Highland Updates

Everyday Math Webinars

Everyday Mathematics 4:

July 24

August 3, 7, 8, 9, 15, 16, 21, 23, 28

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/1619690969218767875

Work Calendar for Certified Staff 2018-2019

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p1vaRc1vDUdGj-9QHLmRbw5Rtx5DeJYK/view?usp=sharing

Oregon Battle Of the Books Info

This information was shared with principals this week, so I wanted to share it with you.

1. Inform media managers to wait until fall to do any OBOB promotions, introductions, team start-ups etc.
2. Parent permission slips may be distributed in the fall. These must go out before any formal process takes place. If you and/or your media manager wants to do something before fall, contact me
3. Meetings, competitions, etc. need to all be completed outside of class time.

• No assemblies for kids to watch
• No class time, library time, etc. for competitions.
• Must all be voluntary times when students can choose to be there, not be forced to choose to leave.
• Lunches, recesses, before or after school, voluntary is OK

Sherwood Visit

Mikal, Sheila and Amy were extremely grateful to all of you for opening your classrooms and rearranging your schedules to accommodate their visit.  Thank you very much.

Testing

SBAC

We still have the science test to complete for our 5th graders but we are crossing the finish line with this task – so great job.

EasyCBM

EasyCBM window – open until June 1st.  All grades complete this test.

All School BBQ

Well that was fun!!  That monsoon really dampened the first round but I think we all recovered well and made it work.  Thank you for rolling with it and keeping it fun.

As a side note were able to return about ⅔ of the lost-and-found items to their owners, so that felt good to off load all those clothes!

SIWs

• May 30th – Math Talks with Kerry Morton
• June 6th – Round 2 of Placements/Miscellaneous
• June 13th – Full day (no early release)

IPAD Roll In

Please see previous post to get details if you still need some reminders.

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link

“Mindfulness helps us recognize, understand, and respond to emotions as it strengthens our ability to recognize what we’re experiencing before we react.”

           Elena Aguilar

Thank you!

Thank you for your hard work.  Thank you for your thoughtfulness.  Thank you for being you. Thank you for allowing me to be me.  And most of all, thank you for the love you show everyday.

Here’s a quick peak at our new Music Room!!!

Mark your calendar – I am hoping to set up a tour of the gym for all of you on May 30th after our SIW.

Sherwood Visit

There will be three visitors, Mikal Morris, Sheila Hurley and Amy Moore, on Tuesday.  I will meet with them briefly and then ask them to split up and try to get to as many classrooms as possible.  I’ll do my best to ensure they make to all rooms, but with only three people please understand this may not work out perfectly.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uy1wQPKA1Bkpl6TiCMgwW1yUkukk_npFpfuRpPup6lI/edit?usp=sharing

Testing

SBAC

Almost there!!!  Thanks again for putting the time into completing these tests.

EasyCBM

You may or may not remember this, but just to be certain we are all on the same page, we do need to administer the EasyCBM to all students for the Spring.  If you need a reminder as to why we are using EasyCBM in the spring this year please refer back to the 8/28/17=9/1/17 weekly update post.

EasyCBM window – open until June 1st.  All grades complete this test.

Downstairs Room Survey

Thank you for your input on this survey.  I will table this for a few days and revisit soon.

All School BBQ

Please note we have the annual All School BBQ on Wednesday May 23rd.  Please see email from Shawna for more details. In order to reduce the time standing in lines, it’s imperative classes stick to their assigned times.  There will be lines when trying to serve so many people in such a short time so pela

Volunteer Appreciation – Afternoon Light Dessert Cookies and Juice

Thursday May 24 – after school in the courtyard.

SIW

• May 23rd is our first round of placements.

IPAD Roll In

Please see previous post to get details if you still need some reminders.

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link

Sherwood Visit

Just a friendly reminder that we have visitors from Sherwood coming to visit on Tuesday May 22nd.  Linked below is the draft of the schedule we used for the Shoshone visit. Please take a look at this schedule and confirm with either JJ or me that your time frame works.  I realize this may not work for everyone, so please let us know one way or another. You are welcome to edit the document directly too, if you prefer.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uy1wQPKA1Bkpl6TiCMgwW1yUkukk_npFpfuRpPup6lI/edit?usp=sharing

Mindful Educator

PTO has offered to fund this effort so we would like to get a roster of staff interested in participating asap.  We would start the first week of school in the fall.  See Alicia or the handouts in the staff room for more info.  We’d love to have a big team participate in our effort to be Mindful Educators.  Not only will this be a low-stress commitment, but it will help you learn to manage all other stress more effectively.

