Saturday, September 11, 2021

The Middle Update 9/10/21

All Students Can Learn at High Levels

Students Do Well if They Can

What WE Do Makes the Difference for the Kids in School


Two weeks in the books and the routines needed to maximize learning are starting to take shapes in classrooms around the building.  After a year off of normally routine procedures, there has been and there continues to be a little learning curve of getting back into the smooth operation of things like passing time, nutrition break, lunch time, etc...  We'll continue to analyze reality of our procedures, ask for feedback, and work to maximize the efficiency of these important parts of the school day.


Procedures

Passes - During the 19-20 school year, we introduced the plastic clipboard for students to use as a pass to leave the classroom.  Last year, we didn't use passes at all because students were in the same classroom and easier to keep tabs on.  As the 21-22 school year has gotten started, we have a mix of clipboard passes, yellow passes, or no passes being used.

We must know where each student is located at all times, so we need a system...There are some significant concerns about the sanitation of the plastic clipboard pass system as they enter and exit restrooms/stalls, etc.  Please talk through this situation as a grade level or specials team, and be ready to share your thoughts on the best system for our school.  I'll follow up on this topic in individual meetings over the next two weeks.   Until then, please ensure you have a system for knowing where all of your students are.

Attendance - Like passes, last year was different in terms of attendance.  For this year, we'll ask that you take attendance as part of your beginning of class routine.  We monitor attendance as a team each morning and will mark out students that are excused, so it's a matter of tracking if students are where they are supposed to be.  We are starting to see a little more of students enjoying the freedom of going from class to class and taking a bit too much time, so we'd like to have data that shows us if any students need support in this area.  If a student is noticeably late to your class, please mark them "Tardy".  If a student comes with an excused pass, you can remove the tardy.

Students Sent to Office - If a situation comes up where a teacher determines the best course of action is having a student take a break in the office, we ask that an adult calls down to the office to notify us a student is on the way, and what the student needs (a 5 minute reset...finish an assessment, etc.).  If a student shows up without your knowledge, we'll call up to ensure communication takes place.

Morning Homeroom - Please work with your students to build the habit of bringing materials for their first class of the day to Homeroom.  We can eliminate a locker stop that sometimes can result in the likelihood of unsupervised transit.

End of Day Homeroom - This has been a topic of much conversation over the course of the first two weeks.  We are finding the shorter time in the schedule is making it difficult to host a meaningful check-out time with each student.  Also, it's been difficult to get the students to report directly to Homeroom without stopping at their locker after their last class.  We have a couple primary goals for this important part of our schedule:

    -Have a system where students drop off and plug in their Chromebook (this is essential to our system)

    -Have a connection point with a trusted adult before each student leaves for the day (big goal)

    -Have a system set up for any student that has a "check in/check out" plan

As of Friday afternoon, we are still searching for a clear, efficient, and executable plan.  We'll continue conversations in BW meetings, but also if teams could work through possible solutions that will accomplish our goals for each student in each Homeroom group for this time of the day.


PLC Meetings

We had our first round of PLC meetings last Wednesday morning.  I enjoyed both the conversations in those I attended and also reviewing the meeting notes from each group that met.  This will be an important system to facilitate the data review/professional conversations that will enhance student learning by continuing to work on answers to the 4 questions to guide the work of exceptional schools:

1.  What do we want our students to learn?

2.  How do we know if they learned it?

3.  What do we do if students don't learn it?

4.  What do we do if students learn it quickly?

We'll meet as a teaching staff on the last Wednesday of every month from 7:15 to 7:50.  We'll meet in the Professional Development room.  Our first meeting will be on Wednesday, September 29th.


Employee Handbooks
As per usual, I'll be posting regular sections from the Employee Handbook to keep those guidelines in the forefront of our thought processes throughout the year.

General Practices

Attendance
Employees are expected to make every effort to be present for work and adhere to their assigned schedule. Teachers are expected to report to work at least 15 minutes before student arrival time; subject to building administration needs. Employees who are unable to report to work shall follow their department/building procedures for reporting and recording absences.

