Clif Notes 6/03/19
50 Years Of Building The State & Now Global Workforce!
DATES TO REMEMBER
This Week
Monday - 8am for Extra Help
Tuesday - No Faculty Meeting
- Wear 50th Shirts
- CTE PLCs
Wednesday -Academic PLCs; Extra- Help
Thursday - Academic PLCs; Extra- Help
Friday - SAT & Emergency Prep Committee Meetings
Upcoming:
6/11 - Final Exams, Pds. 1-4; Half-day for Students
6/12 - Final Exams, Pds. 5-8; Half-day for Students;
End of 4th Marking Period
6/13, 14, & 17 - Snow Hour Days
6/18 - Trade-off Day
6/21 - Report Cards Available in HAC
Graduation 2019
Graduation took place on Tuesday, May 28th at the Bob Carpenter Center and the Class of 2019 celebrated their commencement with a sense of achievement, yet the desire to attain more. Thank you to all the wonderful staff members and student volunteers who made this commencement truly a memorable evening. Click the link below to view graduation pictures. https://www.delawareonline.com/picture-gallery/news/education/graduation/2019/05/29/delcastle-technical-high-school-2019-graduation/1273407001/
Counelor Advisory Meeting
Chromebook Collection
Chromebooks will be collected at the end of this week. These dates are not optional and were set by the district. Staff should be prepared for students to be without technology for the few days following the return date. Please plan with the following information in mind:
Junior Chromebook Return Information:
· Junior Chromebooks will be returned during CTE time on Thursday, June 6th. Teachers should consider Wednesday, June 5th the last full day they should be using Chromebooks with students.
· Schedules will be sent to CTE teachers early next week.
· Juniors need to return their Chromebook and charger.
· Teachers of Juniors – please help remind them to have their Chromebook and charger ready.
Freshmen and Sophomore Chromebook Return Information:
· Freshmen and Sophomores will be returning their Chromebooks during CTE/DFTA time on Friday, June 7th. Teachers should consider Thursday, June 6th the last full day they should be using Chromebooks with these students.
· Schedules will be sent to CTE/DFTA teachers early next week.
· Freshmen are only returning their Chromebook. They need to safely secure their own charger over the summer.
· Teachers of Freshmen and Sophomores – please help remind them to have their Chromebooks ready.
Professional Learning Network on Special Education Leadership (PNL)
At the start of this school year, a multi-disciplinary team of Delcastle staff, consisting of administration, Instructors and Teacher Leaders, accepted an invitation to be part of a Professional Learning Network (PLN) facilitated by Delaware Academy of School Leadership (DASL), the University of Delaware Center for Disabilities Studies and DOE. The focus of this year-long PLN is on Leading Special Education Program and Services. The PLN consist of teams from 18 different schools form all three counties.
This PLN has and will continue to be a true commitment to spending time to learn about current trends in special education, analyze for root-cause of our needs and develop a cohesive strategic plan to support our growth. This year, our team participated in seven targeted professional development days on topics that truly encouraged us to analyze and plan for our growth from various vantage points.
Based on the professional development received, analysis of our data surrounding our current challenges with specialized service delivery within a full inclusion model and the prospective professional development staff will need to address the needs of our student population, the PLN has established three goals. Each goal is anchored in a multi-year strategic/implementation plan to support the growth and development of our Special Education department and the sustainment of our school culture of inclusivity.
One of our goals is surrounding Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Delcastle was able to secure a multi-year partnership with UD’s Center for Disability Studies to support our professional development and implementation plan for UDL. In addition, there will also be additional follow-up and support from DASL as we implement resources to support the attainment of our goals.
A very important point to highlight is that the PLN focused on resources and goals which are aligned to our continued growth in Blended Learning pedagogy and our 1:1 initiative. Basically, UDL is not another or a new initiative. It is very much a framework which embodies the flexibility and power of technology to create equitable and accessible learning environments for all. This link provides a nice review of UDL and how the framework helps guide the development of instruction and assessment that provides access to all learners.
If you have any questions regarding Delcastle’s UDL implementation goals and/or if you would like to be part or next year’s PLN, please feel free to reach out to Nathalie Princilus.
Members of the PLN:
Dr. Clifton Hayes
Dr. David Jezyk
Nathalie Princilus
Jennifer Lyman
Lisa Cave
Mark Wells
Leah Pusey
Petra Carre
EXAM SCHEDULE
Block/Periods
Exam Schedule, Tuesday June 11th
1 - 2
8:10 a.m. – 8:56 a.m. 9:00 a.m. – 9:43 a.m.
3 – 4
9:47 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. 10:34 a.m. – 11:17 a.m.
Buses arrive
11:05 a.m.
Bus Departure
Between 11:25 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
Block/Periods
Exam Schedule, Wednesday June 12th
5 - 6
8:10 a.m. – 8:56 a.m. 9:00 a.m. – 9:43 a.m.
7 – 8
9:47 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. 10:34 a.m. – 11:17 a.m.
Buses arrive
11:05 a.m.
Bus Departure
Between 11:25 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
Summer Home Visits
Training is mandatory for all visitors. If anyone has a conflict, you may attend a training at another location, but must let Lori Gregg know in advance ( ext. 28188), so Admissions can bring your supplies to the alternate session.
11:45 a.m.: HVT
1:30 p.m.: STG
Wednesday, June 12
11:45 a.m.: HHST
1:30 p.m.: DTHS
If you have any questions, please call Traci Prickett at ext. 38090.
End of the Year Best Practices in Schoology
The school year is coming to a close, so it is time to review the end of the year best practices for Schoology.
Please click on the link provided below to access the very brief presentation.
As always, if you need more assistance or have questions please contact me.
~Tara
Delcastle Instructional Focus
What We Say and How We Say It Matter
What We Say and How We Say It Matter
by Mike Anderson
Allow Yourself to Be Uncomfortable
It can be hard for us to be in a place of learning when it comes to language because language is so central to everything we do. We want definitive answers about what we should say, and we want them now. This can lead us to one of two shortcuts when it comes to language change, both of which I'd like to discourage. The first is unquestioning compliance—a ready acceptance of what someone says because they happen to be at the front of the room teaching a workshop or because they wrote a book about the topic. "Just tell me what to say!" I've heard some educators beg. Or, "Last year a trainer told us to call out the good behavior of some children to get the others to follow, and now you're saying we shouldn't do that?!" Good language habits require intentional thought, so please don't simply jump to new patterns too quickly.
For most of us, teaching isn't just a job, it's our identity. We are teachers. This makes examining our practice more than just an exercise in skills or strategies—it can feel like soul searching or even therapy, which can be scary. This can lead us to a second shortcut: quickly dismissing a language suggestion and not thinking about it at all. "Well, sarcasm works in my classroom. My kids like it," is a comment I've heard more than once. Like blind compliance, quick dismissiveness takes us out of the action. It disengages us, making it impossible to learn and grow.
This book is meant to push your thinking and encourage deep reflection and rich discussions with colleagues. In the end, you will need to decide what language habits you should work on. You'll need to consider your positive goals for students and decide what language will best help you get there. I hope that the many suggestions in this book will support you in this journey.
Continue reading next week....