Course 1: Mindfulness Fundamentals This 6-week online course is an introduction to developing a personal mindfulness practice. Learn techniques to be more present and focused and to address stress management and self-care.

Taking It Up

Please consider joining me at Taking It Up in August.  We are growing our Bend-La Pine Schools participation in these workshops.  There is a common misconception that because we do not have much visible diversity in Highland, or Bend in general, that we do not have racism or negative biases in our midst.  This could not be further from the truth.  The workshop will open your eyes and it might even scare you a little, however it will empower you to make meaningful changes.  These changes represent some of the most important work we can do for our students and our community at large.  Please check your calendars, see if you can devote two days to this challenge and get back to me asap so we can reserve our spaces.

One credit through the University of Oregon is available for participants at the cost of 75$ (50% reimbursable for certified staff).

https://drive.google.com/a/gapps.bend.k12.or.us/file/d/11CIIWt4EihLrjYg5Kg26hjeglNytakDV/view?usp=sharing

Testing

SBAC

Great job getting through the first week of testing.  We have a very solid completion rate and technology appears to be smoother and smoother each year.  I appreciate everyone putting in the time to preparation and administration of this test.

EasyCBM

You may or may not remember this, but just to be certain we are all on the same page, we do need to administer the EasyCBM to all students for the Spring.  If you need a reminder as to why we are using EasyCBM in the spring this year please refer back to the 8/28/17=9/1/17 weekly update post.

EasyCBM window – open until June 1st.  All grades complete this test.

Downstairs Room Survey

The kindergarten team would like to present a request to all of you.  Please read carefully and be sure to respond to the survey; no response = automatic “yes”.  

We will be welcoming a new member to the kinder team next year.  We feel it would be important for them to be close to ensure constant support for a new team member.  It may not seem like much distance, but we can all agree that physical proximity to your support can be extremely beneficial for a new member.  Deanna turned the room into a great spacious environment and there are some benefits to that room. You essentially have your own bathrooms and it’s easy access to and from recess.  You really can cut-down on transition times for a variety of events. The temperatures in these downstairs rooms more moderate during our extreme cold and hot days – great for learning and comfort!  One more factor to consider is it appears the district will move forward with a project to reconstruct the exterior walls of room 17 and 18 this summer. The appearance will remain the same, however the walls will be waterproofed and drainage will be altered to ensure we have no more moisture issues with those walls.

I am well-aware of the process you went through to move everyone up to the same level and determine your different rooms.  This is not meant to dishonor that work and thought. This is request is being presented due to changed circumstances. Since that time our building situation dramatically changed and room 14 simply did not work for a classroom space as we hoped.  Given all this information I would like to ask you to respond to this survey. It is our hope we can create a pool of participants to rotate downstairs for 2-year time frames. I know moving rooms can be difficult, but if you alter your mindset it is an extremely healthy action for teachers to do.  I will commit everything I can to make the move easy for any willing participants. Thank you for your consideration.

Survey Link:

https://goo.gl/forms/FTUqbfRSGy5KCqt43

All School BBQ

Please note we have the annual All School BBQ on Wednesday May 23rd.  More details to follow later.

Volunteer Appreciation – Afternoon Light Dessert Cookies and Juice

We are going to try something a little different this year to appreciate our volunteers.  More details to follow.

SIW

• Thanks for your time and effort focused on math this week.  I appreciate the input to my super fun form and I hope you were able use rest of that time to advance your math plans.
• Next week will be focused on Storyline topic alignment and standards work.  Get ready to work hard!
• The following week, May 23rd is our first round of placements.  4/5 team – I have some special plans for you that afternoon that I will share later.

Placement 2018-2019

• Team Placements SIW on May 23
• Follow up time for placement SIW on June 6

IPAD Roll IN

Please see previous post to get details if you still need some reminders.

Happy Wheels

I can’t seem to rotate images in this program, so sorry to make you turn your head. Sometimes there are some images around the school that provoke really good feelings.  The number of wheels that show up this time of year on our bike racks always brings a smile to my face.

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link

SIW

I sincerely hope you were able to enjoy some time this past Wednesday in a way that was un-work-like.  While I was not really overjoyed with all the office calls being routed to my cell, I did enjoy being disconnected from email and I glad we could enjoy some time not being so connected to our technology for a short while.

