ARMS Legend
Excellence Without Boundaries
TEAM
GRIT
GROWTH
February 1-5, 2016 4th Six Weeks, Week 5
BY MAY 2016, AT LEAST 80% OF ALL STAAR EXAMS TAKEN BY ARMS STUDENTS WILL MEET THE PHASE II PASSING STANDARD.
Improve Student Achievement
Improve the Quality of Instruction
Create a Positive and Supportive Campus Culutre
Principal Message
Who was the person in your life that cultivated the idea in you: "the power of believing that you could improve." We, the adults at ARMS, speak and act with a growth mindset: as we work with our colleagues, partner with parents to support a struggling student, look at our data or our teams data, or simply work towards improving our own practices. We are growing and have the tools to take a challenge and see it as an opportunity to come out on the other side an even stronger spirited and minded individual.
Carol Dweck has become a major voice in the area of being growth minded and what it means for kids to be growth minded. I am approaching this conversation from the perspective of being growth minded around academic / learning achievements. Many of our students have the desire to improve when face with challenges but at times lack the tools to know how to get there or have inconsistent behaviors.
We all know how incredible it feels to achieve something that we did not think we could at first, looking back at the determination we had to reach our goal. Cultivating this mindset on campus with our students enables them to add more empowering memories that help share their lives.
Take a moment and watch this 10 minute video clip in which Dweck talks about the power of "Yet" and highlights some key areas that support our work as we strive to cultivate Rangers who can persevere through the learning challenge to experience their reward on the other side.
Have an INSPIRED Week!
Ranger Pride,
F. Taylor
In Honor of African American History Month
February: African American History Month
The celebration was expanded to a month in 1976, the nation's bicentennial. That year, fifty years after the first celebration, the association held the first African American History Month. By this time, the entire nation had come to recognize the importance of Black history in the drama of the American story.
Source: Excerpt
http://www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/about.html
TG2 Spotlight
Growth Spotlight on Mr. Babeau
Implementing an effective classroom management plan in your first year of teaching can be quite challenging. Mr. Babeu has been consistent and willing to try new strategies for consequences. One of those strategies includes holding students accountable for the behavior of their peers during group work. If one student is not meeting the behavioral expectations, then the group receives a group consequence. For the past two weeks, Mr. Babeu has held lunch detention for students as his consequence. I am so proud to say that Mr. Babeu shared today that he has "0" students who received lunch detention. That simply means that all students have met the very high behavioral expectations that Mr. Babeu has set for his students.
I will like to congratulate and shout out Mr. Babeu for having a commitment to the pursuit of excellence and showing tremendous growth in the area of classroom management.
Team Spotlight on Ms. Chapa
Ms. Chapa has extended her time and commitment to ARMS by starting an adult English class at ARMS once a week. This past week parents were practicing introducing themselves and getting to know one another. Ms. Chapa continues to bring value regardless of the team that she is on (Social Studies team, Instructional Leadership Team, 7th grade hall team, Lunch Duty team, Empowerment Team). Her spirit is always wanting to contribute and provide the best support possible.
Thank you Ms. Chapa for providing this learning opportunity to our parents!
Growth Spotlight on Ms. Lawson
Ms. Lawson has worked diligently at implementing routines and clear expectations, especially with her 2nd period class. Her work is paying off as the students are demonstrating the routines with respect and rising to Ms. Lawson's expectation of how to effectively participate in Choir.
I would like to spotlight Ms. Lawson for her diligence and commitment to her own growth as an educator.
Team Spotlight on Ms. Pounders, Ms. Ballard, and Ms. Reimekie
Coach Garcia writes:
Watching the 7th and 8th Grade Boys Basketball Teams get 2 wins at Balch Springs!
ARMS Leadership Team: Observation & Feedback
"Growth is never by mere chance; it is the result of forces working together." ~
James Cash Penney (JC Penney founder)
Ranger News
ARMS INFO
2016-2017 Master Schedule Survey
Thank you,
Ms. Taylor
Game Day treats
ARMS REMINDERS
Student Class Release
Be mindful of time and thank you in advance for supporting our campus wide effort to ensuring our students arrive on time every day (see tardy data below- we are moving in the right direction).
TELPAS Part 1 ELAR Teacher Training
During ELAR PLC (6th Period)
Staff Breakfast
Valentine Inspired Dance
Cookie Bake Off
ARMS UPDATES
ARMS Counselors to be Honored @ CREST Luncheon 2/1
TARDY GOALS:
- 6th 10 or lower
- 7th 50 or lower
- 8th 35 or lower
ARMS has made major improvements with our tardies. Thank you TO EVERYONE for your diligence and active monitoring as students move through the halls.
As a reminder ALL 7th & 8th Grade Rangers go to the auditorium 1st (we release to breakfast and 1st period) Students are directed to auditorium until 8:30am.
THIS WEEK! ONLY ADULTS IN THE HALLWAY @ 8:30 AM!
Photo compliments of Mr. Folkenroth :-).
Social Studies Team - Dallas Bar Assoc.
No One Eats Alone Initiative
DISD STEM Day @ Skyline HS 2/6 - 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Click here for more information.
We will be promoting the event on campus and with parents. A treat will be provided to the POD that has the most students attend. More information to come!
DISD Professional Development - Spring 2016
Marshall Memo
What is the Marshall Memo?
In the spirit of our second "G" GROWTH, every week I will share 1 or 2 of the article summaries with ARMS staff. In hopes of sparking interest, sharing another perspective, or strategies as we all collectively work to improve teaching and learning @ ARMS. Take what works for you, leave what doesn't.
