Piñon
Hills Elementary School
MUSTANG TRACKS
May 2012
1479
Stephanie Way, P.O. Box 1888
Minden,
NV 89423
Phone:
(775) 267-3622
Fax:
(775) 267-3846
http://dcsd.k12.nv.us/phes
PRINCIPAL'S
MESSAGE
Dear Piñon Parents,
I hope that this newsletter finds you ready and
excited for the final stretch toward the end of the school year. The end of
the year always brings many different activities for students and parents, so
please read the remainder of the newsletter carefully so you don’t miss out on
some exciting events!
During May we are excited by the opportunity to
recognize and celebrate our staff during staff appreciation week, May 7th
through May 11th. This is a great time to celebrate the hard
working individuals who give so much to our students at PHES.
May also means our final round of testing and then
summer break is just around the corner. Our MAP testing (measurement of
academic progress) has already begun. Please take great care to make certain
that your student is at school each day, has plenty of sleep, and eats a good
breakfast.
This time of year brings many celebrations. Two
important ones are our Kindergarten Celebration and our 6th Grade
Celebration. The Kindergarten Celebration will be held Tuesday, May 29th at
6:00 PM in the PHES multi-purpose room. Our 6th Grade Celebration
will be held on Thursday, May 31st, with a barbeque for students at 12:45 and
an awards ceremony at 1:30 in the PHES multi-purpose room. Families are
invited to attend both the Kindergarten Celebration and the 6th grade awards
ceremony.
Unfortunately, the state budget crisis and declining
enrollment will impact students at PHES for the coming 2012-2013 school year.
Presently, PHES is expected to lose 1.5 teaching positions. As a result of these
cuts, parents should expect class sizes to increase and fewer services and
programs to be available for students.
It has been the policy at PHES to put the next year’s
classroom teacher on students’ report cards on the last day of school. However,
this year due to the uncertainty of staffing, we are postponing class
assignments until we are certain what teachers we will have at PHES. If
assignments are not made before report cards go out on June 1st,
class lists will be available for students and parents to review on Wednesday,
August 15th. I want to remind everyone that we do not accept
requests for specific teachers. Thank you for your cooperation.
The school year ends on Friday, June 1st, and will not
resume until Monday, August 20th. We hope you are able to enjoy your family
time this summer, but we would encourage you to keep your children's brains
engaged! The Douglas County Public Library has many great programs to keep
your child focused on reading this summer. Take the time to check them out!
All of the library programs are free and they offer fun family opportunities
throughout the summer.
Together in Education! Rommy Cronin
PTO’S 15th ANNUAL
ICE CREAM SOCIAL
FRIDAY, MAY 18th, 6:00 - 9:00
Come
one, come all, for the 15th annual Ice Cream Social on Friday, May 18th, from
6:00 to 9:00. Come join in the fun: food, games, raffle, silent auction,
basket raffle and, of course, ice cream!
MOTHER'S and FATHER'S DAY
BREAKFAST
Our Mother's and Father's Day breakfast will be on Tuesday,
May 22nd, at 8:00 a.m. Mothers, fathers, or special adults are invited to have
breakfast with their children. An invitation and reservation sheet will be
going home in your student's folder.
BOOK FAIR
Thank you to all the volunteers who helped with the
Book Fair and to Roberta Butterfield for her work in running it. The Book Fair
brought in over $5,000.00!
The
Spring Book Fair volunteers were: Kristin Eunson, Cristi Sheikman, Aki Duncan,
Pam Herman, Rachel Gaskell, Tami Stein, Chava Rothschild, Shannon Albert,
Franci McKown, Michelle Rank, Erin Coffey, Misty Long, Holly Kuhlmann, Sherri
Ence, Becky Gray, Susan Stafford, Alona Baugh, Jill Williams, Gabby Moreno,
Beth Watts and Tara Montoya
The raffle winners were Austin Pitts and Chana Rothschild and
their prize was $25.00 each to spend on books. Congratulations
to Taylor Sullivan, the winner of the Amazon Kindle! Happy Reading!
NEXT PTO MEETING
In May, there will be two PTO meetings. They will be held
on Tuesday, May 1st and May 22nd, both at 6:30. Please plan on attending.
This important meeting's agenda items include the nomination of officers for next
year.
