Sunday Shakedown
Weekly Memo for Washington Elementary
Principal Post
Aside from the grainy old pixels of this movie clip, and the fact that you can't go wrong watching Brad Pitt, Moneyball actually presents a concept that data is the voice of the team. Sometimes I feel like Brad Pitt's character when Michael Hubbard hands me our "player evaluations" aka TCAP results. It takes me review after review to sift through and make the most meaning of it I can. Just like in this clip, data can project success (or not) for some of our students and can also give us a game plan for how to intervene. It can feel like just numbers-but it is also the voice of our students. This analyst in the film helped the coach take it beyond numbers and down to the player level, by name, skill, and with a lot of strategy. I am not lessoning our work to the level of an entertaining movie, but I am saying that data is a tool that sometimes eludes us, I think because many of us are feelers. We are intuitive. We know students. We know family situations. We might even make assumptions because we live in the curriculum day in and day out. We also sometimes slip into a focus on teaching and not learning, leaving solutions and plans dependent on those outside ourselves. This week, we will take a deeper dive into our data through the rearview mirror of last year and the windshield for this year. I hope you will find that our exercises help us make iterations in our instruction, know our learners on a deeper level. and respond to current data with effective plans. It demands vulnerability, as all educators and students have strengths and weaknesses, but for this we can collaborate and work together. It demands forward thinking and collective efforts to plan strategically, again, when we work as teams it is easy to be idea oriented. All of this is within you and you don't have to do it alone. You're already on a winning team, we just want all of our students to have what they need to succeed in every way possible.
Thanks and Appreciation
- Thanks to all for your field day support-it was a tremendous success!
- Thanks to everyone's focus on students last week. I know SST and MTSS were a lot to accomplish, but because you were focused on students, we did it!
- Thanks to Cody and Caitlin for the coffee Friday morning
- Thanks to our RATS team for all your work to prepare for the Informance! It is going to be great!
- Well wishes to Audrey on her upcoming wedding-we know when we see you next you will be Mrs. Gwinn!
- Another wedding coming soon for Kelli Cate, who will soon be Dr. Cartwright. Wonderful joy ahead!
- Prayers and well wishes for the Porter family as Dena's husband suffered a health incident this weekend and we know our prayers or well wishes will be appreciated as he returns home this afternoon to recover
SEL Corner-Focus for the Week ahead
Week at a Glance
Monday: Data collaboratives for F, A, and E. F and E will focus on TCAP data. Third and Fourth Math Benchmark
Tuesday: Wolf at Elementary Collaborative until 1:30; Fourth and Fifth ELA Benchmark
Wednesday: Birthdays with the Principals
Thursday: Data collaboratives for D, B, and C. more to come. Third and Fourth Math Benchmark; 5th grade Scotland Informance at 6:00 PM
Friday: End of all assessment windows
Coming soon:
Oct 2-6 Fall Break
PTA Color Run Oct 13
It has been requested that we go back to two faculty meetings a month. Please adjust your calendars to reflect the required meetings as part of your contracted PD hours. For October this will be the 9th and 23rd (2nd and 4th Mondays)
Field Trip Procedures
Many of you have asked some details about how to plan a field trip. Please see dates there can be no field trip travel below:
Dec 18-21
Click the attached form for a detailed description of how to plan a field trip.
Playground supervision
Please remember that the playground is the place where most school injuries occur. It takes diligence and a keen eye to watch for risk. We are working to provide some shade structures for two of our zones( likely October for installation), but remember you can also bring your red umbrella as you stand in this heat. This week, we noticed that as older children play four square or sidewalk games, they might be behind the teacher in that zone. If you allow students to play on the sidewalk of that zone, please position yourself at the edge of the parking lot or at the cross of the two sidewalks so that all students are within view.
FYI
- If you lead an after school club or tutoring, please fill out the spreadsheet linked HERE so that we can add call out lists/email lists in Aspen. This will help us reach families in case of cancellations or changes in schedules. Please have this done by the end of the week. IF time doesn't permit, at least bring the list to Jessica/Sarah and one of them may have time to enter it for you.
- Make sure all classroom and office doors remained locked at all times. If you find an external door unlatchable, please call for Janice immediately via the radio and have a staff member man the door until it can be fixed. If it does latch, but must be yanked to ensure latching, please notify Janice. It doesn't have to be manned so long as it latches, just inform all who use the door to pull on it upon entry and exit.
- Caitlin has a great plan for attendance, it has a travel theme and each child will have a passport in which they will earn stamps for good attendance. More details to come!