I talked with Brad Henry about House Bill 3427, the new tax on large Oregon businesses that Governor Kate Brown signed into law on Thursday. Brad shared that the dollars raised from this tax would be part of the 2021-22 budget and that the state is currently setting the rules for how school districts will be able to use these dollars. He shared with me that he predicts the district will be able to be use the dollars to support the big ideas Shay shared in his April 5th Budget email-smaller class sizes, increased health and safety services, more learning time, and a well-rounded education.
Our Instructional Tip of the Week is from Dyan…One of the eight components of features of SIOP is Building Background. One way to build background is to emphasize key vocabulary. The most effective vocabulary development is closely related to the content. Vocabulary should be presented in context, not isolation.
Some techniques for emphasizing key vocabulary are:
- Contextualizing Vocabulary: choose vocabulary words that are important to understanding the lesson and present the definitions in context
- Vocabulary Self-Selection: students select vocabulary as individuals, in pairs, or in small groups. After learning the terms, students share their lists with the class
- Personal Dictionaries: created by students as an individual spelling and vocabulary resource
- Word Walls: are effective for displaying content words related to content
- Concept Definition Maps: structured webs that are used to explore more complex concepts. The center circle can be a broad concept such as “habitat” and the spokes leading of the circle may be organized to respond to questions such as, “What is it?”, “What are some examples?” and “Why is it important?”
- Word Sorts: used to categorize words or phrase that have been previously introduced
- Word Study Books: student-made personal books containing frequently used words and concepts. The teacher or class determines the words and definitions to include and how to organize the words (e.g., by structure, by concept)
Week at a Glance for May 20th – 24th
Monday:
Tuesday:
- 8:05 Math focused PLC Meetings
- 5th Grade Move Up Day (AM)
- 5:00 North Star Kindergarten Open House
Wednesday:
- 8:05 ICCL Meeting
- SIW: Ross Greene Seminar Share-Out
- 11:00 1st grade dress rehearsal
- 1st grade music concert @ 6:00
Thursday:
- 8:05 1st grade EBISS
- 4:00 Site Council
Friday:
- Culture of Care Student Survey
- Lion Pride Drawing at lunches
- Newsletter
Here is a copy of the job description for those interested in learning more about the primary responsibilities of an ICCL team member. People on this team are also part of Site Council and are not involved in personnel decisions (ie. this team is not involved in the development of our staffing plan or grade level assignments) except for potentially serving on interview teams. Please see me if you have any other questions. We plan to interview for our open positions in early June.