Week of April 27th...
LA Staff News
Weekly Calendar
Monday: Staff Zoom--9 AM
Thank you, Lori, for getting PS ready for the core data report!
THRIVE5 is for MAY.
This is PURELY hypothetical: start thinking about WHAT IF we have to start the school year virtually with kids we haven't me...I am not being asked to think about this, but I have had this wondering in the back of my mind.
Principals' Meeting Last Week: Building budgets MAY go down.
Tenured teachers: Please schedule your summative evaluation with me between now and April 24th. (Zach--maybe Monday--or sometime pre-baby!)
Please continue to check in on students and staff regularly!
Professional Development
As previously discussed, we need to make sure you all have logged 15 hours of PD in MLP. I have to submit our Dyslexia PD from the week prior to spring break which will take care of two hours.
However, looking ahead there are a few things on my mind. They include topics like:
-Understanding the teenage brain and the effects of trauma/poverty/stress/addiction on it
We always want to have a basic knowledge and "stay fresh" in this area as we consider the science when designing things for our school and interacting with at-risk kids.
-Social-Emotional Learning
We all wholeheartedly agreed a year ago that this was a missing component that was greatly needed for our kids. However, we didn't have the time or knowledge to create something for LA. I think by using the lessons we did this year, we all have a better understanding. After talking to many of you and thinking about next year, I'd like to challenge us to figure out HOW can SEL be an organic part of EVERY DAY--not this separate thing we touch on for 15 minutes once a week. (Don't get me wrong, it was the easiest way to dip our toes in the water.) But first, what components give our students the most bang for the buck?
-Restorative Practices
There are some components of restorative practices that are innate in the way we do things at LA. However, when it truly comes to discipline--especially for those mid and top tier offenses, we truly revert to traditional practices. How can we take a step forward in our PRACTICE/APPLICATION of RP for next year? We don't have to tackle it all, but WHAT components would we like to layer in, and what components would we like to study for future implementation?
-Executive Functioning Skills
How can we purposely layer in organic structures that help students build their EF skills? Truly, by design our school does this, but what can we do as adults to intentionally enhance a student's cognition of these skills in a way that wires their brain to apply them in other settings?
I'm in several groups and get info from a variety of sources. I've tried to put this info in one place for you. Please, take some time to peruse in an area of interest to you! AND, PLEASE share any insights (just informally--however you wish to do so) as you learn or are reminded of previous learning you found valuable. I've gathered some of the free PD out there right now, and you can access it here! And, please, I'd love to hear any takeaways!