Staff Newsletter
because it helps to know what's going on
March 1, 2019
Introducing Magnificent Mondays!!
Let's make the Mondays leading up to spring break MAGNIFICENT!!
2 ah-ha's
Because I get to be in and out of so many classrooms I have a chance to get a glimpse of the big picture. Besides the gazillion effective practices I see, here are a couple of areas I've noticed where we could improve;
1) I think we have watered down being intentional with our learning objectives. Take a moment and ask yourself; "Am I writing the learning objective/target in a student-friendly manner? Am I referencing it? If asked, will the kids be able to explain what we are doing and why it's important?"
2) We are skipping over the anticipatory set and diving right in. This is an area I struggled when I taught. It was an extra step that took a little extra creativity that I didn't take time for but is incredibly effective. If this sounds like you, feel free to bring it up in your PLC's. Brainstorm with your colleagues on your upcoming lessons on how you can hook the kids. Check out the link below for some tips.
Important Info about the Upcoming Data Team Meeting on March 6
Battle of the Books
Thank you to everyone who had a hand in making our Battle of the Books a huge success!!
I love to hear that 86% of our students volunteered to read and get involved!
Well done.
Schoology Training
Whether you already feel like you have a handle on Schoology or you are nervous about utilizing the site and like to move slowly as you learn something new, the training we provide will be just your speed! Your building coordinators will be talking you through a self-paced course that will meet the needs of all teachers individually!
Here are some tips to ensure these PD sessions go smoothly:
- You will need wired headphones or earbuds to listen to the videos during this training session without disturbing your neighbor. If you do not have a pair, please chat with others in your building to see if you can find an extra set you could borrow.
- You will be uploading a profile picture so you may want to think about want you want to use ahead of time and ensure it is saved on your computer (personal picture, something subject/grade level specific, etc.).
- Once you move through the training course, you will have time to add classroom materials to your page for next year. Most of these resources should be saved to your computer to use but if not, please move them to your own computer storage or bring in a flash drive to upload them from there. Unless you fly through the training course, you probably won't need these things until at least the second PD session. Possible list of things to populate: Class information/syllabus (if these are linked to Google Docs and you make a change, they will be reflected accurately!), Calendar events (first day of school, breaks, etc.), Helpful resources for students/links to commonly used websites, Assignments you know you will utilize, Lesson documents (PowerPoints, worksheets, projects, etc.), Daily homework, Discussion topics, Writing assignments, etc.
Curriculum Mapping Reminder from Morgan
One of the goals this year is to ensure we have a guaranteed and viable curriculum for every course and that it is organized into a central location. This work can be done during PLC time, grade level/department meetings, during your prep/school day as needed, and I am also opening back up Title II grant funds for certified staff to work outside the contract day for pay if they choose (see info below). Thank you for the work that has already gone into this organization-- I have heard from many of you that this has been a valuable exercise and you are feeling more organized and in step with each other! The IDOE actually put out a document that we could use to organize our curriculum that looks incredibly similar to our Essential Standards chart recently- so we are on the right track! :-)
Fun fact: DCSC staff have logged 542 hours of work OUTSIDE of contract time on curriculum mapping thus far!
I wanted to take a moment to remind you of the timeline of this work. The goal was to have at least ONE course finished by the end of the first semester. Following the winter break, the goal is to have TWO additional courses completed during the second semester. (Elementary teachers should be able to finish all work by the end of this school year.) Starting next year, we will work on TWO courses per semester until all of them are complete. **If you find that you are having trouble finishing in the time given to you during PLC time and you are unable to work outside of that time, please let me know. I will do my best to work with you and help in any way I can to finish! You are welcome to move faster than that, of course!
**Certified staff- I have sent out vouchers for winter and am ready to open up work for February and March. If you are working on this outside the school day....click here to submit a form so I can pay you for this time. (This page is also located on the training page of the Curriculum site.) You can submit up to 10 hours at this time and each hour will be paid out at $27.39 per the teacher contract. If you start working and decide you need additional time over the 10 hours, please let me know before you submit so I can ensure I have additional grant funding to cover. All hours must be submitted on the Google Form by April 1st (no fooling!). At that time, I will send out Accounts Payable forms for staff to sign and return to me for payout and decide if the form can be opened up again.
