Monday Morning Message
Week of February 4, 2019
"I can see the sun on your back!"
While catching an episode of A Way with Words on NPR this morning, the phrase/idiom, "I can see the sun on your back" was brought up by a caller. Much to my surprise and the surprise of the hosts, this is not another way of saying, "Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Much to the contrary! It actually means, "Thank you for being you..." What a beautiful saying coinciding perfectly with the welcomed weather today.
So, to each and everyone of you on the receiving end of this newsletter, "I can see the sun on your back!" Our collective strengths make for a pretty impressive team Eagle. Keep on being you and making us all better in the process!
For those of you interested, below is a link to some favorite international idioms from the volunteers who translate TED Talks!
https://blog.ted.com/40-idioms-that-cant-be-translated-literally/
Other Notes:
- Please be sure that you are communicating your Valentine's Party times to Jill and Karen this week. All times, snacks, and craft plans must be finalized by February 7.
- Tuesday, February 5 will be Hot Chocolate Day at recess sponsored by our PTO! They will be serving Swiss Miss brand milk chocolate hot cocoa mix and Meijer brand mini marshmallows. Please contact your child's teacher if you would prefer an alternate plan for this treat.
- PVE will be hosting their 2nd Annual International Night on February 12 (this is the rescheduled date from last Wednesday) from 6:00-8:00. A few of us are planning on stopping by to support PVE and get ideas for hosting our own event. Please let Diane know if you are interested!
- Welcome Back! Callie returns Monday to her eager Kindy friends. We are all so happy to have her back!
- Science and Engineer Fair: I am excited to see all of our participants and projects on Wednesday! Take a moment to give your classroom scientists and engineers a confidence boost before they head to gym to present their project to our judges! Also, think about a time during the day on Thursday when you can pop down to the gym to view the projects as they will still be on display. See emails from Molly for other details or reach out to her with specific questions.
Upcoming Dates
February 5 - Elem, LT Mtg 8:30-10:30 @BME (Andrew), Hot Chocolate Day @ Recess, Staff Mtg. @ 2:45 Agenda
February 6 - Science and Engineering Fair, Global School Play DAY
February 8 - Candid Picture Day, Family Friday
February 11-15 - CHAMPS Training (Kindy)
February 12 - LT Mtg 9:30-11:30 @ ESC (Andrew)
February 13 - Think Tank @ 2:45
February 14 - Valentine's Day Parties
February 18 - Presidents Day - No School
February 19 - Staff Professional Development - No Students; No Staff Meeting after school
February 22 - Related Arts Energy Conservation Show
February 26 - PTO Mtg @1:15, Reject Film at PAC
March 1 - Eagle Extravaganza!
March 5 - No Staff Meeting (Rescheduled to March 12)
March 7 - Wellness Night 5:30-7:00
March 12 - Staff Meeting @ 2:35
March 22 - 4th Grade Dad's Club Breakfast @7:15; Eagle Play Dress Rehearsal for student body 9:15-10:15 (Switch Thursday and Friday RA Schedule)
March 26 - PTO @ 1:15
March 29-April 5 - Spring Break!
Our PD Day on Feb. 19th is officially in PD Express!
https://pdexpress.zcs.k12.in.us/pdexpress/login.aspx
Below are directions to sign up for this PD (for Certified Staff):
· Log into PDExpress
· Hover over In District PD then choose In District PD Catalog
· In the top left corner, under your name, you will see 2 tabs: List and Calendar-choose Calendar
· The January calendar will be showing so click the NEXT button to go to the February Calendar
· The Elementary PD Day 2019 will be found on Feb. 19th (there is a green check mark next to it)-choose this!
· A new screen will pop up and in the top right corner will be a REGISTER button-Click it!
· The last screen asks you to submit and that’s it! You are registered!
Please register before February 19th! Thank you!
Valentine's Day Parties: Spread love and kindness, not candy!
Blurb for your newsletters:
We look forward to celebrating Valentine's Day with our students at their classroom parties on Thursday, February 14th. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to emphasize the life skills of friendship and kindness with all of our students.
As you are preparing Valentine cards to share with classmates, please prepare cards void of candy. Regretfully, we will be unable to pass out the candy. We have many students with food sensitivities and allergies and as always, our main goal is to keep everyone safe.
If you elect to purchase cards that have contain something extra attached to them, please ensure they are inedible. This could include pencils, erasers, stickers, etc. Thank you for ensuring that all students can have a safe and fun celebration.
Future Think Tank Opportunities
- First, here is the link to the recorded Think Tank from before winter break. The sound is excellent!
- Each of the following dates will have two 30 minute time slots. I am happy to help you gain that 30 minutes back by covering a recess/lunch duty for you the week that you sign up.
- Talk with your team and sign up here!!!
PLC Corner
Below is the remainder of our PLC schedule for 2018 and the beginning of 2019! Evidence and Outcomes/Performance Tasks - Phase II of our Scope and Sequence is set to be complete by the end of this month.
We can plan on meeting in classrooms so that you have materials more readily available.
- 2/8 - 2nd and 4th PLC (Identifying Data Trends); 1st and 3rd Grade Level Collab Time
- 2/15 - 1st and 3rd PLC (Identifying Data Trends); 2nd and 4th Grade Level Collab Time
Kindy (Alternating Thursdays):
- 2/14 - (Identifying Data Trends)
MTSS (Multi Tiered Systems of Support) for Behavior
Diane will be our point person and first layer of support. As we move through the process, teachers will have the opportunity to bring the students in need to our MTSS Team for further collaboration, support, and brainstorming.
More information will be provided at our January Staff Share.