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September 18, 2023

 

Hello Holt Staff,

It was a long week, but we’re building up our stamina, right?

Twenty-seven items of note for this week:

• New Building Behavior Support Assistant, Julie Zybach – We’re pleased to announce that Julie Zybach will be our new Building Behavior Support Assistant (i.e. Behavior EA), who many of you already know from a long-term sub job last year and this year subbing for Lisa P. in Title. Julie is also a Holt parent of a 5th grader, so we have a new member of the Holt Parent/Staff Member Club. Julie’s first official day in her new position will be Wednesday and Jenny and I are working on securing another EA Sub to take over. Please welcome Julie to Team Holt!

 

• Wednesday PD: Shared Staff Goals Development – Wednesday at 1:30 in the library will be an optional meeting to brainstorm shared building goals teachers can cut-and-paste into TalentEd as your goals for the year if you choose. With the district push for morning meetings at the elementary level, I was thinking that could be one area of focus. We might also possibly look at some of our equity based goals on our SCIP. I’ll try to draft a few ideas ahead of the meeting to get the ball rolling, but let me know if any of you have ideas as well.

 

• Fire Drill, FRIDAY, @8:20 – This Friday at 8:20 will be our first Fire Dill of the year. It’s fine for teachers let students know about the drill ahead of time to do pre-teaching before it happens, since this is our first one of the year.

See the Holt Staff Handbook for complete details on Fire Drill Procedures, but highlights are:

• Students and staff clear the building, following the Evacuation Routes Map.
• Teachers should take their Emergency Binders (let me know if you do not have one).
• Classes walk single file to their marked spot at soft play/playground (see map).
• Students at specialists (PE, Music, Title, ELD, SPED, etc.) return to their homeroom teacher for attendance
• Teachers take attendance and raise their green card once all children are accounted for.
• Notify the admin or designee or of any missing/additional children in your line by raising the red card.
• Admin or designee running the drill will announce the all-clear when classes may return to the building.

On a related note, I’m planning on holding a “Safety Week” the week of Oct. 30th to review all the most common safety drills.

 

• Dynamo Math Groups Delayed – Due to staffing issues, the start of Dynamos math groups will be delayed until late October or early November. Dynamos reading groups start:

1st-2nd grade start Tuesday, Sept. 26
3rd-5th grade start Thursday, Sept. 28
Kinder will start mid-October

 

• School Spirit Assembly, Sept. 29 @8:05 – We’ll have our monthly School Spirit Assembly on Friday, Sept. 28 in the gym. The assembly will start at 8:10, but all classes should be in the gym by 8:05. Stay tuned for details! The first spirit day theme will be “Ultimate Holt Spirit Day” where we encourage kids and staff to deck themselves out in Holt Colors (purple and green) or Holt Gear!

 

• PTO Updates – Here is the PTO Event Calendar for the year. The first big event is the Costume BINGO & Trunk-or-Treat event for Thursday, October 26th, which will take place during the Book Fair. They might also have some food trucks come. The Spring Carnival is planned for April and the Holt Bolt Jog-a-Thon will be in May (so we can better avoid fall rain or bad air quality)

 

• YMCA Student Roster – Not on my blog, but attached to my announcements email is a list of all the students enrolled in YMCA.

 

• Hispanic Heritage Month Resources – Sept. 15 – Oct. 15 is Hispanic Heritage Month. Helpful resources can be found on the Library Lowdown Hispanic Heritage Month Slide, Hispanic Heritage Month Collection on Sora, Common Sense Media, and the US Gov Hispanic Heritage Month Teacher Site.

 

• Stop, Walk, Talk Reminder – Staff decided last spring to teach Stop, Walk, Talk for common language for kids to solve minor (non-phsycial) problems on their own. I’ll put this on a futrue Wednesday PD to review with teacher, but if people want to teacher want to review this with student earlier, we we agreed last year to use lessons 1 and 2 of the Stop, Walk, Talk Bully Prevention Lessons. Lesson 1 takes about 50 minutes and lesson 2 takes about 30 minutes. Lessons 3, 4, and 5 offer additional practice for specific situations (Gossip, Inappropriate Remarks, and Cyberbullying) if teachers would like to cover these as well.

I’m also a fan of this short Stop, Walk, Talk YouTube Video done in the style of a silent film to teach kids how to use it. 

 

• Visitors & Volunteers – With COVID restrictions on visitors and volunteers gone, I’d asked for clarification on the current 4J Volunteer/Visitor Policy and I got the answer I was hoping for, which is that any parent, guardian, or adult coming into the building (whether a visitor or volunteer) needs to sign-in at the front office and also have completed a background check.

For volunteers, we are no longer limited to volunteering only for safety or instruction.

For visitors, a change from pre-COVID rules is we are no longer allowing the flood of parents in the morning to walk their children to class or breakfast, without first signing in at the office and having a completed background check on file.

The only exception to this is for scheduled meetings (IEP, 504, conferences, etc.) or large school events (open house, curriculum night, family night, PTO meetings, school carnivals, book fairs, etc.).

 

• Student Head Injury Reporting – Not new, but a reminder that 4J policy requires parent notification for all student head injuries. Linked here is the Head Injury Notification Letter and below are the steps to follow:

1. Student experiences head injury
2. Staff member completes letter and notifies guardians.
3. School nurse receives email notice of letter to guardian
4. If child is diagnosed with concussion or activity restrictions, guardians notify school.

More info can be found on the 4J Students with Concussions Webpage.

 

• FREE White Board Easel (broken wheel) – Does anyone want a free white board easel? The only catch is it has a broken wheel, so it probably needs to be stationary for the most part.

 

• School Board Policy AAC: Racial Harassment – Schools are required to inform and instruct students on School Board Policy ACC – Racial Harassment. District staff are working to take the policy and turn into a kid friendly presentation for elementary schools to use with students. More info can be found on the 4J Hate & Bias Resources Webpage.

 

• Use 4jdesktop or Freshservice for Tech Support – Please do not grab Rob in the hallway if you need tech support. Instead, put in a ticket by emailing 4jdesktop@4j.lane.edu or using the 4J Freshservice Website. This documents what all is being asked of Rob at Holt and is what determines future TSS staffing levels at our building. On a related not, Erica Bowman is taking over for Rob this week. She may not be on site as much, but if you put in a ticket, she will come out if it’s something she can’t take care of remotely from downtown.

 

• Raptor Alert App on Pause – For folks not at the Staff Meeting or who missed it in the minutes, principals were emailed last week that use of the Raptor Alert App is on pause to address some tech issues. I’l keep folks posted for when we’re ready to try it again.

 

• Raptor Alert on Personal Devices – It was asked during inservice week the rules around installing the Reptor Alert App on personal vs. school devices. Principals were told building staff can choose to add this app to their personal device, however it is not a requirement. In my opinion, the app loses most of its usefulness since staff do not carry their laptop or iPad with them at all times, and even if they did you’d lose wifi as soon as you left the building. Downtown is working on a new training for staff on Raptor Alert, so we’ll see if they address this issue or not, but I’m thinking reunification situations would most likely rely on paper/paper and not the app.

 

• Equity & Inclusion Administrator Draft Job Description – If you’re interested, here is the Draft Equity & Inclusion Administrator Job Description, which takes the place of SSD Admins, though Angela Crum is still the district admin for Sheldon Region.

 

• Kid Art for CASA of Lane County – Former Holt teacher Jacque Barton is looking for student artwork that could be used for thank you and holiday cards for CASA of Lane County. See Jacque’s Email for details, but the short version is:

Thank-You Ideas: Ocean scenes, birds, cats and dogs, family, nature, abstract, etc.

Holiday Art Ideas: Fall trees, pumpkins, scarecrows, winter scenes, snowmen, penguins, mittens, hot coco, etc.

No Pokemon, but email artwork to Jacque Barton <jacqueb@casa-lane.org> or she can pick-up them up at the office.

 

• 4J Air Quality Info – Downtown emailed principals the current air quality guidelines they are following. Nothing seems different than before except I noticed they said schools will provide staff with N95 masks for any staff wanting one when AQI goes over 100.

 

• WREN Newsletter & Workshops – The latest WREN Newsletter has several new PD opportunities for both classified and licensed staff. Most of them are virtual and most of them offer a stipend if you attend. Check them out!

 

• UO Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) Study – See this flyer if you’d be interested in doing a 30-60 minute Zoom interviews on DEI and then receive a $25 Amazon gift card for completing the interview.

 

• Holt Resource Map (add your info) – I’ll put this on a future Wednesday PD or Staff Meeting, but downtown wants all school to complete a “Resource Map” that lists licensed staff members’ degrees, endorsements, certifications, areas of expertise, etc. If you’re so inclined, add you info now to the Holt Staff Resource Map.

 

• SSD September Newsletter – If you are interested, here’s the September SSD Newsletter that was send to SPED teachers and principals. Lots of info in this one on info about Abbreviated School Days, meeting types, IEP timelines, mental health, and a newly created position.

 

• MagicSchool.ai Educator AI Tool – Here’s an educator specific AI tool called MagicSchool.ai. You can use it to help lesson plan, differentiate, write assessments, create rubrics, write IEPs, communicate clearly, and more. I tired it asking “Raina” to write a SMART Goal for elementary morning meetings and got a far better result than I did from ChatGPT.

 

• Repeats & Reminders – See prior announcements for details:

• TalentEd Self-Assessment & Goals – All staff, both classified and licensed staff, need to complete the Self-Assessment/reflection in TalentEd by Sept. 30.

• PBIS Common Area Rules Review – If you haven’t already, review the PBIS Common Area Rules Review Slideshow with your class.

• Principal Visits to Classrooms – Let me know a 10 minutes block of time I can come and visit sometime this month to introduce myself and read a story to your class.

• SELCO’s Educator Grants, Due 9/30 – SELCO’s SPARK! Creative Learning Grant Program offers grants up to $1,000, which are due Sept. 30th.

• Holt Spirit Gear Sale Deadline, TUESDAY – See Ashely’s Email for details, but the limited edition Holt Spirit Gear Sale ends Sept. 20.

• Team Sign-Ups – Feel free to add you name to the Team Sign-Ups Spreadsheet.

 

• HANDBOOK HIGHLIGHT: Inside Recess – Since we very nearly had to do inside recess last week due to poor air quality, this week’s highlight from the Holt Staff Handbook seemed timely, which is on Inside Recess. Teachers should note of posting above your door your inside recess expectations/choices for students:

Inside Recess:

Indoor recess takes place in individual classrooms under the supervision of EA personnel. Having quiet activities available to students (board games, cards, coloring materials, hopscotch, manipulatives, etc.) is important.

Expectations:
• Students may not go in the cubbies
• No electronics. This includes iPads or classroom computers
• Students should choose a seated activity
• Games and activities should be provided and taught
• Students must stay in their own classroom
• Permission is needed by supervision staff to use the bathroom
• When the lights turn off turn and look at the adult by the door
• Classroom expectations/choices should be posted above your classroom door
• A trial plan is in place for allowing some access for under cover supervision during recesses
• Classroom teachers will have expectations in Guest Teacher binder and post on the wall (near or above the door) what room expectations are.
• All certified staff will teach their students what appropriate activities are prior to the first indoor recess.

Supervision:
• EAs and additional staff will be assigned to hallways and classrooms for supervision
• Teachers will take inside recess as their regular break time and are not required to supervise classes

 

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

September 18 (M)
Dental Packets Due
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Sign-Up
9:00, Allan to Parent Meeting
2:45, Allan to 504 Plan Meeting

September 19 (T)
Talk Like a Pirate Day
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL Team Meeting (Library)

September 20 (W)
7:30-8:30, Allan to 4JMAPS Meeting (Zoom)
1:30-2:30, Wed. PD – Optional Staff Shared Goals Planning
7:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

September 21 (H)
Regular Day

September 22 (F)
Regular Day

September 25 (M)
8:00, Morning Announcements Begin (Zoom) Pledge Sign-Up
3:30-5:30, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

September 26 (T)
Dynamos/Title 1st & 2nd Reading Groups Begin
5:00-6:30, Curriculum Night
⁃ 5:00-5:25, Grades K/1
⁃ 5:30-5:55, Grades 2/3
⁃ 6:00-6:25, Grades 4/5
⁃ 5:30-6:30, Pizza in the Cafeteria

September 27 (W)
Happy Birthday to Me!
1:30-2:30, Wed. PD – Stop, Walk, Talk Review

September 28 (H)
Dynamos/Title 3rd-5th Reading Groups Begin
Holt Night Out – DoughMo Cookies
10:15, Monday Announcer Tryouts (Reich’s Room)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)

September 29 (F)
Regular Day

 

And we’re three weeks away from our first four-day week, but who’s counting?

