As we near the middle of November, I wanted to share a few of statistics taken from our Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted last year. Did you know that...
In the middle school, students that identified as food insecure were less likely to feel like they belonged (45% insecure versus 73% secure), more likely to report bullying (53% insecure versus 28% secure), less likely to say they have a teacher to talk to (50% insecure versus 83% secure) and more likely to report mental health concerns (82% insecure versus 42% secure).
What questions or wonders do you have after reading this data?
We plan to give out a school climate survey soon to gather data to see how changes that have been in place this year may compare to previous year's data...more planning and information to come on this topic, and how we'll use that information to inform future school planning.
Resource of the Week
The article this week has so many good nuggets about effective remote teaching strategies. From highlighting the effective parts of the workshop model (mini-lesson, independent work/conferring, reflective closure) to being equitable in our practices to fostering independence in our learners, this article provides it all. As we continue our efforts, we'll continue to analyze our practices and breakdown the specific strategies that we need to use to be most effective with our students.
"Using the Workshop Model to Foster Independence" - Paul Emerich France
Preparing for an Extended Remote Learning Situation
We have worked throughout the first 11 weeks of school to have a plan put in place where we can transition seamlessly from an in-person model to a remote learning experience. After much collaboration and effort from all of you, I believe we are prepared. In our staff meeting on Monday, we briefly discussed staff expectations for an extended learning situation. This DOCUMENT details the staff expectations. At this time, please be thinking about what your situation will look like, in terms of time spent in the building. If this determination is made, I will send out a Google Form to collect information about each staff member's specific plan.
Our goals are as follows:
Provide high quality instruction to all students in a remote/virtual format
Provide some flexibility to teachers, students, and families in order to respond to the pandemic.
Appreciation
As Thanksgiving approaches, I'm interested in learning your ideas of ways that students can continue to express gratitude towards others. I don't think we can do enough of these types of activities with our kids...if students can start to develop an appreciation of the little things that the people around them do, the better able they will be at demonstrating empathy. Routinely expressing gratitude has also been proven to improve mental health and self-image.
An idea that Ms. Hecht shared that we will execute is having our students send a Holiday Card to troops overseas. You'll notice a stack of holiday cards in your mailbox. There is one in there for every student in your Homeroom. We will be sending the cards out through a group that sends cards to our service members that don't get a lot of mail...a simple act like this can be huge for them. Please have your student fill out a card and express gratitude for someone who is actively working in service to our country. The student should address the card..."Dear Soldier," We'll also have a manilla envelope for you to place the cards from your homeroom inside. When all of the cards are complete, you can bring them down to the office, and we'll get them mailed to the appropriate place.
What are some other ways we can show students the power of sharing appreciation with others?
Art/Spanish/Technology Classes
For the following electives (Art, Spanish, Technology) in 5th, 6th and 7th grades, we will run those classes by trimester. At the trimester, which ends November 24th, the following electives will switch: 5th - Art, 6th - Coding, 7th - Spanish. The 2nd trimester will end on March 5th. Then, it'll be 5th - Coding, 6th - Spanish, and 7th - Art.
Images from the Week
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