LVHS Weekly!
Excellence In All We Do.
December 9, 2019
CALENDAR THIS WEEK:
Monday, December 9 -
B Day
ELA PLC - Common Planning and Semester Test (see notes below)
Tuesday, December 10 -
A Day
Math PLC - Common Planning and Semester Test (see notes below)
STAAR English 1 in MAC
Boys BB at home vs Jarrell HS at 5 pm
Girls BB at home vs Jarrell HS at 5 pm
Wednesday, December 11 -
B Day
STAAR Algebra 1 in MAC
Science PLC - Common Planning and Semester Test (see notes below)
Staff party at Moviehouse and Eatery, pre-movie fun starts at 5, movie starts at 6:45pm
Thursday, December 12 -
A Day
STAAR English 2 and Biology in MAC
SS and Spanish PLC - Common Planning and Semester Test (see notes below)
Betterment Day - Gentleness - White
Varsity Girls BBall at Fredericksburg Tourney
Band Christmas Concert at 6 pm, PAC
Friday, December 13 -
B Day
Semester Exams - 5th and 7th periods
Varsity Girls BBall at Fredericksburg Tourney
progress report grades needed to be updated in txconnect by today at 3:30 pm! students can regain eligibility at 4:00 pm on friday, december 13.
AS MUCH AS YOU MIGHT WANT TO...
let them wear a santa hat or a beanie...
have a free day in your class...
let things slide a bit these last seven days of the calendar year...
Our kids will rise and fall to the expectations that we set. It is a slippery slope if we let things go. Keep pushing kids to be their best. Every minute. Every day. Our kids deserve it and there is no better staff to do it.
Finish strong.
Thursday, December 19, is a staff development day. We will have a mandatory 8:30 am- 11:00 am faculty meeting/pd in the MAC and then work in our PLC teams with a focus on curriculum updating and vertical planning. Everyone will be done at 2:00 pm that day.
The scoop on semester exams
- All courses that are not pass/fail must give a semester exam.
- This one grade counts as 20% of their semester grade.
- The test should be cumulative from the first semester and should be an individual grade.
- It should be in a format that you can use the data to make instructional decisions based on the information you get from the results. Putting it in Eduphoria is an easy way to get data in a usable format.
Let me know if you have exceptions to this so we can make sure you are following policy. Thanks!
FIRST 15, LAST 15 MINUTES OF CLASS ARE A NO FLY ZONE. DON'T ALLOW STUDENTS TO LEAVE YOUR CLASS DURING THESE TIMES. FIRST 5, LAST 5 DURING ADVISORY.
Drill Day, Tuesday, December 17 - 12:15 pm
At 12:15 pm on Tuesday, December 17, we will have several drills.
Lockdown
Lockout (Shelter in Place)
Bad Weather
Fire Drill
This is during 3rd period, and your students in that class will have tested on Friday, December 13. Be advised if you have students absent on Friday, they will need to make arrangements to test at a time other than that time.
Don't forget about the citizenship grade rubric. Students earn recognition if they earn E's in all their classes.
staff Movie Night on Wednesday, December 11!
Unless there is a big swing in the voting...looks like it's going to be ELF!
Semester Exams are in December
We will be having our first semester exams prior to the Winter Break.
No - I repeat - NO - one more time - NO exams will be given early. If a student is absent for the exam, they will need to take the exam after they return not before they leave.
When we return from the break, students will continue to have assignments, quizzes, and awesome learning experiences that will reflect in the first-semester grade up until Friday, January 10 (the end of the first semester).
Friday, December 13 - Periods 7 and 5
Monday, December 16 - Periods 1 and 3 (and 5 if more time is needed)
Tuesday, December 17 - Periods 6 and 8 (and 1 if more time is needed)
Wednesday, December 18 - Periods 2 and 4
Update on Formal Observations
Whole Student Tidbit of the Week - Self-Awareness.
Self-awareness: the ability to identify and assess your thoughts, feelings, and values, as well as how they intersect with your behaviors
Challenge for you - How self-aware are you of your strengths and weaknesses? How do your weaknesses affect how you react to change/conflict/stress and what are some things you do to mitigate this effect?
Here are some ways to work with your students on becoming self-aware?