Allan

 

August 28, 2023

 

Greetings Holt Bolts,

It was great seeing licensed staff last Friday and I’m looking forward to seeing the whole team back together again later this week!

Sixteen items of note for this week:

• Behavior EAs TBA – We have two strong candidates we’re waiting on HR to make a job offer. Hopefully our new folks can start soon!

 

• ALL Licensed Staff to Conscious Discipline PD – Downtown asked principals to clarify that all licensed staff (counselors, PE, Music, SPED, Title, SSC, Library, Coaches, etc) and not just classroom teachers are supposed to attend.

 

• Snacks to Expect at Meetings – Monday we will have snackey types of food and coffee. Thursday we’ll have breakfast burritos, coffee, and my usual assortment of breakfast snacks. Friday is a shorter meeting will be leftover snacks.

 

• Master Schedule Notes – Two items on the 23-24 Master Schedule.

• EA Schedules – The 2023-2024 Master Schedule now includes the EA Schedule, though if folks spot anything that looks off, we can adjust.

• Specialist Schedule Corrections – We noticed the PE/Music/Library Specialist tab on the 23-24 Master Schedule is off for a few grades, so we’ll be working this week to make sure the specialist tab matches the times on the main tab.

 

• ParentSquare Info – If you were taken aback and surprised by the 4J Email and 4J Staff Update that went out to staff and families saying “All district and school, grade level and classroom information” will now come via ParentSquare, principals and Elementary Directors were also taking by surprise. We haven’t heard a training timeline or rollout plan yet, but it is live now if staff want to try it out. The Tech Department linked to resources below, but it’s pretty intuitive and user friendly, so I was able to figure it out without reading any directions and will use it from now on for parent and family communications. It really is a pretty slick app and gives you all sorts of information views, languages selected, types of devices, and other stats. Teachers don’t have to use it yet until we get rollout information, but you can feel free to try it if you’d like.

ParentSquare Training Videos
ParentSquare Training Materials
ParentSquare Teacher Guide

 

• Classroom Newsletters to Allan – I’d like to have copies of classroom newsletters when teachers send them out to families. I’m not positive you can CC on ParentSquare, but you can in Synergy. This helps me keep up to date on what’s happening or going to happen in classes when families ask and it also lets me know details of any class activities that I might be able to get local media to come out and cover. I love promoting our school! Let me know if anyone tries ParentSquare. I may be able to see posts as the building admin on the app.

 

• Principal Visits to Classrooms – As teachers start planning, I’d like to do my annual visit every classroom sometime during the first few weeks of school to greet students and introduce myself. I’ll read a favorite story to your class and chat with the kids a bit. Teachers, please let me know a 10 minutes block of time I can come and visit sometime this month. Thank you!

 

• easyCBM Assessment Windows – The current easyCBM windows have been 6 weeks at each benchmark assessment. There has been some discussion on a district team that this is too wide of a window and measurable growth happens in that 6 week window, so downtown is shortening that window to 3 weeks and will bring us a draft schedule soon. Stay tuned for more info.

 

• TalentEd Self-Assessment & Goals – All staff, both classified and licensed staff, need to complete the Self-Assessment/reflection in TalentEd by Sept. 30. Licensed Staff need to complete the Goals Development Form by Oct. 30. Once school gets started I’ll plan to again put a team together to create some optional building goals licensed staff can use if they would like.

 

• Self-Evaluation and Goals Guidance – For the self-evaluation, when you score yourself between Ineffective, Area for Growth, Effective, or Exemplary, most people will be in the Area for Growth or Effective range. If you score yourself Exemplary, that’s an area you should be teaching others across the district. It’s also totally fine to mark ineffective if that’s where you think you are.

For goals, I would say don’t make extra work for yourself and pick a goal you’re actually planning to work on. Licensed staff need to come up with a measurable SMART Goal, but for classified staff pick something like committing to trying Conscious Discipline practices or working on learning more kids names or working to keep your small group materials better organized. Essentially, make it a practical goal.

 

• BIPOC Mental Health Support – If you know of any BIPOC students in needs of counseling or mental health support, Looking Glass is now offering free services to families. I’ll put this in the Quick News, but keep this in the back of your mind for students who might benefit. See Megan, Kim, or Allan to make a referral or use the CARE Team Request Form.

 

• Ed Tech Update Highlights – I wanted to highlight an EdSurge Article in the latest 4J Ed Tech Update about using ChatGPT. Make a free account with your 4J or personal email and try it out! Use it to answer a tricky parent email (“Write an email reply saying why elementary kids should not wear Crocs to PE.” or “Write a lesson plan for a hands on activity teaching double digit subtraction.” or “Write an elementary parent newsletter article telling them only heathy snacks are allowed.” I started trying it last spring and it was a great timesaver. I always had to edit what it somewhat, but AI did most of the heavy lifting. Also noteworthy in the update, the Back to School Resources from ShakeUpLearning looked worth checking out.

 

• Beginning of the School Year: Safety/Injury Prevention Message – Risk Management asked principals to remind staff to stay safe while setting up your classroom; using safety ladders instead of chairs, using carts or hand trucks to move heavy items, consider stretching first, and using the “Green Zone” versus yellow or red zones for lifing heavy items. See the Risk Management Email for details.
 

• On the Road w/Steve Hartman: Kindness 101 – Here’s a cool news story about a 5th grade teacher who for 15 years has tried to promote kindness by showing a different On the Road with Steve Hartman segment each day (a revival of the old old Charles Kuralt segment us old timers might remember). This prompted CBS to create a Kindness 101 Facebook Group for Teachers. If you want to check out some of the segments or possibly show them to your students, here’s a CBS Evening News YouTube Playlist, which has over 500 segments, and a CBS Sunday Morning YouTube Playlist, with nearly 300 more. Segments are only 2-3 minutes and could be an easy way to show kids stories of kids and adults working to make the world a better place.

 

• Repeats & Reminders – See prior announcements for details, but take note of:

• Holt Spirit Gear Sale Deadline, Sept. 20 – See Ashely’s Email for details, but the limited edition Holt Spirit Gear Sale ends September 20th.

• Inservice Week Schedule – Linked here is the 4J Elementary Inservice Week Schedule.

• Team Sign-Ups – Feel free to add you name to the Team Sign-Ups Spreadsheet.

• Staff Walk-Up Songs – Add your “Walk-Up Song” to the Staff Walk-Up Song Survey.

• Holt Staff Fun Facts – Add or update your info to the Holt Staff Fun Facts Spreadsheet.

• Breakfast Burrito Orders Due MONDAY – Fill out the Breakfast Burrito Google Form by 12:00am, Monday, August 28th to get one at the 8/31 Staff Meeting.

• Make Sure Your Voicemail is Set Up – All teachers should ensure your 4J voicemail is set up and working. See the Quick Start Voice Mail User Guide for how to set it up.

• Class List Email Friday Afternoon, Sept. 1 after 3:00 – Teachers should plan on message families through Synergy or ParentSquare a welcome letter to families of all students in your class on Friday, September 1st after 3:00.

• Elementary Testing Coordinator – Anyone interested in taking over as the testing coordinator (easyCBM & OSAS) for a 2% salary stipend? Let me know if you are interested or have any questions. I’ve done testing coordination before and can help whoever takes on this duty.

• SPED EA Professional Development – SPED EAs will attend a Zoom PD session this Friday from 12:30-2:30 to learn about a new intervention curriculum, UFLI Foundations. If this is outside of anyone’s normal work hours, balance your hours over the course of this week. The Zoom link will likely come in an email and/or will be posted on the Inservice Week Schedule.

• Insurance Open Enrollment Deadline, Sept. 15 – Choose your insurance plan by September 15th or else you will lose your health insurance benefits for this year. See the 4J Open Enrollment 2022-23 Website for details.

 

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

August 28 (M)
8:00-11:00 – Building PD – Leadership Plan, Licensed Staff Nuts & Bolts
12:00, Breakfast Burrito Orders Due
12:30-4:00 – Conscious Discipline PD (Holt Gym/Cafeteria)

August 29 (T)
8:00-11:30 – Teacher Prep
12:30-4:00 – Conscious Discipline PD (Holt Gym/Cafeteria)
6:00-7:00 – Holt PTO Board Meeting (Library)

August 30 (W)
Classified Staff Report Back
9:00-11:00 – 4J Welcome Back Event (Sheldon HS Track)
11:00-12:00, Lunch and Transition Time
12:00-4:00 – Grade Level & Specialist PD (See LINK for locations)

August 31 (H)
7:30-11:15 – Building PD – SCIP, Equity, Nuts & Bolts (All Staff, Cafeteria)
7:30-8:00, Snacks and Socializing
8:00-11:15, Meeting Time
11:45-3:30 – Building PD – Structured Collaboration

September 1 (F)
8:00-10:00 – Building PD – BEPA, SEL (Licensed Staff, Library)
10:00-11:00, Classified Staff Meeting (Library)
11:00-12:00, Optional New Staff Orientation and Q&A (Library)
12:30-2:30, SPED EA Training (Zoom)
12:30-3:30 – Teacher Prep

September 4 (M)
Labor Day – No School

September 5 (T)
7:30-9:00 – Staff Meeting, If Needed (Library)
2:00-3:00, Meet Your Teacher (Classrooms)
2:30-3:30, Kona Ice Fundraiser (Playground)

September 6 (W)
Kinder Starts
Grades 1-5 Structured Collaboration & Support of Kinder Smart Start

September 7 (H)
All Grade Levels Start

September 8 (F)
1:30-2:00, Welcome Back Assembly (Gym or Outside)

 

See you, all, soon!

Allan

June 5, 2023

 

Hello Holt Bolts,

If kids and adults seemed nutty this week, I’m sure it’s because Saturday’s full moon was the lowest of the year. Credit to Candace for sharing this factoid!

Nineteen items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Two updates:

OFFICE ASSISTANT – Our office assistant position did not have anyone bump into it, so the position should post sometime this week.

NURSE – Our fabulous School Nurse, Eden, is sadly leaving us next year and is moving to her neighborhood school, Howard, where her kiddo will attend kindergarten next year. It’s been great working with you this year and you will be missed! SSD will place someone soon.

• REPEAT: Fire Drill, TUESDAY @8:05 – Our final Fire Drill of the year will be this Tuesday at 8:05. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

• REPEAT: Sheldon Senior Grad Walk, THURSDAY – Sheldon HS will hold a Grad Walk on this Thursday at 9:45. Classes are invited (though not required) to line the halls to clap and cheer (signs are a nice touch) for seniors in their cap and gowns who attended Holt as I lead them through their elementary hallowed halls one final time. See this email for details, but basically it’s a chance for seniors to connect with staff they knew, to be cheered on by kids and staff, and also serve as an inspiration to our elementary kiddos. SHS said they’ll connect with us soon with additional details, but they’re planning on two buses worth of Holt alumni coming to visit!

• REPEAT: Report Card Grading Day Expectations, FRIDAY – This Friday is a regular work day for both classified and licensed staff. For licensed staff, HR allows teachers to work from home if you notify your administrator (me) in advance, but be sure to plan ahead if you need to collaborate with any colleagues this day. Also, be sure to use this time for grading and not use it to run errands around town. Teachers are highly visible members of the community, so keep in mind public perception. HR has said that if working off-site on grading days is abused, we will not be allowed to continue the practice. For classified staff, this is a good day to cash in any accumulated trade time you’ve built up, but remember you need to notify me before you begin accumulating trade time.

• Report Card Info & Guidance – For reference, downtown asked principals to share the linked Report Card Guidance for when you start working on report cards. Their link is formatted a little funky, so here’s a PDF Version that’s not sideways on the second page.

• CORRECTION (K-2 & 3-5 times were flip flopped) Field Day, June 13th – Field Day will be Tuesday, June 13th. 305 will go 8:45-10:15 and grade K-2 will be 12:00-1:30. Field Day will run similarly to last year, but see the linked Field Day Doc for details, but the main things teachers need to prep for is to divide students into 4 color groups before field day, Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow.

• Kona Ice Fundraiser, June 13 @1:30 – Kona Ice is coming to Holt Tuesday, June 13th at 1:30. Teachers should send bus riders who brought money to hard play at 1:30 (15-minutes earlier than last time), so they have time to buy and eat their shave ice before having to get onto the bus. And remember, all staff get a free shave ice! Just show your badge!

