The Middle Update 11/22/17

I hope everyone is able to have an enjoyable, restful break.  It is an important time to recharge the batteries a bit.  A shorter blog post this week, but I'm looking forward to our time together on Monday!

PD Day Monday 11/27
Here is a snapshot of our schedule for Monday
8:00 - 9:30 - District Updates by Mr. Shappell - HS Commons
9:30 - 12:00 - Planning (see google classroom or emails for goals)
1:00 - 2:30 - QPR Training (suicide prevention training for educators)
2:30 - 3:30 - CRTL (Concussion Return to Learning) Training & MS Staff Meeting

Facility Advisory Committee Update
The next meeting will be on Wednesday evening from 6:30 - 8:30.  Part of the meeting will be a tour of the High School.  See more details of the work of the group by clicking HERE.

Article of the Week
Here are some potential ideas on how to build autonomy in our students.

6 Strategies for Promoting Student Autonomy

Duty Next Week
Morning - Kallungi
Bus - Crawford

The Middle Update 11/17/17

Another solid week of learning and growing! 

Article of the Week
We'll stick with a short video theme in the blog posts.  The video this week highlights a class that gets students to think about both sides of topics that can be very polarizing - working to develop empathy in our students.  The lessons can be applied to classroom lessons, but also those very important Homeroom lessons as well.

Here is the LINK if the video above doesn't work.

Fire/Evacuation Drill Reflection
I believe the drill that was conducted on Thursday was successful.  Thank you to all of you for taking the time to discuss the procedures we would use with students ahead of time, and guiding them to perform an orderly evacuation and return to class afterwards. 

Community Facility Advisory Committee Update
The Committee met again this past Wednesday evening.  The group heard presentations about the capacity of our buildings in relation to recommended capacities and about school funding.  A big part of the evening was a tour of the 1-8 building, followed by feedback from the group about our current facility.  As I gave a tour to the group highlighting our building from the Middle School perspective, I shared your feedback (from the 11/6) meeting to the group.  As always, you can visit the "Facilities" tab on our website to review more detailed information about the presentations and committee thoughts.

Early Release next Wednesday (11/22)
All students will be dismissed at 1:15 next Wednesday (11/22).  Please see the Early Release Schedule, and let me know if you notice any conflicts with your schedule that we'll need to work out.

A Community Conversation
See the flyer for an upcoming community conversation about current drug trends that we will be hosting on Wednesday, 12/6 at 6:00pm in the High School IMC.

FLYER

Duty Next Week
Morning - Hendrickson
Bus - Rogness

Images from the Week

The Middle Update 11/10/17

The Veteran's Day Ceremony today was a great cap to another successful week here at school.  The week started with solid progress in all departments with our work on Monday all the way through successful grade reporting and overall a smooth transition into 2nd quarter.  Thanks for all of your work with our students to make this transition week run smoothly.

Article of the Week
Rather than an article this week, I thought I'd share a short video that highlights how one middle school in Nevada (much bigger than us) is working to ensure each student is connected to school.  Like us, they realize the importance of student connectedness to both school culture and achievement.  Their efforts are much like our adopt-a-student initiative.  By watching, you can get a couple more ideas of great ways to connect, not only with your student, but with all of them.

Literacy Committee Report
The Literacy Committee met after school on Tuesday to continue planning efforts to get our students to read more.  Some highlights include planning an upcoming round of book talks featuring high school students and planning for a Literacy Bulletin Board.  Thanks to Mrs. Rogness, Ms. Laufenberg, and Mrs. Maurer for their commitment!  The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, 11/29 at 2:50 in Mrs. Rogness' room.  All are welcome to attend and contribute.

Puma Pride Committee Meeting on Monday
The Puma Pride Committee will meet on Monday at 2:50 in the 1-8 Conference Room.  We will be analyzing the Puma Pride data from the 1st quarter and planning for how we will utilize the information from this data to target areas of student need.  All are welcome to attend and contribute.

Drill This Week
At this time we are planning a fire drill that would lead to an evacuation for our November safety drill.  If there were to be an actual fire, we would need to locate all of our students into the high school.  Our plan for this is for the Elementary students to report to the Kerr Gym and the Middle School students to the Auxiliary Gym.  I will send an email with details about time and place early in the week.

