Week of December 13th

Underwood Families, 

I hope that you have had a fantastic week! We have had a great week of school and are looking forward to the last week of the 2019 year! Below are some celebrations and announcements. 

Pieces of Gold
Congratulations to our 3-5 Theater Production Team in being selected to participate in Pieces of Gold in March! Pieces of Gold is a Wake County K-12 production that schools audition to participate at Meymandi Hall! The staff and students worked really hard for this achievement, way to go!

Readvolution 
I am proud to announce that out of 118 schools we finished in 14th place for the Readvolution campaign with having read 4.832 books.  That is amazing! Each student who read for 800 or more minutes during the campaign will be receiving two free Carolina Hurricanes tickets.  We had 164 students reach or exceed that goal of 800 minutes! Please see the links below on how to redeem the tickets.  

Throughout the campaign we have also been tracking at school which classes have read the most minutes and finished the most books.  It has been a close race throughout the campaign. The final numbers are in... Ms. Shepherd's class read the most books with 579 books read and Mrs. Goldberg's class read a total of 41,521 minutes which ​was the highest for our school.  Congratulations to both classes, to all the students that participated, and to the students who met their goals!!  

Remember...“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” ― Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!

Holiday Performance:
Holiday Concerts are next week.  The two evening performances are for our home families (parents, grandparents, neighbors, etc) and provide a more intimate setting for students to showcase their work.  The Thursday AM performances are for our school family (staff and students) and are encore highlights of the evening performances. Parents are not expected to attend the daytime performance.  

• Orchestra and Band Concert (Dr. Booth and Mr. Richardson’s classes) - Monday, December 16 at 7:00pm in the Underwood Gym.
• Dance and Music Concert (Mrs. Frasier and Ms. Spiggle’s classes) - Tuesday, December 17 at 7:00pm in the Underwood Gym.
• School Family Encore Performances on Thursday, December 19:
• 3rd-5th Grade at 9:45am
• Kindergarten - 2nd Grade at 10:45am

If you have questions contact your child’s elective teacher.


Upcoming Events 

• December 16th- Band/Strings Concert-7pm
• December 17th- Dance/Music Concert-7pm
• December 19th- Holiday Share (9:45 for Grades 3-5; 10:45 for Grades K-2)
• December 23-January 3- Holiday Break 
• January 2nd Workday 
• January 3rd Workday 

Wishing you well this week!

Mr. Shillings

November 18th

Underwood Families, 
I hope that you are having a great start to your week! We are in our second week of electives and third week into the second quarter.  We continue to have so many things to be thankful for at Underwood. We are proud to announce our teacher and instructional assistant of the year as well as updates on Readvolution.  

Teacher of the Year and Instructional Assistant of the year : 

Heather Burton - special education teacher working mainly with k-2. This is Mrs. Burton’s second year at Underwood. She has a variety of experience in working with students with special needs for pre-kindergarten to high schoolers. She works in general education classroom along with providing instruction during the student's elective time. Her peers say, “Heather is a huge asset to Underwood’s youngest learners….She is always going above and beyond for the needs of all students...She models appropriate response and allows herself to mess up, but reflects.” Congratulations to Mrs. Burton! 

Michelle Kurtz - instructional assistant in our ECS k-2 classroom. This is Mrs. Kurtz second year at Underwood Elementary. She previously taught self-contained special education classes for over 25 years. She joined us last  year as an instructional assistant in our ECS classroom. Her peers say, “She is kind, fun, and always willing to help anyone….she never fails to have a smile upon her face. No matter what challenges her day may contain...she always demonstrates her kind and friendly personality to her colleagues and jumps in to help when necessary”.  Congratulations to Mrs. Kurtz!

Readvolution 

We are still two weeks away from the December 6th end date of the Readvolution campaign and we already have over 60 students who have reached or surpassed the goal of 800 minutes.  Way to go! Don’t forget each student that reaches the goal of 800 minutes will receive two hockey tickets. Our fourth graders are still in the lead with over 70,000 minutes logged! Keep reading Unicorns! 

Upcoming Events 

• November 20th - Holly's Harps performance at 1:20 
• November 22nd - 3-5 Cultural Arts Music Performance (Shana Tucker) 
• November 26th - Book Fair opens 
• November 26th - Leadership Meeting at 7:45
• November 27th - November 29th - Holiday 

Wishing you well this week!

