Conrad/Thomas Jefferson Tribune
WEEK OF OCTOBER 7-11, 2019
OCTOBER IS PRINCIPALS MONTH!
Help me in celebrating this October as we honor the hard work and dedication of our elementary Cluster principals all month long.
National Principals Month is your opportunity to say “thank you” to principals and to share with the community all the great things that principals do.
The key to student success is a great school, and the key to a great school is a great principal- the instructional leader.
On behalf of Ms. Porter, Ms. Singer and I, Thank you, principals, for all you do every day for our nested learning community. You are appreciated!
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP/NORTHWEST GOALS & CORE VALUES
A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Illustrious Leaders,
Thank you for such a productive Northwest Network meeting on Thursday. I would also like to thank Ms. Porter for her commitment to our scholars and leaders with her leadership at our cluster training.
I was extremely pleased with our teams’ collaborative spirit and efforts towards collaboration and feedback that was witnessed with your peers in the network. It was evident that the collaboration added value to each of your instructional lenses.
During our network meeting you analyzed the common assessment data with the test in hand to see areas of opportunity and growth alongside taking a deeper dive into the PLC rubric with exemplars. I appreciate your resilience and dedication to EXCELLENCE AND EQUITY FOR ALL OUR SCHOLARS!
We also engaged in professional development with the Personalized Learning Department regarding Blended Learning From that experience, hopes are that you were able to glean areas that were confirming and areas of improvement so that your campus improvement plans can be revised utilizing blended learning across all core content areas on your campuses so our scholars can be more proficient in the use of technology.
Stephen Covey's message continues with highlighting habits with this week's habit: Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood.
Stephen Covey believes this principle is the key to effective interpersonal communication. This habit is about communicating with others. It's about developing the habit of listening carefully and really understanding the other person BEFORE giving your thoughts. This is not easy to learn to do. In my practice I've often heard people saying that no-one really understands what they're feeling. If you're a parent you might hear that from your own children. Communication is the most important skill in life. You spend years learning how to read and write, and years learning how to speak. But what about listening? What training have you had that enables you to listen so you really, deeply understand another human being? Probably none, right?
This is because we often feel compelled to give an opinion or to give advice to someone in need. If you're like most people, you probably seek first to be understood; you want to get your point across. And in doing so, you may ignore the other person completely, pretend that you're listening, selectively hear only certain parts of the conversation or attentively focus on only the words being said, but miss the meaning entirely. So why does this happen? Most people listen with the intent to reply, not to understand. You listen to yourself as you prepare in your mind what you are going to say, the questions you are going to ask, etc. You filter everything you hear through your life experiences, your frame of reference. You check what you hear against your autobiography and see how it measures up. And consequently, you decide prematurely what the other person means before he/she finishes communicating. Do any of the following sound familiar?
Because you so often listen autobiographically, you tend to respond in one of four ways (graphic organizer below):
· Evaluating: You judge and then either agree or disagree.
· Probing: You ask questions from your own frame of reference.
· Advising: You give counsel, advice, and solutions to problems.
· Interpreting: You analyze others' motives and behaviors based on your own experiences.
· Interpreting: You analyze others' motives and behaviors based on your own experiences.
This habit really captures the humor that becomes apparent when we realize the ways we often "listen" and respond, even when we have good intentions.
So start practicing this right now. Have fun with it! In your next conversation with someone put your natural and automatic responses aside and focus on genuinely understanding them. Ask questions such as "Tell me more..." or "What happened next...?" You'll find that when you 'seek first to understand' your response might be different to what you expect, and that you start finding the creative solutions and third alternatives described in Habit 4.
Thank you Principal Leaders for being the leader that you are and continue to be, the hard work you do daily and many hardly notice, your dedication to the work of educating our scholars, setting high expectations for yourself and your staff and most importantly for being the instructional leader that you are. I am proud to be your lead alongside each and every one of you!
How many of you can relate to the above?