For our next SIW, we will spend some time focused on our math learning environment.  Linked below is a document for your team to use reflect on your practices this past year and look toward next year.  This document may be a little awkward to work on but please give it your best shot to put everything you can into each space for each question.  The academic excellence team will use this information to further refine our work into the next school year. Since you will each be responding to the questions based on your own classrooms, it will be helpful to look at the questions ahead of time to think about your responses.   When you work with your teammates, I expect you will be able to expand upon your own answers as you share responses with each other to record on this document. Please let me know if you have questions.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1evWPvLGbtjEwAPfUZ12ZIpumH6ehLQTDpoWRvbWEqpQ/edit?usp=sharing

Job Postings

We are finally getting green lights to move on any openings at our schools.  We have our office secretary position already posted. We should see the Kindergarten and Reading Specialist positions post this week.  Things are movin’ and shakin’!

Excellence In Education Awards:  Congratulations to Shelly and JJ and thank you for representing our team with pride!

Placement 2018-2019

• Green & Yellow Cards available now – you can reuse the one from last year with updates or you can make new ones.  These are in my office on the counter.
• Green & Yellow Cards due back to me by May 4 May 9
• Team Placements SIW on May 23
• Follow up time for placement SIW on June 6

IPAD Roll IN

Please see previous post to get details if you still need some reminders.

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link

SIW this week

Thank you to everyone for your participation in the SIW with Kendra this week (and thank you to Lorin and the Thriving Citizen Team for setting it up).  I hope this marks a positive start on a journey we can all enjoy. I thought about sharing my letter to my fixed mindset with you…but I am still drafting and editing it because it needs to be perfect  (please laugh). All kidding aside, this is really important work and I am incredibly proud to work alongside each of you. If you find yourself questioning what to say or how to say things with the kids, then you are not alone in that discomfort.  The fact that you are giving your messages this deep thought about how they are going to impact your students is important enough. Don’t be afraid to make a mistake and more importantly don’t be afraid to let others make their mistakes.

Placement 2018-2019

• Green & Yellow Cards available now – you can reuse the one from last year with updates or you can make new ones.  These are in my office on the counter.
• Green & Yellow Cards due back to me by May 4
• Team Placements SIW on May 23
• Follow up time for placement SIW on June 6

Earthquake Drill Feedback

From what I was able to gather, this was a successful drill in just about every area of the school inside and outside.  The main problem or area in need of improvement was the PA system, which was directly related to the existing volume level in the room.  If the room was already quiet then the announcement sounded fine, however if the noise level was high then it was not possible to hear the message very easily.  The good news is that if the Earth decides to give us a quake, it’s not really going to use the PA system so I don’t think that will impact our ability to respond.  If you are curious about how to respond while outside, just use your whistle and hand motions to bring students to an open area (field or blacktop).

As for what to do about the PA system…I’m not sure what the right answer is.  Do we increase the volume to be heard over a loud classroom and risk blasting out the quieter classrooms or do we leave it as is and train ourselves to be more attentive to the bell indicating an announcement is about to happen?  We need to think about this one.

IPAD Roll IN

It’s time to think about getting ready to roll in the student iPads.   We have roll in scheduled for June 12th which is also field day but we should be able to coordinate roll in times around field day times.   We will start at 9:00 and schedule one class every 45 minutes, we will be working on the exact schedule in the next few weeks.   We will have district staff plus EA’s that are freed up due to field day to help out.   

Here are some things you will need to do in the classroom before you bring your class in for check in.

• Request Students do Backups (ideally teachers will provide a little class time in order to communicate to students how important this is.  Here is the link to Student Backup Resources:http://bit.ly/BLSbackup. This will show up on student iPads on 5/23
• Show Roll-in Video (video will show up on Student iPads on 5/31.  Teachers should give students time to watch it on their device or show it in class)
• We have a cleaning kit that will be available before your check in time.  Each student is responsible for the cleaning of their own iPad.

Remind Students the day before Roll-in to:

• Charge their iPads fully (if you can’t turn it on, we can’t inspect it)
• Complete their backups (if they don’t do this, they may lose their work.  No guarantees)
• Update to latest iOS
• Do Not Remove covers, they will be removed by adults only.  We will store the iPads with their covers with the exception of 5th graders who will take their covers home.

The district suggests that you have your students leave their iPads at school with bricks and cords leading up to roll in.  This way we will have them all.

