Mark's Monday Morning Memo
May 13, 2019
Thank you!
School-wide Title I Planning Day
Restorative Practices Work
June 5th Staff Meeting
Citizens of the Month
My Commitments This Week
Tuesday and Wednesday, May 14th and 15th - 4:30-7:30; 5th Grade Teacher Interviews
Thursday, May 16th - 12:00-4:00; School-wide Title I Team planning
Flexible Seating
As we approach the end of the school year we have many exciting opportunities ahead. For those who are interested, we have the unique opportunity to re-imagine our classrooms through flexible seating and innovative environments! When space is reconfigured, students feel good. They are able to select where and how they want to place their bodies to maximize brain focus. These environments teach many skills by encouraging students to use language of collaboration, navigate communal norms, practice sharing, and build empathy. To learn more about the benefits of flexible seating, please refer to the following resources:
Article:
Flexible Seating Elevates Student
Video:
Engagement A Visual History of School Desks.
Expectations:
Flexible seating doesn’t simply just happen, and innovative environments are not just about furniture. Teachers, with their students, will need to establish new classroom routines that may include, creating norms to make seating choice fair and productive.
To help with this shift in mindset, all participating teachers will be encouraged to partake in training sessions and discussions, learning from Hopkins teachers who have transformed their classrooms into student-centered learning environments.
Process:
If you would like to implement student-centered seating in your room, please reach out to Dana Chou the district purchasing coordinator. We have found working in collaborative groups to be most effective. Priority will be given to entire grade levels or teams.
Dana will work with each teacher, and/or team, to develop a plan that works best for their room, while still maintaining a level of consistency and quality across the district.
Staffing Updates
Here are some updates to Gatewood staffing since information was shared on Thursday, April 18th:
Spanish teachers - Lara Hammer, Jean Reichow
EL Teachers - Heather Frary, Becky Hart, Monica Grubb (0.5)
LTL Teachers - Abbie Miklos, Stacy MacBlane-Meyer, Megan Kline
Learning Center Teachers - Tammy Hoppe, Trudy Wagner
Art - Renee Funk (0.3) plus a 0.3 person to be hired
I'm still waiting on some special service information.
Here are our colleagues who are headed to new adventures next year:
Carley Dyer
Patty Ewing
Laura Grant
Layna Kitson
Anne McGraw
Graham Rowe
Jill Stedman
Tia Thiesen
Taylor Van Clay