Friday Focus
September 13, 2019
Excellent Teaching and Learning at Every Moment of Every day for Everyone
Principal's message
Greetings Team!
It was so great to be back this week and witness the amazing experiences you are creating for students! I mean, Cabo was great and all, but it doesn't compare to the environment you create here on a daily basis! Here are just a few of the examples of how we are engaging students:
- Student challenges during morning meetings
- House competitions designed around learning targets
- Reveal of classroom libraries
- Cheers, chants, and songs to remember important skills
- Creation of e-portfolios (all grade levels should be adding a reading and math examples each 6 weeks)
- Inquire projects with...food!
- Grade-level partnerships
And so much more! Let's keep setting the stage to engage! Be the Wild Card for your students and Beck and don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone! And remember, ALL students deserve for us to meet them where they are. Therefore, differentiation is KEY! Now that we are 4 weeks in, we should be using all the differentiation strategies that we learned about last year: Tiered Tasks, student voice/choice, Depth and Complexity, Compacting, flexible grouping, etc. Let's not lose our momentum. If you need support, please don't hesitate to ask. We should see these strategies being utilized in EVERY classroom.
Looking forward to another great week!
Always True Blue,
S. Conklin
Quote for the Week
Our mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; And to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style"
~ Maya Angelou
T-TESS Reminders
Please make sure you start scheduling your T-TESS pre-conference, Observations, and post conferences. Our calendars book up quickly, so even if you are not scheduled until Nov. it helps to get it on the schedule. New teachers must also schedule a goal conference. Please send an invite to your appraiser by Oct. 18th.
If you do not see your name on the appraisal list, please let me know. Below is the assignments and deadlines. It is also posted in our google classroom. All teachers need to complete Teacher Self Report I and goals. If you are opting for the alternative appraisal this year, please complete the form in edugence. Thanks!
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/110SexDCMY4B6r3VnhKbi7g_4AO5Dc-lsv2gzH5Ntbxs/edit?usp=sharing
Shout Out
Teachers and staff at Beck are constantly doing amazing work to help make this a great learning community. We want to recognize those that go out of their way, or above and beyond the call of duty, etc. to make Beck a special place. This could be a kind act towards a colleague, a unique way of engaging students, or any other reason you feel deserves a special recognition. Please use the link below to recognize your peers. Please make sure that you complete the form by Thursday at 3:00 so that it will make the Friday Focus for that week.
Need to Know
One of the suggestions made during our firs SEL Task force meeting was to create an opportunity for staff to share things that entire staff that they wanted them to know. This could be a need for thoughts, or prayers, a celebration, etc. Below is the Link if you would like to share something. Please make sure that you completed it by Thursday, 3:00 of each week to make it in that week of the Friday Focus.
Beck Brilliance Hashtag Award
The Beck Brilliance Hashtag Award will be given weekly to the teacher who shares a profound tweet, or example of student engagement. The current holder of the Hashtag will choose the next recipient. When tweeting, please use the @BeckElem handle and #BeckTrueBlue, #WildAtBeck.
COMING NEXT WEEK! WE ARE REHABING OUR HASHTAG.
Campus/District Goals
Campus Goal:
Mastery and Meets performance for each grade-level cohort as measured by STAAR will increase by 10% in grades 3-5; K-2 mastery performance will be measured by the EOY goal in DRA2 for ELA . Mastery performance for campus developed EOY math inventory will be at 50% in grades K-2.
Problem of Practice:
In order to improve and maximize student achievement and raise the level of mastery and Meets performance levels, teachers must routinely design and implement differentiated experiences for all students, so that we can provide equitable access to content at appropriate levels of student readiness (cognitive demand) while meeting the unique needs of our learners.
Superintendent's Priority Goals:
1. PK-12 Grade Literacy: NISD will place increase emphasis on literacy across all grade levels and content areas to help ensure that all students are reading on or above grade level.
2. Masters Level Performance: NISD will develop specific target goals for each STAAR/SOC assessment that places an emphasis on students reaching the "Masters" level distinction.
3. College, Career, and Life Readiness: NISD will ensure that every student is progressing toward achieving CCR status, experiencing personalized learning opportunities, and developing social-emotional skills in order to attain their definition of personal success.
4. PBMAS Emphasis: NISD will increase academic success of students within Performance Based Monitoring Analysis System subgroups.
Important Dates
Sept. 17 - General PTA Mtg. 4:30, Curriculum Night 5:30-6:30, Watch D.O.G.S Kick-off 6:30