Monday Morning Memo 12.21.20

 We are down to the last three days...  you've got this!  We have almost finished up 2020, and all in all, we survived it pretty well.  Now, take time to rest and relax and spend some much needed down time with the ones you love.  We can't wait to see you back in 2021!

12 Days of Christmas

Survey:

We really value your input and want to make DCE even better than it already is.  If you have not completed the short survey to give us feedback, please take a minute to complete it.

https://forms.gle/uWzUSPzNdPCuWQCEA

Weekly Schedule:

Happy holidays!

-Keli and James

Phone Message 12.20.2020

 Good afternoon Cub Families.  This is Mr. Vernon with a short message for the upcoming three day week.  

We have three days of learning and fun for our Cubs this week.  Remember Monday is Winter sock day, Tuesday is winter hat or headband day and Wednesday is pajama day.  

Thank you to all of our Cubs for the kindness they showed on Friday's Grinch Day.  We filled up our front foyer with food donations for the Homeless Coalition.  It always makes me so excited when I see what our school family can do when we work together.  Thank you all for your kindness.  

This will be my last phone message for the calendar year and I want to make sure you all know how much I love working for all of you and helping our Cubs.  I hope you all have an enjoyable rest of the year and have a great New Year.  Remember Winter Break begins on December 24 and students return on January 4.

Thank you all for listening and have a great evening.  I look forward to seeing our Ready, Responsible and Respectful Cubs tomorrow morning. 

Monday Morning Memo 12.14.20

Although it is almost the holidays, all that I can think of right now is The Little Engine that Could.  Let's face it... 2020 has brought many challenges and obstacles.  We are feeling the exhaustion of the last calendar year on our shoulders, and most of us can't wait for it to be 2021.  Some mornings we may even be waking up wishing that we could close our eyes and pull those covers back up over our heads instead of heading into school.  But, our kiddos are depending on us. They are depending on us to be there... to be eager to teach... and to be the light in their days.  We've got this next eight days.  Just remember that we need to start each one with the phrase, "I think I can!"

12 Days of Christmas:

This week we continue our 12 Days of Christmas.  Keep on the lookout!  We still have a few Santas that were not found on Friday.  They are in some tricky places!  We can't wait to have more fun with you this week!

Element 13: Reflecting on Learning

Last week at the Program Planner meeting James mentioned that there are two elements that we wanted to spotlight right now.  The first was Element 26: Managing Response Rates.  We focused on this element last week in our memo.  This week we are switching gears to Element 13: Reflecting on Learning.  

When we look at the rubric for reflecting we see that there are a few key components that must be implemented in the classroom to utilize this strategy with students effectively.  

*Students reflect on their own learning and the learning process

*Students reflect on their effort

*The teacher monitors the extent to which students do this effectively

Reflecting on where I am in the learning sequence for a student and how their effort impacts where they are at is huge for our students.  Last year we introduced you to the idea of grit.  This is when our students "choose" to keep going when things get tough.  This does not just mean that they are complying with behavioral expectations, although these reflect effort as well.  Grit is when students are sitting in the zone of productive struggle with a challenging word, math problem, or question in front of them and they chose to reach out to resources and strategies around them to keep going even when they may feel like quitting.  Without following the teacher's behavior expectations and showing grit, students may not advance very far on the learning continuum.  

This year the idea of the Critical Concepts were introduced and last year we shared Standards Ladders with you.  These are examples of ways that students can reflect on where they are in their learning.  This is often an area where we see confusion for this element.  One of the things that students need to be aware of is what skills they have checked off, where they are at right now in their learning, and where they are trying to get to and why.  

Let's take a look at an example scenario:

In class, a student is learning phonetic skills in their kindergarten classroom.  Currently, they are learning letter sounds.  After they learn their sounds they will be blending these sounds to make CVC words.  They will also learn some common sight words.  The next step is to put these CVC words and sight words together to begin reading some predictable books.  Each day the teacher may review with students what they are currently learning and where they are trying to get to (reading text by themselves).  She may also review with students what they need to do when they get to a tricky letter or word (strategies and effort).  At the end of small group or independent reading time the teacher may have students reflect in two ways: 1. What did you practice today and where is this at on our learning ladder?  2. How much effort (grit) did you show when you got to tricky letters/words? What did you do when you got to that letter/word that helped you?

Allowing students to see that their effort and use of strategies can help them advance faster to where they are trying to get to can be powerful.  Teachers have been finding some creative ways to get their students to reflect on both of these areas.