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link

Isn’t it funny how kids just seem to know what you need in some moments?  Chloe in 1st grade decided I need this picture this week and I am extremely grateful for her encouragement.

FYI – I will be off campus on Monday morning until 11:30.  Gary Timms will be her covering for me.

Placement 2018-2019

• Green & Yellow Cards available now – you can reuse the one from last year with updates or you can make new ones.  These are in my office on the counter.
• Student Profile Parent Input Forms due back April 20 (Today)
• Green & Yellow Cards due back to me by May 4
• Team Placements SIW on May 23
• Follow up time for placement SIW on June 6

Design Team Meeting Updates

Academic Excellence

• Goal Revision
• Plans for Next Year
• Math Talks with Kerry – SIW May 30

Thriving Citizen

• Exploring Mindsets with Kendra Coates – SIW April 25

Future Ready

• Shifting gears and focus
• Ramp up paddle board sales
• SL topic and curriculum alignment discussions
• Sherwood Teachers Visit – Tuesday May 22 – linked is the previous schedule we used for the Shoshone visit.  Please take a look and see if this can still work for you and we can modify as necessary.
  • https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uy1wQPKA1Bkpl6TiCMgwW1yUkukk_npFpfuRpPup6lI/edit?usp=sharing

SBAC Meetings – 8:05-8:50

Tuesday 4/24 – 4/5 Team

Wednesday 4/25 – 2/3 Team

Agenda – Schedule, Accommodations, Test Admin

I need your security affidavits returned to me before I can sign you up in the OAKS-TIDE system.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

IPAD Roll IN

It’s time to think about getting ready to roll in the student iPads.   We have roll in scheduled for June 12th which is also field day but we should be able to coordinate roll in times around field day times.   We will start at 9:00 and schedule one class every 45 minutes, we will be working on the exact schedule in the next few weeks.   We will have district staff plus EA’s that are freed up due to field day to help out.   

Here are some things you will need to do in the classroom before you bring your class in for check in.

• Request Students do Backups (ideally teachers will provide a little class time in order to communicate to students how important this is.  Here is the link to Student Backup Resources:http://bit.ly/BLSbackup. This will show up on student iPads on 5/23
• Show Roll-in Video (video will show up on Student iPads on 5/31.  Teachers should give students time to watch it on their device or show it in class)
• We have a cleaning kit that will be available before your check in time.  Each student is responsible for the cleaning of their own iPad.

Remind Students the day before Roll-in to:

• Charge their iPads fully (if you can’t turn it on, we can’t inspect it)
• Complete their backups (if they don’t do this, they may lose their work.  No guarantees)
• Update to latest iOS
• Do Not Remove covers, they will be removed by adults only.  We will store the iPads with their covers with the exception of 5th graders who will take their covers home.

The district suggests that you have your students leave their iPads at school with bricks and cords leading up to roll in.  This way we will have them all.

There were some statements expressed at the PTO meeting on Tuesday afternoon that I feel I need to provide context for the benefit of everyone.

Working with a PTO versus other forms of parent organizations has been a new process for me and I am thoroughly impressed with this group of dedicated parents.  

We have a system in place that supports organized, responsible spending on classrooms for teachers.

There seems to be some perception that I am blocking or gate-keeping PTO funds.  To address this perception I need to provide some history as I understand it;

Request Process

When I started this position, I was told all teacher’s requests to PTO for funding were to be in writing and go through me first.  Requests were then presented at the next PTO Board meeting and voted on. (This was not my process, and this was not intended as an approval process.)  Since that time the process evolved to allow for requests to be submitted via email to the PTO president ([email protected]).

Once the request is received, the past president and current president have always kept me in the loop.  It’s not a requirement, but it is the norm for most any parent-school organization to run requests through the principal.  This is done for a few reasons;

• Avoid redundancy.
• Avoid violations of school/district policies.
• Opportunity to check if more appropriate school/district funds should cover the request.

Since July of 2015, not a single request from a teacher has been denied by the PTO.  In fact, I encouraged several requests outside of individual teacher accounts, such as field trips for grade levels.  

FYI – I have met with several donors over the past few years.  When we meet each donor is interested to know that we have a process in place for distributing funds that follows a mission and has purpose.  This is important and expected to the people providing the funding.

