Staff Newsletter
Week of October 5, 2015
Don't forget our goal to make positive communication home for each of our students!
Colt Champions
Student
Will Shadle for his leadership, willingness to help, and great work ethic in athletics.
Athletic:
CMS Football vs Coppell North
7th Grade:
A Team win 24-19
B Team loss 7-6
C Team vs Carroll Middle win 14-13
8th Grade:
A Team win 18 - 0
B Team loss 30 - 19
CMS Volleyball vs Heritage Middle School
7th Grade:
A team - won in 2 (25-15, 25-11)
B team - loss in 3 (25-19, 14-25, 6-15)
C team - won in 2 (25-19, 25-16)
8th Grade:
A team - win in 2 (25-18, 25-14)
B team - win in 2 (25-9, 25-13)
C team - win in 2 (25-5, 27-25)
Girl's Athletic Newsletter
Boy's Athletic Newsletter
Teacher Update and To Do List:
Stomp Out Bullying is October 5. Here is a link to the website if you need further details: http://www.stompoutbullying.org
This is Stomp Out Bullying's program: NO MATTER™ who you are, what you look like, your sexual orientation, your beliefs, we are ALL the same, we are ALL people, NO MATTER™! That means no one should ever be bullied in any way -- NO MATTER™! Everyone should be treated with kindness and respect … NO MATTER™
Dr. Ryan has agreed to let everyone wear jeans if you wear blue that day. Please get the word out to your parents, staff and students. We are promoting a boots and blue shirt to Stomp Out Bullying.
Also, we have permission for jeans and orange on Unity Day on October 21: http://www.pacer.org/bullying/nbpm/unity-day.asp
This is the National Bullying Prevention Center's program. We can send one large ORANGE message of support, hope, and unity to show that we are united against bullying and united for kindness, acceptance and inclusion. Please get the word out as we want everyone to participate. Take pictures and send them to Emberly.Spillman@gcisd.net for this event as well.
Update from the District Excellence Committee (DEC):
GCISD has formed a Facility Innovation and Readiness Stakeholder Team (FIRST) to study and prioritize ways to create the best possible learning environment for GCISD students. This facility planning team comprised of parents, community constituents, and campus and district staff will be brought together to consider the district’s financial position and strategic plan as it relates to programs for students, facilities, infrastructure, technology, security, etc. This is all being done in preparation for a future bond election.
Follow their progress at http://www.gcisdfirst.net/ There is a button on the entitled "Let's Talk" that allows you a place to add your thoughts.
To Do:
1. Call parents of failing students. Personal contact is a must and is the first thing you
need to do. Once initial contact is established, talk to the parents about how they prefer to be contacted. Email will be fine after initial contact.
2. Double-check your paperwork on all of your students. Do you have everything you need? How do you know if someone is 504, Special Education, or has a health impairment? Do the following:
In Skyward>Teacher Access>My Classes>Class Options
This will print a roster of your students with alert information. Crosscheck it with the information you have in your folders. If you are missing something, then notify the appropriate people: Sophia Martin – Health; Jeannie Guajardo – Special Education; Angela Stock – 504s.
3. Complete your FLEX classes. http://www.gcisd-k12.org/domain/3804
4. Complete and share your PLP with your appraiser.
5. Sign up for Flu shots. CMS will be on: Thursday, October 1, from 7 am - 11 am.
https://www.passageware.com/ClinicSignUp/GCISD/
6. October 9: Have you done TELPAS training at any time in the past? The Texas Training Center website is going down forever after October 16. In order to prove you have taken classes in the past, you must retrieve records and certificates before the Training Center goes down.
7. Key Inventory Form. If you haven't yet completed the key inventory form, please do so this week. http://goo.gl/forms/kT63OxSDaC
Do you need information on DMAC and iStation? Login to School Wires and go to the link below that will lead you to the Assessment and Accountability page. There are a lot of good “how to’s” here.
25 book challenge
Students and staff at CMS are stacking the books that each reads for the 25 book challenge. Students are recording the books that they have read through their ELA classes on a specific form. If you want to join us, email me at Salena.Smith@gcisd.net and I will send you a form. The 25 Book Challenge will end in May.
Recommended Genre Categories:
Realistic fiction - 4
Historical fiction - 2
Fantasy - 3
Science fiction - 1
Mystery - 1
Informational - 4
Poetry anthologies - 2
Biography, autobiography, and/or memoir - 2
Free choice - 6
This is only a recommendation for each genre, but we do want to encourage students to read from all genres.
Learning From Your Liaison
Google Drive Organization Tip: The more we use Google Drive, the more folders and documents we have to organize. You can right-click on any folder or document in My Drive and choose ADD STAR. Then, choose STARRED on the left menu to quickly access your most commonly used items.
