Wilson Ranger Post
9-21-15
Don't be Cruel...
"So...I'm going to be late to PLC today...but hey it's okay...it's a PLC day so no big deal..."
Text: LOL...I need a mental brk...i be leevan at 215 today...no worries...we have PBL planning today...C U
The implication that being late or leaving early is okay during these meeting is that they are not important. Let's respect one another's time and our time together. :)
Library News
Library News about Information Literacy
Over the course of the last school year, a committee of librarians, teachers, & DIgital Learning Coaches worked to create a set of Information Literacy standards for the district that include a K-12 Scope and Sequence. This year CISD librarians are creating a robust repository of resources tied to the Information Literacy Scope and Sequence. The resources include lesson plans, websites, videos, infographics, and suggested practices designed for use by educators and librarians as they facilitate information literacy lessons with learners. Sanctioned by Dr. Denison, October 2 will be an off-campus work day for all librarians to focus on the work of adding resources to the repository so that it is ready for roll-out in Spring 2016. We look forward to sharing this work with all of CISD.
Autism Speaks
As more students with autism are included in general education classes, the need for basic information about autism from the perspective of a general educator has grown. This Region 10 session by Layne Pethick will provide an overview on autism and suggest evidence-based instructional strategies to promote independence and encourage academic, social, communication and behavioral success for students with autism in the classroom setting.
Registration is free but substitutes would be a campus expense.
Sci...not so Fi
I am very happy to announce the launch of our educator-designed, educator-led inquiry-driven workshops for elementary science. We are calling the series "Science is Messy". We will deliver six different PD workshops, each centered around a different aspect of inquiry-based science. We will repeat the six workshops on three different dates throughout the year. Educators may choose a different workshop on each of the different dates for a total of three workshop experiences. Educators may register through Eduphoria. The event will be from 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm on each of the following dates: October 8th, December 3rd, and February 18th. The locations will be Austin Elementary in October, Valley Ranch Elementary in December, and Town Center Elementary in February.
Session titles include:
- Messy Data - discovering the need for organizing and representing science data
- Managing the Mess - experience systems and structures to support hands-on science in the classroom
- Diggin' in the Dirt - connecting hands-on experiences to the big ideas in earth science
- A Bug's Life - connecting hands-on experiences to the big ideas in life science
- Messing with Matter - connecting hands-on experiences to the big ideas in physical science
- Messing Around with Inquiry - introduction to student-driven inquiry
Yep...We Teach Social Studies Still :)
Professional developmental Learning for Staff Educators in Need
Our Digital Learning Coaches (DLC) are excited to be offering their first "Expedition Saturday" on September 26, 2015. Please see attached flyer for additional information.
Registration is now open in Eduphoria (for this date only) and will close on Friday, September 25th at 5:00 p.m.
Language, Literacy, and So Much More!!!
Important things to know about Istation:
- Learners log in using their district username and password
- Educator passwords will remain what they set it up to be.
- THERE IS NO NEED TO MANUALLY ADD A LEARNER. If a learner is not in the system, please submit a ZenDesk ticket http://coppellisdhelp.zendesk.com When a learner enrolls in the district, it will take 24/48 hours for a learner to be added to Istation.
- If a learner changes their password during the day, it will be reset back to their district username and password during the nightly upload. Educators can still force a password reset if a learner were to forget their password.
- The nightly upload will include adding learners to the correct classes.
- Any auxiliary classes that an educator creates will not be disturbed by the nightly upload.
Educators and learners can still access Istation on the web, through the Virtual Desktop, or through an iPad App.
If a learner or educator is experiencing technical difficulty with Istation, please submit a ZenDesk ticket http://coppellisdhelp.zendesk.com
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Universal screener data due into aware by October 2nd. This year we are stressing that educators get their data in by this date. Quite frequently, educators will email after the due date and ask for the system to be reopened. That process is time consuming on our end. Obviously, from time to time an unforeseeable circumstance comes up, but because we have significantly reduced the number of assessments this year, please encourage educators to plan accordingly so they can meet the deadline.
