Proctor Staff
Announcements and Updates, May 27, 2020
One Last SMORE!
Since this week is proving to be quite busy for all of us as we finish this last stretch of Distance Learning, I thought I would send out one last SMORE in lieu of a staff meeting since there are still info and reminders I need to share with you!
I'm sad that we are ending the school year this way, but feel grateful to be in this craziness with all of you! I can't imagine being anywhere else but here at Proctor. I know many of you are just counting the days to take a break and breathe a bit, while many of you are still busy packing up your classroom to move. Therefore, an end of the year social probably isn't possible (especially while we are still socially distancing), but I do hope we can begin the school year together! There is something special about coming together, over food and drinks that brings a bit of joy into our crazy busy world.
Please read the updates and information below. Since many of us will not able to travel this summer, there will be lots of opportunities to attend virtual PD's and/or participate on a variety of planning committees to help plan for the 2020-2021 school year.
Summer Check Out to Do's!
Check-in with Hilda to sign out your key for the summer or turn it in!
Student Placements Need to be Completed!
It's very important that your grade level teams finish making their classes for next school year.
During our last staff meeting, we agreed that you all could use your own draft of the attached document, then copy and past your final list into the link below.
Use this link to access the Student Placement Document
This document is designed it to give next year's teacher as much information as possible.
Please let me know if you have questions, or need guidance. Hilda needs these lists to input them into Aeries before she is off for Summer Break.
Curriculum Inventory
Use this Link to access the doc to take an inventory of what you have in your classrooms!
Summer Communication Platform!
Many of you have already downloaded this app at the beginning of the school year when we were dealing with the fires, smoke, and power outages. I will send quick announcements that will prompt you to check your email if the information communicated is lengthy.
Here is the Remind invite class code for those who have not joined: @ek674g
Measure G Updates
Here is where we are at with our current renovation timelines.....
- Those of you who are moving into newly renovated classrooms, and moving into the upper field portables have till the end of next week, the 5th to finish packing. Lynn is still working on wanting to schedule our moves for the 2nd week of June. Our moves will more than likely come in 3 phases. Portable teachers will be moved first into the Library building classrooms, then rooms 15-20 will be moved to the upper field portables.
- For those of you who are moving, label everything that needs to be taken to your new classroom. Label all furniture pieces with blue tape that also need to move with you. If there are pieces of furniture that you do not want to keep, and may need to be tossed label those "Garbage" or "Recycle." I will work with Maintenance to either pick them up or recycle them.
- As stated you have till the 5th to pack up. After that Friday, I NEED you to stay off campus for at least 2 weeks till about the 19th. PG&E will be here upgrading our power, so there will be lots of work electrical work happening. If you need to to come on campus, you must contact me and get clearance first. As soon as this work is completed I will send out communication to you all notifying you that may return to work on campus, but please make sure to be mindful of the Measure G work that will be continuing, along with the work that Kris and John will be busy doing.
- Hilda is currently working on creating a new phone/classroom list that will show which teacher will be in which room, along with phone extensions.
- All Measure G or Site facility questions and decisions need to go through me. Please communicate with me first about any Measure G questions you may have. If information does not come straight from me or Lynn, I can't guarantee its accuracy. Thank You!
- Over the Summer, the Art Center will be used to store all curriculum, and furniture during the Measure G renovations. We will also keep the Chromecarts stored in there till July.
- The Cafeteria has been painted, and new flooring has been installed. HVAC is now working on installing new heating and cooling. I will be working with the tech department to order a new automatic screen, sound system, and a ceiling mounted projector (using PTA funds just donated), so please stay out of this area.
- As you can see the school has been painted. This continues to be a work in progress, and will continue to throughout the summer. So if you see mistakes or what seem to be imperfections, they will be fixed! A full school facelift takes lots of time!
- I will continue to send updates about the Measure G work throughout the summer to keep you all informed!
Summer PD, and Planning for 2020-2021
A word from the Ed Services Department.......
The 2019-20 school year is almost at an end, and we want to thank you for all the wonderful instruction, care, and love that you have provided to our students and colleagues. During the third trimester of this year, we were asked to transition our traditional PreK-12 public school system into a new modern learning environment focused on 100% distance learning overnight, and you all answered the call like the education champions that you are. The learning curve has been steep for all of us. We continue to try to flatten that curve daily as we practice new technical and engagement skills and teach content in a virtual setting, balancing this with our family needs, and trying to #self-care whenever there is time. We are living a “New Normal”.
Given this new normal, the Elementary Planning Team 2020-21 has been hard at work discussing the parameters of multiple scenarios that might work well for the 2020-21 school year, thinking through what type of critical professional learning staff will need during the summer to have a successful school year, strategizing about the workgroups that need to be formed in order to have curriculum, instruction, assessment, social-emotional supports, and community partnerships ready for the beginning of the school year, and beginning to understand that the state budget challenges will impact the district’s 2020-21 budget.
