Tuesday, August 31, 2021

The Middle Update 8/30/21

After a long summer of preparation, having all of you back in our buildings, getting ready to put months of planning into action, was awesome.  Seeing excited kids and their families in our building on Thursday night topped off a great week at school.  Thanks to each of you for your hard work preparing for what I believe will be our best year yet at Poynette Middle School.

There was a lot of information shared over the course of the three days at our staff meetings, so I wanted to re-share some important logistical information so that we all are on the same page starting on Day 1.


1st Day of School Logistics
Our doors will open each day at 7:50 am each day.  At that time, staff that is manning doorways can let students in the building  Buses will let kids off bus by bus, just like last year.  Each student will have a door they need to enter that is near their assigned Homeroom (see map linked below).  The maps were distributed with student schedules, but a reminder would also be helpful on the first day.  Students should also leave the building from their assigned door.


Announcements will come on right at 8:00am, which will be short, and then Mrs. Moe and I will broadcast a brief live-stream video in which we'll welcome students, but also review some procedures and protocols for the year.  After that, teachers should proceed with the normal Homeroom plans for the rest of the time.


A Day, B Day?  How do I tell?
Wednesday will be an A day for students, so they should follow their A day schedule, including for WIN time.  During WIN time, teachers should build relationships with their students, and review expectations for this time period with them, and also get going improving skills with students if time allows.

-7th and 8th grade students will follow an AB schedule.
-6th grade students will also follow an AB schedule, however, we'll read it on the announcements as A1, B1, A2, B2, A3, B3, A4, and B4.  The numbers in each sequence determine whether a 6th grader has Spanish, Life Skills, or IMC class in their Specials rotation.
-5th grade students will follow an ABCDE rotation for their Specials classes, and 5th grade teachers will communicate with their 1st block group where they should go each day.


WIN Time on Friday
On Fridays, each student will have more of a flexible study time during the WIN time period.  Teachers can request to see specific students to work with during this time.  Teachers should use this document (Friday WIN Time Requests) to request students...please have your request(s) in before Friday morning, and teachers should share with students during Homeroom on Friday if they have been requested.  Below is a roster of where students should report on Friday during WIN time...it mainly correlates to their 1st block academic class, with a couple of exceptions.



Lunch/Nutrition Break Procedures
The specific times and procedures can be found on this DOCUMENT.  One change from last year is that students need to report to the cafeteria to get their breakfast, and then will bring it back to the classroom to eat.  7th/8th grade students coming from Specials should report to the cafeteria to get their breakfast prior to reporting to their 1st academic block class of the day.  Please let me know if you have questions about this procedure.

****Teachers should take a breakfast and lunch count in the morning while doing attendance and record the numbers in Infinite Campus (I made a mistake in my message to staff about this in our meeting on Thursday, for which I apologize).

While students are eating lunch, we'll utilize the entire space of the cafeteria.  We have enough capacity to have 4 students per table, and there are x's on the benches/seats where students should sit.  We'll also have them sign in on a sheet at each table, to assist us in the event we need to contact trace during lunch.  We are planning to share this procedure in the morning live-stream message.


Face Covering Update/Mitigation Procedures
Dr. Shappell will share in an email each week the status of face coverings at school for the next week.  We'll be starting the first week requiring face coverings in the building.  Face coverings are optional outside.  We do have some students who have received either a medical or religious exemption.  I will be communicating with specific teachers about the students who have an exemption in place, so they are aware.  Please don't address students in the hallway.  If you have a specific concern or question, don't hesitate to reach out to either Miranda or me.

With that being said, we should be stressing the importance of social distance and having at least 3 feet of space in between each student should be the norm for the arrangement of seats where students will be spending most of their class time.  For group work, I would also stress social distance as much as possible, and putting any student who has a mask exemption working in a group at a larger table so they could be spread out a bit more.  For students with a mask exemption, I would also recommend their assigned space in the seating chart to be on the edge of any arrangement you have.  I'll also ask that you keep track of groups that are working together for a time period longer than 15 minutes for potential contact tracing purposes.  We have had an uptick in requests over the last couple of days.

If we do have a student that has to be quarantined, we'll work with the student to get the most out of their time at home.  If a student has to quarantine, each teacher will be notified by Patti through email.  The email will indicate when the student can return to school.  We'd like to get a process set up for each grade level's plan for working with this student.  We'll plan to meet as grade level core teams during prep time on Thursday (9/2) to hammer out a procedure.  
    -5th - 2:00-Larson's room, 
    -6th -1:00-Weckerly's room, 
    -7th - 8:30-Hendrickson's room,
    -8th - 10:00-Frehner's room.  
Quarantines may be shorter than last year with a negative test, and we need to do whatever we can to avoid having the student fall behind in this situation.


