Diario Camino del Río

Week of May 30, 2016

Week of May 23, 2016

Ubuntu- The South African Philosophy of the power of community. I am because we are.

Hello Shining Stars,

Here are some important items of the week:

•PBIS and End of the Year Anxiety:

Last week I shared some strategies that Brie Stiller often reminds us about to help finish the year strong.  What I neglected to mention is that some of the root causes of behavior escalation in classrooms are separation anxiety and  student predictions of  change. Yes, they have a lot of anxiety like we do from ending the year.  I encourage you to figure out some calm down strategies to use with your class. They could be yoga poses, breathing techniques, or simply stretches.  The more we practice helping students learn calming techniques, the better they can cope when they experience conflict on the playground or in the classroom. I included a poster below to remind you of some healthy yoga poses for helping to calm kids. Try them out yourself.  It might just work to lower your own anxiety!

•Licensed Staffing Updates: As many of you know Tracy Fleming announce her resignation from kindergarten last week.  Tracy is moving back to California to be with family. She has taken a new teaching position there as well. I asked for interest in taking on kindergarten and found one teacher who is ready to take it on.  Next Fall Nikita Brougher will be placed in kindergarten and become part of the team.  This leaves an opening in 4th grade. The district has hired a bilingual bilingual teacher for our school early. They were proactive to do this this year in order to foresee openings in buildings across the district in Spanish required positions.  They have placed Salvador “Chavo” Garcia in our building. He will teach in 4th grade next Fall. Chavo is a recent graduate from Pacific University teacher education program.  He also studied at the University of Oregon and the University of Seville. Please congratulate Nikita and Chavo on their new roles in our building.  Chavo recently returned from a trip abroad and plans to come in and volunteer in our building to make the transition into his new role. I will also be providing kindergarten with some extra time to work with Nikita before the year is out or over summer so Nikita can begin to plan for her transition in the fall.

•Classified Staffing Updates: We have three educational assistant openings available currently for the upcoming year.  As many of you know, Tracy Denman resigned in March. We have another six hour position for extra support next year.  In addition, Jessica Zapata Mendoza has also resigned as the BEST Coordinator and from her 4 hour EA position. She is moving to Portland with her family.   Molly LaJolie will hire the 4 hour BEST coordinator position. We will hire the 4 hour EA job Jessica has held. I will post the 4 hour job this Wednesday.  Currently, the two 6 hour positions are up on NeoGOV. Those jobs close after Memorial Day, 5/31. Please encourage your bilingual educator type acquaintances to apply.

•Last Day of ELD and Title Services: Our last day of ELD services will be June 8. Nancy is required to place students differently than previous years. She needs the extra time to conduct the SOLOM assessment of her students. The ELPA 21 assessment is not normed yet. She administered this test in early Spring but data is not available until Fall. She will be conducting these assessments on the 8th and the week after that to make decisions about moving children up in ELPA Levels. Nancy will also be preparing her ELL progress reports on grading day.  Once she is done with these tasks, Nancy is available to support you in the classroom with ELL needs or other teaching supports in the classroom. Aline will be finishing title reading service on June 9th.  She will be completing Title 1 paperwork and progress reports the following week and supporting us in planning for  the 2016-2017 school year.

• Risk Management Safety Reminders – It’s the time of year for outdoors, trips, and celebrations. In an effort to keep staff and students safe, Risk Management asked that staff review a few important reminders linked here in this email. Also linked here is information on playground safety, spring sports best practices, tips on proper lifting with how to stay in the green zone, and also tips on stretching routines.

• 4J Science Vision, Mission and Goals – Linked here is the district Science Vision, Mission and Goal created by the District Science Adoption Team, which has been through multiple stakeholders for feedback. This document has been presented to the School Board, and is the dynamic document that is guiding elementary and middle level science curriculum implementation, as well as guiding the high school science adoption process next year.

• District Admin Updates – Lizette Rodgers will be the new principal at Twin Oaks Elementary School when Kathy Owen retires at the end of this school year. Lizette has been assistant principal at Spencer Butte Middle School and was previously an assistant principal at Churchill High School. Over at Facilities, with Jon Lauch’s retirement, Harlan Coats had earlier been appointed interim director of facilities management and transportation. He is now been  officially appointed as the Facilities Director. Ryan Spain will be the new interim facilities and maintenance manager, filling Harlan’s previous role.