(from https://www.waterford.org/education/15-activities-for-teaching-casel-core-competencies/)
1. Mindfulness Meditation
Mindfulness, the ability to focus on the present and accept one’s circumstances, is a self-awareness skill that can significantly reduce stress and anxiety.[1] To teach mindfulness in class, put on a guided meditation recording or read one aloud to your students. Encourage them to put their thoughts and feelings aside and focus on the meditation as much as they can.
2. Reflective Writing
Reflective writing not only helps students develop self-awareness but empathy and compassion, too.[2] Start each day by giving students five to ten minutes to write about a prompt that encourages self-reflection. By practicing reflective writing every day, this can help students learn to consider their thoughts and feelings in a self-aware way.
Not sure what questions you should give your students? Here are a few prompts that encourage self-analysis:
- When was the happiest moment in your life? Why was it so happy?
- What is your biggest dream?
- Who is your best friend and how do they make you feel?
- Why do you think it’s important to be kind?
- What are some things you like and dislike about yourself?
3. Emotional Vocabulary Lists
Self-awareness activities are a great way to help students understand emotional cues. Include several words that describe emotions to your class vocabulary lists, like “joyful” or “scared.” Whenever you introduce a new emotional vocabulary word, take time to discuss what it means and how students can recognize this feeling in themselves and others.
For older grades, try complex emotional vocabulary words like “jubilant” or “apprehensive” to broaden their emotional understanding.
Oldies but goodies...
Club or UIL Academic Sponsor?
Please add your meeting time to this schedule so we know who has what and when -
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1zgVbittNBpzB1B96FC6iGsTBKkfMI9ro0ZT6RFNxn5Y/edit?usp=sharing
Students will need to have passes to leave advisory to go to a club. If we can't get this organized and we end up having a lot of students wandering the hallways, we will have to go back to clubs only on Fridays. :(
Read this- put in zeroes for missing work
Please be sure to enter zeroes as they happen. You will also notice that students are often quicker to turn in their late assignments when there is a zero as a placeholder instead of an X.
Of course, when they turn in the assignment late, you can change it (Stu wanted me to put that part in there in case you were confused).
Thank you!!!!
Does the re-do policy apply to nine weeks tests?
However, remember, they need to submit the re-do form within 2 days of receiving their posted grade.
That might mean you have to turn in an incomplete for them and then they have until the following Friday at 4:00 pm to update the grade.
FIRST 15, LAST 15 MINUTES OF CLASS ARE A NO FLY ZONE. DON'T ALLOW STUDENTS TO LEAVE YOUR CLASS DURING THESE TIMES. FIRST 5, LAST 5 DURING ADVISORY.
Advisory Changes Protocol
If you would like to make a change to a student in your advisory, you need to send an email requesting the change to Mrs. Huerta and include the teacher who is the current advisory teacher of the student.
That way everyone is in the loop.
If you don't do it this way, Mrs. Huerta will send the email back to you!
check this out! Students must complete this form to retest/redo!
hall passes
Access it here: https://drive.google.com/a/lagovista.txed.net/file/d/0B9GUQCF2uqLcN1luZTFtZUtVYkU/view?usp=sharing
UPDATED - Minimum Number of Assignments (LVISD policy):
• Daily = 20% - minimum of 9 required per 9 weeks
• Formative Assessment = 35% - minimum of 6 required per 9 weeks
• Major Grades = 45% - minimum of 4 required per 9 weeks
Remember, grades must be updated WEEKLY.
At least 3 of the formative and/or daily assignments must be a writing assignment each 9 weeks.
Every Wednesday in LVISD is college day! Be sure to sport your favorite college's gear.
positive behavior reinforcers.
Make sure you sign it (legibly) and then the students write their name on it and come to the reception desk to put their tickets in the bucket. Please do not send them during instructional time (I know...you wouldn't think of it)! Thanks!
Official works hours are 7:45 - 4:15.
Betterment Days
LVHS' Project Vinatta students selected to embody each of the following values on the below dates through the wearing of these colors:
Gentleness - White - 12/12
Love - Red - 12/17
Self-Control - Grey - 12/18
During each day, students will wear the color in honor of the listed core value with the goal of either bringing it to their lives or adding it to others!