• Last Day Lunch Plan, 6/15 – Deb is already planning our last day of meal service, which will have grade levels coming to the cafeteria to simply pick up a sack lunch on a 5-minute rotating basis, which they will put in their backpacks to take home (bus riders included).

10:25 – Kinder
10:30 – 1st
10:35 – 2nd
10:40 – 3rd
10:45 – 4th
10:50 – 5th
11:10 – Early Dismissal

• REPEAT: LICENSED: Goals Reflection Due & Sample Language – All licensed staff need to complete their Goals Reflection in TalentEd by the end of the school year. If you used the Optional SMART Goals shared in the fall, linked here is a 2023-2023 SMART Goals Reflection Sample you can cut-and-paste from if that’s helpful to folks. And remember, no shame or blame if you didn’t achieve all of your goals. Let me know if you have any questions on this.

• REPEAT: CLASSIFIED: TalentEd Self Reflection – Most Classified Staff completed the Self Reflection at the start of the year in TalentEd, but if you didn’t do it already, be sure to log onto TalentEd and complete the form as soon as possible. Let me know if you need any help with this.

• REPEAT: 23-24 Class Lists Review – Linked here are the 23-24 Class Lists for staff to review and make any suggested revisions if you spot any bad combinations or imbalanced classes. Sending and receiving teams will to discuss students at Tuesday’s Staff Meeting, so let teams know your suggestions before then.

• REPEAT: End of Year Checklist – Linked here is the End of Year Checklist. Once teachers have completed all tasks on this list and have had me or Jeremy sign-off, you are free to start your summer. And that includes if you take care of everything on Thursday, June 15th! I’ll put hardcopies in mailboxes next week.

• REPEAT: Erin’s Law & Second Step Child Safety Unit – All classroom teachers should use the Second Step Child Protection Unit for meeting the state Erin’s Law requirements. For each grade level, there are six lessons, which are to be covered at three points in the school year, with Lessons 1-4 in the fall, lesson 5 right before spring break, and lesson 6 right before summer break (within the last two weeks of school). Each grade level has their own kit, but linked here are Child Protection Unit Scans of the teacher guides if that makes things easier.

• James Brown Award – James Brown Award Nominations – This award is in honor of James Brown, one of the first custodians at Holt. He worked extremely hard to make our school a safe, clean, and beautiful place to be. Throughout his 13 years at Holt, he was a hard-working, dedicated, humble, and kind member of the staff. Each year, a staff member is recognized who exemplifies the characteristics resembling James. We would like your help in awarding this year’s recipient, if you can nominate a fellow staff member on this Google Form. For your reference, here are the past James Brown winners:

2017 James Brown Presented with Award
2018 Winner – Lisa Goff
2019 Winners – Jincy and Heidi
2020 Winner Jenny Potter
2021 Winner Kelsey Hicks
2022 Winner Ryan Brown

• Ems Tickets – The Holt Night at the Ems is Wednesday, June 21st. We have extra tickets if any staff would like to get some tickets for this game.

• Summer School Classroom Map – This was shared at a prior Staff Meeting, but liked here is the most current Summer School Map and which classrooms will be used.

• June SSD Newsletter – Linked here is the final SSD Newsletter of the school year that was sent to SPED teachers and principals, and has info about year-end SPED activities and responsibilities.

• 21 Unexpected Last-Day-of-School Activities Your Students Will Love – It’s almost here—the last day of school. Linked here is a WeAreTeachers Article with some fun end of year activities. My favorites on here are #3 Hold a classroom trivia tournament, #6 Let your students teach, #7 Play end-of-year classmates bingo, #21 21. Serve up a scoop of memories, and #23 Wear a Last Day of School crown.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

June 5 (M)
Happy ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ Day
Library Week #2 Classes
Kindergarten Staff Room Duty
PE & Music Outside (Kickball Field)
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

June 6 (T)
Birthday Drinks & Goodies in Staff Room:
8:05, Fire Drill
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting – Class List Transitions (Library)

June 7 (W)
Monthly Walk+Roll to School Day
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

June 8 (H)
Last Day for Dynamos, Speech, Library, & ELD
9:00, Safety Committee Meeting (Office)
9:30, Sheldon Senior Grad Walk
2:45-3:30, IPBS Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)
5:00-6:00, Site Council Meeting (Library)
6:00-7:00, PAHS Meeting (Library)

June 9 (F)
No School – Grading Day
8:00-1100, Allan to Admin LETRS Training (Zoom)
1:00, Allan to IEP Meeting (Zoom)

June 10 (SA)
7:00-9:00, Sheldon HS Graduation (Hult Center)

June 12 (M)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
1st Grade Staff Room Duty
PE & Music Both in Gym
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

June 13 (T)
8:45-10:15, Field Day, Grades 3-5
12:00-1:30, Field Day, Grades K-2

1:30-3:00, Kona Ice Fundraiser (Hard Play)
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

June 14 (W)
PE & Music Both in Gym
8:30-10:30, KG Walking Field Trip (Country Lane Park)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings

June 15 (H)
Last Day for Students – Release Time 11:10
Last Day for Classified Staff
PE & Music Both in Gym
8:30-10:00, 5th Grade Breakfast & Celebration (Cafeteria & N. Park Church)
9:00-10:00, Kinder Magic Show (TBD)
Grab-and-Go Lunches
-10:25 – Kinder
-10:30 – 1st
-10:35 – 2nd
-10:40 – 3rd
-10:45 – 4th
-10:50 – 5th
-11:10 – Early Dismissal

11:30-12:30, Annual End-of-Year BBQ (Cafeteria)

June 16 (F)
Last Day for Licensed Staff
7:30-9:00, Allan to MAPS Board Meeting

Seven and a half days to go!

Allan

May 22, 2023

Hi Everyone,

The Spring Carnival was a ton of fun! My favorite moment was when a 2nd grader at the car bash paused whacking the car with a baseball bat for a moment to yell out, “I’ve been waiting my whole life to do this!”

With just four short weeks left in the school year, I wanted to remind everyone to do your best to stay positive when working with challenging students and situations. I know I’ve caught myself being short with students I could have handled differently. Remember to take the extra time to pre-teach the behaviors you expect, acknowledge positive behaviors when students are following expectations, and when students are not following expectations, start with a reteach, giving students a chance to turn things around before jumping to a consequence. We’re all tired at this point in the year, so it’s important we remember the teaching component when handling misbehaviors (myself included).

Twenty items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Three staffing updates:

SECRETARY, Sharon Alberts! – I’m pleased to announce that Sharon has been hired as our secretary for next school year! This means we’ll be hiring for her office assistant position, which I hope will get posted this week. We’re glad you’ll be in this role to take care of us next year, Sharon!

0.2 PE POSTING PULLED – HR pulled our PE job posting because they may be placing someone into this position. 

0.2 MUSIC INTERVIEWS – Ashely and I will conduct interviews for this position after school on Zoom, 2:35-3:45. If anyone would like to be part of interviews, let me know and I will send you the interview materials.

• Team Meetings, WEDNESDAY, Class Lists Due – Grade level teams should complete your 23-24 Class Lists by this Wednesday. After Team Meetings, lists will be available for classified and licensed staff to review and share feedback ahead of the June 6th Staff Meeting were grade levels will meet to share individual student information.

• Fundations + Math Student Consumable Order Due FRIDAY – See this email for details, but remember that consumable orders for Fundations and Math are due Friday, May 26th. One person from each grade level should place your order.

• Holt Spirit Day – Vacation Day, FRIDAY – This Friday is a Holt Spirit Day and this time it’s Vacation Day. Show your school spirt by dressing up as if you’re going on vacation (tropical shirts, sunglasses, tourist gear, etc.) or simply wear your Holt spirit gear! Get your students pumped!

• Final Friday PD: Staff Choice – This Friday is Staff Choice. I plan to ask at Monday’s principal meeting if the Zoom trainings are still happening. Seems the last few times they did not share out the Zoom links and I’m not sure they’re actually happening.

On a related note, this is the last Friday PD of the year. Next week (6/2) is a double prep to make up for Grading Day (6/9), and the final Friday of the year (6/16) is the last day of school for licensed staff.

• Staff Social! Friday @4:00 at Beer Garden! – Mark your calendar for our final Friday at 4:00 of the school year, which will be at The Beer Garden. See you there!

• Last Book Nook, May 31 – Let your kiddos know that Wednesday, May 31st will be the last Book Nook for the school year.

• Annual Safety Inspection, May 31st @10:30 – Third time’s the charm. 4J’s liability insurance agent and members of 4J Risk Management are scheduled to conduct a safety walkthrough inspection next week on Wednesday, May 31st around 10:30. Linked here is a handout of the Most Common Classroom Safety Violations. The two main items we got dinged for last time were:

• Combustable items hanging from ceilings
• Door egress width (3 feet) blocked by rolling carts and other items

• May Spirt Assembly & Talent Show Combo Assembly, June 1 – Rather than hold two separate assemblies so close to one another, we’ll combine the May School Spirit Assembly and the Talent Show Assembly for Thursday, June 1st, 8:30-9:30 in the cafeteria. Linked here is the Assembly Map and Directions. Stay tuned for additional directions for the performers.

• Erin’s Law & Second Step Child Safety Unit – All classroom teachers should use the Second Step Child Protection Unit for meeting the state Erin’s Law requirements. For each grade level, there are six lessons, which are to be covered at three points in the school year, with Lessons 1-4 in the fall, lesson 5 right before spring break, and lesson 6 right before summer break (within the last two weeks of school). Each grade level has their own kit, but linked here are Child Protection Unit Scans of the teacher guides if that makes things easier.

• Lockdown Magnets Are Here & Please Give Feedback – I shared earlier I’d volunteered us to try using the lockdown door magnets, which the plan for is that doors will always be locked and the magnets will be placed over the latch plate on the door jam, which allows the door to remain unlocked, but in the case of an emergency, the magnet can simply be pulled off by anyone to secure a classroom instead of staff having to fumble for keys. For teachers who currently keep your doors locked and closed, you are welcome to continue this practice if you choose. We will deliver magnets to staff for use on interior doors, and since this is a pilot, be sure to share with me any feedback once you start using them.

 

• Raptor Tech Issue and Rosters Not Synced – Risk Management emailed principals they are having tech issues syncing student rosters in Raptor Alert, so if you didn’t see your class during last week’s Fire Drill in the Raptor app, it wasn’t you, it was a district tech issue, which they are working towards resolving.

• 4J COVID Protocol Updates – 4J is changing three COVID protocols to align with changes in state policy. One, COVID positive staff and students are no longer required to quarantine for 5 days and instead just need to be fever free for 24 hours without meds. Two, schools recieve new testing kits in the fall to have on-hand. Three, effective June 17th, the vaccination and religious or medical exemption requirement for staff, visitors, and volunteers will end. See this email for details.

• Ems Tickets for Sluggo’s Reading Challenge – Ems Tickets are here. They are sorted by class. There are also free staff tickets, two per staff member. Come get your tickets from Melanie by the end of the week and any tickets left after that can be claimed by staff wanting more than just the two tickets.

• Free Moving Boxes – Melanie ordered boxes for staff who are moving classrooms or schools, but the warehouse dropped off twice as many as we’d asked for (we think they’re trying to get rid of them), so staff are welcome to take what you want. The boxes are on a pallet next to lost and found. The sooner you can take them the better.

• Mystery Science Subscription? – 4J has cancelled the district license for Mystery Science due to low usage rates. It’s $1,695 for a site license if there are enough teachers who want it. Let me know by the end of the week if you and/or your grade level regularly use this and would want it for next year.

• UO Field Study Volunteers for Your Classroom – Are you looking for extra support in the classroom next year? If so, there are UO Education undergrads hoping to complete their required Field Study in classrooms with teachers. See this email for additional info, but if you would like to host an intern, RSVP at https://tinyurl.com/UOHostFieldStudy

• District Admin Updates – Eight district admin updates for next year. Erin Gaston, the current Howard principal, is the new Elementary Curriculum and MTSS Administrator. Replacing Erin at Howard is Charlie Jett, principal at Twin Rivers/Dos Rios in Springfield. Adrienne Pierce, current Elementary Curriculum Administrator, is the new Secondary Curriculum and MTSS Administrator. Nadira Rizkallah, former HR/Equity Director in South Lane, is the new principal at Edgewood Elementary. Kimberly Ingram, and elementary prinicpal in Salem-Keizer, is the new principal at Yujin Gakuen. Justin Corey, current principal at Junction City High School, will be the principal at Madison Middle School. Morgan Christensen, the current 4J Title IX Coordinator, is the new HR Licensed Administrator, taking Mike Ingram’s place, who is returning as the Sheldon principal. Lastly, Megan Russell, current AP at Gilham, is the new assistant principal at Monroe and taking her AP job at Gilham is Tom Piowaty, the current Yujin Gakuen principal (who Lavinia used to be his AP at Corridor/YG). See these emails (one and two) for details.