According to information related from TEA last week:
“During the 2015–2016 school year, TEA will redesign the STAAR grades 4 and 7 writing tests so they will be completed in one four-hour administration. These redesigned writing assessments will be administered beginning in spring 2016.”
MATH AND LITERACY UNIVERSAL SCREENER DATA (K-8th grade)
All data from universal screeners need to be entered in AWARE by October 2nd. Should an educator not meet this deadline, they will need to discuss it with their campus principal and request that the principal contact Mary Ann Libby.
ISTATION (K—8th grade)
The tech department has done a great job of adding information about frequently asked questions to ZenDesk. To see commonly asked questions about Istation follow this link: Istation FAQ
Unfortunately, TEA made Istation destroy all learner data that was accumulated under Texas Success Initiative on August 31. This affects data for learners from grades 3rd - 8th, but will not affect data that was accumulated in Pre-K - 2nd grade.
Oh So Gifted
The GTi Specialists and I will be hosting two GT Curriculum Nights to continue to explain our GT Services in CISD.
- Monday, September 14th 6:00 to 7:00 at Lakeside Elementary
- Tuesday, September 22nd 6:00 to 7:00 at Lee Elementary
GT Parent Referral Assessment
The GT parent referral for learner assessment closed on Friday, September 4th after scrolling on the district and campus websites for almost three months. As of Friday, approximately 310 learners had been referred to assessment in addition to the 4 elementary grade levels where we universally screen. Parent referral testing will be held on Saturday, September 19th. Anyone who would like to proctor an exam should contact Devon Kirk (dkirk@coppellisd.com).
GT Universal Screening
Learners in Kindergarten, First grade, Third Grade and Fifth Grade will be universally screened for GT services this fall. Please note the following:
Learners in Kindergarten and First grade will complete planned experiences with their classroom educator and the GTi Specialist during the fall. The window will run from the beginning of October to the beginning of December. There will not be a cogat administered to all first graders this year. (This is a change from the published district assessment calendar.) The elementary GTi Specialists will be conducting a training for your campus Kindergarten and First Grade educators during September.
Third Grade and Fifth Grade learners will be administered the CogAT in October as in years past.
- ALL fifth graders will sit for the CogAT as we believe it provides important data as learners as transitioning to middle school.
- Third grade learners who have been previously identified will NOT assess again during the October CogAT administration. A teacher on that grade level will need to be designated to work with those learners during the testing times on those days.
- “The Why” - The State Plan for Education of Gifted and Talented Students as well as the 2013 program audit calls for us to minimize reassessment of GT identified learners.
GT Training
The sign up for the GT 30 hour training is available in Eduphoria. The registration closed on Friday, September 11th at 4:00. At that time, all educators registered for the course will receive the course code in Schoology and may work through the training at their leisure.
As a reminder, all elementary classroom educators, all core middle school educators, all facilitators at NTH@C and all GT educators must complete the 30-hour training. Educators in Honors, IB and AP courses are strongly encouraged to participate.
The catalog of 6 hour update trainings along with guidelines for requesting GT hours for outside workshops or a bookstudy will be sent out the week of September 21st.
Any questions regarding any GT training can be addressed to Deana Harrell at dharrell@coppellisd.com.
Coppell Gifted Association
Once again, the Coppell Gifted Association is offering free educator memberships until October 16th to CISD educators and administrators. Last year the CGA sent 56 educators and administrators to TAGT in Fort Worth. Please encourage your staff member to join the CGA here.
Educator scholarships for training, TAGT in San Antonio in December and other professional learning opportunities are open now. Educators can apply here until October 1, 2015.
TAGT Parent Night on October 7th
Coppell ISD and CGA will be hosting the second ever TAGT Parent Night on October 7th at Coppell High School. We are excited to provide a speaker and an activities fair for our parents while learners have a hands-on experience. Food trucks will be on hand and more information will follow! All educators, learners and parents are welcome.
