Monday Memo
October 24th - 28th
THE ILLITERATE OF THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY WILL NOT BE THOSE WHO CANNOT READ AND WRITE, BUT THOSE WHO CANNOT LEARN; UNLEARN, AND RELEARN. -A. TOFFLER
First I want to thank you for the time, energy and effort that you put into crafting meaningful comments for report cards. Sylvia and I were reviewing them on Friday and were so pleased. It is obvious how well you know your students by what you had to say about them. While I know that it takes a lot of time, I am confident that it will go a long way in establishing a trusting relationship with the parents of your students.
I also want to thank you for a smooth transition back to the number system. Overall things went quite well. The carpool team continues to make slight tweaks each day to create an optimum system, but I think the use of the science lab and art room has been a great solution to the chaos up front. However, I do need to remind all teachers who are responsible for Walk Aways that you should not leave your classroom until 3:00pm. If you do not wait until 3:00, it creates congestion in the flow of traffic. In addition, teachers must be the line leader/pace car and walk the walk away students down the purple line along the gym side of the hallway in a SHARP line all the way to the exit doors in the cafeteria. This means, without exception, the only place a teacher can stop in the building and release walk away students is at the cafeteria doors where the students exit the building. Please hold yourselves and each other accountable for this expectation.
This week's PLC video is about the difference between groups and teams. Their function and way in which they operate is very difference, but it is important to understand those differences in order to evaluate where your grade level is functioning on this learning continuum and determine your next steps or identify what might be getting in the way of becoming a true PLC. Hopefully you recognize that the language Rick DuFour uses to define teams aligns with the Stages of Team Development. Because of this, I also included the graphic below as a reminder of the behaviors of interdependent teams. I hope you find it helpful.
Make today count,
JL
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Professional Learning Communities
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Behaviors of Interdependent Teams
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ALL ELL TEACHERS - Last Week to Take Action
ELPS Training
Below you will find the link and instructions for the required training for ALL teachers who serve ELL students. If you do not already have an account, you will need to create one before beginning this course. Please print the certificate when you complete the course and turn it in to Sylvia. This course must be completed by October 31st. Sylvia will turn-in a list to the Bilingual/ESL Department to receive credit in Eduphoria.
Go to: https://www.texasgateway.org/
Instructions: http://tinyurl.com/hx9v846
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Shoparoo
Did you know that each week I give out jeans passes to those who are one of the top three participants on Shoparoo? I know that many of you have already joined, but if you haven't, it is not too late. Simply go to www.shoparoo.com to create your account. If you use veft4467 as a referral code, McGowen will earn money for you just signing up. Please feel free to push this information out to your parents as well. Once you sign up, Shoparoo will give you a referral code for your parents to use when they sign up. Schools with just 40 supporters are earning an average of $1,000 every year.
Congratulations to Barbara Peebles, Krista Daniel and Holly Bianchetta for being in this week's top three on Shoparoo!
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Focus for 2016 - 2017
In order to help every child their personal best, McGowen teachers and staff will:
- Knowledgeably speak about our current practices that contribute to McGowen becoming a Level 1 Certified High Reliability School.
- Actively participate in grade level and content Professional Learning Communities.
- Engage in collaborative team planning and lesson design that addresses the four essential questions of a PLC.
- Present lessons in such a way that students understand and can speak knowledgeably about posted learning and language targets.
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Remind for Staff
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Happy Birthday!
October
Carin Thomas - 4th
Mayella Tores - 7th
Sadie Hunsaker - 13th
Lori Peterson - 13th
Jenny Snyder - 13th
Melanie Burford - 15th
Marilyn Oliphant - 24th
Kristi Ward - 24th
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Appreciations
- A heartfelt and very special thank you goes out to McCartney, Sifferman, Kincaid, Thomas, Stevens, Chitwood, Relle & SL for participating in the dunk booth. This is always so exciting for the kids and not exactly the most thrilling for the participants. Your participation and sacrifice with a positive attitude is greatly appreciated. Much love to you all! -JL
- Caballero and Shiela - Thank you so much for leading the RtI meetings on Thursday. It appreciate you managing that difficult task and apologize for making it even more challenging. ;) -JL
- Stacie - Thank you so much for taking such good care of me this week. I appreciate all that you did to help me while Donna was out. -JL
- Barbara - Thank you for all that you are doing behind the scenes to make sure that our snapshot data is accurate. -JL
- Shiela - Thank you so much for resolving the 3rd grade Alpha/bus issue on Mav Fan Jam days. You are the best! -JL
- Teachers – Thank you so much for your wonderful discussions during RTI on Thursday. I know how much time and energy you give to your students and it is greatly appreciated. - Michelle C.
