World Class Education
Then and Now
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| Students using digital tools for math (5th grade) |
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| Create a video that either supports this theory or disagrees with it. (Neal's Crew) |
Big Money and How We'll Spend It!
(Got your attention now?)
Skill blocks have been replaced with Personal Growth Stipends.
For 15 hours, a teacher may get $300.00 They may do this twice.
Here is the great news....
*8 of the 15 hours may be Site Based Professional Development.
*Resource
courses such as Backward Plan, World Class Education, and Restorative
Practices may be done on PLC days! (each are 8 hours)
So, on Monday, September 24 (teacher PD day) we are bringing the Restorative Practices course listed above to Renaissance. We will spend all of Monday making links between Love and Logic and Restorative Practices. You will earn 8 hours on Monday.
During the same week, on Wednesday and Thursday (Sept. 26 & 27) you may elect to take Restorative Circles which we have worked out to be offered next door at the Early Childhood Center at 4:30 to earn the other 8 hours. If you elect to take this second portion, you'll qualify for your first personal growth stipend of $300!
For those of you writing a personal goal around Backwards Planning, I encourage you to register to tae one of those courses through staff development to earn the second $300. personal growth stipend. You would also have 16 hours towards re-licensure!
Even More Money...
The Douglas County BoE has chosen to take a portion
of their carryover from last year and re-distribute that back out to
schools to reimburse teachers for some of the dollars they spend out of
pocket for school supplies.
For
the purposes of the dollar amounts allocated to schools, the following
staff members were excluded; nurses, librarians and non- school licensed
staff. It was strictly based on certified classroom FTE. This doesn't
mean that the above people will be excluded from being reimbursed for
whatever supply expense any licensed teacher expends on behalf of their
classroom or position. Always let me know when you have made a personal purchase so we can ensure that we get you reimbursed!
What??? There's more money?!
What we once called 'The Planning Grant' is now called 'Innovation Dollars'. With the approval of the Leadership Team, here is the way we will allocate these dollars.
Every certified full-time teacher will have 7 days for additional planning. Each teacher needs to keep track of their use. You may use these days for a sub to plan during the school day (backwards planning) and if you choose, you can keep track of the hours you spend preparing lesson plans to be out of the classroom until they total a day. You also have the flexibility to use your days over a break and be compensated financially for them ($110 approx.). Again, you need to track those days and also share the work you've done with Noreene.
We also allocated 8 days to either comp time or pay-out those teachers who did not receive a day of rest at the conclusion of their voyage.
Teachers who work less than full-time will have some planning days, and I'll visit with you about that.
A big 'shout out' to MarySue for creating the form (see link) you can use to track your time. You'll need to save it on your desk top. You also received the link in an email. (Wondering what that was, weren't you!)
Sixth Grade field work to the Botanic Gardens
Fieldwork at the Denver Botanic Gardens served two purposes. The first purpose was to tour the gardens to observe, think and respond to the work of three different artists each using the Japanese aesthetic wabi sabi to guide their work. Another commonality was the natural material used to realize their unique ideas, bamboo. The second purpose was to practice scientific inquiry through close observation of a natural object, repeated testing of the observation, precise illustration of the object and brief explanatory notes, like Leonardo da Vinci.
Photos complements of Pam
Calendar
September 10-14:
Tuesday:
3rd Grade Crews to Camp Elim
4th Grade Discovery Crew to Educo
RTI meeting 7:15 a.m.
* Administration of CogAt to 1,2,4,5,6th graders 9 - 11 a.m.
Wednesday:
* All School Meeting
* Leadership Team Meeting
* Professional Development: Planning
Friday:
Rebecca's Crew - Service Learning Field Work
September 17 -21:
Monday:
Rebecca's Crew to Educo
Tuesday:
RTI meeting 7:15 a.m.
Wednesday:
Leadership Team meeting 11:00 a.m.
Professional Development: Vertical Teams/Technology
Friday:
Bill's Crew Gateway Mesa Hike
Featured Folk:
Authored by Noreene
Why I Am Not Leaving
Until They Carry Me Out
The reasons I went into education is a bedtime story from
the last century…why I stayed in education for so long might make better
telling. I think I can put it in less than a 140 character tweet…be ready, you
might miss it…freedom…I know I am
supposed to say I’m in it for the kids…and I am. I dearly love kids. They are
funny. They are truthful and perceptive. I can talk to them. I love the stuff
of kids…books and toys. And I maybe kidding myself, but I think I understand
them for the most part. And I am also in it for myself.
I have been incredibly lucky in my career. I have had spend
very little time marching to someone else’s beat. I have had the extreme
pleasure of participating in a cycle of inventing and reinventing my career. I
have had almost only opportunities for extreme educational creativity…some by
choice some by situation. From inventing curriculum where non existed, to building
my dream science room complete with everything a teacher might need for
hands-on-minds-on science, wiring a computer network in my school and working
in a truly 1:1 computer to child environment. I’ve taken advantage of every
training/reinventing opportunity I could find. I’ve had the pleasure of teaching
every grade k-8 + art/music and PE the latter of which consisted of cross
country skiing and swimming lessons…FUN! I’ve done a stint as principal and
superintendent of schools (we are talking a really small district here.) This
is truly ALL because I’ve worked for and with people and communities that
valued autonomy, shared trust, and cared about taking risks. Point is I’ve
reinvented myself right into The Renaissance School. It has not necessarily been
a soft landing, but then soft landings don’t make for developing risk takers.
So take a risk, do something different, or at least don’t do the same thing and
expect different results. Avoid being complacent, be grateful for where you
work and with whom, or find a place and a role where you can be grateful, get
inspired, be inspiring…it is all about staying in YOUR ZPD baby.
Peek Into Classrooms:
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| And so it begins... front teeth are falling out! |
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| Look closely and you'll see the tooth in her hand |
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| Clever way to display student work (an important component of the Comprehensive Literacy Model) without messing with the window glass! (Mary Beth's classroom) |
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| (a close up from one of the writing pieces displayed- made me chuckle) "I persevered on the hike it was hard I was sweaten'" |
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| Model writing demonstration |
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| Supporting a student to choose a book - Diana has a gift for being able to match any student with a book they will love |
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| Primary vertical team made a decision to do some peer visits! Caught the kindergarten teachers in the first grade classrooms. A wonderful opportunity to learn from one another about instruction that works. Collaboration in action! |
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| Performance assessment |
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| Learning from one another- A bonus of performance assessment! |
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| Lindsey writes the learning target after she's immersed the kids and they have told her what they are working on. |
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| Elisha provides a coaching model for a guided group. |
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| Immediately after the group, Elisha and Tyler debrief the lesson and make a plan for the next lesson, while students are busy during Reader's Workshop. |
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| Mary Beth solved the problem of never having sticky notes and other teaching tools nearby with her tool apron! Ask her about her apron, it has a touching story. (Mary Beth, is your hair a little flat? LOL) |
I saved the best for last...
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| Tyler does a little light reading during his lunch break - The Design Principles of Expeditionary Learning! |
Have a great weekend!
Deborah
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