O Christmas Tree.....

Here we are, two days to go.  I'm sure it will feel like two weeks.  From what I am hearing, there may not be too many students at school on Tuesday.  I'm actually not sure why, but expect fewer students.  Tuesday morning is Polar Express for grades K-4 and Christmas Breakfast for grades 5-8.  Gina will be playing the videos created by her video production club at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday afternoon and will send out directions for how to view. 

Thank you Heather, Kelly, Paula, and Derrick for a great Christmas Show!!!  Thank you Charles and Jose for making the sound happen!!  Who knew we had such talent in our students.  Great acting and singing!! 

I hope everyone has a restful and joyous Christmas with your friends and family. 

O Come O Come Emmanuel

As we enter the Second Week of Advent, let us remember to pause in the midst of the usual Christmas chaos and thank the Lord for sending his Son so that we may be saved.  Let us also thank the Lord for the beautiful gift he brought to the Wiles home this past week.  We have much to be thankful for.  Come Jesus, come quickly!

Thank you Julianne for putting together our Advent Retreat.  We truly are blessed to have Julianne take on these extra tasks that there is never enough time to get to.  By doing the framework for these days, it allows teachers the time to focus on creating one activity to share.  I walked through the school a number of times throughout the day and I would like to share my thoughts of how we can improve our retreat days.  I first would like to share something that Fr. Dermot said to me in August when we were talking about our Faculty Retreat at the start of the year.  After I talked a little about it, he asked me if it was a retreat or a workshop.  Those words keep coming back to me, particularly as I walked through the school on Friday.  The framework for a reflective retreat was there, but we may have strayed from the path at times.  Advent is a joyous time and the retreats tend to be more lively than during Lent, but here are some things to think about for the Lent retreat, a time when we should quiet our hearts:

• No one should be talking above a whisper.  Retreat days should be a time when we stay very quiet and move toward having a close, personal relationship with Christ.  
• Hands-on activities are necessary, particularly for younger students.  However, there should always be a time for prayer, meditation, or reflection that goes with the activity.  One idea I've used is to make a retreat journal for each child that we would go back to throughout the day so that students could make connections and understand the meaning behind what we are doing.
• Activities should be making, creating, interacting.  Students should not be coloring worksheets or playing games.  They should be making advent wreaths, jesse trees, mangers, etc. to take home and share with their families.  They should be reading the bible and acting out how the story might look today in modern times, or create a visual art or song based on a bible story.  They could make and pray the Advent stations of the cross.  
• Be prepared for everyone moment of the retreat so that transitions happen smoothly and quietly.  
• We should also do everything possible to ensure that we do not use subs on a retreat day.

Many of these things were happening on Friday and I did see some great things.  I also understand that retreats are easier as they students get older.  I also know that sometimes things are beyond our control like a hurricane that moved the Early Childhood conference to the day of our retreat.  I only offer these thoughts as some things to think about for the next retreat, especially as we struggle to bring the children closer to Christ.  If we can make that relationship stronger, the begging and pleading at home to be taken to Mass on Sunday will also grow stronger.  

You may want to show the powerpoint from this weekend at church to your class.  Thank you Gina for helping me (or pretty much doing it while I watched) with the presentation.  Your students might enjoy seeing themselves.  It will be on Facebook Monday and maybe we can show it on the Morning Show.  

This week I will be gone Wednesday morning at a principal's meeting.  Monday is a Holy Card free dress.  The Christmas Show is Friday.  Friday is also a half-day and you are free to leave after carline.  The calendar was still showing Parish Christmas party for Friday afternoon but we took it off.  That was our original plan back in May but it has been replaced by our Epiphany Party.  Please be sure you have responded to the invitation by indicating how many and the ages of your children if you are bringing them.  If something is preventing you from attending, please come talk to me first before replying no.  Thank you and have a Blessed week.  

Happy New Year

The First Sunday of Advent ushers in the new Liturgical Year.  This year is Year B in the Lectionary.  As we prepare our hearts to receive the gift of Jesus' birth, let us pray for confidence in God's love for us and trust in his power to do what is best for us.  At my retreat on Friday I heard many things that spoke to me.  In particular was the idea of emptying ourselves so that God can penetrate our hearts.  In order for that to happen we need to let go of all our worries and live in the moment.  Buddhist Mindfulness - intentional, deliberate focus on the present - is one way to do this.  The Buddha said, "Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment."  How difficult a thing this is for us to do, particularly in our profession.  

Another way to empty ourselves for the Lord is by following St. Teresa's idea of Contemplative Prayer.  Contemplation is a great act of love. We desire God as God desires us. We give our hearts to God, and it is within our hearts that we encounter God in his Son through the promptings of the Holy Spirit. A person puts aside the self—the “me”—and sees everything in terms of the gospel and the unconditional compassion of Jesus Christ. It requires few if any words.  Here is a suggestion from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on how to proceed with Contemplative Prayer:

• Find a quiet place, you can have music playing
• Find a comfortable position, breathe and quiet yourself
• Focus your attention on an image of Jesus
• Acknowledge the things that are trying to get your attention---thoughts, worries, plans, aches and pains, sights and sounds around you.
• Slowly let these things go.
• In your silence and stillness, let God’s Spirit within you make itself known.
• Do not expect anything to “happen”; put yourself in God’s hands.  

And finally I would like to share a quote from Blaise Pascal for you to think about, "The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of."  When I realized what it was saying, it made so many things clear.  Maybe it will speak to you too.

The representative from our cleaning company will be here Tuesday for a walk-thru.  If there is something you would like me to point out or tell him, let me know.  I am considering a new cleaning company for the school.  I met with the rep and had a good feeling about the work this company does.  One plus is that they are very familiar with cleaning schools.  If there is something you need done in your classroom over Christmas break, please let me know by Friday.  Hopefully the new AC will be installed over break.  This should alleviate some of the leak issues we have been having.  I'm also hoping the awning will be installed over break and we ordered 4 new picnic tables for the playground thanks to the Angel's paddle item.  Another addition to the property will be 4 more speed bumps in the parking lot which hopefully will slow down drivers who currently race through the lot.  Allen and I are working on getting these ordered.  The Lord is good!

Please be sure to pass out envelopes on Friday and remind students that this weekend coming up is the weekend to wear their uniform and grab a holy card for free dress.  Thank you for all you do and I am praying that everyone experiences a meaningful retreat this Friday.  