PTO Budget, Line Items & Student Body Accounts

The PTO Budget is developed in 3 Tiers, the first tier being the highest priority.  The PTO budget is drafted first by PTO Treasurer, PTO President and Principal. It then goes to the PTO board for review and input.  The annual budget is passed by a vote at the first general meeting each year and has been for over a decade. It’s available in hard copy at all meetings.  To the best of my knowledge, this process was in place long before I came.

Line items on the budget allow for quick approval.  For example, release time for Storyline planning is specifically called out in the budget and does not need to go the board for any discussion.  You ask, I say “yes”, and Shawna ensures sub coverage is covered by PTO funds.

The Student Body Account is where we hold specific funds that the PTO releases to us at the start of school year.  These individual accounts hold both your classroom materials funds and your storyline funds. Since it can sometimes take a few months to reach the giving campaign goal these funds are typically released in installments.  Questions regarding this account go to Shawna or me, not PTO.  I encourage you to spend this account down to 0 or as close as possible each year to cover all classroom materials and storyline needs.  This account is under different constraints and we are limited on what we can roll over from year to year (about 10%).

This year the minimum starting balance for many of you was $1374.67.  (I would be hesitant to compare this number to other schools in Bend, but I think it’s safe to say it is far more than twice the average.)

1. Only 3 of you spent your entire balance last year.  Based on previous years budgets this appears to be fairly typical.
2. Right now we have over $8,000 combined still sitting in your individual accounts.  Balances range from $20 to $1220. If you are closer to the the 20 and need to make purchases, please see and let me help.  If you are closer to the 1220 please be sure to submit receipts to Shawna; I don’t want you to spend your own money.
3. In looking through past budgets, I have not noticed any past practice of separating out regular storyline funds and all school storyline funds for the individual teacher accounts.  I also have not noticed an increase to these individual accounts due to the all school storyline.

One specific line item, “All School Storyline”, in the PTO budget seems to have been a source of confusion based on what was expressed in the meeting.   Here is what I know about this topic;

1. 1. 1. When developing the budget for the current year, we review previous years budgets and make adjustments to each line item as we see necessary.
      2. This particular line item was not very large on the National Parks Storyline year, so I suggested we increase it knowing we were doing a new storyline and there might more expenses involved, for example spheros or similar purchases.
      3. I did not access this line item myself during the National Parks SL.  From what I remember PTO used this line item to cover costs of things like the backpack/satchels bought for all the students.  Prior to my arrival it is my understanding it was initially created and intended to be used by PTO to make purchases for the All School Storyline Committee.
      4. Since we did the initial budget last summer I had pretty much forgotten about this line item until the first week of December when a PTO board member sent an email to all PTO board members saying all the teachers were requesting $200 because they were out of money.  A staff member also sent me a similar message that same week. At that time most all teachers had a balance over $1000 in their individual accounts and I believe nobody was under $500. The numbers I could see did not match the claim and it did not seem accurate that “all our teachers needed more money”.
      5. Since the All School Storyline line item appeared to be unused, I suggested then that we use it to fund any requests related to appropriate items for teachers and Shawna would be able to make those adjustments as necessary.  Again, I don’t think this was how it was intended to be used in the past, but it provided some flexibility and essentially increased funds available for each of you. I also informed the PTO that we did not have any teachers anywhere close to a negative balance and it was in our best interest to spend these accounts down before requesting more from the PTO since our school budgets have a limited roll-over.  I did my best to explain this in an SIW and on a few other occasions, but it would appear that I did not explain it very well or very thoroughly based on the limited re-tell on Tuesday afternoon.

Most all my actions and suggestions with the PTO were intended to streamline things and minimize any of my own “oversight”.  I’ve worked with them to try to create line items in the budget that are appropriate to the year so we can reduce the need to make vote-required request to the board.  Although I am technically a voting member of the PTO board I want them to operate as a separate entity as much as they feel is necessary.

Learning from this past experience, moving forward with new budget maybe we can add a sub line item to the all school storyline allocating all school classroom funds.