The Curse of Knowledge – A Failure of Empathy in the Classroom
In this Edutopia article, Christopher Reddy explores the “curse” of a teacher knowing content really well and forgetting how difficult it was to learn it in the first place. This creates an empathy gap with students who are having difficulty learning – the teacher can’t get into students’ state of mind, making it much more difficult to teach effectively. A teacher suffering from the curse of knowledge may assume that the lesson’s content is “easy, clear, and straightforward,” says Reddy. “We assume that connections are apparent and will be made effortlessly. Assumptions are the root cause of poor instruction. And acknowledgement is the first step to recovery.” Reddy suggests these steps to counteract the curse of knowledge:
• Fill in background knowledge. It’s very difficult for students to understand new content without a foundation of facts and concepts, says Reddy: “Conceptual knowledge in the form of facts is the scaffolding for the synthesis of new ideas.” Teachers should not assume that students have all the prerequisite puzzle pieces to understand what’s being taught.
• Tell stories. Vivid narratives are one of the most powerful ways for students to make a personal connection to curriculum content, says Reddy: “Everyone loves a great story because our ancestral past was full of them. Stories were the dominant medium to transmit information. They rely on our innate narcissistic self to be effective learning tools – we enjoy stories because we immediately inject ourselves into the story, considering our own actions and behavior when placed in the situation being described.”
• Inject emotion. Psychologist Barbara Fredrickson has found that playing a short, humorous film clip or making a quick joke can change the emotional valence of a classroom, creating emotional links between teacher and students.
• Use more than one learning modality. Students are attuned by a variety of learning styles and intelligences, and presenting visually, kinesthetically, orally, musically, etc. connects with more students.
• Use analogies and examples. An effective analogy highlights a connection, and getting students to form connections is at the core of learning. Similarly, giving lots of examples helps students scan their knowledge inventory for possible connections.
• Use novelty. “New challenges ignite the risk-reward dopamine system in our brains,” says Reddy. “Something that is novel is interesting, and something interesting is learned more easily because it is attended to.” Teachers should look for ways of presenting content with a different spin.
• Have students retrieve what’s been learned. Effective teachers check for understanding at regular intervals, strategically spacing the mini-tests to maximize long-term retention and provide feedback to teacher and students on what’s being learned and what continues to be a struggle.
“The Teacher Curse No One Wants to Talk About” by Christopher Reddy in Edutopia, December 18, 2015, http://www.edutopia.org/blog/the-curse-of-knowledge-chris-reddy
ARMS Athletic Events - Week of 1/25
Girls Basketball ARMS vs Lang @ Skyline HS - Monday (7th grade) 6pm & (8th grade) 7pm
Boys Basketball ARMS vs Lang @ ARMS - Thursday (7th grade) 6pm & (8th grade) 7pm
Weekly Events 2/1-5
Math, Science, ELAR - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) Training
MM Meeting- 4:30 PM in the Library
Tuesday, February 2
POD Action (AP)
Friday, February
Core Meeting 9:30-10:00 a.m. Room 127
8th Grade Reset Parent & Student Conferences, 9am
Saturday, February 6
ESL Certification Training 8:30-4:30 - Library
8th Grade Reset Parent & Student Conferences (Make Up @ 9am)
On The Horizon....
Trailblazer Meeting - 4:30-5:45 - Conference room 127
Wednesday, February 10
Executive Ed. Team Training
Thursday, February 11
Empower Team meeting - 7:30 parent conference room
Friday, February 12
$1 Jean Day
Valentine Dance
Monday, February 15
Presidents' Day Holiday
Wednesday, February 17
7th Grade Free Dress Day
Coffee with the principal - 8:45-9:20 - Library
Parent Workshop 9:30-10:30 - Library
Thursday, February 18
POD Action (AP)
Ignite Academy 4:30-5:30 p.m. - Library
Friday, February 19
End of the 4th Six Weeks
Saturday, February 20
Reading & Math Saturday School
Monday, February 22
Trailblazer Meeting 4:30-5:30
Tuesday, February 23
Staff Meeting/TELPAS 4:30 - Library
Thursday, February 25
Free Dress - Highest CA Average
Empower Team Meeting - 7:30 - Parent Conference Center
Friday, February 26
Cookie Bake Off
Core Meeting 9;30-10:00 - Conference room 127
Saturday, February 27
Science Saturday School
ARMS Teacher Led PD: Maximizing the Reteach
KUDOS to our Teacher Leaders!!
Ms. Burns, Ms. Husband, Ms. Conley, Ms. Pounders, Ms. White, and Ms.Brown!!!
TLPD Teacher Comments
"You have to keep vertical alignment in mind."
"I learn to view data in a different perspective."
"Ms. Pounders and Ms. Conley did an awesome job!"
When participants were asked if the session provided opportunities to learn about effectively reteaching, presenters knowledge, or the format in which it was presented.
95% of survey participants said Strongly Agree or Agree. (mostly strongly agree :-)
ARMS @ Dallas ISD All City Band Performance
The Most Important Work of our Time! Always remember YOUR IMPACT!
Ann Richards Middle School
At Ann Richards MS, our vision is to be a flagship middle school at the hub of the community, nurturing diverse leaders, and empowering intelligent trailblazers.
Email: frataylor@dallasisd.org
Website: www.dallasisd.org/annrichards
Location: Ann Richards Middle School, North Prairie Creek Road, Dallas, TX, United States
Phone: 972 -892-5400