Weekly Update- October 27, 2017

Happy Friday!
Don't forget, Infinitec trainings need to be completed by Monday!

Checking in on our theme... "Make Every Second Count!"  How is this going?  Are you using it with students?  Yourself?  I can honestly say, I need to reground myself in this.  I'm letting valuable moments and relationships suffer to finish "less important things".  This includes my personal life.  Let's all hold each other accountable and keep this phrase going... we are in this work for people.  Make every second count!

Playground & Morning Arrival:
It's been great seeing the excitement around the playground.  I keep asking myself, "What did we do without a playground?"  It's been great seeing kids play again.

With the new playground, our morning arrival has created some challenges.  I am working with Superintendent Elstad and Bob Olson on some of this plan.  For now, we will continue to do what we have been doing.  But, please know, there is work going into improving morning arrival.  Please continue to be flexible as we get to know our new building!

Unconscious Bias
Below is a one-minute video clip on unconscious bias - and what this means to our work in educating students.  Take a minute to watch this - and start to think about what's familiar and what's unfamiliar in your life, day, etc.  Our unconscious biases matter!

Engaging (with Poverty in Mind) Strategy:
At Site Team, we discussed the need to bring back some of the strategies we learned (last year) from our work around Engaging with Poverty in Mind.  I shared a study guide I found online- click here to see that study guide.

One area we focused on was "building attention skills" in chapter 4.  There were three strategies from this section that could easily be used today in your classrooms:

• Increase buy-in (plan for engagement, don't just assume it will happen.  Plan your "hook"s)
• Allow students to create predictions- and revisit those predictions throughout the learning. 
• Pause & Chunk- throughout students' learning, create times for them to pause and chunk their learning.  This is a hard one- the silence can often be awkward.  Create these times for students to chunk their learning through collaboration, reflection, etc.  

I challenge you to try one of these strategies over the next week- see how it goes!

Building Goals:
Site Team has finalized our building goals and action steps for the 17-18 school year. We are continuing a lot of the great work we have started two years ago.  Please take some time to read through our action steps and reflect on how your role/work influence these goals.  Each of us are educators in some way, shape, or form.  Our focus on all kids, all day will continue into this school year (and forever!).

Click here to access the building goals

Guided Library Project
We are fortunate at McKinley to have a guided library filled with quality text to use in our small group instruction.  Last spring, we realized that some of the books are not leveled with an accurate Fountas and Pinnell level (A-Z).  When lexiles (which include only quantitative data*) were highly utilized, a correlation chart was used to level the books to the Fountas and Pinnell system.  Because Fountas and Pinnell leveling includes both quantitative and qualitative data*, we have discovered that some of the levels are not accurate.

It will be quite an undertaking to check each title in the guided library and relabel all the books, but thankfully we have an awesome volunteer (Nancy Kennon) and amazing staff (Denise Carlson and Jane Carlson) who will be working on this project.  There may be a time where we ask for additional support in portions of this project, but for now we just wanted to make all staff aware of the situation and how it impacts you with planning and instruction.

Until we get things re-leveled, you will want to check the levels of the books you pull (especially if it doesn’t seem accurate).  It is simple to do this by going to https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/bookwizard/ and typing in the title.  I prefer to use the “Level It” app on my phone which allows me to scan barcodes instead of typing in titles, but there is a small fee for this app.  Most of the books we have noticed that are not leveled correctly are in the upper levels.  I want to thank Paige Gilligan for being diligent with checking the levels of text and noticing that things were not lining up; her attention to detail is an incredible asset to our school.   

We hope that this project will be completed quickly, and we appreciate your patience in the meantime.  If you have questions or would like further support in using one of the leveling resources, please let Libby know.
*quantitative data: the number of words on a page, syllables in words, words in a book, etc.
*qualitative data: figurative language used, background knowledge required to comprehend, structure of text, etc.

Staff Development- November 6
Just a reminder- November 6 is a Staff Development Day.  The schedule for the day is:

7:40-8:00 Coffee & light breakfast
8:00-11:00 Professional Learning Session 1
11:00-12:00 Lunch (on your own)
12:00-3:00 Professional Learning Session 2

Please see the email sent out regarding details of the day.  It's going to be a great day of learning!

Family Reading Night- November 9
Our first Family Reading Night is Thursday, November 9 from 6-7pm.  The theme for the night is "Unplug the Electronics and Plug into a Good Book!"  Students will come to school that day dressed in pajamas - and hopefully come to the family night in pajamas, too!   Families are being invited to come in pajamas, bring blankets and stuffed animals, and enjoy an evening of pizza and reading.  If you are free, consider joining us!  We had over 400 students last time we did this!

