Our EME Focus
- Tier 1 Instruction
- Belonging
- Define what it means to be an Integrated Arts School
Thoughts of the Week
Some years ago, I came across an article which referenced a method for catching monkeys by a South Indian tribe and used it as an analogy for resisting change.
The South Indian monkey trap is a simple device for capturing a monkey. It consists of a coconut hollowed out from one end and chained to a stake in the ground. Some rice has previously been placed in the area around the coconut, which the monkey has been happy to take. Now some rice is placed inside the coconut. There is a small hole in the coconut which is big enough for a monkey to put its paw in and grab the rice, but too small for it to remove its paw when making a fist to hold the rice.
The monkey is suddenly trapped, but not by anything physical. He is perfectly capable of releasing the rice, and withdrawing his paw. But he doesn’t. He is trapped by an idea he had in the past, unable to see that a principle that served him well – “when you see rice, hold tight” – has now become lethal to him.
What are you holding on to that is holding you back? How do you philosophically open your hand and release the rice? How do you look at something you have always done with a different perspective? What changes have you always wanted to make but could not let go of the present? I believe you are never lost… you are just in between letting go of what you once were and grabbing on to what you are going to become.
Change is not easy. It is hard. Interesting, but hard. Successful change has to take into account our natural resistance to it. Part of this is because we become ingrained in how we do things. An idea that served us well in the past becomes something that we can’t let go of. Even if the environment has changed, we may still force the problem to fit the solution…rather than looking at every problem with a fresh pair of eyes.
“The difficulty”, as John Maynard Keynes, an economist once put it, “lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping from the old ones.”
The Coming Week
- Monday
- National Counselor Appreciation Week!
- Core Effectiveness Meetings
- Staff Meeting 2:30-3:15
- Tuesday
- Safety Meeting 7:00-7:30
- Core Effectiveness Meetings
- Elementary Admin Meeting 3:00-5:00
- Wednesday
- Office Admin Meeting 7:00-7:30
- SIW – Extra Time for EL Planning 1:00-2:30
- Thursday
- Smart Reading (Kindergarten) 9:45-10:45
- Sped Team Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- Friday
- EET Weekly Meeting 8:00-9:00
- Valentine’s Dance 5:00-7:00
UPCOMING DATES:
- February 10 – SRO Appreciation Week
- February 10 – Principal Meeting (Ben Out) 8:00-12:00
- February 10 – Meeting with Peter
- February 11 – Care Teams Meeting 7:00-8:00
- February 11 – Kinder Forest Field Trip
- February 11 – Admin/ICCL Training 3:30-5:00
- February 12 – Amy McDonald’s Brithday!
- February 12 – Office Admin Meeting 7:00-7:30
- February 12 – OBOB Pool Play 8:00-8:30
- February 12 – SIW – Culture of Care with Amy Yillik 1:00-2:30
- February 13 – Smart Reading (Kindergarten) 9:45-10:45
- February 13 – Sped Team Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- February 14 – Happy Valentines Day!
- February 14 – EET Weekly Meeting 8:00-9:00
- February 17 – President’s Day – No School!
- February 18 – ICCL Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- February 19 – Office Admin Meeting 7:00-7:30
- February 19 – OBOB Pool Play 8:00-8:30
- February 19 – SIW – Teacher Prep 1:00-2:30
- February 20 – Smart Reading (Kindergarten) 9:45-10:45
- February 20 – Sped Team Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- February 20 – Title Night – Elk Meadow Learning Summit 5:00-7:00
- February 21 – EET Weekly Meeting 8:00-9:00
- February 24 – Committee Meeting 2:30-3:15
- February 25 – Care Teams Meeting 7:00-8:00
- February 26 – Amanda Waldron’s Birthday!
- February 26 – Office Admin Meeting 7:00-7:30
- February 26 – OBOB Pool Play 8:00-8:30
- February 26 – SIW – Staff Wellness Event 1:00-2:30
- February 27 – Heather Korman’s Birthday!
- February 27 – Smart Reading (Kindergarten) 9:45-10:45
- February 27 – Sped Team Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- February 28 – Nicole Dewes’ Birthday!
- February 28 – EET Weekly Meeting 8:00-9:00
- March 3 – Classified Employee Appreciation Week!
- March 3 – Staff Meeting 2:30-3:15
- March 4 – Safety Meeting 7:00-7:30
- March 4 – ICCL Meeting 2:30-3:15
- March 5 – Emma Keeton’s Birthday!
- March 5 – Office Admin Meeting 7:00-7:30
- March 5 – OBOB Pool Play 8:00-8:30
- March 5 – SIW – Teacher Prep 1:00-2:30
- March 6 – Smart Reading (Kindergarten) 9:45-10:45
- March 6 – Sped Team Meeting – 2:30-3:15
- March 7 – EET Weekly Meeting 8:00-9:00
Updates from Downtown
Important Links
- January 22nd Elementary TLC Update
- Topics of Interest/Problem of Practice–Bear Creek is looking for Youth Truth engagement ideas!
