Monday Morning Motivation
Central Elementary Staff News----December 19--December 23
Building Student Confidence
Dear Staff,
As we continue to work on changing our mindset and that of our students from a fixed to a growth, take a look at the clip below. It gives us something to think about as we work to build self-confidence in our students. These are tips we can share with our older students and consider when working with our younger children.
I wish you a very Merry Christmas. My hope is that you are able to spend quality time with your friends and family.
Have a great week!
Julie
Two Weeks at a Glance
Central Calendar
MONDAY, December 19
- Elf week begins :) Day 1
- 9:30 Team time assistants trained on Evacu-Track
TUESDAY, December 20
- Team Leader meeting 7:45 in conference room
- Elf Day 2
WEDNESDAY, December 21
- Staff Elf Day (Whole Staff meet in lobby by the tree at 8:15 a.m. for a staff picture)
- Elf Day 3
THURSDAY, December 22
- Santa coming during student lunch
- Elf Day 4-staff lunch provided by PTO
- Staff Stone Creek Christmas Dinner
FRIDAY, December 23
- Half day for teachers
MONDAY, January 9
- Back to school
TUESDAY, January 10
WEDNESDAY, January 11
THURSDAY, January 12
- Faculty Meeting 7:30 Media Center
- Data due to Pat Thomas
- School board meeting 7:00 p.m.
FRIDAY, January 13
- Central Celebration 2:15-3:15
Announcements and Reminders
Structure-We are sure to have many fun things happening this week. Please continue to maintain structure and supervision. My hope is all students will make good choices and will be able to participate in all the activities.
Lunch on Thursday--All of our custodians are invited, including Nancy Chandler. Hopefully, she will be able to make it so we can congratulate her on her retirement and celebrate her years of service to Central Elementary.
Same day absences--sub caller should be called or texted by 6:15 a.m. Thank you!
Reminder-Don't assume in the office things will be ordered as usual. We have an excellent binder and new treasurer, but in this time of transition it will be good for you to have a face to face with Allison to make sure.
December 23rd Math Common Assessment data due
Monday, December 12th Last day for toy drive. Great work K-Kids!
Cold Weather Procedures-We will go outdoors for recess as long as the temperature and wind chill are above 20 degrees. Please make sure you communicate with parents if you notice students coming to school not dressed appropriately. The nurse does have extra coats.
Spirit Leader names to Jennie Menser for the Central Celebration
WIDA ACCESS TEST will occur January 24 and 25th. Lexy will be in touch with you regarding the schedule, writing practice and online practice testing.
Cogat testing will begin in February. We are testing K (top 25 percent), 2nd grade, 5th grade and all 1, 3, 4 students new to the district. More information will follow as we get closer.
Grades are due 9:00 a.m. on January 9th. Report cards will be sent home on the 11th.
New IA training January 24th 8:30-11:00 or 12:00-2:30.
Science Committee Meeting January 31st. Time TBD from Dr. DelVecchio
Technology Vision Committee--If you are interested in serving on a technology vision committee with John Crum, please let me know. We need one primary and one intermediate person. This a very low commitment committee as there may only be a couple of meetings as we work together to create a vision.
December Teacher Toolbox
Teachers’ Toolbox is a content focused resource for classroom instruction. The Toolbox is separated by contents and levels; each content specialist has the opportunity to provide classroom resources, strategies, and updates.
Curriculum and Instruction
The Power of "...YET!"
They say, "I don't get this..."
You say, "...YET!"
- Acknowledge that there’s a problem and listen to the student’s perception of it. (“Hey, Patty, what’s going on?”)
- Provide a respite to allow emotion to subside if needed.
- Provide a doable task both to aid in regaining composure and to remind a student of his or her competency.
- Return soon to problem solve and provide support.
- Validate the student’s frustration. (“It’s hard when . . .”)
- Gradually have the student do more and more of the task without help until he or she is ready for full independence.
- Maintain matter-of-fact language and body language throughout the process.
Elf Day!
One of Mike Underwood's favorite traditions was having the staff dress up as elves! This year, we are going to have Elf Day on Wednesday, Dec. 21st. While some people go "all out" with their costumes, it's totally up to you how you'd like to participate. See Curt for costumes. He has some you can borrow. It will be really fun and the kids will absolutely love to see all of the staff as elves!
Santa Claus is Coming to Central
Staff Celebrations!
- Huge shout out to our assistants who continue to help and pitch in when asked. We celebrate your dedication to our students and staff. Thank you!!
- Please welcome our new 2nd shift custodian Chris Luther. He is excited to be here and we are happy to be fully staffed.
- We continue to hold our own with our attendance even with all the sickness going around the school. We are at 97.45 percent!
- Santa shop was a success! Thank you for your flexibility in scheduling. Our children really enjoyed the experience.
- Excellent job on the Lockout! We will continue to talk about ways we can improve student safety.
- Kindness continues. It was great to see the lunchroom decorated. Thank you Kathy for the treats!
Happy December Birthdays
- Diana White (1)
- Courtney Carmichael (8)
- Connie Schmitt (12)
- Laura Burkert (26)
- Melissa Mosier (26)