Week of May 29, 2017

Hi Shining Stars,

I hope you all had a good three-day weekend to get ready for the final four weeks of the school year.

Here are some announcements for the week:

•Farewell Event, May 25th, 2017-Here is the KMTR news story on our farewell event. It was truly a memorable event for the ages:

Out with the old, in with the new: River Road/El Camino del Rio Elementary moves forward.

 

 

• Class Lists Due Friday June 16th – We have a data team meeting next week which will focus on student success and also looking ahead. On that note,  I recommend that you use some of your Wednesday PLC time to focus on class lists for next year. Here is a copy of the new form (Google Doc ). If receiving grade levels would like to meet with sending grade levels, teachers should plan a mutually agreed upon time to meet to discuss students and class lists. I am still editing the placement cards this week but will get them in your box by Wednesday early release time.

• Morning Attendance Reminder –  Overall teachers have been doing a great job. However, we still need accurate attendance taken by all staff. Teachers should be sure to enter attendance no later than 8:45 each morning. Students entering the building will be given a tardy slip from the office and Yasmin will record the tardy in Synergy but sometimes students slip by. The autodialer begins calling parents at 9:00 AM, so it’s important to have attendance done well before then.

• Reminder: Classified Self-Evaluations Due – We still need some Classified Employee Self-Assessment assessment forms (PDF or DOC) turned in. If you haven’t done your self-assessment yet, please get the completed form to me this week. I want to get started on evaluations and I needs those to  move forward on this process.

• Reminder: Licensed End-of-Year TalentEd Tasks Due – It is time for teachers to complete TalentEd tasks.  Please complete this form as soon as you can.

Teaching and Learning with Emerging Bilingual Learners:

•Latino Roots Celebration-

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Week of May 22, 2017

 

 

 

Dear Shining Stars,

As we approach the farewell celebration, I find myself becoming nostalgic.  Before I went home for the weekend Craig and I rummaged through several old boxes. I also brought home some really old newspaper clippings from the 50’s and 30’s.  One thing is clear, people have loved this school for a long time.  A couple of historian/ teachers actually wrote a book about the early history of the school.  One point that they made is that we are making history. Yet again,  we are making history. Now that the 4th building of River Road/ El Camino del Rio is taking shape I feel a sense of responsibility to help students understand how many people’s lives have been touched by these spaces. However, the relationship between the space and the student is not the most important thing.  I believe what matters most are the teachers and children who made positive impacts on their lives, not the classroom or playground.  This Thursday evening we invite some old timers to come share how much those relationships mattered to them in this space we have used for upwards of 64 years.

Here are some important items of the week:

 

• District Math Updates – Maddie Ahearn shared several math updates at last week’s elementary principal meeting:

• Primary/Intermediate Math Teacher Leaders Needed – Maddie is opening up the math teacher leader positions for next year and those leaders do do not have to be our traditional teacher leader. They are also asking to have two reps this coming year, preferably a primary and intermediate rep. Linked here is a job description and a list of responsibilities (meetings, trainings, and trainings you would lead). Follow this link to the 2017-2018 Rep and Leadership Positions Google Sheet if you’d like to be a math teacher leader and/or any of the other positions.

• Math Manipulatives Coming in August – Math manipulatives have been ordered for the LearnZillion rollout next fall and are set to arrive in August. They have been ordered for both General Ed and SPED teachers.

• Revised April 3rd Math PDU – One last math update, the previous PDU certificate given to teachers incorrectly shorted you on PDU hours and a revised form will be put into mailboxes this week.

• Fundraising District Policy Changes – Andrea Belz from Financial Services shared a draft fundraising policy that is most likely going into effect next year. The main changes are that if a fundraising event is held during the school day and students are pulled (such as the Tech Trot), the money has to go through the school accounts and not PTO accounts. Cookie Dough, Popcorn, or other fundraisers that don’t have an event type of activity stay the same.

The other change is progressive prizes, will no longer be allowed, such as if an individual student brings in $100 for a fundraiser you get a limo ride, and if you bring in $200 you get a helicopter ride, etc. This wouldn’t apply to events like a Cookie Dough fundraiser since there isn’t a jog-a-thon type of event happening during the school day, but it would apply to our Caminata. However, for rewards we can still do raffles for participation, classroom competitions, or overall school progressive prizes like if we bring in $1,000 the principal will sleep on the roof, etc.

• EEF Grant Update – The EEF Board meets on June 14th to review the grants and will notify grant winners soon thereafter. Also, some of the Parent Group and Site Council are meeting with Rebecca Sprinson next week to discuss fundraising.

