Week of November 9
Calendar of Events
November 9 (M)
No meetings. Regular day.
November 10 (T)
Sara Green Visiting North Region Schools
12:00-2:15, 3rd Grade goes to the Symphony at Hult Center
2:45-3:15, Dreambox Pilot Meeting with Maddy and Misty, (Main Office)
4:00-8:00 PM, No meetings. Conferences from 4-8 PM (Conferences will be in your classroom.)
Let me know if you need an extra person present, myself, or Jennifer.
November 11 (W)
Veteran’s Day- No School. Do not go to work. Rest.
November 12 (U)
No School. Conferences 8AM -8 PM (Conferences will be in your classroom.)
2:00-4:00, Joel to Somos Juntos Grant Meeting (University of Oregon)
4:00-5:00, Joel to North Region Principals’ Meeting
5:30-6:30, Meet the Superintendent – Community Event – English (Kelly MS)
6:30-7:30, Meet the Superintendent – Community Event – Spanish (Kelly MS)
November 13 (F)
Compensation Day. No School. No Work.
Classified Staff, if you have built up comp time hours, please turn in forms to take this day off.
Joel to personal meeting 5:00 PM
November 16 (M)
12:30-1:30, Joel, Sara, and Allan to discuss the super-boundary. (Ed Center)
2:30-5:00, Joel at Principal’s Meeting (Ed Center Parr)
November 17 (Tu)
All Day- Picture Retake Day (Room 17)
2:45-3:45, Staff Meeting (Library)
4:00-5:00, CAP Review with the PLT Team and Kathy Larson attends. (Conference Room)
November 18 (W)
1:45-3:45, PLC Collaborative Time to plan math and create formative assessments.
2:40-3:40, Garden Design Meeting (Conference Room )
November 19 (Th)
2:45-3:45, Mod Squad
November 20 (F)
1:45-2:30, Kelly Band Assembly (Cafeteria, Whole School Assembly)
November 23 (M)
9:00-9:45, Dali String Quartet Assembly (Cafeteria)
November 24 (Tu)
9:00-11:30,Illana Umanski from the UO visits to discuss Spanish proficiency in ELL identified students.
3:00-4:00, PLT Meeting -Focus, Dual Language Leadership in the building.
November 25 (W)
2:45-3:45, PLC Planning Time (Library)
November 26 (Th)
Thanksgiving- No School
November 27 (F)
Thanksgiving- No School
November 30 (M)
3:00-4:00, Site Council Meeting
December 1 (Tu)
8:30-9:30, Cafecito- Topic with Parents, Winter and Mental Health with Pedro Pacheco from NAMI.
2:45-3:45, Staff Meeting, Revisiting on Group Agreements on Dual Language
December 2 ( W)
1:45-2:45, PBIS Meeting, All Classified Attend + PBIS Teacher Leaders
1:45-2:45, PLC Teacher Collaboration Time
December 3 (Th)
2:45-3:45, Mod Squad
6:00-8:00, Viaje Musicale
December 4 (F)
6:00-8:00, Viaje Musicale
Robotics Competition in Philomath, Sunday, December 6
December 7 (M)
2:30-5:00, Joel to Elementary Principal’s Meeting
December 8 (Tu)
2:45-4:45, PLT Meeting – Focus on Dual Language Instruction
6:00-8:00, Spaghetti and Safety – A Parent Group Meeting- A Parent Traffic Safety and Information Night- A community event focused on safety.
December 9 (W)
PLC Wednesday Collaboration Time
December 10 (Th)
Regular Day
December 11 (F)
6:00-8:00, Noche de Peliculas
What is happening?
• Bias in Journeys Materials – Downtown is taking a look at bias in the new Journeys materials. At the elementary principals’ meeting last week, a couple schools raised concerns of racial bias in the new curriculum. Principals have been asked to have teachers report elements of bias you come across in the new reading materials, whether it’s race, gender, religion or otherwise. For example, one teacher at Howard spotted a highly inappropriate vocabulary card depicting students of various races dressed as ”pilgrims and indians.” Many of our staff have been reporting the biases as well. Megan Murphy initiated this process. Thank you for your leadership in equity, Megan. There is not a formal reporting form or an official plan of will be done with the collected information, but I do think it’s important for us be cognizant of bias in this and any other curriculum materials.
• Conferences Information – Conferences are this week! I wanted to let teachers know that I’m available to sit in on any conferences you’d like me to attend. Just tell me the date and time and I’ll get it on my calendar. Lastly, and I’ve shared this before, here’s a link from the NEA website with resources and tips for Parent-Teacher Conferences and below are some good tips that I copied from an ASCD article on conducting parent-teacher conferences. Mostly though I think parents just want to know that teachers care about their children and if they know that, they’ll be open to most anything you have to share.
• Listen well, regardless of the situation.
• Balance constructive critiques with positive comments about the student.
• Make parents feel welcomed and relaxed. Parents are not on their turf; they may feel anxious or nervous.
• Inform parents that you, the teacher, will take notes during the conference so you can carefully address each of their concerns.
• Be cool and calm in everything you say and do. Your tone of voice and mannerisms can escalate or deescalate parent-teacher interactions.