Meeting Schedules and Times

1. 1. To date, I have not given any input on meeting times.  I simply accept the meeting schedule presented and I make the majority of the general meetings and many of the board meetings.
   2. When I started I was told approximately half the meetings occurred in the evening after school and half during school.  The attendance for the after school meetings was consistently low, so at some point the PTO moved to more morning meetings with just two evening meetings.  (Prior to Tuesday, the attendance of the evening meetings consisted of a board members and one or two other parents.)
   3. I have offered to cover or get coverage for teachers if they would like to attend a meeting on several occasions over the past few years.  
   4. I do think it would be good to involve teachers in the general meetings however I am concerned about asking for the meeting schedule to change back to afterschool for a few reasons;
      1. If attendance for both parents and staff was historically low in prior years, why would we return to that model?
      2. As you saw, many of the board members were unable to make the after school meeting and the ones who were there, had limited time and children to transport to different activities.
      3. I also question the effectiveness of rotating teachers in and out of different meetings.  PTO meetings are agenda-driven work meetings and ideally there is continuity in attendance for both board members and general members.  These are not open-forum socials. They are intend to be work meetings with purpose. Rotating different teachers in for each meeting challenges that continuity and dilutes the purpose of the meeting. Maybe having 1-2 teachers who commit to the year would be a better idea?  There are other ways to provide opportunities for people to meet and still preserve a productive meeting structure.

Start Time Change Proposals

Just FYI – During conference days we will be providing opportunities for our families to provide their input/feedback on the two options for start times for the 2019-2020 school year.  It sounds like there will be a short slide presentation to play with an opportunity for them to complete a survey after the presentation.

Design Team Updates

Academic Excellence Team

• Math studio Follow Up – our team decided we would like to use our follow-up time with Kerry to work on Math Talks (SIW 5/30)
• As for the plan next year, we discussed a large variety of factors impacting math learning in our classrooms.  Without getting into the nitty, gritty details right now what you need to know is that we want to give this goal more time and attention moving into the 18-19 school year.

Thriving Citizen Team

• Workshop with Kendra Coates coming up on 4/25 SIW.
• We will also do a brief Follow up on our 5/1 staff meeting time.

Future Ready Team

• Mars Wrap Up Discussion
• On going brainstorming and planning International Conf. fundraising (Parent Night Out)
  • Each of our PNOs brought in around 1500.
  • The Flow-Rider event brought in $2200.
  • The paddle board is not here and raffle tickets are officially for sale.  We started sales Friday night at the PNO. 1 ticket for $20, and 2 for $30.

Staff Meeting Tuesday 4/10, 8:05-8:30 – MAC Survey Training

Our FAN advocates are trying to move the annual MAC survey trainings to the spring for many of the schools.  I asked to do the training this Tuesday because compared to our end of year and beginning of the year, it’s a time with relatively fewer things going on in our school and it means it will be one less thing for us to do in the fall.  We still get the reminder emails with instructions and our FAN advocates will always be available by phone to help with the survey in the fall. This training is available for all staff, classified and certified (the survey can still be completed on-line on your own, but to get the benefit of Eilean’s guidance please plan on coming to the meeting with your laptop.)

This will be the only agenda items and we should be able to finish in 20 minutes.

Education Foundation Grant

Application Link

The Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools will accept Classroom Grant Applications beginning Monday, March 12, 2018 through Friday, April 13, 2018 at 5:00 pm.  The program is open to all Bend-La Pine public school teachers and schools.  We look forward to receiving your creative and innovative ideas that engage youth in learning in the areas of art, music & STEM projects.  Project requests should be $2,500 or less. Teachers may submit one application during the grant cycle; however, schools may submit several applications and principals must indicate prioritization.  A copy of our updated and revised application, guidelines and instruction is attached and can also be found on our website at www.engagedminds.org.

Your Classroom Grant Application must be submitted using our form and emailed to classroomgrantapplications.com  by the deadline to be considered.

Questions can be directed to Michelle Johnson, Executive Director, Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools at the email [email protected]  or by calling our office at (541) 355-5660.  Thank you for all that you do on behalf of our students. We are all truly better together!  

SBAC

Lorin and I will meet with each of the grade level teams on the following dates;

• 2/3 Team on Wednesday, April 25th
• 4/5 Team on Tuesday April 24th

During those meetings we will cover the following;

• Testing Schedule
• Accomodations
• accessing the TIDE (the testing program)

Maximizing Math Errors

Here’s a great short read on how to not only value mistakes as learning opportunities but how to be selective and maximize the learning.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/13c-S0qwewYAZY0m4ZHxFDk1TF9a5mkzLGXRAIkZCcck/edit?usp=sharing

Lottery Deadline is Friday 3/23

Lottery for next year will be completed after spring break.  It’s hard to believe it’s already here, but ready or not time moves on.

