Bronco Notes

Lots of extra coverage for unfilled sub jobs today. The silver lining for you is that notes are short.

FYI- For those of you who don’t know, Claire will be out for three weeks beginning next week for abdominal surgery. Amy Ruff will be her sub. Thoughts and prayers for Claire for a full and speedy recovery.

FYI From Terry Cashman– water fountains are being turned back on.  Clearance was given by the health department.  Walt will coordinate with your building engineer on getting this done.

From Kinsey Martin– Dear certified teacher,  A key priority within our district’s equity efforts is to improve outcomes and experiences for our culturally- and linguistically-diverse students and families. We know that teachers who have specialized skills and training through an ESOL endorsement are better able to: 

• understand multilingualism, 
• identify strengths and assets of emergent bilingual students, 
• support language acquisition during teaching, and 
• partner with families through culturally-sustaining practices.

Want to obtain your ESOL endorsement for free?!  Bend-La Pine Schools has partnered with OSU to provide a full scholarship to five certified teachers, to participate in the endorsement program.  To learn more about this opportunity; understand the timeline, application, and selection process; and ask questions, please join BLS and OSU:

• Informational session and Q-and-A
• Tues, March 8^th 4:30-5:15pm 
• WebEx meeting: join here 
• Here are additional details about this opportunity, and here is the application (due April 1, 2022).   

Growing your toolbox of culturally- and linguistically-sustaining practices is incredibly valuable and relevant professional learning for educators, as our community grows and diversifies.  If you are interested in learning about other PD opportunities related to this topic, please reach out to your building’s Language Specialist, or to one of our district’s multilingual department instructional coaches    Thanks!

Recess Duty Training- We would like to have a recess duty refresher this coming Wednesday. If you are a classified employee who has a recess duty, please let Gary know if you are available next Wednesday from 12:45ish to 1:30ish. We know it is beyond your regularly scheduled hours, so we will time sheet those who are available an extra hour.

State Testing- I mentioned to people that I would get a random email about testing on a Tuesday at around 10:17 am telling me about all of the requirements. I was wrong. It came at 2:16 on Tuesday. It is long. I will read and get organized and then schedule a meeting with 3rd, 4th and 5th grade teachers and specialists who will be involved in testing. At the meeting we will discuss scheduling, accommodations, test security and other requirements. I know you can’t wait.

Fifth grade leadership watched this video during their meeting on Thursday and were given the task of doing something kind for someone who isn’t already their friend without expecting something kind in return.

One fifth grader told me that when she gets home today, she was going to make cupcakes for her widowed neighbor. She ended her conversation with me by exclaiming, “I can’t wait!” Maybe even the ‘anticipation’ of doing something kind releases oxytocin. We hope it is contagious.

Upcoming Events

February 21- Presidents’ Day- No School

February 23- 2nd grade EBISS

February 23- SIW- STEM- meet in library at 1:45

March 21-25- Spring Break- No School

Wireless Access Points- Just a reminder of our previous email informing you that our wireless will be down beginning at 2:45 today so that the district tech dept. can replace our wireless access points. Should be up and ready to go on Monday. Davey Dave also sent out information in an email that will provide more information.

The Great Buckingham Flood of 2022- Nothing like a little excitement on a spring day. Thanks to everyone for your flexibility with recesses yesterday. Thanks to maintenance department for their quick response and clean up so that we could get back to our normal playground routine. Video of the excitement is below because it’s MASSIVE and I wasn’t going to spend any more time trying to figure out how to shrink it to fit in this space. What the video doesn’t show is the water filling up the bus lane and flowing all the way to the portables.

Smarter Balance Testing- We have been given no information on Smarter Balance testing this year other than we will be doing it (unless something changes). Once we have more information, we will meet with 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers and specialists to discuss schedules and how we will provide accommodations. In the meantime, it is never too early (and almost always too late) to begin preparing. The sample tests are a fantastic learning tool for all students. The problems they provide are excellent tools for students to apply the learning they have been doing. These students have not had nearly the opportunity to participate in testing as in the past. As Sadie Rossi pointed out, the sample tests also help students learn to navigate the platform used during testing. We encourage your grade level team to take a look at these and discuss possible ways to give students access. Gary will be around to 3, 4 and 5 grade teams to share more.