With the implementation of standards ladders and Critical Concept scales we have seen students begin to prove where they are in their learning.  They are checking off concepts as they demonstrate mastery and know exactly the key vocabulary and expectations of the next step in their learning that they are going to tackle.  Teachers have done this with physical student copies of the ladders or scales, whole class large scale versions on which students clip their clothespin or place their sticky note, or through discussion with their partner at the conclusion of a small group.  When checking off or clipping up a step on the ladder or section of the concept the teacher is requiring that the student prove their understanding.  We often see this in the form of an exit ticket.

Teachers have also developed "Effort Expectations" anchor charts.  These are charts where the class brainstorms what effort sounds like, looks like, and feels like.  Then, students reflect about whether they met those expectations during the lesson and often place a symbol that indicates their effort onto their exit ticket or paper.  

Reflecting on both of these areas in the classroom will take some time at the beginning when you first introduce the concept to your students.  However, with repetition and consistent expectations for effort, the time that will be needed will greatly decrease and should only take a minute or two.  These are also just a few examples and are not all inclusive of what can be done with students in your classroom for Element 13.  We hope that this has brought some clarity and also sparked some ideas.

Weekly Schedule:

Remember... we've got this. Only eight more days.  Continue to be the light for your students!  Have a great week.

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 12.7.20

We are nearing the finish line!  There are only 13 days left until winter break.  Many of you have been using some of the tips that we mentioned last week to spread a little bit of holiday excitement with your students while still continuing with your regular academics.  Below are a few links to videos similar to what we have seen teachers using on their tvs while their students are working.  Keep sharing ideas with each other!

Piano with Winter Scenes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpYnYczNkQc

Snowfall with Piano Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmwCDjuKAEQ

Christmas Tree with Christmas Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYg70N2vSkg

Penguins with Relaxing Music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZab6f-XWNE

12 Days of Christmas

This week kicks off our 12 Days of Christmas which will begin on Tuesday.  We can't wait to have some fun with you!  Please see the schedule below.  If you visit the photo booth on Tuesday, please email or text me the photos.  I would love to share these out on Facebook with our families and students.  

LiveSchool Challenge

Don't forget to keep LiveSchool up and active throughout the day.  Awarding positive points to our students will keep them engaged in learning. Please share out the digital flyer with parents that Sarah made about the special days our students are working for.  This will help our parents remind their child about behaving and to also be ready with items for our Cubs to wear!  

Element 26: Response Rates

Now that classroom observations have kicked off we wanted to begin sharing with you some great ideas and reminders for some of our key elements.  We are going to start off with Element 26: Managing Response Rates.  This element encourages teachers to find ways to get ALL students answering ALL questions.  This helps us avoid being an "owl" when we ask questions such as, "Who can tell me the...."  When we ask questions in this manner we call on one student, and it is often a student that we subconsciously believe will have the correct answer.  This also sets up some of our bottom quartile students to disengage because they often get skipped over or are allowed to opt out of answering when they begin to stumble.  During our PD session in November James challenged us to be a school where students do not raise their hands to answer questions.  This does not mean that we aren't asking questions or that we are allowing students to just call out answers, but instead means that ALL students are answering ALL questions.  Think about how we can get all of our kids doing all of the thinking, the reading, and the responding.  So, how do we do this?  Below are some ideas we have researched and also seen in action.

