FYI / Informational Items
Virtual Addition #3 - Week of September 7th
Important Dates During the Week of September 7th.......
- September 9 - PGMS Full Faculty Meeting
- 9:45am via Zoom
- agenda link below
- September 9 - PGMS PTA Meeting
- 7:00pm
- September 9 - PowerSchool / Schoology Parents Training at PGMS PTA Meeting
- 7:00pm
-ZOOM Invite will now be a webinar invite via the district office
- September 11 - BTSN Zoom Links Due to Mr. Devlin
***- we will discuss this at our September 9 Faculty Meeting
- September 11 - Non-Engaged Students Names Due to Mr. Schrieber
- team leader should sent then by 10:00am
***- we will discuss this at our September 9 Faculty Meeting
Faculty Meeting Agenda - September 9th at 9:45am
- All MS staff are required to attend
Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/97229003314
First Day Thoughts from Mrs. Smith's ELA Students....(Cool Stuff!!!)
Looking Ahead to the Week of September 14th...
- September 15 - PGMS Leadership Team Meeting
-7:15am via Zoom
- Agenda will be posted/shared on Google
- September 15 - MAP 1 Test ELA
- September 16 - PGMS Full Faculty Meeting
- 9:45am via Zoom
- September 16 - PGMS BTSN
-7:00 - 9:00 via Zoom
- September 17 - MAP 1 MATH
MAP Testing Update / Review
September 15 - ELA Test
September 17 - MATH Test
Virtual Testing Block - 8:30am - 10:15am
** Please check your roster's for accuracy and any inconsistencies.
The preliminary plan is to use 8:30am -10:15am as our testing block in homeroom and the rest of the day we will be posting assignments asynchronously.
---> All attendance will be taken during the MAP testing block. Teachers will need to remain present and responsive to the students via the zoom classroom during the testing block.
**---> Not sure yet how we will do MAP Make-ups
1st Day of School Update - Sent to Parents on August 31st .....Keep up all the Great Work PGMS Staff!!!!
PGMS Back to School Night Review
September 16th (7:00pm - 9:00pm)
1. Entire PGMS School Community Zoom Meeting with Mr. Boyer and Mr. Kirby - welcome, agenda and review of evening.
2. Zoom break out session with each team:
- Links to each team zoom BTSN meeting posted on PGMS Website
- Team will prepare a PowerPoint presentation for parents to share via Zoom and then have a Q-A session
- ENCORE teachers will join a team to review ENCORE as part of the presentation
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- *** Please begin to discuss and/or plan with your team
- *** Zoom Links will be due to Mr. Devlin to Post on MS Website by September 11
- *** Your Zoom classroom will hold up to 300 participants now
- *** Kevin and I will set up a schedule for the evening (Kevin and I will have two opening sessions so we can hold all the participants - 7:00pm -7:15pm --- 7:15pm - 7:30pm and then the team presentations will follow at 7:45pm
- ***Parents will need to be aware that they must share the same screen/device as their child
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Timeline to Plan for BTSN:
1. Discuss at 9/9 Faculty Meeting
2. Zoom Links sent to Mr. Devlin 9/11
3. Post plan/ Send to Parents 9/14
4. 9/16 BTN Presentation for Parents
Updated PGMS 2020 - 2021 Telephone Extension List
" The Night Before Distance Learning" was shared with me by a couple of people.....
~ Sunshine Sign Club Up ~
Please fill out the form in the link below ---------> even if you have paid.
It is that time of year to join Sunshine. The benefits for joining Sunshine are acknowledgement for your birthday, celebrations (births and weddings) and support (medical issues or deaths). There is only one type of membership. $25.00
- CHECKS CAN BE MADE OUT TO PGMS SUNSHINE or sent to paypal.me/PGMSSunshine!
- Money can be turned into Christine and Marilyn
- Link to Sunshine Club Form and link to join the PGMS PTA is below -
This is from a teacher who has been teaching virtually for 12 days. (Ms. Kratz Shared with us :).....good stuff!!
~ Biggest takeaways after 12 days of virtual teaching ~
1. You can't teach the same course just now delivered through zoom. It's a different class. Completely. It needs new modes of delivery, new feedback, new assessments. Trying to teach it the same way is a recipe for frustration.
2. Kids want to learn. They are rooting for us ( the teachers). They know we are trying hard, and they are grateful.
3. If you don't take a break every 15-20 minutes where you tell kids to stand up, dance, get a drink of water, go grab your pet or whatever... you've lost your kids. Sitting, staring, and listening is exhausting. Play a song and give kids a break. Model for them that you walk away from the screen, too.
4. When you zoom into kids' homes, you are their guest. Respect their space. Understand their rules and situations are THEIRS, not yours to dictate. Also allow kids to express pride in their space. These kids are taking HUGE risks in revealing their spaces to us. We have to honor that.
5. Technology is unreliable. Allow for flexible dates. Tardies don't exist. Mics and cameras break. Links expire. Get over yourself and skip the lecture.
6. Listening to words through a screen is hard. Don't shame kids who ask for clarification or repeats of instruction. Don't shame kids who zone out. We are all used to using screens to "zone out". This is a paradigm shift in our use of screens. Give grace and space for that growing.
7. Give kids as much autonomy as possible. Let them own this process. So much feels out of their control, so let them choose their breakout group, or let them choose to listen to a podcast rather than read a book, or let them choose to keep their screen off after confirming it's them on the other side. Give them a chance to feel empowered and heard.
8. This is hard, It's hard for kids and teachers and parents. No one is purposefully making choices that are bad. But none of these choices are great.
I have cried every day of August. I know I've worked more hours than I ever have. I've done 4 hours of planning for every 1 hour of class. I feel like I constantly drop balls and miss opportunities. But the kids keep showing up, and the teachers keep showing up. There are so many opportunities to love and serve one another, and the conversations are so often, "how can we do better?" I don't have to like this, but I can recognize this is making education richer. I think it is...
Welcome to PGMS - Mr. Brian Landis
- Building Substitute
- blandis@pgsd.org
- Mr. Landis should be emailed on all your asynchronous substitute plans
- **We will have 2 building substitute very soon