About Us

Staff will:

• collaborate with one another, parents/guardians, and students
• provide a safe and engaging learning environment
• promote problem-solving, creative thinking, and a lifetime love of learning

Students will:

• work collaboratively with teachers, peers, and parent/guardians
• be the three: safe, caring, and respectful
• be self-advocates
• be responsible digital citizens and aware of their digital footprint
• exhibit a love of learning

We believe that all students:

• have the ability to become lifelong learners with proper guidance and encouragement from our school and with the support and reinforcement from their parents.
• must be encouraged to express creativity through many venues including music, art, writing, movement, and athletics.
• are more self-fulfilled and make the world a better place when they are respectful, responsible, trustworthy, and kind.-can benefit by being technologically literate in order to strengthen their communication skills and effectively respond to the increasing technological challenges in the world.

We believe that in order to fulfill our mission, the school must:

• provide a safe, supportive environment in which students feel free to explore, question, learn, and grow.
• provide curriculum which encompasses communication skills, problem solving, critical thinking, and fosters creativity.
• collaborate with our students’ families and the community in order to provide rich opportunities for cognitive, social, emotional, and physical growth.
• encourage continuing learning opportunities and professional development for our staff.
• create an environment for our students, teachers and staff which embraces learning with attention to personal growth and responsibility, development, and collaboration.
• provide opportunities to bring students, families, and staff together to celebrate and learn from one another.
• assist each student in developing a positive self-concept and a desire to do his/her best by providing an atmosphere of warm acceptance.

We believe that in order for our teachers to support our mission, they must:

• believe that all children can learn when offered proper guidance and developmentally appropriate strategies.
• encourage each child to strive for academic excellence by becoming resourceful, creative, critical thinkers who are comfortable taking academic risks.
• contribute to and promote collaboration among their students and colleagues in order to meet effectively the diverse needs of our students and staff.
• engage in a cycle of assessment, reflection, and goal setting in order to support student achievement and to further their own intellectual development.
• possess strong skills for problem-solving on the students’ behalf.-interact with families to enrich cultural exchange and to promote a mutual understanding of our students’ strengths and needs.

Nottingham Elementary is committed to:

• collaborating with our families to help each child further develop the concepts and skills necessary to become a respectful, responsible, trustworthy, kind and contributing member of our school, community, and the world.
• integrating instruction with core academic areas mandated by state and federal entities.
• planning and providing opportunities for our families and staff to share cultural heritages and diverse backgrounds in meaningful ways.

At Nottingham, we use the Responsive Classroom approach to teaching.  Responsive educators believe that the social and academic curriculums are equally important.  We also believe that how children learn is as important as what they learn and that the greatest cognitive growth occurs through social interaction.  As a classroom community we will be developing an environment where everyone can learn, feel safe, feels a sense of belonging and significance, and have fun.  The social skills that have been found to be important in developing an effective learning environment and proven to increase student achievement are represented by the acronym C.A.R.E.S.

• C – Cooperation
• A – Assertion
• R – Responsibility
• E – Empathy
• S – Self-Control