The Middle Update 11/16/18

Resource of the Week
At the tail end of our Staff Meeting, we reviewed a short summary of Ken O'Connor's 15 Fixes for Broken Grades.  O'Connor's book is a solid, quick read.  If you are interested in reading the whole book, let me know and I'll lend you a copy. 
The article this week provides some practical strategies to use that are effective in using assessments as opportunities to increase our students' level of learning.  Once again, our grading system is set up to adhere to the fixes, but it always good to check in and revisit this topic to maintain our consistency from classroom to classroom.  Our Puma Pride system is a critical part of doing it right.

"Do No Harm: Flexible and Smart Grading Practices" by Andrew Miller

Early Math Olympiad Results
Our Math Olympiad students recently participated in their first contest of the year.  This year, we have adjusted our IE structure so that students have more direct practice with the high level problems that they will encounter on these exams.  In all of our contests last year, we didn't have a student score over 2 (high score is 5), and most were 0 or 1's.  In looking at the 7th and 8th grade results for the first contest, we had 1 student score a perfect score (5) - Carter Fait.  We also had 9 students score a 4, and 8 students score a 3.  Impressive results!

The 6th grade team has yet to have their efforts scored.  If you see the following 7th and 8th students, tell them great job!
Jocelynn Nehls, Dylan Trudell, Mykolas Lyons, Alex Busch, Matthew Lannoye, Valerie Heth, Hunter Wells, London Chapman, Darias Alires, Tanis Crawford, Tyler Snyder, Meredith Burdon, Jackson Geitner, Luke Lindquist, Melanie Koopmans, Bryanna Tesch, Avery O'Dea, Chase Hansen, Grace Hutchinson, Lizzi Endres, Mika Bush, Felicia Ritzke, Mark Bartz, Gunnar Hamre, Ilse Benzing, Anneliese Graeme, Hazel Ruckle, Conrad Kurtz, Dominic Graeme, Nicholas Milewski, Caden Markgraf, Carter Fait, Maddie McEvilly, Carsten Small, Bryn Romeis

Lockdown Drill on Tuesday (11/20)
We will be having a lock-down drill on Tuesday (11/20) afternoon at 1:30pm.  This is a good time review procedures with students.  It is important that the classroom door is locked, everyone in the room is out of sight from the window, and the room is quiet.  In a lock-down scenario, it is also critical that any student phones are powered off or at least silenced.  We will discuss lock-down situations in more depth during our PD Day on 11/26.  This drill experience will help inform our discussion.  Please let me know if you have any questions.  New door handles which make it easier to lock the door from the inside are scheduled to be installed on Monday (11/26) as well.

PD Day on 11/26
The schedule for our PD Day on 11/26 is below:
8:00 - 9:00 - District Meeting in the High School Commons
9:00 - 12:00 - Department Work - goals will be communicated department by department
12:00 - 2:00 - Lunch/Classroom Time
2:00 - 2:30 - PMS Staff Meeting - Review of School Safety Scenarios
2:30 - 3:30 - District Insurance Meeting

MS Staff Meeting this past Wednesday
Thanks to all of our teachers for sharing impressive student growth and sharing effective strategies with the team.  We have a very strong team here.  After analysis of our School Report Cards, there are certainly areas for us to focus in our improvement efforts.  We will use the School Report Card data as much as we can to drive these efforts.  Closing our gaps is all of our responsibility...utilizing each minute of instructional time and IE, and instituting inclusive co-taught sections of ELA and Math, among other strategies are critical parts of closing this gap for all of our students.

Early Release on Wednesday (11/21)
The Thanksgiving Holiday is almost upon us.  With that being said, next Wednesday (11/21) is an Early Release Day.  Students will be dismissed at 1:15.  We will be following our Early Release Schedule.  Please review it and let me know if you see any areas that are overlapping for your coverage.

Mark Your Calendars for Talent to be on Display!
MS Holiday Concert - Tuesday, December 18th at 7:00pm in the 1-8 Gym

Images of the Week

 Daily Free Throw Challenge during Lunch Recess

The Middle Update 11/11/18

Resource of the Week
Two Minute Intervention
Mr. Fischer shared a resource this week.  This is a protocol designed for educators to use when planning how to help a student that has been struggling, either academically or behaviorally.  Give it a look and try it out with your team, or more informally when planning for our students.  We'll be taking a closer look at it as a staff.  Here is a link to it.

