907 South SR 267, Avon, IN 46123

Phone: 317-544-6300, Fax, 317-544-6301

Email-www.avon-schools.org

November 1, 2013

School Hours:

9:00 AM—3:40 PM

Students are TARDY if not

in class by 9:00 AM

Special Points of Interest Nov. 7-Student Council

Meeting 8:15 am Nov. 7 –PTO Mtg. 7pm-Media Center Nov. 8-Veterans Day Lunch

–12noon Vet. Day Program-1:30pm Nov. 21-Kindergarten

Vision Screenings Nov. 22-Progress Reports

Sent Home Nov. 28-29– NO SCHOOL Thanksgiving Break Dec. 4-Student Council

Mtg. –8:15 am Dec. 5– 1HOUR DELAY –

Prof. Dev. Day 10-3:40pm Dec. 6-PTO Mtg. @ 12noon Dec. 23-Jan. 6- NO SCHOOL-Winter Break Jan 6– Teacher Record

Day-No Students Jan. 7– Students Return to

School

Highlights, Issue 7

A Message from the Hickory Principal

Lunch Times

FDK 11:50—12:20 1st 11:20—11:45 2nd 11:35—12:00 3rd 12:10—12:35 4th 12:30—12:55

Dear Hickory Families, We have had a terrific week back at Hickory after fall break! It was so great welcoming all of our students as they came in with many stories and lots of smiles. As I walked around the school talking with children this week, I feel so blessed to be surrounded by so many wonderful children. We truly have an exemplary group of students here. We sent home information about our annual Veterans Day Luncheon and Program twice this week. If you have any family members, friends, or neighbors who have served our country, please invite them to be our guest next Friday afternoon. We ask that you send in the RSVP form we sent home on Monday and Wednesday with our Veteran guest names and information by Monday. Mrs. Billingsly has been working with our students practicing songs and various speaking roles during the last few weeks for what I believe is one of the highlights of our school year, our Veterans Day Program. It is an honor to recognize our Veterans each year and to instill in our students the importance of the heroes in our lives who have served our country! This weekend is an exciting time for many student-athletes and band members at Avon High School. We will have both of our varsity soccer teams, our girls cross country team, and our band all competing in state championships this Saturday. One of our own teachers, Mr. Nance, is the girls high school soccer coach. We congratulate him and his team and wish them much success as they compete against Fishers High School for the state championship at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday at IUPUI. We are proud of what Mr. Nance has accomplished as the soccer coach! Have a fun and safe weekend! Scott Collins

Hickory Highlights Hickory Elementary 907 South SR 267 Avon, IN 46123

317-544-6300 A Four Star School

THIS EVENING’S PTO MOVIE NIGHT

CANCELLED Due to the rescheduling of

Trick or Treating, tonight’s

movie event has been

rescheduled to November 8th. (see page 3 of this issue for more info)

CA

NC

EL

LE

D!

Students from Mrs. Cintas’ class dress up for their field trip to the One Room Schoolhouse.

HIGHLIGHTS, Issue 7 Page 2

NOTICE TO STUDENTS AND PARENTS AVON COMMUNITY SCHOOL CORPORATION 2013-14

SCHOOL CALL-OFF, EARLY DISMISSAL AND DELAYED OPENING PROCEDURES

At times it is possible that school may be called off, dismissed early or delayed in opening because of weather and

road conditions or failures of heat, water, etc. in school buildings. If this occurs, school officials will notify TV and

radio stations that have offered to make “NO SCHOOL” announcements.

These stations have offered to make our announcements:

WRTV TV—6 WCBK—FM 102.3 Martinsville WEDJ—FM 107.1 Indianapolis

WISH TV—-8 WTHR TV—13 WXIN TV—59

Announcements will also be posted on the district webpage and social media pages:

www.avon-schools.org (District Website)

www.facebook.com/Avon.Schools (Facebook)

www.twitter.com/OrioleTweets (Twitter)

Every effort will be made to arrive at a decision and notify the TV/radio stations and post on our district webpage

and social media pages by 6:00 a.m. if school is to be called off or delayed by an hour or two. Announcements will

be made/posted EACH DAY there will be no school.

