Resurrection Weekly Update #11
The Way to Stay in Touch with All Things Res: 10/30 - 11/03
The Principal's Corner
This week, as a learning community, we took a HUGE first step: the crafting of individual stage 1 UbD units! I have reviewed many individual units and I will do a more intense review this Sunday/Monday with feedback on each. I congratulate you on this first, and often most challenging, step! It takes a lot of courage and trust to jump into this process and to take on all that it asks/will ask of you.
As we move forward with this stage, and before we jump into stage two, I would like for you to remember the value of planning with an intentional focus. The intentional focus will empower you to achieve all that you plan while giving our students the necessary platform for making the progress that they need to make.
I am not certain if you watched the video in last weeks blog, but in case you missed it, I have kept it....If you can, please take a moment and watch it with the lens of a teacher designing assessment. Especially when we approach testing next week, and stage 2 of UbD, this video could highlight the challenges of and need for appropriate, and targeted, testing that informs our process while empowering our young women to go further!
What I am (still) working on....
1. STREAM integration and a connection to a university partnership. We are in the final stages of the program design!
2. College advising process for future 9th and 10th grade students continues to develop.
3. Mother Celine Scholars programming is underway.
4. UbD part two, which will start with the curriculum coordinators, is coming along.
5. Datawise evaluation and possible roll out.
6. Many, many, many other things :)
THINK big....START small...GO FOR the early win!
Amen,
Mr. P
What's Happening at Res This Week
- No school for seniors, fall testing for Jrs, Sophs, and Frosh.
- 8:15 all students report to their testing rooms
- 8:20 announcements and the start of the testing period
- Juniors should be finished with the Practice ACT by 11:30
- Sophomores and freshmen should be finished with the Aspire & Gains by 12:30
- Students taking the test with extended time will be finished around 1:30
On a final note, the rescheduled second Lunch & Learn session on Blended Learning and Schoology, entitled, "Setup for Success: Organizing and Structuring for Student Learning in Schoology" will be held next Wednesday, during Seminar A & B. All are welcome and if you plan on attending, please signup HERE no later than next Tuesday.If you have any questions about the calendar or upcoming schedules, please contact Joe Lascon.
Daily Breakdown
Sunday October 29th - Open House #2: 1:00 pm - 3 pm, Faculty in place by 12:30 pm
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Monday October 30th - Red Day
- Freshmen Service Presentation: Seminar B in the Little Theater
- Fall Chamber Concert: 7 - 8 pm
Tuesday October 31st - White Day (Halloween)
- Activity 3 Day
Wednesday November 1st - Red Day
- All Saints Liturgy: 8:30 - 9:45 am, Liturgy Schedule and Seating Chart
- Lunch & Learn #2: Seminar A & B in Room 123
- 2 pm Dismissal
Thursday November 2nd - FALL TESTING
- Please see above for details
Friday November 3rd - White Day
- Theater Field Trip @ Chicago Shakespeare Theatre
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Monday November 6th - Red Day
Tuesday November 7th - White Day
- Activity 1: Activity Schedule
- Yearbook retakes: Seminar, Location TBA
Wednesday November 8th - Red Day
Thursday November 9th - White Day
- Parent Teacher Conferences: 2:00 pm - 8:00 pm, Special Schedule
Friday November 10th - Veterans Day, NO SCHOOL
Shoutouts!
Outstanding happenings around the building:
1. Sr. Mary Ann for the Kairos display outside of her classroom.
2. Steve and his team for all of their work getting the building prepared for Open House.
3. Dawn and her team for their work this week with the technical issues that they experienced!
4. Ms. Bohlander for taking on a new role with Res!
5. The Math/Tech department for their planning on an upcoming conference.
5. Ms. Maluchnik, Ms. Martin, and Ms. Montanile for their willingness to attend a conference on "Wired Differently".
Instruction & Technology Updates
To Tech or Not to Tech...That is the Question.
"Good educators plan their instruction intentionally. They think about what they want their students to understand and master, and then adapt their learning strategies to accomplish that goal.
The real art in teaching lies in knowing when and how to use technology to enhance learning. Sometimes, it’s better to use a textbook or a whiteboard. Other times, engaging students in online simulations and computer-assisted learning will be appropriate strategies. And, sometimes, it is best to just unplug and engage with other humans, face-to face, in real time."