Behavior Referral Entry Expectations
Thanks!!
Correct
Correct
Incorrect
Flyin' High with RTI
From Jaymee and Renee: The data team meeting is Wednesday, March 6. Please let us know the names of any reading students you would like the data team to discuss. So far, we only have a few students.
Thanks, everyone!
Zen Zone is from 1:45-2:15 on Friday!
Subtraction MFM group for 4th grade is 1:00-1:40 tomorrow. Send those kiddos down and we'll work hard to pass them on!
ILEARN/YOU LEARN
**If you teach math or ELA in grades 3-8, reading these updates is NOT optional. You are expected to know the information contained in each update. Please make the time to ensure you have read and understand all of this information.**
If you missed a previous version, please catch up by accessing the following links:
A Message from the Danville Community Education Foundation
STAFF: We will be making grade level baskets to raffle off at the DCEF BINGO event. We are also asking STAFF members to donate any type of alcoholic beverages to make some adult baskets. We are looking for bottles of wine, wine glasses, craft beers, any type of beer, signs, gift cards, etc. Anything that would be great in a basket!!
These items can NOT be brought into school but we have a drop off location set up at Paisley Peacock on the Square (in Sage Home's old store). They are open Tuesday thru Saturday 11-7pm. Please drop all donations off by March 2nd.
You are all encouraged to buy tickets to attend. Bring some friends and reserve a table! We will be honoring all teachers in attendance too!!
Please help us make this a successful fundraiser to raise more money for teacher grants and senior scholarships by spreading the word, making donations and attending the event!
Thank you for ALL you do for kiddos! It is greatly appreciated!
Last call to grab any treasures from the PTO room surplus pile
The PTO room is FILLED up with surplus supplies. Please cruise through there in the next two weeks (by March 8th) to see if there is anything in there you want. Take what you need to use in your classroom. The storage containers will be repurposed, so please don't take those.
I will be sending out pictures of the surplus to the rest of the district to also come and take what they want....so you might want to get a jump start on your treasure hunt now.
Life Hacks
- Use waxed, unflavored dental floss to cleanly slice a cake.
- You can add two eggs and half a cup of oil to turn any cake mix into cookie dough.
- Put things back where you first looked for them, not where you found them.
March Birthdays
Susan Vrabel-March 1
Erin Stutler-March 4
Brandon Doub-March 8
Mark Callighan-March 20
Jennifer Wilson- March 26
Tina Noe-March 28
Kris Adolf-March 30
Reminders
- South Dashboard Data for February needs to be entered if you haven't already!
- Don't forget to schedule your Principal Read Aloud time each month.
- Nominate a Student of the Month for any outstanding student you might have.
- Don't forget....Send any students down to the office with a "positive referral" to sign the Great Big Book of Awesomeness. Students who sign will get a notification to take home to their parents.
- Don't forget to "Sign In" each week on the 2018-19 PD Sign in for PGP Verification" Doc
Data Team Meetings for the year
March 6, 2019
May 1, 2019*** this will likely change due to ILEARN testing
CIC Meetings For The Year
Upcoming Dates
Mar. 4: National School Breakfast Week begins
Mar. 5: PLC's
Mar. 6: Data Team Mtg.
Mar. 7: PTO Mtg.
Mar. 8: End of Quarter
Mar. 8: CIC Mtg.
Mar. 11: School Board Mtg.
Mar. 12: PLC's
Mar. 12: 4th Gr. Music Program
Mar. 13: Faculty Meeting
Mar. 14: 4th Gr. Music Program
Mar. 18: IREAD3 Testing
Mar. 19: IREAD3 Testing
Mar. 19: PLC's
Mar. 20: 4th grade field trip
Mar. 20: Western Day
Mar. 21: Men-in-Action Read to Classes
Mar. 21 Pajama Day
Mar. 21: J.W. Riley Presentation to 4th grade
Mar. 22: Sports Day
Mar. 22: Riley Volleyball
Our Data
8.5 % in Third-grade reading
12.1% in Third-grade math
3.6% in Fourth-grade reading
Our third grade IREAD3 predictor data has blown up!! A 14.4% increase!
Keep up the great work everyone!