Covey summarizes this beautifully. "If I were to summarize in one sentence the single most important principle I have learned in the field of interpersonal relations, it would be this: Seek first to understand, then to be understood."
Here's to another great week of teaching and learning!
Ms. Torres
Emmett Conrad/Thomas Jefferson Executive Director
SEEK FIRST TO UNDERSTAND THEN TO BE UNDERSTOOD GRAPHIC ORGANIZER!
WEEKLY UPDATES
MONDAY, OCTOBER 7
Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Burnett
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Saldivar
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Foster
- PK-2 Early Literacy PD for ALL teachers PK-2-8:30-11:30@ Joe May
Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Jill Stone
Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Jack Lowe
- NEW Principal Meeting-Districtwide
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9
Principal and AP congratulatory luncheon from Ms. Paschall-@ Joe May-12:00
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Joe May
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Cigarroa
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10
Principal For a Day
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-Foster
- Campus visit w/ED and ILCs-McShan
- Principal for a Day Reception-3:30-5:00 p.m.
Elementary Parent Conference Night
- Elementary Fair Day-NO SCHOOL!
- BOY TX-KEA for Kindergarten Deadline
PEI CHECKPOINT #2 PRINCIPAL SCHEDULE!
Principal for the Day
PEIMS SNAPSHOP DATE
Reminder that October 25 is PEIMS snapshot date.
The PEIMS snapshot date is October 25th. You will receive a weekly report every Friday during the month of October. Please ensure that you meet 100% on PEIMS. If you foresee any problems with completing ARDs by October 26th, please let me know. Thank you
SOCIO -ECONOMIC FORMS COLLECTED AND ENTERED
Please REMEMBER to collect and enter all socio-economic forms before Thursday, October 25th to ensure optimal funding and appropriate measures for 2019 Accountability.
Elementary Parent Conference Night October 14th
SWAG NIGHT @ JOE MAY ES OCTOBER 29th
THE LEADER IN ME
SPOTLIGHT CAMPUSES OF THE WEEK!
CAMPUS AWARDS OF THE WEEK GO TO..............
Best Campus Support Personnel!
Ms. Young at Lee McShan ES
BEST CLIMATE AND CULTURE AWARD!
MCSHAN ELEMENTARY!
'LOOK FORWARD PLC AWARD!
CLASSROOM DATA WALL EXEMPLARS
JACK LOWE
REVISED INCIDENT REPORTING FOR ADMINISTRATORS
INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO RESOURCES
Thinking Maps ~ October ~ The Flow Map
Thinking Maps Lead to Authentic Student Writing
Using the Flow Map with English Language Learners
CONRAD/THOMAS JEFFERSON WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS
Foster ES & Community Partners Supports Families
Content Leadership Team Digging into the Data
"Education Go Get It Week" at Cigarroa ES
CIC COnference ~ Institute For Learning (IFL) Content Deep Dive
Jose "Joe" May ES Faculty and Staff Bond with Painting with a Twist
Mr. Turner & A-Team served as hosts.
Network Meeting at Conrad High SChool
Saldivar ES Celebrate Custodians: "Thank You for Keeping Our Campus Safe & Clean for Learning!
UPDATE-TEI NEWS FOR TEACHERS!
THE CORE 4
Dallas ISD is 20,000 staff members strong, and each one is vital to the work being accomplished in the district. Through the district’s commitment to exemplary customer service, each member is focused on serving 157,000 students and their families by delivering professional, high-quality service in everything we do.
At the heart of great customer service for each district employee are the four tenets of customer service--the Core 4: focused, fast, flexible, and friendly. These principles, also, are key to forging a positive culture within the organization as they are applied, internally, colleague to colleague, as well as to students, families, taxpayers, and the entire community.
It is a strong commitment that goes beyond the conversation about what exemplary customer service looks like becoming the norm for the way we operate in the district every day.
COMPLIANCE VIDEOS
The window for both the annual policy acknowledgement and the compliance training videos, will open on September 3, 2019. October 31, 2019 is the deadline to complete both the annual policy acknowledgement and the compliance training. See the WAIP 08/01/19.
