Principal's Update - Friday, March 20

Happy Spring Break, everyone!
I truly hope you take some time next week to relax and unwind.  I know many of you had trips that are now not happening.   Make sure you still take some time to still turn school off and focus on YOU!

This blog will be short, as you've been on information overload all week. 

Video Pictures:
If you are interested in being in our student video, please send your pic (email or text) to Justin by 3:00pm today.  You should send a pic of you and a note that says something positive - "I miss you!", "I believe in YOU!", "I CARE about you!"

Perspective & Connecting:
As we talked about Tuesday, please check in on this picture below and think two things:

Check in on Each Other - We don't know what each other are going through, so check in on each other.  This includes an email, text, virtual happy hour, etc!

Perspective - I appreciate your positive energy and perspective around this situation.  Keep that going as we return from break.  You are the best! 

Facebook Group:
I have created a Facebook group for our staff - it's private and should be shared with each of you.  Join us if you haven't!

Communication Next Week:
I will try and leave you alone next week.  If I know any updates about school closure and/or our plan, I will send an email.  I will also post in our Facebook group when I emailed. 


We've got this.  I can't think of a better staff to go through something like this.  You are truly amazing educators and people!
-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, March 13, 2020

Good morning- happy Friday! 

Update on COVID-19:
Since we met yesterday afternoon, a few things have changed per advice from the MN Dept of Health and MDE. 

First, we are discontinuing field trips until further notice.  I have already communicated with 4th Grade about next week's Mill City trip.  If you have an upcoming field trip in early to mid April, it will more than likely be cancelled. 

Secondly, we are discontinuing assemblies and large gatherings at school (not including lunch).  Until further notice, our assemblies are cancelled, including today's band performance.  Also, if you have any upcoming events that families are invited to, please come see me.  Again, this is all based on advice from MDH & MDE. 

Summer Curriculum Writing:
We are beginning to plan for summer curriculum writing and are now accepting requests. Available funds will dictate how much curriculum writing can be done so please review the preferences below and submit accordingly.  

  

Preferences will be given to:

1. Curriculum areas, teams, or grade levels where curriculum writing is deemed necessary due to new state standards and/or new courses. (6th grade Science, K-12 Art & Music, PE, new courses at OMS/OHS, 11th Grade Social Studies)
2. Courses needing revision, updating, or further alignment.

Requests must be submitted by March 31 using the 2020 Summer Work Request Form.

Teachers will be notified by April 17 if their request(s) have been accepted or denied based on available monies.

As teams/departments plan for potential summer work please note the general time allotment guidelines for curriculum writing below:

*New Courses = 6-12 hours

*Existing Courses = 3-6 hours

Dates available for summer curriculum writing are June 15, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24 and August 12, 13.

Please contact Ann Mikkalson or Wendy Eggermont if you have any additional questions.

F &P Goals:

Just a reminder - Fountas and Pinnell goals should be entered into Campus by next Friday!  

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

Have a great weekend, everyone!
-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, March 6, 2020

Happy Friday, everyone!

It's that early March accountability check - how are you doing on staying grounded in your "why"?  This quote above resonated with me - do you really believe in all?  I keep thinking of Jimmy Casas's picture of Sandra Bullock at the beginning of the year vs February.  Remember how put together she was in September - and frazzled in February.  I believe this happens with our beliefs in kids, too.  Are we still saying respectful, student-first language?  Or, have we given up on some?   I want you to take some time to reflect on this question as we enter into the next few weeks before spring break.  If you have "lost your way", how can you find your way back to those beginning of the year beliefs?  

Supporting Students with Engagement and Motivation in Reading (PLEASE READ!)

Guest Blogger - Libby Zeman

The topic of reading engagement has come up in several grade levels.  I was asked to create a bank of strategies that people could pull from to try with some students.  While I am happy to do this, and there are things out there, I also think it is important to look at ways that we foster the love of reading.  This article from The Reading Teacher is on building reading habits (about an 8 minute read), and it reminded me of the importance of authentic literacy tasks.  How can we get kids reading about and responding to things in a relevant way for them. This reminds me of all of our STEAM work with integration and real world problems that we have done.  Are things coming up in IRA or GR texts that get kids excited about digging into some real world things? Could they then read some articles and respond by creating a short presentation or letter to be sent to someone in the community?  

