D34 What's News?
December 7, 2018
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LAST CHANCE TO Give Strategic Plan Input
D34: This is BIG: We are setting the direction of our future! The Strategic Planning Team met on November 13 to start forming the strategic plan and meets again on December 13 to finalize it.
Here is the draft strategic plan. Read it. Reflect on it. Do you agree with the mission, vision, values and goals? Does it speak to the future that you want for District 34, your students, yourself?
If so, let the team know. If not, give your suggestions on what needs to change. Either way, take this survey - it will take about 10 minutes. The survey closes on Sunday, December 9.
Illinois 5Essentials Teacher Survey: Coming To Your Inbox
Sometime on or around December 11, many of you will receive an email with a link to take the Illinois 5Essentials Teacher Survey. Please don't delete! This survey, required to be administered by all school districts in Illinois, will allow you to share your views about your school and will provide important information about its learning conditions and organizational culture. The results will be part of the state report card for your school.
This survey is based on the Five Essentials for School Success, an evidence-based framework developed by the University of Chicago. This framework identifies how school performance on five factors or “essentials” can lead to important student outcomes, including improved attendance and larger test score gains. Prior research has shown that schools strong on three or more of the 5Essentials were 10 times more likely to improve student learning gains than schools weak on three or more of the Essentials. Those 5Essentials are:
- Effective Leaders
- Collaborative Teachers
- Involved Families
- Supportive Environment
- Ambitious Instruction
Look for the Email!
The email will come from the state's 5Essentials survey administrator, UChicago Impact, and will include your unique username and passcode. The survey will be sent to classroom teachers, or those certified teachers who work in any of the following roles:
- Case Managers, Counselors and Social Workers
- Instructional Coaches
- Librarians
- Reading Specialists
- Special Education Teachers working in a single classroom or across classrooms
- Speech-Language Pathologists
- Teacher Aides, Paraprofessionals, and CCTs (Cooperating Classroom Teachers)
Administrators, substitute teachers, and student teachers will not receive an email to take the survey.
All responses are completely confidential. No names or other unique identifiers are connected with individual responses or used in any report. You can find information on the confidentiality of the survey on the 5Essentials website.
If you don't receive an email, but think that you should be included in the survey, please contact Cathy Kedjidjian (ckedjidjian@glenview34.org) for instructions on taking a provisional survey.
GEF Spring Grant Application Deadline is March 11, 2019
Last school year, the Glenview Education Foundation awarded thousands of dollars in grants. This year GEF is looking to award $150,000 in grants! Don’t miss the opportunity to submit your ideas for the Spring 2019 grant cycle. Visit GEF’s website for more information, including sample grant applications from prior years:
GEF’s Grant Committee School Liaisons can help refine ideas, collaborate with administration, and assist you with the application process. Contact your school’s liaison if you need any assistance:
- Attea: Chiara Andrews, chiaraandrews@gmail.com
- Springman: Elyce Ventura, elycev@gmail.com
- Henking: Nicky Stannard, nickyhstannard@comcast.net
- Pleasant Ridge: JD Lathrop, lathrop33@hotmail.com
- Westbrook: Vibha Gupta, vibhag@gmail.com
- Lyon: Chris Rettig, crettig@gmail.com
- Hoffman: Megan McClung, mhmcclung@gmail.com
- Glen Grove: Mike Zimmerman, zimmdad@gmail.com
Attention all previous grant recipients: We love hearing updates from you! Be sure to share anecdotes, photos, videos or your full grant report with us at grants@gef34.org. Thank you!
D34 Mentor Program
Certified Staff: Update Your Credentials
Update Your Personal Information with Human Resources
To ensure that you receive important information from the District, please provide any name, address, or phone number changes to Dori Browne in Human Resources at dbrowne@glenview34.org or x5016.
The calling system used by the District for emergency and snow days is based upon this information. If a staff member does not provide updated information, he or she will not receive those calls. You can check your personal information by logging into:
- The Staff Directory on the Intranet
- Skyward Employee Access
Thanks for your assistance in keeping our records current!
BCBS Fitness Program - No Enrollment Fee in December 2018
Staff members enrolled in one of the District’s Medical plans through BCBS IL are eligible to participate in the BCBS Well on Target Fitness Program. This program allows you to use one of their 10,000 participating facilities for a cost of $25/month. For December 2018, anyone who enrolls in the program will not have to pay the enrollment fee! Click here to view the brochure, which contains more information about the program.
To snag your free enrollment, log in to BAM at bcbsil.com and search for the Fitness Program under Quick Links. You will need to enter the code “FIT4DEC” during enrollment to join for free before December 31. If you have any questions or prefer to enroll over the phone, call 888-762-BLUE (2583) Monday through Friday, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., CT (6 a.m. and 6 p.m., MT).