• Family Resources- Free Summer Lunches for Kids Ages 2-18 – Food for Lane County operates one of the largest summer food programs in the state. They provide free meals to youth ages 2 to 18. Most sites open June 26. To see a list of lunch sites, please visit the FOOD For Lane County website, or email info@foodforlanecounty.org, or call (541) 343-2822. The closest location is at River Road Park (AKA Emerald Park), which will serve lunch 12:00-1:00 pm June 26th-August 25th.

• Family Resources- Direction Services Summer Directory – Each year Direction Service publishes The Direction Summer Directory with resource for recreation, respite, support, and service opportunities that families of children with disabilities can access during the summer months. Attached and you can also access it via the Direction Service webpage.

• Change in the Oregon Accountability System – A major change is coming in the Oregon School and District Accountability System (i.e. state report cards) that was included in the Oregon ESSA Implementation Plan submitted by ODE to the US Education Department. If that plan is approved by USED then starting next year, the proficiency rates to be reported by ODE in the report cards would count each non-participant student, those opting out to state testing, as not being proficient. In other words, proficiency rates will be defined as the number of students reaching levels 3 or 4 divided by total enrollment. This change does not affect the student growth scores also included in the report cards.  This change will also affect all information about schools that includes proficiency rates in state tests, so any students who opted out of testing this year are really going to hurt us on our next state report card.

Teaching and Learning with Emerging Bilingual Learners

America’s Promise Alliance mini documentary: Non-native English speakers represent the fastest growing population in U.S. public schools. We need to better understand their experiences to support them. In this video, three students whose first language is not English share their challenges, experiences, and accomplishments learning English in Massachusetts high schools.

• Teaching Tolerance Guide: Serving ELL Students and Families – Teaching Tolerance recently posted a new guide, Best Practices for Serving English Language Learners and Their Families. With sections centered on instruction, classroom culture, policies, and family and community engagement, the guide is packed with recommendations that can be applied across buildings.

Calendar for the Remainder of the Year:

May 22 (M)

 

May 23 (Tu)

Joel out of the building

2:45-3:45, PLT Meeting (Cancelled)- Postponed to Thursday, May 25.

May 24 (W)

9:00-11:15, Joel in Construction Meeting

1:45-2:45, Wednesday PLC Time- Technology Focus- Primary Intermediate- Math Assessment

4:00-5:00, Joel at All Admin Meeting

May 25 (Th)

2:45-3:45, Rescheduled PLT Meeting (Conference Room)

5:30-7:00, River Road Farewell Event in the cafeteria and parts of the school.

May 26 (F)

Academy Day- No School

Short staff meeting in the AM focused on moving questions and the new building.  PBIS and routines in the new building will be a topic.

Most of the day is allocated for packing boxes and doing moving preparation.

May 29 (M)

Memorial Day- No School

May 30 (Tu)

Joel and some teachers to Rigler Elementary in Portland

6:00-7:00, Parent Group Multicultural Potluck Dinner Final Meeting of the year. (Cafeteria)

May 31 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time  Focus- Planning  for math instruction.

June 1 (Th)

5th Grade Outdoor School

June 2 (F)

5th Grade Outdoor School

June 5 (M)

Regular Day

June 6 (Tu)

2:00-2:30- Assembly- School Wide BEST Strings Performance in Cafeteria

3:00-4:00, Final Staff Meeting of the year in (Room 18)

June 7 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PBIS Meeting in Room 9

1:45-3:45- PLC Time – Professional Development on Imagine Learning software for 2017/2018. Extended contracts provided.

June 8 (Th)

8:00-2:30, Final Data Team Meeting #6  (Room 18)

June 9 (F)

Now a REGULAR SCHOOL DAY

June 12 (M)

3:30-5:00, Joel at Immersion Task Force Meeting (Parr Room)

June 13 (Tu)

4:00-5:30, Final Site Council Meeting: Transitions for new members and thank you for old members. 

June 14 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time- Focus:Aligning report card information across grade levels.

June 15 (Th)

9:00-11:00, Field Day 

11:00-12:15, School wide BBQ

June 16 (F)

No School – Grading Day

June 19 (M)

Regular Day

June 20 (Tu)

Regular Day

June 21 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time- Let’s pack together!

June 22 (Th)

The Last Day of School  (Dismissal 11:40)

June 23(F)

Last work day for teachers. All employees must be out of the building before 12:00 AM-(Midnight).

June 24 (Sa) 

Salvage and Asbestos Abatement begins in the old building.  No teachers or classified staff may be present.

 

 

Look forward to your 3-day weekend!