Mathematics by Design
RtI2 Mathematics (K-8): Intervention Lessons and Progress Monitoring: Digital training on intervention lessons and progress monitoring for grades K-8 have been added to Schoology. Educators should access this using the code: MV5WX-ZB83F.
- Navigate to: cisd.schoology.com
- Select the Courses dropdown menu in the top menu
- Click on the Join link in the Courses dropdown
- Enter this access code: MV5WX-ZB83F
Elementary Math Content Specialist Meeting – The first Elementary Math Content Specialist meeting will take place on September 10 at Mockingbird Elementary in Tiffiny Houdek’s room at 3:30 pm. We will be kicking off a book study of Elementary and Middle School Mathematics: Teaching Developmentally by John Van de Walle.
TEMI-PM & ESTAR/MSTAR Universal Screeners: Thank you for your patience as we implement new universal screeners for K-8 math. Kudos to our Math Instructional Coaches who continue to trouble-shoot and to Technology for creating the work-around (generic passwords) for our elementary learners. All data should be entered into Aware by October 2 for these beginning of the year assessments.
Texas Council of Teachers of Mathematics Grant: Applications are due November 30, 2015 for the 2016 TCTM Grant. This grant aims to help teachers and professional organizations in Texas improve mathematics teaching and learning. More information can be found here: http://tctmonline.org/TCTMdrupal/content/tctm-grant-information
Assessment: Debbie Youngs
Who Let the Dogs out??!!!....
Only the Best Work at Wilson
Chris and Mary,
I just wanted to take a minute to say how wonderful your staff is! As you know, we have been working through the process of the new Universal Screener, and the teachers have been nothing but patient. I checked in on a few teams today, and they were all so kind and had such a positive attitude despite their plates being so full. I told them how much I appreciate it! I just want you to know that it is noticed! :)
Have a wonderful afternoon!
Ashley Minton
Elementary Math Instructional Coach
tinyurl.com/cisdelementarymath
@AM_MathCoach
Show Me the Money!!!
The Coppell Education Foundation would like to announce that the 2015 Grant submission window is open, as of September 14 and will close on October 14 at 4:30 pm. Please forward this information on to your teachers.
All applications must be submitted through this google form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aOIDV-RnJKysmwO6wWVsEL3uLu8ZjImW5PLPLctppG8/viewform). It can also be accessed through our website www.coppellisdef.com, by clicking on grant info and grant application process.
I have attached the application in pdf form, for planning purposes only.
Once an application has been submitted through the google form and the signed policies and procedures form has been sent to aarthur@coppellisdef.com, a confirmation email will be sent to the applicant and administrator.
We look forward to reading all the creative, transformative ideas that provide learning opportunities for our students beyond the four walls of the classroom.
They will also be making a training available to you to view prior to submission to ensure a quality grant submission.
Wonderful things yet to come...
Sign up for this week's after school professional development sessions...
Making the most of your Interactive Read Alouds (9/22)
This course will provide you with metacognitive strategies to make your interactive read alouds more effective. Jeans passes and book giveaways will be happening :)
http://eduphoria.coppellisd.com/wshop/default.aspx?cid=7162GE for new teachers (9/23)
Red and Black Super Stars!
the Coppell Education Foundation is about to launch the Red & Black Super Stars recognition program. This program will recognize CISD staff and students on your campus.
Here is how the program will work:
· At the end of each 9-week grading period we will accept nominations -- which will be done via a Google form and shouldn't take more than a few minutes to fill out
· Any CISD employee on your campus can nominate a student and any CISD employee or parent from your campus can nominate a CISD employee
· Our recognition committee will review the submissions and select one student from each grade and one to two teachers for that 9-week grading period
· A week after nominations are closed we will notify you which CISD staff and students were selected
· Someone from the Coppell Education Foundation board will come to your campus to present the awards -- each recipient will receive a Super Star t-shirt and students will also receive a certificate and staff will receive a stylus