- FAQs for Special Education Inclusion Topics—Keep checking in here! BEA and BLS supported
Notes from our Team:
From Jenny White – Life and Career Readiness: Principals below is an activity you can use at the beginning of a SIW or staff meeting. Telephone Drawing
Policy, Advocacy, and Equity – Kinsey Martin
Linguist Link: If you are experiencing issues with Linguist Link services (interpreters not showing up, no responses to your messages, poor quality of linguist services), please A) send a note via the “message all” feature of your project/request in the LL system, and/or B) shoot me an email to let me know.
There are some transitions going on within those contracted services, but I have been reassured this should not impact the quality of service you receive. As a reminder if you’re ever in a pinch, here are the various resources and levels of support available to you for translation/interpretation.
From IT Department – Scott McDonald: Here is a good news sandwich from your IT department.
Top Bun– Beginning this week, our elementary progress report is now available in 11 different languages! (Jason Schneider).
Bologna- Make sure your TV / projection system is off when you leave for the day! (Scott McDonald)
Bottom Bun– AirPlay functionality has returned to normal with the latest available OS update, (Chad Brewer)
Even if you prefer to not have Bologna in your “good news” sandwich, please try your best to choke it down today. 😊
From Becca Burda, Communications:
Help celebrate our SROs! SRO Appreciation Day is Saturday, February 15 but we want to celebrate them all week long. Beginning Monday, February 11, do something special for your SRO. Please pick the day of the week that works best for your school.
Help us share the love on social media. Send your imagery to Becca Burda, Assistant Director of Communications, and we’ll keep the gratitude flowing online.
From Curriculum, Instruction and Systems-Julie Richards
This letter will be shared with your 3rd grade teachers on Monday. Please read as it outlines a change to the EL curriculum map. Letter to 3rd Grade teachers.
From Operations: Paul Dean
COO Ops leaders from Transportation, Facilities/Maintenance, Safety, IT and Custodial/Sustainability will be facilitating the March Leadership Team meeting. Please submit at least one question, concern, curiosity or comment that you have for one or more of our departments at this link.
Animals on school grounds: We want to take a moment to clarify differing practices in our district with regards to animals on school grounds. We have many playgrounds with this sign:
However, we do not have any district policy that prohibits dogs outside of school hours on our property. ING-AR: Animal Visitors under Owner Responsibility reads:
- Owners walking animals on school grounds must follow city or county ordinances regarding leashing and sanitation.
- Principals and their designees have the authority to exclude persons and their animals from play fields when he/she determines that there are associated health and/or safety concerns.
In order to align our signage with our policy, we will be removing all fence signage pertaining to animals. In place of those signs, our maintenance department will install one of the signs below. They will communicate with the head engineer and building principal regarding where you want the new sign placed.
Building leaders have the authority to temporarily close school playgrounds in accordance with Facility, Playgrounds, Fields & Property Community Use Guidelines [here is a Spanish Version]. We have created this Community Use Violation Notice [and here is a Spanish Version] that you may copy, edit, print, laminate and zip tie to your gate(s) when you are restricting public access by locking your gates.
From Lisa Birk, Deputy Superintendent
Please use this document when sharing the BLS Strategic Initiatives rather than the past one when referencing our Strategic Initiatives. We altered the language around Priority Standards to reflect Standards-based instruction and grading.
Substitute Hiring: Please help spread the word that the ESD is hiring substitutes by sharing this flyer! You can also use this Social Media Post jpg
From Social Emotional Wellness – Jennifer Hauth
It is time to celebrate your school counselors!! See this resource. Jess and I will be coming around to drop off a goodie as well😊
National School Counseling Week (NCSW) 2025 is Feb. 3-7, 2025, to focus attention on the unique contribution of school counselors within our schools. The theme this year is: School Counseling: Helping Students Thrive. The special week honoring school counselors provides recognition for school counselors who “implement comprehensive school counseling programs, a vital part of the educational process for all students as they meet the challenges of the 21st century”.
NCSW is always celebrated the first full week in February and there are multiple resources available below to help you celebrate school counselors next week at your school site. We will celebrate our student success staff the week of March 3rd during school social worker week.Here is a “Certificate of Appreciation” that you can use for your counselors and click on link above for some resources to help your school celebrate this week with your counselor(s)😊
From Ryan Kelling, Human Resources
We are very excited to be adding a Director of District Activities and Athletics to bring our secondary school athletic and activity programs together under one vision. This role is focused on ensuring that every student has access to consistent, high-quality extracurricular experiences, no matter which school they attend. By aligning programs across the district, we’re creating more opportunities for students to grow, connect, and succeed—academically, socially, and emotionally.
This will be a BLAST position and we’ll be posting this position on our site Monday and sharing it widely across the region to attract a strong pool of candidates. If you’d like to learn more about the role or have any questions, please connect with Ryan.
Important Dates
- February 3: Progress Report deadline 4:00
- February 4: Testing Coordinator meeting at Ensworth at 2:00, followed by our Horizontal meeting from 3:00-5:00 Hosted by ENS, BUC and LRE
- February 10: Admin ICCL Training on hold and will not happen today–please communicate that to your team. We will let you know of a future date.
- February 19: Administrator Professional Development from 3:00 – 5:00
- March 11: Horizontal Meeting 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. at Pine Ridge hosted by PRE and NSE
And Finally…It is the end of January!