Joel Lavin

 

 

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Week of May 15, 2017

 

Dear Shining Stars,

Last week was such a busy week.  At the same time,  it somehow felt grounding to work beside all of you in our familiar roles in this wonderful place we call school.  If you have not had a chance to talk to your students about moving from the old building, I encourage you to do begin to do so this week.  It is time for us to thank the building and begin to help the students make transitions in their mind to the new space.  64 years is a long time for a building to serve the community.  Consider how you might say goodbye to it.

Here are some announcements for the week:

• Did you have a chance to view the video of our kids walking to school with Mayor Vinis?  If not, here you go. Our students celebrate walk and bike to school day That sure was a fun community event to be a part of.  A big thank you is deserved to Sarah Mazze for helping organize this event.  It really was great to see our community involved here.

• Student Care Team Referrals – The May Student Care Team meeting is in two weeks, which means referrals are due to me by Friday next week. Referrals can be for families seeking support for food assistance, incarcerated parents, counseling/mental health needs, parenting resources, transportation assistance, clothing needs, financial assistance, homelessness, impending homelessness, or most any other situation where a family is looking for help but does not know where to turn. Try to get a parent/guardian signature on the release form (editable PDF and non-editable PDF), but know that you can also refer “hypothetical” situations where you have concerns but cannot get a signed release.

• 2017 Parenting Now! Resources for Families – Linked here is the 2017 Resources for Families Poster (English and Spanish) from Parenting Now! This poster is a very comprehensive resource guide sorted by area of need (i.e. Counseling, Financial Assistance, Legal, Substance Abuse & Recovery, etc.) if you are ever helping families look for Lane County agencies and resources.

• May 26 PD Day – The last PD Day of the year is in two weeks on Friday, May 26th. There will be a brief meeting in the morning to discuss leadership for 2017-2018 and items related to moving: Most of the day will be related to packing boxes and helping each other move. I’ll also provide some time for licensed staff to complete the End-of-Cycle Goals Reflection form in TalentEd and for classified staff to complete the Classified Employee Self-Assessment assessment form (PDF or DOC).

• ELD Service will end on June 14 or 15: The last day for ELD of Kinder, 1st, 3rd and 4th grades will be Wednesday, June 14th. Since Field Day is from 9am-11am and BBQ lunch from 11am-1pm on Thursday, June 15th, this will be the last day of ELD for 2nd and 5th grades.  The following week, the last three and a half days of school, Nancy will be working on end of the year ELD paperwork and filing the necessary forms in the front office and at ELD office. This is a collaborative decision Nancy, Lily Gold and myself have made to serve our students. If you have any questions, please contact me (Joel) about the end of service for the year.

• Class Lists Parent Notification – The plan as has been the last three years is to wait until fall to notify families about classroom placements. We usually have a fair amount of turnover each summer.  Posting class lists like we did this year will be the plan for next year unless I hear otherwise from folks who think I should reconsider.

• 2017-2018 School Leadership Positions – We still have some open positions for next year’s building leadership positions. Feel free to sign-up and we’ll make these official at the May 26th PD Day. If you would like to sign up for a leadership or rep position, look for the clipboard in the staff lounge.

• Fresh Fruit & Veggie Program – Nutrition Services is watching the funding very closely with the Fresh Fruit and Veggie Program and it may be that they need to end this program on May 31st. The state is unsure of the amount of funding to complete this school year, as well as what next year will look like. Nutrition Services will let us know more information when they receive details from ODE.

•Families, advocates, and allies of gender diverse and transgender children- A great resource for families-Juli Heffernan at UO and Tina Schmich have started a support group for parents of gender diverse students.  They met for the first time in September and will meet the third Thursday of each month:Families of Gender Expansive Youth Support and Advocacy Group, Third Thursdays, 5:30-6:30 p.m., 1685 West 13^th Ave | Unitarian Universalist Church of Eugene. The Facebook event posting for this month’s meeting can be found and shared here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1317758461597676/ .

For questions, please contact Julie at jheffern@uoregon.edu or Brianna Stiller at stiller@4j.lane.edu.

• Free, Optional iPad Basics Workshop – In response to interest expressed by classified staff, Instructional Technology is offering four sessions of iPad Basics. The North Region session is being hosted  at Howard in two weeks on Wednesday, May 24th from 2:00-3:00 in the STEM Room. Follow this link to the 4J Workshops Website for further information and online registration. Any 4J employee, classified or licensed, is welcome to attend.

• Why it’s important to recognize unconscious bias – While it may be difficult to admit, “unconscious bias is a real phenomenon in all schools,” asserts former educator and principal Kate Gerson in this article. Gerson, who now works with nonprofit UnboundEd, challenges educators to engage in the uncomfortable work of evaluating unconscious bias.

