Monaghan's Minutes
Happy New Year 2019!
Happy Birthday, Rebecca! (January 3rd)
Happy Birthday, RJ! (January 4th)
Welcome Back!
Because I don't want to fill your Monday with endless meetings, and would prefer you just have time to do what YOU need to do, I created my Monaghan's Minutes. This newsletter is jam packed with information you need to know for 2nd semester. There are many things for you to sign up for, important dates to note, and events that are coming up. Please read through each part of the newsletter carefully and make note of anything needed. You don't want to miss out on a sign up and get stuck with whatever is left!
I hope you enjoy the next 3 days, find time to get just that last bit of recharging that your body needs, and are ready to get back at it on Monday!
Time to Freshen Up!
Who has time for that??? I'm sure you are thinking it to yourself right now! I have a couple of college kids who I would LOVE to volunteer to help. Just let me know if you need them, and I will sign them up for the task. We may be able to bring in a couple teachers kids, too, so just let me know if you'd like some help and we will see what we can pull together.
You can find many great ideas at the link below.
Upcoming Important Dates for Teachers
January 8: Staff Meeting - 3:20
January 9: Grade cards are available on Sycamore; All School Mass - led by teachers; Northland Principal's meeting in staff lounge
January 15-25: Father Matthew is on vacation
January 16: Staff Meeting - Faith Formation - 3:20
January 21: No School - MLK Day
January 22: Give Winter Benchmark (more info to come)
January 23: Staff Meeting - prep for CSW - 3:20
January 27: All School mass @ 11:00 to kick off CSW (possible school family luncheon after)
January 27 - Feb. 1: CSW
Feb. 1: Grandparents Day; Noon Dismissal
Sign Up Below: Review Student Learning Plans (Kaci, Pamela, and 1-8 Teachers) on Monday, January 7
Mentor Meetings in January
Re-vamping Mentor Meetings
Mentors, please schedule a meeting with your mentees within the first couple of weeks back and then plan for another one the week before CSW. You can find your January mentor sheets at the link below. Please print one off and use during your mentor meetings this month.
Add to Your Calendar!
2nd Semester Staff Meeting Dates
* I am giving you these meeting dates in advance so you will know not to schedule anything else on these days. Faculty meetings are a part of our yearly contracts and are a requirement for all teachers to attend. Please do not schedule appointments or meetings on these days.
Jan. 9: Info meeting
Jan 16: Faith Formation
Jan 23: CSW Planning
Feb. 6: Info Meeting
Feb. 13: Faith Formation
Feb. 15: PD - Local PD day
Feb. 20: Info Meeting
Feb. 27: Faith Formation
Mar. 6: Work on grades
Mar. 13: PD - EMF Day
Mar. 27: Faith Formation
Apr. 10: Info Meeting
Apr. 17: Faith Formation
Apr. 24: Mentor Meetings
May 1: Info Meetings
May 8: Faith Formation
Sign Up for a Time To Share at a Faculty Meeting
January 9th School Mass - Teacher Led
If there are available spots after Tuesday at 9:00am, I will fill in with those who haven't signed up and let you know what your part will be.
Click the link below to sign up today!
New Student
Middle School teachers, please add a desk for Jason and place him on your rosters.
Catholic Schools Week - January 27 - February 1
A couple of possible new events for this year:
Jan. 27: All School Mass at 11:00. After - possible school families potluck where each grade level is asked to bring a different item. Or we can combine it with a diversity luncheon and ask families to bring a dish from their heritage.
January 30: Maybe host a STEM Night in the evening and invite surrounding neighborhoods, parishioners, incoming kindergarteners. We could have different stations set up where kids could come in and move around to complete activities. This would be a marketing event for us that is hosted by our staff and students.
Feb. 1: Grandparent's Day was awesome last year, but I think there were a couple of issues that we need to tweak.
Breakfast: Instead of pancakes (which were a headache), we do coffee/donuts.
Stations: Create more stations to have less people in each? Or just add more specific things to do in each station so that people aren't bored and start wandering.
