Week 9 Updates

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• Year to Date Attendance Rate: 97.67%
• Goal for 2014-2015: 97%

#1 in MMSD!

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The Code Red Drill was very well-done yesterday.  We were joined by 4 officers from Monona Police Department, who all left with a good impression of our school.  The kids were very quiet, it was impossible to tell which classrooms were empty and which were not, which is exactly the situation we want to create in the event of an armed intruder.  All door windows were blacked out, and all but one door was locked.  I want to take a minute to discuss the unlocked door.  Remember, in times of crisis, it is common for our brains to fail us.  When the Code Red was announced, a teacher panicked a bit and immediately went to lock her door.  The problem was that the door was already locked, and the teacher actually unlocked it unknowingly.  This is why routine and drill is important for safety in the case of an emergency situation.  If your door is always locked, you will not second guess yourself when a situation arises.  A good lesson was learned yesterday.  That is why we drill.

Kudos--Laura G. for her dedication to her students.

Reminders

• Teachers should return completed tallies to Cecilia by Monday Nov. 3
• 3-5 Teachers, click here for the Spanish version of the MAP progress report explanation sheet.
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SBLT--On Tuesday, Nov. 4th, the leadership team will be meeting to analyze MAP Reading data. All are welcome to attend, 3:30-5:00 in Sarah N.'s room.

Important Information

• Parent Teacher Conferences will be held on Nov. 19th. Students will be released at 11:35 on that day.  If you have parents who have not signed up for a conference, please contact them as soon as possible to set something up.  
• The make-up/compensatory day for the Fall and Spring P/T conference evenings is Nov. 26th.  More information here.
• Assessments: Josh has asked that fall fountas & pinnell, wrap, and mondo assessments as well as number development/fact fluency assessments be completed by the end of quarter 1 (Nov 7) Please be prepared to use either reading or math assessments in our data dig staff meeting Monday, Nov 10. WRAP Assessments: 3-5 teachers are co-creating a document with acceptable responses on comprehension. To input, click https://docs.google.com/a/madison.k12.wi.us/document/d/1aRLCTNuvGpq3D7w7q4b4viIduA6LeqmrYdAly74wZLs/edit
• Math: Singapur math workbooks are to be ordered for students to build fluency during independent work time. Emily is currently collecting requests for levels. To place your order, 1) administer Number development assessment 2)complete class profile located https://drive.google.com/a/madison.k12.wi.us/?tab=mo#folders/0B932mxg0ed0mRGw4ZkgwLXRGRGs 3) invite students to use the "try it" pages to ensure these are indeed the appropriate resource 4)input the amount of each book you'd like to order on this doc https://docs.google.com/a/madison.k12.wi.us/spreadsheets/d/1Dk_3kxislUnLbnpqcvGIshH9LFClgWRBY02q-YHLQq8/edit?usp=sharing
• Professional Development: GLT meetings first week in November: problem solving with students receiving intervention; Monday Nov 10: Data Dig; Friday Nov 14 half day: Anti-bullying, grr, and metalanguage
• Teachers can learn more about using MAP results during a live interactive webinar on Monday, Nov. 3, from 4-5 p.m. For more information visit the MAP website.

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• Please welcome Kyle Luedtke to our building as new computer tech. Kyle started this week.
• Also, a new SEA, Carlos Lozano will start on Tuesday, Nov. 4th. Please help me make Carlos feel welcome.
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Video of the Week:

• See Ross Greene's, author of The Explosive Child, Kids do Well if they Can.  

Week 8 Update

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Grade Level Team Meetings

• In a continued effort to support you with Educator Effectiveness, next week's meetings will be devoted to sharing your EE Plan with your team to get feedback.  This is a requirement for teachers who are in a Supporting Year, and suggested for teachers who are in a Summary Year.  I will send an agenda based on my meetings with summary-year teachers in a separate email.

• If your team has already done this, please contact Emily for other options for your meeting time.
• On Monday, an FAQ will be shared that was co-developed by MTI and district administration to clarify Monday structured planning time.  I feel that we as a school are really leveraging this time to be of most benefit for our students, thank you!

Kudos!

• To Lisa Smith for her enthusiasm and care when working with our students.  We are so happy to have you!
• To Bettina for her willingness to help staff and students alike.  Your work is so appreciated!
• To Megan Neveau for contributing to our music program and building relationships with kids during her student teaching time here.  You will be greatly missed, but we wish you the best of luck with your next assignment!

Reminders

• Remember to complete the assessments for use on Nov. 10th. See last week's blog entry for more details.
• Code Red Drill scheduled for Thursday afternoon, Oct. 30. There will be a brief meeting to review procedures on Monday afternoon at 3:30, in the art room.
• See calendar on blog site for additional reminders.

