SOAR Report
Week of November 14, 2016 "D" Week for Related Arts
Wendell Phillips Vision
WHERE AND WHEN TO BE THERE!!!!
Monday, November 14
Lesson Plans due via Google Drive (9:00 am)
Grade 4 Math PLC
Grade 6 ELA PLC
ISTEP Parent Night
Tuesday, November 15
Grade 4 ELA PLC
Grade 5 Math PLC
Grade K, 1 ELA PLC
Grade 2 Math PLC
3/6 ELA Benchmark 2
Wednesday, November 16
Grade K/1 Math PLC's
Grade 2 ELA PLC
Grade 3 ELA PLC
4/5 ELA Benchmark 2
Learning Community Meeting @ 7:30 am (Reading A-Z Training)
Thursday, November 17
Grade 3 Math PLC
Grade 5 ELA PLC
SPED PLC
3/6 Math Benchmark 2
Boys Basketball v. Daniel Webster 46 (6:00 pm in Gym)
New Light Baptist Church Thanksgiving Meal Family Event (5:30-7:00 pm in Cafeteria)
Friday, November 18
4/5 Math Benchmark 2
BLUE FRIDAY- JEANS Day!
NEWS & NOTES
Our vision should be known by all. In breaking this down, our learning environment will be:
- Positive- set the tone in our classrooms by building relationships and reinforcing positive behavior
- Engaging- instruction will be interactive and driven by student needs. This means intentional planning through posted I CAN statements aligned to daily lessons.
- Rigorous- Our instruction needs to be challenging and aligned to standards. Deconstructing standards into skills and teaching how to apply the skills is the end game. Critical thinkers are the desired outcome.
Shout outs for the week:
- Tabitha Freeman, our IDOE Coordinator, was very impressed with I CAN statements being posted and vocalized during her visit. She also loved all the Data Walls showing our students progress.
- Ms. Cook was put on the spot yesterday by Mr. Pratt, our AIO. She was able to name each student that did/did not master a particular standard he pointed out on her data wall. AWESOME JOB!!!! It's powerful to know where our kiddos stand on the mastery cycle!!!!
- THANK YOU for your attentiveness during our ESL and Peace Learning Center PD's on Tuesday. Both presenters commented on this fact!!!!
Ch. 3 of our Eric Jensen Book Study gives us FIVE actions to create a positive climate. In our time with Mame from Peace Learning Center, she began to dive into this work. Take a look at these actions:
- RAISE the bar
- Manage mind-body states
- Establish that we are "family"
- Sustain emotional positivity
- Teach positive social/emotional responses
Read through the chapter and identify one of these actions you feel could be implemented/strengthened in your classroom to achieve that positive atmosphere. Then create a sign to share with your students and post outside your door. I will be checking to see what action your class is focusing on by next Wednesday! Sheet protectors will be put in your mailboxes to help post your classroom's focus....
Engaging instruction was one of the focus points of our IDOE visit, and a continual focus of walkthroughs and observations. This is an area we need to continue reflecting on when we design instruction and ask the critical question....Would I want to sit in this lesson? Would I be excited about the learning? Think about the students we serve...they want to talk, move, and be interactive. The DIY PD Section below is full of resources and strategies to increase engagement....and this will be a focus of PLC conversations around planning.
Assessments are available....so let's use them to backwards plan our instruction to meet the rigor of the assessments!!! This isn't teaching to the test....as Indiana College and Career Standards are about teaching the concepts students apply to real world problems. Be intentional about rigor....and scaffold the instruction up to meet our students needs. And.....check for understanding of what you taught. How does this look in your classroom and how do you know they are mastering the content???
Long Evaluations will continue this week. These will be 20-30 mins in length during TDR times (ELA or Math). I will be looking for how you connect your objectives to the learning in your classroom- how intentional are you in the planning process? How rigorous is the instruction? How are you engaging your students daily? How are you making every instructional minute count? Is your classroom a positive environment that supports optimal learning conditions?
Boys Basketball kicks off tonight at Daniel Webster 46. Game time is 7:00 pm. I am attaching the schedule for your review- we are in the Section 2 grouping. Come out and support our scholar athletes during the season!!!
The IPS Showcase of Schools will be held on Saturday, November 19th from 10-2. This is an opportunity for us to share the great things we are doing in our building!!! I will need some volunteers to come out and support the table. A signup sheet will be posted next to the sign in sheet.....and double comp time and a jeans pass will be provided for staff that volunteer ( Ex: 30 mins served= 1 hr comp time).