October 14 - 18

Underwood Families, 

Thank you to all those that participating in our School Family Picnic! It was a great night to connect with families and enjoy the time together! 

Curriculum Support
Are you looking at ways to support your child at home? Here are some WCPSS Parent resources - https://www.wcpss.net/domain/4696.  There are two sites I suggest that you take a look at and bookmark if you are looking for ways to support your students with their homework and classroom lessons and curriculum -- Homework Resources and Parent Resource Center. These are updated by WCPSS curriculum and instruction department. 

First Friday Spirit Day 
This year we are having spirit days the first Friday of the month, this month we had Picture Day, so we didn’t think a Spirit Day would be the best idea. This Friday is: Favorite Football Shirt Day


Reminders: 
October 17th - Unicorn Trot Students’ Kickoff 
October 18th: Favorite Football Shirt Day
October 24th - Parent Party kickoff for Unicorn Trot 
October 25th - Unicorn Trot 
October 31st - End of first Quarter and Weather Makeup day 
November 1st - Teacher Workday (no school for students) 
November 4th - 6th - 3rd Grade Cog-Ats

October 7 - 11

Leading & Learning

Leading & Learning

• Home
• Quick Links
• #weareUnderwood
• Blog
• Technology Integration in math
• Technology integration in literacy

Monday, October 7, 2019

October 7-11

Underwood Families, 

We are into the second week of October and are halfway through the first quarter. We are working on ways to be kind in school, at home, and in our community. This is done through being helpful, saying kind words, and wishing others well when they are not having a good day. Here are a couple of reminders for the week:

Back to School Picnic 
We look forward to having our school family at Underwood on October from 5:30 - 7:00. Bring your blanket and/or chairs along with dinner to join us on the playground. Don’t feel like bringing dinner, try out one of the food trucks that will be on campus. We have Burger 21 and Big Mike’s Barbeque along with Kona Ice coming.  Students are able to play on the bounce houses and playground until 7. 

Reminder that at school, we expect PRIDE to be followed:

• Practice Self-Control -  staying in assigned areas (playground), walking in the building (going to use the bathroom) and are watching where they are going during the day 
• Responsibility is key - staying with your family during the picnic 
• Identify Safe Choice - using the equipment appropriately, follow expectations on the bounce house 
• Demonstrate Respect - put trash where it goes, clean up after each other, and watching where we are going and if you make an oops make it right
• Excel in School - clean up our mess, treat each other with respect

Morning Arrival 
Thank you for your patience this morning during morning arrival -- Monday commute. We are hoping that tomorrow we will be back to our normal arrival process. 

Apply for Free and Reduced Lunch: 
Be sure to visit MySchoolApps.com to complete to apply for Free and Reduced Meal benefits. Tomorrow (parent/guardian) students that have not completed the application will not be able to access the meal plan. We estimate that will be about 20 students at our school. 

October 9th - Teacher Workday - Conscious Discipline Year 2 Training 
October 10th - School Family Picnic - 5:30 - 7:00 
October 24th - Parent Party kickoff for Unicorn Trot 
October 25th - Unicorn Trot 
October 31st - End of first Quarter and Weather Makeup day 
November 1st - Teacher Workday (no school for students)

First week of school in the books

Underwood Families,

Well, our first week of school went well with our students and kindergartners coming in one day during the week. This week we are looking forward to an awesome four day week!

Reminder that at 9:10 we do a school-wide Pledge of Allegiance and breathing to start our day. If you are in the building during this time, please model these activites, if needed watch the students show you how we start our day!

Signing up for Electives

Elective brochures are going home on Tuesday, September 3rd for students in Grades 1-5.  Please read the directions carefully on the front of the brochure and watch the tutorial video (QR code in the top right corner if you need assistance filling out the brochure).  In each box/section, please prioritize your #1-3 choices.  Classes marked with an * may only be prioritized if a teacher signatures/initials are beside the class title.  Elective brochures are due back on Friday, September 6th.  If you have any questions, please contact Ashley Cooper (acooper4@wcpss.net; 919-856-7663 x21067)

Transportation

Bus Tags - The WCPSS Transportation Department will continue
to use the bus tag system this school year. All students that are
assigned a bus (and plan to ride it) will need to have a bus tag.
See the WCPSS Transportation website -
https://www.wcpss.net/transportation for information about routes,
membership, Here Comes The Bus App and more. Please contact
Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit (ajudge-lenkeit@wcpss.net)  if you have
questions that are not answered on the website. 

