Saturday, September 3, 2016

The Middle Update 9/3/2016

Two days with kids are in the books, and from my perspective, we have gotten our Middle Schoolers off to a great start!  I want to thank all of you for your hard work last week.  It seems like the first day of Inservice was a month ago already.  I feel really good about our start, and I really look forward to taking on the challenge of getting as many of our students achieving to levels they didn't think were possible in every subject.  I feel really good about our Puma Team.

Growth Mindset Words and Actions
I have been impressed with the language and expectations that have been laid out for our students in our classrooms.  Having a growth mindset, while teaching and modeling what this looks like for our students is so important.  Continue to have those high expectations for all of our students, especially for our students that have low expectations of themselves.  I believe they will rise to our expectations when given the support needed to get there.

What it is all about
Check out this video.  Coach Payton's message is about football season, but I think it goes hand in hand with us getting back in the classroom.  It's the beginning of another great opportunity to impact the lives of students in a positive way, and be their champion.  His message is during the first 2 minutes of the video.  I am ready to get after this challenge with you!


1st Staff Meeting
We will have our first staff meeting on Wednesday, September 21st.  Our focus will be getting our SLO and PPG's set for the year.

STAR Testing
Students will be taking the fall STAR tests on the following dates in their respective Math and ELA classes.
Math - Tuesday, September 13
Reading - Wednesday, September 14

 Emergency Sign Postings
Each classroom should have their emergency signs (tornado, fire, other) posted near the entrance/exit.  These procedures should be reviewed with your students right regularly.

IE Time
This coming week, we will meet in Homeroom groups during IE time.  We will begin our IE routine on Monday, 9/12.  For the first Tuesday in Enrichment groups, teachers should consider using this ARTICLE.  The more articles and discussions we have with students about honesty and character, the better.  We will be discussing even more ways to expose our students to learn about the importance of a solid character. 

Handbook Acknowledgement Forms
Each teacher needs to be sure that we finish the Handbook Review, and gets the students to take the "Acknowledgement Sheet" home, and return a signed copy.  Please emphasize to your Homeroom that we need this sheet returned.  When you have all of the acknowledgement forms, please bring them to the office.  I will supply a treat to each Homeroom once all of the forms are turned in.

Special Kindness Homeroom Dates
We will also be running a special "Kindness Homeroom" about once per month.  The first special "Kindness Homeroom" will be on Tuesday, 9/20.  The lesson plan will be shared by Mrs. Morton.

Blogs
This is a reminder to please update the grade level blogs regarding expectations for the week ahead.  If you have any questions about this, please let me know.  Everyone should have access to post in the blog.  This has been a source of a great deal of positive feedback from parents.  Thank you for your efforts to enhance the communication from school to home.


Twitter Post of the Week
From Edutopia:

3 methods to motivate the unmotivated: .


Duty Next Week
Bus - Frehner
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The Middle Update 9/3/2016

Two days with kids are in the books, and from my perspective, we have gotten our Middle Schoolers off to a great start!  I want to thank all of you for your hard work last week.  It seems like the first day of Inservice was a month ago already.  I feel really good about our start, and I really look forward to taking on the challenge of getting as many of our students achieving to levels they didn't think were possible in every subject.  I feel really good about our Puma Team.

Growth Mindset Words and Actions
I have been impressed with the language and expectations that have been laid out for our students in our classrooms.  Having a growth mindset, while teaching and modeling what this looks like for our students is so important.  Continue to have those high expectations for all of our students, especially for our students that have low expectations of themselves.  I believe they will rise to our expectations when given the support needed to get there.

What it is all about
Check out this video.  Coach Payton's message is about football season, but I think it goes hand in hand with us getting back in the classroom.  It's the beginning of another great opportunity to impact the lives of students in a positive way, and be their champion.  His message is during the first 2 minutes of the video.  I am ready to get after this challenge with you!


1st Staff Meeting
We will have our first staff meeting on Wednesday, September 21st.  Our focus will be getting our SLO and PPG's set for the year.

STAR Testing
Students will be taking the fall STAR tests on the following dates in their respective Math and ELA classes.
Math - Tuesday, September 13
Reading - Wednesday, September 14

 Emergency Sign Postings
Each classroom should have their emergency signs (tornado, fire, other) posted near the entrance/exit.  These procedures should be reviewed with your students right regularly.

IE Time
This coming week, we will meet in Homeroom groups during IE time.  We will begin our IE routine on Monday, 9/12.  For the first Tuesday in Enrichment groups, teachers should consider using this ARTICLE.  The more articles and discussions we have with students about honesty and character, the better.  We will be discussing even more ways to expose our students to learn about the importance of a solid character. 

Handbook Acknowledgement Forms
Each teacher needs to be sure that we finish the Handbook Review, and gets the students to take the "Acknowledgement Sheet" home, and return a signed copy.  Please emphasize to your Homeroom that we need this sheet returned.  When you have all of the acknowledgement forms, please bring them to the office.  I will supply a treat to each Homeroom once all of the forms are turned in.

Special Kindness Homeroom Dates
We will also be running a special "Kindness Homeroom" about once per month.  The first special "Kindness Homeroom" will be on Tuesday, 9/20.  The lesson plan will be shared by Mrs. Morton.

Blogs
This is a reminder to please update the grade level blogs regarding expectations for the week ahead.  If you have any questions about this, please let me know.  Everyone should have access to post in the blog.  This has been a source of a great deal of positive feedback from parents.  Thank you for your efforts to enhance the communication from school to home.


Twitter Post of the Week
From Edutopia:

3 methods to motivate the unmotivated: .


Duty Next Week
Bus - Frehner