FRIDAY FOCUS
March 29, 2013
WHAT 'YA NEED TO KNOW...
- 4/2 Apple Training-Make sure you have your sub arranged and confirmed
- 4/4 3rd Grade Play
- 4/5 Citizen of the Month-Don't forget to invite the Parent to the Friday Assembly!
- 4/5 Last day before Spring Break!! YAHOO!!
A DROP IN THE BUCKET...
- Thank you to Lisa Denham, Terri Davis, Tobie Pace and Katie McNamara for visiting our school this week! It's always fun to share all of the exciting happenings at Santa Fe! (and THANKS to all of you for opening up your classrooms for us to visit!)
- Thank you to Cara and Monica for sharing their classrooms with the Upper Grade BTSA teachers-Kelsey Holohan and the BTSA teachers were in awe of the many and varied ways that Santa Fe is using Mobile Devices.
- Kudos to the first participants in the Santa Fe Slam at our Last Staff meeting! Andrea, Angie, Stephanie, Shaina, Christy, Kelly and Mary Ryan/Natalie did a great job sharing their key learnings from CUE! Don't forget that you can access their key ideas and links to more information about their presentation via Google Drive. I can't wait to see our other presenters (Laz, Vero, Becky and Lisa O) at the next Santa Fe Slam! Santa Fe is on FIRE! Please let me know if you want to present your favorite idea at a future SLAM-there is so much that we can learn from each other!
- Congratulations to our 4th graders for an Awesome Gold Rush day and performance!
- Thank you to Becky and Vicki P for representing CTA and SSF on the Negotiations Team! Such an honor to sit at the table with them on behalf of our district!
- I've had some primary teachers asking if they could visit our upper grade classes to see the students working with the iPads (and iPods in 3rd grade)-ABSOLUTELY! A short visit will open your eyes to a whole new world and give you a peak into what is possible and what your classrooms might look like next year...I would suggest working with a specific class/grade level (maybe your Big Buddy Class? or any grade level) and see if you could visit during one of your pull-outs. You could do this individually or as a grade level with your team-mates and then you could all see the same thing-Like a Field Trip! (<: If you'd like me to join you, just let me know-or if you want me to arrange it, let me know! It really is remarkable to see how far we have come in such a short amount of time.
AND THEN THERE'S S'MORE...
I am often asked the benefit of having iPads in our classrooms-I always say it isn't about the devices, it's about what the teacher does with the devices. The reality is that these devices are allowing our teachers to rethink their lesson design and how students access information and produce evidence of their acquisition of knowledge. These instructional shifts are not only increasing student engagement, but more importantly deepening the learning for our students. The attached article talks about 6 Instructional Shift that Promote Deep Learning. Enjoy!
http://www.teachthought.com/teaching/6-teaching-strategies-to-promote-deeper-learning/