Good morning Sycamore Creek Families!  We hope your family is staying healthy!  Just a reminder to please keep your children home if they are showing symptoms of illness and until they are fever free for 24 hours.   Help us keep Sycamore Creek healthy!

 

National Bus Driver Appreciation Week

This week, February 10-14, is National Bus Driver Appreciation Week.  Please join us in celebrating and thanking our amazing bus drivers who show up each day and drive our children to and from school every single day. We are all so very grateful they keep our students safe. 

 

Saturday is Sycamore Creek Spruce Up and Groundskeeping Day

Help us spruce up Sycamore Creek ES school grounds this Saturday, February 15th, at 9:30 PM!  Sign up here.  We need about 10 volunteers to get this done in about 1-2 hours.

 

This event is part of the larger PTA Beautification Committee efforts to help maintain campus grounds, including the turf, pedestrian sidewalks adjacent to SCES, and other needs as they arise. We are going to be tackling trash pick up, weed pulling, tree/brush trimming - so we need help! Please bring your gloves, rakes, blowers, clippers, and a can do attitude!

 

2nd Grade Track 1 CogAT Testing this Week

Track 1 2nd graders will take the CogAT test this week.  The CogAT measures general thinking and problem-solving skills.  It shows how well students use these skills to solve verbal, math-related and visual puzzles.  The CogAT is one of the many tools used to determine if your child requires differentiated services beyond what is provided in the traditional classroom.  The scores will be shared with parents when they are available to the school.  Track 3 & 4 2nd graders will take the CogAT test the week of March 10th.

 

3rd Grade Parent Virtual Read to Achieve Information Meeting

There will be a virtual 3rd grade Read to Achieve Virtual Parent Information Meeting on February 25th at 5:30 PM. This meeting will include information about Read to Achieve and provide an opportunity to ask questions. Here is the link to join: https://meet.google.com/gag-qzwh-ayd 

 

Save the Date for Super Crocs Day 2025

Be sure to save the dates for this year's Super Crocs Day:

• Tracks 1 and 3 - April 11, 2025
• Track 4 - May 2, 2025

More details to come!

 

Spotlight on Quarter 2 Data

Recently, our staff participated in a quarterly review to analyze student achievement data for reading and math (report cards, literacy benchmarks, literacy benchmark assessments) for reading and math for every grade level.  We also analyzed instructional survey data to check in on progress towards all of our School Improvement Plan action steps.  Our overall reading and math scores show continued progress, and we are pleased to see reading proficiency maintained between 78 to 97% proficiency for individual grade levels.

 

One area that we are most concerned about is the increase in the number of unexcused absences and unexcused tardies.  These are absences and tardies that are not for sickness or not for doctor appointments. 

• Unexcused absences increased from 573 to 848
• Unexcused tardies increased from 340 to 450 

 

This is a lot of instructional time missed by students for unexcused reasons.  Please make sure if your child is not sick or does not have an appointment that they are at school all day every day!!  Missed instructional time has such a huge impact on our student achievement scores and your child’s learning. 

 

It’s Book Fair Time!

This month PTA will be hosting our annual Book Fair in the library from February 20th- February 28th.  Family Book Fair Night will be on Wednesday, February 26th, from 5-8 PM. Information  will be coming home soon in your child’s Friday folders as well as through emails with additional details about the Book Fair. 

 

We cannot run the book fair without your help!   Please sign up here for times to volunteer at this year's Book Fair.  We have positions to help set up/take down, book fair helpers, cashiers.  We will need help both during the school days, and parent night. We appreciate the help every year and all of the hard work the families put in to make this such a fun time.  It's a great opportunity for newer/younger families to SCES to see what a great school we have!

 

Track Change Requests for 2025-2026

Our track change window for the next school year is now open through February 28th.  

