Galloping Gazette
A newsletter for the Faculty and Staff - Week of 4/20
Put Students First • Seek Growth • Be Open to Change . Do Great Work Together • Value Differences
Principal's Message
With the prospect of schools being out for a while, John Hattie reviewed some of the Visible Learning influences that may help understand what really matters and what does not matter as much. I’ve summarized a few key points for your below. If you delight in research like I do, you’ll want to check out the full article here.
First, does it matter that students are not in the physical place called school?
- Do not panic if our kids miss 10 or so weeks.
- Worry more about subjects in which parents have the least skill and about subjects and tasks where parents make kids skill and drill and lose the thrill (especially math)
- Make sure to provide opportunities to learn what students do not know and do not engage them in busy work.
- It is not the time in class, but what we do in the time we have, that matters.
What’s the effect of the home?
- The most likely implication of school closures relates to equity. Students who come from well-resourced families will fare much better than those from lower resourced families.
- Students should be engaged in projects where there is attention to the precious knowledge and not to completing some task at any level of quality and without learning new knowledge, new relations between ideas, or deeper understanding.
- The home factors that do matter include parental involvement, family communication quality, and especially parental expectations.
- The negative effects on learning increase for subjects where parents are least likely to be skilled or have knowledge, such as math, science, and history
So, what does all this mean?
Ensure that students at home engage in the optimal tasks; not just busy tasks, not just projects that keep them entertained, not boring repetitive activities. The choice of task matters critically. Use the technology for great diagnosis; share scoring rubrics and success criteria up-front with students before they get too involved in the task; be clear (teacher clarity matters more when students are not in front of you to correct, cajole, give instant feedback to), and evaluate progress as you do in the physical classroom.
Create as many opportunities for social interaction, not just between you and the student, but using technology for students to work, share, interact, and learn together, as you so often do in the regular classroom. Learning at home need not be a lonely activity, with the only or even primary resource the parent.
Remember that technology is the means and starting point, not the core, of teaching. Deliver mini-classes, make them clear, and provide oodles of opportunities for feedback. Worry more about subjects that parents are least likely to be able to help with, like math and science, and encourage kids and parents to read, read, read and also talk about their reading, so the story is important, the vocabulary is stretched, and then simultaneously keep teaching the skills of reading to make reading pleasurable.
Schools, no matter via what medium, can be hubs of response and recovery, a place to support emotional recovery and promote social togetherness—and this is as important as any achievement gains. It would be wonderful to use this pandemic as an opportunity to learn about learning from afar, so share stories of success of teachers and students learning from this crisis, pay particular attention to below average or special needs students, discover how to develop collective efficacy among teachers and school leaders, and use this experience to learn how to best work with all students.
-Robyn
Tell me something good..
Shout out to Kelly McNeely and Anna Shuttleworth for being awesome teammates during this time. Their level of communication, thoroughness, and positive attitudes have made this whole experience so much smoother. - Michelle N.
Claire- Thank you for always bringing the laughter to our meetings! Danielle
Thanks you Lisa, Marissa, and Amanda for helping me deliver a surprise to our kiddos..you helped to make the deliveries go so quickly!! ❤️ Stacey
Robin- Thank you for taking care of our canned comments. You are awesome!!!! Danielle
Olivia- Thank you for setting up an awesome math template for Loom lessons! - Abbe
Megan- We love having you as our own personal technology guru, thank you! Team 2
Patti C- Thank you for all your support, suggestions, and help with Loom lessons for next week. We appreciate you!! - 1st Grade
Olivia- Thank you for setting up an awesome math template for Loom lessons! - Abbe
Shout out to Travis for delivering PD in such helpful and streamlined ways. I've been able to apply what he's taught us quickly and easily. Thanks, Travis! - Michelle N.
Edie- Thank you for being my anchor! -Abbe
Zip- Where would I be without your patience and memes!?! You’re the best! Danielle
Laura Perez- Thank you for joining our meeting. The kids loved seeing you & so did I! -Abbe
Shout out to Patti Csenar for all of her hard work and support. She has helped our grade level in so many ways as we've worked tirelessly to provide our students with meaningful lessons. She continues to take on a lot on our behalf. Thanks, Patti! - Michelle N.
