As we begin the school year, here is some important information regarding the first week.
First Day Reminders
Each of you has a copy of the schedules for your 1st period class in your mail box. Please pick those schedules up first thing in the morning on Tuesday and bring them to the gym. We will all begin the day with a brief gathering in the gym. Students will come off the playground, drop their backpacks in their lockers, and bring their materials for 1st hour to the gym. I ask that all staff please line up facing the students stretching from end line to end line, in the middle of the gym. I would like to introduce each staff member to the student body. Once introductions are over, we will dismiss the students class by class. Teachers will stand in front of the grade that they teach and call down their 1st period roster, and take them to class. Please greet students at the door for each class on the first day (and everyday afterwards) and have an activity ready to go for them as soon as they sit down. It is so important to establish that each minute of class time is important and will not go wasted.
I/E Plans
For the first two weeks of school students should report to their homeroom assigned teacher for I/E (it is listed on their schedule). Mrs. Morton will share a list of community building activities to do each day, followed by review of the handbook (I will have the areas to point out in the handbook shared with you before the end of day Monday). Please project the handbook as you go through it. If you finish those activities before the end of the week, take time to get to know your homeroom students at a deeper level. We will begin assigning Intervention/Enrichment groups at the end of week 2.
STAR Testing
As of right now, we will plan on administering the STAR Assessment on Tuesday 9/9 (Math) and Wednesday 9/10 (Reading). We will give the math tests during math class on Tuesday and during English class on Wednesday.
PUMA Pride Training Camp
We will run the Training Camp as announced on Wednesday from 9:05 to 10:30. There were some initial mistakes in the schedule. Mr. Hausser and I will shore up the schedule and share it with you before school on Tuesday.
Tornado/Fire Drill Posters
These should be in your mailbox. Please take the time to get those posted near the classroom door.
Chrome Carts
We have one chrome cart per grade level, and the team's cart is stored each grade's respective English/Language Arts classroom. Each team is responsible for organizing the sharing of their grade level cart. There will be 3 additional carts that will be stored in the IMC for 1-8 use. There will be a calendar created for sign-out of these 3 carts.
Grading for Learning Reminders
Communication will be crucial to a smooth transition to our "Grading for Learning" system. Please keep Mr. Hazard's words in your head as we share with students how we will be assessing their work. It is about giving students clear guidelines of our expectations and feedback that will allow them to better meet those expectations. The use of rubrics to assess students is not new or an experiment, but a better way to provide communication about student progress.
Growth Mindset Reminder
Please keep Carol Dweck's work in the forefront of your minds...Praising effort instead of intelligence is critical and will encourage our students to want to take on new challenges.
Next Up...
I would like to schedule a bi-weekly meeting with each of you in the coming weeks. The focus of these meetings will be student progress, activity alignment to learning goals, evidence in Campus, and student assessment. Please think about a time in your schedule that could work. I'll be around to check in and set up those meeting times. Also in the coming weeks...conversations about Behavior Referrals and PUMA Pride.
I apologize for the length of the blog post, but it is important that we are all on the same page and speaking a common language. I can't tell you how excited I am to beginning this journey with you! It's a great day to be a PUMA!
“We have the collective belief, language, and actions that we will positively affect every student in our school. We make the difference for the kids!”
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Thursday, August 28, 2014
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Doesn't Feel like Summer Anymore
With two days of professional development in the books for the week, questions coming in about the first days of school, and high school fall sports practices underway, it doesn't feel like summer around school. This is really an exciting time. Here are a couple snippets of information as we are under a week away from the official start of a new school year.
- I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the newest addition to our staff, Bridget Vian. Bridget will teach Art in the middle school and 4th grade. We are very excited to have her join our staff.
- New Teacher Inservice begins on Thursday and Friday. We had our new 6-12 teachers in for some curriculum work all day today. It was a great day and we are excited to have such great people join our staff.
- I would also like to welcome Robin McNicol to our building. She will be taking over as the administrative assistant alongside Joann in the 1-8 Office. We are excited for her to join us!
- I shared a lesson plan template with all teachers. More details about lesson plans will follow soon during our staff meeting time. You can also access the template HERE.
- The Puma Pride team met on Monday afternoon, and we have decided to make a couple of adjustments to our Puma Pride Training Camp. On the first day of school, all MS students will report to the gym first thing in the morning. I would like ALL MS staff there for introductions to the student body. Students will report to their 1st class following the quick meeting in the gym. We will have student schedules for them in their 1st period of the day. We will have a normal first day of school afterwards. Puma Pride Training Camp will take place on Wednesday. A more detailed plan and schedule will be available early next week.
