Galloping Gazette
A newsletter for the Faculty and Staff - Week of 5/11
Put Students First • Seek Growth • Be Open to Change . Do Great Work Together • Value Differences
Principal's Message
Recently, as I was watching Sportscenter (which isn't that interesting without live sports) they started going through different sports' MVPs. Then they posed this question: Whose the sports world's Coronavirus MVP? Immediately, without a blink of an eye, I thought to myself clearly it's educators! Then, I reread the question, made sure I had my text evidence to confirm my answer (Patti C would be so proud) and realized it didn't fit this particular question.
However, let's take out the word sports and ask the question again - Who is the world's Coronavirus MVP? My answer would still be the same - you the educators!
You all are amazing and are all superheroes! You have gone from crushing 4 weeks of continuity of learning plans to sailing smoothly into ELPs like it was no big deal. This week's collaborations were phenomenal; the collaborative spirit that each grade level is using to create these engaging plans is dynamite.
Then, if teaching when schools are closed for months a time isn't hard enough, you continuously go out of your way to track down each one of your students weekly and continuously show them the dedication and love that you have for each one even if they have yet to turn in an assignment.
So, there you have it, yes there are many essential workers that are doing amazing things. However, in my eyes, you are all the real MVPs. Cheers to you!
-Robyn
Week Ahead
Monday, May 11th
9:00 - All Instructional Staff Meeting - Go to Google Meet - Type CFESStaffMtg
9:30 - 10:30 - PD on the rest of the book :)
1:00 - 3:00 - Grade Level Planning
1:00 TA and all other staff Meeting via Google Meet- Type CFESStaffMTG
3:00 Emergency Learning Plans are due to Ms. Backer
Tuesday, May 12th
School Open by Appointment Only from 9:30 - 1:30
1:30 Instructional Coaches Collab via Google Meet -
Wednesday, May 13th
9:30 - Ms. Backer's Read Aloud
School Open by Appointment Only from 9:30 - 1:30
10:00 AM - 3rd Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES3collab
10:45 AM - 4th Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES4collab
11:30 AM - 1st Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES1collab
Thursday, May 14th
8:00 - Coffee Chat - Google Meet - CFESCoffee
10:00 AM - 2nd Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES2collab
10:45 AM - K Collaboration via Google Meet - CFESKcollab
11:30 AM - 5th Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES5collab
Friday, May 15th
10:00 - PAC meeting discussing EOY items- Google Meet - PAC
I make a difference...
Kelly McNeely makes a difference to her students and peers. She works diligently to make sure everyone is getting what they need. She is patient and helpful. She is a technology guru and willingly helps everyone to make virtual learning easier. She is a leader, listener, lover of students and teaching.
More Teacher Appreciation Promos!
News and Notes....
- Do you need access to CFES? Don't forget to sign up prior to so that we can ensure that we stay within the CDC guidelines and remember to ONLY use the front door for entrance and exit. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AfP0-HAOI30_C10tEbUrmgpjubJLiLXiv2bVU5RdKYM/edit?usp=sharing
- Our 2019-2020 school calendar has not changed as a result of the school closure. The last day of the school year continues to be Friday, June 12. The ELP will continue through Friday, June 5. The last week of school, June 8 -12, should be used to focus on social emotional learning; connecting with students and their families, hosting virtual classes as needed, grade-level and school-wide celebrations, and planning for the transition to summer and fall learning
- Career Teacher deadline has not changed. If this is your year to rectify, please just take pictures of any documentation or use the scan feature on your cell phone to send to me. Let me know if you have any questions or need any assistance with this. If you have any specific questions you can contact John Ogden in HR
- The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has all of our attention. In addition to impacting our way of life, this is an emotional time for families and an anxious time for investors as this situation continues to have an increased impact on the volatile financial markets. Many of you may have questions. Until this change, the Virginia Beach-based Voya Financial representatives had been on site, meeting with individuals to review financial wellness and retirement readiness. Be assured, Voya’s Virginia Beach team of representatives continues to be available for your questions. To learn more about resources available from Voya, go to https://vbcps403b.beready2retire.com/ .
