Safety at CAES

Good morning Carrollton Families
,
The tragic events in Newtown, CT are a grim reminder that violence can happen anywhere.  It hit me from two perspectives- first as a father, and second as the principal of an elementary school that closely resembles Sandy Hook.

Safety is always our first priority at CAES.  From my first day in June, we have been looking at policies, procedures and the physical environment at Carrollton to ensure that the students you send us each morning return to you safe and sound each afternoon.  Many of you remember that Deputy Gilliam used to be permanently assigned to CAES.  Although that position was cut from the county budget last year, the Isle of Wight Sheriff's Department and I worked together this summer to establish an auxiliary office at CAES for all deputies working the northern end of the county.  This satellite location aids deputies who have a formal office with their secure computer system without having to travel to their main dispatch office at the Courthouse.  This office benefits our school by providing a consistent and steady stream of deputies coming into the building.  In light of Sandy Hook, we expect an even more elevated visibility from our deputies.

We have numerous drills throughout the year to practice what would happen in the event of a fire, earthquake, or intruder.  These drills allow for both practice and repetition, but also lend themselves to evaluation and assessment for improvements.  Staff are trained to alert the front office if there are suspicious individuals anywhere on campus.  Our entry system allows us to monitor who gains access to the building.

Carrollton Elementary staff takes very seriously the trust that you delegate to us to safely educate your children.  We will do all that we can to ensure that trust is never broken.  Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Kevin Goetz
Principal
Carrollton Elementary School
kgoetz@iwcs.k12.va.us

Gingerbread Houses

Our Preschool class and many of our Kindergarten classes created Gingerbread Houses today! 

Happy Holidays from CAES Staff!

Today our Carrollton staff had our Festive Holiday Sweater Day and Staff Breakfast! 

3rd Grade Concert/Play- A Pirate Christmas

Don't forget the 3rd Grade Play/Concert, "A Pirate Christmas" is being presented on Tuesday evening at 7 PM in the CAES Auditorium.  Come join us for a family friendly evening full of holiday song, dance, and general seasonal cheer.  The students have been working super hard and look/sound fantastic.  Mrs. Novak and Mr. Goetz, on the other hand, are still working on their parts :)

Jamestown Settlement Visits CAES

Two retired teachers visited CAES last week to bring the 2nd Grade students some historical artifacts from Jamestown Settlement.  While an actual field trip is always fun, tough budget times make these types of educational outreach programs invaluable.

Discussing all of the uses of a raccoon leg

Talking about gender roles in the early Jamestown Settlement

 Mimicking the "rain" that was needed to help crops grow in the New World

Practicing his 17th century style raking skills

CAES Parents returning home

You might want to get a couple of tissues before you watch this heartwarming news clip that was filmed by WAVY-10 on Monday at Carrollton.

WAVY-10 Video & Story


A special "thank you" to the Lutz and Wright families for sharing their special reunions with us at CAES!!!!

Toys for Tots Celebration

Carrollton ES had a wonderful school-wide event to celebrate the generosity of our students on Friday. All 3rd graders were able to get one donated gift to take to the school bus since the Smithfield High School Band was attempting to "stuff the bus" with toys.

The collected toys before they were taken to the bus

As the students were waiting for all of their classmates to have a turn, we suddenly heard a loud honking in the distance!  The honking got closer and closer until finally our special visitors appeared..

Who knew that Santa and Mrs. Claus had a red Corvette as their alternate vehicle???  I guess that he can't always "drive" his sleigh

 Santa shared how proud he was of the students for being so generous and thinking of other boys and girls who were not as fortunate as others.  He then hopped back into the Corvette and drove off to get ready for his big upcoming holiday.  Or so we thought...

Next, the entire school came together in the cafeteria/gym for a special concert from the SHS Band.  Many current SHS Band members are former Carrollton Cardinals!

Soon the students were dancing....

and the staff!

Then we had a BIG RED surprise, especially for the K-2 students who did not know that Santa and Mrs. Claus had already made an appearance

The final "stuffed" bus at SHS

The local media covered the event:
Suffolk News Herald article

There is also a great picture in the Smithfield Times

Thanks to all who supported our Toys for Tots campaign!!!!