Yearbook Reminder

Please put your photos in the google folder before April 2nd.  Amy will not have much time to finalize the yearbook after this date, so please be sure to get your photos in the folder or we will miss the deadline to print.  As of Wednesday 3/21/18 I can see photos in the folders for Amber, Jennifer, JJ and Misha. If you need help or you are having difficulty, please let me know.

Here is a link to the google folders for yearbook pictures.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14JMuQ68jWPUQ9d6bxlOexhQVSTfyFPPN?usp=sharing

Staffing Survey

Deadline is Friday 3/23.

https://goo.gl/forms/n7GbM5FzN9D500r72

Staffing for 2018-2019

We are still a long way out from knowing when we can expect to get any permission to move forward with any hiring for next year.  I still do not have a staffing plan in hand and it’s not likely to be released to me until Friday 2/23 at the earliest. I will let you know as soon as I have a solid approval to move forward.

March Assembly Link

FYI – Just in case you would like to see the slideshow sequence early.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1PMrzE9532EoIgZ3QbhWfM7F2eLNVaXWd6E5RlMOUZVg/edit?usp=sharing

Start Time Change Proposals

Just FYI – During conference days we will be providing opportunities for our families to provide their input/feedback on the two options for start times for the 2019-2020 school year.  It sounds like there will be a short slide presentation to play with an opportunity for them to complete a survey after the presentation.

Safety

Visible Posters – IN AN EMERGENCY WHEN YOU HEAR IT.  DO IT.

• These should be posted in every room and easily visible.
• The protocols provided for each of these commands, (i.e. Lockout or Lockdown) are to be followed when the signal is given or the alarm is sounded.  
• They are intentionally simple and straightforward.  Less detail means it will more likely be remembered during stressful times.
• The Lockdown and Evacuation are probably the two most relevant protocols to continually review.

Quick Reference Guide for Emergencies

• These are the spiral laminated green/red notebooks.
• They can be used to provide a quick communication; green for OK or red for problem.
• Information/instruction is already dated and possibly less relevant but overall still a useful resource.

Culture of Safety Document

• This document outlines a set of non-negotiable items and practices for all BLP schools.  I’ve linked it to several updates for you to review.
• https://drive.google.com/file/d/0By9sJRluBirgOGpjQ1MwRUoyeWc/view?usp=sharing
• There is still some work for us to do in regards to this document, but when you consider some of the major changes to prior practices, we are in good shape.
• Some things to note;
  • Locking the classroom doors is a challenge to our day to day operations.  The locked door is one of the most crucial pieces to ensuring the safety of people in the room during a lockout situation.  Door blocks, magnets and ropes are not approved.  This information may change in the future, but for now fire codes do not support their use and statics available show they decrease your safety.
  • It is expected teachers will carry their keys on them at all times.  Having your keys on hand prepares you for doors and gates as you evacuate.  
• Visitor and Volunteer Sign In
  • We are successful at using our new system for about 99% of the people coming on campus.
  • We do utilize the old plastic passes in some cases.  These are handed directly to people, when we recognize them and their purpose on campus is brief drop-off or pick-up.
  • After spring break we will remove the doorbell and start using the standard intercom located to the right side of the door.  This will allow us to question somebody we do not recognize before letting them inside. It’s just one more layer of safety for us to use.

Design Team Updates

I will be adding some information from our design team meetings from last week in another update soon.

Safe TOUCH Lessons

After spring break I still need to complete lessons for all Kindergarten, 1st grade and one more 2/3 class.

SBAC

The time for testing is coming up soon.  I will send the links to the training videos after spring break (unless you are looking for some exciting videos for the vacation time then I can send them before).  Lorin and I will meet with each of the grade level teams on the following dates;

• 2/3 Team on Wednesday, April 25th
• 4/5 Team on Tuesday April 24th

During those meetings we will cover the following;

• Testing Schedule
• Accomodations
• accessing the TIDE (the testing program)

Education Foundation Grant

Application Link

The Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools will accept Classroom Grant Applications beginning Monday, March 12, 2018 through Friday, April 13, 2018 at 5:00 pm.  The program is open to all Bend-La Pine public school teachers and schools.  We look forward to receiving your creative and innovative ideas that engage youth in learning in the areas of art, music & STEM projects.  Project requests should be $2,500 or less. Teachers may submit one application during the grant cycle; however, schools may submit several applications and principals must indicate prioritization.  A copy of our updated and revised application, guidelines and instruction is attached and can also be found on our website at www.engagedminds.org.