Read Across America- Our April spirit day will be dress up as your favorite book character. As part of that day we will be doing various activities to celebrate our love of reading and books. In the meantime, this message from Kinsey Martin to administrators will clarify how we’ve been told to approach read across America.

Dibels- We’ve made it around to most grade levels to explain and answer any questions you might have about the spreadsheet that will help you find trends and plan for instruction. Please let Laci, Jon or Gary know if you would like us to answer more questions. Laci is a great resource if you would like some ideas for grouping, curriculum or instruction.

Upcoming Events

February 14- Valentine’s day

February 15- Fire drill- 9:40

February 16- SIW- Teacher Prep

February 21- Presidents’ Day

March 1- Staff Meeting- 2:30- Library

Report Cards- Please remember these are to be sent home on Thursday, February 10. Thanks to Becky for putting the district letter in report card envelopes.

Dibels/Reading/100% meetings- Winter dibels scores are now in and you have probably had an opportunity to review. During your next PLC (or at least one of your February PLC’s) please take a close look at your Dibels scores. We are working on a template to guide you through your review and will get that to you asap. The 1-5 star growth is a very important piece of data to look at. The stars correlate to quintile (fifths) percentiles in the following manner:

1 star growth is the bottom quintile, or the bottom 20%, 1/5, of students in terms of growth. 3 star growth is the middle quintile. Students with 3 stars growth, grew at a rate between the 40th and 60th percentile, or right in the middle. Students with 5 stars growth were in the top 20% of students in terms of growth. If students have 1 or 2 stars, they are not keeping up with peers who started in the same place. Obviously, if a student who is low to begin with scores one or two stars, they are not only NOT closing the gap, but the gap is getting wider. Students are compared to all other students that started IN THE SAME PLACE. So, yes, students who start really high, can have 5 stars growth because their growth is being compared to all other kids who started in the same place. As a general rule of thumb about a 1/5 of our students should should be in each star growth, meaning about 60% of our students should at 3, 4 or 5 stars. Approximately 52% of Buckingham students had 3, 4 or 5 stars growth at winter dibels. If you have questions or would like us to join you when you meet, please let us know.

PBIS- Character Traits. As you know, February’s trait is self control. Challey sent out a lot of information Wednesday for your reference. There will be a basket in the office for you to put self control certificates (and subsequent certificates in future months). When we get them in the basket, student names will be announced every Friday morning on announcements and Jon or Gary will come to your class to present the certificate. If you would rather we didn’t deliver to your class, let us know. We will also put names on the hallway tv monitor if we can figure it out. 🙂 Be on the lookout for a cool bulletin board outside the music room courtesy of fifth grade leadership students.

Student Support Team Changes- We have been blessed to have Kelly and Heather be able to work with so many students the first semester. They have been able to work with and help a large number of tier 2 students. As we embark on the second semester, several students have risen to the level of tier 3 due to escalating behaviors. In addition, we are welcoming a new student to our school who will spend the vast majority of time here in the SST room. The vision behind SST was to address tier 3 and help give teachers the tools to address tier 2 students in the classroom if at all possible. The SST team is currently working on triaging the students they have been working with in order to devote the necessary time to our tier 3 students to address their intense needs. This means that Kelly and Heather will not have the time to respond as they have been the first semester. We are working on what that will look like for the students they have been working with on a consistent basis and will be connecting with you to discuss options (if/when there are any). We thank you in advance for your understanding as we make adjustments moving forward.

Odds and Ends from Ed Center:

From Tami Pike:  Please share with your staff as soon as possible.  For staff submitting for retroactive COVID-19 credit, please do not send your school nurse the form for signature. The forms should be sent via district mail  (not via email) to Tami Pike. Please include a copy of your submitted leave sheet. 

Upcoming Events

February 9- SIW- Teacher Prep

February 10- Report cards sent home

February 14- Valentine’s Day

February 15- Fire Drill- 9:40

February 21- Presidents’ Day- No School

March 1- Staff Meeting- 2:30- Library

Report Cards- TLC sent report card info to us late this morning. Lots of good info in this. Some highlights and decisions that have been made:

• Report cards are to be sent home Thursday, February 10.

