Mrs. Melissa Woodard, Principal                          email:  mwoodard@boyertownasd.org

Welcome to Pine Forge Elementary School which is located in the beautiful rural setting of Douglass (Berks) Township. It is a neighborhood school that provides an excellent education to approximately 305 students in grades K-6. During the 09-10 school year, two sections of grade levels kindergarten through six are housed in the school. We are excited to invite new families to our school as a result of the redistricting process.

Pine Forge’s school theme is, “Kids’ Village … it takes a whole village to raise a child.” It is this motto that best describes the collaboration of teachers, support personnel, parents, and community members who all work together for the success of our students. All of our teachers, as well as our support staff, believe in promoting a positive, challenging, nurturing environment for all students at Pine Forge. We are excited to welcome new staff members who will be supporting our students in different capacities.

The dedicated Pine Forge staff helps each child to accomplish the standard of educational academic skills set forth by the state of Pennsylvania. The staff members are responsible for creating a learning environment that promotes student achievement. Using data to make informed decisions, our teachers are committed to providing high quality instruction for all of our students. We continue to institute a balanced literacy approach for reading/language arts instruction using a combination of the Scott Foresman reading series as well as leveled books to match the abilities of individual learners. We are pleased to implement a standards-based math curriculum that not only is skills-based, but also focuses heavily on problem-solving as well. Additionally, our learning support teachers will co-teach with grade level colleagues (Grades 2-6) in the areas of reading/language arts and math. Two teachers in the classroom at the same time represents innovation in teaching and learning because both teachers and students demonstrate more opportunities for application, synthesis, evaluation, and analysis of instructional goals and objectives.

Students in grades one through six receive weekly instruction in the areas of art, music, wellness and fitness, library, and computer skills. Kindergarten students receive instruction in the special areas on a biweekly basis. Intermediate students may participate in chorus, vocal ensemble, and instrumental music groups. School safety patrol and student council organizations offer leadership opportunities for our students. Additionally, pupils have the services of a remedial reading teacher, a remediation teacher, a school psychologist, counselor, speech teacher, and an occupational therapist, if needed. Staff members also meet in small teams to review data and implement interventions for the benefit of children who are experiencing academic and/or behavioral difficulty in school.

Along with the other elementary schools in the Boyertown Area School District,
Pine Forge is proud to have earned the distinction as a “No Place for Hate” school by the Anti-Defamation League. During the 2009-2010 school year, we plan to continue to celebrate diversity and provide opportunities for our students to learn and appreciate the differences in each other.

Volunteerism is a vital part of the Pine Forge educational program. Parent and community volunteers provide support in the library, computer lab, and classrooms. The Parent Teacher Association actively sponsors projects including assemblies, Grandparents’ Day, Family Fun Skates, Santa Store, Parents As Reading Partners, and Fun Fair. In addition, they are creating new and exciting themes for evenings of family fun. Thanks to the fundraising efforts of our PTA, our students have benefited from the purchase of technology items to enhance instructional practices.

The Pine Forge staff members are eager to welcome our students for the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year. With a dedicated faculty committed to improving student achievement, students of Pine Forge Elementary School will be provided with an exciting place to work, learn, and grow.