Be sure to take some moments this last week before we get started for yourself. I am looking forward to rolling up the sleeves and working to make this year the best one yet for our students.
- I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the newest addition to our staff, Bridget Vian. Bridget will teach Art in the middle school and 4th grade. We are very excited to have her join our staff.
- New Teacher Inservice begins on Thursday and Friday. We had our new 6-12 teachers in for some curriculum work all day today. It was a great day and we are excited to have such great people join our staff.
- I would also like to welcome Robin McNicol to our building. She will be taking over as the administrative assistant alongside Joann in the 1-8 Office. We are excited for her to join us!
- I shared a lesson plan template with all teachers. More details about lesson plans will follow soon during our staff meeting time. You can also access the template HERE.
- The Puma Pride team met on Monday afternoon, and we have decided to make a couple of adjustments to our Puma Pride Training Camp. On the first day of school, all MS students will report to the gym first thing in the morning. I would like ALL MS staff there for introductions to the student body. Students will report to their 1st class following the quick meeting in the gym. We will have student schedules for them in their 1st period of the day. We will have a normal first day of school afterwards. Puma Pride Training Camp will take place on Wednesday. A more detailed plan and schedule will be available early next week.
Be sure to take some moments this last week before we get started for yourself. I am looking forward to rolling up the sleeves and working to make this year the best one yet for our students.
Classroom Decor
As we get back into our classrooms and start preparing them for the first day of school with our students, I thought I'd share an article about a study that was done on classroom decor. While the target of the study was young children, I thought the message may be applicable to us. It's a short read...check it out if you get a minute...just click on the link below.
APS Article
APS Article
Friday, August 15, 2014
Mid-August Update
The month of August is moving by seemingly at the speed of light. Pretty much everyone I talk to is astounded about the fact that we will be back in school in a few short weeks. For me, the opportunity to get the staff together in the same room working towards common goals is going to be awesome. I have had the opportunity to sit down and talk with almost everyone on the staff this summer, and to say we have outstanding people that work here is an understatement.
We'll be together soon, but in the meantime, I thought we'd take this opportunity to roll out "The Middle"...this blog will be a place for communication, similar to the "K8 News" that many of you were familiar with. The goal of this first post will be to keep you up to speed with the latest from the office.
-I want to take this opportunity to welcome Ms. Tess Barnett to our staff. Tess will be our new 7th Grade English/Language Arts teacher. She is excited, and has already been working with Mrs. Anderson to get ready for the school year. Welcome to the team Tess!
-Professional Development is underway as our English department met this past Monday. There will be an opportunity for the PUMA Pride team on Monday from 1:00 to 3:00 (as mentioned in an earlier email from Mr. Hausser). Math will be in on Monday and Thursday, and we'll welcome our new teachers for curriculum work on Tuesday.
-On Wednesday, we had a representative from Renaissance Learning in to train us on the use of the STAR assessment program. We will be using STAR in place of MAP testing. It is sure to be a more efficient and useful tool for us as we work to get the most out RTI for targeted student interventions. There will be a session in our Opening Inservice to prepare all staff to use this tool.
-In another bit of staff news, Mrs. Bailey will be taking a position in the 1-8 IMC, replacing Mrs. Trulen. Mrs. Bailey is really excited about the opportunity to work with kids and books (2 of her passions).
-You'll notice a couple of classroom shifts when you come back. Mrs. Anderson's new classroom will be Room 201 (old multi-purpose room), and the old FCS room will be the new Multi-purpose room. At this point, we'll plan for staff meetings to be held in Room 201 (Mrs. Anderson's room).
As another summer week has come to an end, be sure to soak up each minute of the summer and enjoy the flexibility that summer brings. I truly look forward to working at a full Poynette Middle School.
We'll be together soon, but in the meantime, I thought we'd take this opportunity to roll out "The Middle"...this blog will be a place for communication, similar to the "K8 News" that many of you were familiar with. The goal of this first post will be to keep you up to speed with the latest from the office.
-I want to take this opportunity to welcome Ms. Tess Barnett to our staff. Tess will be our new 7th Grade English/Language Arts teacher. She is excited, and has already been working with Mrs. Anderson to get ready for the school year. Welcome to the team Tess!
-Professional Development is underway as our English department met this past Monday. There will be an opportunity for the PUMA Pride team on Monday from 1:00 to 3:00 (as mentioned in an earlier email from Mr. Hausser). Math will be in on Monday and Thursday, and we'll welcome our new teachers for curriculum work on Tuesday.