Your Classroom Grant Application must be submitted using our form and emailed to classroomgrantapplications.com  by the deadline to be considered.

Questions can be directed to Michelle Johnson, Executive Director, Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools at the email [email protected]  or by calling our office at (541) 355-5660.  Thank you for all that you do on behalf of our students. We are all truly better together!  

Growth Mindset in the Math Classroom

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vMrsy_OEpXy18l8MX81DtqqkIk8btrLLnY9zXSbvGM0/edit?usp=sharing

Yearbook Reminder

This is a reminder to be thinking about your class yearbook photos.  

Please put them in the google folder before April 2nd.

Here is a link to the google folders for yearbook pictures.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14JMuQ68jWPUQ9d6bxlOexhQVSTfyFPPN?usp=sharing

Staffing Survey

Please go to the following link and complete the staffing survey for next year.  Can’t believe we are looking at 2018-2019!!!!

https://goo.gl/forms/n7GbM5FzN9D500r72

Education Foundation Grant

Application Link

The Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools will accept Classroom Grant Applications beginning Monday, March 12, 2018 through Friday, April 13, 2018 at 5:00 pm.  The program is open to all Bend-La Pine public school teachers and schools.  We look forward to receiving your creative and innovative ideas that engage youth in learning in the areas of art, music & STEM projects.  Project requests should be $2,500 or less. Teachers may submit one application during the grant cycle; however, schools may submit several applications and principals must indicate prioritization.  A copy of our updated and revised application, guidelines and instruction is attached and can also be found on our website at www.engagedminds.org.

Your Classroom Grant Application must be submitted using our form and emailed to classroomgrantapplications.com  by the deadline to be considered.

Questions can be directed to Michelle Johnson, Executive Director, Education Foundation for Bend-La Pine Schools at the email [email protected]  or by calling our office at (541) 355-5660.  Thank you for all that you do on behalf of our students. We are all truly better together! 

Upcoming Meetings

There are no morning meetings scheduled next week.  I know you are disappointed, but this could be useful time to get on top of things before we go away for Spring Break.  

PTO Funding Requests – Revisited

Below is the information Audrey shared with you during our SIW this week.  Hopefully this will be a good reference for us to fall back on. There will always be exceptions or some weird scenarios that may not fit these exactly, so feel free to discuss with Shawna or me and we can determine the best route.

Hi everyone! Here is some written clarification on what I addressed during the meeting. Thanks for having me!

-If you are using your classroom (individual) storyline funds, these reimbursements come from Shawna.

-If you are using your classroom (individual) school supplies funds, these reimbursements come from Shawna.

-If you are asking for reimbursement for purchases made for the all school storyline (these are typically school wide or at least for the entire grade level, not specific to your classroom), the PTO has those funds, and the reimbursement request form is in our box in the office.

-If you are asking for reimbursement for Storyline Conference expenses (registration, etc.), PTO has those funds, and the form is in our box in the office.  Please get these in ASAP so Mary can cut all the checks at once😊.

-If you are asking the PTO to approve a specific purchase, one that would not be using your classroom funds (let’s say you want a helicopter)…that request needs to be in writing, with as much information as possible. The easiest way is to email me directly ([email protected]) but you are welcome to submit it another way (as long as it is in writing). The Board will discuss and vote on these requests during our scheduled monthly meetings.  We are here to support you, and want to do so (we won’t approve a helicopter though, just a heads up 😂).

When in doubt, ask Shawna. If you are concerned about a previous purchase, check with Shawna, or Mary, or me.  We will make sure everything is classified correctly. Thank you for all that you do. I am so very thankful for this amazing Highland Community!

Audrey

SBAC

The time for testing is coming up soon.  I will send the links to the training videos after spring break (unless you are looking for some exciting videos for the vacation time then I can send them before).  Lorin and I will meet with each of the grade level teams on the following dates;

• 4/5 Team on Tuesday April 24th 8:05-8:50
• 2/3 Team on Wednesday, April 25th 8:05-8:50

During those meetings we will cover the following;

• Testing Schedule
• Accomodations
• accessing the TIDE (the testing program)

Culture of Safety Document

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0By9sJRluBirgOGpjQ1MwRUoyeWc/view?usp=sharing

Please take a moment to review the linked document.  These requirements are guiding our efforts to provide a safe and secure environment.

Assembly next Friday!

Link to Slideshow

Calendar

Please take a moment to glance at the calendar so you are informed of our upcoming meetings. – Calendar Link