Referendum Passed!
Our referendum passed in a landslide...63% of yes votes!  Now the work begins.  Over the course of the next few months, we'll be working to finalize plans to move forward with the projects that were approved in the referendum.  It is an exciting time.  The new elementary will be is slated to open at the start of the 2020 school year.  Thanks to all for your work in helping communicate and support the referendum efforts.

MS Staff Meeting on Wednesday (11/14)
We will have a Middle School Staff Meeting on Wednesday afternoon at 2:50 in Mrs. Rogness' Room.  You'll hear from teachers about student progress data, and instructional strategies that have been working well.  If you have some impressive student growth data to share, please let me know.

World Diabetes Day - Wednesday (11/14)
We have several students and staff that deal with diabetes every day.  We have been asked if we would recognize this by participating in wearing blue on Wednesday, November 14.  Feel free to participate and share with students this small way to show support for anyone that has diabetes.

Images of the Week

The Middle Update 11/4/18

Resource of the Week
The mental health of our students is a growing concern in schools across the country, and our school is no different.  The short article this week provides practical instructional strategies that teachers can use to help students struggling with mental health issues like anxiety, bipolar, or depression.

"Addressing Mental Health Disorders in the Classroom" by Bruce Van Stone

Friday's Assembly
Thanks to all those that helped plan our assembly this past Friday.  I think the students were into the activities, and it was great to recognize a student for giving her time and efforts to help others...in a culture of instant gratification, sometimes it seems like the thought of giving back can seem like a foreign concept...hopefully the recognition of Alli will rub off on others.  Thanks to the teachers who put out a great performance for the students...I look forward to hearing about the performance that will top it at our next assembly in January.



End of Quarter 1 Information
Listed below is some important due dates for grades:

-1st Quarter grades are due by Wednesday (11/7) morning,
-Report cards will be mailed home, but we will also hand a copy out to students during Homeroom on Friday (11/9) and teachers will lead a reflection/goal setting activity,
-At the end of the day, all students with all of the Puma Pride scores at "ME" can report to the cafeteria to show off their "ME's" for an ice cream treat

Veteran's Day Ceremony on Friday
We will be attending the Veteran's Day Ceremony at the High School this coming Friday (11/9).  We will move Nutrition Break up to accommodate our attendance at this important event.  Please dismiss all students for Nutrition Break at 8:50 am on Friday.  After nutrition break, students will report to class as follows:

6th - Report to 2nd block classroom
7th - Report back to 1st block
8th - Report to their 1st block classroom

Please gather students together for a discussion about the importance of reverence and respect at this ceremony.  We will aim to leave your classroom at 8:58, and be in our seats by 9:02.  Our students will enter the Kerr Gym through the North Gym doors adjacent to our seating location.  All staff members should seek out a spot to sit among our students.  We look forward to this opportunity to show our gratitude and appreciation for those that have given so much for us to enjoy the freedoms that we have living in the United States of America.

Safety Drill Recap
Thank you to all of you for your efforts during our fire/evacuation drill this past week.  As a reminder, if we have to evacuate the 1-8 Building for any reason, we would move our students to the on-campus evacuation site (Aux. Gym).  A couple of reminders for everyone as we reflect on this drill experience.
-One recent adjustment in our plan involves the training everyone that in the event of the fire alarm going off, the teacher should be the first one in the hallway to check to make sure it is safe, before the class proceeds to the fire drill.  We will discuss this further in a staff meeting.
-If the fire alarm goes off for any reason, please head to your normal location and take attendance...if it is not a planned drill, we most likely will be heading to our evacuation site.
-We are able to get everyone out of the building in about a minute and half consistently.

Referendum Update
Tuesday is the big day.  It is hard to believe that the voting day is almost here.  A lot of work and preparation has gone into this process.  As a reminder, the website is a great resource to find all of the information regarding the process used to determine the referendum questions.

Important Dates Coming Up
-Veteran's Day Ceremony - Friday, 11/9 around 9:04 in the Kerr Gym
-Next Middle School Staff meeting will be on Wednesday, November 14th at 2:50 in Mrs. Rogness' Room
-Early Release at 1:15 on November 21st before Thanksgiving Break

Images from the Week