Beating the Odds
Lakeview Staff Newsletter - March 28
Advanc-ED
But I also want you to have an idea of Lakeview's portion of the AdvancED visit as well. This is the link to our building narrative. A narrative tells a story, and this narrative tells the story of our efforts to contribute to the 4 CE's of our district and address the recommendations of the 2014 AdvancED visit. I think, when you read the narrative, you will be proud of our group efforts. You will also notice there are many things that could be added to the narrative, but the visitors just want a "snapshot" of us ... not the whole story. Each school's narrative, plus the visits on April 16, shape their district recommendations, which are likely to guide our future work together.
We will talk more about the AdvancED visit at our April 10 staff meeting.
Lakeview TSS team
Heather H, Craig T, Amy D, Chris S - Members of both the district level and the building level teams
Therese H - building wide rep
Courtney S and Jen B - members of the team that will focus on PBIS efforts
Sarah W - member of the team focusing on character ed/student council integration
We will also take time at our April 10 staff meeting to talk about Trauma Sensitive topics as a staff. Thank you to these members for their willingness to lead!
2019-2020 Changes
At this point, everyone can know what changes are coming:
• We will have the same number of total sections, but the number of sections at each grade level will change to keep pace with student enrollment trends and student needs.
• AGR affords us the flexibility to choose class size reduction, instructional coaching, or 1:1 tutoring at each grade level (not by the building). This allows us to have two sections of some grade levels and three sections of others because we choose our AGR strategy by the grade level. For example, this year, 1st and 2nd grades used the "class size reduction" strategy and 5K and 3rd used the "instructional coach" strategy. We value the role our instructional coach has in impacting all teachers and students, and therefore, Rachel will continue her current role.
• Next year, we will have the following classroom sections and teachers:
4K - Maes
5K - DeBruin, Chmeliewski, Hirthe (we have a large group of incoming 5K students)
1st - Brever and Logisz
2nd - Benn and Busalacchi
3rd - Craig Tinsen, Manthe, Sodemann
4th - Carrier and Schwaab
5th - Wilke and new person
• We are posting the new 5th grade position on WECAN and will hire in late April.
• I am not looking at automatically changing configurations every year. That has been a common question. Deciding how many sections of any grade level is a combination of enrollment and student needs.
• The next question many people have is "What room will I be in?" That is a valid question. Anyone who is interested in providing input into this question can meet at 7:45 on Thursday, April 4 in the library. I have appreciated getting to know how the building functions this year, and I would be interested to know your ideas about how to utilize space effectively. I'm even happy to provide some blank school maps to you if you need something to write on. Just let me know.
• Finally and most importantly - THANK YOU to everyone here for your understanding during these conversations, especially those people most impacted by these moves. The culture here is devoted to students, and it comes through in every conversation I had.
Three students this week
• "I'm not smart. I don't deserve to learn."
• "I'm stupid."
• "I'm not good at math."
I've never heard any student at Lakeview say anything like this until this week. It hit me pretty hard to hear it three times in a few days. I know how hard the adults at Lakeview work to create growth mindsets. It reminded me that the self-talk students have is very powerful - even more powerful than the words we tell them. This is a good time of year to pump up students who are struggling, and make sure they hear it over and over. (It's also a good time of year to pump up each other!)
Forward
Dates:
4th grade - April 2, 3, 4, 8
3rd grade - 8, 9, 10, 12, 15
5th grade - April 15, 17, 18
Article about Supporting Readers
Looking Ahead
Monday, April 1
PD Day (link to schedule) - No students
Be sure to complete PPD log (in Google Classroom) at end of day
Tuesday, April 2
Wear blue for Autism Awareness Day
Wednesday, April 3
Lakeview AdvancED team 7:30-8:00 a.m.
Thursday, April 4
Building spaces meeting 7:45 in library
Social Studies leadership team 4-5 p.m.
Friday, April 5
Field trips - 5K to Museum and 4/5 to First Stage
Wednesday, April 10
Staff meeting 7:15-8:15 a.m. (most likely about AdvancED and TSS)
Thursday, April 11
Kohl's Wild Theater assembly for grades 1-3 from 2:30-3:15
District Trauma Sensitive Team meeting 3:30-5:15 in board room
PTO Luau dance from 5-7 p.m.
Structural Items
Time sheets - There is limited turn-around for time sheets the next two cycles. It is always good practice to fill out/initial/sign time sheets promptly, but this week and the next cycle are especially important.
Summer safety updates - I've mentioned that we will be moving our lobby doors to create a secure entrance. That work, as well as some improvements to the office, will be done this summer.
Crowdfunding policy - The district does have an updated policy on crowdfunding (i.e., DonorsChoose, GoFundMe). Here is a link to the new policy. Here is a link to the pre-approval form for anything $500 or more, which requires school board approval. Here is a link to the pre-approval form for anything under $500 - this requires building principal approval. I encourage teachers to put projects out there - thank goodness for generous people like former Senator Herb Kohl who comes through for teachers multiple times per year. But it is essential to have an approval process that includes all stakeholders. Let me know if you have questions or need help.
Family newsletter - Link to this week's family newsletter
Elementary Blackout Dates - Here is a link to the calendar
Character Dares & Trauma Sensitive Schools
Lakeview Elementary School
Email: csepersky@sdsm.k12.wi.us
Website: lakeview.sdsm.k12.wi.us
Location: 711 Marion Avenue, South Milwaukee, WI, USA
Phone: 414-766-5252
Twitter: @sepersky