance Policies and Regulations, School-Wide Discipline Procedures, Daily Schedules and much more. Please be sure to join us for this very important informational meeting.

We are also excited about some new changes to the look of parts of our school. Last year, the Warren Education Fund awarded a grant entitled "Wild About Books" which allowed our media center to become a cozier, more welcoming space. Last school year a wall mural, rug and large stuffed animals made their may into the media center. A unit of study was completed on award winning illustrators. Then a school-wide contest was held with students entering a drawing of their favorite book. Winners were selected and students re-drew their artwork on canvas squares. Over the summer, these canvas squares were incorporated into valances. These have now been hung in the media center allowing us to have a student art gallery, as well as a polished look to our media center. Mrs. Paynter invites parents, students and anyone who would like to view them to stop by during the Accountability night. A very special thanks is again extended to the Warren Education Fund for making this possible with their mini-grant.

In just over a week, we will welcome our newest "baby eagles" to our campus. Pre-Kindergarten will begin with a staggered-start on September 8 and 9. Welcome baby eagles! We look forward to seeing you on our campus as you embark on your educational journey with us.

Monday, June 1, 2009

Vaughan Elementary School News - June 1, 2009

We are all so very excited about wrapping things up for this school year. One of the projects that we have been especially excited about this year at our school is the new reading nook in our Media Center. With funds from a Warren Education Fund Grant, a wall mural, a rug, puppets, and four large stuffed animals in a “Wild About Books” theme were purchased for the media center. It is beautiful and really welcomes everyone into our Media Center. A second part to this grant was an art contest among the students in the school. Students were asked to choose a book that they were “wild” about and draw a book cover for it. Winning entries then redrew this picture on to canvas squares. These squares are being quilted into valances that will hang in our Media Center windows. Winners were: Yobani Marin - “Lightship”, Alex Vogel - “Dinosaur Babies”, Jasmine Huff - “Dog Breath”, Hailey Vogel - “The Puppy Who Wanted a Boy”, Schana Kearney - “The Missing Piece”, Zianne Richardson - “Christmas”, Angel Harvey - “Clifford and the Grouchy Neighbors”, Stavon Drew - “Babymouse Beach Babe”, Tiara Daniel - “Curious George Goes Fishing”, Nathaniel Taylor - “Ricky Ricotta's Might Robot”, Ta'Shaynna Seward - “Share a Book”, Caleb Conn - “Oh the Places You'll Go”, Breanna Sikes - “Morris's Disappearing Bag”, Makayla Richardson - “The Giving Tree”, Briana Jefferson - “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”, Antonio Richardson - “Go Dog, Go”, Ben Rodwell - “Super Fly Guy”, Elizabeth Neitch – “Harry Potter”, Jesse Lambert - “The Chronicles of Narnia – The Last Battle”, David Evans - “Henry and Mudge Under the Yellow Moon”, and Mary Francis - “Captain Underpants”. Congratulations students, on a job well done. We hope the valances will be completed before the last day of school, but if not, please come by at the beginning of next school year and take a look!

Here is a picture of the artwork:

Monday, May 25, 2009

Vaughan Elementary School News - May 25, 2009

We can hardly believe that the school year really is almost over! It seems that just yesterday we started. The next two weeks will be very busy with end of year activities and we just wanted to make you aware of them. Monday, June 1 at 10:00 AM we will be holding our Pre-K Celebration. Then on Tuesday, June 2, at 10:00 AM we will have Kindergarten Celebration and awards. At 1:00 PM we will have our Grades 1-4 Awards Day. That evening, students in Grades 3-5 will be honored at our Scholars Reception from 6:30-7:30 PM This event is by invitation only. Students participating should already have received these. All of these events will be held in the Multi-Purpose Room. On Wednesday, June 3, at 1:30 PM, we will have a celebration fun day for Perfect Attendance, K-2 Honors students and Character Award winners for this entire year. This event will be held on the patio.

Students who made level 1 or 2 on their End-of-Grade Tests will be busy with retakes June 1- 4. If you visit our school during these dates, please take notice of Testing signs and follow directions accordingly for traffic and noise in the hallways where testing will be taking place.

As a reminder, students who have library books out need to get them turned in as soon as possible or pay the replacement cost. We love our library and having all of our books turned in allows others more opportunities for titles to read next year. Parents, thank you for your help with this.