Carpool Tags - We had a successful first week of carpool.

Reminder that cars should be going down Fairview road via

Glenwood Ave (not parking at the drugstore and cutting in

to the line) We have carpool tags for our families that will be
utilizing carpool this year. New families (or new carpool riders) will
need to complete the paperwork in the front office to receive a
carpool number. 

What is carpool like? --- Check out this short video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWwCYxuTZeI 

School-Wide Expectations:

Our school-wide expectations for staff, students, family, and guests continues to be the PRIDE model. 

P - Practice self-control
R - Responsibility is key
I -  Identify safe choices
D - Demonstrate respect
E - Excel in school (or in the setting)

Wishing you well on our second week of school, first with all of our students! 

Transportation and School-Wide Expectations

It’s hard to believe the first day of school is less than a week away! Safety for our students during arrival and dismissal is of the utmost importance. Below are our expectations for the different ways that students arrive to and leave our campus.

Be sure to make the teacher aware of how your child(ren) will be
going home during the school year. If there is a change please call
the front office and we will make your classroom teacher aware of
the update. 

Transportation

Bus Tags - The WCPSS Transportation Department will continue
to use the bus tag system this school year. All students that are
assigned a bus (and plan to ride it) will need to have a bus tag.
See the WCPSS Transportation website -
https://www.wcpss.net/transportation for information about routes,
membership, Here Comes The Bus App and more. Please contact
Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit (ajudge-lenkeit@wcpss.net)  if you have
questions that are not answered on the website. 

Carpool Tags - We have carpool tags for our families that will be
utilizing carpool this year. New families (or new carpool riders) will
need to complete the paperwork in the front office to receive a
carpool number. 

What is carpool like? --- Check out this short video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWwCYxuTZeI 

Walkers - If you are planning on picking up your student(s)
through the walker line in the afternoon be sure to email
Mr. Shillings (tshillings@wcpss.net) the names of whom you give
permission to pick them up from Underwood. Daily there will be
a staff member that will be checking these names. If we do not
have an email list from a parent you will need to go to the front
office and show ID to have your student released to you.

What does walker dismissal look like -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucglQTePToc 

School-Wide Behavior Expectations
Our school-wide expectations for behavior continues to be the PRIDE model. For the first two weeks Mr. Shillings and Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit will go over PRIDE for dismissal, lunchroom, playground, bathroom, and hallway expectations.

P - Practice self-control
R - Responsibility is key
I -  Identify safe choices
D - Demonstrate respect
E - Excel in school (or in the setting)

We look forward to seeing you all soon for a wonderful school year!

Mr. Shillings
Underwood Elementary Principal 

1 month until the start of the 2019-2020 School Year

Dear Parents, 

I hope that you have been able to enjoy the summer to this point. I have been able to rest, relax, read
and enjoy the summer time. We are one month away from the first day of the 2019-2020 school year!
Here is a short video from Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit (our new assistant principal) and myself. 

Recap: 

Wishing well on their new journeys:

Mrs. Mozingo - transferred to Durant Road Middle School (Track 4 school - Grade 3) 

Mrs. Miller - transferred to Alamance County teaching Kindergarten a few minutes from her new home.  

Mrs. Kellie (Harris) - transferred to Forsyth County teaching middle school drama, recently relocated to Winston Salem. 

New Staff members are being shared via Underwood PTA Facebook Page and Twitter via @tshillings and @Underwoodgtm. 

Mailer being mailed out August 9th 

Teacher assignment and school supply lists 

PTA and Foundation Joint Letter 

School Improvement Goals for 2019-2020

• Continued growth in student performance in all subject areas through their core instruction
• Increase effectiveness of School-Wide Expectations with support of emotional regulation through the structures of Conscious Discipline 
• Practice self control
• Responsibility is key
• Identify safe choice 
• Demonstrate respect
• Excel in school 
• We are looking for parent representatives to be a part of our School Improvement Team, if interested please contact Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit for more information. 