Because every scholar is different, one strategy will probably not be effective for all students.  It’s essential that we keep trying until we find the ticket for each student. With high expectations and the belief that they really can (and will) be engaged in text with the appropriate support, they will be engaged! The following is a list of strategies that I have compiled from various individuals and sources; if you have other ideas, I’d love to add them to our list!

Strategy	Gist	Source
Use technology for response	Students could write or record a response in Google Classroom, Flipgrid, Seesaw, etc.	Various teachers at McK
Digital Reading	Students can read or listen to text and answer questions.	Readworks.org, NewsELA, EPIC, Read Theory, Edulastic
Confer with students	Independent reading is most effective when students are being checked on and held accountable for their reading.	*F&P *Fisher/Frey *Jennifer Serevallo
Use Reading Logs (Reading Log Rate Reflection)	Have students record and track their reading (this makes conferring way more efficient too).	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 65
Vary the Length or Type of Text (“Break Reads”	Students set goals in their books and then get to read something else once they hit those goals.  For example, in a novel student reads 7 pages and then they get to read a World Record book or a graphic novel for a few minutes.	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 49
Set a Timed Goal	Similar to the Break Reads, but this one goes off of time (when the timer goes off you get a break).	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 55
Party Ladder	Set small goals and work your way up the ladder as you accomplish each goal.  When you get to the top, it’s a party (break). You could even laminate these so you could adjust the tasks without redrawing the ladder each time.	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 57
Choose Books with your Identity in Mind (Find Reading Territories)	Coaching kids to see themselves as a reader with an identity helps them to go to the library and think, “I’m a reader who enjoys __________, so I think this book would be engaging for me.”	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 63 Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 66
Buzz About Books	Getting kids talking about and recommending books for peers can be very engaging!	Reading Strategies Book (Serevallo) page 69
Book Tastings	Have kids read little bits of many books and talk about which ones they might like to check out and read.	Teams here have done this (I can’t recall where it is from).
Increasing Academic Motivation	This is a list of various things to increase student motivation (ie. social interaction, offering choice, etc.).  This is not reading specific, but the principles could be applied.	Intervention Central
Communicate home	Let students know this is so important that we will need regular communication home about engagement.  Be sure to follow up with the positive too!
Celebrate those who are on task	Find those who are on task and celebrate them with a leadership slip, positive office referral, good news call, note home, etc.	PBIS
Engagement Self Reflection	Have students reflect periodically throughout the independent time about if they are or are not on task.  Noticing the behavior is sometimes all it takes for students. Setting a class goal could help here.	Sample Reflection
Regularly review anchor charts on Independent Reading and choosing books	We know we need to continue to reteach behaviors just as we do academic content.  Keep these anchor charts up & refer to them often.	Reading Minilessons (F&P) PBIS
Friday Choice Time	Make up the time lost during Friday Choice Time.	Caring School Communities
Relationships	Kids work for teachers who they have a positive relationship established with.	Casas, Haddie...

*Remember, I am happy to come in and take an inventory on engagement.  That will help you to see who is engaged and who needs some specific support in this area.  

BrightBytes Survey- Grades 3-5:
Just a reminder - this survey should be completed next week.  Mark this in your calendars, send a reminder, use a post-it note, whatever you need to do.  We need these surveys completed.

IDEATank - Gopher Sport:
Gopher Sport is offering a PD around STEAM - see the details below!

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

Have a great weekend, everyone!  Enjoy the heatwave!
-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, February 28, 2020

Happy Bowling Day!

Learned Helplessness:
One of the things I love most about our staff is their continued commitment to students - and the fact that you won't give up on students, even when they've given up on themselves.  I've been in four conversations this week about students - and learned helplessness. 

When students become dependent on an adult, they gain something called learned helplessness.  This concept really centers around the idea of a student not going through productive struggle because they know that at some point, there will be a person/adult/answer/thought provided.  When we create programming for students, this can often unintentionally happen.  Particularly, if the student is "at risk" and has more than one teacher. 

As I stated earlier, teachers are not intentionally doing this.  We are creating learning experiences for students that can sometimes enhance this concept.  I remember vividly when I was teaching 5th grade.  I had three students who struggled - they'd shut down, complain, and wouldn't get anything done during independent time.  I had a colleague observe and shared this concept with me - I had created a day for these students that almost always had an adult there to work with them (teacher, para, EA, etc).  Because of this, they fell apart when they didn't have this adult there.  I had great intentions by giving them the support; however, it was actually working against what I was trying to do. 