• Random Selector Tools - When having to pose a question in class with only one student answering consider using a random selector.  This could be through the use of popsicle sticks, the selector feature in LiveSchool, or another app similar in nature.  One new technique we observed last week was a teacher that placed duplicate sticks in her cup for students that are in the bottom quartile; therefore greatly increasing the chances of these students being called on more frequently.  Another teacher also placed sticks in her cup that said "teacher's choice."  This allowed her flexibility to call on any student that needed to be engaged at that moment.  
• Dry Erase Boards and Desks - When posing questions to the class have students record their answer on a dry erase board or on their desk.  As they write, circulate the room to monitor their responses.  Call on key students based on their responses to have them share with the class.  This may create some great opportunities for probing or for class-wide academic discourse.
• Paddle Responses - Paddles can be used in many ways.  They can be premade by the teacher based on a specific type of response you are looking to solicit from your students such as true/false, thumbs up/thumbs down, agree/disagree, etc.  These can also be made as blank laminated circles that students write on with dry erase markers.  For example, the teacher could ask students to write down the names of two specific characters from the text.  Then, she could read out specific traits about these characters and students have to show the character's name that fits that trait.   
• Technology - Using technology is often a great way to manage responses while also collecting data.  We have seen teachers do this through programs such as Quizizz and Kahoot.  Now that we are becoming more comfortable with Google Classroom, students are beginning to post their responses in their digital classroom and even have academic conversations with their group members.
• Academic Discourse - Get your students talking together about their answers to questions.  These structured conversations really hold our students accountable to answering the question and using academic vocabulary in their response.  With Covid restrictions we have seen teachers really finding creative ways to keep our students talking.  We have seen teachers set up hoola hoops or shower curtains for students to stand around so they can talk in a group.  We have seen teachers set up sit spots in their room that allows partners to sit on specific colors to specify who their partner is and then they turn to face one another from their spaced spots.  As mentioned before, some teachers have moved digital to allow students to have conversations through typing messages to one another.  
• Old School - We can always go old school.  When posing a question we can have all students find the answer in the text and highlight or underline it.  Or, they can solve their math problem on their paper.  As teachers, we then circulate and monitor their responses and facilitate what needs to occur next with the class.  We may decide to pair students together based on their answers, select papers to show up on the tv for discussion, or randomly select two students to share out for the class to then discuss the differences in their responses.  

Remember... we need kids working harder than we do!

Weekly Schedule:

Have a great week!

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 11/15/20

Teacher and Support Employee of the Year:

Thank you to everyone that took the time to send in a nomination for a teacher and support employee that reflects the qualities that DCE represents as a school.  We have tallied up the nominations and sent the staff members with the most nominations on to our parent committee.  They will be working the next few days to read the blind nominations (names were removed) to select the winners for each category.  We are excited to announce who our winners are in just a few days!

Formal Observations:

As we have previously mentioned, there are new forms that need to be completed this year in connection with your formal observation.  You will access these forms in your Records icon in your Classlink account.  The pre-observation form provides you with a place to upload your lesson plan for your formal observation.  On this form you will also need to answer several questions related to some of the non-observable elements that you will be scored on this year.  The post-observation form will be completed following your lesson and will allow you to complete information on your lesson in a reflective way for additional non-observable elements.  

Important Notes:

*We will need you to complete these forms at least 24 hours in advance of your scheduled pre and post conference meetings.  This will allow us time to review them and be prepared to discuss them with you.

*It is recommended that you take a look at these forms now.  You can begin drafting your answers and save your progress until you are ready to submit.  

Scheduling:

In the next few days we will be sending out dates and times for you to begin scheduling your meetings and your observation.  All meetings and your observation are due before Spring break.  You may want to consider scheduling early in case there is something you want us to come back to see or that you want to submit evidence for following your observation and scoring.  

Food Pantry:

Ms. Navarro has set up a small food pantry in her office.  If you have a student that is need of food, please be sure to arrange for them to visit her office.  She has shopping bags ready so the students can "shop" at her mini grocery store.  She is always looking for the donation of items as well!  We appreciate all Ms. Navarro does for our Cubs and their families!

Weekly Schedule:

We hope you had a restful weekend. Can't wait to see you Monday morning!

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 11.8.20

Stay Safe:

What would 2020 be without a little more excitement?  As you heard, school has been canceled for Monday, November 9 due to Tropical Storm Eta.  Please be sure that you prepare your homes this evening and that you stay safe as there is expected to be wind and rain tonight and throughout tomorrow.  No staff is permitted on campus at this time until the schools have been inspected following the storm and deemed as safe.  We will continue to update you via email as we receive additional information from the district about school openings/closings the remainder of the week.  Our next call is tomorrow at 11:30 am.  Stay safe!  We will be in touch soon.

Schedule:

As this week is somewhat up in the air depending on the path the storm takes, our schedule will need to be adjusted as we learn more.  Below is the tentative schedule for this week.  For those of you that are missing a testing day we will need to adjust.  We have not heard if the testing window will be extended, but please know that it is very likely that we will need to be flexible and fit it in as possible. 

Have a great evening and enjoy some time with your family tomorrow snuggling up.  Stay safe!

