Gearing up for this Week!

Week of:  March 27th-31st, 2017

Monday-  Jeans Day

Ensure everything is ready to go for testing in various areas!

Tuesday - Jeans Day

Lunch provided in lounge!  - iFratelli

4th Grade Writing STAAR and 5th Grade Math STAAR

Wednesday - Jeans Day 

Lunch provided in lounge!  - Chicken Express

5th Grade Reading STAAR

Thursday -  Jeans Day

Friday - Jeans/Sweats

Texan Town

Important Reminders

Schedule for STAAR
We will have a modified specials schedule for STAAR testing days.  Also, remember that you may only have recess outside by the cafeteria loop until all testing has been completed in the building.  Remember that videos through the projector should not be played for testing days (including like brainpop or youtube) and if kids are using devices with sound they need to be wearing their ear buds.  Please review hallways expectations including bathroom expectations of no talking during the testing days.  

Tuesday Specials:
8:30-9:30 - Kinder
9:30-10:30- 2nd grade
10:30-11:30- 3rd grade
12:00-1:00- 1st grade
1:00-2:00- 4th grade
2:00-3:00- 5th grade

Wednesday Specials: 
8:30-9:30 - 4th grade
9:30-10:30 - 2nd grade
10:30-11:30 - 3rd grade
12:00- 1:00 - 1st grade
1:00-2:00- Kinder
2:00-3:00 - 5th grade

End of the Year Goal Setting and Evidence

Remember this final piece for our goal setting with TTESS this year.  You will need to go in to Eduphoria (goal form)and fill out a final part for your goals. 

Giving an extension:  This part will be due on Wednesday, April 5th at 3:00pm!!

 By filling out the piece in Eduphoria, this will help Brett and I in preparing for your summative that will we schedule sometime during April.  For your summative we will all meet together and you can show, tell about and discuss with us how your goals have gone as well as share any evidence you have on how it impacted your learners or you as an educator. 

Curriculum Documents to Review
The following was sent out Friday afternoon about the district Curriculum Management Plan and directions for what they are wanting our help with for next steps:

 Please send this out next week (week of March 27) and ask your educators to read through it (it is lengthy---sorry) but it is the guide for curriculum for the district.

  

CMP link:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10HZk54a7KU03qkPG0Q5QVAJBps-4bYHdofKTQeuR9Ck/edit

They are asking us to then share feedback on this document on Tuesday, April 18th from 10:30-1:30.  Two directors will be available for anyone on the campus to stop in and ask questions, give comments, etc.  The district hopes to gain feedback and promote understanding as this new guideline of curriculum is implemented.  

We will use Kristan's room as our location and if you have questions or would like to discuss any part before then, feel free to let me know! 

From the Desk of BS….volume 26

48 

Michael Jordan was recently making and announcement at a University of North Carolina basketball game that his Jordan Brand would now be worn by the football team instead of Nike. During the speech, he made the comment, “The Ceiling is the Roof.” He obviously made a mistake on his part, thinking there is not roof on how high the expectations can go. Admitting the mistake, Jordan Brand has taken an outside of the box approach and began marketing t-shirts with the new slogan on it. Please see below.

You may be asking, what connection is being made here and why is the title of this edition 48? Jordan Brand took a mistake and thought, how can we make this work? What approach can we take to make this turn out good on our sales? Anything associated with Jordan makes money, and they know it, even a t-shirt with an obvious mistake. 

The Jordan Brand thought outside the box. This is something we often ask our learners to do as well. It is also something that we as educators must do. The remainder of this year, for the next 48 days (that’s all we have left), what can we do to think outside the box to help our learners, whether it is social, academic, or emotional? We only have 48 more opportunities to make an impact, how are we going to take advantage of those moments each day? 

Below you will find a couple of links that harness creativity and engage learners in the classroom, thinking outside the box: 

https://www.edutopia.org/outlaw-educators 

https://www.edutopia.org/practice/i-wonder-questions-harnessing-power-inquiry 

Thanks again for all you do, 

BS

Shout Outs!