• Connecting With Students: Four Strategies – Building relationships with students sometimes takes a back seat to achieving passing test scores. That doesn’t have to be the case, according to this sixth-grade teacher. Find out the four strategies in this she uses to connect with her students and teach them effectively in this Teaching Tolerance post.

• TalentEd End-of-Cycle Goals Reflections Due Friday – Thank you to those of you who have finished this already, but the End-of-Cycle Goals Reflection is due this Friday (MAY 27). All licensed staff members must complete this task, regardless whether you are on the Year 1, Year 2, Temporary or Probationary evaluation cycles. For those of you who have completed this, I will try to stop by your rooms this week, if I haven’t already, to finish out the required evaluation cycle tasks. Let me know if you have any questions regarding the form or need help with the process.

•Free Summer Camp Opportunity-  Free camp opportunity that is for children ages 7-17 who have, or have ever had, a parent in prison.  The camp is through a Christian organization that provides all the necessary supplies free to each camper.  This includes a sleeping bag, t-shirts for the week, a sweatshirt, and hygiene supplies.  If you have a student(s) who qualify for the camp and would be interested, please let me know and I’ll put flyers in your box.  The registration is online, but a paper copy can be made available if necessary. The camp will have on-site mental health and medical support. If you would like to look it up for yourselves.  Here is the link.  https://agapeyouthoregon.com/  The Lane County camp dates are August 25-28.

•Volunteer Lunch and Field Day, June 16- Please take the time to think about all the special volunteers that have put time in your classroom, around the school and for special events. We will be recognizing our volunteers with a special breakfast the day of field day. Please bring potluck style breakfast foods on June 16 to the family resource center as a way to thank our amazing volunteers. Alicia did this with our volunteers last year and it was a huge success. If you would like to fill out a special certificate to some of your volunteers your names need to be added to the following google doc. The office will have special volunteer certificates you can pick up.

Below is the survey with hours to verify and add:  Survey Link

Schedule of Events for the Week

May 23 (M)

Artist in Residence Continues
2:00-5:00, Joel to Elementary Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)
3:30-4:30, 5th Grade Teachers Meet w/Kelly Teachers

May 24 (T)

5th Grade Field Trip

8:30-9:30, Cafecito de padres- tema abierta.

Extended Lunch Schedule for the A to Z Veggies and Fruit Healthy Lunch

10:30- Kinder Lunch begins.
10:45-1st and 2nd Grade Lunch begins.
11:05-3rd,4th, and 5th Grade Lunch begins.
11:00-11:30, Planning Family Involvement Events for 16-17 ( Family Resource Center)
6:00-7:00, Kelly  K-12 Immersion Meeting
6:00-7:00, ODE Reimagine Education in Oregon Community Forums (SEHS)

May 25 (W)

5th Grade Field Trip

9:00-11:00, RRES – OAC Meeting (Old White House)

1:45-2:45, Teacher Collaboration Hour- Math PLC Time

2:00-4:00, Myka out at EForum (Ed Center)

2:30-3:30, Student Care Team Meeting (Staff Room- Howard)
3:00-5:00, 4J Retirement Event (Ed Center)
5:30-7:00, Old Howard Building Farewell Event (Cafeteria and Around the Building)

May 26 (H)
4:00-6:30, Joel to 4J Equity Committee

May 27 (F)

END OF CYCLE Goals Reflection Deadline

Library Closed

9:00-1:30, 4th Grade UO Field Trip

2:10-5:20 p.m.-BEST PROGRAM Field trip to The Department of Physics,UO with  “Mad Duck Scientist”
120 Willamette Hall, 1371 E 13th Avenue Eugene, OR 97403
Mad Duck” Science, is a group of scientists that creates and performs physics and chemistry demos that children can participate in.
May 30 (M)
Memorial Day – No School

May 31 (T)

Artist in Residence Continues (Room 17)

9:00-2:00, M. Brougher’s Dorris Ranch Field Trip (Dorris Ranch)

1:30-3:00, 4th Grade Garden Project- M. Brougher

8:00-11:30, Joel at ELL Coordinator Interviews (Mozart Room-Ed Center)
June 1 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at RRES – OAC Meeting (Old White House)

1:45-2:45,PBIS Meeting (Learning Center)

1:45-2:45, PLC Time  (Library)

June 2 (H)

8:00-2:30, Data Team- Final Meeting #6 (Room 17)

2:45-3:45, IPBS Meeting MOD SQUAD! (Room 7)

3:30-5:00,   Final 15-16 Immersion Principal Meeting (Parr Room)

June 3 (F)
Last Day of BEST

We’re on the home stretch!

