Team Boone Meadow Staff Update
September 4th
Welcome September
― Wallace Stegner, Angle of Repose
Important Items in this Update
Team -
Thanks to each of you that engaged in our PLCs last week. We look forward to more opportunities to reflect and engage with remaining teams these next few days. I recognize the tremendous work required for the successful lift of the work you do each day. Coupled with our growth mindset to refine our practices and speak into the lives of our students, families, and each other, our collaboration and encouragement is necessary. Thank you for being a team that cares about each other, that cares about our children, that cares about your impact.
A few items in this update:
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
- Student Conferences
- Important Dates (JAT, Veterans Day, etc...)
- Chaperone Expectations
- Personal Business Day requests - Please read the information below, as the procedure has slightly changed. Thanks.
84,086
- Number of calories consumed over the holiday weekend? (Thankfully, it isn't.)
- Number of miles I put on my vehicle the past 3 years? (Close, but not quite.)
- Cost of tuition, room, and board when my kids start college? (Probably pretty close.)
Truth is, that represents the number of total printed pages at BME for the month of August. Yes, that is the combined total for BME staff printed pages, which averages to 161.7 pages of copied print per student for the month of August.
Each month's end, an email lands in my mailbox that shares the BME print usage, and breaks it down by each individual staff member. (Yes - I know the number of color, grayscale and duplexed pages you copy.) I usually scan these to get a sense of what our demand is and what impact this has financially and environmentally. As I look over the numbers from January - May, our average landed about 55,500 printed pages/month, which is a number I've always thought could be lower. Higher enrollment, beginning of the year communication/demands, and classroom setup are going to require a bit more prep and paper at the beginning of the year. I understand.
I hope you all know me well enough to know that I don't want to throw unnecessary barriers in the way of your work, nor do I want to micro-manage the volume of paper each person is using or how many trips you make to the copier. None of us have time for that. This is about student learning, engagement, and responsible stewardship. Some paper is necessary, yet can we work together to find ways to reduce the volume of paper we are copying and consuming?
Additional note:
We are nearing the end of the color toner, which means that the color printer might be offline for a while. Keep in mind that PTO purchases replacement toner for us at a price tag of approximately $600.
Thanks for your assistance and cooperation.
Family Conferences and E-Day
I always welcomed the time to sit with students and families during conferences. The time to sit side by side with families to mutually experience and share in a student's learning is to be cherished. Solid communication is essential to our work with every student and family. I'm excited to see how the 3rd and 4th of October unfold as opportunities of sharing.
Regarding conferences:
- Elementary Family/Student Conferences are to be held on October 3rd (2:30-3:30) & October 4th (11:00-7:00). Please be sure to connect with Tom or Lauren should you need to schedule conferences outside of that window. We are already aware of some families where the parent is out of town for business/work and may need consideration for a different option. Also, some of you have more students in your classroom and may need a little more flexibility. These are all understandable considerations and my door is open if we need to dialogue about accommodations.
- I choose the term “family” as you begin crafting schedules and design of your time to share progress with families about your students. A majority of you opt for student-led conferences last year and experienced the benefit of students reflecting on their learning targets and crafting their goals.
- We will establish a time for a "coffee talk" in the near future so we can come together and share successful approaches and structures for student-led conferences. For those of you with previous success stories and ideas to share, please consider sharing your ideas and structures of what worked well. In the meantime, I'm attaching a couple articles for your reading pleasure.
Thanks for all you do.
Shade Structure Dedication on October 10th
On October 10th, we will celebrate this partnership with a dedication of the structure during our monthly PTO meeting at 6:00 PM. More info to come regarding the dedication.
In the meantime, we are working on getting a few picnic tables for the area, as well as, some landscaping to help spruce up the area.
Important Dates & Information
September
3rd - AIMSWeb window opens (closes 10/14)
6th - 2nd Grade to Conner Prairie
10th - Rosh Hashanah (aka: "Jewish New Year" - begins at sundown on day before); Tom out for School Safety Specialists training; Staff Meeting
11th - Tom out for School Safety Specialists training
12th - PTO Meeting
17th - Meyer's class to Public Green
18th - 1st & 3rd grade vision screenings; NVCI training (select staff after school)
19th - Yom Kippur (aka Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year in Judaism.)
24th - Staff Meeting
26th - Jog-A-Thon
28th - Second Step Assembly
October
3rd & 4th - Student Conferences (E-Day on 10/4)
8th - Staff Meeting
9th - Picture retakes and make-up day
10th - PTO meeting (6:00PM); Dedication of Shade Structure with AAD
15th-19th - Fall Break
22nd - Staff Meeting
November 12th - Veterans Day Program @ 9:30.
Chaperones
I understand that volunteering adults may have various (good-natured) motivations as they request exceptions, but our central office expects chaperones to chaperone for the duration of the study trips. Exceptions are discouraged and must be approved by Tom.
Dear Chaperones for Camp Tecumseh,
The children and staff are ready to experience a step back in time to re-enact Indiana history as we journey to Camp Tecumseh this Thursday and Friday. This learning opportunity would not be possible without your willingness to participate and serve as chaperone. Thank you for the generosity of your time. You are investing in a special memory.
To serve as reminder, we need all chaperones to ride the buses to and from the camp. I have approved a couple of exceptions due to extenuating circumstances. Chaperoning a school-sponsored study trip begins when we begin the loading process on the school campus until we return. This directive comes from our ZCS central office team and serves as a direct response to insurance and risk management guidance. To some, this is not ideal, but important nonetheless. We are extremely grateful for your cooperation in this matter.
We are looking forward to a fantastic experience.
Tom
Personal Business Leave Requests
For Certified Team Members:
To requests "personal business days," please complete the following process.- Go to the following link, and complete the "personal business request" form. https://goo.gl/forms/CycfilABEUyILbh83
- Once the form is completed, please send a brief email to me (Tom) that includes the date(s) of your request(s).
- Enter your upcoming absence in AESOP as soon as possible. (It can always be deleted later should plans change.)
Thanks -
Contact Us
Email: mcunningham@zcs.k12.in.us
Website: http://www.zcs.k12.in.us/bme/
Location: 5555 S Main St, Whitestown, IN, United States
Phone: 3178732226
Twitter: @ZCSBoone_Meadow