On days when school is cancelled due to inclement weather, most staff do not report. Custodial and Secretarial staff should make reasonable efforts to attend. If, however, they cannot, these groups may utilize up to three (3) days of leave and/or Leave Without Pay (with written authorization) or a vacation day (if eligible). Nine and 12-month hourly employees (paraprofessionals, secretaries, food service, administrative assistants, and custodians) may utilize up to three (3) days of leave during district weather cancellations with the approval of his/her supervisor. One day being defined as regularly scheduled duty hours. Accommodations must be made through immediate supervisor and, in the event of Leave Without Pay, the District Administrator. Teachers may be required to administer their classes remotely (Teacher Virtually) on cancelled days.

For times when school is delayed, staff is to report according to the delay. Teaching staff must report in a reasonable time to be prepared for student arrivals and the school day, usually at least 15 minutes before student arrival to class.  Support staff working in the buildings must arrive 15 minutes prior to student arrival. Food service staff must arrive as close to their scheduled start time as possible.

Although the District performs better when all employees are in attendance, the District recognizes the occasional need to be away from work for illness, illness of a family member, funerals, or urgent personal matters. For this reason, the District provides paid time away from work (leave). Please note: leave time is not intended to be used as vacation. In general, leave falls into three broad categories: medical (illness/appointments, etc.), bereavement (attending a wake, funeral, celebration of life, etc.), or personal (Times when the employee has no control over the schedule; i.e. weddings, college graduation, etc.). Personal leave is meant for extraordinary circumstances. The District reserves the right to request verification for any time used.

Leave is allocated at the beginning of each fiscal/school year and is to be used as a protection from loss of income.  All leave must be requested and approved by a supervisor. All attempts should be made to make appointments outside of regularly assigned hours. Details about leave are located in Appendix A (Teachers) and B (Support Staff).

Good attendance is an essential element of employment. Poor attendance can lead to disciplinary action:
Any employee who is absent without notice and/or approval for three (3) consecutive work days is deemed to have resigned without proper notice (job abandonment).

Employees who fail to provide adequate notice of tardiness and incur instances of unexcused tardiness as a result may be subject to discipline. Any employee who incurs excessive tardiness may be disciplined up to and including termination.

Employees who fail to provide adequate notice of absences and incur unexcused absences as a result, may be subject to discipline up to and including termination.
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The Middle Update 9/10/21

All Students Can Learn at High Levels

Students Do Well if They Can

What WE Do Makes the Difference for the Kids in School


Two weeks in the books and the routines needed to maximize learning are starting to take shapes in classrooms around the building.  After a year off of normally routine procedures, there has been and there continues to be a little learning curve of getting back into the smooth operation of things like passing time, nutrition break, lunch time, etc...  We'll continue to analyze reality of our procedures, ask for feedback, and work to maximize the efficiency of these important parts of the school day.


Procedures

Passes - During the 19-20 school year, we introduced the plastic clipboard for students to use as a pass to leave the classroom.  Last year, we didn't use passes at all because students were in the same classroom and easier to keep tabs on.  As the 21-22 school year has gotten started, we have a mix of clipboard passes, yellow passes, or no passes being used.

We must know where each student is located at all times, so we need a system...There are some significant concerns about the sanitation of the plastic clipboard pass system as they enter and exit restrooms/stalls, etc.  Please talk through this situation as a grade level or specials team, and be ready to share your thoughts on the best system for our school.  I'll follow up on this topic in individual meetings over the next two weeks.   Until then, please ensure you have a system for knowing where all of your students are.

Attendance - Like passes, last year was different in terms of attendance.  For this year, we'll ask that you take attendance as part of your beginning of class routine.  We monitor attendance as a team each morning and will mark out students that are excused, so it's a matter of tracking if students are where they are supposed to be.  We are starting to see a little more of students enjoying the freedom of going from class to class and taking a bit too much time, so we'd like to have data that shows us if any students need support in this area.  If a student is noticeably late to your class, please mark them "Tardy".  If a student comes with an excused pass, you can remove the tardy.

Students Sent to Office - If a situation comes up where a teacher determines the best course of action is having a student take a break in the office, we ask that an adult calls down to the office to notify us a student is on the way, and what the student needs (a 5 minute reset...finish an assessment, etc.).  If a student shows up without your knowledge, we'll call up to ensure communication takes place.