Becky- awesome job on the kinder program! You always do such a good job and work so hard on it :) It was adorable!! –Ashley

Thank you Brett and Angie for being troopers and getting slimed! I know the kids loved it!! I appreciate your energy and being a good sport :) –Ashley

Ashley and Beth - Thank you so much for all of your help with the Kinder performance. I couldn't have done it with out you! – Becky

Candace and Leigh - What a great week in 5th grade music with MakeyMakey! I enjoyed working with you and the learners thought it was "awesome"!

Kindergarten teachers - thank you for everything you did to prepare your learners for their 1st Spirit Rally performance – Becky

All collaborators, It's great to see all of you collaborating with one another and sharing ideas! From the library to the music room to the GT room, so fun! BS

Angie and Brett, Thank you for the yummy snacks!!! Y'all are the best!!! We love you and appreciate you very much!!! Thanks for spoiling us!!! 💕Love you,. A Hall

Marie- Thank you so much for sharing your math activities with me! You are always giving me great ideas! Lorri B.

Angie, thank you for the treat Friday!! It was delicious and much needed!!

Tina, thank you for always spending so much time with my learners and for being flexible and covering my class this week! You are wonderful! ❤Morgan

Kristan, thank you so much for covering my class the first day back after spring break! My learners always love when you are in the classroom!! ❤Morgan

Catherine~ Thanks for letting work with your kiddos to animate their word problems with Scratch Jr. This a great way to integrate coding into their learning!

Candace ~ You the best co-teaching partner ever!

Lisa~ Thank you for working with me during our Ozobot shopping spree!!!

Angie and Brett, Thank you for the yummy treats! It made for the best Friday! Casey

Click here to give a shout out!

March Birthdays

Becky Garrett - 7th

Kelly Burks - 8th

Sherri Kingsley - 16th

Beth Parker - 17th

Meredith Schaaf - 20th

Megan McGraw - 26th

Jessica Cavet - 27th

Lorri Brehm - 30th

Final Quotes for the Week

As we go into this week, please read the following quotes and know how much I appreciate everything you are doing for our kids each day. . .whether it be tutoring, extra hugs, modeling, helping them with behavior, etc. . . .and just know what you do makes such a difference in the lives of others!  Thank you!

We Made It People!

Week of:  March 20th-24th, 2017

Monday-  Jeans Day- any shirt (to ease back in)

Fire drill/tornado drill

Team leader - 3:15 - Kristan's room

Tuesday - Lisa Hansen works with teams for rating TELPAS - during conference times

STAAR small group testing training - 3:15 - Library

Wednesday - Jeans Day - any shirt

No vertical meeting, so you there can be an extra day of tutoring or preparing hallways/rooms for STAAR testing

Thursday -  Have a Terrific Thursday!

Friday - Jeans/Sweats

Texan Town

Therapy Dogs

Shamrock Shuffle

Important Reminders

STAAR Testing

We will have our next training for small groups when we get back from break.  Please be thinking about which areas of your rooms need to be covered for all testing as well as hallway areas.  Remember that we want to try to reuse butcher paper/table cloths/sheets for the next go round in May.  Kelly is contacting people about if you will be testing this go round.  Please know, if you weren't chosen this time don't worry. . .we will need more the next!  :)

Also, please DO NOT take any work displays down (cover them) as we want our building to continue looking fresh and positive with all of the learning from this year! 

End of the Year Goal Setting and Evidence

I wanted to let you all know about a final piece for our goal setting with TTESS this year.  You will need to go in to Eduphoria (goal form)and fill out a final part for your goals. 

(please do not feel that you have to even think about this during spring break!)

This part will be due on Friday, March 31st at 3:00pm!!

 By filling out the piece in Eduphoria, this will help Brett and I in preparing for your summative that will we schedule sometime during April.  For your summative we will all meet together and you can show, tell about and discuss with us how your goals have gone as well as share any evidence you have on how it impacted your learners or you as an educator.   

 

From the Desk of BS….volume 25

We made it! Below you will find a list of some of the wonderful activities that our TCE Texans think you will be enjoying over the break! 

- I think she stays home or goes somewhere, like to a restaurant they like. 

- Ummmm, go to fly on an airplane, I forgot what country. 

- Go to the store, buy some stuff like groceries. 