Facilities Advisory Committee Update
Thanks for the thoughtful discussion on Monday about the state of our facilities.  This is a reminder that the next committee meeting is this coming Wednesday (11/15) starting at 6:30 in the 1-8 building.  I will be leading a tour of our building from the Middle School perspective while Mr. Hausser will be sharing the Elementary perspective.  Everyone is welcome to attend.

PSD on Social Media

 


Sub Calling this Week

A note from Mr. Laib.

Lois Abel (608-770-0285) will call subs on the following December dates:

12/5       evening

12/6       morning and evening

12/7       morning

Duty Next Week
Morning - Hazard
Bus - Pittner

Images of the Week

The Middle Update 11/3/17

November is here!  Another busy week featuring 6th graders exploring the WI Science Festival, 7th graders getting trained in CPR/AED, Ms. Grace helping to make life in Africa come alive for our students, and many other solid learning experiences for our students.  Enjoy the extra hour of sleep this weekend!  I'm looking forward to a solid day of professional growth on Monday.

Article of the Week
The article this week highlights strategies we can use to build and grow those ever important relationships with students.  The message in this article serves as the backbone for the essential component needed to get our students to grow more than they every imagined.

"5 Tips For Better Relationships With Your Students"

PD Day Schedule for Monday
Monday has our typical work day hours with our Middle School Staff coming together at 8:00 am in Mrs. Rogness' room.  From there we will separate into department groups using Google Classroom to guide our work till the 11:30 lunch break.  We'll talk in more detail about the day's work which will culminate in a brief staff meeting at 3:00 to end our day.

Community Facility Advisory Committee
The community facility advisory committee met this past Wednesday and toured the Arlington Facility before their worked centered on reviewing the results from the recently completed facility study and discussed educational adequacy and capacity.  Please take a moment to review committee comments on key issues surrounding their work.  Also the progress of the committee's work can be reviewed in completion on the Facility tab on our website.  I will be soliciting perspectives from our teachers at our morning meeting on Monday, November 6th.

Veteran's Day AssemblyWe will be attending the annual Veteran's Day Assembly on Friday (11/10) at 9:00 am.  This will be in the Kerr Gym, and we will adjust the Nutrition Break Schedule on this day.

Committees resuming their work
We will be having our first Literacy Committee Meeting of the year coming up on Wednesday (11/8) at 2:50.  The Puma Pride Committee will also resume their work with a meeting on Monday (11/13) at 2:50.  In our first week, we will analyze the Puma Pride data from the 1st quarter, and plan for how we can use that data to continue our school improvement efforts.  Anyone is welcome to participate in any of these groups...just send me an email to let me know of your interest.

Duty this Week
Morning - Gavin
Bus - Odden

Images from the week

The Middle Update 10/27/17

There is a lot of great, cool things happening in our school each week.  This week we had students math scavenger hunting, debating about the most influential historical figures/events, game design, learning vital human growth & development content, and visiting with Chief Fisher to discuss bullying and internet safety.  These are just a sample of the many engaging activities in which our students participate.

John Hattie reminds us that students don’t choose to come to school – it’s an obligation that society places on them. However, we have a valuable opportunity to effect lasting change with them. To do that, we have to develop as “a collective capacity of teachers, to show success – not just in achievement but also in making learning a valued outcome, retaining student interest in learning and making students respect themselves and others “ (Hattie, 2009). 

Hattie's Mindframe FocusMindframe #8: I inform all about the language of learning.

     To encourage true partnership with parents, it is vital that we share the language of learning with them and share our expectations of their children. It can be difficult for parents to understand the culture of schools as today’s classrooms are likely to be very different from their own experiences as students. Sharing what we do and the language we use to do it will allow parents to have a dialogue about learning with their children as well as giving them a greater insight into what learning looks like and how it happens. 

Article of the Week
The short article this week provides some strategies for being successful with students that can be challenging to manage or motivate.  This article provides a solid preview of Mrs. Hendrickson's upcoming presentation when we meet as a staff on November 6th.

