Talk to us!/District Parent Survey/SOLAR/IMPACT 2/

Let us hear from you! ~ Your ideas, your concerns and questions are very important to me. Establishing lines of communication are important to me and over the years I have initiated several avenues for you to provide your thoughts: Quick responses to your emails and phone calls, Feedback to Grow link, Parent survey 2 times a year, open door policy, invitations to special school meetings, Coffee with the Principal, etc.... So many times parents have offered great suggestions and ideas that we have put into place! I appreciate hearing from you!

This month parents will have 2 opportunities to provide feedback. One survey, School Council Parent survey, will be offered at our Parent~Teacher Conferences where we will be using paper surveys to gather your input, and the other~ our annual District Parent Satisfaction survey will be offered on-line, in which we will have computers in the lobby for parents to access that survey. We would like to get 100% participation on both surveys as we will rely on your input as we move forward with programs, curriculum, and staffing decisions. THANK YOU!!!

Annual Parent Satisfaction Survey – Thursday, January 12– Saturday, February 4 at midnight.

Parents are encouraged to provide input about the schools their children attend in the online, district-wide parent satisfaction survey. The survey is available from Thursday, January 12 through Saturday, February 4, 2012 at midnight. Parents are invited to complete the survey one time for each school in which they have a student enrolled. Parent feedback will be used to provide input to improve services for children and families. At the top of this blog and on our school website the link has been provided. Watch for reminders coming home!

SOLAR at Desert Trails is coming soon! Displayed in our Lobby is a beautiful poster showing the plan for the solar panels soon to be going in at D.T. You will see how well the panels are laid out, and the area to be covered. During the many phases of this project our parking lots will be under construction. Please keep in mind Cashman park parking lot will become a life saver for pick up & dropping off students as we move through this timeline of work. I will be asking all staff to be parking in the Cashman parking lot to leave our school parking spaces for our parents. Your patience and support as we undergo this great energy efficient venture, will be greatly appreciated! I will keep you posted as we move closer to the launching date- in the meantime, stop in a take a look at the poster!

IMPACT Part 2~ As the past blog shared, teachers have redesigned their instructional day to carve out an IMPACT time to reach all learners in the area of math. Our Kinder and First grade teachers collectively have agreed to utilize their IMPACT time in the area of reading. With the new state law establishing a possible retention by the year 2013 for all 3rd grade students not reading at grade level, our teachers felt that every possible minute that could be devoted to reading would be extremely valuable for all of our students. We are excited about this new direction and we are confident that great results will be obtained.

Impact Time/Parent Survey/Speaker/Conference Dates

At Desert Trails we are continually striving to identify and meet our student's needs. Today, during our Teacher In-Service, teachers will be collaborating together in a Professional Learning Community, where they will use data to pinpoint specific weaknesses and strengths our students possess. All students from time to time need a little "polishing" on certain concepts and skills but as quickly as the day goes by- we can be left with the question "When do we get to that?"
One of my goals, is to never accept the status quo, but to make a difference. Working with the teachers, we have done just that. We will not accept that our students have needs, or that students could be doing more, and we don't have the time- so we will make some changes!
We did!
I have asked teachers to build into their days a 30-40 minute IMPACT time for ALL students! In the subject of Math, student's who need the polishing, students who need the reinforcement, and students who are ready for the next jump up will get this embedded time during their school day! Teachers have worked diligently to move from teaching subjects in isolation to integrating and blending subjects together. An example would be to move away from a "writing block" to integrating writing in Social Studies or Science, still using the same writing objectives and goals but with a Social Studies or Science topic. Be sure to ask your child(ren) about this special time and during your Parent~Teacher Conference be sure to get more information from your child's teacher.
We are all really excited about this new opportunity for our students, and we are sure it will IMPACT them in a very positive way!

On-Line District Parent Survey is coming out soon! Be on the look out for this opportunity for you to share your input. This important survey will take "2 minutes" to complete, but will provide valuable input to daily operations! I will send out the link asap!