This Week During Advisory
Gmail Blendspace (if not done last week, please ensure it is assigned this week)
We have created another Blendspace for you to share with your students on how to set up Gmail on their phones and how to check it on computers. We are hearing from many teachers that students aren't checking their email for notifications. Please ensure that your advisory students spend time in this Blendspace and encourage them to stop and set up email on their phones. Please post this link on your Advisory Google Classroom. We will also post on the student group page as well. https://www.blendspace.com/lessons/K3rpCByvUM83gA/gmail
Monday- SS
Tuesday- No PLC
Wednesday- Science
Thursday- ELA
Friday- Math
Advisory Note
When requesting students on the Advisory list, remember to add your name in lower case letters. This is a signal not to override. If a teacher's name is written in all capitals, the student can be pulled. We used the same system last year, but for those new or those that may have forgotten.
Remember to take attendance daily during Advisory.
This is key to making sure all students go to the correct room. If you need help figuring out how best to do this, Travis can give you a few suggestions.
AVID Update
Please don't forget to use the AVID strategy of the month. You can upload evidence to the CMS AVID folder https://drive.google.com/a/gcisd.net/folderview?id=0B4EkHhMa_YaBZC1vMFpSNkkxSlk&usp=sharing (which is also linked in Classroom). Every piece of evidence teachers provide helps make AVID documentation for Sean Clary easier and improves our AVID ratings. CMS is taking AVID campus wide!
If you need support on any of these strategies, please see the AVID site team member for your content, an AVID elective teacher or Suzanne Barker
October WICOR Strategy of the Month
Math- Quick Write
ELA- Cornell Way
Science- Levels of Questioning
SS- Graphic Organizer/Thinking Map
Electives- Marking the Text
Note from the Nurse
Calcium
There is more calcium in the body than any other mineral, and it has several important functions.
Getting enough calcium and vitamin D is essential to building strong, dense bones
when you're young and to keeping them strong and healthy as you age.
Calcium is a mineral that is necessary for life. In addition to building bones and keeping
them healthy, calcium helps our blood clot, nerves send messages and muscles contract.
About 99 percent of the calcium in our bodies is in our bones and teeth. Each day, we
lose calcium through our skin, nails, hair, sweat, urine and feces, but our bodies cannot
produce new calcium.
That’s why it’s important to try to get calcium from the food we eat. When we don’t get
enough calcium for our body’s needs, it is taken from our bones.
How Much Calcium Do You Need? The amount of calcium you need every day depends on your age and sex.
For calcium the daily recommendations vary by age and gender:
Newborns to 6 months: 200 milligrams
Babies 7-12 months: 260 milligrams
Kids 1-3: 700 milligrams
Kids 4-8: 1,000 milligrams
Kids and teens 9-18: 1,300 milligrams
Adults 19-50: 1,000 milligrams
Adult men 51-70: 1,000 milligrams
Adult women 51-70: 1,200 milligrams
All adults 71 and older: 1,200 milligrams
Pregnant/breastfeeding women: 1,000 milligrams
Pregnant teens: 1,300 milligrams
Reading Food Labels - How Much Calcium am I Getting?
To determine how much calcium is in a particular food, check the nutrition facts panel of
the food label for the daily value (DV) of calcium. Food labels list calcium as a percentage of the DV. This amount is based on 1,000 mg of calcium per day. For example:
30% DV of calcium equals 300 mg.
20% DV of calcium equals 200 mg of calcium.
15% DV of calcium equals 150 mg of calcium.
Food is the best source of calcium! Dairy products, such as low-fat and non-fat milk, yogurt and cheese are high in calcium. Certain green vegetables and other foods contain calcium in smaller amounts. Some juices, breakfast foods, soymilk, cereals, snacks, breads and bottled water have calcium that has been added. If you drink soymilk or another liquid that is fortified with calcium, be sure to shake the container well as calcium can settle to the bottom.
Facts about Calcium:
Do not take your iron supplement within 1 hour before or 2 hours after products containing calcium, manganese, tin, or zinc. Though calcium in the diet improves the absorption of the important vitamin B12, too much of it may interfere with the absorption of the competing minerals magnesium, zinc, iron, and manganese. Many dietary factors also reduce calcium absorption.
Read the product label carefully to determine the amount of elemental calcium, which is the actual amount of calcium in the supplement, as well as how many doses or pills to take. When reading the label, pay close attention to the “amount per serving” and “serving size.”
Calcium is absorbed best when taken in amounts of 500 – 600 mg or less.
This is the case when you eat calcium rich foods or take supplements. Try to get your calcium-rich foods and/or supplements in smaller amounts throughout the day, preferably with a meal. While it's not recommended, taking your calcium all at once is better than not taking it at all.
Take most calcium supplements with food. Eating food produces stomach acid that helps your body absorb most calcium supplements. The one exception to the rule is calcium citrate, which can absorb well when taken with or without food.
Nurse Martin
Want to get CPR or First Aid Certified?
Amy Howard, Director of Health Services and our own GCISD Nurse Guru, is training any staff that is interested in becoming CPR and First Aid Certified. This certification is a bonus for your students and coworkers and for your own personal activities and needs(coaches, scout leaders, church group leaders)! These classes are being offered for FREE!