-On Wednesday, we had a representative from Renaissance Learning in to train us on the use of the STAR assessment program. We will be using STAR in place of MAP testing. It is sure to be a more efficient and useful tool for us as we work to get the most out RTI for targeted student interventions. There will be a session in our Opening Inservice to prepare all staff to use this tool.
-In another bit of staff news, Mrs. Bailey will be taking a position in the 1-8 IMC, replacing Mrs. Trulen. Mrs. Bailey is really excited about the opportunity to work with kids and books (2 of her passions).
-You'll notice a couple of classroom shifts when you come back. Mrs. Anderson's new classroom will be Room 201 (old multi-purpose room), and the old FCS room will be the new Multi-purpose room. At this point, we'll plan for staff meetings to be held in Room 201 (Mrs. Anderson's room).
As another summer week has come to an end, be sure to soak up each minute of the summer and enjoy the flexibility that summer brings. I truly look forward to working at a full Poynette Middle School.
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A New School Year! Odds and Ends
As we begin the school year, here is some important information regarding the first week.
First Day Reminders
Each of you has a copy of the schedules for your 1st period class in your mail box. Please pick those schedules up first thing in the morning on Tuesday and bring them to the gym. We will all begin the day with a brief gathering in the gym. Students will come off the playground, drop their backpacks in their lockers, and bring their materials for 1st hour to the gym. I ask that all staff please line up facing the students stretching from end line to end line, in the middle of the gym. I would like to introduce each staff member to the student body. Once introductions are over, we will dismiss the students class by class. Teachers will stand in front of the grade that they teach and call down their 1st period roster, and take them to class. Please greet students at the door for each class on the first day (and everyday afterwards) and have an activity ready to go for them as soon as they sit down. It is so important to establish that each minute of class time is important and will not go wasted.
I/E Plans
For the first two weeks of school students should report to their homeroom assigned teacher for I/E (it is listed on their schedule). Mrs. Morton will share a list of community building activities to do each day, followed by review of the handbook (I will have the areas to point out in the handbook shared with you before the end of day Monday). Please project the handbook as you go through it. If you finish those activities before the end of the week, take time to get to know your homeroom students at a deeper level. We will begin assigning Intervention/Enrichment groups at the end of week 2.
STAR Testing
As of right now, we will plan on administering the STAR Assessment on Tuesday 9/9 (Math) and Wednesday 9/10 (Reading). We will give the math tests during math class on Tuesday and during English class on Wednesday.
PUMA Pride Training Camp
We will run the Training Camp as announced on Wednesday from 9:05 to 10:30. There were some initial mistakes in the schedule. Mr. Hausser and I will shore up the schedule and share it with you before school on Tuesday.
Tornado/Fire Drill Posters
These should be in your mailbox. Please take the time to get those posted near the classroom door.
Chrome Carts
We have one chrome cart per grade level, and the team's cart is stored each grade's respective English/Language Arts classroom. Each team is responsible for organizing the sharing of their grade level cart. There will be 3 additional carts that will be stored in the IMC for 1-8 use. There will be a calendar created for sign-out of these 3 carts.
Grading for Learning Reminders
Communication will be crucial to a smooth transition to our "Grading for Learning" system. Please keep Mr. Hazard's words in your head as we share with students how we will be assessing their work. It is about giving students clear guidelines of our expectations and feedback that will allow them to better meet those expectations. The use of rubrics to assess students is not new or an experiment, but a better way to provide communication about student progress.
Growth Mindset Reminder
Please keep Carol Dweck's work in the forefront of your minds...Praising effort instead of intelligence is critical and will encourage our students to want to take on new challenges.
Next Up...
I would like to schedule a bi-weekly meeting with each of you in the coming weeks. The focus of these meetings will be student progress, activity alignment to learning goals, evidence in Campus, and student assessment. Please think about a time in your schedule that could work. I'll be around to check in and set up those meeting times. Also in the coming weeks...conversations about Behavior Referrals and PUMA Pride.
I apologize for the length of the blog post, but it is important that we are all on the same page and speaking a common language. I can't tell you how excited I am to beginning this journey with you! It's a great day to be a PUMA!
First Day Reminders
Each of you has a copy of the schedules for your 1st period class in your mail box. Please pick those schedules up first thing in the morning on Tuesday and bring them to the gym. We will all begin the day with a brief gathering in the gym. Students will come off the playground, drop their backpacks in their lockers, and bring their materials for 1st hour to the gym. I ask that all staff please line up facing the students stretching from end line to end line, in the middle of the gym. I would like to introduce each staff member to the student body. Once introductions are over, we will dismiss the students class by class. Teachers will stand in front of the grade that they teach and call down their 1st period roster, and take them to class. Please greet students at the door for each class on the first day (and everyday afterwards) and have an activity ready to go for them as soon as they sit down. It is so important to establish that each minute of class time is important and will not go wasted.