• Be deliberate and realistic in what you promise a parent. Remember that you cannot feasibly call or e-mail several parents or caregivers every day.
• Collect data on what you say. Take note of how many questions you ask, how often you offer the parent encouragement, and how often you emphasize the ideas or suggestions that the parent brings to the conference.
• At all costs, do not use your authority as a teacher as a means of forcing your point of view.
• Interact with parents or caregivers to learn more about the student and to understand how the parent has been successful or unsuccessful with that student at home.
• Understand your role as a teacher and have a working knowledge of how other school professionals can support parents and students. Generic referrals to “seeing a guidance counselor” are not always necessary or appropriate.
• Conduct the conference in a warm, enthusiastic, and professional way. Teachers who appear apathetic, aloof, or begrudging will seldom foster successful relationships with parents and caregivers.
• Free After School Tutoring Opportunity for Elementary School Students – Starting in January, The Center on Teaching & Learning at the University of Oregon is providing free reading instruction to 1st through 5th grade students reading below grade level. This is a first come, first serve opportunity, so let families know soon who you think would use this resource. Students attend the clinic twice a week (Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday) for 50 minutes after school. There is a 1-hour Parent Orientation either the week before, or the first week of, Clinic, and families are responsible for transportation. Interested families just need to fill out and return the attached packet if they want to register. If you have any questions, contact Shaheen Munir-McHill (munir@uoregon.edu) or Anna Ingram (annad@uoregon.edu).
• Title 1 Newsletter – Here is the latest district level Title 1 Newsletter that went out to Title 1 Coordinators and principals. As usual, this month’s newsletter is mostly coordinator specific information and tasks, but there is a nice equity related video from Janice Jackson on “Discipline Disparity” and an article about the need to analyze multiple measures for effective instructional decisions.
• Meet the Superintendent, Thursday at Kelly MS – 4J is inviting families and the public to meet our new superintendent, Dr. Gustavo Balderas , this Thursday at Kelly middle school to share their thoughts and questions about Eugene and its schools. If you’d like to attend or would like to let your students know, the Meet the Superintendent Event will be in the Kelly library from 5:30-6:30 for a session in English and from 6:30-7:30 for a session in Spanish, which will be great since our new superintendent is from a Spanish speaking family himself. Obviously, for teachers, it will be difficult to be present during parent conferences. I will be slipping out to be there for a half an hour to see Dr. Balderas and families while there.
• Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education (OJMCHE) School Tours – I wasn’t originally going share about the K-12 tours being offered by OJMCHE, but their email says “Ask us about scholarships for bus transportation both inside and outside of the Portland metro area” so maybe they’re willing to provide transportation if anyone would like to plan a field trip.
• Three Rivers Foundation Grant Opportunities – The Confederate Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians, through the Three Rivers Foundation are offering grants for innovative ideas, collaborative approaches, and grassroots efforts in the following areas; education, health, public safety, problem gambling, the arts, the environment, cultural activities, and historic preservation. Grants do not have minimum or maximum grant limitations, but it’s anticipated that the average award from the Three Rivers Foundation will be between $2,000 and $7,000. This year’s online grant application period opens December 1st and will close at 5:00 PM on December 31st. See their website for more information
• News from the Emerald Empire Reading Council – Here’s the November Newsletter from the Emerald Empire Reading Council. This month’s newsletter includes a number of workshops and information on a $100 literacy grant. If you’d like more information, visit their 1990s Space Jam-looking website.
• Required teacher task: Bus Safety Training Reminder – A reminder to teachers to let Edna know what method you’ve used to teach students bus safety. The state requires all students receive instruction on bus safety by the end of December. Showing your students the video The Safest Way Out is the easiest method to meet the requirement.
• ICSP 2015-16 Brochure – I shared this earlier in the year, but the UO International Cultural Service Program (ICSP) just emailed out their updated brochure for this school year, listing all of the free presentations available to classrooms from international UO students. If you have questions, contact the ICSP Coordinator, Sophie Patterson, by email icsp@uoregon.edu or phone (541) 346-7429, or request for a presenter on their website here.
• These short videos can bring some ‘calm’ into your classrooms – Rachel sent this to elementary principals. Between Halloween and the time change over the weekend, we’re all feeling a little out of whack. Marcy G., a 1st grade teacher (and GoNoodler!) in Oregon, suggests doing lots of stretching and oxygen-rich movements, especially in the morning, to invigorate the body and mind. Here are three calming videos to help, whether you find your class snoozing during reading or going crazy during math!
Airtime Space – Practice deep breathing for a calmer, more focused classroom. Perfect for after lunch or recess.
Find Peace – Think, reflect, and set some positive intentions for the day. Great for morning meeting!
Super Scooper – Stretch and rejuvenate with Maximo the monkey to feel ready for whatever comes next!
• How can technology promote equity in schools? – In this blog post, Robert Dillon, director of technology and innovation at Affton School District in Missouri, shares seven ways technology can promote equity in schools. Ideas include virtual field trips, community-based learning and virtual connections.
That is all for this week! I hope your conferences go well. Let me know if you need any support in your classrooms with parents.
Saludos cordiales,
Joel
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