✮Students and parents are requested to not call school officials on mornings when weather conditions are

questionable. It is important that telephone lines be free to gather information and communicate with TV

and radio stations.

✮On school days when weather conditions worsen during the day, it is possible that school officials may determine that it is necessary to dismiss school early. Parents are urged to keep tuned to our cooperating TV/radio stations or

to view our district webpage or social media pages on such days so that they may be made aware if schools are

going to be dismissed early. SPECIAL CARE AND ARRANGEMENTS SHOULD BE MADE IN ADVANCE FOR

THE POSSIBILITY OF EARLY SCHOOL DISMISSALS IN CASES WHERE BOTH PARENTS WORK AND NO

ONE IS AT HOME DURING THE SCHOOL DAY TO CARE FOR CHILDREN.

Dear Hickory Families,

Our annual Veterans’ Day Program will be held this coming Friday, November 8, 2013 at 1:30 p.m. in the school gym-

nasium. We need your help as we prepare for this special day! Our Hickory PTO will once again be sponsoring a

luncheon for our special guests and spouses/partners in our school library from noon-1:20 p.m. (Students at Hickory

will not attend the luncheon) We would like to mail a special invitation to all of our Veterans and current Military Per-

sonnel who will be able to attend the luncheon and/or the program. If you would like for us to personally invite any

Veterans, please send us the information on the bottom of this letter. If you know of more than one Veteran you would

like to invite, please print or copy additional forms and send those to Hickory Elementary School. Please mail them to

Hickory Elementary School 907 South State Rd 267, Avon, IN 46123, send them in a sealed envelope to the school

office-Attn: Debbie DeLuca, or email them to dadeluca@avon-schools.org

Please return this information to us by November 4, 2013. If you have any questions,

please do not hesitate to contact our school office at 317-544-6300.

Click here to print Veterans Day RSVP Information Form.

HIGHLIGHTS, Issue 7 Page 3

ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS AROUND AVON

AEF Vacations for Education AEF Instrument Drive

Brownsburg Bowl Saturday Morning Youth League

Nutcracker Dance Clinic-Nov.

4th-Dec. 15th

Click on Links above for more info.

We know you are excited about NAGC coming to Indianapolis in November! IAG is thrilled to host Parent Day on Saturday, November 9th, which is a wonderful opportunity for Indiana families of high ability children to learn from national experts in the field. Registrants will be treated to two excellent keynote addresses from Sally M. Reis, author of Light up your Child's Mind: Finding a Unique Pathway to Happiness and Success and principal researcher at the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, and John Green, author of Time Magazine's #1 novel of 2012 The Fault in our Stars. Registrants will also have the opportunity to participate in expert-facilitated roundtable discussions, attend national conference sessions of their choice, and browse various gifted education service vendors for gifted curriculum, games, enrichment camps, and much more.

The price of admission, which includes lunch and an optional evening reception, is $110 for an individual and $175 for a couple. Be sure to spread the word and register early! Don't miss your opportunity to experience the best of gifted education right here in Indianapolis! Registration is now available online at www.iag-online.org.

Click here for more information

IAG PARENT DAY AT THE NAGC

Mr. Nance’s 4th grade students wish him

good luck as he coaches the Avon High

School Girls Soccer Team in tomorrow

night’s State Championship game at

IUPUI! Go Avon!!!

MAPLE AND WHITE OAK

PTO MOVIE NIGHT! FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8th AT CEDAR ELEMENTARY

DOORS OPEN AT 6:00PM AND THE MOVIE STARTS AT 6:30PM

$2 per person or $10 per family Admission includes one drink per person

and UNLIMITED popcorn. Candy and additional drinks are also available for sale

HIGHLIGHTS, Issue 7 Page 4

Academic Needs Assessed for Differentiating

Instruction in the Elementary Grades

indergarten Information

During the months of November and December, all Avon students in

Kindergarten will be administered the Cognitive Skills Ability Test (CogAT). The

CogAT test is used to appraise the cognitive abilities of students at all levels in

learned reasoning abilities. It provides a reading, mathematics, and a non-

verbal score which reveals the potential ability of a student in that specific

academic area. Students will also be taking the NWEA adaptive achievement

test in January and May. This assessment shows us how a student actually

performs in the academic area of reading, language and mathematics.