"25 Sure-fire strategies for handling difficult students"

Facility Advisory Committee Update

The committee continues to examine our and other facilities in preparation to make a recommendation to the Board of Education.  Over the next several staff meetings we will be spending some time talking about both the physical and academic needs from the perspective of the teaching staff.  The committee is set and many people continue to be a part of the process.  As always you are invited to attend.  The next meeting is November 1st at 7 p.m. at the Arlington Early Learning Center.  As a part of the meeting, Mr. Hausser will be giving a tour of the building and learning about how that space is utilized. 

Community Voice Article in this Week's Poynette Press
Lisa Hazard is the author of this week's Community Voice entry in the paper.  She does a great job of describing the realities of 21st century learning and how it relates to our kids.  Give it a read HERE.

Student of the Month Breakfast this Week
Our next Student of the Month Breakfast is this Thursday.  Thank you to Mr. Williams, Ms. Laufenberg, Mr. O'Connor, and Mr. Gavin for representing the staff this week.  Congratulations to this month's award recipients:

                     Luke Lindquist     Makenna Parr     Avery O'Dea     Codi Woodward   
                       Lizzi Endres     Nicholas Milewski     Jimmy Heath     Olivia Ripp

Duty Next Week
Morning- Frehner
Bus- O'Connor

Images from the Week

   

The Middle Update 10/21/17

Another great week in the books, and I hope everyone is enjoying their long weekend as I type this out.  We have two weeks remaining in the 1st quarter!  Time flies...when you think about how fast the time goes, it reminds us how important it is to make the most out of each minute of the school day....it is all about the kids!

Hattie's Mindframe Focus

Mindframe #7: I believe that it is my role to build positive relationships in classrooms/staffrooms.

     If, as Hattie states, “learning thrives on error” (2012: 165), it is vital that the learning environment is warm, empathic and, above all, safe for the learners to make these errors and admit their lack of knowledge. The teacher’s role is to discover what students don’t know and help them learn it. To do this, he or she must develop positive relationships to build the learners’ trust.
     To some extent, students have been conditioned by the traditional classroom environment. Many have learned to put any answer to a question rather than leave it blank and admit that they don’t know. While having trust in their teacher is the first step to braving uncertainty, they must also know that they will not face ridicule from their peers. Therefore, the teacher must ensure that positive relationships exist between peers.
     As teachers are also learners of their own craft, it follows that this culture of the supportive, safe learning environment should also extend to the staffroom.


Article of the Week
The article this week is applicable to all of us as technology becomes an constant, necessary part of our classrooms.  The article provides some tips for how to limit the distractions that our students face each time they use any device.

"Digital Tools and Distraction in School" by Mary Beth Hertz

SLO/PPG Update
During BW Meeting times over the course of the past two weeks, I have met with and reviewed SLO's alongside teachers.  I will continue to do so until all of the SLO are set and approved.  Please let me know if you are ready and we have not discussed the SLO/PPG yet.  I have enjoyed this process and look forward to following the growth of students in the areas focused upon.

Community Advisory Committee Update (contents credited to Mr. Hausser)
The second meeting occurred last Wednesday night.  There was a contingent of committee members and staff members who visited Windsor Elementary School.  They were able to tour and discuss the vision of our project.  The committee meets again on Wednesday, November 1 at the Arlington School at 7 p.m.  Mr. Hausser will be giving the committee a tour of the school and they will continue to discuss the process of looking at our facilities.

School Board Meeting
October's School Board Meeting is on Monday night at 7:00 in the HS IMC.  Check HERE for this month's Board Report from the Middle School.

Safety Review
Lockdown- there is a threat and serious compromise of our students and staff safety.  Lights are to be off, students and staff hiding in the rooms.  We want it to look like no one is in the room or building.
Administrative Hold- there may be an issue in the area or community.  No one is to leave the building or enter.  Classes, passing periods and the like can continue as normal.
Hold- Medical or student issue that needs to be addressed.  The hallways should be cleared and no students should leave or enter classrooms.  Class activities may continue, but passing times should be ignored until the all clear is given.