I'm asking you today to watch the video and start to think through this whole idea of learned helplessness. 

MCA Training:
Just a reminder - MCA trainings are next week.  You need to either choose Tuesday PM or Thursday AM.  An invite was sent out on February 16 to those who need to attend.  If you are not sure, please see me.  Thank you! 

School Social Workers Week:
Next week (March 2-5) is School Social Worker's Week.  This is a week to recognize Annette and all the work she does for our students and staff.  Please take some time next week to thank Annette. 

Staff Resignations:
I am saddened to report that Erin Hagen and Jocelyn Victorino have given their two week notice.  Both have taken other positions.  Erin's last day is Friday, February 6;  Jocelyn's last day is Friday, February 13.  Please join me in wishing them the best of luck in their future positions!

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

Weekly Update - Friday, February 21, 2020

Happy Friday! 
I hope conference week was a great week - it's always great to visit with families and celebrate successes!

Revisit Your "Why":
This time of year is hard!  At some point today or Monday, stop by the entryway and re-read your why.  That why will help ground you in the real reason you do this job.  It's that time of year where we need to regularly revisit our why, support each other, and continue to build that positive McKinley culture! 

Bowling - Next Friday:
Woo hoo!  We filled the jar and are going bowling.  How fun!
A huge thank you to Justin Lang and Steph for organizing this day!  Justin has shared the schedule - here it is again.  Please look through this to see if you find any issues.  Also, please check to make sure your prep or break will be covered with this schedule (teachers, please complete the prep document so Justin and I can finalize this).   The only lunch impacted is Kindergarten.  Please, let Justin and I know by today if you see any issues!

Principal of the Day - March 2:
At the PTO Carnival, two students "won" the Principal for the Day - Romie Sanderson (3E) & Gibson Schwartz (4D).  They have declared March 2 as Pajama Day for all staff and students!  Please share the word as we get closer to this date! 

Staff Mindfulness:
As you know, your mindfulness, mindset, and energy are important!   Some of our staff engaged in a mindfulness activity this Wednesday led by Amanda Gislason.  Our next "date" is Wednesday, March 4 at 2:40pm.  Consider joining us! 

A huge thank you to Amanda Gislason & Annette Warner for organizing this! 

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

Have a great weekend, everyone!  Enjoy the warm weather!
-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, February 14, 2020

Happy Valentine's Day!

Upcoming Deadlines:

Just a reminder of a few things that are due soon:

Staff Power Hour Feedback & Reflection (all staff) - due tomorrow, Friday.  Please cross off your name on the list (on my table) when you have submitted this.  I have a lot that gave to Steph or put in my mailbox - you need to cross off your name, too!  You can reply to this email and I'll be glad to cross your name off.

Caring School Community Fidelity Check (teaching staff) - due next Friday.  Again, please put on my table and cross off your name.  

Bowling:
On Friday, February 28, we will be celebrating our "filling the jar". I will be making an announcement at dismissal today to let students know that we will be going bowling!  Justin Lang has been working on a schedule for the day.  Each grade level will go the bowling alley for an hour - the schedule is super tight, so we will need to follow it to the minute.  Justin will be sending this out today - please look through it and provide any feedback to he and I both.  This feedback includes any major, glaring issues with the schedule.

Conferences with Fountas and Pinnell - from Ann Mikkalson:
See the note below from Ann - please, please, please take some time to read this.  Just another reminder - students' levels are a teaching tool, not a label.  Our conference time should be spent focusing on the strengths, the instructional goals, and our plan to move them forward as a reader... not their level.  

I hope this message finds you all well! Heinemann recently shared an hour long webinar in regards to grading and reporting. To find the webinar, head to fountasandpinnell.com, click on the "Community" tab and login with your online resources login.  Once you've logged in, type "grading" into the search bar. The recent webinar is called "Tips for Grading and Reporting within Fountas and Pinnell Classroom." 

If you aren't able to take a listen, I'd like to leave a couple of the many great points from the webinar below as you're preparing for conferences! 