• 24 Morning Message Ideas To Get Your Day Started on the Right Foot – A morning message is the perfect way to engage your students the minute they walk through the door. Answering a question with no right or wrong answer allows learners to discover and articulate what’s important to them and supports their social-emotional growth. Not only that, the questions can spark important conversations that bring your community together on a deeper level. Here are some of WeAreTeachers Favorite Morning Message Ideas teachers are using to connect with their students.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the rest of the year:

May 22 (M)
Upbeat Survey Closes
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #2 Classes
SPED Staff Room Duty
Scholastic Book Fair BOGO Sale
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 23 (T)
10:45-11:45, Math Acceleration Testing (TBA)
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meetings (Kelsey’s Room)

May 24 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
10:45-11:45, Math Acceleration Testing (TBA)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Team Meetings – Class Lists Deadline
2:35-3:45, 0.2 Music Teacher Interviews (Zoom)

May 25 (H)
Towel Day
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
2:45-3:30, Leadership Team Meeting (Library)

May 26 (F)
Holt Spirit Day – Vacation Day!
Fundations + Math Student Consumable Order Due
7:30-9:00, Allan to 4JMAPS Meeting
9:15-9:45, 4/5 Monroe Victory Tour Performance (tentative)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Staff Choice
1:30-2:30, Classified Staff Meeting (Library)
4:00, Holt Friday at 4:00! (Beer Garden)

May 29 (M)
No School – Memorial Day

May 30 (T)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #1 Classes
Office/PE/Music Staff Room Duty
PE & Music Outside (Gaga Ball)
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
2:45, Allan to Parent Meeting

May 31 (W)
8:50-10:45, Final Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:30-4:00, Talent Show Rehearsal (Music Room)

June 1 (H)
6:00-7:45, Talent Show (Cafeteria)

June 2 (F)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD -Double Prep

June 5 (M)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #2 Classes
Title Staff Room Duty
PE & Music Outside (Kickball Field)
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

June 6 (T)
Birthday Drinks & Goodies in Staff Room:
8:05, Fire Drill
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting – Class List Transitions (Library)

June 7 (W)
Monthly Walk+Roll to School Day
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Team Meetings – Class Lists Deadline
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

June 8 (H)
Last Day for Dynamos / Title 1 Groups
9:00, Safety Committee Meeting (Office)
2:45-3:30, IPBS Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)
5:00-6:00, Site Council Meeting (Library)
6:00-7:00, PAHS Meeting (Library)

June 9 (F)
No School – Grading Day
8:00-1100, Allan to Admin LETRS Training (Zoom)

June 10 (SA)
7:00-9:00, Sheldon HS Graduation (Hult Center)

June 12 (M)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #1 Classes
Kindergarten Staff Room Duty
PE & Music Outside (Kickball Field)
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

June 13 (T)
8:45-10:15, Field Day, Grades 3-5
12:00-1:30, Field Day, Grades K-2
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

June 14 (W)
8:30-10:30, KG Walking Field Trip (Country Lane Park)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings
1:30, Kona Shave Ice Fundraiser (Hard Play)

June 15 (H)
Last Day for Students – Release Time 11:10
Last Day for Classified Staff
8:30-10:00, 5th Grade Breakfast & Celebration (Cafeteria)
9:00-10:00, Kinder Magic Show (TBD)
Grab-and-Go Lunches
     10:25 – Kinder
     10:30 – 1st
     10:35 – 2nd
     10:40 – 3rd
     10:45 – 4th
     10:50 – 5th
11:10 – Early Dismissal
11:30-12:30, Annual End-of-Year BBQ (Cafeteria)
June 16 (F)
Last Day for Licensed Staff
7:30-9:00, Allan to MAPS Board Meeting

 

It’s our last 5-day week of the year, ending with a 3-day weekend!

Allan

 

May 15, 2023

Greetings Bolts,

This Monday is National Speech Pathologist Day, so a big shout out to our awesome SLP, Katharine, who we are so lucky to have here at Holt!

Twenty-five items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Two updates:

0.5 SPED TEACHER VACANCY – After previously changing their mind, SSD is once again moving Sheryl Carroll to Holt, where she will be 0.5 at Holt and 0.5 at YG. Sheryl is currently a SPED teacher at Edison.

SECRETARY & 0.2 PE/MUSIC – We held secretary interviews last Thursday and are waiting on HR to make a job offer. The part-time PE and Music Job Postings are now up and we have at least one solid candidate applying for each position, so we should be good for next year!

• Raptor & Fire Drill, THURSDAY @8:05 – Staff should now be able to log onto the Raptor app (iOS and Android) with your 4J email and password. Staff are not required to use the app for the May 18th fire drill at 8:05, but I’m going to initiate an evacuation on the app so staff can see how the app works during an emergency. Do note that staff are not required to install this app on your personal devices, but may do so if you choose. Next year, I think we should have all teachers use the app to account for students, so we are practiced using the app if there ever were a real emergency, especially for evacuation/reunification situation such at what happened at SEHS last week. Teachers not wanting to install the app on a personal device could install it on their district issued iPad and if you were out of wifi range could have a colleague mark your students accounted-for for you. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

• Holt Spring Carnival, FRIDAY, 6:00-8:00 – Remind your kids to bring the whole family (adult must be present with kids) to the Holt Spring Carnival this Friday from 6:00-8:00. There will be games, a cake walk, food trucks, free pizza (one slice per person), and a car bash! This is a free event.

• Friday PD: Curriculum – The 4J PD Calendar lists “Curriculum” and “SPED Educator Training” as the topic for this Friday’s PD, but nothing else has been shared with principals. If downtown doesn’t pull anything together, plan on this being additional individual and team prep time.

• Class Lists Due May 24th – Grade level teams should complete your 23-24 Class Lists by Wednesday, May 24th. After Team Meetings that day, lists will be available for classified and licensed staff to review and share feedback ahead of the June 6th Staff Meeting were grade levels will meet to share individual student information.

• Fundations + Math Student Consumable Order Due, May 26 – See this email for details, but remember that consumable orders for Fundations and Math are due Friday, May 26th. One person from each grade level should place your order.

• Holt Spirit Day, May 26th – Friday, May 26th is a Holt Spirit Day. We stole Wacky Hat Day for last month’s Spirit Day since Recycle Day didn’t quite play out, so stay tuned for the official theme. How about Mix-Up / Clash Day, where kids wear crazy mismatched clothes? That’s an easy one for all kids to participate. Stay tuned!

• 4th & 5th Assembly Monroe Victory Tour Performance – Monroe Middle School Band and Choir are performing for feeder school 4th and 5th graders. We’re waiting for confirmation, but we’re tentatively expecting the assembly to happen Friday, May 26th, 9:15-9:45 in the gym.

• Friday PD: Staff Choice – Friday, May 26th is Staff Choice. I plan to ask at the next prinicpal meeting if the ULD trainings are still happening. Seems the last few times they did not share out the Zoom links and I’m not sure they actually happening.

• Staff Social! Friday @4:00 on May 26th! – Location is TBA (don’t ask me to choose or else we’ll end up at The Embers on HWY99), but mark your calendar for our final Friday at 4:00 of the school year!

• May Spirt Assembly & Talent Show Combo Assembly, June 1 – Rather than hold two separate assemblies so close to one another, we’ll combine the May School Spirit Assembly and the Talent Show Assembly. May 26th will still be a spirit day (stay tuned on the theme since we moved up Wacky Hat Day), but we won’t have an assembly that day and will shift it to the Talent Show Assembly Date on Thursday, June 1st, doing drawing between acts and such.

• Responding to Racial Slurs Follow-Up – On the Zimbra Calendar, the Google Drive, The Staff Dashboard, and linked here is the Responding to Racial Slurs Slideshow. This slideshow contains a lot of ready-to-go activities and slides teachers can use. There’s also several links embedded in the slideshow including the Little Spot SEL Books, Indigenous People’s Day Resources, and videos of Don’t Touch My Hair by Sharee Miller and Marvelous Max – Autism Awareness for Kids. A future PD following next fall might be looking at what are the words and common language we might use for bias incidents.

On a related note, the 4J Equity Department added a page containing Specific Topic Resources for responding to issues of hate and bias.

• 23-24 Master Schedule Updates – Reps met last week and although it may not be a “Dream Schedule” it seems to at least be an “I Can Live with this Schedule.” This will be on the agenda for Tuesday’s Staff Meeting, but linked here is the Draft 23-24 Master Schedule. A couple caveats on the schedule are one, Title & SPED need to make sure Tier 3 times when there are two grade levels being served at the same time that they are not both heavy caseloads, and two, we are continuing to look at changing around the library schedule where we would do weekly 30-minute Library lessons and weekly 15-minute checkout time (most classes checking out on Wednesdays and a few on other days). Feel free to let me know ahead of Tuesday’s Staff Meeting if you have any questions.

• SEAL (i.e.Summer School) Classroom Use – Downtown needs 4 classrooms for KITS, and for SEAL needs 2 classrooms at each grade for rising 1st through 5th (this year’s 5th graders will go to the middle school program). I think we should exempt any classrooms from hosting if there is a new classroom teacher moving into that space. I also tried to rotate out teachers who hosted last year when possible (kinder classes and a few other don’t get a break). I’ve put this on the staff meeting agenda as a discussion/decision item, but linked here is my Proposed Summer School Map as a starting place and for reference here is Last Year’s Summer School Map.

• Playground Supervisor Reminders – Two Playground Rules reminders:

• No Pushing Kids on Swings – Students need to swing themselves and should not be pushed by other students or staff.

• No Tag/Chase/Monster Games – Tag and other chase games are not allowed, which can too easily lead to unintentional injuries and student conflicts.

• No Sidewalk Chalk on Building – If you are doing any sidewalk chalk activities with students, do not allow them to write on the building. Rain does not wash it off, so it’s pretty much there for good when kids do this. The same happens when kids do sidewalk chalk underneath covered areas, though foot traffic will eventually remove them, but it takes much longer than one good rain, so covered areas should be avoided too.

• Check That Exterior Doors Latch – It’s that time of year when there are air pressure changes and the doors don’t always latch. It’s important that all exterior doors remain locked and are secure, so when going in or out of the building, make sure the is latched shut. Jeremy has put in a work order to have the doors adjusted by the kinder wing and by the bike cage, so let me know if you notice any other doors that need fixed.

• Last Day Lunch Plan – Deb is already planning our last day of meal service, which will have grade levels coming to the cafeteria to simply pick up a sack lunch on a 5-minute rotating basis, which they will put in their backpacks to take home (bus riders included).

10:25 – Kinder
10:30 – 1st
10:35 – 2nd
10:40 – 3rd
10:45 – 4th
10:50 – 5th
11:10 – Early Dismissal

• Seesaw Renewed for 3-Years – I learned on Friday that 4J has renewed the Seesaw district license for 3 more years. I’ll put on a future Friday or Staff Meeting agenda whether we want to use Seesaw or another common communication tool with families next year.

• Volunteers Policy Change – One small change in the 4J communicable disease management plan is that individuals with a vaccine exemption are no longer required to wear a mask. I’ll let downtown communicate this out to families, but I thought staff would want to know.

• Free Bike Locks, Lights, and Helmets – If you know of any students in need, Safe Routes to School is offering free bike locks, lights, and helmets. Just let Felicia know you need any. See this email for details.

• Safety Inspection Rescheduled Again, May 31st – I was emailed that our annual inspection date got rescheduled again and is now Wednesday, May 31st at 10:30.

• Airblade Hand Dryers – If you haven’t noticed (and I’m sure you have), but the new restroom hand dryers are extremely loud. To help minimize the noise, teachers might show kids how you’re supposed to use the new hand dryers by showing the video below. Kids are often using it wrong and that means they’re using it longer and making more noise for nearby classrooms (not to mention if they’re trying to talk over it).

• District Admin Updates – Three district admin updates for next year. One, Kevin Gordon will be the new principal of Chavez, replacing Deirdre Pearson, who took an admin job out of district. Two, Ed Mendelssohn is the new College and Career Readiness / Career and Technical Education Administrator, replacing Tia Holliday, who is retiring. Three, Eric Anderson, 4J Director of Instruction, has taken a job as assistant superintendent at the LaneESD. See these emails (one and two) for details.