The excerpt above describes what Resurrection has promoted since we began our 1:1 journey nearly five years ago. It is our fundamental belief that when used well, technology has the ability to create transformational learning experiences that can spur an increase in creativity, student agency, amplified student voice and collaborative learning. That being said, we have always preached that we should never use technology just for technology's sake. As we continue our UbD journey, please remember that it is the intentionality mentioned above that drives our decision making regarding what, if any technology that we utilize to help our students achieve their learning goals. If you would like to read the rest of the article mentioned above, please click HERE.
HAPARA TEACHER DASHBOARD NOTICE
On occasion, students will login to their Google accounts on other devices (i.e. library computers, a loaner device or even a teacher Chromebook). If this happens, Teacher Dashboard will provide a notification that a student is logged into multiple devices. Teacher Dashboard will allow you to see the screens of the multiple devices (assuming they are connected to our Res Network) but we need to remind students to logout of other devices they may be logged into. If a teacher enacts "Focused Browsing" in class and a student is logged into multiple devices, each device will go into "Focused Browsing", which could obviously cause problems for the devices that the student isn't using. If you have any questions about this, please contact me.
Lunch and Learn
Last Thursday's Lunch & Learn was cancelled and will be rescheduled for Wednesday November 1st, with separate sessions being held during Seminar A & B. If you would like to attend, please register HERE. Wednesday's session is titled, Setup for Success: Organizing and Structuring for Student Learning in Schoology.
Educational Video of the Week
No television special exploring ideas on improving education in the United States would be complete without hearing from students themselves. And so it was essential that students be able to tell their own stories during our first television special, TED Talks Education, which premiered on PBS last night.
To that end, we invited Market Road Films, the production company of two-time Emmy-winning filmmaker Tony Gerber and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright/MacArthur Genius Award-recipient Lynn Nottage, to create short documentaries about high schoolers in New York City with incredible stories. Several of these docs appeared in last night’s show, but several went unsurfaced … until now. Watch one of the these stories below.
You can tell Julia Delmedico is sharp from the way she observes her school environment in the Bronx. But as a hands-on learner, she struggles during exam time. In this documentary, Julia is the voice of students who feel the weighty pressure of tests as something that keeps them from learning as much as they could. “I think the best kind of education is one that teaches you to speak and think for yourself,” she says. “That’s much more valuable than passing your exams.”
Curriculum Updates
Faculty Professional Development
Spiritual Reflections
PRAYER FOR GRACES THROUGH THE INTERCESSION OF BLESSED CELINE BORZECKA:
Praise be to you, Lord Jesus, who have gifted blessed Celine with a special love for the paschal mystery and the desire to fulfill your holy will. Grant us, through her intercession, the grace... for which we beg you, trusting in your unlimited love for us. Lord, may your Church rejoice by numbering your servant, Celine, amount the saints for your greater glory and for our good. You are God, who lives and reigns with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
Student Services
-Sheri started the Transition group yesterday and it ran really smoothly.
-The counselors have been working closely with the Rankin program to meet several students' needs.
-November 1st is the start of college application deadlines. Meredith has received an influx of apps.
-The counselors will be conducting the Junior Parent meeting on November 9th on the college application process.
-Res has a senior who is a finalist for the QuestBridge scholarship program which provides students with full rides to colleges! We will keep you posted on the results.
-Res is currently working on a new ACT prep program for current 11th graders
Happy Birthday!
Brad Czernik - November 14th
Kathleen Heneghan - November 12th
Nancy Giustino - November 13th
About Us
Mission
Resurrection College Prep High School is a Catholic Christian community dedicated to the education of young women, and to the development of their God–given talents. Convinced of God’s unconditional love and nourished by the Risen Lord Jesus Christ, we are committed to the spiritual, ethical, intellectual, physical and social growth of our students.
Email: Resurrection@reshs.org
Website: www.reshs.org
Location: 7500 W Talcott Ave, Chicago, IL, United States
Phone: 773-775-6616
Facebook: www.facebook.com/reshs.chicago/
Twitter: @ResurrectionHS