LOST
AND FOUND
Our lost and found is spilling over with items. Please stop
in to “find” any remaining items before they are donated to a local charity on
June 4th. Small or valuable items are kept in the office. Clothing
and lunch bags are in the hallway outside of the multi-purpose room.
MOVING?
LET THE OFFICE KNOW
If you are planning on relocating over the summer, please
let the office know prior to the year’s end. We spend a great deal of time
creating balanced classes based on the information we have and these classes
can be affected when we have no-shows in the fall. Also, please let the office
know if you are moving but still staying within our school zone. We will need
to update your information on file
PRINCIPAL’S COFFEE CONNECTION
Thank you to Ron Santi for attending April's Coffee
Connection - the last one for the school year. Hope to see you at the
Principal's Coffee Connections next year!
STUDENT
LED CONFERENCES
Attention all sixth grade parents: Student led
conferences will take place on May 16th. Please check your child’s
peechee for a letter with more information and your scheduled time. Due
to the number of conferences, there is very little flexibility in changing
times. Sixth graders will be participating in several lessons over the
next couple of weeks to look at their academic and behavioral skills, set
goals, and put their conference together. Following each
conference, we would like you to stop into the computer lab and fill out a
quick survey regarding your experience. We hope that this will be a
valuable experience for students and parents alike and look forward to seeing
you on May 16th.
COUNSELOR’S CORNER
Think Kindness!
For the month of May, we will be focusing on the
self-control skill of doing service to others. We will kick the month off with
a motivational assembly from Think Kindness, where we will challenge all of our
students to do 5,000 acts of kindness in a two week period. Last year,
students at PHES did over 8,000 acts of kindness in two weeks. We are hoping
to beat that number this year. Please encourage your child to participate and
to write his or her acts down in the journal we will be providing. We want to
encourage our students to be deliberate in doing kind things and to challenge
themselves to go above and beyond to find new ways to lend a hand. Our
kindness challenge will begin on Friday, April 27 and end on Friday, May 11.
6th Grade Talent Show
Mark your calendars; the sixth grade talent show is
scheduled for Friday, May 25 at 2:00 PM in the multi-purpose room. Everyone is
invited to attend. The sixth graders have begun pulling their ideas together
and will begin practicing next week during their lunch recess on Tuesdays and
Thursdays. The dress rehearsal will be on May 24 at 2:00 PM. The performance
promises to be fun and exciting. Hope to see you all there.
6th Grade Student Led Conferences
Just a reminder that sixth grade student led conferences
will be held on May 16. Student led conferences are an excellent way for
students to share with their parents their goals for the future and their
accomplishments this year. They are a fun and informative conference that you
won’t want to miss. If you have not received your time or if the time you were
assigned does not fit in your schedule, please call Carly Strauss at 267-2622
or email cstrauss@dcsd.k12.nv.us.
Carly Strauss,
Counselor
IMPORTANT
DATES IN MAY & JUNE
|
April 26 through May 11
|
|
* K – 6th Grade MAP Testing
|
|
Tuesday, May 1
|
8:00
2:30
6:30
|
* Volunteer Breakfast
* 4th – 6th Grade DHS
Leadership Assembly
* PTO Meeting
|
|
Wednesday, May 2
|
NO SCHOOL
|
* Collaboration Day
|
|
Friday, May 4
|
9:00 – 10:00
2:15
|
* 6th Grade Registration
for CVMS
* K – 4th Grade Silver
State Theater Assembly
|
|
May 7 through May 11
|
|
* Staff Appreciation Week
|
|
Monday, May 7
