The Reds Tale
March 14, 2019
Newark High School
Email: thomas.roote@newarkcsd.org
Website: http://newarkcsd.org/Domain/84
Location: 625 Peirson Avenue, Newark, NY, United States
Phone: 315-332-3240
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nhsreds
Twitter: @Newark_HS
From the Desk of Mr. Roote
March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month and as a result I want to commit a bit of space to recognizing some pace setters in unifying our students with and without disabilities.
Young people with disabilities do not often get a chance to play on their school sports teams. As a result, more and more U.S. states are adopting the Unified Sports approach that Special Olympics pioneered. In Unified Sports, teams are made up of people of similar age and ability. That makes practices more fun and games more challenging and exciting for all. Having sport in common is just one more way that preconceptions and false ideas are swept away. Unified Sports at Newark High School are made possible by and effort from Ms. Monica Stadler, Mr. Chris Corey and most notably, our Unified coaching staff of Mr. Fladd and Mr. Groot.
The Canal Forest Restoration Project includes a group that has been collecting acorns, growing seedlings, giving them away and planting them. All trees are needed but the organization favors White Oaks and White Pines because of their special relationship to the canal industry and history. When the group looked for support at Newark High School Mrs. Kiley, Mr. Matt Groot and Ms. Becca Yuhas aligned their thinking and paired an Environmental Science classroom with the Functional Skills Development program. They have learned that even just a discussion and showing of a tree seedling with students can be very good. Discussion can include some of the things about the biology, carbon and oxygen, life span, canal history, the changing forest, water quality, practical planting, etc. At this point, we have placed many seedlings in pots to prepare them for spring planting.
Supporting the aforementioned and acting as cheerleaders for more unification is our entire special education staff. A specific shout out to this group of dedicated staff goes to:
- Linda Stowell
- Mary Wage
- Heather Wilson
- BJ Ross
- Jen Cruz
- Judith Jasper
- Deb McEwen
- Jarrod Bouchey
- Tammy Garrett
- Luke Baum
- Alex Hennessy
- Sara Kiley
Thank you for all you do!
From the Desk of Ms. Ross
John Hattie, author of Visible Learning, determined that one of the most important influences of student achievement is how teachers think about learning and their own role. I am in the midst of reading, 10 Mindframes for Visible Learning, where the authors, Hattie and Zierer, describe 10 behaviors or mindframes they suggest we adopt in order to get the most out of student succes:
- I am an evaluator-Evaluation isn’t just about the formal evaluation that comes down from the state education department and district offices. As educators we all have to evaluate whether our practices are bringing out the best learning in our students.
- I am a change agent– In these days of more accountability and more on the plates of teachers and leaders, it’s easy to feel as though we are victims to our present educational situations. Hattie believes we have to change our mindsets to understanding we are change agents. This is important, because research shows that when teachers have a low level of efficacy they feel as though they don’t have any impact on student learning, which doesn’t put them in the role of change agent at all. It’s important to help teachers realize they may be one of the only change agents in a child’s life.
- I talk about learning and not about teaching– When we talk about teaching we are focusing on the adult in the room and very often forget about the students. The adult is important, but focusing on the student is more important.
- I see assessment as feedback to me– Learner’s need the teacher’s feedback, but teachers also need the learner’s feedback. Did the lesson achieve the success criteria? Did the students make connections to prior learning and among the content that led to a deeper understanding?
- I engage in dialogue and not monologue- Do we engage in dialogue where we listen to the thoughts of the person on the other side of the conversation, or do we use the conversation to merely get our own self-interests across? In the classroom with students, do teachers listen to students or just lecture and talk at students without giving them enough time to debate and discuss?
- I enjoy challenge– Hattie believes we spend too much time giving students answers to questions that they struggle with in the classroom; instead of taking the opportunity to teach them that error is the best way to learn. It’s through error that they dig deep within themselves. This will work better, if at a young age, we teach students that learning is not always easy, which is one of the greatest parts of it.
- I engage in positive relationships– Learning requires positive relationships, whether between learners and teachers, or between learners and their peers. Hattie states that instruction is essentially built on relationship building, therefore the safer and trusting the relationships are, the more the child will learn.
- I use the language of learning– The focus on learning is important, which is why we need to talk about it more than we talk about teaching. However, having common language around learning is the crucial next step.
- I see learning as hard work– All of the above Mindframes come together in this mindframe. Engaging in dialogue, diving deeply into assessment data, teaching students about learning dispositions, and becoming change agents is no easy task, which is why learning is hard work.
- I Collaborate – Collaborating with others (peers and students) is crucial to the influence and desired impact on student learning. We, as adults, teach students about the importance of collaboration, and team sports have hopefully been focusing on that issue as well. Unfortunately, adults still don’t collaborate as grade levels and departments nearly as often as they should. It happens in pockets, but not always across schools.