Morning Homeroom - Please work with your students to build the habit of bringing materials for their first class of the day to Homeroom.  We can eliminate a locker stop that sometimes can result in the likelihood of unsupervised transit.

End of Day Homeroom - This has been a topic of much conversation over the course of the first two weeks.  We are finding the shorter time in the schedule is making it difficult to host a meaningful check-out time with each student.  Also, it's been difficult to get the students to report directly to Homeroom without stopping at their locker after their last class.  We have a couple primary goals for this important part of our schedule:

    -Have a system where students drop off and plug in their Chromebook (this is essential to our system)

    -Have a connection point with a trusted adult before each student leaves for the day (big goal)

    -Have a system set up for any student that has a "check in/check out" plan

As of Friday afternoon, we are still searching for a clear, efficient, and executable plan.  We'll continue conversations in BW meetings, but also if teams could work through possible solutions that will accomplish our goals for each student in each Homeroom group for this time of the day.


PLC Meetings

We had our first round of PLC meetings last Wednesday morning.  I enjoyed both the conversations in those I attended and also reviewing the meeting notes from each group that met.  This will be an important system to facilitate the data review/professional conversations that will enhance student learning by continuing to work on answers to the 4 questions to guide the work of exceptional schools:

1.  What do we want our students to learn?

2.  How do we know if they learned it?

3.  What do we do if students don't learn it?

4.  What do we do if students learn it quickly?

We'll meet as a teaching staff on the last Wednesday of every month from 7:15 to 7:50.  We'll meet in the Professional Development room.  Our first meeting will be on Wednesday, September 29th.


Employee Handbooks
As per usual, I'll be posting regular sections from the Employee Handbook to keep those guidelines in the forefront of our thought processes throughout the year.

General Practices

Attendance
Employees are expected to make every effort to be present for work and adhere to their assigned schedule. Teachers are expected to report to work at least 15 minutes before student arrival time; subject to building administration needs. Employees who are unable to report to work shall follow their department/building procedures for reporting and recording absences.

On days when school is cancelled due to inclement weather, most staff do not report. Custodial and Secretarial staff should make reasonable efforts to attend. If, however, they cannot, these groups may utilize up to three (3) days of leave and/or Leave Without Pay (with written authorization) or a vacation day (if eligible). Nine and 12-month hourly employees (paraprofessionals, secretaries, food service, administrative assistants, and custodians) may utilize up to three (3) days of leave during district weather cancellations with the approval of his/her supervisor. One day being defined as regularly scheduled duty hours. Accommodations must be made through immediate supervisor and, in the event of Leave Without Pay, the District Administrator. Teachers may be required to administer their classes remotely (Teacher Virtually) on cancelled days.

For times when school is delayed, staff is to report according to the delay. Teaching staff must report in a reasonable time to be prepared for student arrivals and the school day, usually at least 15 minutes before student arrival to class.  Support staff working in the buildings must arrive 15 minutes prior to student arrival. Food service staff must arrive as close to their scheduled start time as possible.

Although the District performs better when all employees are in attendance, the District recognizes the occasional need to be away from work for illness, illness of a family member, funerals, or urgent personal matters. For this reason, the District provides paid time away from work (leave). Please note: leave time is not intended to be used as vacation. In general, leave falls into three broad categories: medical (illness/appointments, etc.), bereavement (attending a wake, funeral, celebration of life, etc.), or personal (Times when the employee has no control over the schedule; i.e. weddings, college graduation, etc.). Personal leave is meant for extraordinary circumstances. The District reserves the right to request verification for any time used.

Leave is allocated at the beginning of each fiscal/school year and is to be used as a protection from loss of income.  All leave must be requested and approved by a supervisor. All attempts should be made to make appointments outside of regularly assigned hours. Details about leave are located in Appendix A (Teachers) and B (Support Staff).

Good attendance is an essential element of employment. Poor attendance can lead to disciplinary action:
Any employee who is absent without notice and/or approval for three (3) consecutive work days is deemed to have resigned without proper notice (job abandonment).

Employees who fail to provide adequate notice of tardiness and incur instances of unexcused tardiness as a result may be subject to discipline. Any employee who incurs excessive tardiness may be disciplined up to and including termination.

Employees who fail to provide adequate notice of absences and incur unexcused absences as a result, may be subject to discipline up to and including termination.