https://blogs.4j.lane.edu/madisonstaff/2020/12/04/december-4-2020/
Hi Madison Staff,
Only two more weeks! Here’s what’s happening this week:
This Week’s Schedule:
| Mon, Dec 7 | Tue, Dec 8 | Wed, Dec 9 | Thur, Dec 10 | Fri, Dec 11 |
| 12:30-3:30 P&G to Admin Meeting | GLT Meetings | 8:00 Climate Team | 9:00-10:00 P&G to Security Camera Refresher Training | No School – Grading Day
9:00 Gina to Physical Distancing Coordinators Mtg. |
Quick Links: Please make sure you’re signed into your 4J Google Account to access many of these links.
- Zoom Links for Staff Use
- Zoom Links Master Document – As you’re building your tri 2 Canvas courses, please consider changing your Zoom links to improve security. New links should be added to the Master List, linked above.
- SPED/Gen Ed Collaboration Log – Complete the full log at the beginning of each new unit. Complete the last 2 questions weekly for students on IEPs who are not engaging or are not on track.
MADISON INFORMATION
- Weekly Check In: Linked here is the staff weekly check-in. We’d like to know how you’re doing and be able to offer support for those who need it.
- TalentED News: Peter and I have enjoyed popping into classes, just for fun, during Tri 1, and we’re both incredibly impressed by the work that you all are doing with kids. Beginning soon, we’ll be starting to capture some of the great things you’re doing into informal observations in TalentEd. In the coming weeks, we’ll also be reaching out to schedule formal evaluations for all probationary teachers and contract teachers on a summative cycle.
- Work in Progress for Tri 2 Supports: The items below are things that Peter and Gina have been processing ideas with teams, and we’re working on getting in place to support kids and teachers:
- A weekly slide deck to hand Focus teachers that will provide a structure for Focus time.
- A weekly student self-canvas check to be completed by students that is designed to help them reflect, prioritize their work, and plan any needed support.
- A brief weekly Wednesday admin-led Zoom assembly
- New incentives to motivate kids and build engagement.
- Trimester 1 Grades: As you all prepare for the grading process here are a few things to think about.
- Use Highly Proficient, Proficient, Nearly Proficient, Not Proficient as ways of presenting your grades for students showing up and submitting work.
- Use Insufficient Evidence (IE) for a grade if the student did not attend or turn in assignments. If you feel that you can not clearly say the student does not know the materials covered because they did not turn in assignments, using IE fits the purpose.
- Use No Basis (NB) for new students to your class (usually less than 2 week)
I hope this helps as you prepare to enter grades. The window for posting final grades for Tri 1 will be open Monday morning.
PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND OTHER INFORMATION
- Hour of Code 12/7-12/13: Next week brings The Hour of Code. If coding is an area of interest for you, here are some ideas that could make for a great Wednesday enrichment session. Visit code.org for lesson and activity ideas. They’ve also added Code Bytes which are live video mini-lessons happening all next week. Other activities can be found at Hour of Code, Khan Academy (more advanced), and Tynker. I recommend testing these activities on your iPad to make sure they’re accessible for kids. Also, it’s always a good idea to start these lessons with a little growth mindset refresher so kids can expect to be challenged, fail often, and have to problem solve.
Have a super weekend!