Staples in Walls
With many of our rooms recently repainted and redone, this is your annual reminder to place not put staples into the walls.  The office has a 3M product that you can use to hang things up in your classroom.


What It's All About!!
Seeing the kids come into school on Wednesday is why we all do what we do.  We all will undoubtedly encounter challenges this year, but the little moments of success will outnumber those challenges.  I am proud to lead this group of people who all share the common vision of ensuring success for each of our students.  Thank you for all you do to contribute to the culture we need for all students to thrive.
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Monday, August 23, 2021

The Middle Update 8/23/21

The 21-22 school year officially kicked off for our students and families with our first annual "Locker Night".  There was an air of excitement and energy in the building as students and families arrived to check out our newly renovated facilities, get their schedule and start perfecting their ability to open up their lock.  It was a very enjoyable evening, and made me realize how ready I am to get the ball rolling on this coming school year.

I have also enjoyed my time meeting with each teacher to start the year, and seeing all of you work your magic creating a special learning environment inside of your classroom doors.  We have a good start so far, and after three days of learning and preparing, I'm confident we'll be in a great place. 

The topics below will attempt to communicate more of our detailed plan for our in-service time and also share some details about our "Return to Learn Addendum" that was passed last Monday, along with some information that will assist in your planning.

Opening Inservice

There have been some updates to district-wide In-service Schedule at this LINK.  There will be a "grab-n-go" breakfast available in the cafeteria on both Tuesday and Wednesday morning.  On Thursday morning, I'm happy to treat you all to a breakfast consisting of a variety of pastry options.  Please plan to be here for a typical work day (7:30-3:30 for example).

On Tuesday at the Middle School, we'll get started at 8:30 am in the cafeteria.  We'll get re-acquainted and re-calibrate our purpose.  Following our meeting, we'll all head up to the Elementary School and hear from Dr. Shappell and enjoy lunch from a few different food truck options.  We'll get back together in the cafeteria at 2:00 to review student achievement and culture data to help us guide the goal setting and planning that will take place over the next couple of days

On Wednesday morning, we'll meet as a staff at 8:00 am in the cafeteria and discuss our Professional Learning Community (PLC) plans for the year.  There will be different meetings for different groups throughout the rest of the day, however, each PLC group must meet to accomplish the goals laid out in the meeting Wednesday morning.

On Thursday morning, we'll meet as a staff at 9:00 am in the cafeteria.  We'll be working on the following topics: Social-Emotional Learning at PMS, our RTI structure, and covering a vast number of "nuts & bolts" topics.  Our nurse will lead our annual Medical training at 10:00 am.  We'll also have grade level meetings focused specifically on sharing information about taking an approach that will help set up each student for success.  These meetings will start at 12:30 in the Middle School IMC.  I'll ask that any teacher that will be working with students in a specific grade level to be present for these meetings.

We will then welcome students and their families into our building for our Open House on Thursday evening from 4:00-7:00.


COVID-19 Mitigation Strategies

Starting this week, all people in our buildings will be required to wear a mask/face covering due to the "Return to Learning Addendum" that was passed last Monday night.  This could change throughout the year depending on the COVID activity level in the community.  See see details in the full addendum link.  Also, here are some other specific details.

For instance:
  • We are in the red (high risk) category and therefore masks will need to be worn in district buildings and vans at all times when there is a group of people.  If you are alone in a room, you can remove your mask.  Everyone without a medical exemption will need to wear a mask on the buses.  This is a Federal mandate just like on an airplane.
    • We may have an uptick in religious accommodations and we will work with the families to discuss what that means.   Any accommodations that are granted, will be shared with the teachers as they occur.
    • We have had families reach out and requested a medical exemption.  Those need written documentation from a healthcare provider and families are providing that to us.  Again teachers will be made aware of students who fall into either one of those situations.
  • We will need to encourage and teach our students strong hygiene and hand-washing practices like we did last year.
  • We will be cleaning and sanitizing high-touch areas throughout the day, and also all items once a day.  This is still important, but research has shown that the transmission is not likely through objects like we thought last fall.
  • Please use the air purifiers in your rooms again this year.  They should have had maintenance over the summer and can be used again this year.
  • The district will be following CDC/ DHS guidelines for quarantine and close contact tracing. The requirements are a  little bit different this year and so the likelihood of whole classes going home will be lower when we are wearing masks.
  • We will only have one grade level eating at a time in the lunch room, and we'll set guidelines up so that students are spread out while they are eating.

A couple of other reminders...
-Please don't use pen for your class rosters quite yet...we have had a few new students join our school last week, and I anticipate some other potential changes.  For the most part, the rosters are in good shape, there may be a few minor adjustments as we approach the first day.

