LV Impact
Lakeview Staff Newsletter - October 6
Trauma Sensitive Update
1. The members of Lakeview's TSS building team looked at a fidelity tool to evaluate our implementation of TSS practices thus far. Using that tool to reflect, the team created our action plan. All six schools have created action plans.
2. For those staff members that were not part of the meeting, you met in smaller teams. It was amazing to me that every group that met chose to view the Neuroscience module (#3) which means that is something we all wanted to learn much more about. Here is the document of your takeaways and ideas. If you compare it to the action plan, I think you will see that so many ideas have been incorporated into the action plan.
If you looked at our building TSS action plan (above), then you can see that we will devote more staff meeting time this year to learning more about the perspective shifts and strategies that support a trauma sensitive school. But that doesn't mean you can't incorporate those strategies now. Since every group focused on module 3 (the neuroscience of trauma) last week, you understand how necessary it is to do things such as:
• Providing movement breaks and, perhaps even more importantly, mindfulness breaks. You have my absolute permission to use these in your day. Have options for both and use them strategically.
• Have a calming spot in your classroom that anyone can use.
These are two universal strategies that would help ensure everyone's brain is in the right place for learning.
Finally, let's remember that Caregiver Capacity is one of the 7ei (7 essential ingredients). This past week. Thanks to everyone who pitched in during some unique situations this week. You know what refreshes and strengthens my own caregiver capacity? Being around all of you and knowing that no matter what happens, we stay positive and student focused.
Upcoming Dates
Oct 9 & 10 - Conferences from 4-8 p.m.
Oct 9 - Sunshine luncheon - link to Taco bar sign up
Oct 11 - No school
Oct 14-18 - Food Drive (see link below)
Oct 18 - Grandparent's Day 9 a.m.
Conferences
• Please be sure you turn in your conference schedule to me prior to conferences.
• After conferences, please turn in your conference schedule again, but mark off which families attended.
• At every conference, you will ask if the family is receiving our weekly school newsletter. If they are reading it, thank them. If they are not receiving it, please check the email address listed in Powerschool. If it is a wrong email address, please take a note and get Cortney the correct email address. If it's the correct email address, they should be getting it.
• At every conference, you will distribute MAP assessment information. Please use this data to support the other strengths and needs you plan to discuss. The office will provide the MAP data for your classroom.
• If you have a family on the opt out list, ask them if they really meant to be on that list and what it means (mainly that the student cannot be in any pictures you post). If they want to change that, have them stop in the office.
• Thank you for the work it takes to plan conferences! I appreciate the way teachers at Lakeview are able to build relationships with families to make them partners.
Thank you, 4th/5th grade!
Our 4th & 5th grade students completed over 1000 lessons in just over one week!
Building Meetings
New this school year, principals will be holding Building Meetings (please do not confuse this with staff meetings). A Building Meeting is an "open office hours of sorts" which allows us to provide time for building level concerns to be shared and discussed on an individual and/or small group basis. In our Google Staff Calendar, you will find these meetings scheduled once per month, on the second Monday from 7:45 to 8:15 (except in May where it needs to be the second Tuesday). That means our first Building Meeting will be Monday, October 14th. The location is yet to be determined, but you can feel free to stop in during this timeframe to share and discuss any building level concerns that you might have.
Some things to keep in mind during Building Meetings:
- Any Lakeivew staff member can bring or share a building level concern
- "Any" = teachers, paras, secretaries, food service, custodial, or anyone else employed here
- The focus and discussion will be on building based issues
- As always, we will engage in a constructive conversation and brainstorm for problem solving purposes as appropriate
- We will be cognizant of the amount of time on one topic to allow other items to surface as well as to allow others to stop in and share concerns
- We will keep collaborative notes on the topics discussed each month
Science
One person from your grade level, please email me when you are starting (or have started) science. I know that 4th grade has already started ... I don't think other grades had started yet. Every grade needs to give me an exact date for starting - and then seriously think about inviting me to teach or co-teach, please!
Materials - I know there are a few unit 1 Amplify materials missing, but not much at all. All of the inventory sheets you filled out are still being processed and will be filled soon.
Structural Items
Food drive plans - thank you to Sarah W and student council for coordinating. Please talk this up in your classrooms. The family newsletter has a bigger blurb.
SLO's - Please don't do anything with SLO's or PPG's yet. We'll talk about this at our staff meeting on October 16, and I will be pushing our building's "due date" back. If you are a summary year teacher, it would be good for you to start your self-assessment forms at this time and just save them for the moment. Paras may click "submit" when you are ready to submit your goal - please work with your supervising teacher on this.
Morning announcements - I am not a preacher, and I try to keep my morning messages short and sweet. That being said, I do ask that all activity cease during the entire period of announcements so that students can listen fully. Please be sure this is happening in all classrooms. If it is helpful, we could start announcements earlier (8:40?) - let me know if you have an opinion on that.
Halloween - This is the annual reminder that we do not do anything for Halloween. No costumes. We just keep it a normal day of learning as much as possible.
Lakeview Elementary School
Email: csepersky@sdsm.k12.wi.us
Website: lakeview.sdsm.k12.wi.us
Location: 711 Marion Avenue, South Milwaukee, WI, USA
Phone: 414-766-5252
Twitter: @sepersky