Monday, May 18, 2009

May 18 - Vaughan School News

We are really feeling like things are wrapping up for the year. Students in grades 3 – 5 completed their Reading and Math End-of-Grade Tests last week. Students that made a level 2 or 1 have already begun their remediation to prepare for retakes during the first week of June. Parents, you should have already received some preliminary scoring data to inform you of how your child performed. If you did not, please contact your child's teacher. If your child will retake their Reading or Math End-of-Grade tests, please work with them each and every night until retesting. Fifth grade students will have taken their Science End-of-Grade Tests on Tuesday, May 19. We look forward to receiving preliminary results from those tests as well.

Last Friday our Pre-K students participated in their May Day. They really had a great time with some of the physical fitness activities outside. They enjoyed a special sub lunch with their parents in the multi-purpose room. Mrs. Barnes and Mrs. Watson certainly did a wonderful job taking care of everything! These same Pre-K students will be having their Celebration Ceremony on June 1, 2009 at 10 AM in the multi-purpose room. It will be so exciting to see our “baby eagles” preparing to move on up to Kindergarten.

As we are moving closer and closer to the end of the school year, it is time to start turning in library books. If your child has lost a book, please help them look for it if at all possible. Students who have missing books will need to take responsibility for losing the book and pay the replacement cost. Thank you for helping your child with this task.

Upcoming Events
June 2, 2009 Kindergarten Celebration, 10 AM
June 2, 2009 Grades 1-4 Awards Day, 1 PM
June 2, 2009 Scholar's Reception, Grades 3-5, 6:30 PM
June 3, 2009 Perfect Attendance, K-2 Honors, Character Celebration, 1:30 PM
June 5, 2009 Fifth Grade Celebration, 10 AM

Monday, May 11, 2009

Vaughan Elementary School News - May 11, 2009

Last week was Teacher Appreciation Week and we certainly feel appreciated. On Monday morning we were given a very nice lunch bag that has already come in handy for many of us. All week long we received treats in our mailboxes as well. On Thursday, May 7, the PTA sponsored a Teacher Appreciation Luncheon in our Multi-purpose Room. It was a wonderful time to take just a few minutes out and enjoy a break and a terrific meal. We also had a drawing for door prizes. The staff would like to say a special thank you to the PTA for the lovely gifts and the meal. In addition, we would also like to say thank you to the parent volunteers who “took over” in our classrooms during lunchtime to allow us to enjoy the luncheon. We cannot tell you enough how much we appreciate all the ways that you help us!

This week students are taking the End-of-Grade Tests in Reading and Math. Please help students get to bed early so that they can get a good night's rest to be ready for their test. Next Tuesday fifth grade students will be taking their Science End-of-Grade Tests.

One important note of interest in our calendar is a change to the Kindergarten Celebration and our Awards Day Program. This has been changed to June 2. The Kindergarten Celebration will be at 10 AM and the Awards Day for Grades 1-4 will be that afternoon at 1 PM. The coming weeks will be very busy with other end of year activities. Please look at the calendar to keep a check on when important events are.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Get Ready for EOGs

It's hard to believe we are already in May! The school year has really flown by. Students in grades 3, 4 and 5 will be taking their Reading and Math End-of-Grade Tests on May 12, 13 and 14th. Retesting for students who are absent due to sickness will be given on Friday, May 15th and Monday, May 18th. Science EOGs for 5th grade students will be given on Tuesday, May 19th. Please make sure students are at school on time these days. Also, students will perform better on tests if they have had a good night's sleep the night before. Parents, thank you very much for your help in this.



This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. Thank you to all the parents who will be "taking over" for teachers to attend the Teacher Appreciation Luncheon that is sponsored by the PTA on Thursday, May 7th from 11:30 am -1:30 pm. We truly are thankful for all of the wonderful parent volunteers that help us out in so many ways!



The last day for library book circulation will be May 22nd. All books will need to be turned back in to the library on May 28th. Mrs. Paynter will be out of the Media Center on May 28 and 29 for Technology Training. If you have lost a book, payment for the book will need to be made before the last day of school on June 9th.



The next couple of weeks will be a very busy time for us, so check back for updates.