Future Important Dates to Remember
2020 LEADER IN ME SYMPOSIUM
BENCHMARK ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (K-2)
SWAG NIGHTS (K-5) & Specials Teachers
SWAG SPECIALIST TEAM LEADS
PRINCIPALS OF LEARNING FOCUS
Remember to Post Standard and Rubric with Student Work in the Hallways
Reading ILC Corner
Why is Guided Reading Important?
Both good and struggling readers benefit from guided reading. Whole group instruction has its place in literacy programs, but there are great benefits to students who are given the opportunity to have differentiated, teacher-led instruction in a small group setting. There, the teacher's goal is to assist students in developing an understanding of what they are reading, and also to encourage students to apply strategies they will need to become independent readers.
Use the Button below to read the full article.
Math ILC Corner
Grade 3-5 Math Focus
Properties of Multiplication to Generate Strategies
Expiration Rules in Division
Science ILC Corner
FALL 2019 TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES
Oracle Finance Systems and Payroll classes are also available. ATS is now offering a new Open Lab for iExpense. The attached schedule of classes is on our website at: https://www.dallasisd.org/ATS.
See the WAIP 7/18/2019 for more information
IMPORTANT LINKS & INFORMATION TO READ
Let't Nominate Our Scholars!
100% Scholar Participation in Clubs or Extracurricular Activities in Pre-K-5th Grades
Ensure that all students have an opportunity to participate in their 1st club or extracurricular activity by November 25, 2019.
OCTOBER
15-District Principals Meeting-Edision@8:00-5:00 p.m.
15-PK-2 Early Literacy PD for ALL teachers PK-2-8:30-11:30
17-PK-2 Early Literacy PD for ALL teachers PK-2-8:30-11:30
19-Jack Lowe Fall Carnival
22-PK-2 Early Literacy PD for ALL teachers PK-2-8:30-11:30
24-25-Changing the Odds Conference-ILCs and Principals
24-25-Ms. Torres out for Immersion
31-Last day to take and pass Compliance Videos
NOVEMBER
4-Practice Lab @ Teaching Trust to work with a TT Coach-for 45 minutes(if you want a 90 min lab, you could schedule a block for your team to attend- 5:30-8:15 p.m.
7-Network Day
JANUARY, 2020
9-Network Day
FEBRUARY
21-State of the District Address @ Omni Hotel-@10:00
27-Network Day
APRIL
16-Network Day
JUNE
4-Network Day
10-Principal Luncheon
MARSHALL MEMO #804
Unexpected Insights from “Underperforming” Students
In this article in The Reading Teacher, veteran literacy educator Cynthia Ballenger describes two students, Darius and Cesar, who didn’t seem “with” her as she taught reading, who fooled around, whom she corrected a lot, and whom other teachers said were not performing well. Ballenger made a practice of taking notes as she worked with students in small groups, so she has a detailed record of her interactions with these students – and how they ended up surprising her with previously unseen strengths. “I do not want to accuse anyone else,” she says. “However, as someone who is frequently in and out of many classrooms, I can verify that the sort of thing I will describe happens all the time in many subject areas and in the very best classrooms.”
• Darius – Ballenger describes working with a group of three fifth- and sixth-grade boys on the Jerry Spinelli book, Maniac Magee. Two of the students gave what seemed like the correct answer to a question she asked, but Darius’s response was completely different and seemed wrong. Questioned about another passage, the other boys gave “correct” answers and Darius came up with something completely different, more focused on the smells and sights in the passage (beer and urine) than the inferential meaning Ballenger was looking for (racism). “He seemed to almost be in the smelly room,” says Ballenger, puzzled.
“Herein lay the problem,” she says. “I knew that Darius was an intelligent student, yet I was likely to stay with my initial assessment that he was missing something. Instead, what I needed to do was to explore the possibility that Darius was responding this way not because there was something better he could not yet do, but because his response was what he found useful, powerful, and compelling. I needed to ask, Why does he respond the way he does? What does it get him? Then, perhaps the most important question: What might I see if I tried his way?”