Joel

Week of May 16, 2016

Hello Shining Stars,

We are rapidly approaching the end of the year.  We have two 5 days weeks left in our school year. As we get into mid May please remember to take time for yourself.  This time of year is when we all need to look out for each other and take care.  Our work can be exhausting and easy to lose patience with children or other adults. I have included some tips and tricks that Brianna Stiller recommended last year that are still valid.

Here are several items of note for the week:

Staff Meeting Agenda for our 2 hour meeting on May 17 from 2:45-4:45

1. 2:45-3:10, Reflection on the Guy Lee, El Camino del Rio Immersion Reciprocal Visits with Staff.- Share the POWN from both schools.
2. 3:10-3:20,Report out from the ALICE Training Follow up- Marcy and Joel
3. 3:20-3:45, Math Adoption Survey online conducted by Nancy and Karen, Jill to report on the math vocabulary documents.
4. 3:45-4:00, Spring Conferences in 2017- Joel decide.
5. 4:00-4:05, Green Team Recruitment- Marcy
6. 4:00-4:20, Leadership 2016-2017
7. 4:20-4:45,  End of the Year Calendar Communication and Announcements

Week of May 9, 2016

Hello Shining Stars,

This last week was busy!  However,  I was thrilled to see the level of enrichment and learning that we were able to do together. You should have no doubt that your level of collaboration, and professionalism is to be commended.  On top of that, our Fiesta was a BEAUTIFUL community event. I was so impressed with the way several pitched in to volunteer and take part in the festivities. We truly are an amazing community and we make families feel welcome and included.

• Staffing Update – HR has officially completed the staffing and bumping process for classified staff for the 2016-17 school year, which means no classified staff from our building are getting bumped or displaced this year. In fact, we will have two vacancies this year with one new position and one position from Tracy Denman’s resignation.

We’ve also been given our PE and Music allocations and teacher assignments for next school year. Both David is returning and we get him all year!  We will have him as a teacher 4 days a week in the Fall and 2 days a week in the Spring. Fo PE we will have Rachel  Farkas for .8 in the Fall and we will have Ronny Mason back with us in the Spring. Our Fall schedule this year will feel about the same in the Spring next year. We will have 3 specials/ prep periods three days per week all year.  As I shared earlier, classes first semester will get two sessions of Music and one session of PE. Second semester that will flip, with two sessions of PE and one session of Music. If you’re curious to see PE and Music assignments across the district, linked here is the spreadsheet that was shared with principals.

• District Admin Updates – Jeff Johnson has been selected to be the district’s federal programs administrator, replacing Tasha Katsuda who will be principal of Spencer Butte next year. Jeff has been the principal of Arts & Technology Academy, a Title I school, and also at Coburg Elementary. Linda O’Shea, currently assistant principal at Arts & Technology Academy, will step into the principal role next year. This year Linda has had a dual role, spending part of her time at ATA and the rest as part-time principal of Family School. Jericho Dunn will be the new principal of Cal Young next year, replacing Kim Watry who has accepted a position in her home state of Colorado. Jericho has been assistant principal at South Eugene High School since 2013. Finally, Kim Finch will be technology administrator next year, replacing Kim Ketterer when she retires. Kim has experience with all school levels and with STEM learning and technology in our district and beyond.

• District Title 1 Newsletter – Here is the last district level Title 1 Newsletter of the year that went out to Title 1 Coordinators and principals. As usual, this month’s newsletter is mostly coordinator specific information and tasks, but one interesting item is the revised CIP videos I mentioned in an earlier post. In the past we’ve held an annual meeting with Title 1 Coordinators, principals, and parent reps from across the district, but these meeting were poorly attended, particularly by parents, so 4J is trying something different, which is to instead share informational videos in English and Spanish at Title 1 building during different school-wide events throughout the year. We’ll wait for some direction from the new district Title 1 Coordinator, but we’ll like share one of these videos during Curriculum Night, Literacy Night and/or other school wide events, and we might also play them in the background during other school events. I’ve looked at a couple of the videos and they do provide some useful information for families.