Because January will be the first time a Kindergarten student takes a

computerized version of the NWEA assessment, we consider this primarily a

practice exercise. However, we will use this data for baseline information. Both NWEA and the CogAT will give

us valuable information for the purpose of instructional differentiation.

nd Grade Information

All 2nd grade students will take Cognitive Skills Ability Test (CogAT) in November. This assessment reveals a

verbal, quantitative and non-verbal score. Students also took the NWEA adaptive achievement test in August

and will take it again in May. These assessment instruments will be used for two purposes. The first purpose will

be to differentiate instruction within the classroom to meet the individual needs of the student. The second

purpose will be to identify and place students in the High Ability Program. This program starts at the third

grade level. High Ability Identification will not be made until after the second NWEA assessment in May.

Notification letters will be sent home to a select group of students in early June. The appeal window for

students who do not initially qualify within the 96%ile on any portion of the CogAT or the 95%ile on reading

and/or mathematics on the NWEA assessment will be open June 2 to June 27, 2014 with the assessment date

for all appeals taking place on July 16, 2014.

th Grade Information

The CogAT assessment will be given again to all students during the 4th grade year until the Kindergarten class

of 2012-13 enters the 4th grade. This year, testing will take place in November. The IDOE has advised us to have

a CogAT baseline and one year of comparative scores to accurately obtain a student’s cognitive abilities

index. In 2016-17, all students will have taken the CogAT in grades K and 2.

Students also took the NWEA adaptive achievement test in August and will take it again in May. These

assessment instruments will be used for two purposes. The first purpose will be to recognize students who need

more rigorous and challenging instruction in the classroom. The second purpose will be to identify and place

students in the High Ability Program at the intermediate level. High Ability Identification will not be made until

after the second NWEA assessment in May. Notification letters will be sent home to a select group of students

in early June. The appeal window for students who do not initially qualify within the 96%ile on any portion of

the CogAT or the 95%ile on reading and/or mathematics on the NWEA assessment will be open June 2 to June

27, 2014 with the appeal assessment on July 16, 2014.

ff-Grade Levels

Any student in grades 1, 3, 5 and 7 who are new to Avon may be assessed in

either or both CogAT or NWEA upon entry to the district at the request of a

parent, teacher or administrator.

HIGHLIGHTS, Issue 7 Page 5

Kindergarten Vision screenings will be on Thursday, November 21st at River Birch Elementary. Hickory students will be transported by bus to River Birch for the screenings. Eye care professionals, assisted by Avon School Nurses and parent volunteers, will conduct the screenings. While the screenings do not replace a complete eye exam they will identify problems. Volunteers are needed for this screening. Call Mrs. Dilger, School Nurse if you have questions at 544-6300, ext. 6325.

From the Hickory School Nurse-

Vision Screenings

AVON PARENT PARTNERSHIP COMMITTEE

The APPC met on October 8, 2013 to discuss various topics including: The status of our district technology. PowerSchool features that parents can utilize. Social Media and School Use Policies. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) My Big Campus and how parents can use this tool as

well as their students. To read the minutes from this meeting, please click on the following link:

APPCminutes10/8/13

The Avon Parent Partnership Committee (APPC) gives a voice to parents about academics and advises

administration on issues related to curriculum and instruction in order to ensure that Avon students’

learning needs are continually met.

Each elementary school within ACSC has two APPC representatives that meet monthly with the ACSC

administration in order to discuss relevant topics about the school corporation and items that are im-

portant to parents and students. Our Hickory Elementary parent representatives for 2013 are Julie Mon-

roe and Jason Westfall.

We invite you to please contact our designated parent partners with any questions, concerns or topics

that you feel are important to discuss with the APPC and the school administration. We will make every

attempt to answer your questions directly or address with the AAPC and school administration.

Our AAPC representatives may be contacted by email (heparentpartnership@avon-schools.org) or by

phone (544-1234 x3016). Both email and phone messages are checked weekly.

Hickory Elementary

Spirit Night Thursday, November 14

Profits from the evening’s sales go toward the

playground/technology fund

More details coming soon!

Students enjoy creating a special craft project

during their Library special on Friday.