The Bulldog Bark
We are the architects of our lives! Oct 8 - Oct 12
Beautification Day <Action Required>
Please mark your calendars for our Beautification Day this Saturday! My husband and I picked up 50 azaleas in Garner yesterday and dropped them off at school. Now we need your help to plant them. They are going to look beautiful when they bloom in the spring!
A few things:
1. Homeroom with the biggest turnout will earn a reward
2. The teacher who brings the most volunteers will earn a reward :)
3. We are in serious need of gardening tools. Please sign up if you can bring anything and if you will be present on Saturday. Even if you can't be there Saturday, I ask you label any tools you have and bring them Friday to loan us. Please leave them in the Multi-Purpose Room.
Action Items & Updates
ACTION ITEM: Bounces
We will change how we send students to Bounce. Moving forward, you will no longer use the Bounce slips we currently have. Instead, you will receive six Bounce passes.
Please follow this procedure:
- Complete the new Bounce pass and call Ms. Mangum to notify her of the Bounce
- Immediately, complete this form. Bookmark it so you can quickly access it when necessary.
- Once you run out of Bounce passes, you must email O'Meara or Parker for more.
Here's the why behind this change: students read what is written on the Bounce slip about their behavior, which can result in further escalation. We are making this change to prevent a situation from unnecessarily worsening.
When writing details of the incident...
DO
1. Share details of exactly what happened
2. Include interventions you took (ie: I gave him two warnings and moved his seat, but he continued to talk to his neighbors during direct instruction)
3. Be specific (ex: put in quote what comments a student made that resulted in the bounce.)
4. Remain calm and professional
5. If you find yourself sending the same student out for the same behaviors regularly, make parent contact. If it still doesn't change, email school counselor and administration for support/ideas. If it still continues, write an office referral.
DON'T
-Be vague: "Disrupting class" "Student is stirring up drama," "cursing," "disrespecting me" and "talking back" are not specific.
-Write statements like, "I don't want her in my class," "He knows better" or "This happens every day in my class." You are purely writing down what happened that period and why that student was sent out that period. See #5 for repeated behaviors.
UPDATE: ISS Student Work
When a student is assigned to ISS, Ms. Mangum will provide teachers with an Assignment Sheet by placing it in the appropriate teacher's mailbox. Teachers will be responsible for completing it and sending it to Ms. Mangum with student work. You can send it to her in her classroom or place it in her mailbox and email her to notify her.
UPDATE: MasteryConnect Newsletter
The district has created a MasteryConnect Newsletter. If you are ever having a challenge figuring something out, I'd suggest saving it in your drive and visit it as needed.
ACTION ITEM: Lockdown Drill <October 10>
- We will have our first lockdown drill on October 10.
- Here is everything you need to know about lockdown drills. Please read this document by October 7 so you can ask any questions you have ahead of time. Please send questions via email.
ACTION ITEM: PDP Initial Review <Due October 5>
- I know you all have already reflected and set goals for the year, but now it's time to put them on paper. Please complete your PDP Initial Review by 10/5. You must use the Phillips PDP Goals Guide 2018-2019 (two goals are staff-wide and one goal is individual).
- Unsure how to enter your PDP into the system? Follow this handy-dandy PDP Assistant guide
Bullying Prevention Month
From the desk of Angela Jones:
Resources for Bullying Prevention Month
This week: The Stomp Out Bullying Challenge
Please help us with the challenge by acknowledging our students ACTS OF KINDNESS. Take a picture and/or video and share with Ms. Axthelm and Ms. O'Meare for the newsletter and/or website when you catch a student being kind!
Please remind students of the following every day this week:
- If you've ever been isolated from others at school or you were new at school and it took time to make friends, you know what it feels like to be left out. Or even if you were never isolated, imagine how it would feel.
- Make friends with someone at school who you don't know. You probably wish someone had done that for you.
- Be a leader. Take action and don't let anyone at school be in isolation.
