Friday, March 3, 2017

Weekly Update- March 3, 2017

Happy March!  And, happy Friday! 

School Social Worker Week:
Next week is School Social Worker Week -  we will honor Mrs. Warner for all the work she does to support our students and families! 

PLC's Monday:
This Monday, March 6 is a Teacher Workday.   Just a reminder - please let Libby and I know the time your PLC will meet on this date, if it's not at 2:45pm (remember, you can meet during the day on a workday).

PBIS- February Data:
Below is a link to our February ORD data at McKinley.  As you can see from the data, office referrals are extremely high this month- even compared to this time last year.  The PBIS team is currently analyzing this data and will meet on March 14 to provide some recommendations to our staff on the "why" of this data.  It's alarming that it's this high, especially since we have been getting outside for recess (usually a lot of indoor recesses raise the level of discipline).

Click here to access the February office referral discipline (ORD) data

I Wish My Teacher Knew...
I recently read an article where students shared "I wish my teacher knew..."  It's a quick, interesting read that will make you stop and think more about our students and their lives outside of our school.  https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/31/well/family/what-kids-wish-their-teachers-knew.html?_r=1

Poverty & Engagement Work Follow-Up:
At our last Staff Power Hour, we committed to trying three things before March 22.  How is that going?  Here are the three action steps:
  1. Say what you do want instead of what you don't want (rule #4, page 29-30).
  2. Find time to get to know kids.  Try a relationship thing every day.  Let students know something about you or do a mini-morning meeting (some personal sharing).
  3. Watch your body language throughout the day.  As we read, body language sends many messages to students, staff, and families (without us even realizing it!).
Classroom teachers, I will be setting a short training on morning meetings in April.

A SnapShot of Learning:


Dani Rypka's 1st graders used the snow to practice two-digit adding and subtracting by making base ten blocks of snow! 
 
Mark Langlois's 5th graders spent some time at Maple Creek this week.  This is part of their year-long trout project with the MN DNR.
 
Our McKinley Science Fair Regional Winners!  A special thank you to Rachael Eickhoff and Lori Huisenga for organizing the science fair!
 
 
Weekly Building Newsletter:
Click here to access the weekly building newsletter

Valet Parking for the Week:
The Valet Parking for the Week goes to Special Education Paraprofessional Bernie Jensen!  Bernie joined us this year, having worked most of her career at the Owatonna ALC.  Bernie has been a wonderful addition to our special education team!  Bernie is flexible, compassionate, and collaborative.  Bernie understands how to de-escalate situations to keep students focused on learning.  She also understands that students need strong relationships and to feel valued here at school.   Keep up the great work, Bernie! 



Have a great, relaxing weekend!
-Justin





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