Woodland Elementary School- Sandy Springs-page run by the PTA

campus that features an outdoor learning center, playgrounds for children of different ages and walking paths. Since the school was built, four renovations have been completed to accommodate growth in Sandy Springs. The current enrollment is about 900 students, in grades pre-k through fifth, including special needs pre-school, kindergarten, and moderate to profound intellectual disabilities, behavior disorders, and learning disabilities. Woodland is ethnically, culturally and economically diverse and reflects our local community. This diversity provides students with the unique opportunity to grow and learn together while appreciating differences. We also offer instruction for advanced students and those indentified as Talented & Gifted (TAG), as well as English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Programs. In addition to academics, our students receive physical education, general music, and chorus. In 2001, Woodland became the first conversion charter school in Fulton County, with a strong focus on academic excellence and student achievement. Woodland has high expectations for all students through its core curriculum, continuous achievement, and consistent discipline. All students benefit from continuous achievement and exposure to higher-level thinking skills. Children at Woodland also benefit from several Special Education Programs and a Talented and Gifted program. One of the important components of Woodland Elementary School is the full involvement of our parents. With the help of our Parent Involvement Coordinator and award winning PTA, parents are given a plethora of opportunities to become active partners in their children's education. Woodland believes in a TEAM approach - Together Everyone Achieves More. Woodland also has a diverse staff of 140 people. Our professional staff is highly qualified and continues to pursue additional training. Over 62% of our certified teaching staff hold masters degrees or higher with an average of 14 years experience. Several staff members also hold leadership certifications. Our innovative staff has received many awards and grants, including National Board Certification, Fulton County Teacher - and Support Professional-of-the-Year, Fulton County Custodian-of-the-Year, Atlanta Journal Honor Teachers, USA/Media One Technology Grant, Disability Awareness Grant, Great Book Grant, Fulton County School Arts Curriculum Enhancement (ACE) Grant, Intel Grant, TARGET Art & Music Grant, Georgia Council of the Arts, and many, many Fulton County mini-grants. Technology has come to our school in many forms. The Fulton County Bond and State Lottery monies have provided the school with many new computers, printers, scanners, software, and a satellite dish. During the 2010-11 school year, Friends of Woodland along with school fund-raising, helped to purchase 15 interactive LCD projectors with Promethean Software including Activotes and Activslates to bring 21st technologies to the classroom. The Media Center is fully automated with scanners to process check-in/outs and inventory control. Designated school personnel connect to central office personnel throughout the system on e-mail. The school uses Microsoft Outlook for internal and external communications. Woodland has procured the Pearson's SuccessMaker Software Program to help strengthen student learning in reading and math. We also received the Education for a Sustainable Future (ESF) technology grant that provided us with new exploratory software and state of the art hardware equipment for our computer lab. It will provide access to collaborative, professional development opportunities. Our excellent faculty and staff are well qualified to teach skills our students will need in secondary school and beyond. This strong commitment is evidenced by Woodland being recognized by the State of Georgia for being a Title I Distinguished School for five consecutive years! That means that we are meeting rigorous standards for evey child who attends here. The school receives strong, continuous support from the Woodland PTA. The PTA sponsors a diversity of programs that meet individual student needs, emphasize the whole child, and encourage and support the parent/student teams concept. Numerous committees enable parents and students to participate in school functions such as Accelerated Reader, Cultural Arts Programs, International Festival, Black History Month observances, Spring Arts Festival, Scholastic Book Fair, Family Bingo Night, PTA Reflections Contest, Oratorical Contest, Technology Fair, and Red Ribbon Week. In addition, the PTA provides fundraisers and sponsors social and informational events, such as new parent Lunch & Learn programs, volunteer orientations, staff holiday luncheon, and gifts during Staff Appreciation Week. Because of our PTA, Woodland has for the past seven years received the Golden Apple Award in recognition of countless hours provided to the school by parents, business partners, and community volunteers. Our volunteer program averages more than 10,000 hours per year. Our students benefit greatly from the continuing, energetic support of our volunteers. A resource, which has proven invaluable to the academic success of Woodland students, has been our partnership with area businesses. They support our students through financial contributions, volunteering efforts, mentoring programs and tutoring. Publix has supplied our school/community with programs to enhance the curriculum in the area of mathematics, reading, nutrition and citizenship. Chick-fil-A provides our students with Core Essentials, a character education program. In addition, the volunteers from the Sandy Springs Optimist Club and Cox Enterprises work with our students both as reading coaches and mentors. Their generous donation of both time and money has helped each and every student at Woodland Elementary School. We are all - simply "Wild About Woodland!"