• 38 Awesome Team-Building Games and Activities for Kids – We may be nearing the end of the year, but cooperative team building games are great for SEL and community building any time during the year. This WeAreTeachers Article has 38 fun activities to give you ideas. Feel free to take a break in class or take your kids out in the sun! Some personal favorites on the list that I’ve done or looked fun were #16 Hula-Hoop pass, #22 No-hands cup-stacking challenge (probably more for older kids), #27 Caterpillar, #32 Zip, Zap, Zop, and #34 Newspaper Fashion Show.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

May 15 (M)
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive – Final Week
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Upbeat Survey Open Until May 22nd
Final Library Checkout Week
Library Week #1 Classes
ELD/Speech/Counselor/Library Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
4:00-5:30, Allan to All Admin Meeting (Ed Center)

May 16 (T)
8:45-12:15, 4th & 5th Holt/WillaG Track Meet (Sheldon Track)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library) Give a Staff Shout Out!

May 17 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45, Staff Talent Show Video (Reich’s Room)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

May 18 (H)
National Speech Pathologist Day (Title)
8:05, Fire Drill
1:30-2:30, Allan Meeting w/Risk & Safety Dept. (Office)
2:45-3:30, IPBS Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

May 19 (F)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Curriculum/SPED Training (TBA)
6:00-8:00, Holt Spring Carnival (Hard Play, Cafeteria)

May 22 (M)
Upbeat Survey Closes
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #2 Classes
SPED Staff Room Duty
Scholastic Book Fair BOGO Sale
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 23 (T)
10:45-11:45, Math Acceleration Testing (TBA)
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meetings (Kelsey’s Room)

May 24 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
10:45-11:45, Math Acceleration Testing (TBA)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Team Meetings – Class Lists Deadline

May 25 (H)
Towel Day
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
2:45-3:30, Leadership Team Meeting (Library)

May 26 (F)
Holt Spirit Day – Theme is TBA
Fundations + Math Student Consumable Order Due
7:30-9:00, Allan to 4JMAPS Meeting
9:15-9:45, 4/5 Monroe Victory Tour Performance (tentative)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Staff Choice
1:30-2:30, Classified Staff Meeting (Library)
4:00, Holt Friday at 4:00! (Location TBA)

Just two more 5-day weeks left!

Allan

May 8, 2023

Hi Everyone,

A big shout-out to the amazing Nurse Eden for School Nurse Day happening this Wednesday! Not only do you take care of the daily barfs, nose bleeds, bumps, and bruises, you do it all with a smile and a sense of humor. We’re lucky to have you here, Eden!

Nineteen items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Four updates:

2ND GRADE – Jenny Bemiller has been hired for our 2nd grade vacancy. She’s currently teaching 2nd grade at Chavez and before that taught 1st grade in Bethel. Please welcome Jenny to the team and to the “Holt Staff Same-Name Club,” which here’s the list for next year: Amber & Amber, Ashley & Ashley, Carol & Carol, Debbi & Deb, Elizabeth & Liz, Jenny & Jenny, Katie, Katherine & Kathy, Kelly & Kelly, Lisa, Lisa & Lisa, Rob & Robbie, Robin & Robin, and Tracey & Tracy.

SECRETARY INTERVIEWS THURSDAY – We’ll conduct interviews for next year’s secretary this Thursday after school. If any of you would like to volunteer your time to help with interviews, let me know and I’ll send you the interview questions and candidate applications.

0.2 FTE PE & MUSIC – I’ve submitted requisition to hire for these positions.

BEST EA JOB POSTINGS 2.5 and 3-hour BEST EA Job Postings for next year have been reopened if anyone is interested. The posting closes Wednesday.

• Classified Sick Leave Bank Open Enrollment Help Session, TUESDAY – Not this week, but next week 4J Classified Benefits Coordinator will be in the staff room on Tuesday, May 9th from 10:30-12:00. They will be available to answer questions about the Sick Leave Bank as well as provide information on how to enroll, but feel free to ask any benefit related questions you may have.

• 23-24 Master Schedule Meeting, TUESDAY – Reps will meet this Tuesday at 2:45 in the library to compare our grade level dream schedules for next year. Make sure you team has entered your schedule onto the 23-24 Skeleton Master Schedule Spreadsheet. We’ll see how schedules match up, make adjustment, and plan next steps (we’ll see if we’re close or if we need to do a lot more work).

• Class Lists Pre-Meeting, WEDNESDAY– For Team Meetings this week we’ll meet in the library for a pre-class list meeting so receiving grades can meet with sending grades before teachers begin adding creating next year’s 2023-24 Class List Placement Form. We’ll start with K/1, 2/3, and 4/5 meeting, and when teams are finished 1/2 and 3/4 will meet. I think we will forgo teams filling out the 2023-24 Class List Placement Form for this month. Following this meeting, grade should work on building next year’s lists. Let me know if any teachers want student cards to help with sorting. We can print some basic ones that look like Student ID Cards or if you want cards with all the information on the spreadsheets, we can print either or both. We’ll hold grade level transition meetings at the June 6th Staff Meeting.

• Friday PD: Upbeat Survey – The Friday is listed as Building Based PD, though downtown is pulling all kindergarten teachers for a separate meeting. Downtown is also planning to have all staff complete a second spring Upbeat Survey to provide building and district admins feedback. The survey is supposed to be emailed to staff on Monday and Friday will be the designated time for staff to complete the survey.

• Raptor & Fire Drill, May 18 – Staff should now be able to log onto the Raptor app (iOS and Android) with your 4J email and password. Staff are not required to use the app for the May 18th fire drill at 8:05, but I’m going to initiate an evacuation on the app, so staff can see how the app works during an emergency. Next year I think we should have all teachers use the app to account for students, so we are practiced using the app if there ever were a real emergency or an evacuation/reunification situation such at what happened at SEHS last week. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

• Updated 23-24 Class Assignments – A group of interventionist reps met last week and made some updates to the 23-24 Class Assignments Map. Changes from the earlier map have Title moving into the counseling office and the small SPED classroom across the hall. A-02 will be the part-time SPED teacher’s classroom, who currently serves 3rd graders primarily. The counselor would move into the E53 Calming Room (counselor could use the current Quarantine Room to meet privately with students), alone with the SSC (Kim), FRC (Felicia), BBSA (Levi), and Instructional Coach (Carla). I’ll put this on the agenda for the next Staff Meeting, but feel free to share your thoughts with me before then.

• 150 Minute Weekly PE Requirement – 4J elementary schools have been out of compliance with OAR 581-022-2263 in regards to Physical Education instruction for the past few years. In order to meet this state requirement for the 23-24 school year, each school will need to provide 150 minutes of instruction connected to the Oregon PE Standards. At least 50% of these minutes need to be physical activities. The 4J PD Compliance Plan at the elementary level will combine Morning Meeting activities (15 minutes/4 times a week) that are designed to help students exhibit responsible personal and social behavior (PE Standard #4–Social and Emotional Learning) and scheduled physical movement breaks aligned to the PE standards (10 minutes/4 times a week). The district will be providing materials, training, and support for both of these areas during in-service week.

• Elementary Math Adoption – The School Board approve a timeline for the elementary math adoption. The general timeline is to form a team between now and the fall (two reps from each building, plus specialist reps), evaluate programs next school year (23-24), pilot the programs in the fall and adopt a curriculum in the spring (24-25), and begin implementation of the new program the following year (25-26). See the linked Process for an Elementary Math Curriculum Adoption Doc for details.

• Specialist Last Days – PE, Music, and Library will go through the end of the year, but the final week for Library checkout will be May 15-19. Title groups will end on May 8th, the Thursday before Grading Day. SPED pull-out will also go through the end of the year.

• Lunch Reminder (All Students Take Lunch) – More for upper grades, please remind students they may not opt-out of lunch and that all students are expected to take a school lunch if they did not bring a lunch from home. They’re not required to eat it, but they are expected to take a lunch. Even when kids say they’re “not hungry” or “don’t like any of the food” they usually end up eating some of their food after they have a tray of food in front of them.

• Stop, Walk, Talk Refresher Videos – Teachers can use these videos below to as a refresher lesson on Stop, Walk, Talk. The first done in the style of a silent film. The second one is more for older grades and explains how to use Stop, Walk, Talk and also what to do if someone uses Stop, Walk, Talk towards them. The last one is from the Start With Heart YouTube Channel, which has a TON of SEL videos for K-5 students, which features a pig puppet.

 

 

 

• Sample 23-24 Meeting Schedule Coming – Principals asked at our meeting last week for a sample monthly meeting calendar, given that the proposed addition of required PLCs, MTSS meetings, Wednesday PD, along with building committee meetings, safety team meetings, grade level team meetings, etc. are sounding like more required meetings than the contract would allows (only 1 all-licensed staff meeting per week is allowed, though PD is not considered a meeting). I’ll share more info once I get it on this topic.

• Norovirus Cleaning in Effect – We’re seeing a jump in kids vomiting and GI issues, so Jeremy and Richie are starting Norovirus cleaning protocols in an effort to head off illness before things get so bad we have to contact Lane County Public Health. Classrooms should all have Purell Spray if staff want to more frequently sanitize as well. If you are out or need a replacement bottle, let Jeremy know.

• Leadership Plan & SCIP Timelines Extended – Principals were emailed (Leadership & SCIP) that district admin and EEA are still ironing out details on Leadership Plans, so school will not be working on Leadership Plans until the fall. We’re finished with our SCIP, but other schools are being given another month to wrap up plans.

• May SSD Newsletter – Linked here is the May SSD Newsletter that was sent to SSD Staff and administrators. This issue has info on Transition Services, Progress Reports, CMA services, and Playgrounds. You can always review this and prior newsletters on the Google Drive:SSD Newsletter Archive.

• Electronics Recycling Competition Results – Holt came in 6th place out of 13 schools with 1,340 pounds of electronics recycled. If you’re curious, see this email for details.

• A Note on Mother’s Day – With Mother’s Day this Saturday, keep in mind our goals around creating an inclusive environment for all students. We have quite a few students who either don’t live with their mothers, have lost their mothers, are being raised by their dads, or have difficult relationships with their mothers.If you’re planning to do projects or activities to celebrate mothers, consider shifting to a “Love Makes a Family” or “Family Day” theme instead. Creating an inclusive environment means we intentionally create space for students to be given choice about which adult they’d like to celebrate, regardless of gender or their role in their life. This Welcoming Schools Article shares information and resources about creating an inclusive experience for students.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

May 8 (M)
Upbeat Survey Open Until May 22
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive Continues (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #2 Classes
5th Grade Staff Room Duty
7:30-3:30, PreK-Kindergarten Transition Meetings
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up

May 9 (T)
Birthday Drinks & Goodies in Staff Room
10:30-12:00, Classified Sick Leave Bank Help (Staff Room)
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meetings (Kelsey’s Room)
2:45-3:30, Master Schedule Committee Rep Meeting (Library)
7:00, Reverend Horton Heat (Whirled Pies Downtown)*Who wants to join me for a psychobilly freakout!

May 10 (W)
School Nurse Day (Office)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
9:00-12:30, Kinder Field Trip (Seno & Gulewich)
9:00-12:30, 2nd Grade Nearby Nature
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Class List Meetings (Library)

May 11 (H)
Twilight Zone Day
9:00-12:30, Kinder Field Trip (Harmon & Vaughan)
9:00-12:30, 2nd Grade Nearby Nature
9:00, Safety Committee Meeting (Office)
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
2:45-4:30, Secretary Interviews (Library)
5:00-6:00, Site Council (Library)
6:00-7:00, PAHS Meeting (Library & Zoom)

May 12 (F)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Building Based (Upbeat Survey)

May 14 (SU)
Mother’s Day

May 15 (M)
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #1 Classes
ELD/Speech/Counselor/Library Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
4:00-5:30, Allan to All Admin Meeting (Ed Center)

May 16 (T)
8:45-12:15, 4th & 5th Holt/WillaG Track Meet (Sheldon Track)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)

May 17 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45, Staff Talent Show Video (Reich’s Room)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

May 17 (H)
National Speech Pathologist Day (Title)
1:30-2:30, Allan Meeting w/Risk & Safety Dept. (Office)
2:45-3:30, IPBS Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

May 18 (F)
8:15-10:00, Math Acceleration Testing (Dynamos Classroom)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Curriculum/SPED Training (TBA)

 

Only three more full weeks, then it’s only short weeks left in the year!

