BAMS Staff Newsletter
April 26, 2015 - Volume 2, Issue 29
It's a Great Day to Be Great!
Bessie Allen Middle School - SLO & Goals
Building SLO:
By June of 2015, 80% of students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade will show growth in their opinion writing sample rubric score from the September 2014 writing benchmark based on the school developed writing rubric (adapted from the Smarter Balanced writing rubric).
Goal Update: Here are the results from our mid-year assessment
6th Grade - 61% of students showed growth; overall achievement increased 14%
7th Grade - 69% of students showed growth; overall achievement increased 12%
8th Grade - 57% of students showed growth; overall achievement increased 3%
School wide - 62% of students showed growth
Building Goals:
DPI School of Recognition
PBIS School of Merit
Routinely Take Literacy Risks
Be a CEO
Driving Question for 2014-2015:
What have we changed with our instruction to prepare our students for the Badger Exam assessment (and other higher level thinking opportunities)?
Goals for SSR and SSW
- Provide a time for every student in our building to read and write.
- Ensure this time is a positive part of our students' day.
News and Notes
- STAR Testing, Last Benchmark - Our last STAR Window is approaching. Please see the dates below. I'll discuss with teams about their plan for completing these assessments. We had great gains on our mid-year assessment. I'm very excited to see where we are at the end of the year.
- We will be hiring a 50% 6th grade teacher for next school year. The 6th grade team and I have been in discussions about needs and what this role will look like. The posting closes on May 8th. The interview team is assembling. :) It would be great to find the right person before the school year is out.
- BAMS Building Budget - I turned in our building budget for next year with a 10% decrease. Most of this 10% was taken out of the Office of the Principal budget item. I felt this would have the least amount of impact on students and staff. I'm happy to sit down with anyone to discuss your budget for next year.
- As we talked about at the staff meeting last week, I don't anticipate any major changes to the schedule for next year. We will tweak and reevaluate some scheduling components. The School Improvement Team will be discussing some of these changes at our next meeting. Please propose an idea and a solution if you have something that you want considered.
- The PLTW Team is set to meet on 2 different days in May. The team consist of Todd Whittaker, Kim Broten, Brandon Switz, Beth Stroede, Adam Broten, Linda Wodsedalek, and Tom Kiser. Todd Whittaker has also begun to receive training for the PLTW course we will be offering for next year. You'll be hearing more about our model at Bessie Allen as we move forward.
- Summer School Room Assignments - For this summer, all HS classes, 6-12 weight lifting classes, and our MS work completion class will be held at Horace Mann. All other classes will be held at BAMS. A lot goes into scheduling classes and assigning room assignments for summer school. Thank you for being understanding to this. I'm considering all rooms as options for classes this summer. Once assignments are complete, I will get this information out to you.
- 6th Grade Transition dates are set. Please see the dates below. I'm excited to get our incoming 6th graders into the building.
Out of the Office
- April 27th - 1:45-2:35pm - Honor's Study Hall
- April 28th - 9-11am - Admin Team Meeting - DMR
- May 6th - 8:30am - BAMS BCT Meeting
- May 15th - 8:30am - District ELL Meeting - Deb's Office
Oriole Way - Be Ready, Be Respectful, Be Safe
- How many BAMS Bucks have you given out this month?
- How many GREAT forms have you filled out this month?
- If you need behavioral data for a student, please contact an Oriole Way Team member.
- NEXT Meeting - April 29th, 7am
OASYS and Teacher Effectiveness
- 2 Classroom Visits - Due by May 1st *These visits will be represented in your documentation log.
- Documentation Log - Due by May 1st
- End of Year Conferences for Year 3/New Educators - Due by May 31st
- SLO - Due by May 15th or when data is available
Click Here for a link to Teacher Effectiveness Info from CESA 6
Click Here for a Teacher Effectiveness Calendar for EDUCATORS/SPECIALISTS
Dates to Remember
May 4-May 8 - Teacher Appreciation Week
May 4-May 15 - STAR Testing Window III
May 6 - Spring Band Concert 6:30pm
May 7 - Mid-Quarter Grades Due 7am
May 8 - Early Release 12:45pm-3pm
May 11 - School Board Meeting, 7pm
May 12 - 6th Grade Orientation Night, 5:30-7:30pm
May 13 - Spring Choral Concert 6:30pm
May 13 - Writing Sample Benchmark #3 for Building SLO
May 15 - BAMS Medal of Excellence Names to Jennifer
May 18 - BAMS Honors Reception 6pm
May 20 - 5th Graders Visit BAMS, 9-11am
May 22 - Pep Assembly 1:45pm *5th Graders in attendance
May 25 - No School
May 27 - Staff Meeting 2:50-3:30pm
May 28 - Oriole Leaders Meeting 10:40-11:40am
*See Google Doc titled "2014-2015 BAMS Yearly Calendar" for a look at events for the entire year.
Staff Meeting Agenda
Staff Meeting: May 8th - 12:50-1:15pm - DMR
Agenda:
???
Next Meeting: May 27th - 2:50-3:30pm - DMR
Parent Link Messages
We use a system called Parent Link to send mass messages to families. Please let me know if you need anything communicated.
Messages sent this week:
- Badger Exam Testing Date Reminders - various days throughout the month
- Summer School Registration Reminder