CPR
October 19th
5pm to 8pm
Bronco Bowl (PDEC)
FIRST AID
October 20
5pm to 8pm
Bronco Bowl (PDEC)
* YOU ONLY NEED TO ATTEND ONE OF EACH OF THE CLASSES
Education Foundation Employee Drive
All contributions must be received by Thursday morning (Oct. 8).
CHHS 20th Annual Homecoming Parade
The parade will feature floats creatively decorated by the various clubs and organizations in CHHS and the Grapevine/Colleyville community. The parade will begin moving from Gateway Road behind CHHS and continue down Heritage Avenue in front of CHHS. It will be lots of fun and a great way to pump up the Homecoming spirit at Colleyville Heritage High School.
Any club or organization interested in being in the parade may contact Terri Kitzmiller at CHHS at (817) 305-4700 ext 2010. Parade line-up time will begin at 5:30 pm.
Upcoming Events of the Week
Monday, October 5th
7th Grade Football vs Heritage Middle School at Colleyville Middle School
C Team 4:30 pm
B Team 5:30 pm
A Team 7 pm
Tuesday, October 6th
8th Grade Football vs Heritage Middle School at Heritage Middle School
B Team 5:30 pm
A Team 6:45 pm
Wednesday, October 7th
Thursday, October 8th
Volleyball vs Coppell West Middle School at Colleyville Middle School
7th Grade B Team 5 pm
8th Grade C Team 5 pm
7th Grade C Team 6 pm
8th Grade A Team 6 pm
7th Grade A Team 7 pm
8th Grade B Team 7 pm
Friday, October 9th
Looking Forward
Wednesday, October 14-PSAT Testing for 8th grade students
3 Cheers!
3 cheers and thank you Lauren Smith, Laurie Thompson, Katie Adams and Coach Haseman for offering me your fair tickets. (Stefanie Chapman)
3 cheers to Mrs. Moy for allowing some of my students to work in her room and coming to my rescue when I needed copies. (Shannon Jackson)
3 cheers to Mrs Mills for her hard work to ensure her students are successful. She works with her students during her lunch time. (Shannon Jackson)
3 cheers to Mrs. Barker for scanning information into DMAC for me. (Shannon Jackson)
3 cheers to Sue Plorin, Pat Huster, Kelly Croak, Deborah Morgan, Kathleen Richmond, Lauren Smith, and Angela Stock for their Education Foundation contributions. (Travis Niemeyer)
3 cheers to Mandy Alexander for leading her students through an extremely entertaining Virginia Stock Company meeting (Travis Niemeyer)
3 cheers to Joe Morgan for taking such good care of the Math department! (Christina Moy)
3 cheers to Krystal McCure and Sophia Martin for their help with a student. (Christina Moy)
3 cheers to Angela Stock for her calm leadership during 504 meetings. (Christina Moy)
3 cheers to Sue Plorin for helping me out with getting work from students. She is great with organizing and motivating students! She is a valuable resource at CMS! (Valerie Kreag)
Katie Chappa for doing a great job with all her life skills students.... (Sue Plorin)
3 cheers to Ivan and Travis for solving my squeaky desk issue! (Miranda Lamb)
3 cheers to Carol for always having a smile and being willing to help with anything. (Miranda Lamb)
3 cheers to Sophia Martin, Krystal Mccure, Jeannie Guajardo and Salena Smith for letting them interview them for Texas Teachers! (Katie Chapa)
3 cheers to Carol Ruckle for graciously answering my many questions! (Katie Chapa)
3 Cheers for Salena Smith for all that she does to promote literacy at CMS. (Lauren Smith)
3 Cheers for Jackie Barker for always coming to the rescue with technology concerns/problems. (Lauren Smith)
3 Cheers for Pat Huster for her awesome leadership with ELA. (Lauren Smith)
3 Cheers for Carol Ruckle for always making sure that our classrooms are covered when we have to be out. (Lauren Smith)
3 Cheers to the ELA Department (Pat Huster, Becky Irick, Kathleen Richmond, Deborah Morgan, Kris Lilley, Chis Laney, Amy Norris, & Aaron Woolley) for a fun and productive PLC meeting this week. (Lauren Smith)
3 Cheers for Sophia Martin for always helping us take care of ourselves & making sure that we stay as healthy as possible. (Lauren Smith)
3 cheers and a thank your to Aaron W., Deborah M., Kathleen R., Becky I., and Lauren S. for taking the time to bring your classes the CLC this week. There was a lot of great learning taking place. (Salena Smith)
3 cheers and a thank you Max for stepping up and having your classes develop the presentations for the TV's in the hallway. (Salena Smith)
3 cheers to Katie Chapa who is handling two classes with amazing poise!! (Ryan Martin)
3 cheers to Travis and Angela for handling everything on Wednesday!! (Ryan Martin)
Quote of the Week
Bill Gates
Principal Points
Just had the first Social this last Friday with our Adventure Social that was put on by the PTA. Thank you PTA!! We had a great turn out with lots of fun!!
Great first six weeks and looking forward all the great things to come!!
Colt PRIDE,
Ryan