Nuts & Bolts
November 18, 2019
Thank you!
Please keep to your schedules and expectations of student behavior as high and consistent as possible this week. We don't want students to start their Thanksgiving breaks early. We will end our week with International Festival.
I wish you a relaxing, rejuvenating, safe, and happy Thanksgiving break with friends and family,
René
Health Inspection - Monday Morning!
- refrigerator and freezers each need a thermometer (DO NOT steal the kiva fridge's thermometers for your classroom)
- all chemicals (especially in bottles) need to be in their original container or labeled with the name of the chemical
- proper playground supervision
- proper water temperature
- medicines stored properly (in office only)
- space heaters are NOT allowed
- cleaning chemicals should be inaccessible to students - placed in either in a locked cabinet or in the teacher storage area that is also locked
- knives are locked up
Please see me if you have any questions.
Tuesday's PLC - Change
JH PTCs & Parent Contact
Monday the 18th is designated for all JH teachers to contact parents regarding their child's progress. This is perfect timing to invite parents in to PTCs. Contact means that you have gotten some sort of email response acknowledging your email and/or you have talked to parent son the phone. Please see me if you have questions.
Elementary PTCs Sign-Ups Due
International Festival - Friday
- 1:15-1:30pm - Level 1s
- 1:30-1:45pm - Level 2s
- 1:45-2pm - Level 3s
- 2-2:15pm - Level 4s
- 2:15-2:30pm - Level 5s
- 2:30-2:45pm - Level 6s
Of the two adults in your classroom, one adult should always be in the area where your students are set-up and presenting, supervising them. The other adult should be wandering, supervising students who are viewing presentations. The office will announce when it's time for another level to rotate.
Ogden Lights Parade & Feel the Love at MMA Day
If you have or know of a parent that has a flatbed trailer for us to build the float - please tell them to reach out to me asap! We will have elementary students on the float and JH students walking with staff. Walkers will pass out MMA branded chapstick and fliers to advertise the Experience the Love at MMA Day on February 14th.
This is an event where other student can try out MMA for the day. We will encourage our students to bring their friends from other schools to see how MMA is different - hopefully inspiring them to apply to go to MMA this year or next.
Early Literacy Visit Debrief
Even though this info relates directly to EC and LE, it is important for every member of the MMA (teachers and assistants) to know and understand our literacy goals and progress toward them - so you can all be ambassadors of MMA and be able to talk intelligibly and accurately if someone asks why our scores are low and/or what we are doing about it.
To be honest, the visit started a bit rough as she was asking questions like - Why aren't people doing more "teaching?" and Why doesn't your master schedule include a two hour block of ELA every day? We were able to give her a crash course in Montessori and MMA's specific journey toward improving literacy. Ms. Jalee and Ms. Jen saved the day when they came in to talk to her. Ms. Jalee did a great job representing LE, telling Deb how you all worked so hard to research and choose a reading curriculum and how you all are implementing it purposefully. Ms. Jen was able to explain the purpose behind how EC is set-up and why that is important to Montessori.
Deb's Next Steps report is posted below for your perusal. We must incorporate all of her suggestions. The good thing is that we already have/had a plan for incorporating her suggestions - even before her visit. The instructional team will be scheduling time in your PLCs to review these suggestions in more detail for EC and LE in the next few weeks. The instructional leadership team will meet with Deb online virtually every month. She will make another site visit in February.
Parent Aspire Accounts
Cleaning Before Break
Professional Learning Calendar Update
- Understand the content and methodology of research-based, explicit, structured literacy instruction.
- Deepen knowledge of the cognitive and language factors that shape student learning and of pedagogical detail.
- Gain information about how to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all students.
Don't worry; you don't have to do this on your own time if you use MMA time wisely. EC, LE, UE, and special education teachers will meet in the library to power through part I of this online course on all of the full-day PD days (Dec. 20, Jan 10, March 13, April 17). Support staff will be there to provide support and facilitate this learning. We will then use the May professional learnings days to complete part II of this course.
JH and teaching assistants will have alternate learning on these professional days. More info coming soon.
Holiday Party - Food Update
November
18 Advisory Meeting
18 Junior High Parent Contact
18 Elementary Parent-Teacher Conference Sign-ups Open
19 Vertical PLC Meetings (Mandatory for full-time staff)
21-22 Junior High Parent-Teacher Conferences 3:00-7:00pm
21 MAPA Gratitude Feast @ 12:00pm
22 International Festival 1-3pm
25-26 Teacher Compensation Day; No School
27-29 Thanksgiving Break; No School
December
2 Staff Meeting 3:30-5:00pm (Mandatory for all staff)
3 PLC Meetings (Mandatory for full-time staff)
6 MAPA Meeting @ 8:45am
9 SIT Meetings
9 Elementary Concert & Schoolwide Art Show @ 5:30pm
10 PLC Meetings (Mandatory for full-time staff)
10 Box Top Store (11:00am-1:00pm)
11 Junior High Concert @ 5:30pm
12 Lockdown Drill
12 Junior High Play @ 5:30pm
16 Elementary Progress Report Due (hardcopy to Lana and parents)
16 Advisory Meeting
17-19 Elementary Parent-Teacher Conferences; Early Release
17-19 Book Fair/ PTC Meals provided for teachers/staff
17 Junior High PLC (Mandatory for full-time staff)
20 Professional Development; No School
TBD Box Top Store (11:00am-1:00pm)
23-31 Winter Break; No School
Maria Montessori Academy
Email: info@mariamontessoriacademy.org
Website: www.mariamontessoriacademy.org
Location: 2505 N 200 E, North Ogden, UT, United States
Phone: 801.827.0150
Facebook: facebook.com/MMAofUT
Twitter: @MMAofUT