Tis the Season

Welcome back.  I hope you all had a restful week and are ready for a very busy few weeks.  Do not slack in your expectations.  There is a tendency to get off track during the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but you will regret it when the end of the trimester comes and you only have 1 or 2 summatives.  Keep the students focused on their learning and there will be less stress.  And...... If you missed Black Friday there's always a chance to grab some deals with Cyber Monday!  

Here are some happenings this week:

• PTCO will begin decorating for Christmas
• Please send your Honor Roll list to Karen and Charles before you leave on Monday.  This is for Grades 5-8 only.  Please see the Parent/Student Handbook if you are unsure of what the requirements are for the two honor rolls.  Also, be sure you are looking at the revised report cards from Friday, Nov. 17.  
• Arthur Carapella from Pre-K 4 will be Principal for the Morning on Wednesday, Nov. 29.  He will attend Mass with me and then we will give out honor roll certificates.  We will spend some time in classrooms and then he will have lunch with me in the office with 2 of his friends.
• Charles and I will be out on Friday at an Administrator's retreat.
• Friday is Marvelous Mustang day.  Please be sure you contact the parents of the student you give a certificate to.  Every teacher must contact parents themselves, not just the homeroom teachers.  
• Friday is set-up day for the St. Nicholas shop which will take place next week Mon-Thurs. 
• I have two observations to complete and will send out a sign up to go over your observations.  

Have a wonderful week!

What are you thankful for?

It's the time of year when we recall all the things we are thankful for.  I am thankful that I've done most of my elementary observations so I don't have to sit through another Pilgrim lesson.  I'm thankful for everyone who played a part in making our Angel's event a memorable evening.  I'm thankful for each and every one of you who go beyond minimum and make things happen for our students and our school.  I am thankful to work with some of the most amazing people in Catholic education.  Be sure to take some time this week and let your students know the things they do that make you thankful they are a part of your life.  

Once we return from Thanksgiving break things will move quickly and many things are happening.  1st grade share boxes, Santa shop, Advent retreat, Christmas program, and more.  This year we are breaking from tradition.  We will not be having a staff Christmas party on the half day of the Christmas program which was the original plan.  Fr. Dermot has the vision that a Christmas party should be during the Christmas season, not Advent.  I think it's a great idea because sometimes things are so hectic just before Christmas break.  The plan is to do something on Friday, January 5 in the evening.  It will be in the FLC and families will be invited to join us so please keep that date open.  More details to follow.  Enjoy the week and the much needed break that will be here soon.

If you want a laugh, watch WKRP in Cincinnati's "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf3mgmEdfwg

Reflection time

This will be a short but busy week.  It's also a good time to reflect back on the first Trimester (grades in particular) and decide what went well and what could have been done better.  Some will feel that it was hard to get in the minimum number of grades since it's the start of school and it takes a while to get in the swing of things.  We also had an Irma disruption.  Trimester 2 will also come with its challenges with Thanksgiving and Christmas break.  The final Trimester will have the after Easter break slump.  Conclusion... there is no perfect trimester. 

At my principal's meeting on Friday there was a heated discussion among principals (while the superintendent and assistant superintendent left the room) about the grading policy.  The topic was - Grading Policy 5 years later, what have we accomplished.  As a group we concluded that we have a better understanding of what grades should truly represent and that we are better at assessing students.  Everyone believes that Understanding By Design makes us better educators and that our overall philosophy has changed for the better.  Everyone also very much likes separate ATL grades where you can separate knowledge from behavior.  In general, it was not a waste of time.  It was a work in process and as it went along, things were learned and discovered and adjustments were made.  There was a long explanation as to why we did not go to standards-based report cards in the end.  Basically, it was because the time it would take for teachers to do it properly was not going to be worth the outcome.  If a student received a B in math and a 2 in the geometry strand, what does that really tell anyone?  Not much.  What is more useful is diagnostic tools like iReady and formative assessments that can pinpoint weaknesses and then conferencing with parents to say Johnny needs to practice area and perimeter in IXL.  It's about having faith in teachers without bombarding with more work.  Here were some of the "cons":

• Not all schools cooperated and we are each at different levels of standardized practices
• This was never meant for high schools and no one is sure why they joined in
• Many agree that 50% is ok if best effort is given, but 50% for no work is a difficult pill to swallow
• Many disagree with the retake policy for summatives, the feeling is formatives are your retakes - keep trying until you have mastered and are ready for the summative.  If formatives are done right, no one should ever fail a summative.

Nothing really changes for us.  Know that we are not the only school that sits back and says, why isn't everyone else doing this?  I also think it's what makes us better and the reason why our students do so well in high school.  I did feel for new principals who want to cooperate and are in schools that never did any of the suggested practices and now are finding it a struggle to catch up.  But is also means that there is a movement for more and more schools to do what is suggested. 

Since Thursday is a half day, the new electives for middle school will not begin until next week.  I will work on your rosters this week and get that information out to you.  Have a wonderful week. 

Trimester 1 Comes to An End

It's the final countdown.  Our first trimester comes to an end on Friday.  I know we had some disruptions this first trimester, but we actually only lost two days of instruction.  Some things to remember:   

• Every class gets an ATL
• Conduct goes in Homeroom
• Any ATL or Conduct score lower than a 3 should not be a surprise to parents.  Written communication or a conference should have happened before you can give a 1 or a 2
• A score lower than a C should also not be a surprise
• All 1's, 2's, D's and F's MUST have a comment
• Grades must be complete by 8:00 a.m. Monday morning, Nov. 6

Charles will provide a complete checklist for you to be sure grades are correct before we print report cards.  

Nov. 9 is a Parent Conference Day.  Every core teacher should be having conferences that day.  You should be meet with every parent at least once during the year.  For this first conference day, you should be focusing on students who may be struggling or are new to the school.  First set up conferences with students you know you need to meet on, and then offer a conference to other parents.  Every parent should be offered a conference.  Anyone you do not meet with this time, insist they come in on the next conference day.  It's impossible to meet with everyone on this one day so I understand that you will most likely be meeting before and after Nov. 9 with parents.  If you plan a conference before school, set the start time by at least 7:15 a.m. and end promptly at 7:40.  Students should not be waiting outside your room while you conference.  Please send your conference schedule to me by Friday, Nov. 3.

