Andrew Johnson Weekly Updates
We Are Eagles...Watch us SOAR!
Sharpening the Saw...Spring Break 2016
A Cold Day on the Lake...
Our Little Fisherman...
Easter Family Photo
Please send me your favorite "Sharpen the Saw" photo to be showcased in future weekly updates
Student Leadership in Action...
Dear Johnson Family,
As you are aware, our school has applied for a grant to forward our work with The Leader in Me. In the spirit of beginning with the end in mind, I wanted to share some dates with you that will be important in the life of our school IF we receive the grant. The grant funds will help us formally kick off our work by hosting a Leader in Me/Launching Leadership Event. This will take place on July 11, 12, and 13. I am asking that all faculty and staff save these dates on your calendar. I will be working with district on a plan to give this time back to you in some way if we are awarded the grant. Wear your flip-flops, shorts, and invest in yourself as we prepare for the work ahead. Good food will also be provided J. We will immerse ourselves in the 7 habits and plans for Launching Leadership. We will spend time developing plans related to our work with student leadership during the 2016-2017 school year. We should be notified whether or not we will receive the grant in Mid-May. Keep your fingers crossed! Please RSVP below to secure your spot. If you already have a conflict with these dates, please send me an e-mail.
Leader in Me Retreat/ Launching Leadership Event
Monday, Jul 11, 2016, 08:30 AM
Andrew Johnson Elementary School, Ormond Drive, Kingsport, TN, United States
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Thanks...
- Thank you to our special education teachers for all of your work involving transition meetings and yearly IEP meetings.
- Thanks to our wonderful custodial staff for their hard work over spring break. The halls of AJS reflect the pride and conscientious efforts of a great custodial team.
- Thanks to Angela and Debbie for coordinating K registration. It was a long day, but I know you both made a great first impression on our new families. We also appreciate the support staff that assisted with this event.
Reminders...
- We are experiencing some issues with our gas valves. Until these are replaced, you may notice that the building is cool in the mornings. Fortunately, the mild temps will help us with this issue. We hope to get this repaired this week.
Please remember that, according to the Employee Handbook, the use of scented perfumes, lotions, etc. is discouraged in all KCS buildings. Spring is a time when allergies really flare up, so anything we can do to reduce allergens in a building is appreciated!
With the warmer weather, we will be taking advantage of outdoor recess more and more. PLEASE remember that adults need to spread out and supervise different zones of the play area. We can avoid many accidents and conflicts with good proximity.
- Worksheet Use Reminder- We were reminded in our principal meeting this week to consider how often work sheets are being used, the rigor and quality of work being produced when completing a worksheet and our initiative to reach our 21st century learners by embedding technology into our lessons. Students should not be spending their time completing worksheets that only require lower level thinking skills (ex: word searches, coloring sheets, fill in the blank, etc.) Please assess the rigor and relevance of any worksheet you are considering.
- Since Monday, we have had a change in the self-scoring process for our post conferences. Administrators will no longer be given access to enter self-scores. So, teachers will need to do this themselves by logging on to the tncompass site and entering their own. Please go ahead and register and log in to expedite this process. Go to https://tdoe.tncompass.org and register. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.
As warmer weather is on the horizon, Misty Keller reminds us of our KCS Coordinated School Health Wellness initiatives:
1. Denying student participation in recess or other physical activities as a form of discipline is discouraged; furthermore, the use or implementation of physical activity as a form of discipline is discouraged"
2. Encourage the use of “non-food" items when rewards are used.
From the ASC
NEW
April College & Career Shirt Day
Wednesday, April 6 is a college and careert shirt day. Please remember to wear a shirt to support your favorite college or employer. Also note that this is NOT a jeans day!
SchoolMessenger Usage
PLEASE SHARE WITH ANYONE ON YOUR STAFF WHO USES SCHOOLMESSENGER TO COMMUNICATE WITH FAMILIES ...
Effective immediately, SchoolMessenger CANNOT be used for non-emergency automated phone calls. Attendance-related calls are still allowable, as are text messages and emails.
Kingsport's Interactive School Zone Map
Kingsport now has an interactive website in which you can type an address and determine school zone. You can access this map from a link on the KCS website, Parents, School Zones / Street Directories or click here.
Once on the interactive page, click on the magnifying glass and type in the address in question. If the address is a city location, the site will zoom to the location and identify the corresponding school zone. If nothing happens, the address is NOT in the city of Kingsport.
Nominations Open for Read to Be Ready Educator of the Week
From the TDOE:
"We are excited about what our educators are doing in classrooms all across Tennessee to help promote literacy, and we want to recognize them. Help us celebrate our educators' creativity and commitment to student learning by nominating them to be the Read to be Ready Educator of the Week! Winning educators will receive a Read to be Ready Educator of the Week certificate and will be featured on our website. We plan to further honor our winners by sharing their best practices so all Tennessee educators have access to new and exciting ways to integrate literacy into their classrooms."
Any TN educator can nominate or be nominated for this recognition. For more information on Read to Be Ready, please click here.
To nominate a teacher, please click here.
NEW
Education Energy Camps
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Office of Energy Programs today announced that applications are currently available online for the 2016 K-12 Energy Education Camps. The four-day educational sessions will provide K-12 educators with information and resources needed to teach the science of energy and energy conservation in the classroom.
While a school may be represented by one educator, it is highly recommended that teams of two educators from a school attend the camp and work together to develop and conduct an energy education program. K-12 educators are invited to apply for one of the following two camps:
- Montgomery Bell State Park in Dickson County (west of Nashville) - June 6-10
- Pickwick Landing State Park in Hardin County(east of Memphis) - June 13-17
Teams selected to participate in Energy Camp will be provided with complimentary lodging and meals and will receive energy related classroom materials valued at $200. For more information or to access applications, please click here. Applications must be received by April 15, 2016.
The TDEC Office of Energy Program’s K-12 Energy Education Camps are funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy‘s State Energy Program. For more information, contact Angela McGee at Angela.McGee@tn.gov or 615-532-7816.
Learnng Sessions Announced
The Tennessee STEM Innovation Summit will be held May 17-18, 2016 in Nashville, TN. Summit sessions are designed to provide attendees opportunities to interact with educational leaders and practitioners who are seeing success with integrating STEM practices in their classrooms and communities.
For more information or to register, click here.
Last Call!
All submissions for the TDOE 2016 Essay Contest must be received by 5 p.m. CDT on Friday, April 8. The essay prompt is "My teacher has inspired me to …" For contest details, click here.
If you have any questions, please contact Educator.Communications@tn.gov.