Principal Update
January 2014
Welcome Back!
I hope you had the most amazing winter break of your entire career. I am attempting to remember how to type and am foggy to say the least. My break was filled with complete chill time and for the first time in three years I didn't read or write a single word! It was great to walk in today and see your refreshed faces and I know that our second semester will be a great one. Please commit to being a positive force for the BSE team and remember our essential questions:
1. What is it our students must learn? Use the maps/units of study!
2. How will we know when each student has learned it?
3. How will we respond when students don't learn?
NWEA starts today and will offer us valuable data that will help us drive our instruction to the most intense levels possible. Remember we are an organization that reacts to our reality and finds solutions via the strengths of our team. No blame, panic, or knee-jerk reactions necessary, let's respond to the information we get and do so with great focus and intensity.
A few important reminders as you begin the second half of what has been an outstanding school year:
- Classroom Environment/Walls - It is time for all of us to scan our walls and check to see if they represent our current learning and celebration of authentic student work. If there is any resemblance of "Holiday" it needs to be gone before kids begin. We will have a guest school visit and their focus is our walls! Let's keep it authentic and remember if you bought it at a store...sell it to a friend at another school:)
- Staff development schedule: Listed below. Note: NO STAFF MEETING 1/15/13.
- Remember the FISH this semester: HAVE FUN! MAKE THEIR DAY! BE THERE! CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE!
Today as I was walking our transfer kinder student to class, he looked up at me and with complete seriousness said "I am pretty sure I forgot all of the rules!" That made me smile and remember how cool our job really is. Enjoy the little people and do your best with them!
Shep's Early Childhood Corner
Our early childhood classrooms are ripe with opportunities for students to participate in science inquiry-based and project-based learning and our students love this instructional approach! While participating in winter related thematic units of study , early childhood students have been exploring math and science pre-academic concepts regarding following multi-step directions, completing unfamiliar routines and comparing objects based on quantity, shape, color and texture.
The early childhood typical peer program continues to grow in all of our community classrooms. At this time, we are currently welcoming new peers into the afternoon early childhood section taught by Monica Alford here at BSE. The typical peers in our program provide appropriate social, communication and pre-academic modeling for our students with special education needs. This research based model of instructional intervention also benefits typically developing students. Along with traditional pre-school activities, our typical peers learn diversity awareness, patience and tolerance. This leads to decreased anxiety about students with special needs and promotes a life long compassion and better overall attitude regarding students with special needs. For more information about the benefits of Peer Mediated Instruction (PMI) , see the attached PDF of the December Special Education newsletter or the
WANTED...TWO TEACHERS ...TO RUN AN ECA
Running
Coding
V-Ball
Track
Book Store
Chess
If you would like to offer another fun club for our students please email dk! Each club must have 15 participants and meet a minimum of 8 times. The pay is $362.00.
Science Money
Recess...Winter...Oh My!
Recess Policy
The weeks prior to break caused many recess questions. Here is the actual policy to note. TJ or myself will email, radio, or notify you in person when it is too cold to go out. Please don't take time to debate the weather with any staff, as I will take full responsibility for the decision of staying in or going out. My decision is based on my interpretation of the weather via a weather website in current time.
Recess supervision is provided by responsible school personnel. For every child’s safety and the school’s liability, parents may not accompany students to recess. Recess will be held outdoors whenever possible. Precipitation, sunshine, cloud cover, wind chill, temperature, etc. are all considered when a decision is made for indoor recess. In general, recess will be held indoors when it is raining or the temperature/wind chill falls below 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
Common sense reminder: If you are outside and your children begin to suffer from substantial change of weather, come inside. Weather changes on a dime, so react to it with care and positive supervision in mind.
Staff Development 2nd Semester - Add to your calendar!
January 15th, 2014 –NO STAFF MEETING
January 17, 2014 - Half Day PD– 1PM- LGI - Lunch from Greeks Pizza Provided (NOON) in LGI
1:00 – 1:30 – Writing in Math – Dr. Loane
1:30 – 2:30 – CC Activity – Siwik/Schwoeppe – TL’s (Share out of two chapters…depending on where we are lagging in schedule)
2:30-2:45 - Break
2:45 – 4:00 – GUIDED MATH (AGENDA FROM NOV.)
February 7th, 2014 – Half Day PD - LGI - 1PM
1-4 – BSE HSE 21 Team - TBD
February 12th, 2014 – Staff Meeting – 7:55AM - LGI
Dr. Loane – The Writing Workshop and continues into prep all day.
March 19th, 2014 - Staff Meeting – 7:55AM - LGI
Dr. Smith - Budget Update and Plan
April 16th, 2014 – Staff Meeting - 7:55AM - LGI
PBIS leveled voices and expectations for 2014-2015
May – NO Staff Meeting – STAFF CELEBRATION BREAKFAST LAST TEACHER WORK DAY.
Calendar Changes
Make sure you see the revised calendar for the remainder of our current school year sent by Denise J.
Make-up days include Feb. 18th (Flex Day), May 30th, and June 2nd.
The last teacher work day is now June 3rd.