The Dream Team
Weekly Memo 22
HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON!!
INSPECT WHAT YOU EXPECT! ALWAYS HAVE HIGH EXPECTATIONS!
Uplift Hampton Middle School Strategic Priorities
School Learning Climate
Professional Capacity
Parent, School, and Community Ties
Table of Contents
- Good Things
- A Message from the Director
- FREE perks for being an Uplift Employee
- Momentous Blast!
- Video of the Week
- Admin Corner
- Week at a Glance
- Action Items
- Month at a Glance
- Updated Duty Schedule
Good Things!
Mrs. Parks says...
- Shout out to the Science Team for an AMAZING Science Fair!!!
- Shout out to David, Yalea, and Ranae for an AWESOME DEI wrap-up! We ROCKED IT!!
- Shout out to Mrs. Brown and Ms. Prince for always just rolling with the punches when asked to do anything for our campus!
- Shout out to Coach Bell and Coach Wright for a GREAT start to the season!! I see the impact of your coaching on and off the court! Way to go!
- Shout out to Mr. Miles for persevering through the challenges of testing and tough conversations like a champ!
- Shout out to Mrs. Brown for assisting Mr. Miles with testing!
- Shout out to Ms. Cordova, Ms. Thomas, & Ms. Hood for all of your assistance during testing!
Shout out to Mr. Miles for killing it every single day. You are working so hard and it does not go unnoticed.
Shout out to Ms. Brown for it all.
Shout out to the Dream Team for going through it at all! I am so thankful that you are my coworkers.
Shout out to Ms. Guzman for engaging lessons, I watched a little of your lesson today and the scholars were engaged!
Shout out to Ms. Wille for being diligent through at adversity. You are doing it and I am happy to have you on the team!
A Message From the Director
Hello Dream Team,
As we close out the first semester, I ask each of you to take the time to reflect on everything that you've done and those things that you have not. I also encourage each of you to take the time to relax during this much needed time away. Take the next 6 days to get everything done prior to your departure, so that you are provided with the opportunity to enjoy friends & family and travel across the country. Be safe, have fun, and enjoy yourself.
I leave you with this..."Each one of us needs to find that special person or thing that provides the necessary moments for calm, for stress reduction, for motivation and for inspiration. Your time to find that special vehicle is now; you never know when you'll need a little bit of comfort and relaxation." Catherine Pulsifer, Yanni at the Acropolis
The Dream Team Will Fight!
Sincerely,
Andrea
FREE PERKS FOR UPLIFT EMPLOYEES!
Momentous Blast
Key Points:
· Vicarious Trauma, or trauma related to seeing and caring for others who have experienced trauma, can result in very similar brain and body effects, including increases in stress response and concerning physical and mental health outcomes
· It is critical for teachers (and administrators) to invest time in wellness, support one another in doing so, and carve out time to increase connectedness between staff and for pursuit of enjoyable activities
Why this Matters:
· Many teachers have a difficult time dealing with this side of teaching; without preparation and investment in self-care and wellness, teachers can easily burn out.
· When teachers are in an elevated stress state, it is far more difficult for them to teach and connect with students effectively. It also impacts their ability to disconnect from work, again making it difficult to sustain.
Please be advised that there is strong language in this week's video.
INSTRUCTIONAL & CULTURAL FOCUS AREAS
Instructional Focus
a. Peer Discussion: Accountable Talk
1. The majority of classroom discussion is still taking place through the teacher. A teacher will pose a question, a scholar will respond to the teacher, then the teacher will ask for another scholar to share their thoughts. Authentic discussion entails scholars responding to and building upon the responses from other scholars, with the teacher acting as a facilitator. To this end, use accountable talk.
1. In a classroom filled with accountable talk, students ask one another about their thinking and build on the responses of others. They cite evidence, ask for elaborations and clarifications, and extend understandings by using the statements they have heard from their classmates to form new ideas.
