Bobcat Bulletin
April 6, 2020 and April 13, 2020
This Week's Events
Monday 4/6
- Stay safe and be well!
Tuesday 4/7
- You are not alone - we are all in this together!
Wednesday 4/8
- Reach out to a friend, colleague, family member - even those that make you believe they are okay.
Thursday 4/9
- Do something that makes you happy - perhaps something you haven't had time for.
Friday 4/10
- Love yourself!
Next Week's Events
Monday 4/13
- Distance Learning Plan sent to parents by 8:00am
Friday 4/17
- Report Cards Due
Looking Ahead
April 20
- Report Cards Viewable in MiStar
Brene Brown's Unlocking Us Podcast
I know many of you know Brene Brown. But if you don't she is an amazing speaker, writer and professor who focuses on studying vulnerability, courage, authenticity and shame. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to her latest podcast, Unlocking Us, I would encourage you to check it out. Warning*** Brene often uses some colorful language...so use your discretion when listening. She offers some valuable lessons about handling things for the first time, and understanding that intersection between scared and excited. I found it perfect for our current reality. Brene Brown Unlocking Us - FFTs
We’re in this Together!
If we have said it once, we’ve said it many times in the past few weeks and as we enter the next phase of Distance Learning Plans we will need to continue to pull together and make the work lighter for all of us.
In order to cut down on emails and put everything in one place that will allow for support staff to better serve all our students, academically and social-emotionally we ask that you fill in your information on the shared document below:
AE Distance Learning Platform Tracking
We realize that things are still very fluid and that things may change as the implementation of our new plans take shape, so please update as needed. Some of the platforms listed are PTA funded, some are District funded and some are not. These resources are just sampling of what we know some of you already have in place for your students. Remember you should work to keep this simple and straightforward for your families and yourself.
In the coming weeks as you start to schedule your ‘live’ meetups/hangouts/zooms, please share your schedule by adding them to the AE Calendar.
Webinar Resource Share
On Thursday, Pioneer Valley hosted a webinar on Guided Reading. It was a great review of the components of a Guided Reading lesson and concluded with some very practical ideas for making remote learning work.
Here is the link to the webinar in its entirety, it is over an hour: https://vimeo.com/403505682
They shared a few ready to use resources too.
- alphabet sheet - for your students to print and cut apart to aid in word work instruction and practice
- sound boxes - for making demonstrating and practicing those letter-sound-writing connections
- analogy chart - for vocabulary and helping students to make connections
- Book Club Bookmarks 1 - a great resource for your students to aid in virtual book club conversations
The two main presenters of this webinar were Jan Richardson and Michele DuFrense. You may find something to use or get the spark of an idea for exploring their sites and free resources.
http://www.micheledufresne.com/
Updates and Reminders
- The report card deadline is Friday, April 17th. Grades will be posted on Tuesday, April 21st. Asses whatever you had up until March 12th. Don't worry about late assignments. If there's anything you didn't assess, leave it blank. You can address behavioral concerns, but keep in mind that this is not the time to go too hard on them.
- We will still hold parent/teacher conferences in the spring, but the window is much wider. Feel free to meet with parents anytime between April 21st (when the report cards go live) and the end of May. When we get closer to the time, we will communicate to families that we are happy to host an optional virtual or phone conference.
- Would you like to win a new dress? Reese Witherspoon's label Draper James is giving free dresses to teachers. Check it out at this link: https://www.today.com/style/reese-witherspoon-s-label-draper-james-giving-free-dresses-teachers-t177462 (Thank you to Katie Booth from Silver Springs for sharing this good news!)
- The winner of the Friday night Scavenger Hunt was Regan Cowger! Congratulations Regan! The runner up was Sarah Shepherd. I hope all that participated had a good time just hanging out and putting up with my shenanigans! Look for future events!
- I am so thankful for all of you! Your love, compassion, thoughtfulness, and grace is evident in all that you are doing!
The Next Steps for Distance Learning - What We Know so Far:
- Beginning the week of April 13th, we'll need you to have a Learning Management System. For most of us, this will be Google Classroom. It will be used to administer, document, and track content.
