Thomson Staff Newsletter
January 4, 2015
Important News & Notes
I hope that you all had a wonderful holiday break and had lots of time to spend with family and friends. Although Christmas itself was very busy, Matthew was able to take the week off with Elena and I and we had a very quiet week hanging out at home, visiting family and friends, and even sleeping in a little. While it went by quickly, I have to say that I was ready to come back today, see our little ones, and get back into a routine.
Re-teaching of the Cardinal Code.
As I shared with you before break, this week should be all about reteaching (not retelling) in all areas...don't forget, today is 'Cardinal Code Day'. Meaning that this day should be treated like the first day of school, it is a 're-set' and we need to reteach behavior expectations in all areas. Which means, I expect that you will spend the day and the week engaged in reteaching with fidelity the actual Cardinal Code lessons and demonstrating in the various locations what it looks and sounds like. This is not a day to dive back into academics because we all know that unless behavior is in check, academics won't get done. In fact, anytime that a teacher feels reteaching of behavior is needed, they should be making this a priority over all else. In the long run, the academic progress of your students will be greater when behavior is not an issue. Think about how we may use our support staff to push in and work on social skills and working in a group playing educational games in stations, teachers should not be pulling small groups, but rather be engaging in conversations, pretend play, problem solving. This means that staff should guide and encourage all students to problem solve independently. You can do this by modeling the proper tools and language. By investing this quality time into our students we are ensuring that they learn the values of trust and respect. Thank you for taking the time to re-teach the behaviors we expect from our children and for taking them to the various locations to teach these...it is greatly appreciated!
January is a Busy Month
January is here and a month that brings lots to accomplish and reflect on. This month we will really begin to evaluate our current School Improvement Plan, prepare for the Mini-QAR, and write our plan for 2016-17. We will also have our second Early Release Day on Wednesday, January 13th for all staff. The agenda for January 13th will be Using Running Records to Guide Instruction and Plan for Strategy Groups and School Improvement. Teacher Records Day will be Friday, January 29th and teachers may complete report cards from home if they wish.
Cold Weather Appears to Be Here
As you all know, December was a very mild month temperature wise, however, it appears that the cold winter weather is here. While I am hoping that our students will come dressed for the weather, it is important that the all staff ensure that students are dressed for the weather. Coats should be worn both to recess and out to the buses. This includes having them on and zipped up. If students are not dressed in the morning for the weather, it is the teachers responsibility to contact the parent regarding this. If there is a need for warm winter clothes, the office and counselors can help with this.
Important Upcoming Dates
Monday, January 4th- District Jean Day to support Community Foundation of Davison; DIBELS Windo Opens
Wednesday, Janurary 6th-Staff Meeting, 7:35 a.m. (Agenda: Behavior discussion & SIP Tri-Fold Review); CAP Parent Meeting, 6:30 p.m. in the AMR
Thursday, January 7th- DIP Meeting 4:15-5:15 p.m.
Monday, January 11th-DRA Window Opens; Board of Education Meeting, 7:00 p.m. HS AMR
Tuesday, January 12th-ELA 4:15-6:15 p.m.
Wednesday, January 13th-Early Release PD for Teachers and Parapros, 1:48-4:48 p.m.
:Friday, January 15th- Leadership Team Meeting, 7:30 a.m.; DIBELS Window closes
Monday, January 18th-Martin Luther King-No School for Staff or Students
Quotes Worth Reading...
-Elite Daily
Birthdays and Celebrations
Here are our upcoming birthdays: none this week...
Is your calendar marked for our Staff After-Christmas Party? The date is February 6th!