The Middle Update 2/27/21

ALL Students Can Learn at High Levels!

ALL Students Will Learn Because of What WE Do!

Resource of the Week

The resource this week shares the research about effective ways we can help improve student performance in our classroom...this is a key part of the "Students will learn at high levels because of what WE do" mindset.  Give it a read, and think about a student that may be struggling in some of the ways that are outlined in this article.  We have the platform to make a life-changing impact for multiple kids that may really need it.

Article from Waterford.org

Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences

Our Spring Parent-Teacher Conference night is quickly approaching.  Conferences will be VIRTUAL and are scheduled for Thursday (3/11) from 4:30-7:30.  We will utilize the same approach as we did in terms of setting up virtual conferences (either through Google Meet or over the phone).  We will communicate with parents that all teachers will be available on Thursday from 4:30-7:30 and all are welcome to set up a conference time with teachers.  We will reach out and set up a conference with any student that is getting a grade of a NE or BE, or an NI in any Puma Pride standard for your class.  Homeroom teachers should be the main contact to set up a conference, and other teachers can join in the virtual meeting with the family.  An Infinite Campus message went out to families this week sharing our PT Conference plan.

PD Day 3/12/21

Our Professional Development Day on Friday, March 12th will be a 1/2 day.  The work day will be from 8:00-12:00.  We'll start with a Middle School Staff Meeting at 8:00, and then there will be department collaboration time to accomplish specific goals for the remainder of the morning, which will be communicated in the next week.

End of Round 2 for Art, Spanish, and Coding Classes

For 5th, 6th, and 7th grades, Art, Spanish, and Coding class will end on Friday, March 5th.  Starting the following week, the classes will switch as follows:  5th - Coding, 6th - Spanish, and 7th - Art.

Pig Race Winners

Congratulations to all of Homerooms on a successful Pig Event this year.  There was a lot of creativity and artistic talent on display.  A big shout-out to our winners!

Best Dressed:  Billy Ray Cyrus - Andringa's Homeroom

Best Name:  Baconator with Lettuce and Cheese, No Tomato, & a Side of Fries - Hendrickson's Homeroom

Fastest Pig: 

Natural racer - Baconator with Lettuce and Cheese, No Tomato, & a Side of Fries - Hendrickson's Homeroom 

Fastest within the rules - Lil' Moo - Weckerly's Homeroom

It seems the race did not come without debate and controversy :)  After watching the excitement of the 7th and 8th grade race, we'll probably clarify the rules to include no outside assistance for the pigs.

Almost Budget Time for Next Year!!

We'll be handing out and discussing next year's budget process very soon.  Nothing to do right at this time except start to think of the materials you'll need for your classroom next year.

Forward Exam Information - Mark Your Calendars!

We have established a Forward Testing plan for this spring.  We'll be testing at assigned specific times per grade level on the scheduled days.  Please review the SCHEDULE and mark your calendars for planning.  We will be taking time in upcoming Homeroom lessons to practice the Online Tools for the Forward Exam.

The Middle Update 2/21/21

All Kid Can Learn at High Levels

All Kids Will Learn at High Levels Because of What WE Do

Resource of the Week

The short article this week is focused on the unique middle school classroom, and the actionable things that we can do to build that strong sense of community in each of our classrooms.

"Creating Calm in Your Middle School Classroom" - Emelina Minero, Sarah Gonser

A good place to start is by letting kids know that you “value what is important to them, even if to me, it doesn’t seem like a big deal,” notes Short. “By listening to the little things, I am building an environment where they will feel safe sharing their feelings and ideas.”

The sixth-grade students, wrote Borman, learned that “middle school adversity is common, short-lived, and due to external, temporary causes rather than personal inadequacies.”

“By showing them it is OK to make these little mistakes, they feel safe coming to me when they have made a bigger mistake, and they know I will help them work through it,” writes Short. It’s also a stress reducer because “they trust me when I say there is no reason to be stressed and that with mistakes come additional opportunities to learn.”