The Calendar of Events for the remainder of the year:

May 15 (M)

Regular Day

May 16 (Tu)

8:15-11:15, Joel to Elementary Principals’ Meeting (Ed Center)

3:00-5:00, Two Hour Staff Meeting on LearnZillion & a session on Dreambox and how to use some new features.  Maddie Ahearn, Jamie Massie, and Reid Sheppard in support.

May 17 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time  Focus- Planning  for math instruction. New Compendium for the end of year??

May 18 (Th)

3:00-4:00, Equity Meeting 

May 19 (F)

 2:00- 2:30 PM (Cafeteria) Earth Assembly

May 22 (M)

4:00-5:00, Joel at All Admin Meeting

May 23 (Tu)

2:45-3:45, PLT Meeting

May 24 (W)

9:00-11:15, Joel in Construction Meeting

1:45-2:45, Wednesday PLC Time- Technology Focus- Primary Intermediate- Math Assessment

May 25 (Th)

5:30-7:00, River Road Farewell Event in the cafeteria and parts of the school.

May 26 (F)

Academy Day- No School

Short staff meeting in the AM focused on moving questions and the new building.  PBIS and routines in the new building will be a topic.

Most of the day is allocated for packing boxes and doing moving preparation.

May 29 (M)

Memorial Day- No School

May 30 (Tu)

Joel and some teachers to Rigler Elementary in Portland

6:00-7:00, Parent Group Multicultural Potluck Dinner (Cafeteria)

May 31 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time  Focus- Planning  for math instruction.

June 1 (Th)

5th Grade Outdoor School

June 2 (F)

5th Grade Outdoor School

June 5 (M)

Regular Day

June 6 (Tu)

2:00-2:30- School Wide BEST Strings Performance in Cafeteria

3:00-4:00, Final Staff Meeting of the year in (Room 18)

June 7 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PBIS Meeting in Room 9

1:45-3:45- PLC Time – Professional Development on Imagine Learning software for 2017/2018. Extended contracts provided.

June 8 (Th)

8:00-2:30, Final Data Team Meeting #6  (Room 18)

June 9 (F)

Now a REGULAR SCHOOL DAY

June 12 (M)

3:30-5:00, Joel at Immersion Task Force Meeting (Parr Room)

June 13 (Tu)

4:00-5:30,Final Site Council Meeting: Transitions for new members and thank you for old members. Includes a tour of the new building.

June 14 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time- Focus:Aligning report card information across grade levels.

June 15 (Th)

9:00-11:00, Field Day 

11:00-12:15, School wide BBQ

June 16 (F)

No School – Grading Day

June 19 (M)

Regular Day

June 20 (Tu)

Regular Day

June 21 (W)

9:00-11:00, Joel at construction meeting.

1:45-2:45- PLC Time- Let’s pack together!

June 22 (Th)

The Last Day of School  (Dismissal 11:40)

June 23(F)

Last work day for teachers. All employees must be out of the building before 12:00 AM-(Midnight).

June 24 (Sa) 

Salvage and Asbestos Abatement begins in the old building.  No teachers or classified staff may be present.

That is all for the week. 

Have a great week, everyone! 26 days of school left in the old building!

Joel

 

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Week of May 8, 2017

 

Hi Everyone,

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. Yes, teachers, this is your week! You deserve a special week dedicated to you. We are all strong educators in our building. However,  teachers have unique and special skills that must be recognized. There is so much you do day in day out.  Each day it is so impressive to see how many things you do to support our students and families. 

Here is a list of characteristics I see in the school each day that need to be outlined:

Knowledge of subject matter: Elementary teachers have a great knowledge of subject matter. Dual language teachers know all that content in BOTH LANGUAGES.  That is impressive.

Patience: You all have an amazing level of patience.  I see how much time  you spend helping students know routines,  learn to help each other, and teach how to build a strong climate.

Intellectual Curiosity:   Your quest to improve learning for your students is moving.  Each time that I see you trying new things or asking questions I develop confidence that you will be constantly improving your practice.

Confidence: Everyone knows it when a classroom teacher is running the show. Time and again, I walk in your classrooms to see all of you guiding students and leading impressive discussions that are not done in most schools.  This confidence is contagious. Students do so well with your support and leadership. 

Compassion:   You love your students and it shows each and every day.

Achievement: Your students are seen in your classrooms.  They learn how to read in TWO languages.  They can  do math problems in Spanish.  They learn to build meaningful relationships. Amazing.

Planning: Student experiences are planned and designed for optimal  learning.  They enjoy  their experiences and learn  amazing amounts thanks to your careful planning.