Reflecting further, Ballenger realized that she was intent on getting students to see the abstract meanings, the “explanatory principle” of the book, pushing for a “distanced response.” Darius resisted because he was so engrossed with the story, including having a crush on Amanda Beale, one of the characters. “It seems to me that there should be a way to join both of these response types,” says Ballenger, “that a real appreciation of literature should not privilege the abstract, the distanced, from emotional engagement and, in this particular case, from pain. Darius had a lot to offer all students. His ability to connect with literature was in fact strong and vital; he was able to forge useful and supportive connections to an understanding. Yet, instead, from me (and, I believe, from other teachers), he was receiving a message that his approaches to literature and perhaps in other areas of school were less useful, less powerful than those of others.”
• Cesar – Ballenger had been working with this boy for several years, and knew that his home situation was not ideal and he was doing poorly in his classes. Teachers frequently sent him to Ballenger when he misbehaved. Ballenger had her class reading Louis Sachar’s book, There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom, a book about Bradley, a boy who does poorly in school, gets in trouble, has no friends, and develops a close bond with a school counselor. During a discussion about first- and third-person narratives, Cesar raised his hand and asked, “Why doesn’t Bradley say I?” Ballenger explained the narrative style of the book, but Cesar was insistent that since Bradley was the protagonist and the story was told from his perspective, the narrative should be first-person. Like Darius, Cesar was deeply engrossed in the story, and for him the lesson about narrative style missed an important critique.
A week or so later, Cesar disagreed with his classmates, saying that There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom was nonfiction. “We stopped,” says Ballenger. “The other students remonstrated. They told him that it could be real, but it was not. There could be a boy like Bradley, but there was no such boy. They were very nice and very clear, but Cesar did not move an inch. He just disagreed. He said repeatedly that the book was true, nonfiction.” Ballenger was stunned and uncertain what to do. Out of curiosity, she picked a private moment and had Cesar sort a few books into fiction and nonfiction piles, and he did so correctly.
Some time later, Ballenger had an epiphany: she remembered reading a book and feeling, “This really happened. This isn’t the author’s art or imagination. This really happened to the author.” That was what Cesar felt about the Louis Sachar book. It turns out that Sachar wrote There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom shortly after getting married to a school counselor, and he used his wife’s real name, Carla, in the book. “Cesar was on to something,” says Ballenger. “Sachar was trying especially hard to be true to something in his life. It may be fiction, but it also appears to be true.”
At this point, she concludes, “I had gained a lot of insight into the book from Cesar. He showed me things that I had not seen in it. He also showed me that he knew the conventional definitions of fiction and nonfiction but that there may be nuances I should consider. I had increased respect for the quality and energy of his reading… Cesar was determined to tell us, when he refused to accept that the book was fiction, that the author was writing what felt true. What made Cesar feel that? How did he know this about Sachar’s writing in this book? I wish I had discussed all this with him and then with the class. We could also have wondered with Cesar why Bradley did not say I. Why was this book not written in the first person? Cesar could have led us into many areas of literary discussion. He deserved to shine.”
EMMETT J. CONRAD/THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
- Jack Lowe Elementary: Principal, Sandra Barrios
- Jill Stone : Principals, Rosalinda Pratt & Selena Deboskie
- Highland Meadows: Principal, JoAnna Bahena
- David G. Burnet Elementary: Principal, Sonia Loskot
- Leonides Cigarroa Elementary : Principal, Douglas Burak
- Stephen C. Foster Elementary: Principal, Irma De La Guardia
- Joe May Elementary: Principal, Rosseven Nava
- K.B. Polk Elementary: Principal, Kourtnei Billups
- Julian T. Saldivar: Principal, Edgar Jaramillo
- Walnut Hill Elementary: Principal, Phillip Potter
- McShan Elementary: Principal, Joseph Medaris