- Go to the park, look at trees, look at the blossoms on trees. 

- Go to a birthday party, celebrate the birthday at nickel mania. 

- Go sailing to an island, have a picnic. 

- Go vacations, maybe go to the pool. Play with beach balls. 

- Go sit on their front patio and watch tv all the time, lay around all day. 

- Go to Starbucks, go and watch tv, like the news. 

- I think they will be visiting their kids, getting more school supplies. 

- Going on a trip to the beach, getting ready for when school comes back after spring break. 

- Go to the beach, so the the ocean, have some fun…maybe build a sandcastle and surf. 

- Go out of town, to Boston or Florida and go out and eat pizza. 

-I think they are going to go to a picnic and meet each other, and then go the park and have peace. 

- Maybe they are going to change around their classrooms, or go on a vacation or go to a party. 

- At the beach, spend time with their kids, because she is a teacher and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t see them enough. 

- Make some more stuff for learning. Spend time with their family. 

- Go on vacation, watch people blow fire. 

- Make some assignments go out and have fun a little bit. Go to the beach, go out to dinner. 

- Go to Florida, I think they get all of their school work done first then they relax, if you relax first you may get off your time. 

- Take a vacation, do their work, relax somewhere and maybe go to the beach. 

- Go listen to music somewhere, go to art studios. 

- Eat Chik-fil-A, it’s her favorite fast food. 

- Going to Florida, going to Disney world, stay in a resort. 

- Being lazy at home, eating food…lots of food, Burger King and Wingstop. 

- Relaxing, sitting on the couch watching tv, sleeping in, spend time with husband. 

- Eating Chik-fil-A and grade our tests. 

- Relax or something. Watch tv a lot. 

- Go on a trip, maybe to Houston, relaxing at the beach. 

- Maybe hang out with her family, go see all the sites. 

- Maybe go see some family, maybe be lazy or talk to each other or split up into groups. Talk about things they like, like animals or their jobs. 

- Play together. Go to a lake house or something. 

- Teachery things. Visit family, stay home and relax. 

- Sleep, because they get annoyed with us and they are tired, plan their lessons. 

- Text each other, hang out at each other’s houses and restaurants. 

- Go shopping, work on college work. 

- Going to Las Vegas to see Hamilton, sit at their apartment and read. 

- Go to the really good buffet’s in Vegas, watch a bunch of movies, lesson plans. 

Here is a link to 21 Things Every Teacher Should Do on Spring Break:

https://www.weareteachers.com/21-things-every-teacher-should-do-while-on-spring-break/?utm_content=buffer72b5f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Rest, relax. You deserve it. 

Have a safe and wonderful Spring Break! 

BS

Shout Outs!

Lisa, Thank you so much for covering my KTEX duty when I am out or I have a meeting! Also thank you for being a go-to person when my robotics club needs supervising. I love that you are always willing to help me when I'm in a bind. You are the best!  -Candace

Mary,  Thank you for being our fearless team leader and keeping us in line and organized. Our team is HUGE and we truly appreciate all you do for us including organizing birthday card signings, reminding us of jeans days, and creating pick me up videos for a teammate. We love you! -The Specials and Specialists Team

Ashley and Beth D.-Thank you do much for staying after Open House to help Becky and I clean up the Makey Makeys. I really appreciate it! –Candace

Leigh Ann-thank you so much for teaching me about Google Expeditions and coteaching with me. The Rutgers Expedition was a big hit with my 4th and 5th graders and a great way to teach college and career readiness! –Candace

Becky and Leigh Ann- it was so much fun coteaching with you both in music this week. The Makey Makeys were a huge hit with our 5th graders. I hope we can collaborate again soon! –Candace

Thank you Kristan for helping 4th grade with Writing Boot Camp next week! You are such an awesome resource!