Ready to Dance??
The Parent's Club is sponsoring a dance for both Elementary (6:00-7:30) and our Middle School students (7:30-9:00) this coming Friday (10/27) night.  Any staff member is invited to attend, and there will be free pizza and a drink waiting for any staff member that decides to join the students in having a great time.

Duty Next Week
Bus - Lendobeja
Morning - Anderson

Images from the Week

The Middle Update 10/13/17

This little "Puma in Training" has gotten off to a great start in her first 6 weeks of life.

We've had another action packed week with 7th graders honing their golf skills at the range, students working to become more and more like scientists at the Mackenzie Center, 8th graders presenting about their planned trips around the world, teachers working hand in hand with parents to support their kids, and 6th graders involved in a discussion that would rival those in many high school classes...a great week at Poynette Middle School.



Hattie's Mindframe Focus

Mindframe #6: I enjoy the challenge and never retreat to "doing my best".

     “Do your best” is something we often say to children (and ourselves) to motivate and encourage. However, this attitude is dangerously limiting—we should be striving to get children to do better than their best, to exceed their potential. Teachers need to adopt this attitude in their daily practice and strive to continually set and exceed their own performance goals. 
     Doing better than your best involves embracing challenge as a crucial part of every day life. The art of teaching lies in posing appropriate levels of challenge to different learners, and teaching students how to cope with challenge both in the classroom and beyond. To effectively cope with challenge, students need to see a clear purpose in it and have meaningful feedback about their performance in relation to success criteria and their next steps. When students don’t learn effectively, teachers must embrace the challenge themselves and ask themselves what they need to do differently to have a greater impact on that student’s learning. 

Congratulations to Mr. Hazard
Mr. Hazard has been selected, along with Mr. Ferkovich, to present at the 2017 Wisconsin State Music Conference on Friday, October 27th.  Scott and Joel will be presenting on the following topic: Practical and Meaningful Grading Practices for the Busy Music Teacher.  We are proud that Mr. Hazard will be representing PMS.

Article of the Week
"Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?"
The ARTICLE this week discusses how recent changes in technology have impacted a whole generation of kids.  In my opinion, the results from their generational study are quite astonishing and eye opening.

Sub-Calling

Lois Abel (608-770-0285) will be calling subs starting the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 11, through Oct. 27th.  As a reminder, please make evening calls prior to 10:00 PM and morning calls between 5:30-6:00 AM.  Gary Laib will be back on call beginning Oct. 29th.

Upcoming Community Advisory Committee Mtg.
The next meeting is this Wednesday (10/18) starting at 7:00 pm.  The committee will be taking a bus trip down to DeForest to tour the brand new construction of one of their elementary schools.  The purpose of this trip is to see first hand what newly constructed modern learning spaces look like.  All are welcome to attend.

DPI is looking for some help!
Teacher Can Help​ ​DPI ​Build​ ​Strategic​ ​Assessment​ ​Systems!
Wisconsin educators are invited to join our work in building assessment and data literacy. We are currently looking for educators who are data savvy to join the Classroom Data Tool User Advisory Group. The classroom data tool will store and track classroom level, student-centered data and will help teachers plan for instruction. The user group will meet remotely on a monthly basis and will advise and advocate user-friendly, time saving, and value-added features for the classroom data tool application.
Please read the Classroom Data Management Tool Advisory Group Description for more information
about the role of the user group within this project. The next user group meeting is on Monday, October 16th from 3:15pm-4:15pm. Contact lauren.zellmer@dpi.wi.gov if you are interested in participating.

PSD on Social Media

 


Duty Next Week
Bus - Laufenberg

Data
Attendance Rates through 6 weeks of school:
17-18 - 96.83%
16-17 - 96.52%
15-16 - 96.36%

Halloween Dance 10/27
The PAD Parent's Club will be sponsoring their annual Halloween Dance for our students. The Elementary Dance will be from 6:00 to 7:30, and the Middle School Dance will run from 7:30 to 9:00. The group asked if any teachers would be willing to attend and help chaperone while joining in on the fun. If you are interested, there will be free pizza, hot dog, and drink waiting for you. 