Allan

May 1, 2023

 

 

Howdy Freinds,

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! Or maybe it’s next week depending on which website you look at (it’s traditionally celebrated the first full week of May, so I guess it depends on whether you consider Sunday or Monday is the start of the week). Regardless, Holt teachers, and classified staff for that matter as well, ROCK! It was pretty cool to hear multiple candidates at the Job Expo say how they’ve heard great things about Holt. You all are what make Holt a great place for kids and for us to work. Go, Bolts!

Fourteen items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Four updates:

MTSS-INSTRUCTIONAL COACH – I’m happy to announce Carla Zimmerman has been hired as our Instructional Coach. I worked with Carla when I was principal at Howard, where she has taught 1st, 3rd, and 4th grade as well as serving as the ESC (Essential Skills Coordinator) and for the past three years as Howard’s Instructional Coach.

2ND GRADE – We had six applicants for this position and at this point I haven’t heard anything from HR.

0.2 FTE PE & MUSIC – No one applied for these positions at the Job Expo, so HR should hopefully give me an okay to post for these positions later this week.

23-24 TOSA Updates – I asked at last week’s principal meeting which TOSAs, mentors, managers, coordinators, consultants, specialists, coaches, etc. were eliminated and which remained. We were told Staff Development Specialists (SDSs) and ELA TOSAs were the only ones reduced for next year. I also asked for a list of all the positions (and who’s in them) and how they can support schools (which principals have asked for since August).

• 23-24 Master Schedule Development – I emailed staff last week the 23-24 Skeleton Master Schedule, which has two options for teams to consider (2/3 and 4/5 AM recesses and specialists times are the main difference). If teams can work around these recess, lunch, and Tier 3 times, it’s much more likely we’ll be able to make your “Dream Schedules” work. The other two tabs are the matching, suggested, PE/Music/Library times to go along with the skeleton schedule options. Add your dream schedule directly onto this spreadsheet and next week on May 9th, we will reconvene our Master Schedule Committee to see how things match up.

• PE Minutes Requirement Change – Principals haven’t been told this, but another principal shared an email with me that went out to PE teacher stating that the district is planning to change next year’s PE minutes requirement in order to get closer to the state PE requirement, which is that all students are to get PE five days a week for 30 minutes (yes, that’s impossible if your school has 10 or more classrooms and only one gym). It sounds like a final decision hasn’t been made and they are considering options that include classroom teachers teaching PE using a kit downtown would purchase. You know as much as I do on this, but this will potentially impact our master schedule work. This is on the elementary principal agenda for Monday, so hopefully I’ll get more information then.

• REPEAT: Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week! – This week is Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week and it sounds like PAHS has an excellent response to their Appreciation Sign-Up (if you want a peek at their plans).

• REPEAT: Data Team Meetings, WEDNESDAY – We are set to have roving subs cover classrooms Wednesday, May 3rd for grade level Data Team Meetings. Here’s the schedule:

1st – 8:00-8:55 (Guest Teacher Time 7:50-9:00)
5th – 9:05-10:00 (Guest Teacher Time 9:05-10:00)
3rd – 10:20-11:15 (Guest Teacher Time 10:15-11:15)
KG – 11:25-12:29 (Guest Teacher Time 11:10-12:20)
2nd – 12:55-1:50 (Guest Teacher Time 12:20-1:50)
4th – 2:05-3:00 (Guest Teacher Time 2:00-2:25)

• Friday PD: Equity, Responding to Racial Slurs – The Friday PD this week is Building based and we are continuing our equity focus. The topic of this meeting will be how to respond to racial slurs.

• REPEAT: Classified Sick Leave Bank Open Enrollment Help Session, May 9th – Not this week, but next week 4J Classified Benefits Coordinator will be in the staff room on Tuesday, May 9th from 10:30-12:00. They will be available to answer questions about the Sick Leave Bank as well as provide information on how to enroll, but feel free to ask any benefit related questions you may have.

• Friday, May 12th PD: Upbeat Survey – This Friday is as also a Building Based PD, though downtown is pulling all kindergarten teachers for a separate meeting. Downtown is also planning to have all staff complete a second spring Upbeat Survey to provide building and district admins feedback. I don’t know downtown’s timeline for getting out the survey, but I’m hoping it will be out in time for this to be the designated time for staff to complete the survey.

• 23-24 Leadership Plan Update – A bit of a non-update, but I also asked at last week’s principal meeting for an update on the leadership plan details for next year, which is holding up us being able to work on a master calendar and that their timeline to complete a draft plan by the end of May is no longer realistic given all the other items we need to complete between now and the end of the year (Raptor rollout, Upbeat survey, master schedule [especially if we have to change PE minutes. See prior item.], master calendar, class lists, classroom changes, etc.) and that there are only 3 staff meetings and two building based Fridays left.

• Door Magnet Pilot – Way back at the start of the year I volunteered to be a pilot school for trying out the magnetic door plates. The idea is that door locks will always be kept in the locked position and the plates can be placed over the door locking mechanism. This allows the door to remain unlocked, but in the case of an emergency, the plates can simply be pulled out to secure a classroom instead of having to fumble for keys to lock a door. For teachers who currently keep your doors locked, you are welcome to continue this practice if you choose. Plates are supposed to come soon.

• District Family Handbook Feedback – Downtown is asking principals for feedback on the District Family Handbook (this is the 22-23 handbook) they send to families each year. If you have any suggestions you’d like me to pass along, let me know by May 12th.

• Packing up and Storing your Science Kits – See the linked Science Kit Packing Instructions for restocking, inventorying, and what to do with the student books and teacher guides. One person from each grade should complete the Support and Materials Request Form.

• How to Promote the Intrinsic Desire to Learn – Rather than relying on grades as external motivators, teachers can help students develop intrinsic motivation by providing opportunities for autonomy and building their sense of competence. This Edutopia Article notes that the “baseline rewards” concept suggests that basic extrinsic “rewards” in a classroom (a caring teacher, engaging lessons, predictable and fair grading, cleanliness, respectful rules and atmosphere, etc.) or in a job situation (reasonable salary, safe working conditions) must be present for people to have any sort of motivation at all. Beyond that, researchers have identified four general areas that can contribute towards creating the conditions where intrinsic motivation can be supported:

• Autonomy: having a degree of control over what needs to happen and how it can be done
• Competence: feeling that one has the ability to be successful in doing it
• Relatedness: doing the activity helps the student feel more connected to others, and feel cared about by people whom they respect
• Relevance: the work must be seen by students as interesting and valuable to them, and useful to their present lives and/or hopes and dreams for the future

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

May 1 (M)
Teacher Appreciation Week
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #1 Classes
4th Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 2 (T)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)

May 3 (W)
Monthly Walk+Roll to School Day
8:00-2:50, Data Team Meetings
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45, 23-24 Classroom Placement Committee Meeting (Library)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

May 4 (H)
MAY THE 4TH BE WITH YOU!
5:00-7:00, ACE Awards Celebration (SEHS)

May 5 (F)
School Lunch Hero Day (2nd)
8:45-9:45, 5th Grade Monroe MS Tour (Walking Field Trip)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Friday PD – Building Based (Equity)

May 8 (M)
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive Continues (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #2 Classes
7:30-3:30, PreK-Kindergarten Transition Meetings
5th Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom) Pledge Class Sign-Up
3:45-5:30, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 9 (T)
Birthday Drinks & Goodies in Staff Room
10:30-12:00, Classified Sick Leave Bank Help (Staff Room)
2:45-3:30, PBIS/SEL/Equity Meetings (Kelsey’s Room)
2:45-3:30, Master Schedule Committee Rep Meeting (Library)
7:00, Reverend Horton Heat (Whirled Pies Downtown)
*Who wants to join me for a psychobilly freakout!

May 10 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
9:00-12:30, Kinder Field Trip (Seno & Gulewich)
9:00-12:30, 2nd Grade Nearby Nature
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings

May 11 (H)
Twilight Zone Day
9:00-12:30, Kinder Field Trip (Harmon & Vaughan)
9:00-12:30, 2nd Grade Nearby Nature
9:00, Safety Committee Meeting (Office)
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
5:00-6:00, Site Council (Library)
6:00-7:00, PAHS Meeting (Library & Zoom)

May 12 (F)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Building Based (Upbeat Survey)

And May the 4th be with you, always.

Allan

 

April 24, 2023

 

Greetings Bolts,

This Wednesday is Administrative Professional’s Day, formerly known as Secretary’s Day, so a BIG, BIG, BIG shout out to our awesome front office staff, Melanie and Sharon! You both are a critical part of our school that holds things together! We couldn’t do it without you!

Twenty-three items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Three updates:

1ST GRADE – If you were not at Tuesday’s Staff Meeting for the announcements, Leah Willow, currently our ELA TOSA, will return to Holt as a full-time 1st grade teacher. This was originally posted as a job-share with Gloria, but Gloria was snapped up as a Title 1 Teacher at Awbrey Park for next year. Please welcome Leah back to the Holt Team!

0.5 SPED TEACHER VACANCY – SSD is moving Sheryl Carroll to YG instead of Holt, so our part-time special education teaching position is vacant and I’ve asked SSD if I’m allowed to post for the position or if they are still working through their bumping process.

SCHOOL PSYCH – SSD emailed the School Psychologist and Consultant Assignments for next year and we get to keep Kelly. Next year she’s taking on more of a leadership role with the psych group, so we’ll be her only building and we’ll get to see her around Holt more often next year.

• Master Schedule Revised Timeline – Mentioned at Friday’s PD Meeting, we’re pushing back the Master Schedule Timeline in order to include interventionist times on the “Skeleton Schedule” for grade level teams to build their dream schedule. We’ll get the skeleton schedule to teams early this week, which will only have recess/lunches and interventionist times. If teams can plan around these times, it will make it more likely we’ll be able to combine grade level dream schedules. Specialist time are the one part we may need to rework, since morning times are the less popular time, so we’ll need some compromise in that area. The revised meeting schedule will be:

April 24-May 9:  Team Build Dream Schedule

May 9 – Reps Meet
– Combine schedule
– Plan next steps

May 16:  Staff Meeting Discussion

• NEW DATE: Earthquake/Fire Drill, TUESDAY @8:05 – We got rained out last week, but this Tuesday at 8:05 looks like better weather. We’ll start with an Earthquake Drill and then move into a Fire Drill. I’ll get on the PA to announce the earthquake drill, reviewing Drop, Cover, Hold, and will launch the drill by saying “EARTHQUAKE! DROP, COVER, and HOLD!” We’ll pull the alarm to signal when to evacuate the building. In a real earthquake, you could evacuate once the earthquake is over. There are many resources for teaching Drop, Cover, Hold at The Great Oregon Shakeout. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

• Team Meetings, WEDNESDAY– The first two Wednesdays of the month on non-Staff Meeting weeks are dedicated Team Meeting times. Teams should:

• Meet in their wing so specialists can connect if needed
• Take care of any needed team business
• Complete the Team Meeting Minutes Form (make a copy) and email it to holt_staf@4j.lane.edu

The Team Meeting Minutes Form can also be found on the Holt Staff Dashboard.

Hopefully we’ll have the skeleton master schedule template out for teams to start working on by this day.

• 2023-24 Kinder Parent and Kids Meet & Greet – If you missed it in the Quick News, I’ve invited incoming kinder families for a casual meet-up on the playground this Wednesday at 3:30. I’ll be out there to schmooze and PAHS reps will be there to get incoming families started on the volunteer background check process.

• REPEAT: Kona Ice Fundraiser, THURSDAY @1:45 – Kona Ice is coming to Holt Thursday, April 27th at 1:45. Teachers should send bus riders who brought money to hard play at 1:45, so they have time to buy and eat their shave ice before having to get onto the bus. And remember, all staff get a free shave ice! Just show your badge!

 

• Holt Spirit Day – Wacky Hat Day, FRIDAY – This Friday is the monthly Holt Spirit Day and this time it’s Wacky Hat Day! Wear your favorite or wackiest hat or headwear, or simply wear your Holt spirit gear. Get kids pumped!

• REPEAT: School Spirit Assembly, April 28 @8:05 – We’ll have our monthly School Spirit Assembly on Friday, April 28th in the gym. The assembly will start at 8:10, but all classes should be in the gym by 8:05. Watch the Staff Zimbra Calendar for the Assembly Map & Details!