ESL/Bilingual Endorsement
(Job)Share & Share Alike
The Constitution states that full time, tenured teachers may apply for participation in the Job Share Program in accordance with a process developed and monitored by the Personnel
Committee. The purpose of the Job Share Program is to provide the opportunity for tenured staff members to contribute to the District in a flexible manner.
Job sharing differs from part-time employment. When job sharing, two teachers assume complete responsibility for one full-time position. The professional responsibilities, required by the District, are not divided - both teachers are required to meet the professional obligations of all full-time teachers. The District and entire school community benefits from the knowledge and expertise of both staff members. Teachers who job share retain their tenure and seniority status and have a guarantee to return to a full-time position when the job share ends.
Job Postings
Visit Frontline to learn more or apply for any of the positions listed:
Certified Staff
- Long-Term Sub: PE Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Special Education Resource Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Language Arts Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Science Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Early Childhood SpEd Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Band Teacher
- Long-Term Sub: Educational Life Skills Teacher
Support Staff
- Associate
- Long-Term Sub: Part-Time Night Custodian
Those who support fifth grade students:
We are LEARNERS, we are OBSERVERS, we are PRACTITIONERS... #WEARED34 WRITERS!
Through a GEF grant, over 50 K-5 educators have been coming together to strengthen and raise the level of writing across our district. Teachers, Mandy Freer (WB), Allie Greene (HO), Shannon McKerr (LY), Laura Zerull (PR), and Instructional Coaches, Samantha Eiseman, Adrienne Hoffer and Barrie Shinsky, have designed a unique professional opportunity for colleagues to learn together over the course of a year through a cohort model
The model was built on the beliefs that, “Professional development can transform the teaching of writing in your building. Professional development will be the heartbeat of your school. It should be intense, collaborative, collegial, and practical. It should be focused on strengthening teachers’ methods and spirits. It should be varied in form, flexible,and responsive. Good professional development creates lasting communities of practice” (Ehrenworth & Calkins, 2016).
When the cohort meets, participants:
- learn about an aspect of the writing workshop
- experience the workshop as a writer
- attend a live learning lab to observe what was learned in action
- take time to collaborate, teach one another and create plans for implementation in the classroom
The days together are followed up by a coaching cycle to practice and reflect on teaching and learning.
A huge thank you to the colleagues who have opened up their classrooms for observation: Mandy Freer (WB), Allie Greene (HO), Ally Krueger (WB), Erin Lappe (LY), Shannon McKerr (LY), Alex Virlas (HO), Matt Vitacco (HO), and Laura Zerull (PR).
Thank you also to the the WW Cohort members. Your enthusiasm and drive is contagious! Looking forward to continuing the writing workshop journey together this year and beyond!
#WeAreD34Writers
Red Day Survey
Your friends in Student Services, along with SNAP, are looking for your input on redDay to make improvements in the future. Please take a quick minute to share your experiences and ideas (including books suggestions for future read-alouds!).
Want Smore?
Second Step Webinar: Mind Yeti for Schools
Second Step offers webinars to allow you to learn how Second Step can help you create a safe and supportive school community with social-emotional skills, bullying prevention, child protection, and mindfulness.
This month, a featured webinar is on Mind Yeti for Schools:
Unlock unlimited access to our growing library of 80+ mindfulness sessions that help students focus their minds and calm their bodies. Mind Yeti for Schools can help kick-start the day, ease lunch and recess transitions, and calm test anxiety, not to mention enhance classroom management for K-5 teachers.
Next session:
This section is where we highlight all of the wonderful things going on in the district, schools, and classrooms. If you have items to share or would like an event covered, please fill out the Staff Shares Request Form.
Don't want to write something up, but you want to share? Fill out that form! Or, even easier, email Cathy Kedjidjian and she'll be excited to come to your classroom and share your story!
Reporting Live from Hoffman!
The very first edition of the Hoffman News is now available!
Our students have dedicated their lunch and recess time over the past two weeks to not only choosing their own stories, but also interviewing subjects, creating content, and putting together a wonderful product. In many cases, they've dedicated time outside of school as well.
Each Monday, the Hoffman News Team meets in the LRC for a pitch meeting led by Mr. Pucciarello. Students go around the room, pitching ideas for stories they will work on for the rest of the week. We choose top stories, choose roles, and get right to work! The goal is to make this feel as close to a true newsroom as possible, complete with objectives, editors, and deadlines.
I am so proud of the work they've accomplished in such a short amount of time, and am stunned on a daily basis at the dedication these students have shown. As we acquire better equipment and hone our skills, the goal is to turn this weekly news production into a full video presentation.
