Mrs. Manharth

Shortfall from State Budget Cuts

By now, many of you may have heard about the addititional cuts in state revenue for education.  Beginning February 23, 2009 spending from the District's general fund will be restricted to essential instructional materials and functions for the remainder of the fiscal year.  These restrictions do not include health and safety resources needed for the daily operation of the school.  However, we will be reviewing our spending very carefully to ensure that we are spending our resources wisely. 

Due to the cuts, our school is critically analyzing our use of paper, toner, ink cartridges, etc.  Your child may be asked to copy more from the board and use notebook paper for activities instead of copy paper.  Teachers will also be utilizing our technology in the classroom for performanced based activities and assessments. 

Although these are challenging times for all of us, I am encouraged by the fact that we have such creative teachers who can make learning engaging, meaningful, and fun without the use of dittos.  I'm sure our students will learn many new skills as we embarked upon this financial challenge.  It is also a great time to talk to our students about recycling and using our resources wisely. The staff at Still Elementary appreciates our parental and community support as we tighten our belt buckles.  Please continue to volunteer your time to help in our classrooms. 

Making Math Matter

  Wow!  Our school year is really flying by!  It's hard to believe we are half way there!  I hope everyone of our Still families had a wonderful holiday and time together!

As we begin a new year, we continue to keep our focus on our academic goals for our Still students.  One of our goals is to increase student achievement in the area of Math.  In order to support this goal within the school, and keep our students focused on Mathematical ideas, I have implemented a few "Principal Challenges".  Each Friday, students are given an opportunity to participate in Manharth's Math Challenge.  In order to participate, they must first show mastery of basic facts to their teacher.  Each Friday a different grade level is given a chance to complete a certain number of basic facts (addition/subtraction/ multiplication/ or division) in one minute.  Winners receive a certificate and a coupon to McDonald's.

Beginning this week, I have implemented the Morning Math Challenge.  Every Wednesday, every student in the school is given a Math word problem to solve in their own classroom.  The first student in the class to have the problem solved correctly can come to the office for a pencil.  When a student has collected five pencils, they can shop in Mrs. Manharth's Treasure Box.  Students are given Math problems appropriate for their grade level. 

The students' response to the Math challenges have been tremendous!!  I am amazed at how hard they are working and how much they love the Math problems and work to improve!    Today students were even stopping me during lunch to give me a quiz and Math challenge!  They are certainly taking this to a higher level of thinking!  We will continue to focus on our Math standards and give students every chance possible to practice and apply their Math skills.  As a parent, you can encourage the same with your child at home.  Math is everywhere!  Point out to your child how you use Math at work and at home.  They can help balance the check book or create a budget for themselves.  Students can help average the cost of groceries before checking out and then count the change.  Look for games that reinforce Math skills and play together as a family.  Math is a skill that we all use everyday and we can help our children feel more confident about their ablilities as we integrate Math into our daily lives.  

Safe Schools

October 19-25 was safe schools week!   The National School Safety Center, state governors and state school superintendents sponsor America's Safe Schools Week.  At Still, we consistently observe the vital components of a safe school.  School safety includes keeping campuses free of crime and violence, improving discipline, and increasing student attendance. 

The new Access system for all outside doors has prevented any stray visitors from entering the building.  Only the front door is open to outside access during the school day.  All other personnel must have their county badge in order to enter the building.   All doors are monitored during the school day and an alarm will pop up on the office computer screen if any door is left open longer than two minutes.  This system has been implemented in all schools in Cobb County.  We are fortunate to have a County so dedicated to the physical safety of our children!

Along with classroom teachers, our school counselors also work with our students to keep them safe.  The counselors teach a unit on Stranger Danger and not talking to strangers.  This is a very real issue for our children and they need to know when they are being baited.  The counselors also teach classroom lessons on bullying and how to prevent this.  If any child is being bullied at Still, they should let their classroom teacher know immediately so that it can be addressed.  We are all concerned about keeping our Still students safe and informed!