• Classified Staff Meeting, FRIDAY @1:30 – Classified staff will meet in the library at 1:30 to review the Neurodiversity and Behavior Presentation that Emily & Kelsey shared at last week’s Friday PD and also information about the Raptor app. Here’s are the iOS and Android links to download the app to your smartphone ahead of the meeting. Let me know if you have any additional agenda items.

• Friday PD: Staff Choice – This Friday’s PD time is designate as “Staff Choice.” Plan on doing whatever it is you signed up for on the Elementary Staff Choice PD Sign-up Form last time.

• Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week, May 1-5 – Not this week, but next week is Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week. PAHS is planning on showing their love and appreciation bringing various goodies all week and currently has a parent sign-up if you want a peek at their plans.

• Data Team Meetings, May 3rd – We are set to have roving subs cover classrooms Wednesday, May 3rd for grade level Data Team Meetings. Here’s the schedule:

1st – 8:00-8:55 (Guest Teacher Time 7:50-9:00)
5th – 9:05-10:00 (Guest Teacher Time 9:05-10:00)
3rd – 10:20-11:15 (Guest Teacher Time 10:15-11:15)
KG – 11:25-12:29 (Guest Teacher Time 11:10-12:20)
2nd – 12:55-1:50 (Guest Teacher Time 12:20-1:50)
4th – 2:05-3:00 (Guest Teacher Time 2:00-2:25)

• Neurodiversity and Behavior Presentation – A big shoutout to Emily and Kelsey for their presentation last Friday on Understanding Function, Replacement Behaviors, and Shaping for Neurodiverse Students. And here’s a direct link to the Behavior Intervention Ideas Doc that’s linked within the slideshow, though Emily did share it’s from her prior school, which was K-12 and she didn’t get a chance to delete all of the secondary info yet.

We’ll also share this same information at Friday’s Classified Staff Meeting, but I wanted to highlight the two slides below, which may be worth printing and hanging up as reminders, about Key Phrases & Language to Use with Escalated Students and the Function & Replacement Behavior Chart. Also linked below is the Rethinking Power Needs Poster.

 

 

And take note of the following key takeaways.

● Our students are changing. It is not their fault. They are still learning how to be human.
● Universal Design for Learning helps ALL students succeed and makes your life easier
● What skill does this student need to learn?
● Understanding function is key
● Replacement behaviors serve the same function more efficiently
● Use shaping to mold behavior over time
● There’s nothing wrong with extra motivators. It’s temporary.
● Take pride in the little victories: progress is progress

• UPDATE: Safety Inspection Now May 23rd – Our annual inspection date got rescheduled to Tuesday May 23rd at 10:30.

• End-Of-Year Purchasing Deadlines – the cutoff for purchase orders is Monday, May 15th. The cutoff for school credit card purchases is Wednesday, May 31st. If you need to order something by PO or credit card, it must arrive by June 20th.

• Field Trips Payment, 1-Week Notice to Melanie – If you are going on a field trip and there is a payment required let Melanie know at least one week before the trip.

• Be Descriptive on Behavior Referrals (Avoid Being Vague) – When writing referrals, be descriptive when writing up incidents. Instead of writing “Student was disruptive & defiant” or “Student used inappropriate language,” write “Student continued to talk out and interrupt the teacher after three reminders” or “Student called another student the B-word.” This makes things more clear to parents what happened and leaves kids less wiggle room to make excuses for their behavior.

• Licensed IEP/504 Time Log – As a reminder, the Licensed IEP/504 Time Log is for teachers to record times you’ve attended IEP and 504 meetings during your prep time or beyond regular work hours. The deadline is to complete the form is June 8th and payment would be on your June 30th paystub. Teachers can receive up to 12 hours compensation.

• Raptor (Emergency Drill) App – Downtown wants principals to rollout the Raptor App (iOS and Android) with staff before the end of May, so I will add this to a future licensed and classified staff meeting. Click the link above if you’d like to add the app now to your phone or iPad. The Tech Department should have everyone entered into the system and attached to Holt when you log in with your 4J email and password.

• Interior Classroom Blinds – Facilities asked me to share the following with staff for increasing the lifespan of the interior classroom blinds facing the hallway:

• Use Swivel Stick to Open (Not Pull String) – To open your classroom blinds, use the swivel stick to rotate the blinds open instead of pulling the drawstring to pull them up and down. The weight of the larger blinds is too much for the string and the mechanism.

• Avoid Item Pushed Against Blinds – Please do not have items on the ledge next to the blinds, which can then get pushed against and damage the blind.

• District Admin Updates – See this email and this email for full details, but here are a few admin moves for next school year. Jim Moore, principal at Edgewood, will be the new South Eugene Athletic Director. Peter Barsotti, principal at Madison, will the new North Eugene Athletic Director. Sarah “Poppy” Campbell (who I’ve been friends with since pre-school), assistant principal at Spencer Butte, will be the new principal at Charlemagne. Brian Watson, assistant principal at Monroe, will be the new principal at Kennedy, whose current principal, Jen Hebard, will be the sole principal for Chinese Immersion instead of both CI and Kennedy. And a couple out-of-district folks, Nain Muñoz is the new principal at North Eugene and Kee Zublin is the new principal at South Eugene. This leaves unfilled principal jobs at Chavez, Edgewood, YG, and Madison, along with a few AP jobs.

• May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month – Next month is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. If you’re looking for teaching resources, check out NEA, WeAreTeachers, ReadWriteThink, and the US Library of Congress for loads of ideas. There’s also quite a few stories on Sora.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

April 24 (M)
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Opens
Library Week #2 Classes
3rd Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
3:00, Allan to Parent Meeting
3:45-5:30, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

April 25 (T)
8:05, Earthquake/Fire Drill
8:30-1:30, 4th Field Trip to UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History (Cobb & Reich)
5:45-7:15, Conscious Discipline Parent Night (Library)

April 26 (W)
Administrative Professionals Day (KG)
8:30-1:30, 4th Field Trip to UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History (Benavides)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
1:45-2:45,3rd Grade Delgani Strings Assembly (Cafeteria)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings
3:30-4:30, 23-24 Kinder Parent and Kids Meet & Greet (Soft Play)

April 27 (H)
8:00, Allan Meeting w/Amy Page & Justin Huntley (Office)
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
1:30-3:00, Kona Shave Ice Fundraiser (Hard Play)
2:45-3:30, Leadership Meeting (Library)
4:00-7:00, Allan to Elem Job Expo Round #2 (Zoom)

April 28 (F)
School Spirit Day – Wacky Hat Day
8:05-8:35, School Spirit Assembly (Gym)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Staff Choice
1:30-2:30, Classified Staff Meeting (Library)

May 1 (M)
Teacher Appreciation Week
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
PAHS Can & Bottle Drive (4/26 – 5/19)
Spring Benchmarking Window Continues
Library Week #1 Classes
4th Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
3:45-5:15, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

May 2 (T)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)

May 3 (W)
Monthly Walk+Roll to School Day
8:00-2:50, Data Team Meetings
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

May 4 (H)
Holt Night Out – Elkhorn
5:00-7:00, ACE Awards Celebration (SEHS)

May 5 (F)
School Lunch Hero Day (2nd)
8:45-9:45, 5th Grade Monroe MS Tour (Walking Field Trip)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Friday PD – Building Based (Equity)

Only 8 more Mondays until summer!

Allan

 

April 17, 2023

Hi Everyone,

Sixteen items of note for this week:

• 23-24 Staffing Updates – Several staffing updates for next year:

• Job Expo Updates – Five Job Expo updates:

COUNSELOR – Megan Travis has been hired as our school counselor for next year, coming to us from Spring Creek where she taught kindergarten and 5th grade. She’s only been with 4J for three years, but prior to working at Spring Creek worked with neuro-diverse students with ages spanning from 2-18 years old at the Sheldon Community Center for 20 years, working part of that time under our very own Kim McManus.

UPDATE:  1ST GRADE – Leah Willow, currently our ELA TOSA, will return to Holt as a full-time 1st grade teacher. This was originally posted as a job-share with Gloria, but Gloria has been snapped up as a Title 1 Teacher at Awbrey Park. Please welcome Leah back to the Holt Team!

HR made a mistake on their job offer for our 1st grade opening and is working right now to correct it. I hope to announce our hire at Tuesday’s staff meeting.

2ND GRADE (New Vacancy) – Michael was hired into an ELD position at Willagilespie/Monroe for next year. That leaves us with a 2nd grade vacancy for Round #2 of the Job Expo or if any staff are interested in moving into this opening, though being the last in one in on a four-person team can be tenuous what you’ll do the following year. Let me know ASAP if you are interested as the deadline for me to notify HR of our opening is Monday night. On a related note, Candace and Liz are flip flopping position for next year, with Candace moving back to 2nd grade and Liz moving back to 5th grade.

PE/MUSIC (0.2 FTE) – As expected, no one applied for either of these positions, but I do know of external candidates interested in both of these position, so I’m not worried about finding good candidates.

INSTRUCTIONAL COACH – This position will go to Round #2 of the Job Expo. Here’s a link to the most current MTSS-Instructional Coach Job Description. There’s full-time openings at multiple schools and downtown said they would will have more information for principals last week regarding the interview process, but principals didn’t hear anything, so I’m still not quite sure if hiring will be done by principals, district admin, or some sort of collaboration. I’ll share more info at Tuesday’s staff meeting if something is shared before then.

If you know any excellent people out there for any of our openings, tell them HOLT ROCKS and that they should apply!

• Melanie is Retiring – Melanie is sadly leaving us at the end of the school year, but did say she will sub at Holt, so she’s not gone for good. I’ve submitted a job requisition to HR last week, so the job posting might go up as early as this week. Melanie will leave some big shoes to fill, but the good news is Sharon is interested applying, so we know we’ll have at least one strong candidate!

• Volunteer Appreciation Week, THIS WEEK – Looks like every team has signed up on the Volunteer Appreciation Treat Sign-Up Form, so just remember to bring your treats this week!

• Jimmy John’s Staff Catered Lunch, DEADLINE MONDAY – Monday at 3:00 is the deadline to get Elizabeth $12 (cash or Venmo) for A Jimmy Johns Boxed Lunch (sandwich, chips, cookie) for this Wednesday.

• Holt Night Out Fundraiser – Papa’s Pizza, TUESDAY – If you missed it in the Quick News, this Tuesday is a Holt Night Out Fundraiser at Papa’s Pizza on Coburg Road. Remind your kiddos about the event and remind them to bring the flyer!

 

• NEW TIME: Earthquake/Fire Drill, April 19 @8:05 – I forgot to look at the state testing schedule and have moved the time of our drill to 8:05 this Wednesday. We’ll start with an Earthquake Drill and then move into a Fire Drill.

When it comes time for the drill, I’ll get on the PA to announce the earthquake drill, reviewing Drop, Cover, Hold, and will launch the drill by saying “EARTHQUAKE! DROP, COVER, and HOLD!” We’ll pull the alarm to signal when to evacuate the building. In a real earthquake, you could evacuate once the earthquake is over. There are many resources for teaching Drop, Cover, Hold at The Great Oregon Shakeout. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

• REPEAT: Sheldon Drama Club Addams Family Assembly, FRIDAY @8:30 – This Friday the Sheldon Drama club will perform for us in the cafeteria from 8:30-9:30. Attendance is optional, but it should be a fun assembly. Linked here is the Assembly Map and Directions.

• REPEAT: Friday PD: Equity – This Friday is a “Building Based” Friday PD and our Equity Team is putting on a presentation around neurodiversity and de-escalation strategies at 1:30 in the Library.

• Annual Safety Inspection, April 26th @10:30 – 4J’s liability insurance agent and members of 4J Risk Management will conduct a safety walkthrough inspection next week on Wednesday, April 26th around 10:30. Linked here is a handout of the Most Common Classroom Safety Violations. The two main items we got dinged for last time were:

• Combustable items hanging from ceilings
• Door egress width (3 feet) blocked by rolling carts and other items

• Kona Ice Fundraiser, Thursday, April 27 @1:45 – Kona Ice is coming to Holt Thursday, April 27th at 1:45. Teachers should send bus riders who brought money to hard play at 1:45, so they have time to buy and eat their shave ice before having to get onto the bus. And remember, all staff get a free shave ice! Just show your badge!

• School Spirit Assembly, April 28 @8:05 – We’ll have our monthly School Spirit Assembly on Friday, April 28th in the gym. The assembly will start at 8:10, but all classes should be in the gym by 8:05. Stay tuned for details!

