January 8th, 2018

Monday Notes 1.8.17

*******************NEWS**********************

Happy New Year!!!!

We hope each and every one of you had a relaxing and joyful holiday break! We are very excited to welcome you back and wish you a very happy new year!! Here is to 2018!!!

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Condolences
Our sincerest condolences go out to Latissa Southerland for the loss of her father over the holiday break. Please keep Latissa and her family in your thoughts during this difficult time. 

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The Contest

The administrative team wanted to find a way to thank all of you for your hard work and to show you how much we appreciate each of you. We’ve decided to hold a unique contest to find a group who possesses creativity and shows the best team skills. We also have a really great TOP SECRET PRIZE (trust me… it’s worth it!) picked out for the winning team as our way of expressing thanks. 

We are calling it “The Contest." It’s scheduled to start this week and you will soon receive more information regarding the team to which you are assigned. The best team will be the one that is the most creative, most daring, and most enthusiastic….so bring your game faces!

Please look out for an email announcement this week from an “@lookingforpat” address! This will kick off a week long team competition! Please be sure to read these emails for all the details and information!

To start us off, here is a puzzle:  “H.P.E.S.I.T.B!!!” Email Wooden with your guess if you can figure out what that stands for!!

We hope everyone has fun!  

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Congratulations!
Congratulations to Mariana Mendoza on the birth of her grandson over the holiday break! Reyan Emanuel was born 7 lb 3 oz and baby and mom are healthy! Congratulations to Mariana. 

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Let's Celebrate!!!
The following teachers moved 100% of their students to a higher  
F and P reading level: 

Todd
Pereira
Bradshaw
Sapp
Jones
Milazzo

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Fastbridge Testing 

Please make sure you are bringing your class on time to the computer lab for Fastbridge Testing! We will be using the data to discuss student growth once we are finished so please make sure your students are taking this screener seriously and trying their best!!!!

 The schedule is below! 

Comprehension Efficiency 3rd-5th - Every student in Tier I should have taken the Comp Efficiency 2x in November and 2x in December. We will take it 2 more times in February but not in January!!!! We will let you know when to give it again!!! Thank you for your help with this!!!

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National Championship
Whether you cheer for UGA or Alabama, the National Championship game tonight is going to be a great one!!! We appreciate you all for dragging yourselves in tomorrow morning and teaching like you went to bed at 8:00!! You are all rockstars!! 

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Georgia Personnel Survey

The Georgia School Personnel Survey (GSPS) is the state required survey to determine our overall Climate Star Rating on CCRPI. ALL staff is required to take this survey! 

So far we have 41 staff members who have taken the survey. 

We have 103 staff members so if you have not taken the survey, please do so this week!!!!! We need 75% of all staff to take this survey which means we have to have AT LEAST 73 staff members to take this survey!!! Thank you for taking a moment to do this!!!

http://gshs.gadoe.org/personnel

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Retention

1. Students who are being considered for retention should at a minimum be in tier 2 and on their way to tier 3.  You will need to continue working with Mr. Madej to ensure that you are collecting the appropriate data to move students to tier 3.

2. Conference with parents at least twice before the end of January. You may choose to complete a retention conference form during that conference. If you are scheduled for an RTI/SST meeting for this student and the parent is notified at that time, that can count as a conference. A face to face conference is preferred but a phone conference is also acceptable. If you use the conference form, please provide a copy to Mr. Madej.

3. The notification letter indicating possible retention should be sent home in January, signed and returned to you by January 19th. This is not the 1st time the parent should be hearing that their child is not passing. Contact the parent and inform them the letter is coming home. Grades and the tier process should reflect this information. Please provide a copy of the signed letter to Mr. Madej .

4. Please submit the Retention Checklist and the Retention Notification letter to Mr. Madej by January 26, 2018. 

5. Final decisions concerning retention will be made in April or May. ***Remember that we will only have the preliminary results of the GA Milestones so it is imperative that if you plan to retain a student they are demonstrating extreme deficiencies in grades 3 or 5. Students will not be considered for retention solely based off GA Milestone scores. 
If students scored a Level 1 in Reading or Math on GA Milestones last year, you may want to add them to the retention list as a precaution unless they are making incredible progress. Once we receive the official criteria for promotion, we will send it to you. 

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Drills

We will be conducting the following drills this week to make sure our students understand what to do in the event of an emergency. Please make sure you know exactly what to do for each drill: 

- Hard Lockdown

-Soft Lockdown

- Severe Weather Drill

- Evacuation Drill (aka: Fire Drill) 

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mr. DiBartolo. 

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KSU Coach

Schedule: I will be at High Point for the teacher workday on 1/4. I will be back in school when students return on 1/9 and 1/11.

Notes: I hope you had a great holiday! Welcome back! Let's start the new year off right - want to try a new tool or new idea, let me know! Let's co-plan together on the work day (1/4).

Highlights: Thank you for a great first semester! I look forward to all that 2018 will bring with using technology and devices in the best ways to support your classroom and your students.

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Continuous Learning

Below is a note written by one of our students. He wasn't turning in homework assignments and was having increased frustration. His teacher asked him to write an explanation of why he couldn’t get his work turned in. 

While I realize that the "online" issue mainly pertains to upper grades, I hope this example sparks some reflection in all of us for 2018. What are we asking our students to do? Is it reasonable? What challenges do they face at home? What barriers are they up against? How can we understand their situation more in order to help them be successful?

While our high expectations should remain constant, it is imperative that we take the time to talk to our students and give them a chance to explain their situation so that we can help them succeed.

This child's teacher took the time to understand the current situation and help him work through it. Every child has a story to tell. Are we listening?

*************CALENDAR OF EVENTS**********

Monday, January 8th
Fastbridge Testing Starts!

Tuesday, January 9th

2:50 pm - NKOB and Para PLC Meetings
4th and 5th - Guided Reading PLC during Specials

Wednesday, January 10th

College Spirit Wear for Students and Staff
K-5 Guided Reading PLC during Specials

Thursday, January 11th

9:30 am - Gail Dean Community Meeting
2:50 pm - PLCs

Friday, January 12th
7:45 am - PTO Board Meeting

*****************BIRTHDAYS! ******************

Happy birthday to Margaret Abernethy on the 14th!!! We hope you have an amazing birthday!!!