• We will make copies of the letter referenced by TLC and get it to you to send.

• You may meet with your PLC to decide on whether or not to score/evaluate the new SEL box. Please be consistent in your grade. If a parent has an issue with you not scoring something, we are happy to discuss with them.
• Let us know if you have further questions about report cards. There are always questions and confusion. We want to do our best to make this the least stressful as possible.

FROM BEA (SARAH BARCLAY) Equitable Grading Practices Opportunity for fourth and fifth grade teachers (possibly others): As everyone knows Bend-La Pine Schools has been moving through a process, in collaboration with BEA, to examine best practices in grading at the secondary level. OEA has also been exploring this topic of discussion and we wanted to ensure that all BEA members were aware of some available resources.

Grading for Equity Book Study Flier: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J7d4MjAPOPuPsrQJRAvVc8ZfuIPzHMnj/view?usp=sharing (This is the same book the BLS Equitable Grading Think Tank has been using to guide their work!)

Rethinking Grading Webinar Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl3_0SNHqpE

From Nurse Sarah- Thanks to Sarah for providing us with the new ‘should I send my kid to school’ guidelines. As we said at the meeting, we don’t want you to worry about monitoring this. We will do our best to let you know if you have a day 6-10 student and we will work with you to come up with a plan. So far, we haven’t had more than 2 in a day. We are also not going to give you a summary of info we shared at the meeting because things continue to change. Come and talk to us if you have any questions.

Character Traits- February’s character trait is “Self Control.” I think it’s a good one for the students AND the staff this month. 😁 The link will take you to the character traits page in the Bronco Bulletin. The fifth grade student leadership is working on ways to promote the trait and we will be giving you more information soon.

Valograms- Mr. Douglass is hard at work with the Valograms committee. If you missed his earlier email attachments, we are linking a flyer/poster and order forms for your reference.

SIW- Next week’s SIW will be a chance to meet in our goal teams for a mid-year check up. What have we accomplished? What do we still have to get completed? What things might need to be added, taken away or revised in light of recent changes to SIW’s? We will have one more of these toward the end of the year.

Next Friday Workday- As you know (and probably have highlighted, underlined and circled on your calendar), next Friday is a workday. Jon and Gary will be at SkyView until noon for a mandatory admin training. We will be back in the building Friday afternoon.

As you know, you are welcome to work from home or school. Questions, let us know.

Looks like a fantastic sunny weekend ahead. Try to get outside and enjoy before winter hits in March and April.

Upcoming Events

February 2- 4th grade EBISS 1:00-1:45

February 2- Mid- year goal team review- 1:45-3:15

February 4- Report Card Prep- No School

February 9- SIW- Teacher Prep

February 21- Presidents’ Day- No School

PBIS- Just another reminder from PBIS team that it’s never too early to review and remind students of our rules/expectations. Please be sure to do your rules rodeo and be handing out those Bronco bucks. We know that statistically and historically February is the highest month for oops slips. An ounce of prevention goes a long ways. Thanks for everything you are doing to be proactive as we enter potentially challenging times.

Student Leadership– Fifth grade student leaders have voted for the following spirit days:

January- Crazy Hair Day

February- Cozy/ PJ’s Day

March- Career Day

April- Book Character/ Reading Day

May- Decades Day

June- Western Day

The spirit committee has tabbed our spirit days, “Fun Day Fridays.” We will have these on the last Friday of each month. All other Fridays will be Bronco Days where we can wear blue or our Bronco gear. The spirit days committee will be promoting each day in a variety of ways.

Another team the students want to start is a Green Team. We think someone here has already connected with our district’s sustainability director. If you are that person, please connect with Jon so that we can coordinate our efforts. Thank you.

Drills- Thank you for your flexibility with the change from lockdown to earthquake drill. The good news is that we are done with lockdowns for the year and yesterday’s earthquake drill finished those for the year, which means we have removed the April earthquake drill from your drill calendar. For the remainder of the year we only need to have a fire drill once a month. Those are scheduled on the drill calendar.

