Week 13

 

Hey Team...Good Morning! I pray everyone had a restful and enjoyable Thanksgiving! My Thanksgiving was definitely not the norm, but it was good. I had an opportunity to visit my family through Face Time and Zoom.  It was nice but hard, as I so wanted to for us all to be together.  But we separate this year so we can be together next year! 😄 Are you ready for Cyber Monday?  I plan to do some Christmas shopping this evening...

I have just a few reminders for this week.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Conferences begin this week.  Please make sure to reach out to classroom teachers to attend the conferences as needed.

Full Lesson Observations

Full lesson Observations are underway this week. Please remember to email me your lesson before I observe you. 

Tutoring

Ms. Boyer sent out an email inquiring about teachers interested in tutoring. Please be mindful, that we need a tutor for each grade level. You are not guaranteed to tutor the grade level that you teach. Tutoring will most likely be held on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays for and hour a day for a period of 7 weeks. The pay is $30/hr. We are in need of a total of 9 teachers. Please let me know (if you haven't already done so) if you are interested.

Snow Removal During Closure

I know many of you have decided to still come into the school during the building closure from now through January 11.  As a heads up, NHA will NOT be maintaining snow removal unless it is more than 2” of snow and snow will not be removed until the storm has passed.  I encourage you, if we should have a snow storm during the closure, to please work from home on those days to ensure safety, especially in the parking lot and sidewalks that won’t be treated.

Team Touch Points

Specials Teachers -

• Please make sure that you print your attendance for the previous week no later than Tuesday morning. I will sign off on it and file it for you. 
• Next week will begin Trimester 2, and the Specials schedule will be changing.  Please be prepared to go "full time" beginning next week.  You will see each grade level every day, but it will NOT rotate.  You will continue to see just a specific section (A, B, or C) each day.  According to my calculation it will be the following:  
• A Classes - Art
• B Classes - Tech
• C Classes - Gym

SpEd Teachers - 

• Progress Reports - These are due to be sent out with Report Cards on December 4th.  Please plan to have these completed by December 2nd.  
• Please remember to reach out to Steve prior to scheduling testing/IEPs on the Testing Calendar.
• Math interims are scheduled to begin next week for grades 3-8.  You might want to start this assessing if it works with the grade level teachers.  This information will be used to complete our Sped Data Wall. Once complete, we will have a special team meeting on how to respond to the data..

News to Know

11/30-12/11 Parent-Teacher Conferences (Remember no O3's or Team Meetings)

12/4 Report cards and Sped Progress Reports go home

Week 12

 

I want to wish each of you a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.  Whether you are gathering or keeping your celebration small, I hope that you are able to experience the gratefulness that this holiday brings.  I also want you to know that as I celebrate this year, I will be giving thanks for each of you...your dedication to our kids, your willingness to be flexibile...to continue to learn and grow, and especially for your friendship.  Please be safe...

Full Lesson Observations

Full lesson Observations will start next week for some. There are a few things to keep in mind as you plan for your observation. Review the Classroom Framework document with the Dean Look-fors. Remember to email me your lesson prior to your scheduled observation. Because observations are virtual, I will observe synchronous instruction and also look for asynchronous evidence as well. These are things I will take into consideration regarding asynchronous:

• Exploring your Google Classroom
• When are assignments posted?
• When and how is feedback being provided? Is it student friendly?
• How do students know what is needed prior to the start of the lesson?
• What follow-up is provided after the lesson?
• Parent Communication
• Is it clear and concise?
• Is it posted in a timely manner?
• Lesson Plans
• Is there evidence of effective lesson preparation?

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Just a reminder, parent-teacher conference are approaching.  Please reach out to classroom teachers to schedule to sit in on students conferences.  This is mandatory for Special Education teachers.  Specials Teachers, please post a notification on your Google Classroom for parents to reach out to you to schedule a PTC.  Also, if you are experiencing difficulties or concerns with a specific student, please don't hesitate to reach out to those parents. . Virtual Conferences start on Nov. 30th and end by Dec. 11th. 

O3's and Team Meetings Cancelled

All O3's and Team Meetings will be cancelled during Thanksgiving Week, Parent-Teacher conferences and Full lesson Observations. This will be from November 23 - Dec. 11th. All O3's and Team Meetings will resume on the week of Dec. 14th. If you need anything. please feel free to reach out to me. 

ABSS Update

Our ABSS' Mr. Bynum and Mr. Jones are still here to support you. Mr. Bynum will focus on any attendance issues that you may have. If a student is out for more than a couple of days, please email Mr. Bynum and cc me on the email. He will follow up. Please note that he also has a Google Classroom with information for the students. Please share this with your parents and students. The classroom code is br3cgdt.

Mr. Jones will support by helping the students to finish missing assignments. If you have a student with missing work, please submit the name to Mr. Jones by way of email and cc me. He will set up a time to monitor the student to help them complete their missing assignments. Don't let the assignments pile up! Catch them early. 

Team Touch Points

Specials Teachers -

• Please make sure that you print your attendance for the previous week no later than Tuesday morning. I will sign off on it and file it for you. 
• I will be finalizing the plans for Trimester 2 Live Classes on Monday.  I will let you know via email, the outcome of our Administration discussion.  At that point, I will send an official notice to the staff.

