BAMS Staff Newsletter
December 7, 2014 - Volume 2, Issue 13
It's a Great Day to Be Great!
Bessie Allen Middle School - SLO & Goals
Building SLO:
By June of 2015, 80% of students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade will show growth in their opinion writing sample rubric score from the September 2014 writing benchmark based on the school developed writing rubric (adapted from the Smarter Balanced writing rubric).
Building Goals:
DPI School of Recognition
PBIS School of Merit
Routinely Take Literacy Risks
Be a CEO
Driving Question for 2014-2015:
What have we changed with our instruction to prepare our students for the Badger Exam assessment (and other higher level thinking opportunities)?
Goals for SSR and SSW
- Provide a time for every student in our building to read and write.
- Ensure this time is a positive part of our students' day.
News and Notes
- It's extremely important that we use these last days before Winter Break to achieve great things in our classrooms. Every day is an important one! Please continue to promote hard work and purposefulness with your classes in these final days. Thank you!
- If you are looking for something to do Wednesday Night, please consider coming to the BAMS Choral Concert. What a great way to show support for our students!
- Thank you for continuing to do fidelity checks on student iPads. It sets our students up to make better choices if they know we are doing this on an ongoing basis.
- Don't forget to contact parent with any academic or behavior concerns you have. Our families are very thankful to have information about their child and their child's progress. A phone call home is always appreciated.
- Our new process for students that come late to school is working great! We have students in classrooms quicker and less traffic in the office to start the day. Thank you for marking them tardy if they arrive to your first hour class late. Janice and Joan will take care of any students that are more than 5 minutes late to school.
- Mid-quarter grades are due to Janice by Wednesday at 7am. Thank you for getting your grades in by this time.
- Don't forget that our outside doors are now locked at all times. Please use your best judgement with letting students in the building in the morning. After one week I have not heard or seen any issue with this change. I will continue to monitor this moving forward.
Out of the Office
- December 8th - 1:45-2:35pm - Honor's Study Hall
- December 9th - CESA 6 Teacher Effectiveness Training - 8am-12pm, Oshkosh
- December 10th - 8:30am-9:30am - BCT Team Meeting
- December 11th - 8:30am-9:30am - District ELL Team Meeting
- December 12th - 7am-2pm?? - Doctor's appointment, Sheboygan
- December 15th - 1:45-2:35pm - Honor's Study Hall
Oriole Way - Be Ready, Be Respectful, Be Safe
- I have been hearing from our students that "no one" hands out BAMS Bucks. I know this is not the case, but please reflect on your practice and look for opportunities to acknowledge students exhibiting positive behaviors.
- Have you written a GREAT form for a student or staff member this month? If not, how come?
- Thank you for continuing to be present in our halls and other school areas. This helps our students to make better choices.
- See Brandon or myself if you need any behavioral data for our school or our students.
- NEXT Meeting - December 10th, 7am
OASYS and Teacher Effectiveness
- New Educators 2nd Student Surveys - Due by December 15th
- Continuing Educators 2nd Student Surveys - Due by February 15th
- 2 Classroom Visits - Due by End of the Year
Click Here for a link to Teacher Effectiveness Info from CESA 6
Click Here for a Teacher Effectiveness Calendar for EDUCATORS/SPECIALISTS
Dates to Remember
- December 8th - Packer Day - wear green and gold, presented by Oriole Leaders
- December 10th - Mid-Quarter Grades Due, 7am
- December 10th - Winter Choral Concert, 6:30pm
- December 12th - Early Release
- December 12th - Staff Meeting, 12:45-1:15pm
- December 17th - Winter Band Concert, 6:30pm
- December 18th - Oriole Leaders Meeting, 10:40-11:40am
- December 18th - School Geography Bee, 1:45-2:35pm, DMR
- December 22nd - Elf Day, presented by Oriole Leaders
- December 22nd - Day of Service, presented by Oriole Way Team
- December 22nd - School Board Meeting, 7pm
- December 23rd - Day of Celebration, presented by Oriole Way Team
- December 23rd - Ugly Sweater Day, presented by Oriole Leaders
*See Google Doc titled "2014-2015 BAMS Yearly Calendar" for a look at events for the entire year.
Staff Meeting Agenda
Staff Meeting: December 12 - 12:45-1:45pm - HSPAC
Agenda:
Trauma Sensitive Schools for Educators in 6-12, HSPAC at 12:45-1:45pm *We have a guest speaker coming in from Madison to speak to our staffs about this topic.
Next Meeting: January 9 - 12:45-1:15pm - DMR
Blackboard Connect Messages
Messages sent this week:
- Night Out at Casa de Tequila - December 11th (sent on December 4th, all grades)
- Reminder Night Out at Casa de Tequila - December 11th (sent on December 9th, all grades)
- Reminder About Mid-Quarter Grade Reports Going Paperless (sent on December 10th, all grades)
*New messaging system (ParentLink) tentatively coming in December.