Bear Bulletin
April 26, 2020
From Mrs. Spencer:
Hope this finds you well. We are beginning week six of our At Home Learning experience. At the end of this week, progress report grades will be entered. Prior to Thursday, each family and/or student should review their ItsLearning courses and Skyward to determine if there are any missing assignments that need to be turned in for the week. If you are struggling with this, either identifying what is missing or managing the work, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child's teachers. They will work with you and extend grace to offer you and your child an opportunity to demonstrate that the learning has occurred. We know this is a stressful time. Please also know that our teachers are taking and receiving feedback and working hard to meet the needs of families in this ever changing time. I simply cannot express my gratitude for the work they are doing.
I have had a few parents who have have indicated that their child is not participating in the Zoom Office hours, feel disconnected or that they wish their was more "live teaching" (not pre-recorded) sessions. If you or your child is feeling that way, I strongly encourage him or her to attend the office hours once or twice a week for the subjects they feel they need the support or connection, as the office hours have blossomed into small group teaching moments for students and teachers. There is no risk of embarrassment if they need help on something and do not wish to speak up during a Zoom- they simply could message a teacher in advance of a zoom office hour and ask if they will present a mini-lesson on the content they need support in. I know our teachers will honor those requests as best they can.
Next week is Teacher Appreciation Week. We are so grateful that our PTA provided our staff Amazon gift cards to encourage them amidst this crisis. If you have a moment to do so, I know your recognition of a teacher, or your child's recognition, will mean a great deal to them. Please consider reaching out and extending your appreciation to them.
I hope you have a nice week. Please let us know if you need us.
Stefanie Spencer, Principal
De La Senora Spencer
He tenido algunos padres que han indicado que su hijo no participa en las horas de Zoom Office, se sienten desconectados o que desean que haya más sesiones de "enseñanza en vivo" (no pregrabadas). Si usted o su hijo se sienten de esa manera, lo aliento a que asista a las horas de oficina una o dos veces por semana para las materias que sienten que necesitan asistencia, conexión o enseñanza en vivo, ya que las horas de oficina se han reducido. Momentos de enseñanza grupal para estudiantes y profesores. No hay riesgo de vergüenza si necesitan ayuda sobre algo y no desean hablar durante un Zoom, simplemente pueden enviar un mensaje a un maestro antes de la hora de oficina de Zoom y preguntar si presentarán una mini-lección sobre el contenido que necesito apoyo. Sé que nuestros maestros cumplirán esas solicitudes lo mejor que puedan.
La próxima semana es la Semana de Apreciación del Maestro. Estamos muy agradecidos de que nuestra PTA proporcionó a nuestro personal tarjetas de regalo de Amazon para alentarlos en medio de esta crisis. Si tiene un momento para hacerlo, sé que su reconocimiento de un maestro, o el reconocimiento de su hijo, significará mucho para ellos. Por favor considere acercarse y extenderles su agradecimiento.
Espero que tengas una buena semana. Por favor, háganos saber si nos necesita.
Stefanie Spencer, Directora
National Junior Honor Society Membership- Calling All Eligible 7th Graders!
Attention 7th graders!
Now is the time to sign up for National Junior Honor Society! NJHS membership is an outstanding opportunity to develop the habits and standards so important to success in high school, college, and a career. Think of it as making yourself #futureready. NJHS is also a great way to represent SBMS in a proud way! If you are interested in signing up please follow the link below. Applications are due May 22nd. Please reach out to Ms. Martin if you have any questions at meagan.martin@springbranchisd.com
Application Link:
Membresía de la Sociedad Nacional de Honor Junior - ¡Llamando a todos los estudiantes elegibles de 7º grado!
¡Ahora es el momento de inscribirse en la National Junior Honor Society! La membresía de NJHS es una excelente oportunidad para desarrollar los hábitos y estándares tan importantes para el éxito en la escuela secundaria, la universidad y una carrera. Piensa en ello como haciéndote #futureready. ¡NJHS también es una excelente manera de representar SBMS de una manera orgullosa! Si está interesado en registrarse, siga el siguiente enlace. Las solicitudes deben presentarse el 22 de mayo. Comuníquese con la Sra. Martin si tiene alguna pregunta en meagan.martin@springbranchisd.com
Enlace de aplicación:
https://forms.gle/FoC4HuZkRV14TT129
Bears at Work: Electives Teachers are on ItsLearning, too!
Please be sure your students are checking in with their electives teachers, reviewing their itslearning and engaging in the work assigned. Electives teachers are eager to hear from all Bears and here to support you! Please note that Elective courses are being assigned grades, as well.