MAC Training- MAC survey day is Monday. This is how our district funds the majority of our FAN services. Your participation in this one day survey allows us to provide much needed supports for our students and families. Thanks ahead of time for your help!

STEM- STEM team would like to thank you for everything you have done to clean the stage and organize the STEM room. Please make a final sweep to ensure that you have everything off the stage. In addition, please check the STEM room to organize your grade level supplies in the provided storage. Thank you from the STEM team.

In my haste to get notes out during my two-day week, I missed an opportunity to remind us all why we didn’t have to come to work on Monday. 58+ years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous I have a dream speech. Dr. King dreamed of a day that people would be judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin. Dr. King dreamed of a day when all would be united in brotherhood. He dreamed of a day when all would be free from oppression, discrimination and segregation. 58+ years after he delivered his revered speech, how are we doing? May we all remember the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., and do what we can to fulfill his dream. May he rest in peace.

Upcoming Events

January 24- MAC Survey

January 26- 5th grade EBISS

January 26- SIW- Teacher Prep

January 28- First Bronco Spirit Day- Crazy Hair Day

February 4- Report Card Prep- No School

February 21- Presidents’ Day- No School

STEM Survey- On Wednesday, the STEM team will be meeting with the STEM Hub to figure out the details of our summer STEM PD. Please complete the survey to give us an idea of how we can tailor this PD to best meet the needs of our school. We need the information by Tuesday. Thank you for your help!

SURVEY

Dibels- Remember that Tuesday, January 18 is our Dibels day (all things tentative depending on availability of testers). Thanks to Laci for creating a schedule. Following the below directions will also help things go more smoothly:

• If you want to switch times, please try and find the person you want to switch with and okay it with them and tell me. Try not to switch times too much as I like to have the testers test the whole grade level at once since it is easier on them.  
  
• A runner ​will come and get your class and bring them to the library. Please have them sit on the tape lines 3 feet apart. Please have them bring a book with them to sit quietly with when they are waiting for their turn.
• If you have a student who has testing needs on their IEP or with speech, we have already pulled the books out and given to ERC or Karen etc. if we miss someone, please let us know. If you have a kiddo that you feel needs someone, they know like one of us or you bc of anxiety or ? …. please let me know and we can work on that.  
• The dibels team from the district will be here 7:45-2:00 so we will try and get through everyone. If we miss some kids or your kids have to leave early for lunch or something we will grab them Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. We also will be coming to grab absent kids who need to do the MAZE. 
• I know there will be a lot of absent kids so please bear with us as we will have to pull them whenever we are free and it might not be the most convenient times. Sorry about that. 
• Thank you for all of your help with this!

SIW- Our Buckingham SIW calendar is slated for a mid-year goal team review this coming Wednesday, January 19. Considering all of the uncertainty, we have moved January 26 teacher prep SIW to this coming week. So, this coming Wednesday’s SIW is yours to do what you need to do. We will meet with ICCL’s to adjust future SIW’s and let you know as things develop.

Spirit Days- The 5th grade leadership team is currently deciding on monthly spirit days. We will be meeting again next Thursday to finalize these days and will let you know what they decide. At this point, rather than having a full week of spirit days, we are planning to have the last Friday of every month be a themed day. Feel free to wear your Bronco gear for Bronco Blue day every other Friday of the month.

Report Cards-  Report Cards are done and loaded into Synergy.  Teachers can now access them.  The techs are still making some corrections to the template, so be advised against inputting data directly into the report card until the end of next week.  Here is information regarding changes to the 21-22 report card and a possible parent letter.  

Technology Support- Please bookmark this handy one page guide on who to call if you have a technology issue. This is the best resource for a quick and efficient response.

Youth Truth Survey- Here is the Youth Truth Survey link. Deadline is 1/28.