-Keli and James

 Monday Morning Memo 10.26.20

I hope that you all had a restful weekend!  If you saw me Friday you know that I was beat just like many of you.  I have to say that although many of you had a tough day too with no internet, new testing platforms, or a difficult kiddo, so many of you saw that I was struggling and did something to make me laugh, give me a squeeze, or offer a word of encouragement.  That is what makes DCE so great.  We are a family... and although some days will be tougher than others... there is always someone right there next to you that will lend a helping hand.  Especially as we begin to head into the long stretch of the holiday season, please be sure that if you see a friend that is struggling or could use a pick me that you become their person that lifts them up! 

Deliberate Practice Plan:

Your Deliberate Practice Plan is due on October 30.  James and I have posted the video link from Dr. Keegan as well as a PowerPoint that will walk you through the steps of completing your form in our DCE Staff Shared Drive in the Marzano folder.  It is important that you get your DPP form submitted in a timely manner in case we need you to edit it.  Some of you have asked for additional guidance in completing your form so below is some information that may help you!

As you know, this year you will be scored on some elements that will not be demonstrated during your formal observation.  The first question that you respond to on your DPP form will be scored as element #53: Developing a Written Growth and Development Plan. It is important that you look at the Marzano rubric for element #53 as you fill out your form as this is a scored element. 

Below are some examples and a template for filling in your DPP information in your form.

What are the specific measurable goals you have set, action steps you have planned, timelines you have identified, and resources that you need to improve this area? [Element 53]

SMART Goal Format - from X to Y by Z

Example:

I will go from beginning to applying in element 6, Identifying Critical Information, by March of 2021.

Action Steps I have planned and Timelines I have identified

• I will watch the Educational Impact course on my element by November 2020.
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)
• List action step here to be completed by (insert target date)

Action steps could be things such as completing the Educational Impact Course on your element, having a peer observe you and give you feedback on your element, reading research on your element, etc.  You will want to be specific and have several action steps that will lead to you successfully reaching your goal rubric score for your DPP.  These action steps can include tasks you plan to implement with your students as well.

The next area that you need to fill out asks for the:

Resources that I need to improve this area:

Examples:

• Marzano element documents
• Educational Impact website and login information
• Critical concepts
• Pacing guides
• Test Specifications
• ____________________
• ____________________
• ____________________

The next response in your goal setting sheet will score element #54: Monitoring Progress Relative to the Professional Growth and Development Plan. Here is a copy of the desired effect, teacher evidence, and rubric that goes with element #54.  This is another of your non-observable elements that will be scored this year.

When looking over this rubric be sure to pay attention to the teacher evidences as well as the key terms in the applying range of the rubric.  When we meet to discuss your DPP we will be talking with you about your monitoring of your DPP plan in order to score this element.

Describe your method for monitoring the improvement of your deliberate practice

element? How will you be charting your progress? [Element 54]

Examples: (How will you chart your progress?  How will you know if you have been successful or not?)

• Copies of student Critical Concept scales
• Critical Concept item analysis
• Action step timeline checklist
• Feedback from informal observation
• __________________________________________________
• __________________________________________________
• __________________________________________________

Keep in mind, writing your DPP will take some time.  Your DPP will impact your score of your selected DPP target element as well as elements 53 and 54.  

Please do not hesitate to reach our to James, Marie, or me if you have any questions as you are working!

Student Performance Measure:

The final step of completing your DPP form is selecting your Student Performance Measure.  Keep in mind that your SPM counts as 1/3 of your overall evaluation rating.  Many teachers will likely select the first option, teacher made tests.  James and I have to approve these assessments.  If you are looking for specifics about the design of these assessments please reference the instructional contract which can be found on the CCPS website.  If you select STAR you will need to specify in the comment section if you plan to use STAR scores for reading or for math and whether you will be selecting the proficiency or the growth measure.  If you select the growth measure this will be calculated on the number of your students in your class that "JUMP A BUCKET."  Remember, "jumping a bucket" means that their percentile ranking moves them from one category to the next on our chart.

Work Day and Report Cards

This year the District assigned our Teacher Work Day as Saturday, October 31 for completing your report cards.  You are NOT required to come to school this day; however, we know that many of you like to have time in your classrooms on your work day to get odds and ends completed.  James and I will be opening the building on October 31 from 8:00 am -12:00 pm.  James has also arranged for us to have air conditioning.  Yay!

The report card posting window is officially open.  Scarlett emailed reminders about posting.  Please take a look at her email if you have not already.  Remember, report card grades must be "posted" by 7:20 am on Monday, November 2nd.  