Bears at Work: Electives¡ Los maestros también están en su aprendizaje!
View the Recorded Presentation of the itsLearning Parent Portal and Library Resources Seminar!
Many thanks to Ms. Silva, our Librarian, and Ms. Dizdar, our Technology Learning Specialist, for preparing for and co-hosting a parent seminar on April 23rd on how to navigate Itslearning courses your students are using and the resources our SBMS library can offer you and your children during this phase of at home learning. We had about 50 parents! We realize that many more would have liked to attended, but you may not have been able to do so.
Many thanks, also, to Ms. Dizdar for editing our production. This was a huge undertaking and we appreciate her efforts. The links are below:
Click here for the recorded version of the presentation: https://vimeo.com/412098698
Click here for the presentation without the commentary: Slidedeck for Presentation Only
Many thanks to another TLS (Technology Learning Specialist) in SBISD for creating a version in Spanish: https://vimeo.com/412101309
If you were unable to attend because you received the notice through Skyward ONLY and have not been receiving these newsletters previously, please check your School Messenger settings by visiting this link: Checking Your School Messenger Settings.
¡Vea la presentación grabada del portal para padres itsLearning y el seminario de recursos de la biblioteca!
Muchas gracias, también, a la Sra. Dizdar por editar nuestra producción. Esta fue una gran empresa y apreciamos sus esfuerzos. Los enlaces están abajo:
- Haga clic aquí para ver la versión grabada de la presentación: https://vimeo.com/412098698
- Haga clic aquí para la presentación sin el comentario: Slidedeck para presentación solamente
Muchas gracias a otro TLS (Especialista en Aprendizaje Tecnológico) en SBISD por crear una versión en español: https://vimeo.com/412101309
Si no pudo asistir porque recibió el aviso SOLAMENTE a través de Skyward y no ha recibido estos boletines anteriormente, verifique la configuración de School Messenger en este enlace: Verificación de la configuración de School Messenger.
Third Nine Weeks Honors Assembly Presentations Below
Below are links to our presentations of awards for the 3rd Nine Weeks. I apologize for the delay- we had hoped to do them in person. We are proud of all of the children who earned awards and look forward to seeing more great things from these students and all of our Bears in the future.
Click here for the 6th Grade Recording: https://vimeo.com/412141346
Prefer just the slide show? Click Here
Click here for the 7th Grade Recording: https://vimeo.com/412151137
Prefer just the slide show? Click Here
Click here for the 8th Grade Recording: https://vimeo.com/412165570
Prefer just the slide show? Click Here
Presentaciones de la Asamblea de Honores de la Tercera Nueve Semanas a continuación
Haga clic aquí para la grabación del sexto grado: https://vimeo.com/412141346
¿Prefieres solo la presentación de diapositivas? Haga clic aquí
Haga clic aquí para la grabación del séptimo grado: https://vimeo.com/412151137
¿Prefieres solo la presentación de diapositivas? Haga clic aquí
Haga clic aquí para la grabación del octavo grado:https://vimeo.com/412165570
¿Prefieres solo la presentación de diapositivas? Haga clic aquí
Use Skyward to Monitor Grades and Missing Assignments
Now that we have shifted to administering numeric grades with the advent of the Adjusted Grading Guidelines, it will be important for students to monitor the submission of their assignments. Because we are giving grace in terms of submission time frames (within reason), teachers will not be entering zeroes into Skyward for missing assignments until a specified date. The first date this will occur this marking period is April 29th. Until that time, parents and students should monitor Skyward Family Access to ensure that students do not have outstanding assignments to turn in for their courses.
To access the missing assignment section of Family Access, you simply sign into Skyward Family Access and click on Gradebook on the left. Missing assignments will be listed in the top banner of the screen as you can see below in my rudimentary snippet of a Skyward Family Access screen. If you need help with Skyward Family Access, you are welcome to email me at Stefanie.Spencer@springbranchisd.com.
Para acceder a la sección de tareas perdidas de Family Access, simplemente inicie sesión en Skyward Family Access y haga clic en Gradebook a la izquierda. Las tareas que faltan se enumerarán en el banner superior de la pantalla como puede ver arriba en mi fragmento rudimentario de una pantalla de Skyward Family Access. Si necesita ayuda con Skyward Family Access, puede enviarme un correo electrónico a Stefanie.Spencer@springbranchisd.com.
SBISD ItsLearning Parent Portal for Middle and High School Families
The below is what you received in this week's communications related to the SBISD DIgital Backpack. It is very exciting news! Our Parent Seminar on the 23rd will help you better understand how to navigate both the parent portal and your child's portal. Please be patient with teachers as some of them have stored their content in Resources which only appear on the student portal. We are learning how to make those adjustments to allow you to see the content in Parent Portals, too. We appreciate the grace extended to our teachers! They are clearly working hard to support each and every Bear!
