• DEMOGRAPHICS
    YEAR SCHOOL OPENED
    2000
    ATTENDANCE RATE (%)
    95.0
    student Enrollment
    638
    Race/Ethnicity (%)
    African American....................... 20.0
    Hawaii/Pac. Islander.......................... -
    White.............................. 51.8
    Multiracial...................... 10.4
    Hispanic......................... 10.1
    American Indian/AK....................... -
    Asian.............................. 7.2
    GENDER (%)
    Male................................ 50.6Ā 
    Female........................... 49.4
    Special Services** (%)
    FARMS........................... 12.9
    504.................................. 3.4
    Special Ed..................... 6.6
    LEP................................. 1.8
    Title 1............................. No

    Ā **Special Services Terms Glossary

    School Renovation Details - 2012 Six room Kindergarten addition

THE WORK OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN 2018-2023

Piney Orchard Elementary School

  • When each school began to plan their important work based on AACPS’s 2018-2023 Strategic Plan during the spring of 2018, school teams reflected on their school culture, their community, and the key factors contributing to student achievement.  Each school was then asked to consider which Strategic Plan Indicators would have the greatest positive impact for their students. School leadership teams selected indicators and developed plans to focus and guide their efforts.  Please come with us on our journey as we describe why, what, and how we do our work to serve our students and families of our school.

Piney Orchard Elementary's School Story

  • Having opened our doors in 2000, Piney Orchard Elementary has been serving families in the West County area for almost 20 years. We have approximately 625 students K-5, who learn each day from a kind and experienced staff who strives to provide the appropriate level of challenge for all students, and are ready to do whatever it takes to ensure student success. Our mascot is the Snow Leopard, and our students strive to be “RARE” Snow Leopards who are Respectful, Accountable, Responsible and Empathetic learners. 

    Our families live primarily within the community of Piney Orchard, where you will find a variety of residence types: apartments, condos, townhomes and large single family homes. The percentage of our families receiving Free and Reduced Meal Service is 14%. Recently, we have had an influx of military families move into our area; and at this time, approximately 26% of our families are affiliated with the Federal Government in some fashion. As a result of military relocations,  many students who begin their school careers at Piney Orchard move before completing their elementary schooling here. Those students who remain at Piney Orchard Elementary quickly adapt to the friendly, family-like atmosphere of our school; and families stay in touch long after they’ve left the school, often coming back to visit.

    Piney Orchard Elementary is proud to be designated as a Maryland EGATE (Excellence in Gifted and Talented Education) school, and was recertified as an EGATE school in 2017. All of our students have the opportunity to participate in and are exposed to advanced learning opportunities each day. In addition, our commitment to responsible environmental stewardship is evident in our becoming (for the second time) a Maryland Green School. Our students enjoy pursuing environmental education, and we recently established an outdoor classroom. First graders maintain a butterfly garden here on the property, while Kindergarten and 4th graders visit our outdoor education center, Arlington Echo, each year. 

     
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    In 2019 we applied to be designated as an AACPS Wellness School of Distinction, a culmination of our efforts to help everyone at Piney Orchard develop strong minds and bodies. As a part of our commitment to wellness, our fifth grade students participate in the Drownproofing program. As a way to build strong interpersonal relationships between all members of the POES family and cultivate emotional wellness, we meet daily in Community Circles. We have also worked hard to foster a culture of caring and developing a growth mindset throughout our school.

    The staff of Piney Orchard Elementary take pride in being a community school, with a strong volunteer program in place, and an active PTA that supports many school initiatives. Our administrators have an open door policy and are often out in the building, chatting, learning and working alongside the students. A stroll through our building will find parents volunteering in the Media Center tutoring small groups of students or helping out in the cafeteria, on a regular basis. Our teachers use a variety of tools and hands on activities to help students learn, and a peek into the classrooms will find teachers utilizing SMART technology to present information and students using technology to complete research and compose writings. Students may also be found in the midst of a brain break or engaging in structured play. 

    Piney Orchard Elementary has an active collaboration with Salisbury University, and serves as one of their Professional Development Sites (PDS) for pre-service teacher interns. As a result, many of our classroom teachers work collaboratively with interns in the preparation of lesson plans and classroom instruction. The Media Center is large and in constant use, as our students love to read. During our book clubs and Literacy Lunches, students chat with staff members and classmates about their reading and favorite books. The POES school community takes pride in the band, strings and choral music programs; student artwork is displayed throughout the school. Moreover, students participate in a variety of before and after school clubs, such as the Kindness Club, Rosetta Stone, 24 Club, Dance Team, Girls on the Run and the Hero Boys programs. 

    Experience the Growth Journey of Piney Orchard ES