Check out the first edition of the Hoffman News here!
submitted by Kyle Pucciarello
Henking Co-Teaching & Integration
Monolingual/Bilingual Integration
Kindergarten collaboration at Henking is off the charts! Bilingual Kindergarten teacher Mildred Cortes, monolingual Kindergarten teacher Jeanne Kim, and EL teacher Payal Nanavati are co-teaching math in an integrated format between the monolingual & bilingual programs. Math instruction is targeted for all students through the use of a weekly shared mini-lesson, and weekly rotations based on content standards (CCSS) and English Language Development (ELD) standards. Vocabulary is introduced in English/Spanish for all kids. The structure allows for a whole-group mini-lesson on Mondays that introduces new math skill and then follows with centers on Thursdays, which allows students to explore skills taught on Monday. All students from both bilingual and monolingual classes are benefiting from the purposeful integration!
Co-Teaching Partnerships
These teachers attended the Co-Teaching Academy in the summer where they dove into effective co-teaching models and strategies. They utilize the skills and strategies acquired to co-plan, co-teach, co-assess, and jointly facilitate learning for all students. Teachers feel empowered to utilize their skill sets and bring them to the partnership!
Common Planning occurs via Google Doc and they also meet once a week face-to-face to plan cohesive lessons meeting CCSS and ELD standards.
Teacher Jeanne Kim shares, “The collective team instruction lead students to enjoy different languages, especially to count! This in turn gives each student feelings of empowerment in regards to the variety of languages spoken.” Teacher Mildred Cortes shares, “The collective team instruction has given the opportunity to students to make friendship connections, to collaborate with peers and to embrace their home language giving them feelings of empowerment . Students have experienced different teaching styles resulting in a better practice.” EL teacher Payal Nanavati shares, “The Co-Teaching collaboration has allowed students to be exposed to various teaching styles. Through the use of EL strategies all learners have been engaged when learning new math concepts and the opportunity has created an optimal learning environment for kids with positive student growth.”
Student Achievement
All three teachers have noted marked improvement with students’ success rates at mastering their learning targets. Recently, 75% of students met their subtraction target. After working alongside teachers during math centers, students were able to be successful through thoughtful oracy opportunities, guided practice, and support from the three teachers.
submitted by Carly Spina
WB Good News Call of the Day
Westbrook School knows how to build relationships! Each month, teachers and teams submit names based on a monthly theme. For example, the October theme was demonstrating Caring behaviors, and November featured Respect. Teachers and teams submit names and a compliment. At the end of the month, Principal Jeannie Sung and Assistant Principal Stefanie Shefler make positive calls home to families. Parents are overjoyed to hear wonderful news about their student demonstrating pillars of strong character! Students feel proud of themselves for being acknowledged for positive behaviors.
By doing so, the Westbrook staff has really gone the extra mile to show students and families how much they care. Go Pandas!!
submitted by Carly Spina
Henking EL Thanksgiving
On Tuesday, November 20, the Henking EL Team put together a Thanksgiving Feast with all the fixin's to teach their linguistically and culturally diverse first graders about a traditional Thanksgiving meal in the United States!
During the event, students came to their EL classroom which was transformed into a fine dining room, with utensils, napkins, placemats, and a long dining room table. Over 20 students tasted turkey, stuffing, cornbread, mashed potatoes, corn, and cranberry sauce - many for the very first time. Let's not forget dessert... students were so excited to taste yummy pumpkin pie!!
All of the kids were able to share what they were thankful for in a Seesaw video and expressed their gratitude in English and their native languages (including Mongolian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Farsi, Romanian, Bulgarian, Estonian, and more!).
submitted by Carly Spina
Talking Points from the Compensation Committee Meeting on November 27:
- Eric Miller presented the Finance and Operations segment of the D34 Strategic plan to this committee.
- The upcoming “What’s News” issues will contain some information around insurance topics.
Congratulations to:
- Erika Davies (WB) and her husband, Nick, welcomed a baby girl on Thursday, November 8. Lily Ann Davies was 6 lbs 7 oz and 19 inches long.
- Sara Harwell (AT) and her husband, Brandon, welcomed their little girl, Whitney Jane Harwell on November 1 at 4:34 am. She weighed 6 lbs 10 oz and was 21 inches.
Kudos to:
- Genée Ciurus Major (SP) presented "Project Wonder: Inquiry and Independent Research" at the National Association for Gifted Children Annual Convention in November.
A Recipe for Swag
Check out the many pie/pi stories submitted. You're going to want to ask for recipes! Then, try your luck in the next raffle by sharing your New Year's resolution. Don't worry, we won't hold you to it!
Contribute to the Next Issue
Glenview School District 34
Email: news@glenview34.org
Website: http://www.glenview34.org/
Location: 1401 Greenwood Rd, Glenview, IL, USA
Phone: (847) 998-5000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/glenview34/
Twitter: @glenview34