On February 19, 2021 our youngest Navigators were inducted into their G.A.T.O.R. Houses. Four years ago, Endeavor was introduced to the House system at the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, a nonprofit middle school created to serve as a model for educator training programs. A House system creates smaller communities within the larger community where connections can be made with adults and peers. It supports a sense of belonging and meets the district’s goal of a greater focus on Social Emotional Learning (SEL).

Our five G.A.T.O.R. Houses are directly linked to Endeavor’s five school wide behavior expectations of: good manners, always attentive, taking responsibility, on time/on task and respecting everyone. 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our families, the G.A.T.O.R. House leaders, teachers, and staff for their continued commitment and support to Endeavor’s House System.

I hope you enjoy this latest issue and that you will participate in "Seuss Week" - today we wear black & red in celebration of Dr. Seuss' birthday!

Proud Principal

Endeavor Elementary School

Pictured very top: "In the House" induction (Student Social and Emotional Well-Being)

Mar. 1-5: Seuss Week

Mar. 2: Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss - "Read Across America Day"

Mar. 3: Long Wednesday - No Early Release

Mar. 9: Monthly SAC meeting at 7:30 am (may be joined in person at school or virtually online via Microsoft Teams)

Mar. 12: Student Holiday (Teacher workday - finalizing Quarter 3 grades)

Mar. 12: Last opportunity to take the 2021 Parent Survey - Click Here

Mar. 15-19: Spring Break

* 2020-21 OCPS Calendar

Teachers make a lasting impact on children and love to hear from former students. Ms. Lantz received the sweetest notes from a student she taught four years ago and currently attends another school in Orange County. It was the perfect Valentine’s surprise!

PTA sponsored Endeavor’s first Virtual Family Paint Night. Thank you to our families that participated and to our wonderful PTA!

Fourth grade students in Ms. Pabon’s class demonstrated kindness by being the “I” in Kind. Short stories relayed how acts of kindness impact individuals.

On behalf of the American Heart Association we would like to thank our families and the community for their generosity. Endeavor’s goal was to raise $2,500 and over $5,000 was donated. Proceeds go towards helping children born with special hearts. The program also helps students learn about living a healthy lifestyle. Thank you to coaches Brands, Miranda and Rion for organizing this successful event!

Children turning five on or before September 1, 2021 are eligible to register for kindergarten for the 2021 – 2022 school year. Please visit www.ocps.net for registration requirements and packet or visit Endeavor for more information.

Teachers get a quick lesson on how to use a "swivel" classroom camera to support greater engagement for those students learning from home.

Endeavor’s CHEER Committee gave teachers a sweet surprise to raise spirits.

With great anticipation, students close their eyes and reach into the urn to pick the stone that represents the House they will belong to until fifth grade: green emerald for Gracious House, amethyst for Vigilant House, turquoise for Leadership House, onyx for Focus House and ruby for Honor House.

Specials thanks to Endeavor’s PTA and Mrs. Belicia Valencia for providing and orchestrating he decorations for the kindergarten G.A.T.O.R. House Induction Ceremony.

One of the many benefits of the House system is the opportunity for students to connect to adults on campus. Creating relationships instills a sense of belonging with students that ultimately translates into greater academic achievement

New students in grades 1 – 5 or Navigators that missed their inductions were included in the kindergarten ceremony. This allowed students a makeup day to ensure all children have the opportunity to participate.

Special thanks to the digital team of Ms. Zupa, Ms. Rodriguez, Ms. Torrez and Ms. Stiftar for ensuring that our LaunchED students had an opportunity to participate in the induction ceremony.

It was hands on learning fun during Saturday school. Fifth grade students got out their fishing poles to find good “hooks” for writing and ducks lead to way to correct punctuation.

Ms. Urrego’s second grade class uses the scientific methods to make predictions and observations to test hypothesis regrading gravity and opposing forces.

Congratulations to Ms. Conway, Endeavor’s cafeteria manager! Ms. Conway served countless breakfasts, lunches, and supper meals during her twenty years at OCPS. On February 24, 2021 it was an honor to serve her breakfast. Enjoy your retirement!

Surveys are one of the most direct methods to gauge school climate in the community. It helps a school measure parent perceptions of their child’s experiences and helps the school determine focus areas of the following year’s school improvement plan.

Please click on the link below to access our school's 2021 parent survey or you may scan the code on your phone to participate. Thank you very much for your help.

QR code for your phone. To open the survey, open your camera app and point it steadily for 2-3 seconds towards the QR code.

The entire student body took the opportunity to wish Principal Knappins a very happy birthday! Cards, balloons, decoration and a personalized cake made the day a special one.

Shared leadership and community ownership are both crucial to developing and sustaining community schools. The School Advisory Council (SAC) is the infrastructure for those practices in a community school. This dedicated team represents various segments of our community for the purpose of guiding our school towards continuous improvement.

The next SAC meeting is scheduled for March 9, 2021 at 7:30 a.m. This will be a blended meeting where members are invited to attend in person should they feel comfortable while other members attend via Microsoft Teams. Parents as Partners will meet immediately following the SAC meeting.

Please join us!

The Virtual Parent Academy is an extension of the Parent Academy which is a district-wide initiative designed to enhance achievement through the support of community and family involvement. From research, we understand that students achieve more when parents are involved in their child’s education.

The next virtual workshop will take place on Saturday, May 15, 2021 from 9 AM – 1 PM. The focus of this workshop will be “Catch the Summer Wave" as learning should not stop when summer break begins.

For electronic registration visit www.ParentAcademy.ocps.net, or call 407.317.3300.

For a full schedule of Parent Academy and Virtual Parent Academy workshops please visit www.ocps.net and click on the Students and Parents tab.

Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904-1991) — Dr. Seuss of children's book fame — is loved by millions of readers including many of our Navigators. No children's author/illustrator's work is more immediately recognizable worldwide than that of Dr. Seuss. His most popular book, "Green Eggs and Ham," has sold 8 million copies since 1960. (Did you know that Green Eggs and Ham contains only 50 words?) In fact, Dr. Seuss has sold 650 million copies and counting to children and adults around the world.

One character trait our Navigators should know about Dr. Seuss is that he was very persistent — he knew how to bounce back from rejection and failure. Early on, he was rejected 27 times in trying to get his first book published. But the 28th, Vanguard Press, published it and it sold 6 million copies! How did he learn to get over setbacks? He simply worked through it and jumped back into the game right away. Plus, he was always trying to learn from his mistakes.

Copyright Notice

Reproduction of this material, either written or electronically, including the general layout, graphics, analyses, and content topics without the express approval of Target Performance Systems, Inc., a Florida corporation, and OCPS - Endeavor Elementary School is forbidden without written consent. Thank you for your support of the Orange County Public Schools and especially Endeavor Elementary School. Please contact Janet Rodriguez at 66855@ocps.net with any questions related to the program.

Endeavor Elementary | Mr. Knappins, Principal | 407.251.2560| EES Website