As I've been reviewing Unit Plans and doing observations, I am finding that everyone is doing a great job in you lessons, classroom management, activities, student engagement, questioning, etc.  However, in general we still struggle with the overarching parts of the unit plans.  Enduring Understandings read like skills, Essential Questions are too content specific, Values Infusion is a quote from the Bible that has little connection, assessments are not in Atlas, Knowledge consists of only vocabulary words or has no vocabulary words, and Atlas attachments will not open.  These issues are not evident in every unit plan, but in general everyone has at least one struggle.  I will be reviewing these items in depth at an upcoming faculty meetings.  The other thing I've noticed is that it's hard to know what unit plans are for this year and what was copied over from last year.  I believe unit plans can stay in the prior year and you can access them there but it is difficult to know what you are doing particularly if you are a new teacher and there are plans from a prior teacher.  I will be reviewing all these things individually with you when we go over your observations.  

Lastly, Nicki gets a lot of feedback from new parents in particular and many have only good things to say about our school and particularly about our teachers.  What impresses them most is the caring attitude we have here at St. Stephen.  You should all be proud of yourselves.  Thank you all for making me look good!! 😊

Fall in NY

Sorry the blog is a little late.  I've spent the past two days catching up with family and enjoying spending time with my mom.  She is trying to adjust to life in a nursing home but doesn't want to ask for help and spends a good deal of time on the floor.  I can see where I get my stubborn streak from.  Weather was perfect as was the food and it will be hard to leave here this afternoon.

Some reminders for this week...  There is a faculty meeting today - Love and Logic.  Friday is Harvest Festival followed by PLCs.  Some teachers are out that day at Clinical Ed training.  We are in school next Monday and Tuesday of next week is Marvelous Mustang.

Charles is checking gradebooks and will be contacting you if you do not have enough assessments.  Remember it's 4 Formatives for every Summative and 4 Summatives for each trimester.  It may be different for Encore classes.  Conduct should be in your homeroom class.  Make sure you are putting it in the right place.

See you all tomorrow!

Is it Fall yet?

It's this time of year when I start to get tired of the heat.  October and Halloween means cooler weather... at least in some places in the country.  

As I am sure you all read (hint, hint) in Tidbits last week, this coming Friday (Oct. 20) is the day you will send home ONE envelope with each child for their first stewardship donation.  Please talk to them about it and the idea of giving.  Show the students how to fill out the envelope with their time, talent, and treasures.  Just explain it, they should be filling it out with their parents. 

As a reminder, I am leaving early on Friday and will be out Monday, Oct. 23.  Here is a recap of meeting agendas from last week's blog:

Monday, Oct. 16 - Grade level meetings (PreK-1, 2-5, 6-8) - Topics for discussions include:

• How ATL and Conduct grades are being determined
• Lunch discipline.  It doesn't look like assistants are recording behavior anywhere.  How is it being communicated to teachers
• Topics as determined by grade level
• Take notes and share minutes with Charles and Linda

Thursday, Oct. 19  - Encore Meeting 12:25 - 1:12 p.m.  (This allows Julianne to join this meeting and the middle school meeting.)  Topics for discussion include:

• How ATL and Conduct grades are determined and communicated to homeroom teachers who record the only conduct grade.
• Topics as needed

Monday, Oct. 23 - Love and Logic

I attended a workshop on the CE Tracker program which is what we will be using for master inservice points in the future.  I may have said this already, but I want to be sure everyone got the message.  DO NOT re-apply for a certificate until you have the go ahead from us.  State is revamping their system and your payment will most likely get lost.  The new MIP program is super easy and will reduce paper by about 95%.  Only on the rare occasion when you attend a workshop alone will you need to fill out a form.  Even then, if you get a certificate, no form needed.  I will demonstrate the system at our November faculty meeting.  In the meantime, I will be working with Charles to get all your accounts set up and input all the workshops, etc. we've had since July 1.  We should be all caught up by December. 

The other thing I will be talking about at our November faculty meeting is an update on field trips and what we are required to do.  I will tell you that by the end most schools decided that in-school field trips sounded like a good idea.  In the meantime, if anyone has a field trip coming up before Nov. 13, please be sure that a permission form is completed for all STUDENTS, CHAPERONES, AND TEACHERS.  In other words, anyone going on the trip.  The purpose has to do with medical release portion and if anyone gets hurt.  Be sure you leave a copy of ALL permission slips with Charles before you go on the trip. 

Thank you all for everything you do and have a great week!

Making RenWeb Happen!

This blog is early and I explain why below.  This mostly for teachers this week.  Everyone else, scan through and enjoy your weekend.  

A couple of weeks ago I sent instructions to parents on how they can access information on ParentsWeb.  In tracking handbook acknowledgements, we have discovered that only a few parents have NOT registered on RenWeb.  That's great!!  Except when I look at ParentsWeb there isn't much for them to see except grades.  I was waiting for a faculty meeting to go over how to put stuff up there but September was a mess and October has people coming and going to meetings.  I'm having a hard time finding an opportunity when we are all in the building.  Therefore, I am going to give instructions here.  My blog is going out early this week because my expectation is that by Monday, everyone will have something on ParentsWeb.  I want to see announcements of upcoming events like field trips, project due dates and summative dates.  Soon I want to see an announcement of how you are doing conferences.  I also want to see homework up for next week, even if it's only Monday's homework.  Homework section MUST be up to date everyday.  It is what we promise parents and we must follow through.  Here is the other reason why you MUST put your homework here.  I need one place to see what is being assigned in all classes for homework.  I can't look at planners, white boards, atlas, google classroom, handouts, etc.  Everyone uses a different method to communicate homework.  We need ONE method that everyone is using and parents can count on and I can check to be sure you are following the guidelines in our handbook.  This is not optional.  Here are the instructions (I am able to log in as one of you so you should be able to duplicate these steps.):

HOW TO ADD HOMEWORK

• Start in Classroom and choose a class
• From the drop down menu choose "Lesson Plans"
• Click on a date
• Under "web homework" it says "type something" - that's where you add the homework.  You can also add a link.
• Under "documents" you can upload a worksheet, rubric, etc.

HOW TO ADD AN ANNOUNCEMENT

I was going to add a field trip to 5th grade technology to show how it would look to parents, but Gina has already utilized this feature.  Here is what it looks like...