At Still Elementary, we are committed to keeping our campus a safe, secure, and peaceful place for learning, teaching, and working.  Thank you for all you do as parents and community members! 

Here's to a Healthy September!

Dear Still Parents and Guardians:

It is amazing how time flies! We are already into the second month of school! The students have been working so hard! Just a reminder that 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders will be taking the CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) from September 17-19. The 3rd and 5th graders will also participate in the ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills) from September 22-29. Please make sure that your child gets plenty of rest the night before and a good, nutritious breakfast in the morning. Talk to your children about the upcoming tests at home and reassure them that this does not reflect on their classroom achievement. We want the children to feel relaxed and complete the test in a stress free environment. Thanks for your support!

I would also love for our parents and community to visit our Cobb web-site on school wellness. Each school in Cobb has a Wellness Committee that meets and collaborates to create a wellness plan for each school. As a support to the current and future health of our Still children, I have committed to creating student recognition and rewards that do not involve food. We have many students with various food allergies. Research also states that rewarding children with unhealthy foods can create poor eating habits in the future. The ultimate goal in rewarding children is to help them internalize positive behaviors so they will not need an external reward. By using food as a reward system, we are teaching poor eating habits, teaching children to eat when they are not hungry, teaching children to reward (soothe) themselves with food, and it teaches children to connect food with good mood feelings. Therefore, we are initiating a variety of other rewards and recognition opportunities for our students. For AR accomplishments, students will be able to shop in the AR store. They can spend their points on a variety of objects, stickers, books, etc. I have found this to be a great incentive with students I have worked with in the past. As an incentive for positive cafeteria behavior, each class can earn a star for each day in the cafeteria that they have exhibited excellent behavior. At the end of the week, I will draw a star from our basket, and myself and Ms. Smith will have lunch with that class. I truly appreciate your support in helping to create healthy children who will become heathy adults. The patterns they establish now will follow them the rest of their lives. Please check out the Cobb web-site on Wellness. Thank you!!

http://support.cobbk12.org/wellness/

Have a great September!! Mrs. Manharth

Open House- Big Success!

Open House was a great success!!  Thanks so much to all the parents who attended and especially to our fabulous PTA!  If you haven't done so already, be sure to join the Still PTA.  It is so important to stay involved in your child's education.  Research shows that the more involved parents are in their child's school, the less likely children are to make poor grades, misbehave, and it lowers student drop out.  Involvement is the key!

During Open House I mentioned the upcoming Vote for SPLOST III.  I would highly encourage all parents to vote yes for SPLOST III.  Still has benefitted greatly from this 1% sales tax.  In the next phase of SPLOST, Still will continue to receive upgrades, such as: enclosing the sidewalk from the school to the gym, refurbishing the cafeteria, upgrading ceilings, new phone systems, just to name a few.  The sales tax has been a huge success for the Cobb school system and has helped Cobb County to remain debt free.  You can click here for more information on SPLOST III. 

SPLOST III

Back to School!

Wow!  It's hard to believe that it is time to go back to school!!  I am so excited to be your new principal!!  I know we will have a wonderful year.  We are very proud of our school for being honored at the Invitational Education Conference with the "Inviting Schools" award.  Still Elementary will continue to create an inviting, trustworthy, respectful, and optimistic environment for our students, staff, and parents. 

Still will continue our student achievement goals in the areas of writing and math for the 2008 school year.  By focusing on the Georgia Performance Standards and integrating quality instructional strategies, teachers will continue to address individual needs for all students.  Students will engage in writing across the curriculum and through a variety of genres.  Math will focus on problem solving and addressing the Georgia Performance Standards. 

I am looking forward to an exciting and successful year for all of our Still students!  If you are in the building, please stop by to say hello and introduce yourself.  My door is always open.  Don't forget to join PTA so you can be an active part of your child's education.