Praise and Worship: Last year we ended with our "Big House" song in the gym before the 8th grade versus faculty volleyball game. This year, maybe we could sing several songs and have our cantors or choir kids lead? Also, we need to chose a new song for us to learn!
Other Weekly Activities:
Service: Last year we made the fleece blankets. What should our project be this year?
Living Rosary: This is always a favorite. I like the idea of doing it on Grandparent's Day, but it does take up a lot of time and this is a noon dismissal. Should we host this on a different day? Or change our stations to something different to accommodate the time needed?
Faithbook Sessions: Our middle school kids have hosted Faithbook sessions in the past and these have seemed to go over well. I talked to Dana about making these sessions focused on learning about different Saints, because I'd like to have a "Dress like your favorite saint" day as one of our dress up days. Thoughts? I an open to suggestions!
Faithflicks: In the past couple of years we have shown a faith based movie on one of the days. Do we want to keep this, change it, get rid of it? If so, do we have any movie suggestions?
Families Activity: We typically do a families activity during this week. Last year we focused on creating the blankets, so maybe this year we could focus on whatever service project we come up with.
Please see the attachment below to look at our schedule from last year.
2nd Semester Goal Setting
You can find the 2nd semester goal setting template at the link below.
2nd Semester Faith Formation
3:20 - 3:30: Whole group prayer and intro in the staff lounge.
3:30 - 4:10: Small group bible study and reflection.
4:10 - 4:20: Prayerful meditation/journaling (on your own)
4:20 - 4:30: Whole group wrap up.
Each week, I will ask a different person to lead their small group. The leader of the small group will be asked to:
- Plan ahead by reading the bible study before the meeting. Look over the questions that you will share with the group.
- Reach out to your group to give them the bible study reading for the week and ask that they read before coming to the meeting on Wednesday.
- Plan discussion questions for your group.
- Lead discussion.
You can sign up for which Faith Formation Session that you would like to lead at the link below. I will send out the information at least a week in advance.
2nd Semester Eleots - Classroom Teachers AND Specials Teachers
What is an Eleot? The eProve™ Effective Learning Environments Observation Tool® (eleot®) is a learner-centric classroom observation tool that comprises 28 items organized in seven environments aligned with the AdvancED Standards and Indicators and based on a review of widely used observation instruments and the most current research on effective learning. The Eleot provides useful, relevant, structured, and quantifiable data on the extent to which students are engaged in activities and/or demonstrate knowledge, attitudes, and/or dispositions that are conducive to effective learning.
In short, the Eleot focuses on what the STUDENTS are doing during the observation, not on what the teacher is doing. The Eleot looks for student engagement in hands on activities, cooperative group work, and use of technology. However, it is VERY specific regarding what the use of technology should look like.
Appropriate use of technology is: Students using a Google doc to collaborate and create an assignment; students using technology to share and communicate information; students using technology to research and share ideas.
Appropriate use of technology is NOT: Playing a math game on a laptop, typing an essay on a laptop, playing a game on the SmartBoard.
The Eleot can be a frustrating measurement tool for teachers, but it's important to remember that it's all about STUDENT ENGAGEMENT. When scheduling your Eleot, plan for a day when students will be working collaboratively or in stations, using technology as listed above, or completing a hands on activity. While the Eleot can seem frustrating, it truly focuses on what good teaching should look like in the classroom. The students are working, the teacher is meeting with individuals or small groups to monitor progress.
My best advice is to remember that when your classroom can function and learning can take place without you standing at the front of the room talking, you know you have succeeded!
Sign up for your Eleot on the link below.
Podcasts Every Educator Should Hear
Why podcasts???
This year, I want to challenge you to listen to at least ONE podcast a week. Jot down a few great ideas or even just ONE great idea you plan to use in the classroom and be willing to share it with us at a staff meeting.
I've included some great podcasts below. Some are educational, some are just plain inspirational! I hope you find one in which you connect!
St. Patrick School
Email: info@stpatrickkc.com
Website: stpatrickkc.com
Location: 1401 Northeast 42nd Terrace, Kansas City, MO, USA
Phone: 816-453-0971
Facebook: facebook.com/StPatrickKC
Twitter: @StPatrickKc