Mash Up
The Emergency Red Phone is not working. We are looking for a replacement!
For the sake of improved dialogue on the issue, the main office will begin to track your requests for student removals from classrooms. Please be clear with the main office what your needs is so we can track things appropriately and share the data.
Due to building codes, we are unable to properly stall in a series of urinals in the southwest bathroom near the elevator. As a result, it will be designate a boys restroom while the one next door remains a gender neutral bathroom. This will be effective April 1.
Great stuff: #MyHistoryMyFuture
Know of a student in need of winter clothes? Click here.
The H.S. Art Department, "We would like to extend an invite to each of you for the Wayne County Council of the Arts H.S. Exhibition. You can view (108 W. Miller St.) the work of our Newark H.S. students, as well as, the work of other surrounding Wayne County high schools from February 18th until March 21st, Thursday - Saturday 12-3 pm. We are very proud of each of our students and hope you can join us in recognizing their efforts and achievements. Attached, you will find our individual art class lists or flyers outlining the specific names of students with work in this show. Thank you for continued support! Renee, James and Amy"
Attending school every day has a huge impact on a student’s academic success. Students who miss more than 18 days (10 percent) of the school year are classified as “Chronically Absent”. Excessive absences interfere with students’ progress in mastering knowledge and skills necessary to graduate from high school and be prepared for higher education and the workforce. Data shows that students who frequently miss school are less likely to graduate from high school. Families are instrumental in helping their child develop a love for school, which includes daily attendance. Make a family commitment to attend school every day. If there are challenges bringing your child to school every day, reach out to the school staff for assistance. Check School Tool regularly to make sure attendance is accurate. Contact the school if you need assistance accessing the School Tool Parent Portal. Support your student so they complete and return make-up work on time. Contact your child’s teachers if you have questions about the work and deadline.
Social Emotional Learning and the Plan for Excellence
Instructional Corner
Over the last two PD hours, we have spent time looking at the 10 qualities of successful lessons and the connection to the formative learning cycle. As we continue to grow our craft as teachers, one area that continues to resurface is lesson facilitation. We want to facilitate our lessons in a way that encourages a lot of diverse participation and holds students responsible for their own thinking and behavior. To foster this type of teaching, we must position ourselves in a manner that best encourages and supports the sense-making our students are doing. We need to craft a stance that allows us to move instruction beyond the simple call and response, towards fully engaged conversations.
As teachers, we need to spend more time listening and inviting students to do most of the talking. A resource was recently share by Kari Hamelinck that she picked up at a conference (Engaging Student Thinking Protocols), that provides lesson strategies designed to provide teachers with student evidence of understanding during the formative learning cycle. If we need to get students talking, we need to ask better questions. Instead of simply moving on after a student shares, we need to ask them to “tell me more”. This stance provides a framework for facilitating student thinking that helps bring students to their greatest learning potential and creates a positive learning environment.
Link to resource - http://tinyurl.com/y6ttufoc
Document Sharing Space
Calendar Share
Tuesday's in the LGI: April 2, May 7 and June 4. Staff Meetings. Contact: T Roote.
April 2. SELF Days. Contact: T Roote.
Wednesday, April 10. College Wear Wednesday. Future College Wear Wednesdays are: 5/8, 6/12. Contact: Sue Gardner.
March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.
Friday, March 15. NHS Program/No WTCC Program. Contact R Ross.
Tuesday, April 30. Capstone Day. Contact K Ganter or D Barry
Important Band & Chorus Dates
- March 15/16-All county Band
- March 19-District Chorus Concert
- April 22-NYSSMA Preview Concert
- April 24/25-NYSSMA Majors
- May 11-Cabaret and Jazz Festival
- May 26-Memorial Day Parade
- May 28-ELENBE Awards
- June 3-High School Bands Year End Concert and Senior Recognition
- June 5-High School Choirs Year End Concert and Senior Recognitionbe
Close Up/Share a Pic
The Newark High School Mission, Vision and Values
The Newark High School Mission: We are a school community with deeply held hometown pride, committed to readying young people to be life-long learners with experiences aimed at continuously motivating us to hone our skills in the complex tasks of teaching and learning. Our community is devoted to providing supports for the aspirations of our adolescents as they mature into adults with ambitious plans for college and careers.
The Newark High School Vision: Staff embody the school values and impart confidence while providing an inviting classroom environment with clear expectations and specific academic and behavioral goals. Students embody the school values through intellectual and emotional perseverance. Families embody the school values while remaining actively involved as advocates for their children and supporters of the school programs and staff.
The Newark High School Values: Safe, Responsible, Trustworthy, and Respectful.
Email: thomas.roote@newarkcsd.org
Website: http://newarkcsd.org/Domain/84
Location: 625 Peirson Avenue, Newark, NY, United States
Phone: 315-332-3240
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nhsreds
Twitter: @Newark_HS