Candace- You are my partner in crime! Thank you! I always love working with you! ~Leigh Ann

Becky- You are awesome! I love how your incorporated technology this week by using the MakeyMakey's with 5th grade! Thanks for letting help out with this project! ~Leigh Ann

Kristan, Thank you for helping us with our writing boot camp! You are always so willing to help and offer us great ideas! Love, 4th Grade

Catherine! Thank you for ordering pizza for our team to celebrate spring break! YOU ROCK!!! Heather, Ashlin, and Megan

Kelly, Thank you for getting all of our testing accommodations and groups ready! You work so hard, and we appreciate it! –Meredith

Brett, Thank you so much for setting up and leading all of our 504's! I know it's been crazy recently, so thank you for always willing to be patient with us! –Meredith

Mary, Thank you for always rolling with the punches! Your flexibility is truly appreciated! –Meredith

Thank you Sherri for your never ending job with the zoo animals You are a trooper!

Becky! Your light shines so bright through all of our TCE Learners each time we have a music performance! Thank you for always bringing the very best out in our kiddos! You are the BEST! ~Love Tina

Kate & Jenna--Thank you so much for inviting me in to your classrooms to share in such great research and science presentations this week with your learners! I love anytime we can collaborate!

Specialists--A HUGE Thank You to all of you who helped out at the Bookfair during Open House! I cannot tell you how much I appreciate you all for being willing to come and welcome/help our families throughout the night. ❤Tina

Laura & Sherri--Thank you for all the millions of little things that you do for our campus and for us each and everyday! We would be lost without you! Have a wonderful Spring Break!

Tina- Thank you so much for all of your help with the kindergarten slide show! We loved it--- it is DARLING! 

love, 

Katy, Lauren, Lorri and Kim

Becky, 

Thank you so much for putting so much effort into the kindergarten spirit rally performance! We are lucky to have such a wonderful, talented and fun Music teacher! You are AMAZING! ( And a internet sensation! http://tcekinder.blogspot.com/) 

Love,

Katy, Kim, Lorri and Lauren

Beth and Ashley,

Thank y'all so much for always helping Becky out with her wonderful ideas and keeping kindergarten under control! You guys are wonderful! 

Love, 

Lauren, Lorri, Kim and Katy 

Katy McKinney Loved watching your engaged learners graphing their play-doh data for science. Kristan

Leigh Ann, 

Thank you for filming the kindergarten performance today! All of our parents so appreciate you! 

Love,

Kindergarten

Beth Dilley Thank you for filling the Town Center halls with student's  beautiful artwork.  It makes me smile when I see all the self portraits. Kristan

Becky and the Kindergarten crew - The program was fabulous.  those precious kindergarteners made everyone enjoy the music. Kristan

Erin - Great poetry lesson!   Your learners created creative haikus. Kristan

Tina - March Madness bracket is brilliant. Kristan

LeighAnn - Excited about my coaching padlets. Thanks for the advice. Kristan

Leigh Ann- Thank you so very much for helping me with QR Codes for Open House and introducing me to Screen Cast Matic and Padlet!  You were so patient to sit with me through every step.  Thank you so much!  I really appreciate your help!!

Lorri B.

Meredith, I really loved being in your classroom this week. I loved seeing how independent and engaged your learners were as they worked through their tasks. You have a wonderful learning environment! I made a mental note to remember the awesome lesson you designed for next year, too. Thank you for having me! –Marly

Katie, I loved being in your room this week. I love the way you talk to your kids! You have created such a safe environment. I also loved seeing how you are tying theme into your fable study.. especially since our 5th graders still struggle with it! Thank you for having me. –Marly

Kelly Spears, You are Wonder Woman! You have been so busy getting us ready for STAAR and TELPAS, and you still find the time to be there to counsel kids (and sometimes us)! Thank you for all you do for us! -Marly

Becky, thank you so much for all you work on the program!!  Loved the routines as always!  Thank you for creating such a positive and happy love for music!  - Angie

Brett,  thank you so for being my "partner in slime" to celebrate all of the generous donations for Jump Rope for Heart!  Always so much fun!!  Thank you!  - Angie

Click here to give a shout out!

March Birthdays

Becky Garrett - 7th

Kelly Burks - 8th

Sherri Kingsley - 16th

Beth Parker - 17th

Meredith Schaaf - 20th

Megan McGraw - 26th

Jessica Cavet - 27th

Lorri Brehm - 30th

Final Quotes for the Week

As you go through your break, truly take time for yourself and enjoy each and every moment!