STEAM Integration Subouts:
We have our first STEAM Integration subouts:
November 7:  Kindergarten (AM) & 1st Grade (PM)
November 8: 3rd Grade (AM) & 2nd Grade (PM)
November 14: 5th Grade (AM) & 4th Grade (PM)

Group Pictures for Entryway:
Here are our group pictures for the entryway.  I will be hanging these up today:

What a photogenic staff that is focused on ALL kids.  Love it! 

Building Weekly Newsletter
Click here to access the building weekly newsletter!


Keep up the great work, everyone!  We are doing GREAT work!

Take some time to enjoy the weekend - and those around you!

-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, November 11, 2016

Happy Veteran's Day!
A huge thank you to all of our McKinley Veteran's!

PLC Notes & ESC:
When you turn in PLC notes and your Essential Standards Chart, please email them.  It's way too hard to manage paper copies.  Also, please remember to get your sign-in sheet into Lorri. 

LTS Positions:
We have two upcoming long-term substitute positions to be aware of:

• 1st Grade:  Julia Arnold, currently student teaching in Dani Rypka's room, will be filling in for Jess Zupansic during the month of December.
• Kindergarten:  Jaci Heath, currently long-term subbing in 3rd grade at Washington, will be filling in for Courtney Hugs from January until the end of the school year.

A huge McKinley welcome to both Julia & Jaci!

Teacher Clarity of Learning:
I apologize up front... I'm going to be making a blanket statement to all.  You know this is one of my personal growth goals, but I do think this is something we should all hear.  

As I'm getting around to classrooms, I'm noticing that teachers are doing a great job of stating the Enduring Understanding or Learning Target for the day/week.   It's posted and stated to students very clearly.  What I am noticing is that the clarity of that EU or LT is missing- students don't know exactly what mastery will look like by the end of the lesson?   What should they walk away being able to do?  From John Hattie's research around what is effective, you can see that learning clarity has an extremely high impact on learning.  Students, as well as teachers, need to be crystal clear about the "end result" - mastery.  This is why the Essential Standards Charts work well with this process - your team determines the EU, but also mastery way before you start teaching any lesson/unit.  When students know what mastery looks like, they rise to the occasion. 

 

Reading Night Slumber Party:
We had our first reading night this week - "Reading Night Slumber Party!"  We decided to change our focus this year to building excitement around reading, rather than teaching strategies to parents.  Families came in for a pizza dinner and then enjoyed some "reading time" together.  We had over 300 people last night!!  A HUGE thank you to everyone who helped make this night possible - Dani Rypka, Jess Zupansic, Jen Schlauderaff, Michelle Simon, Rachel Peterson, Julia Arnold, Krystal O'Connor, Sonya David, Libby Zeman, Jen Koziolek, Greg Leuch, & John Dale.  Also, a huge thank you to Lorri Harrison for all the coordinating of food and supplies!

A SnapShot of Learning:

Students participated in voting on Tuesday.  It was a great learning experience for them!

 

Kindergarten did some outdoor learning this week with Dr. Meagher.

 

 

Weekly Building Newsletter:

Click here to access the weekly building newsletter.

Valet Parking of the Week:
The Valet Parking for the Week goes to PE Teacher, Brent Yule!  Brent has been a wonderful addition to our McKinley team this past year.  Brent has a passion for physical education, fitness, and learning in general.  Brent has worked extremely hard to help integrate our reading and math curriculum into the PE setting.  Also, Brent does a great job of communicating with families via Twitter.  You've been a great addition to our staff, Brent - Keep up the great work!


Have a relaxing weekend- sharpen your saw!
-Justin

Weekly Update- Friday, November 4, 2016

With this weather, it feels like September... can you believe it's November?  And, I'm not complaining!

We have a lot of information this week- read carefully!

Quick Items:

• Reading on Poverty- Staff Power Hour: If you haven't picked up the readings for the Staff Power Hour, please stop in my office to get it.  We will use this at our November 30th meeting. 
• ISD Foundation Grant Available: Sarah Hoffman emailed the information regarding the ISD 761 Foundation Grant.  This is a great opportunity to fund an innovative project you'd like to do.  Last year, we received $5,000 for our guided math library.  If you can think of any projects/resources we need as a building, I'd be glad to write one.  Let me know.
• Absences - Enter into AESOP: If you know you are going to be gone (appointment, vacation, etc.) please enter it into AESOP in a timely manner.  I'm seeing more planned absences getting entered at the last minute.  This makes finding a sub harder.