-We'll be using the Puma Pride website again this year in Homeroom.  Please have this saved somewhere for easy access.  You can review some of our system documents here in preparation for the school year also.
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The Middle Update 8/30/21

After a long summer of preparation, having all of you back in our buildings, getting ready to put months of planning into action, was awesome.  Seeing excited kids and their families in our building on Thursday night topped off a great week at school.  Thanks to each of you for your hard work preparing for what I believe will be our best year yet at Poynette Middle School.

There was a lot of information shared over the course of the three days at our staff meetings, so I wanted to re-share some important logistical information so that we all are on the same page starting on Day 1.


1st Day of School Logistics
Our doors will open each day at 7:50 am each day.  At that time, staff that is manning doorways can let students in the building  Buses will let kids off bus by bus, just like last year.  Each student will have a door they need to enter that is near their assigned Homeroom (see map linked below).  The maps were distributed with student schedules, but a reminder would also be helpful on the first day.  Students should also leave the building from their assigned door.


Announcements will come on right at 8:00am, which will be short, and then Mrs. Moe and I will broadcast a brief live-stream video in which we'll welcome students, but also review some procedures and protocols for the year.  After that, teachers should proceed with the normal Homeroom plans for the rest of the time.


A Day, B Day?  How do I tell?
Wednesday will be an A day for students, so they should follow their A day schedule, including for WIN time.  During WIN time, teachers should build relationships with their students, and review expectations for this time period with them, and also get going improving skills with students if time allows.

-7th and 8th grade students will follow an AB schedule.
-6th grade students will also follow an AB schedule, however, we'll read it on the announcements as A1, B1, A2, B2, A3, B3, A4, and B4.  The numbers in each sequence determine whether a 6th grader has Spanish, Life Skills, or IMC class in their Specials rotation.
-5th grade students will follow an ABCDE rotation for their Specials classes, and 5th grade teachers will communicate with their 1st block group where they should go each day.


WIN Time on Friday
On Fridays, each student will have more of a flexible study time during the WIN time period.  Teachers can request to see specific students to work with during this time.  Teachers should use this document (Friday WIN Time Requests) to request students...please have your request(s) in before Friday morning, and teachers should share with students during Homeroom on Friday if they have been requested.  Below is a roster of where students should report on Friday during WIN time...it mainly correlates to their 1st block academic class, with a couple of exceptions.



Lunch/Nutrition Break Procedures
The specific times and procedures can be found on this DOCUMENT.  One change from last year is that students need to report to the cafeteria to get their breakfast, and then will bring it back to the classroom to eat.  7th/8th grade students coming from Specials should report to the cafeteria to get their breakfast prior to reporting to their 1st academic block class of the day.  Please let me know if you have questions about this procedure.

****Teachers should take a breakfast and lunch count in the morning while doing attendance and record the numbers in Infinite Campus (I made a mistake in my message to staff about this in our meeting on Thursday, for which I apologize).

While students are eating lunch, we'll utilize the entire space of the cafeteria.  We have enough capacity to have 4 students per table, and there are x's on the benches/seats where students should sit.  We'll also have them sign in on a sheet at each table, to assist us in the event we need to contact trace during lunch.  We are planning to share this procedure in the morning live-stream message.


Face Covering Update/Mitigation Procedures
Dr. Shappell will share in an email each week the status of face coverings at school for the next week.  We'll be starting the first week requiring face coverings in the building.  Face coverings are optional outside.  We do have some students who have received either a medical or religious exemption.  I will be communicating with specific teachers about the students who have an exemption in place, so they are aware.  Please don't address students in the hallway.  If you have a specific concern or question, don't hesitate to reach out to either Miranda or me.

With that being said, we should be stressing the importance of social distance and having at least 3 feet of space in between each student should be the norm for the arrangement of seats where students will be spending most of their class time.  For group work, I would also stress social distance as much as possible, and putting any student who has a mask exemption working in a group at a larger table so they could be spread out a bit more.  For students with a mask exemption, I would also recommend their assigned space in the seating chart to be on the edge of any arrangement you have.  I'll also ask that you keep track of groups that are working together for a time period longer than 15 minutes for potential contact tracing purposes.  We have had an uptick in requests over the last couple of days.

If we do have a student that has to be quarantined, we'll work with the student to get the most out of their time at home.  If a student has to quarantine, each teacher will be notified by Patti through email.  The email will indicate when the student can return to school.  We'd like to get a process set up for each grade level's plan for working with this student.  We'll plan to meet as grade level core teams during prep time on Thursday (9/2) to hammer out a procedure.  
    -5th - 2:00-Larson's room, 
    -6th -1:00-Weckerly's room, 
    -7th - 8:30-Hendrickson's room,
    -8th - 10:00-Frehner's room.  
Quarantines may be shorter than last year with a negative test, and we need to do whatever we can to avoid having the student fall behind in this situation.