- JL – Thank you for my Sonic drink! It was such a treat!!! - Michelle C.
- JD & Chitwood –Thank you so much for dedication to my boy. I sincerely appreciate your support and communication (especially these last several days). I can’t thank you enough! I still can’t believe you stayed that late and helped him the other night! Truly above and beyond! – Michelle C.
- Maria – Thank you for helping out a 4th grader. You are truly seeing the kids as “all our kids”! - Michelle C.
- Lori – Thank you for covering my duty! - Michelle C.
- Shana – Thank you so much for the help on Wednesday! You are awesome! - Michelle C.
- First Grade Team- I am so thankful to have such a wonderful group of coworkers. I appreciate all of the support and help that you guys give me. Connie
- I would like to THANK Coach Relle for making a special trip to my office to review my role on the dismissal plan with me. Thanks Nick for taking SPECIAL EFFORTS to ensure the dismissal plan ran smoothly! I APPRECIATE you! ROCK ON!!! J M. Oliphant
- Irma-Thank you for always taking such awesome care of the clinic! We appreciate you!! Nurse Shannon & Danielle
- Barbara & Stacie-Thank you so much for all you do! You two are just amazing! Nurse Shannon
- Lisa P.-Thank you so much for your help! We appreciate you!! Danielle & Nurse Shannon
- Jennifer-Thank you so much for your support!! You are the best!! Nurse Shannon
- Laura S. Thank you so much for keeping all of our kids healthy and stocking the hand sanitizer in the cafeteria! Nurse Shannon
- JL – Thank you for every way you always help. – Love, Stacie
- Nurse Shannon – Thank you for helping during our crazy dismissal switch back on Wednesday. – Love, Stacie
- Shana and Nicky- Thank you for all the help you’ve given me and for and always making me smile! JB
- Melanie and Lynn: I would like to thank Melanie and Lynn for being such gracious helpers with MAP testing!!! Thank you both so much all your patience and understanding! :-)
- Kristi: I would like to thank Kristi for being a fantastic mentor!!! She is so sweet and is always willing to help whenever I have a question or need anything from her!!! You’re the best Kristi! :-)
- Michelle C: Thank you Michelle for showing me the Ave on how to find probing questions for my RTI kiddos! :-)
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Bad Dude
We want to recognize Sadie Hunsaker as this week's Bad Dude. Sadie has done an exceptional job of transitioning from another state and learning new paperwork. She has established positive relationships with her students and knows them well. In ARDs, this is clearly evident by the confident manner in which she is able to articulate each child's strengths and struggles to the parents. Last week, she even participated in an RtI meeting to help us determine the best next step for a student she currently serves. Not only is Sadie great at her job, but she is also a model of a great teammate. She maintains a positive and flexible attitude, exhibits a growth mindset, and is willing to share her knowledge with others while learning from them at the same time. We could not be more pleased with all that she has done thus far and are so grateful that she is a McGowen Maverick!
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McKinney ISD's Vision, Mission and Beliefs
Any time we have an idea, concern, solution and/or comment, this is the filter through which we should speak. Let's help each other live up to our vision, mission, and beliefs.
Vision:
We are a cohesive, diverse community providing engaging learning experiences for all.
We will provide engaging learning experiences so students can become effective communicators, quality contributors and socially responsible citizens.
Beliefs:
- Partnerships between students, parents, community members and staff are foundational to educational success.
- Positive school culture and a safe environment foster growth.
- Everyone has inherent value and deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
- Learning is an active process requiring engaging tasks and engaging minds.
- Relevant and authentic experiences ignite continuous, deeper learning.
- Meaningful relationships enrich learning.
- Confidence fuels risk taking and higher achievement.
- Financial stewardship ensures a tomorrow for education.