Bulldog Bulletin
October 15th, 2023
Dear Bulldog Families-
We made it through the first quarter of the 2023-2024 school year! I’m so excited to share some updates as we move into the second quarter.
- Grading Reminders:
- Reports cards are digital only. There are no printed copies.
- A grade of G, H or NE means that no grade was given for that class. This needs to be used for advisory; there are no grades for advisory.
- 8th grade science students will receive an H which stands for not enough evidence
- Conferences:
- Sign ups are done by grade level, not by individual teacher.
- Teachers are offering up to 90min off before school conferences. Please reach out to the team to schedule.
- Staffing Update:
- Ms. Marj Webster is joining our 7th grade team as our long-term math sub. She has been in our building as a daily sub. Ms. Webster has also been working with one of our D11 Math Facilitators to set up her classroom and plan for the upcoming quarter. We are so excited to have her.
- Ms. Makynzie Olivier is joining our 8th grade team as our long-term science sub. She is currently working with our D11 Science Facilitator is get her room set up and planned. We can’t wait for our students to learn science with Ms. Olivier!
There are specifics below about fall conferences and updates to quarter two e-hallpass system. Please reach out if you have any questions. I hope you all had a wonderful four day weekend!
In partnership,
Julia Scott
.
Fall Conference Sign Up
Fall Conferences are going to be conducted in teams. Meaning, when you sign up, you will meet with the entire grade level team: Math, Science, Social Studies, and ELA (depending on the grade level(s) you are needing to meet with). Our Encore Team (drama, music, art, GTT, AVID and PE) will be meeting as a team and available for conferences, as well. This year, Galileo Middle School is offering conferences from 4p-830p the evenings of October 23-October 25th. Conferences will be 15min in length. If you are unable to make an even time slot, please reach out to the team to schedule a 15min conference for before school.
Click the link (6th Grade Core Teachers Fall 2023) to sign up for conferences. There are tabs at the top (picture below) of the sheet to choose between the grade level and Encore Teams.
E-Hallpass Quarter Two Updates
We have now been using an electronic hall pass system for about four weeks. It has supported students in being efficient in their time out of class, as well as allowed adults to know who is in the hallway at all times. With every system, there are going to be challenges and flaws. Two major challenges we are seeing is that students are not using the assigned restroom and leaving class during busy hallway times.
When a student asks for a pass to use the restroom, go to the water fountain, office, locker, etc. the teacher will approve the pass, as well as assign them the location. We have noticed that students are asking to go to a certain location, and either not going to the location they asked to travel to OR they are making a few stops along the way. To ensure student safety and making sure students are in the right place at the right time, we have purchased bright colored vested for every classroom. We will use these vests as a visual hall pass along with using the e-hallpass system to keep track of student whereabouts. Each floor of the building will have a specific color vest that will denote the restroom. For example, if we assign pink vests for the 3rd floor restrooms and a student is downstairs in the basement level with a pink vest, we know they are in the wrong restroom. All other needs to leave the classroom: locker, water, office, etc. will be assigned an orange vest.
E-hallpass also offers us the ability to block certain times that students are allowed to be in the hallway. To ensure that our students are spending more time engaging in academic lessons, I have restricted passes to be issued during the first ten and last ten minutes of the class period. Often during these times, teachers are giving valuable instruction (at the beginning) and closing out the lesson with an assessment/task. Finally, I have blocked the ability for students to be in the hallways during the lunch periods. We are finding that these are extremely busy times and to ensure that students are safe and in the right place doing the right things, we are restricting these times for those to be out and about when they are supposed to be in class. Please understand that teachers are able to override the system at anytime if a student needs to leave the room for any reason. Thank you for your support with this system! Reach out if you have any questions.
Mark Your Calendars!
Monday, October 16th
- No School for Students (Professional Development Day for Teachers)
Tuesday, October 17th
- Picture Retake Day
Friday, October 20th
- Whole School Community Circle. Everyone is invited! CANCELED. Rescheduled for Nov. 3rd.
Thursday, October 26th
- No School for Students (Conference Make Up Day)
Friday, October 27th
- No School for Students (Conference Make Up Day; School Closed)
We Need Your Voice!
Are you a parent who likes to think big and advocate for improvement? Do you enjoy supporting students and your local school? If so, the Galileo School Accountability Committee (SAC) may be the place for you!
The purpose of the SAC is to inform, encourage, and provide opportunities for parents and community members to be involved in the planning and evaluation of the school’s improvement processes and budget. This means we discuss things like:
- School academic goals and action plans
- Budget priorities
- Safety issues
- Family Engagement
Our SAC reports information as required to the District Accountability Committee (DAC). The DAC meets monthly and provides input to district administration and the school board. This means the SAC influences the decisions that ultimately impact every student in the school. Sometimes, SACs influence district decisions, as well.
We need parents and community representatives that reflect our school’s amazing diversity to join our SAC. Becoming a member of the SAC means:
- Attending monthly SAC meetings.
- Becoming informed about school programs and budgets.
- Being a voice for our school.
We are currently assembling our SAC for this school year. If you are interested in participating in the SAC, please contact Shirley Moorhead our community liaison at Shirley.Moorhead@d11.org