Podcast #1

I put out a podcast about a month or so ago, and I wasn't sure if anyone listened to it, but I did get some feedback from a couple of people who were asking when the next one would come out.  I've been doing some reading, and the recent book I've read "Win in the Dark" inspired me to share my thoughts about one of the lessons.  Give it a listen...it's about 7 minutes long.

Pritzl Podcast 2

Care for Our Chromebooks

On the livestream message I shared on Friday, I discussed the importance of students taking extreme caution with their assigned devices.  To recap, students are assigned a device, and will use that same device over the course of their time in our Middle School.  Chromebooks are like library books or other items checked out for student use.  If items are damaged, students will be responsible for this damage.  

This week, we'll be sending home a letter that will require parent signatures in order for a student to check out a device to bring home.  At this time we are working on getting all chromebooks and chargers bar coded, and we will use this type of system to track devices.  Students losing chargers has also been an issue that we must continue to work with our students on understanding the importance of their responsibility.  As always, if you notice damage to a student device, please have them bring it to the office.

Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences

Our Spring Parent-Teacher Conference night is quickly approaching.  Conferences are scheduled for Thursday (3/11) from 4:00-7:30.  We will utilize the same approach as we did in terms of setting up virtual conferences (either through Google Meet or over the phone).  We will communicate with parents that all teachers will be available on Thursday from 4:00-7:30 and all are welcome to set up a conference time with teachers.  We will reach out and set up a conference with any student that is getting a grade of a NE or BE, or an NI in any Puma Pride standard for your class.  Homeroom teachers should be the main contact to set up a conference, and other teachers can join in the virtual meeting with the family.  We can start communicating with families about signing up for conferences, and a IC Message will be going out this week as well inviting families to reach out to teachers for a conference time.

Screen Free Activities

The mental health and well-being of everyone in our school remains a critical concern for us moving forward.  One aspect of our current model that contributes negatively is the high amount of time our students spend on devices.  Being on a device is a part of our structure that we cannot completely get away from, however, we can look for ways to provide screen-free ways for students to connect.  A couple of items we must be mindful of during our work are listed below:

-While reviewing lessons and videos as a class, whether it's Homeroom or a core class, please demand that all students have their screens down, and are engaged with the conversation that is taking place as a class.  This will not only help decrease personal screen time, but also will improve engagement with the learning goals.

Non-Screen Activities for Groups

-Please take time a couple of times per week to have your class participate together in an activity from the list below.  These are great ways to get students to connect with each other, and have a screen-free experience.

-Talk about the correlation between screen time and difficulties with mental health with your students.  This ARTICLE can be a great talking point about the pros and cons of technology.

Pig Races

Pig race week is here!  There is quite the display of pigs and names in the IMC.  The voting will open up this week for the best name and the best dressed pig.  We'll be announcing the winners as the week goes on and our race will take place on Friday, starting at 2:15.  On race day, we'll direct when a student from each Homeroom should report to the gym for the race, and we'll livestream the event so all can view the races.

Almost Budget Time for Next Year!!

We'll be handing out and discussing next year's budget process very soon.  Nothing to do right at this time except start to think of the materials you'll need for your classroom next year.

Forward Exam Information - Mark Your Calendars!

We have established a Forward Testing plan for this spring.  We'll be testing at assigned specific times per grade level on the scheduled days.  Please review the SCHEDULE and mark your calendars for planning.  We will be taking time in upcoming Homeroom lessons to practice the Online Tools for the Forward Exam.

The Middle Update 2/14/21

ALL students can learn!

ALL students will learn because of what WE do!

There is much to celebrate!

I will have some small candy (pre-packaged) treats spread out on the tables in the staff workroom downstairs to celebrate.  There are so many great things happening in our school each day for our kids, but I wanted to share a couple of reasons to celebrate that come to my mind from the past week.  Feel free to email with me with more success stories in your world.