And here is how to do it:

Start in Classroom and choose a class

From the drop down menu choose "Web Items"

From the list choose "Announcements" (please noet that the calendar feature here does not link to our google calendar. Web tests and portfolio are not turned on right now, but they can be.)

Filling in the announcement is self explanatory.

You can add your syllabus and resources here too.  The homework drop button is not for you to add homework.  This is for students to access from their page (see above) to upload their homework.  This is a great feature for students who are away or sick for a number of days.  When you go into homework drop, you can download their work to your computer.  

Here is something else I had RenWeb set up for us, but I did not pursue as there was a lot to learn this year.  It's not working quite like I wanted it to but I can follow up with them if necessary.  There is a behavior function which I have now opened up for teachers.  To get there get there:

• Go to "Students"
• Choose a student
• On the right choose "behavior"
• Choose "add an event"
• You need to manually add 25 merits and save.

My intention was that when you added a demerit it would automatically reduce the merit but that's not happening.  It would have to be done manually.  

Below is what it looks like on the parent/student end.  For now they cannot see this.

This is a great way to document behavior even if we do not open it to parents to view.  Since they can't see conduct until the report card and we have to inform parents when behavior issues arise, this is a good way to communicate.  The merit/demerit portion does not have to be utilized by everyone and can be used by just grades 5-8.  I would like everyone to look at this and we will discuss at a faculty meeting.  

FACULTY MEETING PLANS FOR OCTOBER

We need to do a few things that can't wait any longer.  Because people are attending workshops and taking time off, the only day that everyone is actually is Oct. 23.  Therefore, I'm trying to accommodate everyone and still get everything done.  

Monday, Oct. 9 

• RenWeb discussion for teachers grades 1-8 (Maria, Kdg. teachers, pre-k teachers are at an EC workshop)   This meeting will be to answer any questions you have regarding the info above, talk about using behavior in RenWeb, and hopefully we will know by then how to put in ATL and Conduct grades.  This should not be more than 20 minutes.  Those unable to attend because you are not here, Charles and I will meet with you during a planning period.
• Part 2 will only be for the following teachers: Gina, Kim, Kelly, Katie, Heather.  I have the books that I ordered for writing.  Just a brief discussion to bring Heather and Kim up-to-date on what we discussed and the plan.

Monday, Oct. 16 - Grade level meetings (PreK-1, 2-5, 6-8) - Topics for discussions include:

• How ATL and Conduct grades are being determined
• Lunch discipline.  It doesn't look like assistants are recording behavior anywhere.  How is it being communicated to teachers
• Topics as determined by grade level
• Take notes and share minutes with Charles and Linda

Thursday, Oct. 19  - Encore Meeting 12:25 - 1:12 p.m.  (This allows Julianne to join this meeting and the middle school meeting.)  Topics for discussion include:

• How ATL and Conduct grades are determined and communicated to homeroom teachers who record the only conduct grade.
• Topics as needed

Monday, Oct. 23 - Love and Logic (I will be out this day.  Taking a trip to NY this weekend for my mom's 92nd birthday!) 

Friday, Oct. 27 - PLCs for curriculum alignment

• ELA - Gina, Heather, Kim, Sue, Katie, Jenn
• Math in Focus - Susana, Nathan, Krista, Kasey, Kelly G (if you can make it)

Maria, Kelly M, Julianne, Charles will be at a Clinical Ed. training

I will be out on Tuesday 10/10 at a Title I meeting.  I will also be out on Friday at a Admin Meeting.  Have a great weekend!!  

Happy 30th St. Stephen

For those of you who attended Mass yesterday at 11:30, I'm sure you will agree that our Bishop is pretty awesome.  We were very blessed to have him with us yesterday.  He came to the picnic too and mingled with everyone.  Great community building day for all.

Reminders that this week there is no Mass.  Julianne sent out a great idea for what to do during that time.  Thank you Julianne.  Student Council will be selling Pumpkin Pops, and the area Catholic High Schools will be here Friday.  Pictures will not take place on Tuesday, it has been moved to Oct. 17 due to Irma.

I would like to review one aspect of carline that seems to be a confusion, particularly in the younger car line.  It is the responsibility of the person with the bull horn to ask people without a car tag to park and come into the school for a paper "tag".  No other options are acceptable.  Looking at IDs mean nothing unless you are checking Renweb to be sure the person is an authorized driver.  No one but the bull horn person needs to get involved and no child should be put into a car without a tag.

Lastly, when I was at the picnic, a 2nd or 3rd grader came to me with an "issue".  It didn't even pertain to her anymore as she was sticking up for students younger than her.  She said that students give their ice cream money to the teachers and the teachers forget to bring it to the lunchroom and the kids go without ice cream.  Her mom said she puts the ice cream money in her lunch box now to avoid the problem.  That's actually a good idea.  If you run into this issue, I would suggest the child just leave the money in their lunch box.

Have a marvelous week!!

Week of Caring

Thank you to Student Council for a very Spirited week and to everyone for making Grandparent's Day a success.  Everyone certainly looked like they were having a great time and how awesome was Mass with everyone in our new church!

Monday begins our Week of Caring.  Be sure you have read Tidbits and know what is happening.  You should be encouraging your students to participate in the food and school supply drives happening this week.  The week ends with Marvelous Mustang and Jean Day.  Please be sure to go over the Jean Day rules with your students.  Sunday is our parish picnic.  I am asking that everyone try their best to come to the 11:30 a.m. Sunday Mass Oct. 1.  Bishop Parks will be there to help celebrate the church's 30th Anniversary.  Our Parish Picnic is right after that on the Parish property.  Bouncy Houses and Burgers for all!!  Remember to wear a St. Stephen t-shirt - school or parish.

October 7 we will start a new tradition.  Any student attending Mass on the second Sunday of the month (or the Saturday vigil Mass the day before) in their school uniform, will receive a holy card from the presiding priest.  It will be up to the child to get it directly from the priest after Mass.  If the child comes to school the next school day (in this case, Monday, Oct. 9) and shows their holy card to their teacher, they may have free dress that day.  One hour in uniform for a full day of free dress sounds like a good deal.  I will talk on the morning show and in the classrooms next week about this.  Also, there is no Mass the week of Oct. 2.

Have a great week!

Get your Spirit on!