I/E Plans
For the first two weeks of school students should report to their homeroom assigned teacher for I/E (it is listed on their schedule). Mrs. Morton will share a list of community building activities to do each day, followed by review of the handbook (I will have the areas to point out in the handbook shared with you before the end of day Monday). Please project the handbook as you go through it. If you finish those activities before the end of the week, take time to get to know your homeroom students at a deeper level. We will begin assigning Intervention/Enrichment groups at the end of week 2.
STAR Testing
As of right now, we will plan on administering the STAR Assessment on Tuesday 9/9 (Math) and Wednesday 9/10 (Reading). We will give the math tests during math class on Tuesday and during English class on Wednesday.
PUMA Pride Training Camp
We will run the Training Camp as announced on Wednesday from 9:05 to 10:30. There were some initial mistakes in the schedule. Mr. Hausser and I will shore up the schedule and share it with you before school on Tuesday.
Tornado/Fire Drill Posters
These should be in your mailbox. Please take the time to get those posted near the classroom door.
Chrome Carts
We have one chrome cart per grade level, and the team's cart is stored each grade's respective English/Language Arts classroom. Each team is responsible for organizing the sharing of their grade level cart. There will be 3 additional carts that will be stored in the IMC for 1-8 use. There will be a calendar created for sign-out of these 3 carts.
Grading for Learning Reminders
Communication will be crucial to a smooth transition to our "Grading for Learning" system. Please keep Mr. Hazard's words in your head as we share with students how we will be assessing their work. It is about giving students clear guidelines of our expectations and feedback that will allow them to better meet those expectations. The use of rubrics to assess students is not new or an experiment, but a better way to provide communication about student progress.
Growth Mindset Reminder
Please keep Carol Dweck's work in the forefront of your minds...Praising effort instead of intelligence is critical and will encourage our students to want to take on new challenges.
Next Up...
I would like to schedule a bi-weekly meeting with each of you in the coming weeks. The focus of these meetings will be student progress, activity alignment to learning goals, evidence in Campus, and student assessment. Please think about a time in your schedule that could work. I'll be around to check in and set up those meeting times. Also in the coming weeks...conversations about Behavior Referrals and PUMA Pride.
I apologize for the length of the blog post, but it is important that we are all on the same page and speaking a common language. I can't tell you how excited I am to beginning this journey with you! It's a great day to be a PUMA!
Doesn't Feel like Summer Anymore
With two days of professional development in the books for the week, questions coming in about the first days of school, and high school fall sports practices underway, it doesn't feel like summer around school. This is really an exciting time. Here are a couple snippets of information as we are under a week away from the official start of a new school year.
- I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the newest addition to our staff, Bridget Vian. Bridget will teach Art in the middle school and 4th grade. We are very excited to have her join our staff.
- New Teacher Inservice begins on Thursday and Friday. We had our new 6-12 teachers in for some curriculum work all day today. It was a great day and we are excited to have such great people join our staff.
- I would also like to welcome Robin McNicol to our building. She will be taking over as the administrative assistant alongside Joann in the 1-8 Office. We are excited for her to join us!
- I shared a lesson plan template with all teachers. More details about lesson plans will follow soon during our staff meeting time. You can also access the template HERE.
- The Puma Pride team met on Monday afternoon, and we have decided to make a couple of adjustments to our Puma Pride Training Camp. On the first day of school, all MS students will report to the gym first thing in the morning. I would like ALL MS staff there for introductions to the student body. Students will report to their 1st class following the quick meeting in the gym. We will have student schedules for them in their 1st period of the day. We will have a normal first day of school afterwards. Puma Pride Training Camp will take place on Wednesday. A more detailed plan and schedule will be available early next week.
Be sure to take some moments this last week before we get started for yourself. I am looking forward to rolling up the sleeves and working to make this year the best one yet for our students.
- I would like to take this opportunity to welcome the newest addition to our staff, Bridget Vian. Bridget will teach Art in the middle school and 4th grade. We are very excited to have her join our staff.
- New Teacher Inservice begins on Thursday and Friday. We had our new 6-12 teachers in for some curriculum work all day today. It was a great day and we are excited to have such great people join our staff.
- I would also like to welcome Robin McNicol to our building. She will be taking over as the administrative assistant alongside Joann in the 1-8 Office. We are excited for her to join us!
- I shared a lesson plan template with all teachers. More details about lesson plans will follow soon during our staff meeting time. You can also access the template HERE.
