Anchor Weekly
A newsletter for Alta Vista Staff~Week of May 20, 2019
Don't Forget! Next Week's Calendar
- BOGO Bookfair ALL WEEK (Schedule coming soon)
- Textbook Turn In Monday-Thursday (Due Thursday May 23)
- Math EOY Assessement Window (Gr 1-2) on May 20-22
- Author Assembly in Cafeteria (Gr 1-2) on May 21 at 10:00 am
- Student-Led Conferences (Gr 4-5) on May 21-22 at 8:15-8:45, 2:30-3:00
- Student-Led Conferences (Gr 4-5) LATE NIGHT on Tuesday, May 21 at 3:30-6:00 pm
- PreK/Kinder Showcase on Tuesday, May 21 at 5:30-7:00 pm
- Transformation Zone Family Event (Grillin' & Chillin' at Cameron Park) on Tuesday, May 21 at 5:00-7:00 pm
- Drama Club Performance on Thursday, May 23 at 4:00 pm
- Final Grades Due on Thursday, May 23
- Grassroots Core Group Meeting on Thursday, May 23 at 4:00-5:30 pm
Coming Up: EOY Awards; Early Release
Captain's Log
Click HERE to access the EOY Checklist. Please remember that Friday, May 31 is a full work day. If you finish things early, please find a friend to help. All classrooms must be packed and ready for the summer by 4:30 pm on Friday, May 31.
It's important that you continue classroom expectations and procedures through the end of the year. Make sure you are closely and actively monitoring students to ensure their safety.
As we wrap up the year, remember your "why"....the reason why do you such important work for the Waco community.
BOGO Book Fair
Shhh...don't tell students until Monday!
Students and families can still bring money to shop the Book Fair, including on Friday during Field Day. Please do not send students with money to the Book Fair unless it's an "open" time for shopping.
Textbooks & Library Books
You may turn in your textbooks May 20-23. All textbooks must be turned in by May 23. This includes Teacher Editions. You will not turn in leveled readers.
The rest of End of Year Procedures will come out later in the week.
Conscious Discipline
Our focus for May Morning Meetings is POSITIVE ATTITUDE. This skill ties in many of the things we have already discussed; it is a good reminder as we finish the year.
Here is a link to the May Morning Meeting lessons: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZfmUwbqOp0gZyq1WOnmr9zjJlNIFXRd1wDLC2FXDK2U/edit?usp=sharing
If you have ideas for Morning Meeting themes for next school year, please share them with Mrs. Helton.
Communities In Schools
Please consider taking a moment to complete an End of Year Campus Staff Survey. Communities In Schools uses the information gathered to improve programming and services for the next school year. Please be honest and thorough with you answers; we take your feedback seriously when making changes and improvements. I appreciate you taking the time to make our program the best it can be for students at Alta Vista Elementary.
Staff of the Week
Congratulations to Ms. Padilla for being the STAFF MEMBER OF THE WEEK for successfully completing her BEAR Project internship and having a tremendous positive influence on so many students.
Congratulations to Ms. Scott & Ms. Hofheins for being the TEACHERS OF THE WEEK for their students demonstrating tremendous growth on letter and number recognition this year.
End of Year Awards
The office will provide you a certificate and brag tag for all of the awards we have been doing this year. You will just need to fill in the names. You will also need to create an award for the other students in your class that are not receiving one of these academic awards or perfect attendance.
Summer Professional Development
District & Region 12 Summer Professional Development
ESL Summer Academy
The English Learners Department will be offering a Summer ESL Academy for all Waco ISD teachers that are interested in ESL certification. This important workshop is highly recommended for emergency certified ESL Teachers and teachers on ESL waivers.
Please note: Teachers who received ESL Waivers during the 2018-2019 school-year will not be eligible for a waiver in 2019-2020. Thus, it is important that they attend this academy as it will help to prepare them for the ESL Certification exam. Please refer to the attached flyer for more information or contact the English Learners Department at 254-755-9512 if you have any questions.
PK & Kindergarten Summer Training
The following Early Childhood trainings will be offered at no cost through Region 12 this summer.
Please note: PK and Kindergarten teachers will be required to complete 15 hours of professional development in the area of Early Childhood during the 2019-2020 school year. The courses below will count towards the 15 hour requirement for the 2019-2020 school year.
PK Teachers:
• Early Childhood Conference, June 17th, Region 12, FREE, #148429
• Social Emotional Storytime, July 16th, Region 12, FREE, #167269
• I Can See This Number In How Many Ways, July 16th, Region 12, FREE, #168557
Kindergarten Teachers:
• Early Childhood Conference, June 17th, Region 12, FREE, #148429
• Social Emotional Storytime, July 16th, Region 12, FREE, #167269
• I Can See This Number In How Many Ways, July 16th, Region 12, FREE, #168557
How to register for the TransformED Early Childhood Conference:
- See the document above for Registering at Region 12 and paying with a PO #.
Reading Professional Development
The 2019-2020 school year will start out with new K-5 Literacy Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). We are excited to be entering this new phase of TEKS where listening, speaking, reading, writing and thinking will be interconnected, integrated and recursive. We will be offering the following trainings for all K-5 teachers this summer in preparation for the new year. Please see Donna Trigg if you have any questions.
“New” 2 Day Literacy Academy (Required for all K-5 Literacy teachers)
• June 11 & 12th, 2019 OR
• July 16 & 17, 2019 OR
• August 13 & 14, 2019 (back on contract)
We will be addressing the following:
• Understanding new Literacy TEKS
• Aligning resources and curriculum with the new Literacy TEKS
• Aligning instruction and assessments with the new Literacy TEKS
• Guided Reading will be offered as a choice of a beginning class or an advanced class during the Literacy Academy.
There will be something new for everyone! Please note: If you attend the Literacy Academy in June or July, you do not need to attend in August.
Repeated Trainings from 2018-2019
Sarah Waller-Units of Study, K-5
• June 13, 2019 OR
• July 18, 2019
Jeff Anderson-Patterns of Power, Grades 1-5
• July 24, 2019
• Sign-up in Eduphoria ASAP before summer spots fill up.
All Things Summer School
Summer school will be at KENDRICK ELEMENTARY due to campus construction. The dates are: Monday-Thursday, June 4-26 from 8:00 am - 1:30 pm.
If you anticipate a student needs to go to summer school, the student needs to be added to the following tentative list (PAST DUE): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dEqLaK5qnMrbjtsffdLGH-OqY7Epl0zcML37aVe6cuk/edit?usp=sharing
You need to meet with the parents of any student that is in danger of failing. Parents will also need to fill out the Summer School Application REVISED here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zqdN5xlyQxV2X3dp4139nu0GtlPOWOr8psvYG9v8XEg/edit?usp=sharing
Return completed summer school applications to Mrs. Maynard.
Here is the parent letters that you can share with the application:
Language Acquisition Summer School
In order to meet the 120-hour requirement of direct instruction for Language Acquisition Summer School, Waco ISD’s Language Acquisition Summer School will run during the following dates, days, and times:
Dates (with students): June 4th-July 2nd
Days: Monday- Thursday
Times: 8:00-3:35
Location: Bells Hill & Dean Highland
All current PK and Kindergarten LEP students will be invited. Applications and letters will be provided to parents in English and Spanish. The Bilingual Department will deliver the letters with students’ names and applicable information to campuses during the week of April 8. The letters will need to be sent home with students on April 11 per the Summer School Timeline.