Welcome to Spirit Week! ..... and hopefully the Book Fair.  We are expecting it to arrive on Tuesday and will have Donuts with Dad on Wednesday and Thursday if all goes according to plan.  Irma is the Hurricane that just keeps on giving.  During Spirit Week, everyone is welcome to join in with dressing up and showing their spirit.  I will not be participating in Wacky Wednesday as I am hosting a Hillsborough County Principal's meeting in the FLC that morning.  Somehow it just doesn't seem appropriate for me to show up in my PJs and fuzzy slippers.  Remember to check Tidbits to see what is happening this week.  I've been getting some of your plans for Grandparents' Day and it looks like it will be a good day for all.  Be sure to send you plans to me by tomorrow.  Grandparents will be able to sign out their grandchildren starting at 11:30 to take them to the Kona Ice Truck.  We will have a sign-out roster in your rooms.  This will only be necessary until 12 noon.  Be sure that the person taking the child has a "Grandparent" sticker on.  

Students should be back on track with turning in work this week and by Friday everyone should be up-to-date.  We are almost half-way through the Trimester and you should be contacting parents if a child has a D or F in your class.  Also contact them if ATL or Conduct is falling below a 3.  Do not let there be any surprises on the report card.  At our next faculty meeting we will go over RenWeb and where and how to put things there.  As in the past, parents should have access to major assignments, rubrics, due dates, test dates, etc. beyond the Student Planner.  The more information you can provide, the fewer emails you will get. 

Marvelous Mustang is next week.  Christine is in charge and you will need to be ready to get names to her this week.  Remember that this year we are focusing on students who are "Making It Happen!"  Also, once you have chosen a student, it is your responsibility (not the homeroom teacher) to invite parents to school that day for the Mustang Breakfast.  

Final reminder - no Mass on Wednesday.  Mass on Friday.  For everyone's sanity and safety, students will sit with their class and will return to their class with the teacher.  Grandparents can sit near by and walk back with you or drive over after Mass.  Grandparents will need to sign in at the front entrance or in the Breezeway.  Homeroom parents are responsible for arranging breakfast treats.  Like last year, I am asking that everyone park in the FLC parking lot on Wednesday to leave more room for Grandparents in the school parking lot.  Thank you!!  

Does anybody really know what code it is?

I was thinking what to say about the gate code and I recalled a song from 1969 by Chicago.  Replace code with the word time and you have the song.  Here is my advice for tomorrow since I really don't know.  Follow these steps:

1.  Enter the code you always used
2.  Try 5013 (if you have trouble remembering that code - it's 50 states and 13 colonies)
3.  Try 5050 (I discovered that the issue on Friday was that only the center column was working - the code had not been changed.)
4.  Go home....  Just kidding - enter by a different door.

Band classes begin on Thursday.  I will get a schedule to you as soon as I have one.  Have a great week!

Who knows what song this comes from.... Does anybody remember laughter?

Amazing Things are Happening

Only a few weeks into school and amazing things are happening.  Parents are giving of their time, talents, and treasures.  The pre-school playground has a new sandbox.  The makerspace is alive with robots thanks to a generous donation from a parent.  Our first field trip is this week with 5th grade going to visit Art of the Brick, art created with lego.  Julianne has planned some awesome service projects.  Most importantly, I see a caring faculty seeking only the best for all our students.

Here is what to expect this week:

Monday - Faculty Meeting in the Media Center.  Gina will talk about how to take advantage of the MakerSpace and I will be reviewing rubrics with the help of Heather.  Please bring with you a rubric you have used this year or one you may be planning to use (if you have one) to share.  We will review what good rubrics should look like and how to translate into grades.

Monday-Thursday - Student Council Bake Sale in the FLC during lunch.

Friday - half day with professional development.  We will break into two groups.  Math in Focus group (everyone from the last webinar with the exception of Sue and Maria).  PLC for aligning Lang. Art curriculum (to include Gina, Melissa, and Jamie S.).  Everyone else should see me for instructions.

Have an amazing week and a relaxing three-day weekend!!

Picture Day is Coming!

Picture Day is Tuesday.  Be sure to remind students to wear the red polo (or red dress) for grades K-5.  Grades 6-8 should wear the Navy Polo.  If they show up in red I'm not going to stress it - it's their yearbook.  When you bring them down for pictures, line the students up in alphabetical order.  A volunteer will come to get you when it's your class's time for pictures.  You will take your picture at that time too.  If you do not come with a class, be sure to find time before 11 to get yours done.  No one wears PE clothes until after they take pictures.  They can change after that. 

Other reminders for the week:

• Band forms are due on Thursday.  
• Movie night is Friday
• Jean day is Friday (see handbook for rules - everyone may wear the make it happen shirts) 

Solar Eclipse:  This weekend a parent of an 8th grader posted on Facebook that we were renting goggles for $2.00 for students to view the eclipse.  I checked around an no one seems to know what this is all about.  If anyone knows where this comes from, please see me.  If you are going out after 1:00 p.m. with students, be sure you have a signed paper from parents.  

Change in Mass procedures... Maybe

Fr. Dermot would like to change the way Grade PK3-2 receive a blessing at Communion.  He would like them to remain in their seats.  After everyone has received communion, he will ask all those students to stand and we will all reach out our hands to bless them.  After 2nd grade receives first communion, they will then join us.  If there is a student in grades 3-8 that does not receive communion, they should still come up with their class for a blessing.  I did ask that if we changed procedures, that we do the same thing regardless of what priest is saying Mass.  He has not finalized this change but I want you all to be prepared.  I will be sure to let teachers of PK4-2 know what we are doing.  

HAVE A VERY BLESSED WEEK!

And now the work begins

Now that we have had three days to get to know our students and review procedures, the real work begins.  This week we celebrate the Assumption of Mary.  Take time to remember Mary with your students knowing that she is the Mother of all and holds us in her embrace.

Charles will be a little late Monday morning and I will be behind closed and locked doors most of the day as I prepare your club and elective lists.  Not everyone signed up and it will be a process.  Thank you for understanding.