• Classified Sick Leave Bank Open Enrollment Help Session, May 9th – The 4J Classified Benefits Coordinator will be in the staff room on Tuesday, May 9th from 10:30-12:00. They will be available to answer questions about the Sick Leave Bank as well as provide information on how to enroll, but feel free to ask any benefit related questions you may have.

• BOGO Scholastic Fair, May 22-26 – We’ve scheduled our spring Buy-One-Get-One-Free Scholastic Book Fair for the week of May 22 – 26. The library will be closed for check out this week, but Robbie will continue to teach library lessons to Week #1 classes, just in classrooms instead of the library.

• Free Earth Day Lessons & Activities – Earth Day is this Saturday and linked HERE is a collection of lessons and activities to help teachers explore this subject with K-12 students. And don’t forget about the 4J Earth Day Learning Hub.

• April SSD Newsletter – If you’re interested, linked here is the April SSD Newsletter that was shared with SPED teachers and principals. This edition includes info about specially designed instruction, required FBAs, and rules for conducting observations of students.

• OEBB Dependent Eligibility Verification, Due April 30th – I finally did this for myself if any of you have questions on the process. If you have dependents covered by your insurance you need to submit the items listed HERE by the end of April. You also need to complete the “OEBB Dependent Eligibility Verification” form, which was mailed to people. However, if you’re like me and can’t find it, you can also just send a secure email to OEBB.dependenteligibility@odhsoha.oregon.gov with the required documents, including your full name, address, and phone.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

April 17 (M)
Volunteer Appreciation Day and Treat Table (Sunshine/Staff)
Library Week #1 Classes
2nd Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
2:40-4:30, Talent Show Auditions (Reich’s Room)
4:00-5:30, All Admin Meeting (Ed Center)

April 18 (T)
Holt Night Out Fundraiser – Papa’s Pizza
1:30-2:00, Kinder Music Performance (Gym)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)
4:00-5:00, 4J Library Advisory Meeting (Library)

April 19 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
9:00-12:15, 3rd Grade Science Center and Planetarium Field Trip
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:40-4:30, Talent Show Auditions (Reich’s Room)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

April 20 (H)
Oingo Boingo Day
2:45-3:45, PBIS/Equity/SEL Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

April 21 (F)
Eid al-Fitr, End of Ramadan (Major Religious Holiday)
8:30-9:00, Sheldon Drama Club Assembly (Cafeteria)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Friday PD – Building Based (Equity)

April 22 (SA)
Earth Day

April 24 (M)
Spring Benchmarking Window Opens
Library Week #2 Classes
3rd Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
3:45-5:30, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

April 25 (T)
8:30-1:30, 4th Field Trip to UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History (Cobb & Reich)
2:45-3:30, Master Schedule Committee Rep Meeting (Library)
5:45-7:15, Conscious Discipline Parent Nights (Library)

April 26 (W)
Administrative Professionals Day (KG)
8:30-1:30, 4th Field Trip to UO Museum of Natural and Cultural History (Benavides)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
1:45-2:45,3rd Grade Delgani Strings Assembly (Cafeteria)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings
3:30-4:30, 23-24 Kinder Parent and Kids Meet & Greet (Soft Play)

April 27 (H)
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
2:45-3:30, Leadership Meeting (Library)
4:00-7:00, Allan to Elem Job Expo Round #2 (Zoom)

April 28 (F)
8:05-8:35, School Spirit Assembly (Gym)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Master Schedule Rep Meeting (Library)
2:30-3:00, Attendance Team Meeting (Library)

Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail shall keep 5th grade from their appointed rounds at Outdoor School! Believe it or not, they endured all those weather conditions at ODS last week! Thank you to all the staff who worked those long days last week!

Allan

April 10, 2023

 

Howdy Everyone,

A shoutout to Holt’s ACE Award nominees, Alex, Emily, Kendallyn, Lesli, and Lisa G. Thank you all for your work and for making our school look good!

Fifteen items of note for this week:

• Staffing Updates – Three staffing updates:

• 23-24 Part-Time SPED Teacher, Sheryl Carroll – SSD has placed Sheryl Carroll into Whitney’s position for next year, where she will be 0.5 FTE at Holt and 0.5 FTE at Gilham.

• Darren Out Rest of Year – Darrin will be out on leave for the remainder of the year, but luckily Abby is able to continue to fill this position.

• 2nd Grade 1:1 EA, Julie Zybach – Outside of Abby, Julie has been our most regular classified sub at Holt this year, and she has agreed to fill the 2nd Grade 1:1 EA sub job, supporting a challenging student who was placed at Holt, for the rest of school year. Please welcome Julie to the team!

• REPEAT: Holt Night Out Fundraiser – DoughMo Cookies, TUESDAY – This Tuesday a Holt Night Out Fundraiser at DoughMo Cookies! Owned by a Holt family and located in Downtown Eugene at 980 Oak St. under the Overpark Parking Garage (free parking the first hour). I went there myself and thought they were pretty darn tasty! Get your kids excited.

• REPEAT: Team Meetings, WEDNESDAY– For this week’s Team Meetings, make sure you have a grade level rep selected for Friday’s Master Schedule Committee Meeting. Also make sure your team is in agreement regarding the master schedule questions shared in prior announcements.

As usual, be sure to complete the Team Meeting Minutes Form (make a copy) and email it to holt_staf@4j.lane.edu

The Team Meeting Minutes Form can also be found on the Holt Staff Dashboard.

• Friday PD: Master Schedule Committee Meeting – This Friday’s PD is a Building Based and we are using it for our first Master Schedule Committee Meeting. We’ll meet at 1:30 in the library to share where teams are at on subject area times, recesses, morning meetings, closing meetings, ELD pullout times, PE/Music morning preferences, and library times. Following this meeting, the schedule will be:

April 12-26 – Teams Build Dream Schedule
April 25 – Reps Meet to combine schedule and plan next steps
May 2 – Staff Meeting Discussion

• Volunteer Appreciation Week, April 17-21 – Please add your team info to the Volunteer Appreciation Treat Sign-Up for what sweet treat your team will bring on Monday, April 17th that will be good through the week (i.e. Hershey kisses, pretzels, chocolate, caramel cookies, granola bars, lollipops, or your favorite teacher treat). This is our last sign up until the EOY BBQ.

• Earthquake/Fire Drill, April 19 @10:05 – Not this week, but next week on Wednesday, April 19th at 10:05, we’ll hold our second and final Earthquake drill of the year right and will then hold our Fire Drill Evacuation. With 3rd grade on a field trip this day, we can hold these drills during their recess and also not step on anyone’s PE or Music times. 4th grade will be lined up outside when I announce the earthquake drill, so they should follow the Shakeout guidance of: If outside, get clear of buildings, power lines, trees, light poles and other dangers, drop down to your knees and cover your head and neck. Or we could do the drill two minutes later if 4th would rather do it from their classroom.

When it comes time for the drill, I’ll get on the PA to announce the earthquake drill, reviewing Drop, Cover, Hold, and will launch the drill by saying “EARTHQUAKE! DROP, COVER, and HOLD!” We’ll pull the alarm to signal when to evacuate the building. In a real earthquake, you could evacuate once the earthquake is over. There are many resources for teaching Drop, Cover, Hold at The Great Oregon Shakeout. Linked here is a copy of the Building Evacuation Map and the Fire Drill Line-Up Map.

 

• REPEAT: Sheldon Drama Club Addams Family Assembly, April 21 @8:30 – Not this week, but next week on Friday, April 21st, the Sheldon Drama club will perform for us. The assemble will be in the cafeteria from 8:30-9:30. the grade level signs and cones so classes know where to sit. Attendance is optional, but it should be a fun assembly. Linked here is the Assembly Map and Directions.

• Friday PD: April 21 – Equity – April 21st is another “Building Based” Friday PD and our Equity Team is putting on a presentation around neurodiversity and de-escalation strategies.

• SCIP (School Continuous Improvement Plan) Update – Site Council reviewed and revised the Draft SCIP (School Continuous Improvement Plan) I emailed earlier. The plan is mostly the same as our School Improvement Plan as last year, except that we pulling out one action item from our Equity & Inclusion goal regarding parent involvement and made that a goal all it’s own. The other change is that the SCIP plan required us to target specific historically underserved groups, so our new goals read as:

1. Revitalize and re-engage post-pandemic parent involvement of families of students of color.
2. Emerging bi/multilingual students and students of color will maintain regular school attendance.
3. With a focus on increasing inclusive and equitable school-based practices and systems, students on IEPs and students of color will experience meaningful academic, social, and emotional growth.

Downtown may require us to slap a number onto these goals, in which case I might add 85% or 90% of students will…, but really our goal should be for 100% of students to be successful. Downtown Friday Evening provided an updated timeline that states the plans due at the end of the month are merely drafts and the final plan isn’t due until September, though I feel we already have a pretty solid plan.

We’ll discuss this at our next Staff Meeting where folks can suggest any additions or changes.

 

• Library Books to Book Nook (help stamping?) – We got an official okay for the library books being discarded to go to Book Nook. The original plan for the discarded books was to pay a company to take them away and recycle/pulp them, so Financial Services said it was okay to give them to kids, though the district librarian said we needed to stamp them discard/discontinued and black out any 4J markings, so let me know if any of your classes would like to take a box for this task or I can have a naughty kid owing time in the office take it on.

• Earth Day (4/22) Resources – If you missed it in the latest Eco Experience, Earth Day is Saturday, April 22nd and there is a 4J Earth Day Webpage with loads of elementary resources and activities you could use the next two weeks leading up to that day.

• April SSD Newsletter – If you’re interested, linked here is the April SSD Newsletter that was shared with SPED teachers and principals. This edition includes info about specially designed instruction, required FBAs, and rules for conducting observations of students.

• Love Food Not Waste Resources – If you’re interested, here is the Elementary Love Food Not Waste Resource document that includes information, resources, and more. And, here is the 3-Year Love Food Not Waste Plan for background information.

• Field Trip Ideas – COVID got us out of practice on Field Trips, but WeAreTeachers has some tips and suggestions for you, including the best field trip ideas for every grade, the best virtual field trips, and an article titled Why I Hate Field Trips (And How I Learned to Deal). Plus, don’t miss these free field trip permission forms.

• Schedule of Upcoming Events – See the Holt Staff Calendar for future events, but here are the events of note for the next two weeks:

April 10 (M)
Library Week #2 Classes
1st Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
3:45-5:30, Allan to Elem Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

April 11 (T)
Holt Night Out Fundraiser – DoughMo Cookies
8:45-5:15, 5th Grade Outdoor School (Camp Wilani)
2:45-3:45, IPBS Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

April 12 (W)
8:45-5:15, 5th Grade Outdoor School (Camp Wilani)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:45-3:30, Grade Level Team Meetings

April 13 (H)
8:45-5:15, 5th Grade Outdoor School (Camp Wilani)
10:00-1:30, 4th Grade School Garden Project (Garden)
2:45-3:30, Allan to Evaluation Planning Meeting (Zoom)
4:00-7:00, Allan to Elem Job Expo Round #1 (Zoom)

April 14 (F)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Master Schedule Rep Meeting (Library)
2:30-3:00, Attendance Team Meeting (Library)

April 17 (M)
Volunteer Appreciation Day and Treat Table (Sunshine/Staff)
Library Week #1 Classes
2nd Grade Staff Room Duty
8:00, Morning Announcements (Zoom)
2:40-4:30, Talent Show Auditions (Reich’s Room)
4:00-5:30, All Admin Meeting (Ed Center)

April 18 (T)
Holt Night Out Fundraiser – Papa’s Pizza
1:20-1:50, Kinder Music Performance (Gym)
2:30-4:00, Talent Show Auditions (Music Room)
2:45-3:30, Staff Meeting (Library)
4:00-5:00, 4J Library Advisory Meeting (Library)

April 19 (W)
8:50-10:45, Book Nook, During AM Recesses (Cafeteria)
9:00-12:15, 3rd Grade Science Center and Planetarium Field Trip
1:00-2:15, 4th Grade Storyteller (Classrooms)
2:40-4:30, Talent Show Auditions (Reich’s Room)
7:00-9:00, School Board Meeting (Zoom)

April 20 (H)
Oingo Boingo Day
2:45-3:45, PBIS/Equity/SEL Meeting (Kelsey’s Room)

April 21 (F)
Eid al-Fitr, End of Ramadan (Major Religious Holiday)
8:30-9:00, Sheldon Drama Club Assembly (Cafeteria)
1:30-2:30, Friday PD – Friday PD – Building Based (Equity)

April 22 (SA)
Earth Day

Back to the 5-day week grind!

Allan