We are excited to officially launch the SBISD itslearning Parent Portal for all middle and high school families! You can expect the portal to be live and available by the middle of the week.
The itslearning Parent Portal is another tool to help deepen the home-school connection with information in four areas: Student Information, Course Overview, Events and Tasks.
Here’s how to access your itslearning parent account:
- Go to http://sbisd.itslearning.com
- Click “Log in with itslearning”
- Enter your Skyward Family Access username and password to log in.
In the itslearning Parent Portal, you’ll be able to:
- View learning plans shared by teachers
- Check student task list with due dates
- Check progress as your student works through the coursework
This short video will help you learn how to navigate the SBISD Parent Portal. Once it opens, click on the download symbol at the top (arrow with a underscore under it).
Here are links to two additional resources:
If you have any questions about the Parent Portal, including how to reset your password, please contact your campus principal or the SBISD Help Desk.
SBISD ItsLearning Portal para padres para familias de escuelas intermedias y secundarias
¡Estamos emocionados de lanzar oficialmente el SBISD itslearning Parent Portal para todas las familias de escuelas intermedias y secundarias! Puede esperar que el portal esté en vivo y disponible a mediados de la semana. El Portal de Padres de itslearning es otra herramienta para ayudar a profundizar la conexión entre el hogar y la escuela con información en cuatro áreas: información del estudiante, descripción general del curso, eventos y tareas.
A continuación, le indicamos cómo acceder a su cuenta principal de itslearning:
- Vaya a http://sbisd.itslearning.com
- Haga clic en "Iniciar sesión con itslearning"
- Ingrese su nombre de usuario y contraseña de Skyward Family Access para iniciar sesión.
En el Portal para Padres de itslearning, podrá:Ver planes de aprendizaje compartidos por profesores
- Verifique la lista de tareas del alumno con las fechas de vencimiento
- Verifique el progreso a medida que su estudiante trabaja en los cursos
Este breve video lo ayudará a aprender cómo navegar por el Portal para Padres de SBISD. Una vez que se abre, haga clic en el símbolo de descarga en la parte superior (flecha con un guión bajo). Aquí hay enlaces a dos recursos adicionales:
Si tiene alguna pregunta sobre el Portal para Padres, incluido cómo restablecer su contraseña, comuníquese con el director de su campus o con la Mesa de Ayuda de SBISD.
Who Can I Ask? Find Help Here!
Have a Question and Not Sure Where to Go For Answers?
Grade Level Questions: (General Grade Level Questions, Tech Needs, Etc)
- 6th Grade: Mayerling Franchi, Assistant Principal, or Marco Garcia, Counselor.
- 7th Grade: Steve Barry, Assistant Principal, or Jerry Roberts, Interim Counselor.
- 8th Grade: Kristie Avalos, Assistant Principal, or Meagan Hudek, Dean of Instruction.
Grading Guidelines Question or General Questions: Stefanie Spencer, Principal
Need Assistance or Resources: CIS Case Manager, Nelda Zuniga
Need Help With Reading Materials or Online Resources: Aaryn Silva, Librarian
Instructional, Grading, or Assignment Issues: Contact your child's grade level teacher or ask your child to email using their mysbisd.org email account and cc you. Encourage your child to build ownership in that work as it will prepare them for high school and plans beyond.
¿A quién puedo preguntar? Encuentra ayuda aquí!
Preguntas de nivel de grado: (Preguntas generales de nivel de grado, necesidades tecnológicas, etc.)
- 6to Grado: Mayerling Franchi, Subdirectora, o Marco García, Consejero.
- Séptimo grado: Steve Barry, subdirector, o Jerry Roberts, consejero interino.
- 8vo Grado: Kristie Avalos, Subdirectora, o Meagan Hudek, Decana de Instrucción.
Preguntas de pautas de calificación o preguntas generales: Stefanie Spencer, directora
Necesita asistencia o recursos: CIS Case Manager, Nelda Zuniga
Necesita ayuda con materiales de lectura o recursos en línea: Aaryn Silva, Bibliotecaria
Problemas de instrucción, calificación o asignación: comuníquese con el maestro de nivel de grado de su hijo o pídale a su hijo que envíe un correo electrónico utilizando su cuenta de correo electrónico mysbisd.org y cc usted. Aliente a su hijo a desarrollar la propiedad de ese trabajo, ya que lo preparará para la escuela secundaria y los planes posteriores.