Sycamore Creek Track Change Request Form

 

As you know, per WCPSS School Board decision, Pine Hollow Middle School will follow a traditional school calendar beginning the 2025-2026 school year.  We anticipate receiving a few more track change requests as a result of this change. At this time, we do not have any open spaces to move any tracks.  However, we will have to wait until after the transfer window in March to confirm if any open seats on other tracks become available.  If you know you will be moving or not returning to Sycamore Creek next year, please let us know as soon as possible so we know if we have any potential open seats.

 

Turf Maintenance

The PTA Beautification Committee needs more volunteers to help manage Sycamore Creek Elementary School's playground turf! We are in need of 2-3 capable and energetic parents to spend 1-2 hours once a month helping maintain our turf that all of our students love! Training of power raking and blowers will be provided!   Please email nick.dico@gmail.com (Nick DiColandrea, Beautification Chair) for more details or to sign up for training! 

 

Career Day

We need your help in finding members of our community to share on Career Day at Sycamore Creek.  Career Day will be Thursday, March 6th.  This is an exciting time when Sycamore students can learn about the wide range of careers available in our community.  Career Day is for 4th and 5th grade students only and consists of three, 30 minute presentations and Q&A. If you are interested in sharing your career with Sycamore students, please sign up below. You do not have to have a child in 4th or 5th grade to participate, so please consider sharing your career even if you have younger children.

 

Students will be in groups that will rotate from room to room, so chaperones will be needed as well to walk with them during transitions.  If you do not desire to speak but would like to be a chaperone, please also sign up below.

 

If you are able to volunteer and share your career or be a group chaperone, please sign up using this link - Career Day 2025 for Thursday, March 6 (9:30am - 11:30am).  Please sign up by Friday February 7, 2025.

 

If you have questions please call or email :

Mr. Gordon : phone: 919-841-4333 ex 25477,  email: sjgordon@wcpss.net 

Mrs. LeRoy : phone: 919-841-4333 ex 25476, email: kleroy@wcpss.net

 

Volunteer Registration 

For new volunteer registrations, click the link to start your volunteer registration: https://myvolunteer.com/wcpss/volunteer/login.  On the MyVolunteer site, you will find disclosure and authorization forms, the WCPSS Volunteer Agreement, as well as a summary of rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. You must review these documents and provide the requested information.  Make sure you include your name and contact information when you begin the registration process.  If you leave the CRC background site before completing your contact information, you will have to begin the process again.  You must include your social security number to register to volunteer.  If you do not have a social security number, please contact volunteers@wcpss.net or call 919-694-8233.  You will be notified by the MyVolunteer system if you are approved to volunteer.  If you have any issues during the volunteer registration process, contact the MyVolunteer customer support team at 877-272-0266 or customercare@mycrc.com.

 

Weekly Wellness Check for SCES Families

We want to know if your family needs any assistance and support throughout the school year.   Please complete the survey if you have any specific needs or questions we can help you with.

Weekly Wellness Check 

Upcoming Important Dates 

• February 18 - Track 3’s 100th Day of School
• February 19 - Track 4’s 100th Day of School
• February 20- February 28th - Book Fair
• February 25 - 3rd grade Read to Achieve Virtual Parent Information Meeting
• February 26 - Family Book Fair, 5-8 PM
• February 28 - Deadline to Submit a Track Change Request for 2025-2026
• March 20 - Student Led Conferences for Tracks 3 and 4
• April 3 - Student Led Conferences for Track 1
• April 8 - School Spirit Night at Goodberry’s 
• April 11 - Super Crocs Day for Tracks 1 and 3 (rain date April 17)
• April 24 - School Spirit Night at Jersey Mike’s
• May 2 - Super Crocs Day for Track 4 (rain date May 6)
• May 15 - STEAM Night

 

Important Links to Access Easily

• 2024-25 Year-Round Calendar
• Mealviewer
• SCES Student Handbook (link to be added)
• Volunteer Registration
• BP Buddies Amazon Wishlist 

 

Have a great week!  Please let us know how we can support you!

 

Mrs. Brunson, Principal

Mrs. Griffin, Assistant Principal

Mr. Hermanson, Admin Intern