-The Mabrey girls were back in school and had a positive, productive week!

-Ashton N is back and having much more success this quarter than last

-A couple of new 8th graders joined us at the quarter and are adjusting well, and have shared great surprise and appreciation for the calm, learning environment that is absent of physical fighting

-We have implemented a plan to help Chandra (6th grade) be more successful in Math

-Many 8th graders that would have been in a Math 8 class are thriving at learning difficult Algebra 1 material this year

I know there are so many more examples, but these small successes are the result of a staff that has the mindset that all kids can learn and they will learn because of what we do in school.

We will continue to explore how we can continue to improve what we do to be steady place where our students can count on us to help them through their learning journey.

Resource of the Week

Our resource this week comes from "The Developmental Relationships Framework".  The research broke down the actions you can take to make relationships powerful.  We know the student/adult relationships are critical to the student experience and ultimate success in school  The actions below provide some concrete ways to grow these important relationships with students.  They are split into 5 elements outlined below:

• Express care: Show me that I matter to you:

-   Be someone I can trust.

-   Really pay attention when we are together.

-   Make me feel known and valued.

-   Show me you enjoy being with me.

-   Praise me for my efforts and achievements.

• Challenge growth: Push me to keep getting better:

-   Expect me to live up to my potential.

-   Push me to go further.

-   Insist I take responsibility for my actions.

-   Help me learn from mistakes and setbacks.

• Provide support: Help me complete tasks and achieve goals:

-   Guide me through hard situations and systems.

-   Build my confidence and take charge of my life.

-   Stand up for me when I need it.

-   Put limits in place that keep me on track.

• Share power: Treat me with respect and give me a say:

-   Take me seriously and treat me fairly.

-   Involve me in decisions that affect me.

-   Work with me to solve problems and reach goals.

-   Create opportunities for me to take action and lead.

• Expand possibilities: Connect me with people and places that broaden my world:

-   Inspire me to see possibilities for my future.

-   Expose me to new ideas, experiences, and places.

-   Introduce me to people who can help me grow.

 “The Developmental Relationships Framework” from The Search Institute, 2018

State Principal Convention Takeaways

I was able to both attend and present at the Wisconsin Principal's Convention last Thursday and Friday.  The virtual format was an adjustment and there were many takeaways and affirmations for me.  If I had to sum up the overarching message, I would sum it up in the following way (my words): "We have to know our students really well, and do everything we can to make sure they are connected to school, so that they have a safe, supportive, thriving learning community.  This type of environment is essential before we can expect them to learn at their highest levels."

A couple other takeaways or quotes from the presenters:

"Giving students VOICE in their learning deeply impacts their engagement"

"Every learner in our environment needs to know and feel that they MATTER...we have the power to do that for every kid in our school"

"So many of our systems in schools are based on compliance...we need to rethink some of these structures with focus on giving kids voice and creating plans that involve high engagement"

"It's impossible reach a student's mind without getting to their heart first"

Lessons from Local School Districts

In last week's blog post, I wrote about an incident that occurred within the Sun Prairie School District.  There are a lot of lessons to be learned stemming from a situation like this.  Please take a moment to read or listen to a letter written by Katie Morrissey sharing more details about this incident.

LETTER                                     Audio of Letter

Wisconsin Forward Exam

As we roll through February, the time for our students to participate in the annual state testing program is quickly approaching as well.  The Forward Exam will take place this spring, and there has been some adjustments to the testing format from previous years.  The testing sessions will not be as long as they had been in the past, and there will not be a TDA Writing Response portion.  We still have some planning to do to create the best environment for testing, that sets the tone for all students to be ready to give their absolute best effort on this exam.  Please take a moment to review the tentative Testing Timeline.

Spring STAR Testing

Our Spring testing data will provide some important information about how our students fared learning through the pandemic.  Along with our Forward Testing sessions, we need to create a similar level of 
"importance" for the Spring STAR testing environment.  We'll be discussing this soon, but I'd like to take a building-level approach to when students take the STAR test and create the conditions where all students put their best efforts on this assessment.