- We will be using a video conferencing tool to provide some daily direct or small group instruction. The tools for these check-ins will likely be Zoom or Google Hangout/Meet.
- There will be MANY opportunities for PD next week including Google Classroom, Zoom, Google Meet/Hangout, etc. Though you're not required to attend any of these sessions, the expectation is that you will know how to use these programs in order to implement Phase Three.
- A leadership team met with Aaron Friday afternoon to iron out more details about Phase Three - Thank you to Lauren, Bridget, Cori, Blake and Jessica for attending this meeting and providing feedback and thoughtful considerations. It is greatly appreciated!
- I have no doubt that you are going to knock this out of the park. We will struggle, we will persevere, and we will rise...together!
How to turn any pdf into an editable digital worksheet.
Kelly Lindsey at Winchester found this fantastic resource. It's a super helpful video on how to turn any pdf into an editable digital worksheet.
LC Corner - Curriculum, Literacy & Learning...oh my!
April is Poetry Month
Much of our regular lives may be ‘on hold’ for the moment, but April has arrived like it always does. Nationally, April is known as Poetry Month. It is a time to celebrate and explore all kinds of poems and poets. If you are in need of a few resources to use in your online learning and support plans, read on. These sites are for you and your students. Take time to explore and see how these resources might meet the current needs of you and your students.
Welcome to Shel Silverstein | Shel Silverstein
One of my favorite fun and quirky poets. Of all the sites, this one needs some exploring before sending your students off to it.
Under the FUN tab you can find videos of his poems. The poems are animated, but not narrated, so it might not work for non-readers.
Check out the LEARNING RESOURCES tab to find ideas for teachers to download and share. There are plans for specific lessons and activities that might spark the hidden poet in any student.
Most of us are first introduced to poetry through the classic Mother Goose poems. Here is a collection of her classic nursery rhymes. There is audio for each poem.
Writing with Writers: Poetry Writing
This site comes from Scholastic and is a great study of the genre of poetry.
There are links to PDFs that take a writer step-by-step through a workshop with favorite authors.
Jack Perlutsky - is recommended for 1st -4th grade. There is also a spot where students can hear him read his own poem.
Karla Kuskin - is recommended for 4th-8th grade. Her workshop demonstrates how to use powerful words to create powerful poems.
Jean Marzollo - is recommended for 2nd-5th grade and showcases the fun of rhythm and rhyme to create poems.
ReadWriteThink is a great resource that is sponsored and supported by the International Literacy Association and National Council of Teachers of English. This interactives link will take you specifically to ReadWriteThink’s section for Poetry Month. There are resources for teachers and you should take a look at all the student interactives for writing poetry. There is something for writers of all ages: Haikus, Acrostics, Theme Poetry that can be used for creating shape poems and something called Word Mover that allows students to create ‘found poetry’ using a bank of words.
Hopefully one or more of these sites will be useful to you as we enter our next phase of Distance Learning. If you choose to have a virtual poetry slam or host a poetry cafe, feel free to invite me, I’d be happy to join in.
PTA Stipend Reimbursement
As a reminder all teachers are able to get a $250 classroom stipend reimbursement ($175 for part time). Currently about 2/3 of the teachers haven't yet submitted their request for reimbursement. The PTA has extended their deadline for turning in receipts to May 1st. Being a PTA member is a requirement in order to receive the stipend.However, that cost is small (I think it's $15) in comparison to the reimbursement. You can email receipts to amermantreasurer@gmail.com.
Just a little something to make you smile...
Random Useless Facts
- Length of beard an average man would grow if he never shaved: 27.5 feet.
- Amount of time an average man spends shaving: 3,350 hours
- Number of whiskers on the face of the average man: 30,000
- Number of inches whiskers grow per year: 5.5
- The average man sweats 2.5 quarts every day.
- In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.
- Armadillos have four babies at a time and they are always all the same sex.
- Armadillos are the only animal besides humans that can get leprosy.
- “Stewardesses” is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand.
Happy Birthday!!
- April 12 - Jennifer Isenberg
- April 13 - Rose McDougall
- April 27 - Jamie Henderson