Staff Weekly Update
For the Week of April 16th, 2018
Last week was filled with so many fantastic events! We welcomed our Class of 2031 at KDG Round-Up, 2nd grade had a very successful Market Day, Connie/Martha hosted an evening KDG meeting for our PreK parents, our 3rd grade SIEW pilot group had their final session together (see video below from Dr. Robison's Today's Two Minutes), SGE hosted our first CO30 Parent Book Talk, 4th graders made their music selection for ZWest, and our Math Pentathalon students competed at Ben Davis HS all day on Saturday under the leadership of Amy Knueven.
WOW! Is it just me or does it feel like Spring break was about a month ago? It was whirlwind of a week, but a typical pace for us during this last quarter. And now . . . ISTEP+ PART 2 BEGINS! This first week we will start testing with 3rd grade and next week, we will text 4th grade. Thank you all in advance for being flexible with your schedule and helping to keep the noise level down as our students focus on their test.
Here's to another wonderful-wacky-weather-filled week! :)
With much respect,
Connie
Calendar Items
Mon. April 16th
- ISTEP+ Part 2 for 3rd Gr. - 4/16 -4/20
- 8:30 - 10:30 - Largent/Farley in ISTEP+ - call Wetzel for support
- 2:45 - Staffing for 3rd grader - Largent, Farley, Watson - conf. room
- 3:30 - Largent leaving early for home repair
Tues. April 17th
- ISTEP+ Part 2 for 3rd Gr. - 4/16 -4/20
- 8:30 - 10:30 - Largent/Farley in ISTEP+ - call Wetzel for support
- 9:30 - LT mtg - Largent/Farley - ESC
- 10:20 - Counseling lesson - Wetzel/Smith
- 11:30 - Wetzel out - 1/2 day PM
- 11:35 - HS Peers
- 1:30 - Principal's Office time
- 2:40 - Grade Level mtg w/ Kyle Beimfohr - 1st Grade
- 2:45 - ACR for 4th grader - Farley, Watson, Milam - conf. room
Wed. April 18th
- ISTEP+ Part 2 for 3rd Gr. - 4/16 -4/20
- 7:30 - Thoughtful Thursdays - Jessica's office
- 8:30 - 10:30 - Largent/Farley in ISTEP+ - call Wetzel for support
- 10:00 - Largent in observation
- 10:20 - Counseling lesson - Wetzel/Munz
- 1:00 - Wetzel w/ Spencer (therapy dog) - Jessica's office
- 2:30 - Speech ACR for 3rd grader - Farley, Fure, McDaniel
Thurs. April 19th
- ISTEP+ Part 2 for 3rd Gr. - 4/16 -4/20
- 8:30 - 10:30 - Largent/Farley in ISTEP+ - call Wetzel for support
- 12:45 - Wetzel w/ KDG Lunch Group - Jessica's office
- 1:00 - Largent teaching lesson - Delp's room
- 1:30 - Principal's Office time
- 2:30 - Speech ACR for 1st grader - Wetzel, Fure, Frobig
- 2:30 - Grade Level Mtgs.
- 2:30 - Grade level mtg w/ Kyle Beimfohr - 4th grade
Fri. April 20th
- ISTEP+ Part 2 for 3rd Gr. - 4/16 -4/20
- 8:00 - Mtg re: 2nd grader - Largent, Andries, Munz - conf. room
- 8:30 - 10:30 - Largent/Farley in ISTEP+ - call Wetzel for support
- 10:20 - Counseling lesson - Wetzel/Delp
Important Announcements & Reminders
Staff News & Updates:
- Welcome back, Jessica Luchenbill . . . we're so glad you're back.
- Friday 4/20 is Alyssa Reyher's last day at SGE. Best wishes as you graduate and pursue a career in education! Future students will be lucky to have you.
- Congratulations, Madison Weathers! She is expecting her first baby. You will be an amazing new mother.
THANK YOU, PTO!
- PTO has generously donated $15,000 to our Spring enrichment grant.
- We plan to use the bulk of $$ to purchase about 40 new touch Chromebooks and a virtual reality classroom set.
- If there is anything else you'd like to request, please fill out the PTO Wish List Google form
Main Office Slide Show - Thanks, Joe Budd!
- As you all now know, Joe Budd has graciously offered to create and maintain our main office slide show. He has been doing a WONDERFUL job! If there is anything specific you'd like for him to add, please reach out to him directly.
Do you have special plans for the last day of school?
- This day will be here before we know it! PLEASE help us prepare for this exciting day by letting us know if you have special plans for you and/or your grade level team (ie, having a pizza lunch in the classrooms). Please click here to fill out this Google form.
- Why do we need to know? For example, depending on how many choose to eat or not eat lunch in the cafe, we might "modify" the lunch schedule so there aren't large gaps of time. We would also send a message to parents to let them know in case they wanted to surprise their child for lunch. Thanks!
Summer Professional Development Request
- I noticed two great opportunities this summer!
- #1 - CLASS Summer Institute - http://www.indianaclass.com/images/2018_SI_Draft.pdf
- #2 - Balanced Math Framework (day 1) and The First 20 Days (day 2) - http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Summer-PD-in-math----choose-your-schedule.html?soid=1102258086691&aid=mWBcs90lONs
- Click here to request to attend either of these events!
Reminder - Restroom Procedures . . . PLEASE continue this practice, thanks!
- BEFORE your class starts a RR break in that location, please check (adult/teacher) BOTH girls and boys RR area and the stalls to ensure they are free of any objects (ie - lots of toilet paper stuffed in the toilets, crayons, etc . . . )
- Have one responsible boy and girl be the RR monitor the entire time and once your class is done, have him/her use the RR last
- Before the class leaves, please check (adult/teacher) the RR area all stalls one last time to ensure they are in good condition.