SpEd Teachers - 

• Progress Reports - These are due to be sent out with Report Cards on December 4th.  Please plan to have these completed by December 2nd.  
• Please remember to reach out to Steve prior to scheduling testing/IEPs on the Testing Calendar.
• Last week we wrapped up our first ELA Interim. For grades 3-8, the math interim will take place on the week of Nov. 30th. I will be completing our Sped Data Wall with that information. Afterwards we will have a special team meeting on how to respond to the data..

11/24 Tuesday- Carolyn Boyer's Birthday (Please take a moment to wish our Principal a Happy Birthday!)

11/25-11/27- No School: Thanksgiving Break!!!

Week 11

 

I just want you to know that I am so happy and grateful that I work with such an amazing, talented, and hardworking group of teachers! I love you guys! Thank you for all that you do!!!

I also want to take this opportunity to "officially" welcome Justin Gajewski to the Sped Team and Laurus family.  We are so excited to have you join us!

This Week's Highlights:

During Remote Learning

So, during this time of remote learning, an administrator will be in the building at least one day a week. Monday is my "official" day to cover the building, but I will be in on most days. 

Full Lesson Observations

Full Lesson Observations will begin Mon. Nov. 30-Tues Dec. 8th.  Please let me know what time you would like for me to observe your class. It is first come, first serve. If you do not reach out to me, I will choose a time to observe you. I will also need a copy of the lesson that you plan to teach. During O3's this week, we will discuss what you plan to be teaching.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Just a reminder, parent-teacher conference are approaching.  Please reach out to classroom teachers to schedule to sit in on students conferences.  This is mandatory for Special Education teachers.  Specials Teachers, please post a notification on your Google Classroom for parents to reach out to you to schedule a PTC.  Also, if you are experiencing difficulties or concerns with a specific student, please don't hesitate to reach out to those parents. . Virtual Conferences start on Nov. 30th and end by Dec. 11th. 

Team Touch Points

Specials Teachers -

• Please make sure that you print your attendance for the previous week no later than Tuesday morning. I will sign off on it and file it for you. 
• I will be finalizing the plans for Trimester 2 Live Classes on Monday.  I will let you know via email, the outcome of our Administration discussion.  At that point, I will send an official notice to the staff.

SpEd Teachers - 

• ELA Interims begin this week.  Please be sure to carefully monitor the students so we can have accurate data. We know that the students have struggles, however, we will be prepared to address the results from the data that we receive. You all have done a great job in trying to prepare our kiddos in a virtual setting.. Please work diligently to have the ELA interims completed by Friday.
• Please remember to reach out to Steve prior to scheduling testing/IEPs on the Testing Calendar.

News to Know:

11/20 Friday: Gradebook Closes (Be sure to get all missing assignments in)

Week 10

 

Hi Team! I hope you all had a good weekend. Mine was great! I am absolutely thrilled and relieved with our election results! HISTORY WAS MADE! I am hopeful that our country will move in the right direction. There are a lot of updates this week, so please read the blog carefully.

Monday Preparations

Today, please make sure that you take inventory and have everything that you need for working from home. It might be helpful to make a list. Write down any supplies or curriculum that you would need to work from home. As the numbers of Covid cases rise, it's important to stay prepared. There are a few things to keep in mind. 

• Make sure that you have a professionally acceptable background and that you are dressed appropriately.
• Stick to your schedules. I need to be notified of any possible changes to the schedule.
• Check your email at least twice a day (at minimum, once in the morning and once in the afternoon). If you receive an email that requires a response, please do so in a timely manner. This includes emails from me and from parents. Responses to Remind and Dojo should happen much sooner.

Special Education - 

AIMSWeb Progress Monitoring

This is something that should be occurring on a weekly basis.  Please make sure that you provide this service to your students by the end of the week.  This is a data tracking system that we will use to indicate growth.

Interim Testing

Please make sure that you have the Interim Calendars.  Let me know if you need them.  Also, you will want to print out the interim assessments so that you can prepare your students for taking the assessment.  

Attendance Issues

Any attendance issues should be reported to Mr. Bynum. Any student that you have consistently reached out to and cannot reach, please send him an email and copy me on it as well.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Please check your email this week for updates regarding parent-teacher conferences. Classroom teachers will be scheduling their virtual PTC's and you will want to reach out to your teachers so that you can join the PTC to answer any questions that might arise regarding Sped Services or Specials for your students.

News to Know...

• 10/11 Wednesday: Sped Team meeting at 8:30 am.  This will be virtual. 
• 10/13 Friday:  Specials Team meeting at 8:45 am.  This will be virtual.
• 10/13 Friday: Progress reports go home

Week 9

 

Hello Everyone! I hope everyone had a safe and fun weekend! This is a very important week. Make sure you vote, if you haven't already!

03's and Team Meetings are canceled this week!  Please see me if you have any needs or questions.

Interim 1

There are 2 weeks left to prepare 3-8 students for Interim 1. The ELA Interim will be on the week of November 16th. The Math Interim will take place on the week of the 30th. At this point, you should have printed the interim from Edcite. Please review the interims so you won't be surprised by anything and you can adequately prepare your students. 

News to Know...

• 11/3 ELECTION DAY! Be sure to vote! Early Release Day, classes end at 1:30
• 11/4 Staff Meeting.  Admin team will be on a call with 
• 11/5 You are welcome to get a Flu shot
• 11/6 Team Abston will be working from home!