PBIS Discipline Data - October
The PBIS team has been watching our discipline data and putting supports into place for students over the last two months.  Below is a link to our current discipline data, broken down to understand it.  As you can see, physical aggression and fighting seem to be our highest offense.  Please keep aware of this, as well as continue the communication with students about this.  We will address some of this at our PBIS Assembly this morning.    Click here to access the discipline data

Also, don't forget to keep the idea of "grit" going in your classrooms!   

Kayla's Tech Piece:
Are you interested in a quick way to gather data to use at your PLC?  You can use your SMART Response devices (“clickers”) to collect data from a pre-test, formative assessment, or summative assessment.  The data is collected for you and organized in an Excel document which makes it easy to organize and sort data quickly.  It is pretty quick and easy to set up the assessment in Smart Notebook and it will save you a ton of time correcting paper copies of tests from your students.  It also gives immediate feedback to your students so they know how they did!

Look for more information to come about upcoming training sessions for using Clickers in your Classroom, but for now—check out this link for “7 Clicker Tips for Teachers!”

http://www.colorado.edu/sei/documents/Workshops/Handouts/K12-teacher-tips.pdf

A SnapShot of Learning:

 The first grade team is using some SMART techniques with students, largely due to the support from Brent Yule.  The idea behind this is to link movement and learning together.  There are ways to have students refocus, too.  Brent would be a great resource if you are looking to hear more about this.

 

 Can you believe it's November and we have students outside with no coats on? 

 

  EL Graduation Night - we honored our "graduates" of the EL program on Wednesday night. 

 

Friday night was PTO Bingo Night.  We had a great time! 

 

It was fun seeing all the creative ways you took Halloween and turned it into engineering projects for the kids.   Wow! 

 

"Orange Out Bullying" was last Friday.  Thanks to Catie Stephani and Lauren Olson for organizing!

 

2nd grade engineering Cinderella's carriage as part of their "Cinderella" unit. 

 

Weekly Building Newsletter

Click here to access the weekly building newsletter

Valet Parking for the Week:
The Valet Parking of the Week goes to Tier 3 Interventionist, Gia Davison!  Gia's calming, positive presence is felt in any interaction with her.  She keeps you grounded, but also focused on what is right for students.  Gia is highly invested in our students, finding ways to support and intervene on foundational reading skills.  Gia, we truly appreciate having you as a part of the McKinley team! 


Have a great weekend, everyone!  Get outside!
-Justin

Principal's Update- Friday, November 13, 2015

Happy Friday the 13th!
What a busy week!  Lots of updates for you....

Reading Night:
We had 97 people attend our Family Reading Night last night.  A special thanks to Sonya David, Danielle Nystrom, Libby Zeman, Lori Huisenga, Kayla Davis, and Laura Forman for planning a great night!  Each of the three stations focused on ways families can support reading at home.  There were some AWESOME games and strategies shared last night- I have some extra copies of games in my office if you are interested.  Below are some pictures from the night:

 

 

We need STAFF HELP!
Calling all staff..... I'm still looking for people for our McKinley 60th Anniversary Committee!  It will be really painless- I promise!  I'm looking for a group to create 1-2 events this spring to celebrate the 60th anniversary of our awesome school!  Let me know if you are interested! 

Growth Mindset:
I found this online the other day- a great reminder of ways we can stay focused on a growth mindset- both personally and with students! 

Bounce Card:
With all the work we are doing with collaborative learning, I wanted to share a resource I found years ago.  The "Bounce Card" is a way for students to learn how to engage in a conversation.  When I was teaching 5th grade, I had them laminated and would give each student one during small group time.  During a discussion, the card helps kids respond to each other's ideas in 3 ways- they have to bounce an idea off another student's idea, sum up what another student said, or inquire into another person's idea(s).  It helps kids stay focused on what productive group work looks like.  Click here to see the Bounce Card   If you have read this far, shoot me an email- I'll put your name in for a drawing!

Buffalo Wild Wings Night- Wednesday
Just a reminder- next Wednesday is McKinley's night at Buffalo Wild Wings.  What a great night to enjoy wings, your family, and support McKinley!  I also hear there will be bingo and Maynard will be making an appearance!

Weekly Building Newsletter
Click here to see the weekly newsletter

Valet Parking for the Week:
Our Valet Parking of the Week goes to Melinda Pilcher.  Melinda is such an amazing support for McKinley- for students and colleagues.  Melinda is always positive and focused on what's right for kids (this isn't just a job to her).  She has an amazing approach with students that makes them feel supported, but also accountable.  Melinda is wonderful asset to our team- thanks Melinda!


Karen Thurnau took this picture the other morning- a great picture of our Veteran's Day song. 

Enjoy the weekend- sounds like it's our last dose of nice weather before winter hits!
-Justin