Upcoming Events

January 17- MLK Day- No School

January 19- 4th grade EBISS

January 19- SIW- Teacher Prep

January 20- Lockdown Drill- 1:35

January 26- 3rd grade EBISS

January 26- SIW- TBD

February 4- Report Card Prep- No School

SIW- Thanks to the PBIS team for the SIW on Wednesday. Remember to be on the lookout for the collaborative problem solving class if you want to take a much deeper dive into our learning from yesterday. A couple of reminders:

a. Please plan with your grade level to review the rules rodeo. You may do it as a grade or individually.

b. Don’t forget to pass out Bronco Bucks! Also be on the lookout for classes that deserve a class bronco award.

c. GRIT is the character trait of the month. Resources are all in the Bronco Bulletin. In addition, all PBIS resources can be found in the Bronco Bulletin.

SLGG’s- Due date is long past!

Yearbook Info From Becky- Reminder to please click on your class link proof and let Dorian Studios know of any corrections. 

Also……a while back I sent you all a link to Tree Ring to be able to add your candid class photos to the yearbook website. I can not make up the yearbook without those photos. I would like to edit it throughout the year and not last minute. I have until April 28^th to have the yearbook done. Please upload your pictures. 

Educator Network Days– January 12th is the next Educator Network Professional Learning Date.  Please check to see what you signed up for in Performance Matters or sign up for a session in Performance Matters. K-1 teachers and Reading Specialists will attend the Foundational Skills training in your building.  Time:  1:30-3:00.  Your administrator will facilitate this session.  

K-1 teachers bring the following:

• Heggerty curriculum book
• spiral SIW books from last time (to reference, if they have them)
• the following links will be sent to you by Erica the morning of the presentation.  You are encouraged to save these in your google drive for future use.
  • google slides of the presentation with links of resources in the notes for teachers
  • the presentation link above, for anyone who may have missed it, title or sped teachers who would like to use it with EAs …
  • link to spiral-bound book materials
  • link to the templates
    • these are all getting updated, so please download the updated versions (animations are smoother, decodables added …)

All ADDITIONAL SESSIONS WILL BE VIRTUAL 

Webex:  1:30-3:00

SESSION OPTIONS

Be sure to sign up for a session on Performance Matters!!

Covid Tests- Please don’t take covid tests without checking in with Becky first. She needs to account for the tests. Thank you for your cooperation.

Just in Case- We are hoping that we will be able to stay in school, but if the unfortunate decision is made (to a class, school or even larger entity), please be sure you are prepared. We’ve linked sample CDL schedules from the district as well as the ‘ready, set, go’ info prepared by TLC. It might not be a bad idea to take some time at y

our next grade level meeting (NOT PLC) to review this to see if there is anything that you might need to prepare.

CDL Schedule

Ready, Set, Go

Ready, Set, Go Checklist

SeeSaw, Google classroom, Google Docs, Gmail, and WebEx –   Are you and your students familiar with these systems and programs?

Upcoming Events

January 11- Staff Meeting- 2:45- Library

January 12- Educator Network (district directed) SIW

January 12- Fire Drill- 9:40

January 12- 5th grade EBISS

June 16- Last day of school- it’s never too early

This is your last edition of the Buckingham staff notes blog for the year 2021! We couldn’t be prouder of the work our school is doing to help all of our students academically, emotionally and socially. The last 20+ months have been a challenge, to say the least. Despite everything that has been thrown at us, we continue to provide a safe, nurturing, fun, academically challenging environment for our students.

We are thankful for all the work that our teams have accomplished in our goal areas of STEM, PBIS and PLC’s. We really feel as if we have some traction and are about to take off. Thank you for everything you have done to help move Buckingham forward and make it a great place to learn!

Thanks- Thanks to Becky for organizing a great staff party and thanks to all who were able to attend. It was fun to learn a new game and spend some non- work time relaxing and getting to know our colleagues away from the office.

Mornings- Just a reminder that if the temperature is below 20 degrees or we have weather that prohibits us from being outside, students will go directly from buses or cars to classrooms in the morning. Buses arrive at 7:2o, so please do everything you can to be in your class by 7:20 in case we need to send them straight in. Thank you!

In case of school delays/ closures please refer to HR guidelines for expectations.