Fire Inspection

We have heard that a few schools have started having their fire inspections.  This likely means that ours is just around the corner.  Our school is in great shape, but there are some areas that many schools get hit on that are important for us to look over as reminders.  One of the big ones is having items on top of your cabinets or shelves too close to the ceiling.  A good rule of thumb is to not place anything on top of cabinets or on your top shelf in your closets to eliminate any possible safety hazard.  You will see on the document that is linked here the actual ceiling height limit as well as other common safety violations that you can check for.

This Week's Schedule

It will be a busy, but great week!  Please let us know if you need anything!

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 10.19.2020

 Happy Mission Possible Monday.  

We all agree that there has been a lot of "things" thrown at us in the last few months.  Keli and I challenged us in August to work hard to focus on our attitudes and effort. It was easy to accomplish that in August when we were preparing for all the things we knew would be a challenge this year.  Can we still have positive attitudes and tremendous effort in October and beyond when those challenges are testing our patience?

It's a new week.  Remember each week is new chance to reach success and do your best.  Take a breath and ask yourself:

            1.  Was I better for children today?

            2.  Did I give everything I had for the people around me?

Let's have a great week.

James & Keli

Phone 10.18.2020

 Good afternoon Cub Families this is Mr. Vernon.  I hope you all are having a good weekend.  I have a few announcements for this coming week.  

We are excited that Mrs. Riddell, DCE Media Specialist, is going to be hosting the fall book fair. It will look a little different, but the goal of getting books into students' hands to encourage a love of reading is the same! Mrs. Riddell sent home flyers this past week with information on shopping dates and times, and it also provides information on an optional eWallet so no money has to be exchanged. Students will be shopping during school hours on their assigned media special day or another scheduled time between Friday, October 23rd- Friday, October 30th. I can't wait to see our cubs' excitement over the book fair. 

Also this week we will be conducting both of our safety drills.  Each month there is a practice of our fire drill procedures, where we will practice evacuating the building.  The second drill is the active assailant drill, where we will practice placing the school in a lockdown.  Practice is important so we are always prepared.  If your child has any questions, please make sure they know these drills this week are only practice.

The last announcement is just making sure all parents know that the Deep Creek Character Parade will be held during Celebrate Literacy Week.  Celebrate Literacy Week will be during the second semester of the school year.  So, make sure as your children are reading over the next few months that you are thinking of great costumes that they can wear to represent their favorite characters. More information will come out about the parade as we get closer to the event.

Thank you all for listening and enjoy the rest of your day.  I am excited to see our Ready, Responsible and Respectful Cubs tomorrow morning.  

Monday Morning Memo 10.11.20

Happy Monday! We hope that you had a restful weekend.  Thank you for continuing to push through the barriers that 2020 has put in front of us.  Last week we were reminded of where we get the strength to keep going.  On Friday, our students that completed their Summer Slide Challenge got to come outside and spend some time with James and me.  It was just a few minutes and there was not a big, expensive inflatable slide waiting for them.  Due to the health restrictions, all we could put together was a socially distanced obstacle course made of cones and hoola hoops and we bought them each a popsicle.  Yet, the kids had a blast and exclaimed that this activity was better than any other summer slide activity we had had in the past.  Our kids are resilient.  Our kids make us smile.  Our kids are what keep us going.  Our day got even better Friday afternoon when we were invited to Ms. Niehaus' class.  Check out what we experienced while we were there in the message below!

Goal Getters:

Data.  It is tough for adults to look at, analyze, and reflect upon.  It sometimes tells us something that we do not want to acknowledge such as our current weight (true for me!), how much money we spend on specific activities, or an area of our instruction that could be improved.  Sometimes it can be so tricky or stressful for us that the thought of using it with students can be very overwhelming.  Research shows that making data and learning visible to our students has a high yield pay off for them.  This is true for us as adults too.  When I really sit down and look at what my current weight is and the goal weight I want to get to and then develop an action plan and a tracking system I am much more likely to be successful in my weight loss journey.  

Several weeks ago Ms. Niehaus sat with her students and developed individualized learning goals with each of them.  On her bulletin board she posted their goals.  She utilized the tracking sheets and communicated the goals and strategies set with the parents of her students.  She set a deadline for when their goals needed to be accomplished and checked in with them frequently to ensure that they were on track.  The target date was Friday.  The kids wanted every Cub in their class to achieve their first goal by this date to be able to celebrate together as a class.  They selected a disco dance party with treats as their celebration.  The kiddos were so excited they could not keep it a secret.  As we did lunch duty one Cub couldn't contain his excitement and shared that his goal was to learn 19 sight words during this time.  Learning these words got him to his goal of 100 total sight words.  He was so proud of this goal and was eager to share with us that he had brought packs of gummies to share with his classmates because he was proud of them too!  