Staples in Walls
With many of our rooms recently repainted and redone, this is your annual reminder to place not put staples into the walls.  The office has a 3M product that you can use to hang things up in your classroom.


What It's All About!!
Seeing the kids come into school on Wednesday is why we all do what we do.  We all will undoubtedly encounter challenges this year, but the little moments of success will outnumber those challenges.  I am proud to lead this group of people who all share the common vision of ensuring success for each of our students.  Thank you for all you do to contribute to the culture we need for all students to thrive.

The Middle Update 8/23/21

The 21-22 school year officially kicked off for our students and families with our first annual "Locker Night".  There was an air of excitement and energy in the building as students and families arrived to check out our newly renovated facilities, get their schedule and start perfecting their ability to open up their lock.  It was a very enjoyable evening, and made me realize how ready I am to get the ball rolling on this coming school year.

I have also enjoyed my time meeting with each teacher to start the year, and seeing all of you work your magic creating a special learning environment inside of your classroom doors.  We have a good start so far, and after three days of learning and preparing, I'm confident we'll be in a great place. 

The topics below will attempt to communicate more of our detailed plan for our in-service time and also share some details about our "Return to Learn Addendum" that was passed last Monday, along with some information that will assist in your planning.

Opening Inservice

There have been some updates to district-wide In-service Schedule at this LINK.  There will be a "grab-n-go" breakfast available in the cafeteria on both Tuesday and Wednesday morning.  On Thursday morning, I'm happy to treat you all to a breakfast consisting of a variety of pastry options.  Please plan to be here for a typical work day (7:30-3:30 for example).

On Tuesday at the Middle School, we'll get started at 8:30 am in the cafeteria.  We'll get re-acquainted and re-calibrate our purpose.  Following our meeting, we'll all head up to the Elementary School and hear from Dr. Shappell and enjoy lunch from a few different food truck options.  We'll get back together in the cafeteria at 2:00 to review student achievement and culture data to help us guide the goal setting and planning that will take place over the next couple of days

On Wednesday morning, we'll meet as a staff at 8:00 am in the cafeteria and discuss our Professional Learning Community (PLC) plans for the year.  There will be different meetings for different groups throughout the rest of the day, however, each PLC group must meet to accomplish the goals laid out in the meeting Wednesday morning.

On Thursday morning, we'll meet as a staff at 9:00 am in the cafeteria.  We'll be working on the following topics: Social-Emotional Learning at PMS, our RTI structure, and covering a vast number of "nuts & bolts" topics.  Our nurse will lead our annual Medical training at 10:00 am.  We'll also have grade level meetings focused specifically on sharing information about taking an approach that will help set up each student for success.  These meetings will start at 12:30 in the Middle School IMC.  I'll ask that any teacher that will be working with students in a specific grade level to be present for these meetings.

We will then welcome students and their families into our building for our Open House on Thursday evening from 4:00-7:00.


COVID-19 Mitigation Strategies

Starting this week, all people in our buildings will be required to wear a mask/face covering due to the "Return to Learning Addendum" that was passed last Monday night.  This could change throughout the year depending on the COVID activity level in the community.  See see details in the full addendum link.  Also, here are some other specific details.

For instance:
  • We are in the red (high risk) category and therefore masks will need to be worn in district buildings and vans at all times when there is a group of people.  If you are alone in a room, you can remove your mask.  Everyone without a medical exemption will need to wear a mask on the buses.  This is a Federal mandate just like on an airplane.
    • We may have an uptick in religious accommodations and we will work with the families to discuss what that means.   Any accommodations that are granted, will be shared with the teachers as they occur.
    • We have had families reach out and requested a medical exemption.  Those need written documentation from a healthcare provider and families are providing that to us.  Again teachers will be made aware of students who fall into either one of those situations.
  • We will need to encourage and teach our students strong hygiene and hand-washing practices like we did last year.
  • We will be cleaning and sanitizing high-touch areas throughout the day, and also all items once a day.  This is still important, but research has shown that the transmission is not likely through objects like we thought last fall.
  • Please use the air purifiers in your rooms again this year.  They should have had maintenance over the summer and can be used again this year.
  • The district will be following CDC/ DHS guidelines for quarantine and close contact tracing. The requirements are a  little bit different this year and so the likelihood of whole classes going home will be lower when we are wearing masks.
  • We will only have one grade level eating at a time in the lunch room, and we'll set guidelines up so that students are spread out while they are eating.

A couple of other reminders...
-Please don't use pen for your class rosters quite yet...we have had a few new students join our school last week, and I anticipate some other potential changes.  For the most part, the rosters are in good shape, there may be a few minor adjustments as we approach the first day.

-We'll be using the Puma Pride website again this year in Homeroom.  Please have this saved somewhere for easy access.  You can review some of our system documents here in preparation for the school year also.
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