• Teaching and Learning Under the Next Generation Science Standards – Kim Finch shared a Smart Brief on teaching and learning with the new Next Generation Science Standards. Our new curriculum will require a shift in how elementary science looks in each classroom in Eugene, including more time spent teaching science K-5, and an integration with CCSS math and ELA. This will be good for us since we already have designated specific times in the day for science.

• Tips to liven up lessons with YouTube – YouTube offers more than animal videos, education-technology and curriculum consultant Monica Burns writes in this blog post. She highlights four strategies for using YouTube in the classroom, including tips about “finding the ‘right’ videos.” We know that Nikita is really good at doing this for her math time. Others might be interested.

• Schedule of Events for the Week– Here are the items of note for the next two weeks.

May 9 (M)

1:30-2:00, Joel Meet with Police Chief Pete Kerns about  Emerald Park Shootings
1:45-2:45, Principals Join LEL Teachers@Charlemagne
3:30-5:00, Joel to Elementary Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 10 (T)

(All Day) Reciprocal Teaching Visit  to Guy Lee-  Some Staff in Springfield including Joel
6:00-7:00, ODE Reimagine Education in Oregon Community Forums (SEHS)

6:00-7:00, Grupo de Padres

May 11 (W)

8:30-9:00, Joel and teacher in End of Cycle Meeting (Joel’s Office)

8:45-9:15, Joel in Observation (Classroom)

9:00-11:00,  OAC Meeting Construction meeting  (Old white house.)

1:45-2:45, PLC Hour  (Library- Focus on Math assessments)
2:45-4:00, Joel and Myka at Attendance System Meeting (Ed Center)
4:00-5:00, Joel to North Region Administrators Meeting (Howard)

May 12 (H)
3:00-4:00, Allan Chinn Taking River Road Design Team to See Furniture (New Howard)

We will meet in the old Howard office at 3:00.

5:30-6:30, Our Kindergarten Orientation (Cafeteria)
6:30-7:30, North Region Latino Family Night (NEHS)

7:00-8:30, Vision 20/20 Community mtg. (Ed Center)

May 13 (F)
9:00-1:30 Kindergarten Field Trip to Skinner’s Butte, (Skinner’s Butte)
9:15, Fire Drill

2:00, Silly Assembly for Title One Surveys (Cafeteria)

4:00-5:30, Equity Action Team Networking Social (All are encouraged to attend- see me for details)

May 16 (M)
Artist in Residence Begins with Maiya Becker
3:00-5:00, Joel in After ALICE Training follow up with Marcy and team. (Library)

3:00-4:00, Site Council Meeting (Conference Room)

May 17 (T)

9:00-10:30,  Joel at Immersion Principals Task Force Meeting (Mozart Room)

1:30-3:00, 4th Grade Garden Project- M. Murphy

2:50-4:45, Staff Meeting 2 hours (Library)

May 18 (W)

9:00-11:00, OAC Meeting- Construction (Old White House)

1:45-2:45, Teacher Collaboration Hour- Math PLC Time (Focus:math assessment, Library)

May 19 (H)

2:45-3:45, IPBS Meeting – MOD Squad (Room7)
3:45-5:00, Joel and KG Teachers to Full-Day KG Meeting (Holt)

May 20 (F)

9:00-11:00, Joel at PDAT #10  at UO CEQP

Thanks everyone and have a good week.

Joel

Week of May 2, 2016

Hello Shining Star Staff,

Last week we had Administrative Professionals Day and this week is national Teacher Appreciation Week, though I would like to take the opportunity to recognize the efforts of ALL staff, both classified and licensed, and your tireless work to support El Camino del Río students, families, and each other. A school or program is really only as good as it’s staff and I count El Camino as THE premier elementary school in Eugene. We have grown to be a model program with all of your support.  El Camino del Río is a shining light of the community and it’s all thanks to you!