Disco lights, glow bracelets, dancing, and a snack were definitely an amazing treat.  However, the true excitement in the room came when we asked the class why they were having this party.  They pointed to the bulletin board to show us each of their goals and were already excited to tell us what their next goal is and how they plan to smash it.  I walked around the room as the students gathered snacks from the table and peeked at some of the other items that Ms. Niehaus had posted around her room.  The room is filled with data that is being accessed by students on a daily basis.  As I snapped pictures Ms. Niehaus said that the academic results she is experiencing this year were no where near this last year at 5 weeks into school time.  Her students have earned far more AR points, learned many new sight words, and are mastering their numbers.  

There was not any shame in the room.  Students were not embarrassed about where their data showed them to be.  They were not comparing their goals to anyone else's.  Instead, they were proud of how much they grew.  They were proud of how much their peers grew.  The classroom was a family.  It was a community of learners that knew we all have strengths and weaknesses and needed to improve in different ways.  Their hard work was paying off.  They knew where they stood academically and where they needed to get to by when.

We know that many more of you are using data with your students.  Many of you have also dove head first into the new leadership notebook goal setting and tracking pages as well.  We can't wait to get around to your rooms to see these in action!  Thank you for continuing to take risks.  It is tough... but there can be a big pay off for both you and your students!  Don't forget about the data tracking on your grade level data walls too. This is a great place to celebrate our Cubs and their accomplishments.  Below are some pictures that I snapped while in Addison's room.  

This Week:

Health Screenings:

This week we have a few things scheduled.  Monday, Tuesday, and Friday are Health Screenings for students in grades K, 1, and 3.  Screenings will take place in room F-101.  Please be sure that you read the directions on the bottom of the schedule carefully and that you review the list of students than can't be screened that you received in an email from Mr. Capo.

Click here to view the schedule.

Team Meetings:

This week we also have Team Meetings on Tuesday.  This is a meeting for your team to use as you see fit.  The only agenda item that we request that you include is developing a goal for what your team hopes to accomplish the following week during back to back planning.  After this month, team meetings will always follow program planner meetings to give you an opportunity to go over important items.

Child Study:

This week is Child Study. You will be meeting with your grade level teams during your planning periods.  If you are a K-2 teacher this will be a traditional Child Study Meeting.  If you are a K-2 CD teacher please meet with Jen Giesel in the morning to discuss kiddos.  If you are a 3-5 teacher or a 3-5 CD teacher, I will need to meet with you during your planning to go over information about the new APM ClearSight assessment that opens next week.  I apologize for this, but did not want to schedule an additional meeting and this is information you will have to have before testing.

Calendar:

As always, thank you for being you!  We hope you have a great week!

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 10.4.20

The Fridge is Stocked:

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions for all of us.  Who would have thought that we would be starting the month of October in this boat?  But, with all that is going on in the world you have done an amazing job of making what is happening within the walls of our school magical and comforting to our students and to each other.  Things are not easy.  In fact, they are difficult and exhausting.  But you are facing each day with a smile beneath your mask and you are working together to find solutions to the obstacles that continue to pop up.  James and I appreciate you so much.  Although we wish we could show our appreciation in bigger ways, we have stocked the fridge in the staff lounge with goodies.  You will find sodas, waters, Gatorades, candy bars, ice cream sandwiches, yogurts, and more.  Please take a minute to stop by the fridge on Monday and grab yourself a drink and a snack.  We hope you are able to find a quiet moment in your day to breath a bit and enjoy your treat.

Survey Week:

We are in survey week.  Attendance is extremely important during this time period.  Please be sure that you take attendance accurately and on time each morning this week.  Attendance during this time is reported to the State.  

Summer Slide:

The students that completed the Summer Slide challenge will have an opportunity to play with Mr. Vernon and me on October 9.  We have planned some fun activities and a cool treat.  Please see the schedule below for the morning.  This link will also take you to the list of students that have earned this reward.

List of Students: Click Here

Weekly Schedule:

Below is our schedule for the week.  We hope it is an awesome one for you and your students!