- Send students in PAIRS to use the RR, so that one student can be the "monitor" to ensure nothing inappropriate happens
- Please have a community circle w/ your class about the restrooms and to underscore if they notice something wrong to tell us immediately
ABM - Nightly Floor Pick-Up Request:
- Can you please ensure your students help at the end of the day with picking up as much as possible off the floor so the evening team can vacuum in an efficient manner?
- It's a domino effect. Typically, the custodian(s) have to stop while vacuuming and pick-up larger objects that clearly should have been moved . . . this delays their timeline in getting to the next classroom to clean. And then, IF the vacuum picks up a smaller foreign object, it could get "stuck" and causes the custodian to stop and try to repair the vacuum on the spot or go back downstairs and get a different vacuum. In extreme cases, they have had to call another building and ask to borrow their vacuum. All of this has a ripple effect in getting to the next room and/or multiple rooms.
Technology Work Orders - Reminder from Dan Layton
- It is always extremely helpful if you can submit actual technology work orders for any help you need. Please refrain from picking up the phone or emailing a question.
- The link is provided under the teacher section of the ZCS website or by clicking this link: https://thinkhelpdesk.com/zcs/LDAP_Login.cfm?Bad
Leaving EARLY afterschool and you've gotten permission from Connie/Martha . . .
- If this is the case for you, please help us by always emailing the entire office team to let them know you've gotten permission and also leave your cell # in the email message, in case we need to contact you.
- Who is the "office team?" Connie, Martha, Angie, Jen, Jessica, Hailey
Reminder About ABM Workorders
Did your trash not get picked up? Does it seem the carpet didn't get vacuumed? Please help Angie & Jen out by filling out an ABM workorder on your own. Thanks!
1. Go to the Zionsville web site
2. Click on Teachers/staff tab
3. Scroll down about halfway
4. You’ll see a section “Workorder Requests”
5. Click on Custodial workorder.
Personal Business Leave Google Form
- Please click here to access this form and then don't forget to SAVE this page under your "favorites."
- Finally, as a friendly reminder of our ZCS Personal Business Leave + good information to know for our newest staff, I have copied/pasted the email about personal days sent by Becky Coffman on 5/8/16. This is per our CBA - Collective Bargaining Agreement
- A. Amount – Each employee shall be entitled to be absent from work three (3) days each school year for the transaction of personal business or the conduct of personal or civic affairs. Such leaves may be used in whole or half day increments. Requests for personal business leave should be made 48 hours in advance in writing to the building principal. In cases of emergency or other similar unforeseen circumstance, requests may be made orally to both the substitute coordinator and the building principal.
- B. Employees are discouraged from using personal business leave on staff development days or to extend a school vacation. If used on a staff development day then the employee remains totally responsible for securing the learning lost from their being absent during that activity.
- C. Accumulation – If an employee does not use all of the personal business leave in a given school year, the remaining personal business leave shall be accumulated for use in later school year, except that no more than a total of two (2) days may be accumulated from earlier school years for use as personal business leave, so that the maximum total personal business leave available in any one school year is three (3) days earned during the school year and up to two (2) days accumulated from earlier school years or a total of five (5) days.
- D. Conversion to Sick Leave – Any unused personal business leave not accumulated for use in later years as personal business leave shall be added to the employee’s accumulated sick leave.
New Fundraising Program with PTO!
SGE is now part of the Coca-Cola Give program. This opens up Stonegate Elementary to new funding opportunities to help improve learning environments for students. The best part? Donations don’t come out of your own pocket.
When you make Coca-Cola purchases, you simply enter the product codes (found on bottle caps or paper packaging) here: https://us.coca-cola.com/give/schools/ and our school receives a donation.
Enter the code yourself or drop off your product codes at the front office and PTO will enter for you. Codes are found on all Coke products which include Dasani bottled water. Find the codes on the case packaging or bottle caps. START SAVING THOSE BOTTLE CAPS!
WELLNESS UPDATE: Kinesthetic Classroom Course - IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Feel free to join this course ANYTIME! The link is below and just like a commuter bus - you can jump on/off depending on how relevant it is to you - personally or professionally! https://zcs.instructure.com/courses/10486
JUMP ROPE FOR HEART has started! Please read this important message from Deb:
Teachers, Thank you for doing your part to help our students not only be heart smart but working together to save hearts! The American Heart Association has a plethora of lesson plans that can be incorporated into various curricular areas. Please see attached link.
http://american.heart.org/jump-hoops/for-teachers/lesson-plans/elementary-lesson-plans.html
Students are learning ways to take care of their hearts and helping those with a sick heart during their Wellness Class. Students will be earning little monsters along the way and are helping scare away heart disease! You can learn more about the friends we’re helping through the American Heart Association like Finn here: https://youtu.be/xyubaiVhLas
New this year, is the GREEN glow in the dark wristband students can earn just for registering on our school’s JRFH website (no donation needed). As a family, they will take a challenge online to be more heart healthy—either drink more water, eat more fruits/veggies or be more active. We have posters to promote this too—we want as many families as possible to become more heart healthy together. For the class with the most students signed up online, that teacher will earn either a $25 Starbucks or Amazon gift card (your choice!)
I would encourage you to sign up as well and take a heart-healthy pledge here: http://bit.ly/stonegatejump Thank you for your help and support!
Personal Fitness
April Birthdays . . . Happy Birthday to You!
April
2 – Pam Anyaebunam
13 – Gina Serbin
14 – Leslie Frobig
14 – Peggy Keener
23 - Joe Budd