Important Information

• Finalized Educator Effectiveness plans are due in Teachscape for all teaching staff a week from today (OCt. 31st).
• Click here for a blank template for your Student Learning Objective (SLO)

Video of the Week:

The Importance of Sleep--4 minute Ted Talk by Ariana Huffington about taking care of yourself through getting adequate sleep.

Week 7 Update

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Percentage of 3rd-5th grades proficient or advanced on Fall MAP: 

Reading: 20.27%--(Goal 30%)

• ELLs 7%--(Goal 15%)

Math: 26.35%--(Goal 37%)

Time to work our magic!

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Using Assessment in Instruction

Our beginning of year screeners (PALS and MAP) are nearly completed at this point. Now our attention must turn to assessing to inform differentiated instruction and to guide instructional moves.

At our November Staff PD, teachers will be asked to bring data for their class for the purposes of analyzing student needs and creating groups for guided instruction.  Please be prepared to bring the following data to that meeting:

• K-2 : Spanish Text Reading Levels (TRL) + MDA or Fact Fluency Interviews
• 3-5: English TRL for students scoring below proficienct on MAP Reading, Spanish TRL for all students + Fact Fluency Interviews

Using Assessment in Instruction

Our beginning of year screeners (PALS and MAP) are nearly completed at this point. Now our attention must turn to assessing to inform differentiated instruction and to guide instructional moves.

At our November Staff PD (Nov. 10th), teachers will be asked to bring data for the purposes of analyzing student needs and creating groups for guided instruction.  Please be prepared to bring the following data to that meeting:

• K-2 : Spanish Text Reading Levels (TRL) + MDA or Fact Fluency Interviews
• 3-5: English TRL for students scoring below proficient on MAP Reading, Spanish TRL for all students + Fact Fluency Interviews

Quarter 1 ends on Nov. 3rd.  These assessments will also provide you with important information for Parent/Teacher Conferences.

Kudos!

• Carolyn, José, Mary, and Lucia--for representing NMCS on Saturday morning for the UW football game fundraiser.

Reminders

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Important Information

• Educator Effectiveness Planning sessions will begin this week.  Please work on your PPG and SLO to get those completed on time.
• Click here for a blank template for your Student Learning Objective (SLO)


• If you are interested in having AmeriCorps volunteers come in to talk about healthy snacks please contact Natasha Smith at natashas@reapfoodgroup.org .
• Madison Capitols hockey opening night, teachers and staff can get free tickets, click here!

Week 6 Update

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----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Percentage of 2nd graders proficient on the PALS screener in Spanish: 

92.6%

It's nice to see data that reflects the culmination of our K-2 instruction!  You better believe I'll be shouting this from the mountain tops.



Feedback from Deep Dive

The feedback from the Deep Dive was overwhelmingly positive! We continue to see high levels of engagement in all classrooms. We observed a lot of "Preparense para leer" activities including poems and songs, videos from the Calle website, and language/vocabulary work.

Because the Deep Dive visits are merely a quick snap-shot of what is happening in the classroom, often at inopportune times in your schedule, it was difficult to get an consistent picture of common practices.  The SBLT will work to develop a better approach to the Deep Dive that will allow us to get a more accurate picture of how our SIP is coming alive in classrooms and how professional learning is being applied.

One potential take-away is that we are on the right track with our SIP in terms of centering our instructional learning around focus lessons and whole-group instruction.

Kudos!

• Luz Celedon for her zapateado during the Jose Luis Orozco assembly.
• Jane Danley for helping so many teachers be able to focus on teaching, by providing assessment support.
• Sarah Niesen for hosting a group of parents interested in starting a school garden

Reminders

• Please complete your binder for substitute teachers and place them in your mailbox. The binder should "live" in your mailbox so Subs can pick it up when they sign in. Correction to last blog entry: all SEAs had their sub folders ready by the deadline.
• Teacher Self-Review for teachers in "supporting year" is due Oct. 15th, in Teachscape.
• Picture Day Oct. 13 in the gym, sign up for a time slot on the google doc from Cecilia. (if rainy day, gym class will be held in classrooms)
• Liderazgo/PTO meeting Friday, Oct. 17th.  Topics include BEP and 1st/2nd grade parent panel.  Later I will be sharing a google doc to sign up for at least one Liderazgo meeting this year.  It would be ideal for your grade level team to sign up and attend together.  Please plan to attend at least one of these, you are welcome to attend any and all.
• UW Parking fundraiser this Saturday, 9-10:30am, in the Doyle parking lot.

Important Information

• Educator Effectiveness Planning sessions will begin this week.  Please work on your PPG and SLO to get those completed on time.
• Click here for a blank template for your Student Learning Objective (SLO)
• Anamaria has come up with a great idea to encourage all students leaving here dreaming of the college they will some day attend.  I agree it's never to early to start talking about this.  Her idea is that each teacher will post a "pendant" of the college they attended outside their door or in the classroom. I'm ordering a Tarleton State Texans pendant now!
• If you are interested in having AmeriCorps volunteers come in to talk about healthy snacks please contact Natasha Smith at natashas@reapfoodgroup.org .
• Madison Capitols hockey opening night, teachers and staff can get free tickets, click here!