• Friday, May 6th PD Day – I send the agenda in a separate email, but I wanted to remind everyone that we’ll be meeting in the library at 8:00 this Friday. I’ll have my usual spread of breakfast snacks, coffee and goodies. The main agenda is to wrap up our AIMS4SCubed for the year, but if classified staff have comp time coming this would be an okay time to cash that time in since there are only a couple more days this year when comp time could easily be used. Classified staff should connect with their cooperating teachers if you will be using comp time this day. You also need to report the use of comp time on the comp sheet in the office. Please submit the form to Myka BEFORE you take the time. I will approve and sign if you have the hours available.

• Staffing Updates –  It is looking like I will be posting for Tracy Denman’s position soon. This will be a 6 hour EA Position. It is a bilingual required position.  I will be posting this in mid May. In addition, we may be posting for a 6 hour bilingual assistant position to primarily support 1st grade and ELD instruction. When I get the particulars of this figured out I will share the posting date for you.

• TalentEd End-of-Cycle Goals Reflection and easyCBM Comparison Reports – I’d previously mentioned that all licensed staff, no matter which evaluation cycle you are on, have to complete the End-of-Cycle Goals Reflection form in TalentEd, but to help people easily compare your students’ benchmark scores, you can access the “Grade Comparison” report which will give an easy-to-read breakdown of how your class is doing on reading and math benchmark assessments. Teachers can wait until spring benchmark testing if you want, but you’re welcome and encouraged to do it now and use the fall to winter benchmark information as an indicator of student progress towards your goal. Let me know if you’d like a copy of this report or if you have any questions. Of course, EDL2 can also be used to show progress towards the student goals.

• New Building Updates –one item of note for the new building:

The building construction starts this week.  I will be regularly attending meetings in the house down the street called OAC meetings.  These meetings occur every Wednesday at 9:00 AM.  Things should start to move pretty quickly.  I would also expect that construction will begin on the East side of the site since they will  probably want to move West in the construction process.  Expect it to be noisy in 5th grade wing and the gym.

• North Region Night at Swede Stadium this Tuesday – To help build community in our region, the North Eugene baseball game this Tuesday at 5:00 will be North Region Nigh at Swede Johnson Stadium. There will be inflatables for kids if they get bored of the game as well as free popcorn and ice cream treats of some sort (though I was pulling for Fudgsicles). Kids can enter to throw out the first pict and can also run the bases at the end of the game or get their photo taken on the pitchers mound.

• Family Summer Resources from Care Team – DHS staff shared a a great resource from Direction Services I thought I’d pass along, which is the Direction Services 2016 Summer Directory. The directory has a current lists of camps, diagnostic and treatment services, education services, employment programs, recreation, respite care and support, and website resources for families.

• Math Curriculum Adoption Process – Next school year will see the start of a math curriculum adoption process, with full implementation of the selected program the following school year, 2017-2018. Linked here is the draft math adoption timeline shared with the school board regarding the timeline and process for the adoption, but the short version is that all schools will send a math teacher leader rep to be on the committee and there will be a pilot in the fall, with a program selected in February for use the following school year.

• Science Adoption Update – If you’d like to know the latest news on the science adoption rolling out this fall, linked here is an Elementary Science Newsletter for Principals that was sent last week to elementary principals by Kim Finch, the district STEM Administrator. The short version is that the district adoption team unanimously recommended the district adopt FOSS NGSS. All of the district PD days this coming year will be focused on the science adoption. Our academy days will be focused on ELD instruction and biliteracy.

Remembering Cinco de Mayo Properly: Here is a good slide show that discusses cultural appropriation and the pitfalls of Cinco de Mayo.  I recommend that you spend five minutes watching it.

• Artist in Residence Schedule Still in the works. – Alexis and I are working on the Artist In Residence Schedule to make sure it is ready to go for all of you.

• District Admin Updates – Tasha Katsuda will be principal of Spencer Butte Middle School in 2016-17, replacing Greg Borgerding who will move to Churchill High School. Tasha has been the district Federal Programs (Title 1) Coordinator, but prior to that she’s been a middle school teacher, an assistant principal at Jefferson MS and a building principal at McCornack. Melissa Ibarra will be the new principal of Buena Vista, replacing Juan Cuadros when he becomes principal of Kelly Middle School next year. Melissa taught for several years at BV and after earning her administrator license, was hired as lead teacher at the Guy Lee dual immersion program. Lastly, Kathy Owen, principal of Twin Oaks announced she is retiring at the end of the school year. This currently leaves admin openings for a principal at Cal Young and Twin Oaks, an assistant principal at Churchill, the Equity Diversity Inclusion Manager, a Federal Programs Coordinator (though the Instruction Department is currently restructuring and responsibilities for this administrator may change), a Tech Department Director, an Instructional Technology Director, and a Facilities Management position (Harlan Coats’ old job, who’s now Director of Facilities).