Here are some reminders for this week:

• Unit plans should be in Atlas by 8:00 a.m. Monday morning.  If you are new this year, do not panic.  It's a learning curve and you'll get there.
• Faculty Meeting in Krista's room at 3:30 Monday afternoon.  Expect to stay until 4:30.
• Mass Tuesday at 8:30 a.m.  
• PTCO General meeting in the FLC at 5:30 p.m.  Everyone should attend.  You will be excused at 6:10 if it is still going on so you can get over to your classrooms.  Back to School night starts at 6:30.  There are two sessions.  One at 6:30 and one at 7:20.  I will announce when it's time to switch.  This allows parents to visit two classrooms if they have more than one child.
• Clubs begin Wednesday and Electives begin on Thursday.  We will talk more about location and student lists at the faculty meeting.
• Band Demo at 8:30 on Friday in the FLC for grades 3-8.  After the presentation, they will visit grades 1 and 2 in their classrooms.  

Father in heaven, all creation rightly gives you praise, 

for all life and all holiness comes from you.

In the plan of your wisdom she who bore the Christ in her womb

was raised body and soul in glory to with him in heaven.

May we follow her example in reflecting your holiness

and join in her hymn of endless love and praise.

Open House Success!!

Today was a success!!  I could feel the energy as I walked through the halls and the classroom.  Students are ready - and parents are even more ready - for school to begin.  They are ready for us to Make It Happen!  I want to thank everyone for working so hard to make your classrooms look so inviting and welcoming.. especially Julie and Maria who I am convinced slept at school a few nights.



I was thinking about our theme and how many of the teachers use call and response to get students attention.  Things like Marco - Polo, Shark bait - Oooh ha ha, hocus pocus - time to focus.  This year I think the call/response should be ....  Make it - Happen!  Be alert, I may use it on all of you.

We have two more days of inservice.  Teachers need to attend the session that pertains to them.  See the list on the agenda.  Teachers should start each day at 8:00 a.m. in the media center with me for about an hour each day of continued policies and procedures discussion and then we will break up into groups. I am sure there is work for the assistants in the morning but feel free to leave after lunch.  I need an assistant to volunteer to change out all the posters in one of the classrooms from tape to magic mounts (See Karen B. in the office for the mounting tabs) and pull the tapes with numbers off desks, etc.  See me me if you are available.

Thank you to everyone who has played a part in the inservice trainings.  Get ready, cause Wednesday is almost here!

On another note....  Friday was interesting.  I've never been to a courthouse wedding.  But the bride and groom were filled with love and joy and spent the weekend in Clearwater.  Now back to the real world and everything that comes with growing up.

Make It Happen!

Summer greetings! I hope that all of you are getting time to refresh, renew and relax.  As always, the summer has been quite busy here at the school, but as you can see from my smiling face, I did find a few moments to relax and and catch up on my personal life.  Please join me in welcoming the new and returning members (some returning in new roles) of the SSCS family:

Kasey McCusker        8^th grade HR/MS math/science   

Al-Aakhir Rogers       Long-term sub for Kelly G.

Nathan Wiles              3^rd grade homeroom
Susana Moll                Kindergarten Teacher

Jamie Stencel              ESE

Melissa DiCenzo         Enrichment and Teacher Resource
                                          Molly Neuman                Extended Day
                                          Mirta (Grace) Merrette   Extended Day

July 26 through August 2 is dedicated for you to get the classrooms ready.  You may pick up your keys from Karen on July 26.  Faculty/staff children are welcome to be in your rooms with you while you are preparing your classrooms.  Although we would like families to help with classroom setup, we ask that August 3-8 be limited to faculty and staff only. Please be sure your rooms are ready for school by August 3 so you can focus on the professional development scheduled.  Prof Dev schedule will be send by email ASAP.  Finalizing a few items.  

New employees have been registered for the diocesan mandated trainings taking place on August 1-2 at the Bethany Center, 18150 Bethany Center Drive, Lutz, Florida 33558.  Please check with Charles for details.  Some of you may not need to attend both days.  All new employees must also have a Level II Background check prior to the start of school.  All returning employees must complete the annual Blood-borne pathogens training and assessment.  New employees must also complete the online Suicide Prevention program.  This information along with due dates was sent via email by Charles.  Please provide him with the appropriate verification once completed. 

The first day back for instructional assistants and Extended Day staff will be August 3.  If teachers would like assistance during classroom set up, please reach out to your Instructional Assistant and see if they are available to come in.  Our faculty/staff retreat this year will be at school on August 4.  All employees are expected to attend and the theme will be Make it Happen!  See attached schedule for more details regarding the schedule.    

We will have a potluck lunch on August 7-8.  Please check your email for the link to Sign-Up Genius.  Faculty meetings this year will again be twice each month on Mondays.  A new google calendar has been shared with you titled Faculty/Staff.  Be sure you are checking that calendar and the School Events calendar to keep up with what is happening.  Schedules have also been shared via Google docs.  All employees should check their email on a regular basis. 

After much debate and consideration and thought about who was going to wash and dry 400 tie-dyed t-shirts, we decided to get solid red t-shirts.  Thanks to Marcela in Faith Formation, we have a pretty amazing shirt.  These will be available in the East Hall during pre-planning for faculty and staff and during Open House for students to pick up.  I would like everyone to wear their shirt for the retreat and students may wear theirs the first Friday of school.  God Bless you all and I look forward to seeing you soon.

I'm hunting squirrels

         So you may be wondering why I'm hunting squirrels.  We lost power three times in the past 5 days.  The second time was when the alarm people were here fixing the beeping noises.  The third time was Saturday afternoon when I was trying to catch up with everything.  The building died and my computer sounded like it was going to explode.  As I sat in the dark listening to all the beeping noises I decided it was time to hunt squirrels.  TECO keeps telling us squirrels are causing the outages.  I think not.  My hope and prayer is that we will have power and internet when we return tomorrow.  

Before I was put into the dark, I got together all the summer work for printing and posting to the website.  Everything looks good.  I will share the files with everyone and put into teacher share in the morning.  I was cut off before I could do that.  Please look it all over to make sure I got everything.     

Things to do this week for teachers (You will have everything you need from us during the day or at the faculty meeting tomorrow.  Some things you already have.):

Bring handbook suggestions to faculty meeting

Review report cards 

Student supply lists to Charles

Start packing and some teachers will start moving

If you have lots of extra tissues, consider sharing with media center

Clean, clean, clean - Charles will do the white glove check at checkout

Submit your own supply list

Complete textbook inventory

Complete FOSS replacement order

Fill out book replacement form for missing textbooks

Keep a vigilant watch over children, especially on the playground.  Teachers should be in very close proximity to students - close enough to hear conversations and monitor shapes they may be designing in the mulch - don't ask.  Also, for the middle school recess, someone needs to replace Jamie on the playground.  