Our Kindness Committee invited Mr. Andy Cohn as our guest speaker to talk with our students about developing positive social skills. Andy, who is now in a wheelchair, due to a car accident at age 16- is a Paralympic Wheelchair Rugby player and is part of the Team USA. They won the Gold Medal in Beijing China, the Bronze in Athens, and many more major achievements! We will watch for Andy in the London Paralympics this coming Septemeber, once again representing the USA!
Some of the things Andy stated that I thought were important to note:
"See the person IN the chair, not the chair - Look out for each other and we all succeed." Andy also challenged the kids to find other ways to treat each other besides saying unkind things. Thank you PTO and KINDNESS for bringing such a positive role model to Desert Trails!

Jan. 23-26 Parent~Teacher Conferences

2012/Safety/Get Involved/Jan. Events/Link

Write it on your heart that each day will be the best day of the year. Emerson.

Happy New Year to all of our Desert Trails' families! I eagerly look forward to all of the
positive and innovative challenges that come with a new year! Our Parent~Teacher Conferences are right around the corner, and we relish this time to share your child(ren)'s many accomplishments during the first semester. Be watching for conference information coming home soon. Also, this will be the time when we offer a survey to our parents to gather input on different items. Your input is valued by each School Council member, so please take the time to let us hear from you! Surveys will be distributed during Conference Week and will also be available in the Office starting 1/23 through 1/27. THANK YOU!

Safety First~ is always a priority at Desert Trails, but we need your help. Please continue to drive slowly while in parking lots, and within the crosswalk zones. Dropping off & parking within the crosswalk zones is illegal and can cause serious complications for drivers who are then forced to pass (which is also illegal within the crosswalk zone). Let's take an extra minute and do all we can to make sure not only your child, but all of our children are safe coming and going to school.

Get involved~at Desert Trails! We can't do what we do, without YOU, our wonderful parents. If you have an hour a week or an hour a day we have lots of ways for you to get to know us better and be involved! Reading with students in a small group, working one on one with a student in math or reading, assisting the teacher in the classroom, copying, helping in the Library, etc... Contact your child's teacher, PTO, or the office!!

January Events
1/4 Back in School
1/5 School Council
1/9 Author Gary Hogg visit to 2nd Grade
1/9 Kindness Assembly Andy Cohn Guest Speaker
1/10 Early Release Students Dismissed at 12:30 (NO LUNCH)
1/12 Governing Board Meeting 7pm
1/16 MLK No School
1/17 Catalina 6th Grade Parent meeting 6:30 pm
1/19 STAR Student lunch with Mrs. Lee @ Mimi's Cafe
1/23-1/26 Parent~Teacher Conferences
1/26 Early Release Students Dismissed at 12:30 (NO LUNCH)
1/27 Early Release Students Dismissed at 12:30 (NO LUNCH)
2/2 School Council meeting 7:45 am
1/20 District Spelling Bee (Good Luck~Sammi)

New Link~At the top of my blog you will find several links to give you access to more information. Today I have added a link for easier access to our School Council agendas & minutes. Enjoy!

Spelling Bee/January Events/SpeakUp!Community 5K Run

From~Jane Howard, Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one! The Staff and I wish you the Happiest of Holidays to you and your families!

Spelling Champs! On Dec. 9, Desert Trails held its annual Spelling Bee. However, this was not our usual Bee. This was a first for Desert Trails, as we were running out of words!
This group of excellent spellers just kept spelling correctly!!!! Nice Job!
Participants and Alternates: Sydney B./Chloe F./Evan F./Harrison G./Hannah H./Jennifer I./Brian M./Hannah H./Kylie K./Taylor M./Ethan N./Emilio P.-R./Ashton R./Aliyah S./Julia S./Sammi S./Matt W./Adain W./Samantha B./Nathan O./Abby B./Mary B./Alex J./Matthew L./Sam M./Serena P./Kylie S.
Mrs. Bier and Mrs. Warner planned a very successful Bee. Our judges: Mike Lee, Pinnacle Peak, Principal; Jennifer Minor, Sonoran Sky, Principal; Tammy Hall, District Title Coordinator;
Dr. Rob Allen, District Director of Assessment.
Our Spelling Bee winner for the 2011-2012 school year~ Sammi S. &
Runner up~Ashton R.
CONGRATULATIONS to ALL participants!!!