Images from the Week

    

The Middle Update 10/8/17

Another great week that featured visiting veterans, kindness rocks, 8th grade golfers, Socratic discussions, our first newspaper club meeting, and countless numbers of brain cells growing and maturing in our students.  We continue to maintain our laser-like focus on maintaining/growing a positive, hard-working culture that is centered on using the precious minutes of class time to move the needle on the skills and knowledge for our students.

Staff Meeting this Past Week
Thanks to all for your contributions at our staff meeting this past Wednesday, especially to Mrs. Anderson and Ms. Hecht for the wise advice regarding the importance of being aware of the words we use with students.  It is evident that our "adopt-a-student" activities have brought awareness and connections for our most vulnerable population.  Your efforts are paying off and are truly appreciated.  Also, we will be working to finalize SLO's plans in the coming weeks.

Parent-Teacher Conferences
We have a great opportunity to grow the connections between home and school this week as PT conferences kick off on Thursday (10/12) from 4:30 - 8:00, and then again next week (10/19) from 4:00 to 7:30.  Each student will have a folder that should be picked up in the front office.  Teams and teachers can coordinate with Robin to get materials in those folders.  The office will be including the following: grade report, STAR reports, and a handout that Mr. O'Connor is putting together about a reminder about the grade level blogs and Infinite Campus student/parent access information.

Article of the Week
The ARTICLE this week is a blog post written by Debbie Silver titled "The Worst Teaching Mistake I Ever Made".  As you read the article this week, think about the use of pre-assessment in your classroom, and how you facilitate activities in your classroom to meet kids where they are...both for students that take a bit to grasp concepts and those that grasp concepts quickly.

Nuts & Bolts
-The 7th graders will be on a golf trip/Mackenzie Center field trip this Tuesday
-The 1st meeting for the Community Advisory Committee, the group taking a closer look at the future of our facilities, was successful this past Wednesday night.
-Be sure to place your order for some amazing Mexican food for PT Conference night, that is generously donated by the Parent's Club
-All teachers should double check their red "Go-Kit" to make sure all materials are updated.  Also, be sure students are aware of the procedures in the event of a safety situation (hold, lock-down, tornado drill, etc.

PSD on Social Media
See images below from this past week.  Please seek opportunities to take photos of students engaged in high level learning activities and send them my way.  Our community needs to know about the high quality learning experiences our staff creates for our students.

Duty this Week
Bus - Kallungi

Images from the week

Las Vegas Incident

Ms. Hellmich shared a great resource for all staff as it relates to tragedies.  Here is a link to the document that has some ideas on how to talk with students or answer their questions.

NASP Resource

Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Contribution

Dear School Administrator,

(If you have already passed along this survey to your staff, please disregard. Thank you for doing so – all feedback gathered will be highly beneficial.)

Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin’s Community Education and Outreach team is working with the orthopedics department to develop educator resources that focus on supporting students who are returning to the classroom after a concussion. In an effort to best serve Wisconsin educators, we have developed a short survey designed to help us clarify their needs.  Please help us gather results by forwarding this survey link to educators in your school.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/chwconcussionsurvey

Thank You,

Judy Wendorf

Program Research and Development Supervisor

Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin Community Services

www.HealthyKidsLearnMore.com

The Middle Update 9/30/17

I am currently reading "Collective Efficacy: How Educator's Beliefs Impact Student Learning".  I was drawn to this book after studying the Pygmalion Effect and Hattie's Mindframes this past summer.  As a part of our goal to build our culture of literacy and reading, I thought this blog would be a good forum to share some of what I am learning along the way.  Some quotes that have stood out to me so far from this book...
"It is not so much a teacher's perception of their students' abilities that creates a culture of high expectations, but their conviction regarding their own collective abilities to impact student achievement in a positive way" (p. 34).
I think this quote fits right in with the work and mindset we bring to school with us every day.  Our focus and mission of making each minute of class time and interaction focused at improving student skills and knowledge remains a sacred principle we all share.

Mid-Term Grades Posted
It seems as if we just started, and we are already at the halfway point of the 1st quarter.  Please make sure student grades are posted in the standards that have been assessed so far.  I will be sending out a IC message to parents on Monday morning.  These grades should be updated regularly through the rest of the quarter.  Please see me with any questions about this process.