- The Puma Pride team met on Monday afternoon, and we have decided to make a couple of adjustments to our Puma Pride Training Camp. On the first day of school, all MS students will report to the gym first thing in the morning. I would like ALL MS staff there for introductions to the student body. Students will report to their 1st class following the quick meeting in the gym. We will have student schedules for them in their 1st period of the day. We will have a normal first day of school afterwards. Puma Pride Training Camp will take place on Wednesday. A more detailed plan and schedule will be available early next week.
Be sure to take some moments this last week before we get started for yourself. I am looking forward to rolling up the sleeves and working to make this year the best one yet for our students.
Classroom Decor
As we get back into our classrooms and start preparing them for the first day of school with our students, I thought I'd share an article about a study that was done on classroom decor. While the target of the study was young children, I thought the message may be applicable to us. It's a short read...check it out if you get a minute...just click on the link below.
APS Article
APS Article
Mid-August Update
The month of August is moving by seemingly at the speed of light. Pretty much everyone I talk to is astounded about the fact that we will be back in school in a few short weeks. For me, the opportunity to get the staff together in the same room working towards common goals is going to be awesome. I have had the opportunity to sit down and talk with almost everyone on the staff this summer, and to say we have outstanding people that work here is an understatement.
We'll be together soon, but in the meantime, I thought we'd take this opportunity to roll out "The Middle"...this blog will be a place for communication, similar to the "K8 News" that many of you were familiar with. The goal of this first post will be to keep you up to speed with the latest from the office.
-I want to take this opportunity to welcome Ms. Tess Barnett to our staff. Tess will be our new 7th Grade English/Language Arts teacher. She is excited, and has already been working with Mrs. Anderson to get ready for the school year. Welcome to the team Tess!
-Professional Development is underway as our English department met this past Monday. There will be an opportunity for the PUMA Pride team on Monday from 1:00 to 3:00 (as mentioned in an earlier email from Mr. Hausser). Math will be in on Monday and Thursday, and we'll welcome our new teachers for curriculum work on Tuesday.
-On Wednesday, we had a representative from Renaissance Learning in to train us on the use of the STAR assessment program. We will be using STAR in place of MAP testing. It is sure to be a more efficient and useful tool for us as we work to get the most out RTI for targeted student interventions. There will be a session in our Opening Inservice to prepare all staff to use this tool.
-In another bit of staff news, Mrs. Bailey will be taking a position in the 1-8 IMC, replacing Mrs. Trulen. Mrs. Bailey is really excited about the opportunity to work with kids and books (2 of her passions).
-You'll notice a couple of classroom shifts when you come back. Mrs. Anderson's new classroom will be Room 201 (old multi-purpose room), and the old FCS room will be the new Multi-purpose room. At this point, we'll plan for staff meetings to be held in Room 201 (Mrs. Anderson's room).
As another summer week has come to an end, be sure to soak up each minute of the summer and enjoy the flexibility that summer brings. I truly look forward to working at a full Poynette Middle School.
We'll be together soon, but in the meantime, I thought we'd take this opportunity to roll out "The Middle"...this blog will be a place for communication, similar to the "K8 News" that many of you were familiar with. The goal of this first post will be to keep you up to speed with the latest from the office.
-I want to take this opportunity to welcome Ms. Tess Barnett to our staff. Tess will be our new 7th Grade English/Language Arts teacher. She is excited, and has already been working with Mrs. Anderson to get ready for the school year. Welcome to the team Tess!
-Professional Development is underway as our English department met this past Monday. There will be an opportunity for the PUMA Pride team on Monday from 1:00 to 3:00 (as mentioned in an earlier email from Mr. Hausser). Math will be in on Monday and Thursday, and we'll welcome our new teachers for curriculum work on Tuesday.
-On Wednesday, we had a representative from Renaissance Learning in to train us on the use of the STAR assessment program. We will be using STAR in place of MAP testing. It is sure to be a more efficient and useful tool for us as we work to get the most out RTI for targeted student interventions. There will be a session in our Opening Inservice to prepare all staff to use this tool.
-In another bit of staff news, Mrs. Bailey will be taking a position in the 1-8 IMC, replacing Mrs. Trulen. Mrs. Bailey is really excited about the opportunity to work with kids and books (2 of her passions).
-You'll notice a couple of classroom shifts when you come back. Mrs. Anderson's new classroom will be Room 201 (old multi-purpose room), and the old FCS room will be the new Multi-purpose room. At this point, we'll plan for staff meetings to be held in Room 201 (Mrs. Anderson's room).
As another summer week has come to an end, be sure to soak up each minute of the summer and enjoy the flexibility that summer brings. I truly look forward to working at a full Poynette Middle School.
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