Staff Newsletter
because it helps to know what's going on
January 24, 2020
Welcome New Instructional Assistant Kari Tate!
Turn and Talk - TLaC Technique 43
In the pitfalls listed below, the one I see the most in our classrooms is #3 - Giving specific directions and expectations for a result or product. See what you think below.
Pitfalls In Facilitating Turn & Talk: Mistakes that teachers make when they first begin using turn and talk include:
1. Giving students too much time to talk. Turn and talk is short, lasting about 30 seconds to two minutes depending on the purpose and depth of the question/idea under discussion. If it goes on too long, it can lead to students talking about irrelevant topics and lead to misbehavior.
2. Asking students to talk about something worth talking about. In order to have a successful turn and talk, there needs to be something worth talking about. The topic needs to be one that might generate disagreement; needs to be unpacked; is a bit confusing; might stretch someone’s thinking or requires taking a stand.
3. Not making your expectations clear. It is important to make your expectations clear. Students who are not used to engaging in this practice need specific examples of what you want them to do, For example, “I want you to turn to a neighbor and in less than a minute I want you to tell your neighbor whether you agree with Johnny or not and why. Give at least one reason for your thinking. Then listen to your neighbor’s opinion and reason. I’m going to call on someone to tell me what their neighbor thinks. Go.” You might also tell them what signal you will use for them to stop talking to their partner and turn their attention back to the whole group.
#RedForEd
Dear Faculty and Staff members,
Now that the 2020 Indiana General Assembly has convened as of January 6th, I want to remind everyone that you will be granted a professional leave day to conduct a verified meeting at the Statehouse with your elected representative(s). You will of course need to pre-arrange the visit through your principal or director and then set up the meeting with the elected representative by calling his or her office a few days in advance. Attached to this email is a sheet of contact information for the elected officials that represent our school district area here in Danville. However, you may live outside the area and have other officials to whom you may wish to speak to as well. In the attachment is also a bit of school funding data and some talking points you may find useful.
Mr. Tim McRoberts is one of our school board members. Tim works for the Indiana Association of School Principals and is in the Statehouse nearly every day. He understands that going to the Statehouse can be a bit of an intimidating process if you have not not done that before. He has offered to meet anyone there that would like to meet with representatives. He will be happy to meet you on the day of your visit and guide you in the right direction once you have contacted the representative or senator's office and set up your meeting. Mr. McRoberts contact information is: tmcroberts@danville.k12.in.us. Likewise, if you need some direction on parking, entry area, or approach, do not hesitate to ask me and I will be more than happy to assist you with this.
I do think it is important that your individual voices are heard by your elected representatives in support of our schools and public education in general. Click on this link to take you to the General Assembly site and review any bill that has been introduced. link http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2020/bills/. There is also other helpful information on this site than can be accessed by clicking on the tabs at the top of the page. Thank you for all that you do for Danville Schools.
Sincerely,
Dr. Tracey R. Shafer
Superintendent
Shout outs!!
"Special thanks to Megan Hopper and Stephanie Brewer for their additional help!" ~Renee B.
"Thanks to Jayme Rector for being a rockstar while she was here. We will miss you!" ~Tina
"Shout out to Jayme Rector for all that she has done for the students and staff! She will be greatly missed!" ~Megan H.
"Jayme, we've been so fortunate to have you at South! You'll be an amazing addition to the MS staff." ~Kris A.
"Shout out to Stacey Trimble for greeting students so cheerfully in the morning!" ~Kelly S.
"To Sarh Finlay for having patience and showing kindness to the grandma that was looking for her granddaughter that didn't get off the bus."~Kelly S.
"Michelle Barber for going out of her way to record a student doing their eSpark video after a sibling had messed it up." Becky F.
"To every teacher who had a challenging student this week (or should I say, every day). I see your patience and perseverance with them - thank you for not giving up on them and celebrating with them when they need it most. " ~Kelsie M.
MTSS
Greetings, teachers!
We have rescheduled our Data Team to Monday morning. So if you have not turned in all your Progress Update Sheets yet, now is your chance!
Reading RTI and red-flagged students have specific notes about their winter benchmarks available on the documents I've shared with you (Class of 2028 Winter Benchmark and Class of 2029 Winter Benchmark). Feel free to share any of this feedback with parents when discussing strengths and weaknesses.
Please give me time after Monday's meeting to organize spreadsheets, redo groups, and update paperwork. I'll be in touch about when parent letters will be sent and changes to groups.
Thanks for all of your patience!
Two Hour Delay Specials Schedule Rotation
Reminders
- Please have a system in place that will help ensure your student of the week comes to the office each morning for announcements without having to be called down.
- If you'd like Tina to read to your class you can schedule a time with her.
- Add your read-aloud titles to this google doc.
- Think about the great things going on around you and send a shout out to Tina to add to the newsletter.
Upcoming Dates
Jan. 27: Data Team Mtg.
Jan. 28: PLC
Jan. 30: Gr. Level/Dept. Mtg.
Feb. 2: PLC
Feb. 6: PTO Public Mtg, 6:30
Feb. 10: Recycle Heart and Sole collection begins
Feb. 11: PLC
Feb. 13: Faculty Mtg.
Feb. 14: End of Heart and Sole Collection
Feb. 17: President's Day/Snow Make up Day
Feb: 18: We LOVE to READ week
Feb. 18: PLC
Feb. 21: Battle of the Books
Feb. 25: PLC
Feb. 27: Gr. Level/Dept. Mtg.
Mar. 3: PLC
Mar. 5: eLearning Day
Mar. 6: End of Quarter 3
Mar. 8: Daylight Savings Time/spring forward
Mar. 10: PLC
Mar. 12: Faculty Mtg.
Mar. 13: Report cards posted
Mar. 16: Riley Days begin
Mar. 17: PLC
Mar. 19: Men in Action Read Day
Mar. 20: Riley Volleyball
Mar. 23-27 Spring Break
Mar. 31-April 2 IREAD3
Data Team Meetings
Data Team Meeting Dates 2019-20
Wednesday, January 27th
Wednesday, March 5th
Wednesday, May 6th
CIC Meetings
Building Level Meetings
Faculty Meetings and/or Grade level/Dept. Mtgs:
Jan. 30 (Gr. level/dept.)
Feb. 13 (Faculty)
Feb. 27 (Gr. level/dept.)
Mar. 12 (Faculty)
Apr. 9 (Faculty)
Apr. 23 (Gr. level/dept.)
May 7 (Faculty)