Save the date:

Meet the teacher August 22nd 3:30 - 5:00

First Day of school - August 26th 

I wish you a great rest of your summer and look forward to seeing you soon.

Mr. Shillings,

Underwood Principal

Year in Review

School Family,

Thank you all for an awesome 2019-2020 school year!  We were able to work around a variety of weather related closings, workdays that became school days and other factors to have a successful school year.

Here are some of the accomplishments as we look back at our year:

• Over 85% of our students are at grade level per report cards in ELA and math
• Over 85% of our students in K-3 are at or above grade level per mClass measures in reading
• Underwood Foundation was able to raise $65,000 to support retaining over four staff members (11 months of employment)
• Underwood Elementary PTA was able to raise over $75,000 to be used to purchase 20 chromebooks, grade level texts for Grades 4-5, over 500 library books, install(ing) back curtains for the stage, providing over 100 days of professional development for our staff, and instructional supplies to enhance our students learning.
• Our Wellness Committee was able to organize an awesome Wellness fair, among other related activities throughout the year,  and raise over $4,000 in grants for wellness initiatives
• Our Playground Committee has a playground plan that will support our vision of finding the gifts and talents of all students!  We are excited to kick off Phase One’s Efforts at the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year.
• We had Placement in the following areas throughout the year for our students:  Science Olympiad, Tar Heel Jr. Historians, Black History Knowledge Bowl, Reflections Contest, Young Artist Contest , Gifts of Gold (artist) and  First in Fitness.
• Our  school garden is a Certified Schoolyard (Wildlife) from the Habitat-NC Wildlife Federation.
• We established new partnerships with:  Partners Read, Helping Hands and the Five Points Business Alliance.  Underwood maintained community partnerships with: NCSU, YMCA, CAM Raleigh, Broughton High School, First Tee Golf Program, Carolina Hurricanes, Girls on the Run and the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.  
• Our Magnet recruitment season drew in more applicants than last year!

Feedback for planning for next school year
Parents, my hope (and goal) is that all students have a successful school year, but we always have room to grow as a school. Please provide feedback about your experience at Underwood this school year. Please complete this form Parent Feedback  to provide your feedback.  

EOG Results
EOG results for Reading (3rd-5th) and Science (5th grade) will come home with report cards on Tuesday June 11th.  Math scores (3rd-5th) will not be available to our school/parents until the fall of 2019.

Congratulations to our New Assistant Principal

On June 4th, WCPSS School Board approved the hiring of Alexandria Judge-Lenkeit as our new assistant principal starting on August 1st for the 2019-2020 school year. Here is a little more about her -- Introduction to Mrs. Judge-Lenkeit.  

Summer Fun!
As we all love to have some summer fun, please remember to continue to have your child read daily!  It is also great to do practical learning with your child. Look here for some great ideas!  

Wishing Well on their new journeys…
Mallory Mbalia (Assistant Principal) is continuing her work with Pre-K to high school students and leaders
Mary English Hand (1st Grade Teacher) is moving to New Jersey
Pat Miller (4th Grade Teacher) is heading to the coast
Heather Peaden (3rd Grade Teacher) is continuing her studies as an administrative intern at Carroll Middle School
Jill Sherling (Strings Teacher) is going to continue to support Orchestras at Carroll Middle School and Sanderson High School
Ellen Nightingale (5th Grade Teacher) is going on a different career path than education

Parent Communication Survey
As we begin to plan for next year, we want to ensure we are meeting the needs of our families. When working together (Underwood staff, PTA and the Foundation), our communication is key to getting the word out.  Please take 2 minutes to complete the following survey so we can improve our practices.  

Updates: https://www.wcpss.net/underwoodes

• Staggered Entry letters (Kindergarten) will be sent out in beginning of August
• Class placement letters (Grades 1-5) and supply lists will be sent out in mid August
• August 22nd --- Meet the Teacher: 3:30 - 5:00  (Grades 1-5)
• August 26th -- First day of school (Grades 1-5)
• August 30th-- Kindergarten Meet the Teacher:  2:00-3:00pm
• September 2nd -- No School for Labor Day
• September 3rd--  Kindergarten first full day of school
• September 3rd--  Kindergarten Parent Coffee:  9:15am in the Media Center                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

WCPSS Calendar - 2019-2020 Traditional Calendar