Awareness: You know so much about your classrooms.  Each day, it is like a complicated ballet dance that you perform  to help your students get to a goal.  This skill is often unrecognized.  Then, we notice how things hesitate when you are gone.

Mentorship: There is so much communication about our program.  Teachers in our building help each other and communicate often to build a better program in our building.  A dual language program is doubly hard.  You help each other and are so collegial. This matters for our kids outcomes and for overall school climate.

Maturity: I believe that maturity is so important in teaching. Students experience emotional ups and downs, and insightful teachers like you are able to sense the changes and respond to them appropriately. Teachers must be pillars, consistently encouraging students to grow as human beings and to develop academically. You do that consistently.

Community Involvement: Maintaining good community relations is part of being a teacher, and teachers’ contact with parents, administrators, and community leaders enhances their effectiveness in the classroom. Seeing how many events you go to and how much time you spend resisting the agenda  that is attacking our students is impressive.  You make this school a safe place for our kids.  

Organization:   Teachers must be able to manage students’ multiple personalities and organize their subject matters so that a maximum number of students benefits from their presentations. You create classrooms that truly customize learning for 25 or more little minds.

Vision:  Teaching encompasses far more than passing information from teachers to students. Teachers should be illuminators who provide their students not only with interesting and useful material, but also with visions of where they might end up if they learn well. You not only achieve this for your students.  You also have been able to create a common vision across the school for our students.

Context: Every subject has a context, and teachers are responsible for providing it to their students. Since no one learns in a vacuum, teachers must show their students how the information they are learning might be used or might lead to the development of some other useful skill. The relevance  you provide for students matters.  And in our school,  this is even more impressive.  You create a context that is bicultural or multicultural across the school. This is so important for our children.

Mission:  Perhaps the most important thing teachers communicate to students and to the community is a sense of satisfaction with their choice of teaching as their life mission. Teaching at its highest level is a calling, and good teachers feel it to their cores.  I see that present in your work each day. Working in a dual language school takes a special individual who must have this characteristic.  

Enthusiasm: Excellent teachers never lose enthusiasm for their profession. They might become temporarily burdened by administrative hassles or isolated problems, but their underlying engagement with their work is unwavering. Students feel this energy, and teachers who project it are much more successful than those who do not.

Watch out for some nice appreciations for staff this week that our fabulous classified and Parent Group have in store for you.

Here are some important items of the week:

• Free Tutoring for KG and 1st Students – The Center for Teaching and Learning’s Clinic at the University of Oregon has openings for their summer reading and math tutoring program for current Kindergarten and 1st Grade students to receive intervention services. Linked here is a flyer and registration packet that you can feel free to share with any interested parents. School staff and families can contact Anna Ingram (annad@uoregon.edu) with questions or to submit an application.

• District Admin Update – Iton Udosenata has accepted the position of principal for North Eugene High School. Iton is currently the principal of Cottage Grove High School, in the South Lane School District. What you may not know is that he is a proud alumnus of North Eugene High School. Prior to his current position, Iton was an assistant principal at Willamette High School, a social studies and alternative education teacher at Thurston High School, and, at the beginning of his career, a middle school history teacher in Los Angeles. Here’s a link to a Register Guard article that ran in the paper last week.

• Conservation Education Talks and Field Trips – The Willamette National Forest will again be offering conservation education talks and field trips. Programs are available for preschool, kindergarten, elementary, middle and high schools and may be of particular interest to Biology, Science, Conservation Education, and Geography lessons. These programs can be offered at school or as field trips at the Willamette National Forest. See the linked letter and flyer for their education activities which will be offered through September 10, 2017.

• “13 Reasons Why” Netflix Series: Considerations for Educators – Schools have an important role in preventing youth suicide, and being aware of potential risk factors in students’ lives is vital to this responsibility. The trending Netflix series “13 Reasons Why,” based on a young adult novel of the same name, is raising such concerns. The series revolves around 17-year-old Hannah Baker, who takes her own life and leaves behind audio recordings for 13 people who she says in some way were part of why she killed herself. The series, which many youth are binge watching without adult guidance and support, is raising concerns from suicide prevention experts about the potential risks posed by the sensationalized treatment of youth suicide. See the linked resources from the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) for information about the series and as well as recommendations for educators and families.

 

Teaching and Learning with Emerging Bilinguals:

Learn about this amazing musician Andres 123.  He is  a musician who is giving back to the community with songs and language that have a strong cultural context in DLI programs.  He writes songs that are fun and easy for kids to learn English and Spanish together.    Teachers, expect a special gift related to Andres 123  soon.

http://www.123andres.com

Calendar of Events for the Remainder of the Year:

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