Thank you to everyone who made graduation go smoothly.  It was a great ceremony and a fun after party.  

Have a great week!!  

                                                         

                                 

The Final Countdown

Three weeks to go!!  This means the end is almost here.  It also means things are about to get crazy around here.  Inventory, grades, orders, oh my!  But we can do it!

Charles will have inventory instructions and a demonstration on how to complete at our faculty meeting.  I have contracts ready and will start meeting with teachers this week to go over your summatives and sign the contracts.  I will not have addendums just yet.  We will sign those during post planning.

Thank you to everyone who made School Appreciation Week / Spirit Week fantastic.  All the doors looked great and the students showed lots of spirit.

You may want to start organizing your offices in the main building.  This summer EVERYTHING in your office must be put somewhere so the furniture can be removed to do the floors.  Nothing can be left on the bookshelves or on the floor.

End-of-year procedures and moving instructions will be given at the May 22 faculty meeting.

He is Risen!

I hope you all had a fantastic Easter and feel refreshed and ready for the final 5 weeks of school.  There will be many things happening and it's important to be aware of what needs to be done and to keep the students on task until the end.

I have been working on plans and schedules and calendars oh my... all the fun things required by the Diocese before the school year is over.  I have a few meetings this week and a few observations to complete, but other than that I will be behind closed doors for three days completing paperwork.  See Charles for all your questions/concerns unless it's urgent.  Thursday and Friday I will be out, however, I will come in briefly Friday morning to practice the finale of the concert and then I will see you all that night for the performance.  Summative conferences and contract signing will take place the first few weeks of May.  Speaking of May, PTCO has many fun things planned for everyone the first week of May during school appreciation week.

This week we have a faculty meeting on Monday.  Bonnie will be explaining the new payroll system.  5th and 8th grade will take the ACRE test on Thursday and Friday is showtime.  Mr. Williams will provide a practice schedule.

Have a great week.

I think I can, I think I can....

Thursday noon is almost here and I think I can make it.

But before we flee to Easter break we have a few items to remember this week:

• faculty meeting Monday
• Interfaith basketball game on Wednesday
• School-wide Lent retreat on Thursday

I will bring the calendar for next year to the faculty meeting for input.  thank you!!

New Neighbors

On Saturday, April 1, the church staff made the final move their new home.  Join me in welcoming our new neighbors.  

For those of you I have already observed, please be patient in receiving access to the observation.  Last week Mark sent me a draft of the summative evaluation.  Once it is released, I will need to update the evaluation with Domain 4.  This week my goal is to get in the remaining observations.  

Please be sure to read the minutes from Friday's faculty meeting.  

Keep smiling.  Easter is almost here!

Observations and Evaluations

There is a lot going on during the next three weeks and it's important to keep students focused.  Once we return from break there are only 5 weeks of school left.  This marking period will fly by so be sure to keep focused on your time and what you want to accomplish before the end of the year.

The observations are going well.  What I have been seeing in the classroom is great.  However, unit plans continue to be a struggle.  It is important to be sure all parts of the plan are complete, including assessments, and available by Monday morning.

At our faculty meeting on Monday, we will revisit the idea of using Reading Counts.  Come with your thoughts and ideas.  Friday is professional development after the noon dismissal.  Everyone is expected to attend.  Be sure you looked at the shared folder I sent to teachers last week regarding what to bring to your year-end post evaluation conference.

Friday is field day followed by a popsicle party with music on the playground.  Any student who did not earn the reward can stay with me.  Send me names so I know how man.

Once again, if any student is in danger of failing a grade or a subject, please let Charles know so a letter can be sent home.

Final Quarter

Monday is the first day of the new marking period.  Teachers - please be sure you have followed all Gradebook/Report Card rule given to you by Charles.  Also remember to meet all deadlines including Honor Roll names.  This is also the time to once again make contact with parents of students in danger of remediation over the summer or retention.  Please send you conference schedule to me by Wednesday.  If you are having meetings after 4, be sure you meet them at the breezeway door.  Do not leave any doors propped open.

Our faculty meeting Monday will be mostly business and hopefully not an hour long.  Some things I would liked discussed are: upcoming Student Council elections (Jenn or Kelly), results of mission statement survey (Elaine), George will talk about field day, I will talk about Marvelous Mustang and we will have one more discussion on retakes.

Enjoy the week, keep positive and our spring break will be here soon.

Happiness

“This is the paradox that surrounds our quest for happiness: We know the things that will make us happy, but we don’t always do them.”

MATTHEW KELLY, RESISTING HAPPINESS

FOCUS  Find out what really makes you happy.

ACT  Identify 3 activities that increase your happiness and write them down.  

PRAY   Jesus, help me to stop chasing the things that destroy my happiness, and fill me with the desire to pursue the things that will bring me lasting happiness.

This Lent, instead of focusing on what you need to give up, focus on what makes you happy.  Take what you have given up and replace it with something that makes you happy.  God gave us this life to enjoy.  He wants us to be happy.  Take time to thank him for all his blessings and enjoy them.  

And now for a return to reality.....  What's up for this week:

Iowa Testing - Keep calm and do your best.  That is the message we should be giving students.  Be alerted to students who are rushing and not giving their best efforts.  Be encouraging.  Iowa testing is not an end to homework.  However, students should not have more than one class assessment on testing days.

End of Quarter - Yes, it's that time again.  Charles will send out dates and requirements for grades, report cards, incompletes, and honor roll.

Observations - I was planning to start this week but realize it may not be the best time with testing.  What I will be doing is starting everyone's observations with Stage 1 Planning.  I will be reviewing unit plans and grade books to see if you are meeting requirements.

Have a good week!