- Challenge Others To Be Kind
- Make kindness go viral with an act of kindness and challenge friends and classmates to pay it forward with their acts of kindness. Make a video of everyone doing acts of kindness and submit it. We'll add it to our website.
Always Learning. Always Growing.
Resilience Training
Take some time to review the Resilience Training slides. What adjustments can you make to create a safer space for our kids?
Teach Like a Champion Reminders
Don’t send the message that it is OK for students not to listen to you, instead try the
technique 100 PERCENT for 100% compliance and engagement! Don’t move on w/o it.
- Nonverbal intervention – Use eye contact with off-task students without interrupting instruction.
- Positive group correction – Quick verbal reminder to all, “We’re following along in our books.”
- Anonymous individual correction – Sends the message that there are individuals not following, “We need two people.”
- Private individual correction – Correct individuals privately and quietly by leaning down next to the student and in a quiet voice telling the student what he should do, “Quentin, I need you to track me so you can learn.”
- Lightning-quick public correction – When you need to correct an individual publicly, make sure to minimize her time “onstage.” “Quentin, I need your eyes,” tells the student what to do and is efficient and effective.
- Rely on firm, calm finesse – Remember that gaining 100 PERCENT compliance is not about power, but about achieving an important purpose – that students will succeed. Take yourself out of the equation and focus on the goal. Rather than saying, “I asked for your eyes on me because when I ask you for something I expect you to do it,” try “I need your eyes on me so you can learn.”
FREE PD on Google Apps below!
Shout outs
Shout out to CHERRY for just being an incredible leader. She pushes everyone around her by providing honest feedback (thank you for always helping me become a better, more reflective leader with your feedback!), collaborates with all colleagues to ensure students get access to new opportunities, and is willing to step in whenever necessary. She also just finished a grueling grant application process for what could be a grant of $135,000. Send her some love for her hard work as we await to heat the results!
Staff shout out from a peer!
- Stephen for trying new things and finding success in innovation!
- Sharon works hard everyday to reach as many kids as she can and her impact is amazing. I can't wait to see how she transforms lives this year!
- From Pamela: You all are awesome!! The best team ever! If I didn't believe it, I wouldn't say anything. You bring me Joy!!
Thank you to the staff members who completed the form below - your feedback and shout outs are wonderful!
Feedback is a gift
What worked this week? What can we do better? Got a staff member you want to shout out? Share your thoughts HERE.
Important upcoming dates & Calendar of Events
Monday
Home Volleyball Game vs Edwards (Axthelm, Buchanan on gate; Cherry in concessions)
Tuesday
School pictures (individual)
Attendance Team Meeting 1:15pm - Counseling Meeting Room
Math/Science PLC 11:30 - teachers on lunch duty (instead of Thursday)
Wednesday
Lockdown Drill #1 (Afternoon)
JO off campus at District Leadership Team
Home Volleyball Game vs Parker (Pittman on gate; Roberts & Malone concessions)
PBIS Team Meeting 4pm
PTO Meeting 6 - 7pm
Thursday
- ILT 8:50 - 9:55 (note change in times this week)
- Home football game vs South 4pm (Harrison/Bennert on gate)
- ELSSA PLC 2:30
Friday
- Walk/Bike to School Event 1-3pm (More information coming)
- Running on a modified schedule (see "Afternoon Event Schedule;" 8th grade teachers- I will get with you this week to brainstorm something workable). At 12:35, we will go to homeroom for Friday reflections, expectations for behavior during the event, and getting students calm before going (because they will get really hyped when there!). After the event, we will go back to homeroom to calm down again before dismissal at 3:35.
- Team Huddle 3:45 - 3:55 B Hall
Saturday
Campus Beautification Day 10-1!
Coming up!
Math benchmark Oct 17
ELA benchmark Oct 18
Science 8 benchmark Oct 23
Red Ribbon Week - October 23-31
Achieve3000 training October 25
Follow our Google calendar or see the calendar of events is here. This is UPDATED.
Homeroom Game Plan
Homeroom lesson plans here! Let me know if you have questions/suggestions!