The Owl Weekly Parent Bulletin 5/6/19

The 2019 Annual Parent Survey is now underway! Please take a few minutes and tell us what you think! Share your thoughts on the school environment, your child’s learning, ISP administration, communications, fundraising, and more. All survey responses will be anonymous, unless you choose to identify yourself. The more people that participate, the more comprehensive the results will be.

You have until June 7 to do so. The class with the highest parent participation rate wins a popcorn party! Take it now!

ACT Aspire – Week of May 13

Next week, 3rd – 5th graders will be taking the ACT Aspire Test. The ACT is a commonly used college readiness exam.  The ACT Aspire test is an elementary-based assessment model that is linked to scores of older students taking  the ACT and determined “readiness” benchmarks. It is aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Over one million students across the country take the ACT Aspire. At ISP, all 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students will take online tests in English, Math, Writing (NEW), and Reading (NEW).

ISP does not use these ACT Aspire scores for purposes of assessing any individual student or teacher. However, these scores are somewhat valuable as a means by which to compare overall ISP student performance with other schools in the state and nation.

Overall, the percentages of ISP students that meet or exceed these standards is significantly higher than those taking the test nationwide. Below are percentages taken from the most recent year that the data is available:

Below are score comparisons from recent tests. Students did not take the Reading and Writing tests in 2018:

Scores from Spring 2018 – Summative Testing

We will provide information about the 2019 test results – including further score breakdowns – in the Fall.

Head of Elementary Coffee this Wednesday

All members of the community from First Grade through Fifth Grade are invited to attend this Wednesday’s Head of School Coffee this Wednesday, May 8th from 8:15 to 9:15 in Learners’ Hall. I will not set the topics to discuss but will be guided by you.

Looking forward to seeing you there,

Bodo Heiliger, bodoh@intlschool.org

ISP Annual Art Show!

The ISP Annual Art Show is now in full bloom at in Stearns Hall. Come see the wonderful and diverse projects that our students have been working on! Every child from grade PreK through 5 has at least one work displayed. The show will run through May 23.

HUGE thanks to our Art Specialists, Sarah Harpole and Carolina Barros, for organizing this show. Extra special thanks to all of parent volunteers who worked this weekend to put it on the walls! Don’t forget to record your volunteer hours!

Reminder: School Hours and Drop Off/Pick Up

Dear families,

For safety purposes, please be aware of our official school pick up and drop off windows.

School early drop off starts at 7:30. Please do not drop students off earlier than 7:30, as staff are not present. We have recently had several students arrive prior to 7:30, and we have found them waiting outside unattended. School officially starts at 8:00.

School ends at 3:10pm, and you have until 3:45pm to pick up your child if not enrolled in after school programming. Please do not wait in the pickup line prior to 2:45pm, as we need to provide road access to emergency vehicles and other traffic.  If you arrive in the pickup line before 2:45pm, we will ask you to park.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Teacher Appreciation Week: Luncheon Help Needed      

Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up on May 17-23! You should be getting an email with more details this week, if you have not already.

We are looking for additional help for the teacher luncheon on Friday, May 17. This is a wonderful way to break up a work day with a delightful treat and make our beloved teachers feel special. Please follow this link to sign up

FOOD DONATIONS: The main dishes and beverages for the Teachers Luncheon are catered. We would like to supplement this with fruit plates, sides, and desserts. Food can be dropped off Thursday afternoon or Friday morning.

FLOWERS: We would like some small vases for the tables plus one big vase of flowers.

SET UP/ SERVE CREW: We need a few additional individuals to help be our Servers/Helpers. We would need you from 11:30am to approximately 1:30pm. Please note that this is a Professional Development Day, so there is no school for students.

If you would like to bring a dish, help out at the lunch, or maybe even do both, please please sign up here!

Book Fair Volunteers needed!  (have you recorded your hours lately?)
 

It’s almost Book Fair time!  As usual, Scholastic will be bringing us a huge selection of fun new books!  And did you know that ISP earns 50% of total sales to help us buy new books for the library and classroom literature sets? The book fair is also a great opportunity to stock up on summer reading for the kids! We need your help to make it all happen!

The Book Fair will be held outside Stearns Hall May 28 – May 31 (7:30 to 8:15am and 2:30 to 3:45). We need 4 volunteers per shift to help students find books, cash them out and restock shelves. Please sign-up for a time works for you here.

For more information, please contact Heidi Evans at hevans@intlschool.org.

MONDAY, MAY 6

ISP Annual Art Show Begins Today! – The Annual Art Show will take place in Stearns Hall and run through Thursday, May 23rd.

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WEDNESDAY, MAY 8

Head of Elementary Coffee. Please join Bodo Heiliger for an Elementary Coffee. This will give members of the community an opportunity to come and hear about developments in the school, as well as provide an open forum to ask questions or voice concerns. Open to parents of students in grades 1st-5th. 8:15-9:15am, Learners’ Hall

Bike & Walk to School Bike Parade! Meet up at the Salmon Street Springs fountain area to form a massive, unstoppable bike brigade parade to school with swag for all riders. Please get there between 7:35 and 7:40.  

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FRIDAY, MAY 10

ISP Parent Social. Come join fellow ISP parents for a little fun and chat! As a new event this year, this casual mixer will be a nice way to catch up with old friends and get to know new ones! 6 – 9pm.  VENUE CHANGE: Please meet us at  Lucky Labrador Beer Hall, 1945 NW Quimby St, Portland, OR Cash Bar.

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MONDAY, MAY 13

ACT Standardized Testing Begins for grades 3, 4 & 5.

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TUESDAY, MAY 14

Keepin’ it Clean Campus Walk – Grades 4 & 5 (morning walk).  Fourth and Fifth Grade families are invited to come out, socialize, and help keep the areas surrounding campus clean. Some members pick up trash/remove weeds as they walk, but that is not a specific part of the program (Pickers and bags are provided; bring some gloves if you can). An easy way to get volunteer hours!  Adults Only, please. Meet at the Hilltop Gate. 8:15-9:15am.

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