- At any time, you may use the all-VB Scheduling tool to have Suzanne call you (https://go.oncehub.com/VBCPSVirtualAppointmentScheduler) or you can contact Suzanne directly at mailto:suzanne.cooke@voya.com.
Talent Ed Formative Focus and Goal
Instructional staff with end of year goals: Please close out your end of the year data review by simply stating "due to the unexpected closure of school there is no end of year data to report". For your PD portion of this reflection, you can use what you did for our book study. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you for being flexible during this process!
All instructional staff are to submit their Goals/Formative Focus form by May 25th.
Classified- You will be evaluated over two years in Spring 2021; formative data from the 2019-2020 school year will be stored with admin. Feel free to work with your closest teacher if you would like any initial feedback.
***If you are Classified and hired after July 1, 2019, you will be evaluated before June 12, 2020***
Morning Meeting Motivation
This month our Colt character trait is resilience. We have broken this down just as we do with all of our traits. This week, we will continue to focus on the self-care/balance aspect of resilience. Please check out the graphic below and chat with your students on how to using different coping strategies to practice self-care.
If you aren't following @PGIVBCPS or @Sansone39 on Twitter, you are really missing out. Each week, on Mondays and Wednesdays, they are posting morning meeting ideas to add to your virtual morning meeting toolbox. I have linked the Google Doc of the running slides for you! Go give them a follow too!
#SelfCare Recommendations
Is your sweet tooth calling? Try this recipe
Just a little mic drop..
Are you up for a challenge?
Grab a friend and try this 15 minute AMRAP
15 burpees
15 sit ups
15 box jumps
Complete as many reps as possible in 15 mins.
Game Changer Moment
Bewell/Humana webinar
BEWell/Humana Webinar is being held on Monday, May 11 from 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.:
· Emotional well-being in times of uncertainty: Coping with stress related to COVID-19:
- Understanding the range of reactions to ongoing stressful situations
- Identifying strengths and sources of resiliency and support to leverage during challenging times
- Tips for supporting others, including children and teens
- Strategies for resilience and emotional well-being, including using the EAP and Work-Life Services
Professional Development Opportunities - Co-Teaching Webinars
VDOE Office of Special Education Instructional Services is inviting Co-Teaching teams to participate in five, one-hour webinar series (9:00-10:00 A.M.) Register today for "Looking Forward to Co-Teaching 2020-2021" with Dr. Marilyn Friend.
May 18: Co-Teaching partnerships: Understanding, building, strengthening, and repairing
May 28: Going past the six basic approaches to maximize instructional effectiveness in Co-Teaching
June 8: Getting real about co-planning
June 18: Where is the Specially Designed Instruction (SDI)?
June 29: Open mic: Questions and answers about real-world Co-Teaching situations and dilemmas.
You are looking at our Name that Tune winner!
Gotta love the matching spirit Mrs. W and the hubby have :)
Sometimes the kids say it the best.....
Hands down Friday was the BEST day because of seeing all of you and our amazing PTA!
Helpful List of Resources
VBCPS 2019-2020 Emergency Learning Plans for Elementary Schools
Newly updated VBCPS 2019-2020 School Calendar
Emergency Learning Plan Webpage
VBCPS Mental Health Resources: You are taking care of our students. Here are some resources to help take care of yourself also.
Meals for families: These are the locations you can give to families in need of food. Kids must be with the family to receive food.
Chromebook Repair: Here are the sites families can exchange their broken Chromebook for a new one.
Dr. Spence's Deskside Chats: Closed- captioned videos shared every Tuesday and Thursday on YouTube, where Dr. Spence tackles a few questions and provide some updates.
VBCPS General Updates: Most current updates on nearly everything here.
Technology Tips: These are tips on working from home. You need to be logged in to your VBSchools account to access it. As always, the DoT Help Desk is available at (757) 263-1111 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday should you need support as you work to ensure our students continue to learn.
CDC Guidelines: Tips to keep you and your family safe. We love you. Stay safe.
The Office of Employee Relations has published FAQs for employees regarding work locations/hours, pay, leave, FMLA, as well as the new Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) on the Intranet. Here is the direct link to this information: https://vbcps.sharepoint.com/sites/Intranet/Pages/COVID_19FAQs.aspx