Monday Morning Memo 9.27.20

Collaborative Planning

Thank you for getting through our first back to back collaborative planning sessions last week.  Everyone jumped in to help make these sessions smooth from special area teachers that swapped students to paraprofessionals that covered para PE and taught double computers and to office staff that jumped in to help with lunches where we were shorthanded.  DCE is such a great place to be.

With anything new there will be learning, struggling, and growth.  We know that making a mindset shift to collaborating this frequently with our peers and to diving deeper into standards can sometimes be uncomfortable. Change is tough.  To be honest... it makes me uncomfortable too! But as we have learned in teaching our students about grit and growth mindset this year... this uncomfortable feeling is what is needed because it is where the most amazing things begin to happen!  

When we think of lesson planning we often think back to what we have done in the past as teachers: getting as many lesson boxes filled in our plan book as possible in our brief planning periods that we have available.  This new collaborative planning model is pushing us to think a bit differently.  Last week many teams spent their entire time looking closely at one subject area or even domain area in their day.  Tough conversations were hashed out and a clearer common understanding of the grade level's expectations and direction in that particular area were starting to form.  Some grade levels examined their current data for phonics, read and reread their grade level standards, and cross referenced the available resources that they have available for covering these standards.  The result of this conversation was a decision on where students needed to start instructionally as a whole and the selection of the resource that would help them get there.  These types of conversations are already assisting our school in improving in a few ways:

    

    1. We are developing a common understanding of the standard.

    2. We are spending time discussing as a group topics that we would traditionally not make time for            without a data day.

    3. We are creating a more equal playing field across classrooms in a grade level.

    4. We will be establishing a clear expectation for the rigor level from classroom to classroom.

    5. We are examining the assessments to ensure that our instruction and resources are aligned. 

We are looking forward to jumping back in to our shorter sessions this week.  Teams have selected a target for what they hope to accomplish in this session.  This SLOW work now is going to lead us to being able to go FASTER in a few more weeks when we get into the day to day lesson planning.  We are building the foundation now for planning that will help us select resources and tasks for our students that will maximize their learning.  Hang in there... it will get easier... and we will be accomplishing more and more each session.

DEAL Day:

This week we will hold our first DEAL Day of the year.  Please reference the email from Sarah Baldwin about DEAL Day.  She has shared some suggestions with you of types of activities that you can complete with students at this time. Below is a copy of the schedule of how our specials schedule will be modified.  We will still come on the intercom to announce the start and conclusion of DEAL Day to help get our kiddos excited and review our expectations for their behavior during this special time.

Weekly Schedule:

Below is our schedule for the week.  It is hard to believe we are heading into the month of October!

Have a great week!  Please let us know if you have any questions or if you need anything!

-Keli and James

Monday Morning Memo 9.20.20

 Happy Monday...

Although things are not as normal as we hoped we are so very appreciative of all that you have done to make our students and their families feel welcome and comfortable at school the last few weeks.  The kids have been more resilient than we expected and you all have gone above and beyond to find creative ways to get your students interacting with each other and learning.  We will still have hurdles to overcome as we learned this week, but as a school family we can get through anything together.  We were informed last week that there was a possibility that schools would lose an allocation of a staff member to work at Charlotte Virtual School.  On Friday we were made aware of the confirmation of our loss of one of our first grade teachers, Jen Phillips.  We are extremely sad to lose Jen, but know that with her curriculum strengths and technology expertise she will be an amazing addition to the CVS staff and a huge benefit to students as they navigate this school year online.  Jen will be with us through this week and will then transition to CVS.  We will be sharing this information with the parents of her class on Tuesday after school, so please do not share this information with any students or parents at this time.  When you see Jen please wish her luck on her new adventure. We hope to have our paths cross again in the future so we can have her back on our staff!

Fire Drill and Safety Drill:

Thank you for your patience with the fire alarm on Friday.  After pulling the station for the drill we locked the station back up, but it did not silence the alarm as it was supposed to.  The district maintenance department answered our call and arrived quickly.  They have removed the pull station and will be back on Monday to do the needed repairs.  I appreciate your flexibility with your students as we adjusted to unplanned activities to avoid the noisy alarms in the buildings. 

Just a reminder, CCSO attends our safety/crisis drills and walks our campus to confirm that we are following protocols.  We did an awesome job, but did receive comments on our form that they observed some door windows not covered as well as some classes of students could be heard from the hallways.  Please review these procedures with your kiddos between now and our next drill.

