Murphey Memos
Weekly Updates
Loving to Learn, Learning to Lead, Leading the Future
Character Trait of the Month: Kindness
Brown's Buzz
Star Staff Member of the Week
Shout out!
Great Teamwork in Planning
Something to Think About
“They say a person needs just three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to love, something to do, and something to hope for.”
― Tom Bodett
Our Goals
Reading composite from 40.1 to 45.1.
3rd Grade Reading From 28.9% to 30.7%.
4th Grade Reading from 37.9% to 42.9%.
5th Grade Reading from 51.0% to 56.0%.
3rd Grade Math from 44.7% to 49.7%.
4th Grade Math from 34.5% to 39.5%.
5th Grade Math from 37.3% to 42.3%.
By 2019, Murphey will decrease the achievement gap between all students and students with disabilities in reading from a 25.8% gap to a 20% gap as measured by the NC End of Grade tests.
By 2019, Murphey Traditional Academy will reduce the number of office discipline referrals from 58 to 50.
December 3rd
- Math/Science PLCs 4
- ELA PLCs – 4,1, 2
- Latin PLC
- 5:30 PTA board meeting
- Holiday Dress Up - Red & Green day
December 4th
- Math/Science PLCs – 5, K, 1, 2
- ELA PLCs – 4, 5
- 3:10 Leadership Team Meeting
- Holiday Dress Up - Ho Ho Ho Down
December 5th
- 3:10 IST meeting
- ELA PLCs – 5, K
- Math/Science PLCs – 5, 4, 3, 1, 2
- Holiday Dress Up - Plaid is Rad
December 6th
- Science Fair Judging 8am – noon
- ELA PLC – 3rd
- 5:00 Science Fair display and Book Fair
- 6:15 PTA meeting, Musical, and STEM presentation
- Holiday Dress Up - Faux Fur
- Brown out - Principal's Meeting
December 7th
- CKLA Coach visit
- Plans uploaded by EOD
- Holiday Dress Up - Grinch Day
December 8th & 9th
Future Events
12/3- 12/7
- Book Fair
12/4
- Leadership Team Meeting
12/6
- Science Fair
- Family Night
- Principal’s Meeting
12/7
- CKLA coaching day
12/10 – 12/11
- Restorative Practices Training (specified staff)
12/13
- CF Meeting
12/17
- Annual Christmas Cookie Exchange
- Fire Drill
12/22 -1/2
- Winter Break
1/2
- Optional Teacher Workday
- No workday for TAs
Announcements
Guidance this week is 4th and 5th grades.
We are having serious concerns with tardy staff. We understand that we can all be late occasionally. But we cannot arrive after 7:30. This leaves our students in unsafe situations. We don't have enough staff to cover all the places where students are left unattended. I will have one on one conversations with those who violate this professional responsibility. But wanted to send a reminder to all.
If you need to tell your students what they will be having for lunch, here's the link to the lunch menus: Lunch menus
Make sure you read the December chapter of Growth Mindset Coach. You will need to activities for your class meetings. Also, post this month's mantra in your classroom.
Teacher EVAAS reports are now available. Please let me (Cynthia) know if you need a support session to understand how to interpret your individual data. We will look at school data at our next leadership team meeting.
Growth Mindset Focus - We Love a Challenge
A student in the growth mindset is motivated to tackle new challenges and overcome obstacles, but if you aren’t offering challenging work in the classroom, mindset is largely irrelevant. In this section, we discuss the necessity of sufficiently challenging each student in your class. We also talk about the value to having high expectations for each student. Educational challenges and high expectations are both characteristics of a growth-oriented classroom.
This month, we talk about how to implement a concrete plan for growth and communicate expectations to students and colleagues that sets the tone for the year and serves as a framework for maintaining a growth mindset in the context of learning, because doing hard things is exercise for our brains.
We Love a Challenge!
Here are some questions that can be asked as you plan:
Are all students engaging in challenging work?
Have I differentiated the material so all students feel sufficiently challenged?
Does the student see value in the process?
Do I believe that all students can learn?
ELA Curriculum Updates
Progress monitoring is not an option. All students who are intensive or strategic in a measure should have been progress monitored at this time. By this time, students should have been progress monitored at least 3 times. Progress monitoring data should be added to our DIBELS collection form. The forms are in the Data Collection folder in grade level lesson plan folders.
Paideia Seminars will focus on gratitude and giving for the month of December. Schoolwide seminars should be the week of December 17th. Seminar plans will be shared via OneDrive.
Math Curriculum Updates
I received an email from a blog that I follow entitled "Number Bonds Can Suck It." Well, of course I had to go check it out because number bonds are near and dear to my heart. It was a pretty good video and article explaining the mistakes we often make using this wonderful tool. It also goes on to help us figure out how to correctly use number bonds; from adding to ten to fractions and time. So, I hope you're as intrigued as I was and go check it out here!
In addition to getting your students to practice their skills on IXL, you can also have them visit www.gregtangmath.com . There are several games that help them practice their basic math facts in a game format. You should try them out yourself! They make you think, so go play...only if you dar
Science Curriculum Updates
Science Fair updates: You will receive an email with ALL of the directions for the Science Fair. Please print it out, read carefully, ask questions and prepare, prepare, prepare.
**Do not put their names on the FRONT of the boards. The best location for their names is the back, middle panel. We will have a numbering system in place for you to use for the fair.**
STEM: Greensboro Water Resources Poster Contest
Greensboro Water Resources is sponsoring a poster contest for students in grades K-2. The theme is “Water is Life” and entries are due February 15, 2019. Please see this flyer for additional information and entry forms. Contact Latoya Harris (336.373.4601) with questions.
Title 1 Updates
Parent involvement policy documentation is not over due. . Please submit that documentation by December 1oth. If you need additional forms, let me know and I’ll supply them.
Parent newsletters, please include me. I can receive the newsletter electronically for our Title I documentation.