South Middle School
Staff Weekly Newsletter: October 14th - 18th
Week at a Glance
- Annual IEP for AK (Room 4, 7:45 a.m.)
Tuesday, October 15
- AVID Site Team Meeting (SMS Library, 7:30 a.m.)
- IEP Amendment for SPC (Room 4, 7:45 a.m.)
- All Admin Meeting (DO, 9:00 a.m.)
- IEP Meeting for MC (Room 4, 12:00 p.m.)
- TIDE Meeting (GPHS Library, 5:30 p.m., Dinner provided)
Wednesday, October 16
- Grade-Level Teams (Various Locations, 7:40 a.m.)
- Student of the Month Lunch! (Barret's Office, 12:30 p.m.)
Thursday, October 17
- 3 Year Eligibility IEP for CH (Room 4, 7:45 a.m.)
Friday, October 18
- Annual IEP for WM (Room 4, 7:45 a.m.)
- 3 Year Eligibility IEP for CH (Room 4, 11:45 a.m.)
- Builder's Club Event (see Petty's emails)
Saturday, October 19
- PSAT 8/9 (GPHS, 8:00 a.m.)
Supervision Schedule
Supervision Schedule (8:10 - 8:25 a.m.) - 15 minutes a day as assigned.
Team 3:
6th Grade Hall: Sheppard
T @ 7th/8th Grade Hall: Davis
8th Grade Hall: Counselors
Large Gym: Bigelow/Baertschiger
Parking Lot AM: Thompson
Parking Lot PM & Buses PM: Wolford & Moore
Daily Supervision Schedule:
Parking Lot/Exit AM: Aguilera, Huerta, Karbowski & Admin
Parking Lot/Exit PM: Aguilera, Kindrick, Karbowski & Admin
Cafeteria AM: Miller/McCarty & Hopkins
Bus PM (3:09 - 3:25): Hopkins, Admin & Team Teacher
Staff Shout-Out
Shelly & James
At our 6-week SMART Goal Check-In, we're still experiencing some of those "bumps" along the road as we implement a new goal-setting system. James & Shelly were great in regards to being flexible with space, rooms, and students this past week with our check-in and assembly butted-up against each other. Thanks to you both for encouraging students to keep at those goals!
Weekly Article
Staff-
I appreciate some of the points in this week's article, especially as we hit that "wall" at some/many points throughout the year - no matter how long we've been at it. I also appreciate the encouragement of also sharing some of those fun/wild stories over a glass of wine. Cheers!
Teaching Doesn’t Get Easier, But You Get Better At It
In this Education Week article, Arkansas second-grade teacher Justin Minkel says he used to think the job would get easier “at some point on a shimmering horizon – five or 15 or 25 years into teaching… Once that distant day arrived, my face would no longer flush with awkwardness and self-doubt each time my principal walked into my room to observe a lesson. I would never again see glazed boredom settle over each student’s face like a limp rubber mask. I wouldn’t once lose my temper, no matter how many times my students refused to listen or work quietly at their desks.”
Now he realizes that teaching doesn’t get easier for anyone; these and other struggles persist. But he knows the job gets better, because teachers keep learning and growing. How?
- Looking at your class and seeing each individual;
- Balancing responsibility with delight, with students working hard every day but also laughing;
- Learning when to follow your instincts and when to question long-held beliefs, “when to trust yourself and when to ask for help, when to give your methods time to work and when to try something different;”
- Bringing your hard-earned experience to bear on each new dilemma, “whether it’s a child who still can’t read or a child who won’t stop crying and come out from under her desk;”
- Being less negative about tests, rubrics, and standards, seeing them as important tools for teaching and learning;
- Teaching little brothers and sisters of former students and reconnecting with families that love you.
- Learning, “like Odysseus does in Homer’s Odyssey, that the trials of a day, year, or an entire career can become sweet in the telling – that the absurd situation that made you gnash your teeth this morning is kind of hilarious as you tell your loved ones about it over a glass of wine tonight.”
“A new school year will arrive in your fifth or 15th or 25th year,” concludes Minkel, “when you realize that the answer is not to try to make the job any easier, but to open your heart even wider.”
“Teaching Never Gets Easier. But It Does Get Better” by Justin Minkel in Education Week, September 25, 2019 (Vol. 39, #6, p. 17), https://bit.ly/2Iw7PdO
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Red for the Dude!
October Birthdays!
- Sabrina Sheppard - October 15th
- Tanya Ward - October 21st
- Kim Hull - October 24th
- Joel Wilder - October 31st