With all of that in mind and our limited professional development funding for this current school year, we have come up with the following paid or pink card credit summer Workgroup Teams that we need folks to sign-up for if you are interested in participating. The Teams will be asked to work intensely over a two-week period to develop the product or carry out the work. We are planning for each workgroup to be representative of the elementary schools, focused, timely and fun:
Grade Level Teams to Build Playlists - Continue to determine Essentials and Build grade level ELA and Math playlists (virtual lesson plans that are calibrated across the district and made available to all teachers). This workgroup will help to create calibrated on-line grade level lesson plans that will be used across the district to help ensure consistency, cadence, quality, and rigor across grade levels. There is an ongoing professional learning component included with this workgroup. Here is a link to begin to understand Playlists more: Playlist Video
Assessing students in ELA and Math - Virtual and In-Person (if safely allowed by county/state standards) assessments will be carried out over the summer so we can start to gauge where our students currently are, if there has been learning loss, and what type of intervention might be needed in a mid-July 2-week early back booster summer school and/or interventions during the school year.
Grade Span Teams to Build SEL & PBIS Playlists - Continue to determine critical SEL and behavioral needs and build social, emotional and behavior playlists (virtual lesson plans that are calibrated across the district and made available to all teachers). This workgroup will help to create calibrated on-line grade level lesson plans that will be used across the district to help ensure consistency, cadence, quality, and rigor across grade levels. There is an ongoing professional learning component included with this workgroup.
Science Committee continues to work on TCI integration with ELA - Members of the Science Review Committee and other interested teachers will continue their work to be ready for the first trimester of the 2020-21 school year.
Report Card Committee Work -
If we need to continue with a distance learning setting, this committee will work on what needs to change on our report card.
If we are able to physically be on campus, this committee will work on the simple tweaks we need to make the report card an enhanced communication tool with parents.
Please let us know if you would like to be part of one of the working groups this summer, starting the second week of June 2020 (we know you might need a break right after school gets out on May 29 through the first week of June) by simply going to the link below and filling out the requested survey information. We may stagger the starting times of the workgroups so we can be as organized as possible.
In addition to the workgroup teams, we also need to know if folks are willing to participate in paid or pink card credit professional development this summer. The training would be done in an asynchronous manner, meaning you would engage in professional learning modules via an online platform without real time interaction. You would independently participate and complete the modules at your own pace (morning, noon, night or weekends) within a certain timeframe to be more prepared for the 2020-21 school year. This is similar to Keenan training, but a different educational platform will be used. There will be a simple accountability exit ticket built into the module, and each person will earn a completion certificate. YAY!
Based on feedback this year and the Elementary Planning Team’s input, the following topics are what we are considering to provide for your easy virtual access/learning this summer:
Creating Playlists (virtual/engaging lessons) and Accessing Digital Resources,
Creating Engaging Online Classroom Space
How to organize a distance learning classroom
Connecting and Maintaining Relationship with Students in a Distance Learning setting
Creative Ways for Students to Show What They Know and Demonstrate Learning
Training Parents & Students in eLearning
Getting Face-to-Face Virtually
Enhancing Your Online Technical Skills, including the Google Suite and Learning Management System (LMS)
Social-emotional Support & Engagement,
Social-Emotional & Trauma-informed Practices and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES)
Meeting the Needs of All Learners (ELs, SPED, 504, etc.)
How to Carry Out Small Group Virtual Work
Digital Citizenship for Student and Classroom Organization
Please let us know if you are willing to participate in paid or pink card credit professional learning modules this summer starting the second week of June 2020 (we know you might need a break right after school gets out on May 29 through the first week of June) by simply again going to the link below and filling out the requested information.
Finally teachers, please let us know what you believe are the top 3-5 grade level content areas to teach/cover during the first trimester of the school year, especially if we are in a distance learning scenario. Please fill in your responses at the link below. This information will greatly support the Grade Level Working Group to complete its tasks during the summer.
**Important to note, you can be a member of one of the working groups and still participate in the Professional Learning modules that are being offered asynchronously. Here is the link for all info. to be submitted: Elementary Staff Survey for Summer Workgroups and Professional Learning 2020
We know that this is a lot of information at once, and we also know that the end of the year is approaching quickly, and it is critical to get information out to folks before the last day of school.
All of the work from the workgroups and participation in the professional learning modules is going to be work worth doing. It is essential to a successful 2020-21 school year!
By Thursday, May 28 at Noon, can you please read this entire email, fill out the requested information/surveys, and if you have any questions, please ask your principal. If they do not have an answer, they will ask me, and I will do my best to give sensible responses that they can share with you.
In partnership,
Nia Rashidchi