Monclova Primary
Weekly Bulletin
Events for Week of January 22 - January 28
Monday, January 22
LPDC - 4:00 pm
Tuesday, January 23
Safety Drill - 10:30 pm
Wednesday, January 24
Thursday, January 25
Staff Meeting - 7:30 am - Guest Presenter
Imagination Station - see shared schedule
MAPS Dine Out Night - Granite City
Friday, January 26
Imagination Station - see shared schedule
Announcements
Thank you:
Reminders:
The safety drill has been changed to 10:30 am on Tuesday, SRO Hammit will be here to observe. The drill will be a scenario that includes some of you locking down and some evacuating. As we are half way through the year, take time to review your emergency plans. If there were an intruder threat in the building and you evacuated, you would really go to Monclova Community center or Monclova Christian versus just our fire drill areas. Think about your path to either place, communication and what you should have with you at all times during drills.
Andrea Pontsler has graciously agreed to share her STAR presentation during our staff meeting next week. We will start at 7:30 am.
There are still a few spots on the RtI schedule, if you have a Tier 3 student or thinking of moving a student to Tier 3, you must sign up for a conference. Also, if you have questions about interventions, goals, plans or anything else, please sign up for a time, too. The school psychologist will be in the meetings and she is a great resource!
Words of Wisdom and Action..............................
Reclaiming Our Time
Brittany Daniels
Representative Maxine Waters of California is known for not mincing words, speaking her mind, and most recently reclaiming her time during a House Financial Services Committee hearing.
Maybe it’s just me, but I can think of a few times when I have wanted to reclaim my time in the classroom. After all, isn’t time the one thing of which there never seems to be enough? Our time with our students has to be protected, and, when something or someone tries to steal it, reclaimed!
Granted, there are time-stealers that are beyond our control, but many more are within our power to reclaim. Start by making a list of things within and outside your control. For example, assemblies, fire drills, professional development, and some meetings may be beyond your control. To reclaim the time lost in these instances, be a good steward over the time that is left. What are you doing with the time you do have?
The list of time-stealers within my control includes transitions, mild behavior disruptions, and unclear expectations I may have communicated to my students. Reclaiming my time means being clear and direct about what I expect of students—at all times, no excuses, no exceptions. Have students practice explicitly explained procedures as many times as necessary. Be sure that when we send students off to read or write independently, they are clear about the work they are doing and how to get it done. One thing I know for sure is that students will do exactly what we have taught directly (through modeling) or indirectly (the few times we let it slide).
As we approach the remainder of the school year, let's use some of our time to make a list of time-stealers, and prepare a list of ways to reclaim the precious time lost. January 2018 is a perfect time to reteach (or new-teach) routines, procedures, and behaviors that support learning. After all, time not spent reading, writing, speaking, listening, and engaging in a classroom is wasted time. Reclaim it!