January Events
1/4 School Resumes
1/5 School Council meeting 7:45 am
1/10 Early Release Students Dismissed at 12:30 (No Lunch)
1/12 Governing Board Meeting 7:00 pm
1/16 MLK No School
1/17 Catalina Parent meeting Chaperones 6:00/ All 6th grade parents 6:30 pm
1/17-2/2 Parent Satisfaction Survey window ( link to come )
1/19 STAR Student lunch with Mrs. Lee~ Mimi's Cafe
1/20 District Spelling Bee
1/23-1/27 Parent~Teacher Conferences
1/26 & 1/27 Early Release Days Students Dismissed at 12:30 (No Lunch)

SpeakUp! window closes Dec. 28~your input provides valuable feedback for the technology direction in PV. Please take just a minute to complete! Thank you! (link at the top of my blog)
Tax Credit! deadline is Dec. 31. On-line donation link can be found at the top of my blog!

Paradise Valley schools Community 5K Run will be held on Saturday, February 11, 2012
Find the flyer at the top of my blog! See you there! ( you can also walk & bring the family!)

ON-LINE TAX CREDIT DONATION!

LINK FOR ON-LINE TAX CREDIT DONATION NOW HERE!!!! Go to my blog!

A letter from a *parent at Desert Trails:
You can make a huge difference in your child’s education!
Do you know that if we mobilize a large majority of our families, we have the potential to direct up to $120,000 to Desert Trails’ before & after school programs, without any additional cost to us? (And that is a very conservative estimate). These are dollars that we are already paying in taxes to the State of Arizona, but instead of going directly to support your child, they go into a state fund. Put your tax money to work where it matters: for your child.

· If you are already due to pay state taxes you can donate up to $200 for singles and $400 for married couples. Then you can make this donation and get every dollar back (deducted) when you file your tax return!

· Decrease your federal tax liability when you make this contribution!

· Increase your miles or points on your credit card when you make this contribution!

· Many large corporations have a ‘Gift Matching’ program! Use the program to double your support to your child’s school~Desert Trails (at no extra cost to you)!

· Support the school and your community!
Spread the word to your neighbors! Some of them might not have kids in school any longer and you think they will not care. However, research shows that communities with excelling schools attract buyers and increase property value. There is a direct correlation between the performance of the school and the value of the properties in the community the school serves.
*This Desert Trails' parent has offered to answer any of your questions. Please contact the office for the phone number.
We are very excited to introduce our district tax credit donation website. Making a contribution to receive your Arizona Public Education Tax Credit is simple when doing it through this site.
TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE 2011 TAX YEAR DONATIONS MUST BE MADE BY 12/31/11

Tax Credit Made Easy!

We are happy to announce the Paradise Valley Unified School District has launched an Online Webstore for Tax Credit Donations.
A link is provided: http://www.pvschools.net/taxCreditInfo.htm so that donors will be taken to an online site where you may donate using their debt or credit card. I am also in the process of getting a link set up on our school website! Anyone using this avenue of making a donation will be issued an email receipt that you may use for tax purposes. Donations can be made via this link up until the deadline~ Midnight~Dec. 31, 2011.

THANK YOU!!!!

Finally, Homework Without Tears!

In Paradise, we are always investing in opportunities for your child to have the best academic experience~ that includes doing their homework!!! Paradise Valley School District is now offering free, on-line, homework support to students of all ages, and all subject areas.
Read on....

Every Monday through Thursday 3pm to 7pm students needing tutoring can be accessed from home - tutors are "in your home!!!"

Students, parents and teacher-parents are highly complimenting the program!
Visit my blog, and click on the link "On-Line Tutoring" for the Super Amazing flyer for more details!

Happy Homework! (Happy Learning!)