Week Ahead
Monday, April 20nd
9:00 - All Instructional Staff Meeting - Go to Google Meet - Type CFESStaffMtg
9:30 - 11:00 - PD on Asynchronous Lesson Tools - more to come
1:00 - 3:00 - Grade Level Planning
1:00 TA and all other staff Meeting via Google Meet- Type CFESStaffMTG
Tuesday, April 21st
Emergency Learning Plans start
School Open by Appointment Only from 9:30 - 1:30
1:30 Instructional Coaches Collab via Google Meet -
Wednesday, April 22nd - Earth Day!
Report Cards Available on Parent Portal
8:00 - Coffee Chat - Google Meet - CFESCoffee
9:30 - Ms. Backer's Read Aloud
School Open by Appointment Only from 9:30 - 1:30
10:00 AM - 3rd Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES3collab
10:45 AM - 4th Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES4collab
11:30 AM - 1st Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES1collab
Thursday, April 23rd
10:00 AM - 2nd Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES2collab
10:45 AM - K Collaboration via Google Meet - CFESKcollab
11:30 AM - 5th Grade Collaboration via Google Meet - CFES5collab
Friday, April 24th
10:00 AM - PAC meeting - via Google Meet - CFESPAC
News and Notes....
- The Office of Employee Relations has published FAQs for employees regarding work locations/hours, pay, leave, FMLA, as well as the new Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) on the Intranet. Here is the direct link to this information: https://vbcps.sharepoint.com/sites/Intranet/Pages/COVID_19FAQs.aspx.
BUDGET NEWS FROM THE VIRTUAL TEACHER ASSEMBLY MEETING
Anticipate a loss of revenue this year and next year
School Board has to send amended budget to City Council
Expect a loss of $21 million local and $7 million state funds
Most new positions previously discussed in budget will now have to be rolled back
Compensation increases will be rolled back
Will know more about budget after next week’s School Board meeting
This meeting will be conducted using Zoom- people can watch meeting
- Career Teacher deadline has not changed. If this is your year to rectify, please just take pictures of any documentation or use the scan feature on your cell phone to send to me. Let me know if you have any questions or need any assistance with this. If you have any specific questions you can contact John Ogden in HR
Did you hear! CFES and LBBC were recognized as Model Partners!
Morning Meeting Motivation
April Morning Meeting Resource
4 slides/week (not Spring Break)
Week 1=Mindful
Week 2=Inquisitive
Week 3=Thoughtful
In addition if you aren't following @PGIVBCPS or @Sansone39 on Twitter, you are really missing out. Each week, on Mondays and Wednesdays, they are posting morning meeting ideas to add to your virtual morning meeting toolbox. I have linked the Google Doc of the running slides for you! Go give them a follow too!
#SelfCare Recommendations
Coffee Creamer
We all like our coffee creamer at the Farm. This one I found a couple of weeks ago and it is DELICIOUS!
Get Active with the Peloton App
https://www.onepeloton.com/digital/checkout/digital-90d
Did you know that Peloton has an app that has Yoga Classes, Cardio Classes, and Running challenges? It is free for all new users for 90 days if you sign up before 4/30
Need some chill time...
Watch FOR FREE at 9 PM each Friday night! https://lionsgate.live/
Game Changer Moment
Helpful List of Resources
VBCPS 2019-2020 Emergency Learning Plans for Elementary Schools
Newly updated VBCPS 2019-2020 School Calendar
Emergency Learning Plan Webpage
VBCPS Mental Health Resources: You are taking care of our students. Here are some resources to help take care of yourself also.
Meals for families: These are the locations you can give to families in need of food. Kids must be with the family to receive food.
Chromebook Repair: Here are the sites families can exchange their broken Chromebook for a new one.
Dr. Spence's Deskside Chats: Closed- captioned videos shared every Tuesday and Thursday on YouTube, where Dr. Spence tackles a few questions and provide some updates.
VBCPS General Updates: Most current updates on nearly everything here.
Technology Tips: These are tips on working from home. You need to be logged in to your VBSchools account to access it. As always, the DoT Help Desk is available at (757) 263-1111 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday should you need support as you work to ensure our students continue to learn.
CDC Guidelines: Tips to keep you and your family safe. We love you. Stay safe.