Collaborative Planning:

This week we will try our very first session of back to back collaborative planning.  Our goal with this model is to provide you with additional uninterrupted planning time to work together as a team to dive deeper into instructional practices and to analyze student work so we can boost our tier one for our students, especially to make up for their lost instructional time due to COVID-19.  Just a reminder, specials times run differently on these days.  Also, if you are scheduled for back to back planning on Tuesday your classes will have two specials period that day (Tuesday and Friday's classes), but will not have any specials on Friday.  If you are scheduled for back to back planning on Fridays you will not have a specials class on Tuesday and will have two classes on Friday (Friday and then Tuesday's classes).  We would like you to take advantage of the time in your classroom with your students when you do not have specials as this time will be taken away from academics on the day that you have double specials.  Below is the specifics of the back to back planning schedule for you to review.  Program Planners will be facilitating the sessions to keep the team focused on their goals and Mrs. Brown, Mr. Vernon, and me will be attending to assist as needed.  We will need to use a few minutes of time this week to talk about the new Oral Language Communication window.

TUESDAYS:

Class will travel to their Tuesday special first and then specials teachers will switch students amongst themselves to switch students to their Friday specials class second.

          Fifth Grade Specials: 8:25 - 9:50 (switch class from 9:05-9:10)

          Fourth Grade Specials: 10:20-11:40 (switch class from 11:00-11:05)

          First Grade Specials: 1:10-2:35 (switch class from 1:50-1:55)  

          *The other grade levels will not have specials on this day.

FRIDAYS:

Class will travel to their Friday special first and then specials teachers will switch students amongst themselves to switch students to their Tuesday specials class second.

          Kindergarten Specials: 8:25 - 9:50 (switch class from 9:05-9:10)

          Third Grade Specials: 10:20-11:40 (switch class from 11:00-11:05)

          Second Grade Specials: 1:10-2:35 (switch class from 1:50-1:55)  

          *The other grade levels will not have specials on this day.

Weekly Schedule:

Below is our schedule for the week.  Mrs. Skavronek has organized an awesome drive through event for our families on Friday for "Dad's Take Your Child To School Day."  

We hope you have an awesome week!

-Keli and James

Weekly Message 4.20.20

eLearning Week Four

It is hard to believe that we are heading into week four of virtual learning. This weekend we all also received the news that our school year will be continuing through a virtual platform throughout the remainder of the year.  Although this decision is understandable to keep everyone healthy, it is hard to believe that this is our new reality.  This announcement has brought forth many more questions for all of us.  How will students get their belongings in their classroom?  How will we say our end of school year goodbyes? We are working to make a plan for all of these questions and more.  As we solidify plans we will be sure to let you know as soon as possible.  If there is one thing that we have all learned through this pandemic it is that we are all in it for the kids and for each other... together we will always find a way to do what is right for our families and staff!

This week will continue with our regularly scheduled meetings.  Just a reminder, our staff meetings are scheduled for Thursdays at 1:00 pm.  These meetings are an important time for us to all come together and hear the most recent updates from the District and State as the staff meeting directly follows our morning principal and assistant principal meetings.  It is also just a great time to hear each other, post comments to one another, and feel connected as a whole staff.

iReady vs STAR

For those of you that are instructional staff, we are asking you to do a bit of research this week and share your thoughts with us about the possibility of us transitioning from the i-Ready assessment platform to the STAR platform.  Below are a few documents and videos that may assist you in learning a bit more about STAR.  One of the things we wanted to be sure that you were aware of is that STAR does not have its own interactive lesson path for students between assessment periods.  But, what they do have is a program that is called Freckle that we would like for you to look into as well.  The purchase of the STAR program would also allow teachers and students to continue our use of MyOn that we have been using the last few weeks during eLearning.  Once you do some research, please complete the survey link below by Friday to share your thoughts with us.

STAR Information:

https://www.renaissance.com/products/star-assessments/

https://p.widencdn.net/i26cwk/302820-Star-Gatefold_final

https://p.widencdn.net/6ef2st/300804-Star-Reading-flyer

https://p.widencdn.net/lgrgsf/300804-Star-Math-flyer

Freckle Information:

https://www.freckle.com/differentiation-platform/

SURVEY:

Instructional Staff Survey for iReady vs STAR

Thank You

Thank you again for all you do.  We are seriously lucky to have such an amazing staff.  Take a deep breath, be sure to relax a bit, and soak up some of this extra time with your families too!  

-Keli and James