Trust

The Virtue for February is Trust.  Trust that you will make it to spring break even though it seems months away.  Here are some reminders:

• Summer camp proposals were due Friday.  I received one for sports/b-ball camp.  Please send your final proposal by the end of day Monday.  I checked my email and I could have missed yours.  If you did send one, please resend with subject summer camp in the subject.  I will also check my mailbox in the morning.
• Faculty meeting on Monday.  Martha C has arranged for a speaker on autism.  Julianne will also be talking about rice bowls.
• Tuesday is jeans and Valentine themed, red, or pink shirts.  
• Be thinking about what you want to put on your bulletin boards next.  They should be changed at least every 6 weeks.  With Lent coming up, that would make a good theme.  If you have other ideas or student work to highlight, that would be fine too.
• When sending emails through the portal, check/uncheck the box so parents do not also get an email with the same info.
• Email parents when grades go below 70 %.
• Anyone in danger of retention should have received a letter in writing at this point.  Letters should also go home if a child might fail one subject so parents know remediation over the summer is a possibility.  I need to know which students might be retained so we have space from them in the appropriate class.  As of now, I have not seen any letters.
• You cannot take away recess from your class as a whole.  If you want to give a consequence like that, plan to stay with them at lunch and have them eat in silence, but they must have recess.  Recess should also be free play unless the class decides to play a game together with the teacher.
• All grades must be put in rediker within 3 days of giving the assessment/assignment.  Only exception are essays or projects which may need a few more days.
• Every parent should have had at least one conference by now (unless the PARENT chose not to). 
• All assessments must be uploaded to Atlas.  If the assessment is from a book, you must scan it and upload.  I should be able to see all assessments.  
• PRIOR to giving an assessment/project, students should know what a "4" or exemplary would look like.
• Letters of intent are due March 1.  If it is not submitted, it will be assumed you do not wish to return.  

In March I will begin the second formal observation.  This one will not be announced.  Your unit plans should be clear so I know what your are teaching on each day.  

 

Touchdown!!

I am sure no one is reading this tonight.  I just watched Lady Gaga rock it.  Yes, George, I'm watching he super bowl...  well half-time show.  Not sure who's winning.  The Knicks?

Touchdown... Yes, we made a touchdown.  Hats off to everyone who played a part in our Mustang Movers.  I'm still in shock.  $17,000 and counting.  This is what we are capable of when we work together.

Not too much to say tonight as we said it all on Friday at our faculty meeting.  Some good ideas came out of that meeting and from what I heard, next year will be amazing.

The focus for this week is assessment.  We spoke a good deal about it on Friday.  I will be looking through unit plans and commenting on assessment.  Be sure they are attached.

Teachers attending the Wed. professional development are asked to carpool as parking is at a premium.  Here is the info from the Diocese..  attire is business casual.  Bring a fully charged device and your best unit plan.  Afternoon session will be break-out sessions by grade/subject to share plans.

Have a SUPER week!

A Community of Faith, Knowledge, and Service

Happy Catholic Schools Week!

This is going to be a busy and exciting week.  Thank you to everyone who worked on the activities and those who helped at the Masses this weekend.  The students all did a great job reading their essays.  Be sure to keep up with the schedule of activities and take pictures of everything you do.  Share pictures with Gina and Kathleen.  

This week I would like you to focus on how your lessons relate to the real world.  Help students make connections to their everyday life.  

On Friday we will have a half day meeting and professional development.  In order to prepare for the meeting, I would like you to reflect on the Merit System - its successes and maybe its shortcomings.  Take some time to look through the student handbook. Is there something that should be updated? changed?  We will review assessment and the philosophy behind standards based grading.  There will also be time to work on the next lesson in Google for Educators and Charles will demonstrate once again how to attach documents in Atlas - for some this is still a challenge.  Please come prepared to reflect on the year and ideas about how to make next year better.  Gina and I will also share our excitement for creating a MakerSpace!

Mark may be joining us on Friday for our Walkathon.  Keep smiling and enjoy this time to celebrate our vocation to Catholic education.  

Take Vitamins

Load up on vitamins and stay healthy!  That's my message for this week.

Thank you Maria, Jenn, and Katie for volunteering yourself and your teens to babysit at the PTCO meeting!

My blog will be short.  Be sure you...

• did the technology survey
• come to the faculty meeting
• are ready for Catholic Schools Week
• come to the faculty meeting with ideas for summer programs (if applicable)
• are continuing to use your essential questions in class
• are checking uniforms regularly
• are always smiling

Open House went well.  The visitors were impressed with the school and our student ambassadors.  

Gina and I will be at FETC Wednesday and Thursday.  Martha B. will be there Thursday looking for ideas for the new middle school science standards.  

I will update you on lots of things happening in the diocese and some changes I would like to make for next year at the faculty meeting.

Have a great week! 

Open House Time

Friday will be Open House.  This is the day we open our doors to potential families.  Tours will be given by our student ambassadors from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.  We believe that the majority of families touring will be interested in the Early Childhood grades.  So if there ever was a time for a dog and pony show... this is it!  I know there are always exciting things happening in your classes and whatever they see will be amazing.  Don't stop what you're doing, but it's okay to smile and recognize the visitors.  First grade can give their signature "Ahoy!"  I will give everyone an update on enrollment next week. 

  If you have trash that you would like taken away and it doesn't fit in your trash can, please write on it or put a sign on it saying "TRASH".  The cleaning people have been instructed to leave everything outside the garbage can unless it is marked trash.  

And speaking of the cleaning crew....  If you find anything not to your liking in the classrooms when you arrive in the morning, please let me know.  Pictures are always good too.  I can ask Karleen to help out, but it helps me resolve the problems if I know about them.  If something is broken, put a request in maintenance direct.  That's how things will get fixed.  Anyone can put in the requests and I will see it.  I did a walk through the building today (Monday) and they seem to be cleaning all the areas now.  

Speaking of walking through the building..... Your bulletin boards look amazing!!!  The crosses are another story.  Yes it looks like a graveyard.  Yes the kids should be able to see them.  Find a compromise.  I gave Abbie some suggestions.  They do not have to be in a row.  Put them on the sides of your bulletin boards scattered around.  You should be using Magic Mounts.  I will ask the office to order more if you ran out.  Masking tape doesn't hold and scotch tape is a no no.  The crosses are already falling.  

This week I will be looking through and commenting on your unit plans looking specifically at Essential Questions and Enduring Understandings.  Now that you've made sure both of these are good, focus on making sure the students know them.  This week's focus is Domain 3 Elements 2 and 3... Element 2 - Students have a general understanding of the essential questions referenced in the lesson Element 3 - Students are able to explain the learning objectives and outcomes.     

Charles is in AZ visiting with his dad.  Let's keep his family in our prayers.  

If you need help with technology - good luck.  And finally no one is allowed to be sick this week.