Pig Races

Due to the snow days from the past couple of weeks we have moved all of the Pig Race Activities back one week.  The races and voting will take place next week.  We have received many of the names for your pigs, and will have them posted in the school for all to see and think about prior to voting.  I hope the groups are enjoying the conversations.

The Middle Update 2/5/21

Resource of the Week

Our resource this week comes from within.  Mrs. Crawford shared a way she was able to get her students to use "Accountability" and problem-solving to help students achieve their goals.  Take a few minutes to listen to what she has to say....there are some ideas here that would be a good idea to replicate throughout the classrooms in our school.

Accountability Reflection - a conversation with Mrs. Crawford

Leaders of Learning Book Study Update

I am very excited about the high number of middle school staff members that are participating in the "Leaders of Learning" book study throughout this spring.  We had our first meeting on Thursday afternoon.  I want to provide an update to share some of the themes that emerged from the core concepts of the chapters that were read and discussed.  One part focused in on the beliefs necessary in a school where all students learn at really high levels...those beliefs are:

-ALL students can learn  - ALL students will learn at high levels because of what WE do.

We took a closer look at the many actions that demonstrate this belief in our school...and we also looked at some actions/words that sometimes can be expressed that are not representative of this belief.

The school year can be long and the very nature of middle school students sometimes lend themselves to be frustrating to work with at times...but having a foundational mindset and belief that EVERY kid can learn at high levels is important for everyone working in an exceptional school.  Sometimes it's good to reflect on and think deeper about our core beliefs and what it means or looks like.  It's true that every kid comes to us at different levels, so high levels might look different for some than others.  Our beliefs shine through in both words, body language, and actions.

We also started the process of looking at some of our structures, and began learning about ways that we can be more efficient and focused in the time that we do have.  Much more learning and planning to come from this group.

Quarter 3 Grades

Today marks the end of Week #3 for the 3rd quarter.  This is usually the time that we post standard grades in our classes.  We have had 2 snow days so far this quarter, so if you need a day or two yet, feel free to take a couple of days, otherwise, if you haven't already, please post overall student scores within the standards your students have been working towards.  I'll be sending a note out to parents next Wednesday asking them to review student progress grades for the 3rd quarter.

Virtual Snow Days

On Friday we implemented our first virtual day due to the weather.  Hopefully the weather doesn't get cold enough to cancel in-person learning next week.  Please share any feedback that you had from your experience from Friday.

For future days, we should make sure students take materials home on days in which the next day has a forecast that has the potential to cause hazardous travel or harmful conditions outside. 

Thought-Provoking Video

This video was shared with me this week by Mrs. Walther.  It's a video that makes you think.  It makes you think about what we do in school...what's the purpose...what's our role?  Around the 2:39 mark, it sparks the realities of the power of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, and how it's so important for students to be able to show their learning or understanding of specific learning goals in a variety of ways...It also makes me wonder if other schools haven't shifted away from just making kids regurgitate facts on assessments, and how our assessments involve much higher level, deeper skills.  Take a look and let me know what you thought.

What's School For?

Lessons Learned from Local Schools...

This week there was an incident that occurred that sparked media interest and had an impact on racial tensions in a nearby school district.  A teacher or group of teachers made a mistake, and this one had pretty big ramifications in how the students/parents/community responded.  There are multiple facets of lessons to be learned here...both in ensuring that we have a strong cultural competence when reviewing activities and materials for our students, but also a rationale for why we have curriculum systems in place.  There will be more to share in the weeks ahead.

Staff Talents!

A contribution from Mrs. Wheeler...This is a photo of Mr. Dean playing his wooden flute in our classroom. We're currently learning about the 4 Native American Regions and he played some native american music for our class and as you can see the students loved it, as they stood up and started dancing :)