Melissa Ibarra

• School To Prison Pipeline Seminar – Join the EEA’s Human & Civil Rights Committee for Harry Lawson, Chair of NEA Human and Civil Rights Committee, for a seminar on The School to Prison Pipeline, May 10th from 4:30 – 6:30 at the EEA Offices on 2815 Coburg Rd. Across the country, school districts and communities are moving away from zero-tolerance and other harsh disciplinary policies and practices that have created a school-to-prison pipeline and led to negative educational outcomes for children, especially children of color. This session will examine historical school discipline trends and their impact on educational outcomes; explore effective discipline policies, practices, and alternatives; and provide attendees with the tools to implement successful strategies within their schools and communities including how to access and examine their local data. If you have questions, contact Linda Smart, Chair HCRC, at the email in the poster below.

• Are stereotypes driving STEM gender gap? – There are two stereotypes that keep girls away from courses in science, technology, engineering and math, three researchers write. In this commentary, the researchers note that stereotypes persist that students who take computer science and other STEM courses are “geeky” and that boys are better at math and sciences.

• Schedule of Events for the Week –

May 2 (M)
Teacher Appreciation Week
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
Children’s Book Week
National Physical Fitness & Sports Month

May 3 (T)

8:00-4:00, Reciprocal Teaching Visit from Guy Lee to ECDR (Conference Room)

10:00-11:00, 8th Grade WEB Leaders from Kelly MS at RR

1:30-3:00, 4th Grade Garden Project- M. Brougher (School Garden)

2:45-3:45, PLT Meeting with Guy Lee Reciprocal Visit Debrief (Conference Room)
5:00-8:00, North Region Baseball Event – Night at the Swede (NEHS)

May 4 (W)

7:30-8:00, Parent meeting with Mr. Barnes

8:30-9:30, Centro Latino Meeting on Wrap around services.

9:30-10:30, ECDR OAC Meeting Construction Meeting-( In the white house down the street)

10:00-11:00, Joel in Furniture Meeting- teacher desk space.

9:00-11:00, 5th Graders to Kelly MS for Tour (Kelly MS)

1:45-2:45, Kinder ELD 2016-2017  Planning

1:45-2:45, Teacher Collaboration Time in the Library PLC group focus: Preparing for Friday’s PD with Lisa Meyer and AIMS4S3

2:00-2:15, Joel in Custodian Meeting

May 5 (H)

7:30-8:00, Teacher Goal End of Cycle Meeting

8:30-1:00, Dental Flouride Clinic

2:00-2:30, Teacher Silly Assembly- Title 1 Survey Reward

May 6 (F)
8:00-1:30, Professional Development Day – No Students

Agenda coming soon from Lisa Meyer. Snacks and coffee served at 7:45.

5:00-8:00, Fiesta – All staff are encourage to attend.

May 9 (M)

1:30-2:00, Meet with Police Chief Pete Kerns about shootings at Emerald Park
2:30-5:00, Joel to Elementary Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 10 (T)

8:00-4:00, Reciprocal Teaching Visit Guy Lee-  Some Staff in Springfield

6:00-7:00, ODE Reimagine Education in Oregon Community Forums (SEHS)

May 11 (W)
8:30-9:00, Teacher End of Cycle Meeting
2:45-4:00, Joel and Myka at Attendance System Meeting (Ed Center)
4:00-5:00, Joel to North Region Administrators Meeting

May 12 (H)

Staff Meeting- Cancelled.

3:00-4:00, Allan Chinn (Howard Principal) Taking River Road Design Team to See Furniture (New Building)

5:30-6:30, Kindergarten Orientation (Cafeteria)

May 13 (F)

9:00-1:30, Skinner’s Butte Kindergarten Field Trip (Skinner’s Butte)

Have an excellent week, everyone!

Joel