WATERFORD WEEKLY
October 27, 2017
Mission
Vision
Our Week in Review
OUR TRIVIA TEAM WON FIRST PLACE!
20 MINUTE STAFF MEETING ON MONDAY
iREADY REMINDERS
Ready
Key Teacher Habits for Ready
Share these six key habits with your teachers to help guide their focus:
- Review and Plan Each Weekly Lesson in its entirety using the Teacher Resource Book, and make daily adjustments based on student needs.
- Continue to use Discourse Routines such as Think-Share-Compare to foster mathematical discussions.
- Monitor Lesson Pacing and follow Ready’s recommended pacing guidance and lesson structure to make sure you are teaching each skill fully and are on track to meet your district’s yearly goals.
- Review the data from the i-Ready Diagnostic and use it to plan instruction.
- As time allows, use Ready resources (i.e. Teacher Toolbox, Practice & Problem Solving Book) to support differentiated instruction and support whole-class learning.
- Incorporate i-Ready Online Instruction into weekly plans.
Watch the Math Routines in Practice
Check out the “Instructional Best Practices” section of Ready Central for “Ready Mathematics in Action” demo videos that show how these lessons can come to life!
The Power of the Teacher Toolbox
If teachers haven’t registered yet, they are missing out on dozens of resources that can help them differentiate their instruction. Both you and your teachers can register at www.teacher-toolbox.com with the code provided previously. Let me know if you need help accessing your code.
i-Ready
This month, we’re adding 10 new Math practice lessons, which are designed to help students refine and solidify their understanding of core concepts. Look for these Kindergarten lessons later this month. We also have some new guidance and resources for Kindergarten– please visit K Corner for more details. We’ll be adding more dedicated Math practice in other grade levels later this school year, so stay tuned!
- Tools for Teachers:
- Tips for Monitoring Students’ Online Instruction and Providing Intervention - This article provides next steps for teachers to help them monitor instructional usage, as well as learn how to watch for struggling students and provide intervention when needed.
- Ready to dig deeper?
- i-Ready Success Guide for Teachers- Pages 7 and 8 of this success guide provide more detailed checklists for teachers regarding actions to take to support i-Ready instruction.
- Data Chat: Student Diagnostic Data- This teacher’s guide to conducting an i-Ready Diagnostic data chat with students, along with a student goal-setting worksheet, will provide the tools you need to effectively set goals and track progress for students.
Learn more about how Ready and i-Ready work together by reading this article on Ready Central.
Parent Teacher Conferences
ILT Update
We created a common definition for "rigor" (based on Barbara Blackburn's definition from Rigor is Not a Four Letter Word) and a chart of what rigor looks like, sounds like, and feels like. ILT members will be completing walk-throughs in the building next week (with their assigned follow-up teachers) to determine the level of rigor in our building based on the chart definition and chart created below.
FROM THE STATE
Assessment
ISTEP+ Online Updates Summary: This memo outlines all of the online testing updates that will be in effect for the 2017-2018 school year, as noted in Dr. McCormick’s mail, recent CTC listservs, and Pearson trainings. Please contact the Office of Student Assessment or the Pearson Help Desk (866-683-6668) if you have questions about any of these updates.
ISTEP+ Blank Practice Forms are also available for instructional use on our website. These forms offer the platform functionality, but can be used with an educator’s own items, bell ringers, or activities. Browser functionality also allows these to be printed to capture student responses on the blank forms.
STAFF CHARACTER DRESS-UP DAY ON TUESDAY
Next Week and Beyond
Monday 10/30: Delay Day - We will be meeting in the Library to have our last PD on Good to Great
Interim Assessment Week
MTSS Meeting 8:45-9:45 a.m.
Behavior Team Meeting 10-10:30 a.m.
ALT 10:30-11:30
Staff Meeting with Steele Benefits 3:10-3:25
Tuesday,10/31:
HAPPY HALLOWEEN - STAFF DRESS UP DAY!
IDEA Meeting in Conference Room 12:30-1:30 p.m.
K/1 Cluster 2:15-3:15
Wed. 11/1:
ALT 10:30-12 p.m.
2/3 Cluster 2:15-3:15
Thurs. 11/2:
4/5 Cluster 2:15-3:15
ILT 3:30-4:45
Fri. 11/3:
Upcoming Dates:
11/6: ELA Deep Data Dive with K, 3, and 5. Schedule will be forthcoming from Randy next week. Subs have already been secured.
11/7: ELA Deep Data Dive with 1,2, and 4. Schedule will be forthcoming from Randy next week. Subs have already been secured.
11/15: Fundations Trainer here for the day.
11/16: 4/5 Thanksgiving Luncheon.
News from Central Office
We have finalized the Certified Teacher Handbook and it is attached! This has taken us a few years to complete. When the bargaining statute changed and master contracts could no longer include items other than wages and benefits, we agreed with GEA that we would take the ‘other language items’ (i.e., those things related to working conditions) and create a handbook. This will be reviewed and possibly revised annually, with input from GEA and with review by the District Discussables committee. This is for your records. You may want to print a few hard copies and have them available in the teacher’s lounge for reference. The handbook is also on the GCS website under Staff Services/Benefits/Handbooks/Certified Teacher.
School of Education
Graduate Programs Information Session:
Dr. Terri Hebert, Assistant Professor and Chair of the
Professional Education Studies programs
will present information on the
Master of Science in Education Leadership
Tuesday, November 7, 2017
4:00 PM (Eastern Time)
Education and Arts Building, Room 2112
Application deadline for the Education Leadership program is August 1 with an August 2018 start.
Directions, Parking and Campus Map: https://admissions.iusb.edu/visit/directions.html
We are happy to offer school corporation onsite information sessions for this or any of our Graduate Studies Programs (please see attached). Feel free to contact me for additional information and/or to schedule an onsite session.
Thank you for your help with the recruitment and preparation of future education leaders!
About Us
Email: koverton@goshenschools.org
Website: http://waterford.goshenschools.org/
Location: 65560 S.R. 15 Goshen, IN 46526
Phone: 574-533-6811
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/waterford.elementary
Twitter: @WaterfordElem