Holmquist News and Notes
September 8 - September 11
Kimberly's Message
Weekly Calendar
Monday, September 7th
Labor Day Holiday
Tuesday, September 8th
EDC 11
Content Meeting 1:30
Holmquist U - 3:40
District Fame
ESL Lead 9 - 3
Wednesday, September 9th
EDC 12
ESL Int. 9 - 3
Title 1 Budget Meeting
ABC Meeting - 3:40
Science Lead Meeting
Thursday, September 10th
EDC 13
Class Data Sheets Due
Reid 1 - 3:30
New AP Meeting - 8:30
Friday, September 11
EDC 14
Eduphoria TSR Part I Due
Grandparents Day Event
3 Writing Samples Due to TL for Writing Board
Saturday, September 12th
LA and SS Lead Teacher Meeting 8 -4:30
PLC - STAT/Dyslexia. Please arrive no later than 8:10.
Monday - PK/K
Tuesday - 1st
Wednesday - 2nd
Thursday - 3rd
Friday - 4th
Hummingbird of the Week
Humming-bird Class of the Week
This Week's Winner
Friendly Reminders
We are off to a great start, however here are a few reminders to ensure that we are all operating on the same page.
- Be on time for lunch, block, recess, transitions, planning, PLC and dismissal. Our school is very large and it is very important that we adhere to schedules that are in place.
- All staff must Raptor in and wear their ID badges daily.
- Be on duty on time. If duty begins at 7:15, that means be there working at 7:15, not just arriving in the parking lot.
- Refrain from talking to other staff members while on duty, it is important that everyone is working together to actively monitor students.
- Staff eating/drinking is not appropriate when you are on duty monitoring students.
- When students are in a classroom, all teachers and paraprofessionals should also be there. This is not a time to be making copies or walking around the building. #1 priority is instruction.
- Be sure to check your email and boxes daily: #1 - each morning before the day begins; #2-during lunch or planning; #3-before leaving each day. You are responsible for all communication that takes place during the instructional day.
- Please have your tv turned on daily and all students should participate in morning movement.
- Workroom requests will be completed within a 24 to 48 hour time period. Do not expect Ms. M to stop what she is doing to laminate, make copies or give you supplies.
Be nice and kind to each other! We are a very large team and everyone is a valuable part of our team!
Shout Outs
- Mr. Tadesse's classroom was running like clockwork this week. He was conducting small reading groups, students were in stations and all students were engaged in a meaningful activity.
- Ms. Hill was doing a great job monitoring Ms. Chowdhurry's student in the cafeteria.
- Ms. Day's and Ms. Glover's class was also doing a great job following cafeteria expectations.
- Ms. Jackson for using her Love and Logic strategies with a challenging student this week
- Dr. Reyna for always going the extra mile in the cafeteria to ensure that students are following bus dismissal expectations
- Coach Sallee for giving up his inside morning duty to be outside greeting parents and students at car rider duty! (Car rider duty is the best duty ever)
- Many thanks to Irene Martinez for helping out with the Pre K/Kinder car riders after her walker duty! Dennison
- Ms. Stewart was doing a good a great job working with students from Ms. Cavazos and Ms. Purdy. Ms. Stewart's Donors Choose project for 6 Ipdas was also funded!
- Ms. Chowdurry’s Donors Choose project was also funded! Way to go ladies!
- Ms. Cheng was asked to be a part of the cycling team again this year and she is very excited about this opportunity.
- Ms. Dabney had great things to contribute to LA planning today… Your affirmation about teaching parents how to work with their children was right on the mark! from Ms. Cavazos
- Ms. Siddiqui for going above and beyond ensuring that all of our students are in the right class and conducting classroom observations on some of our students
- Aimee for conducting her 1st STAT/RTI meeting for the 15-16 school year with the ILT team to make sure students will receive the correct intervention.
- PLC Faciliators did an awesome job with teams this week. Team really enjoyed PLC and it was an opportunity for teachers to learn a little bit more about their students! Way to go Content and Support!
Love and Logic Tips
1) Only give choices that you can be incredibly happy about. Kids need to believe (whether it’s true or not) that your life will go on and you’ll be happy no matter what choices they make or how sad you are for them.
2) ALWAYS lead with genuine empathy. "Oh, I am so sad that you didn’t get your assignment done." Then follow by giving the problems back. "What are you going to do about that?" If they give suggestions, encourage ones that are their idea and don’t cause a problem for anyone else. If they don’t have suggestions, ask if they would like to hear what others have tried. Then, only give suggestions that are options you would be happy with. They may or may not like your suggestions. Simply say, "I know you can figure it out, let me know what you decide." The first person to email me when win 2 Astros tickets!
3) Approach from the rear and whisper in the ear! Never embarrass them in class or try to get into an argument in front of others…you will lose every time!
4) When a student is misbehaving in class, start out small and work your way up. "Do you think you can get yourself together at your desk or would you like to try getting yourself together in the chair in the back of the room?" "There is a chair waiting for you in Mrs. _____'s room until you get yourself together. Come back as soon as you can." "Would you like to sit in the chair in Mrs.______'s room or the chair in the office?" "Do you think you can walk to the office on your own, or do you need someone to come get you?"... Always ask the question and walk away, giving the assumption of compliance. Once you have made your rounds through the classroom, if the student is still not doing what they are supposed to, move on to the next choice and walk away giving them the chance to choose without arguing. Repeat the process until they comply or are forced to comply.