2. True discussion needs the active participation of others if there is to be an exchange of ideas. Accountable Talk governs the norms of daily/regular academic discourse and requires that scholars ask for and furnish evidence to support their statements (Michaels, O'Connor, Hall, & Resnick, 2002). This ensures rigor and moves the conversation from task-oriented to concept-oriented learning.
Cultural Focus: Setting and Maintaining Behavior Expectations in the Classroom
a. With consistent expectations, students know what’s expected of them throughout the school day. This allows them to feel more confident, engaged and connected to the school community. It also makes it easier for teachers to recognize positive behaviors, and to correct problem behaviors to keep small problems small.
Further, for students who may have difficult home lives, this consistency and routine can provide the structure and stability they need and crave. In addition, it’s particularly helpful with students who like to test the boundaries or “divide and conquer” staff members. If all staff members are on the same page — consistently communicating and reinforcing established behavior expectations school-wide — students quickly realize there’s no point to pushing the limits because the consequences are always the same.
Week at a Glance
Jeans are OK this week!
Monday, December 18th: A Day
Ugly Sweater Day
Morning Meeting at 7:20am in the library
Day 1 of Secret Snowman ($1-$5)
PD @1pm in the library
Tuesday,December 19th: B Day
Be Festive!
Day 2 of Secret Snowman ($1-$5)
PD @1pm in the library
Wednesday, December 20th: A Day
Be Festive!
Day 3 of Secret Snowman (Big Gift- $20-$25)
SNAPPY CASUAL ATTIRE FOR HOLIDAY PARTY @2pm! NO HP Attire
Thursday, December 21st: B Day
Be Festive
Morning Meeting at 7:20am in the library
Last Day before break!! Submit Mid-year Checklist prior to departure to Parks!
Friday, December 22nd: No School!
22-Dec Friday - 5-Jan Friday No School WINTER BREAK
Monday, January 8th- CA 2 Collaboration Day (Black Out Day) No School for scholars Data Analysis Due by 5pm Big Rock 1: School Learning Climate
Tuesday, January 9th- Staff Development (Black Out Day) No School for scholars beginning at 8:30am Big Rock 2: Professional Capacity
Wednesday, January 10th- A Day
Black Shirt (Provided) and bottoms of choice
Morning Meeting at 7:20am
PD in the cafeteria at 3:05pm
GL Meeting at 3:05pm in the cafeteria
Vertical Planning at 3:45pm in the cafeteria
Thursday, January 11th- B Day
Business Casual
Morning Meeting at 7:20am
Friday, January 12th- A Day
Casual
Morning Meeting at 7:20am
Action Items
2. All CA 2 MC & CR data inputted into AWARE by 3pm on 12/20 No Exceptions
3. Mid-year Checkout Forms Due 12/21
All grades for CAs, including constructed responses, must be scanned by Wednesday, December 20th at 3:00 PM for any tests taken between December 11th-December 20th.
DUTY SCHEDULE
Put this on your radar!
14-Dec Thursday Morning A
15-Dec Friday Morning Meeting at 7:20/Progress Reports go home B Minimum total of 19 grades
16-Dec Saturday
17-Dec Sunday
18-Dec Monday Morning Meeting at 7:20 A-Half Day
19-Dec Tuesday B-Half Day
20-Dec Wednesday/Staff Winter Celebration A-Half Day/ All CA data inputted into AWARE BY 3pm
21-Dec Thursday/End of Q2 (Black Out Day) B-Half Day/Mid-year Checkout Form due PRIOR to departure
22-Dec Friday - 5-Jan Friday No School WINTER BREAK
8-Jan Monday CA 2 Collaboration Day (Black Out Day) No School for scholars Data Analysis Due by 5pm Big Rock 1: School Learning Climate
9-Jan Tuesday Staff Development (Black Out Day) No School for scholars Big Rock 2: Professional Capacity