From Skip- Winter air circulation – It was brought to our attention that some schools are still keeping windows open during the winter months.  While we know this is good and by all means you can continue if you want, there are also downsides to it as well as it causes our heating systems to over work which increases energy costs and it can get uncomfortably cold!  We have been assured that our updated filtration system is good for covid and that it is ok if you want to shut windows to take the burden off the heating system, reduce energy costs and create a comfortable learning environment for kids. 

Our two cents- while you might not mind the cold from an open door or window please keep others in mind especially in regards to doors and windows outside your classroom.

That’s all for 2021! Who doesn’t love a little ‘Peanuts’ on our way out? Here’s to you finding for yourself what captures the spirit of the season.

Upcoming Events

December 18-January 2- NO SCHOOL- lots of coffee, hot chocolate, pajamas, extra sleep, food we don’t need and hopefully some much deserved rest and relaxation.

January 5- SIW- PBIS

January 11- Staff Meeting

January 12- Fire Drill- 9:40

January 12- 5th grade EBISS

STEM SIW– Shout out to the STEM team for an outstanding SIW Wednesday. It really connected our past with where we want to go and helped teams take a first step toward cohesive, aligned K-5 STEM instruction at Buckingham. To take an idea from the book ‘Good to Great,’ it really feels as if we are getting the flywheel moving. Thanks to the STEM team for all of their intentional work to get us rowing the boat in the same direction.

Staff Party- Don’t forget to show up at the pickle zone for our staff party tomorrow from 4:00-7:00!

pickle ball- n: game. Combination of tennis and ping pong. Designed for people too old to move enough for tennis and too old to see a ping pong ball. Seems like a game designed for Gary and Jon.

Just in Case- From HR a snow day inclement weather guide.

Stage Furniture- Sarah Barclay reached out to Jon to share that someone had expressed concern to her about furniture being removed from the stage. This made us think that we haven’t been clear enough about this so we want to clarify a few things.

1. Beginning the year, there were three spaces (STEM, stage and C-1) being used to store extra stuff- furniture, etc. We want the STEM room for STEM, would love to have a stage for students to perform (we think that’s the purpose of the stage), and we will eventually need C-1. With this in mind it is important that we clear those areas.
2. We started in STEM room and did a great job with cleaning it out. It’s close! The stage is our next step. Any furniture from the stage that has been (or will be) thrown out probably shouldn’t be in a classroom. We are keeping nice furniture. We gave everyone notice so that they could remove any item they wanted and bring back to their classrooms. Thanks to the teachers who have worked so hard to tackle the mess the stage had become. We’ll let you know next steps after things that don’t belong are removed.
3. If you are concerned about something (anything), we would love for you to come and talk to us first. The door is always open.

We are excited to see these spaces become areas for learning that will enhance student experiences at Buckingham. Thanks for all the hard work that has gone into these transformations. Let us know if you have any questions.

SLGG- Please complete slgg form and submit to Jon or Gary by break.

Jon: sped, K, 2nd, 4th, Title, SST, ELL

Gary: 1st, 3rd, 5th, PE, Music

Upcoming Events

12/11- Staff Party- 4-7 PM- Pickle zone

12/15- SIW- Teacher Prep

12/20-12/31- Christmas break- No School

1/3- School resumes

Writing- Remember to have your PLC around writing and complete the PLC form before you leave for Christmas break.

SLGG’s- Please submit your SLGG’s before you leave for Christmas break. Thank you!

Foundational Skills Adoption Committee- Julie Walker is asking for volunteers to be a part of Bend La Pine’s foundational skills (reading) adoption committee. If you are interested you can sign up here.

Staff Party- Party start time has been moved back one hour to 4:00 PM at the pickle zone. Be there or be square.

You are Making a Difference- Never forget that what you do makes a difference. It may not feel like it sometimes (a lot of times?), but you do. Thank you from us and from the parents and from the students.

Short notes this week. Enjoy your weekend. Thanks for all you do.

Upcoming Events

December 7- Fire Drill- 12:55

December 7- Staff Meeting- 2:30

December 8- SIW- STEM

December 11- Staff Party- Trampoline Pickle Zone – 4-7 PM

December 15- SIW- Teacher Prep

December 20-31- Christmas break- NO SCHOOL