|
2:20 – 3:00
|
* DHS Band & Madrigals
Concert
|
|
Tuesday, May 8
|
|
* Staff Appreciation
Breakfast
|
|
Wednesday, May 9
|
9:00 – 11:30
5:30
6:30
|
* 6th Grade Tours CVMS
* K – 2nd Grades Spring
Concert
* 3rd & 4th Grades Spring
Concert
|
|
Thursday, May 10
|
|
* Staff Appreciation Lunch
|
|
Sunday, May 13
|
|
* Mother's Day
|
|
May 14 through May 18
|
|
* 5th Grade History Tests
|
|
Tuesday, May 15
|
5:30
6:30
|
* 5th & 6th Grades
Spring Concert
* Band Concert
|
|
Wednesday, May 16
|
NO SCHOOL
3:30
|
* Parent/Teacher
Conferences
* Board Meeting @ DHS
|
|
Thursday, May 17
|
1:00 – 3:00
6:00
|
* 5th Grade Family Life
* 2nd Grade Family Night
|
|
Friday, May 18
|
1:00 – 3:00
6:00 - 9:00
|
* 5th Grade Family Life
* Ice Cream Social
|
|
Monday, May 21
|
9:30
1:00
1:00 – 3:00
|
* 6th Grade Family Life
* 6th Grade Fighting Chance
Presentation
* 5th Grade Family Life
|
|
Tuesday, May 22
|
8:00 – 9:00
6:30
|
* Mothers & Fathers'
Day Breakfast
* PTO Meeting
* 6th Grade Field Trip to
Reno ACES
|
|
Wednesday, May 23
|
9:30
|
* 6th Grade Family Life
* 1st Grade Field Trip to
Spooner Lane
|
|
Thursday, May 24
|
9:30
2:00 - 3:20
|
* 6th Grade Family Life
* 6th Grade Talent Show
Dress Rehearsal
|
|
Friday, May 25
|
2:00 - 3:20
|
* 6th Grade Talent Show
|
|
Monday, May 28
|
NO SCHOOL
|
* Memorial Day Holiday
|
|
Tuesday, May 29
|
6:00
|
* Kindergarten Celebration
|
|
Wednesday, May 30
|
|
* 4th Grade Field Trip to
Virginia City
* 6th Graders go to Swim
Center
|
|
Thursday, May 31
|
12:45
1:30
|
* 6th Grade BBQ
* 6th Grade Awards & Celebration
|
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, June 1
|
12:40 Dismissal
|
* Field Day
* LAST DAY OF SCHOOL -
Minimum Day
|
|
Tuesday, June 12
|
3:30
|
* Board Meeting @ DHS
|
|
|
|
|
|
Monday, August 20
|
9:00
|
* SCHOOL RESUMES
|
APRIL'S
HORSESHOE HEROES
The
following students received a certificate in Recognition of Excellence in a
particular area and a Piñon Hills key chain. Their autographed horseshoes are
on display in our Horseshoe Hero Hall of Fame. April’s Horseshoe Heroes were:
|
1 BICKMORE
Russell Stokes
Zackary Hinchey
|
1 COZIAHR
Gavin Davis
Kai’Lani Terhune
|
1 JACKSON
Mia Stewart
|
|
1 WILLIAMS
Daniel Mendez Cabral
Joshua Fragoso
|
2 GRAU
Alequin Scheetz
Kevin Coffey
|
2 PERALDO
Connor Coles
Carissa Bilderback
|
|
2 SULLIVAN
Zoe Butterfield
Rannin Burgeson Somers
Parker Jackson
Ben Hirt
|
2 TOLLMANN
Jacob Gavin
Kendall Skellenger
Auryn Deem
|
|
|
3 GLICK
Alina Munsdeane
AJ Burdick
|
3 HELMS
Rachel Dang
Sage Buxton
Makenna Brown
|
3 HUFF
Thomas Alexander
Hannah Serpa
Sarah Meglen
|
|
4 DAVIS
Lance Dacayanan
Wyatt Pratt
Nina Griffin
|
4 MCDONNELL
Stormy Tims
Chris Willing
Dylan Boles
|
4 ROBINSON
Meleeah Holmes McKown
Tiffani Chaffin
Arianna Lucia
|
|
5 HOYLE
Jason Gray
Gideon Tully
Xander Roberts
|
5 JACOBSON
Draya Dallaire
Louis Navin
Austin Worthen
|
5 TIGHE
Tyson Saunders
Hunter Morris
Brandon Butkovich
|
|
6 CARTER
Lillian Thompson
John Ketron
John Crosby
|
6 PARK JOHNSON
Micheal Valdez
Elijah Smith
Callista Hughes
|
6 TUGGLE
Kira Costarella
Dono Hunton
Sebastian Ramirez
|
PHES MISSION STATEMENT
The Piñon Hills Elementary School parents, staff and
community encourage all students to actively use their minds
and bodies in striving for excellence in academics and
citizenship.
DCSD
MISSION STATEMENT
The Douglas County School District, in partnership with
parents and community, will ensure that all students achieve excellence in
education, character and citizenship. The Douglas County School District does
not knowingly discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color,
creed, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, or
disability in admission or access to, treatment, or participation in its
programs, and activities. All programs, classes, and opportunities are
available to all students.