• Thinking, talking, reading, and writing are all intertwined in Fountas and Pinnell Classroom through all of our instructional contexts. Share things you're seeing in all of these areas with families! 
• Reading levels are a teaching tool, not a label for a reader. Be sure to use language that reflects the child's progress towards expectations ( is meeting expectations, is not yet meeting expectations, is above what we would expect at this point in time.) Letter levels help us choose books for instruction (best entry point!) and our students experience many different levels of text throughout the day in Interactive Read Aloud, Shared Reading, Guided Reading, and Independent Reading. Reading levels are not designed to be a way to label students. 

Report cards show a point in time for the students in your classroom- their current progress. Below are some ideas shared in the webinar for helping families understand how far their child has come this year and where you expect them to go as the year progresses. 

• Running Record/Guided Reading Notes- Share examples of books the student read at the beginning of the year and types of books they're reading now in guided reading. What are some specific things you've been working on from the Systems of Strategic Actions Wheel and how have you seen them grow over the course of the year?  
• Independent Reading Conferring Notes- Share examples of conversations you've had with students. Talk about reading engagement both in school and at home. What are some examples of what students love to read at school? Ask parents to share what they notice about their child's reading engagement and types of books they read at home.  
• Reader's Notebooks- This is another opportunity to showcase beginning to current writing, reading logs and note students' progress. You can clip certain portions to share or have students choose some of their favorites from the beginning of the year to now. 

Again, take a listen to the full webinar if you can! I know that time is limited and your time with families is brief, but wanted to be sure you're aware of the webinar and information above if you're looking for ideas. Please reach out to your Teaching and Learning Coach or myself if you have any questions. 

Wishing you the very best in connecting with your students' families in the weeks ahead! 

Educational Assistant:
Joni Oeltjenbruns has submitted her resignation; her last day will be next Thursday, February 20.  Joni has been a wonderful addition to our EA team.  We are sad to see her go!   The position is posted online if you know of anyone who is interested!

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

Have a great weekend - stay warm! 
-Justin

Weekly Update - Friday, February 7, 2020

Happy Friday, everyone! 

Remember Your Why:

This is the time of year that can be challenging - little sun/nice weather, behaviors can spike, adn we are just ready for a day off!  Please take some time ot remember your "why" - this will help keep you grounded in the real work and why you do this job. 

Also, don't forget to provide each other some gratitude and thank you's! 

Mindful Art- Staff:
A huge thank you to Amanda Gislason and Annette Warner for organizing our first staff Mindful Art activity.  If you are looking for something to unwind, be creative, and enjoy your colleagues, please join us!

Congratulations!
A huge congratulations to Michelle Simon for receiving the MCSS Elementary Teacher of the Year!  The Minnesota Council of Social Studies will honor Michelle at a banquet later this spring.  Congrats, Michelle! 

MTSS/Intervention Time:
Just a reminder - your MTSS/Intervention Time is scared.  Please avoid cancelling this time - if you need to look at this, please come talk to me.  The only time is a building-wide scheduling issue or a field trip.  Thank you for your attention to this!

Why it's Wrong to Label Students At-Risk:
I recently came across a great article on when we call students "at risk".   Take a minute to read: https://theconversation.com/why-its-wrong-to-label-students-at-risk-109621

Multilingual Family Night Feedback:
Last week, we had our Multilingual Family Night.  We had a great turnout and got a lot of great feedback from families. I would love to share more with you about this at a later date.  There is one thing that still resonates with me that I think is important to share - particularly with conferences around he corner.   Families expressed concerns about teachers being "too nice" at conferences - and not "being completely honest".  I think this is a valid thing that we need to consider with all families.  Are we being "nice" or being "honest"?  An example of this is a student who started the year struggling - let's say a 20% proficiency.  Or, at a Fountas & Pinnell level E in 4th Grade.  They have grown to a 30% proficiency - or to level G.   It's great we have growth, but that growth is not enough.  They are still well behind expectations and need more intensive support.  I'm asking you to think about this as you have conversations - it's great to celebrate with families, but are you being completely honest with your concerns and providing some ideas for a plan to help this?  

Caring School Fidelity Checks:
Just a reminder for teachers of Caring School Community & morning meeting - fidelity checks are due Friday, February 21, 2020!  Please put them in the basket on my desk and cross off your name. 

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


Have a great weekend, everyone!  Take some time to appreciate and take care of YOU!
-Justin