Hattie's Mindframe Focus


Mindframe #5: I engage in dialogue not monologue.

     Hattie’s research indicates that teachers talk 70-80% of the time in class, and that in much of the remaining 20-30% of the time, students are often engaged in individual written work. Moreover, although teachers ask an average of 200 questions a day, students already know the answer to 97% of them! While such surface-level discussion is crucial for assessing understanding, it does not allow us to clarify misunderstandings.
     Dialogue allows us to listen to students about what they did or didn’t do and the reasons why. It allows us to follow the thread of their reasoning in order to identify next steps for the learner. In addition, engaging in true dialogue opens up space for deep level learning, giving students the opportunity to fully use their knowledge and relate it to other aspects of their learning.
     Hattie states that there is no magic formula for the optimal levels of teacher talk versus student talk that can enhance either surface or deep learning. It is not enough to reduce teacher talking time and increase that of the students—the quality and purpose of the interaction is the important aspect. It requires the teacher to actively listen to the learner, and adjust to the nature of the discussion, the learning task and context. Meaningful discussions about learning will engender development of the language and vocabulary of learning as well as of the subject being taught. 

Fire Drill Review
Our first fire drill of the year was very smooth.  We are always looking for feedback about our safety procedures.  Please let me know if you have any concerns, questions, or suggestions about the process.

MS Staff Meeting on Wednesday
We will be having a Middle School Staff Meeting on Wednesday (10/4) starting at 2:50 in Mrs. Rogness' room.  Our goals for our staff meetings throughout the year will remain constant.

-Focus on the continued growth of a positive school culture embedded with excellence,
-Bring awareness to best practices in our school and spreading these practices to all classes

Reminder about school van use (from the district office)

Please remind your staff that when checking out a van they must top it off after use AND they must write the purpose on the receipt, i.e, Forensics, Track, Conservation Club, etc.  This is how the business office knows what budget to code the fuel to once the receipts are received.  

Additionally, as gas prices are low we will be using unleaded instead of E-85.  A revised laminated instruction sheet will be posted in all of the vehicles this week but we appreciate you sharing this information with all of your staff/coaches. 

Student Loan Forgiveness
The following is not an endorsement and the district will not/cannot assist with this service.  It is for informational purposes only.

Dear Staff Members,

AESA (www.aesa.us) and CESA 5 have partnered with ISLoan Solutions, a student loan advisory company, to help improve your student loan situation and achieve overall financial well-being.

They educate you and provide options, for loan forgiveness and refinancing, that may help lower, or even eliminate, your payment. Individuals are saving an average of 87% on their monthly student loan payments and are projected to receive an average of $60,430 in tax-free loan forgiveness.

Visit: https://cesa5.myisls.com/register

Enter code: CSA5 to learn more

Some of you may be able to lower your payment through Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF is not Teacher Loan Forgiveness*). For those of you who won’t benefit from PSLF, refinancing may work for you. After registering and answering a few simple questions, if PSLF does not make sense, you will be directed to their refinancing option.  Do not refinance your loans until you find out if PSLF makes sense for you FIRST.  Doing so will make you ineligible for future student loan forgiveness.

If PSLF makes sense, you will be able to:

• Immediately lower your monthly student loan payment
• Reduce your student loan obligation
• Significantly lower your cost to earn additional degrees
• Receive a personalized 10-year loan forgiveness plan outlining your projected tax free savings

*PSLF is available to all full-time employees regardless of position.  In 2007, Congress established PSLF to help full-time employees reduce their student loan burden and incentivize them to stay in public service.

This is a voluntary benefit. After consulting with ISLoan Solutions and verifying your student loan situation, you will receive information regarding loan forgiveness programs that may be of benefit to you along with a customized loan forgiveness plan outlining your forgiveness potential. You may choose to pursue the PSLF program on your own, or hire ISLoan Solutions to implement and manage the program for you.

Questions, or trouble logging in? Call 1.513.645.5400, email or visit their website at isloansolutions.com for more information and success stories.

Duty Next Week

Bus - Hendrickson

Images from the Week