Week 5 Update

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• September Attendance Rate: 96.86%
• Goal for 2014-2015: 97%

You engage students...THANK YOU!

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In yesterday's paper, I read that an elementary school in Syria had been bombed, killing up to 30 kids.  As I reflected on that terrible tragedy, I was reminded of the big picture of what we are trying to accomplish here at Nuestro Mundo. September was hard, no doubt about it.  So many new things to learn and adjust to, so many deadlines to meet, new kids to figure out.  But when I read about atrocities such as the one in Syria, it reminds me to rise above the difficulties of the everyday ins and outs of our job, and focus on how we can work to change things for future generations.  

Let's remember why we are doing this, what attracted us to this line of work in our early adulthood, and rekindle the belief that, as Nelson Mandela put it, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."

-Josh
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Next Monday morning we will have our first "Deep Dive" with Chief of Elementary Schools, Nancy Hanks.  The purpose of these deep dives is to review and monitor the implementation of our School Improvement Plan.  The agenda for the morning will look something like this:

• Review SIP and Student Achievement Data
• Classroom walk-throughs (9:30-10:30), in which we will be visiting classrooms and recording data based on our "look-fors" on iPads. I apologize if this seems clinical, but we'll be using a google form which will make data analysis much easier.   The "look-fors" will be sent in a separate email.  I know most of you will be doing "Prepárense a leer" activities, which is exactly what you should doing on a Monday morning.  Do not feel that you should change your plans b/c of the Deep Dive.
• Review walk-through data and develop next steps.

The walk-throughs are not evaluative of teachers in any way.  Teacher names are not gathered in the Google Form, nor are teacher names used in the subsequent discussion.  Teachers are not expected to do anything differently for deep dives, than what they would normally be doing based on grade level team planning.   The data and notes from the deep dive will be shared with staff promptly following the deep dive.

This time, observers will include:

• Josh
• Stephanie
• Rigo
• Lesli Taschwer, School Improvement Partner
• Nancy Hanks, Chief of Elementary Schools

Kudos!

• Jose Flores for being so flexible and willing to help out in a pinch.
• Anne Seeber for addressing minor issues before they become major problems.
• Lizette Altamirano for hosting the first restorative circle at Nuestro Mundo

A week of learning around "I can" statements:

Thanks to all teacher teams for the focus they put into their grade level p.d. this week. New learning came out of each of the meetings. Below are some insights that came up in different conversations that can help us better understand our work around I can statements...

- Preserve the magic of I Can by not over-using! At the PD a variety of I can's were presenting to show how universal they can be. Using too many can make the I Can get real old real quick. In general, you might consider 1 -2 I can statements for your whole group literacy teaching per week.

- I can statements are powerful when they are developed around the thinking we want kids to do. Refrain from I can's that are around benchmark (I can reach level x) or I can's that center around recall or item knowledge (I can know my doubles math facts, I can say sight words, I can learn short vowels or syllables ta/te, etc).  Consider instead I can's that get at strategic behaviors (I can notice when I'm stuck on a word and reread to help myself... or I can think about the purpose of a text to help me understand what I read...or I can say a word slowly and write the sounds I hear)

- I can is a piece of the standard, not the standard rewritten.  The standards are dense! Look at the standard and think: what steps does a child need to carry out in order to carry out the behavior described in the standard? We're breaking down the standard into manageable chunks for the kids through actionable I can statements.

Let's continue to keep the discussion open around lessons learned through creating/implementing I can statements!

Reminders

• Don't forget to turn in your Ready, Set, Go time sheets into me for approval.  Don't forget to indicate your Compensation Preference. 
• Please complete your binder for substitute teachers and place them in your mailbox. The binder should "live" in your mailbox so Subs can pick it up when they sign in. Thanks to Wendy, Kristen, Courtney, Susan, Bettina, Luz C., Imma, and Chris for having their binder ready by the deadline!
• There will be a Book Room "Open House" on Friday, Oct. 3rd during lunch.  Come learn how to properly use the book room resources to support your guided instruction.  This is a voluntary learning opportunity, but all are encouraged to stop by.  Snacks will be available!
• Movie Night is October 3rd, from 6:30-8:00pm.  Teachers are welcome to attend.  :-)
• Picture Day Oct. 13 in the gym, sign up for a time slot on the google doc from Cecilia. (if rainy day, gym class will be held in classrooms)
• NAMI Walk this Sunday, Oct. 5th.  More info coming to those who have indicated that they will attend.

Important Information

• Maxi has decided to take a year off from her duties in the cafeteria to care for her new baby, Vanessa.  Connie Mota will take over her duties preparing snack and assisting in the lunch room.  Welcome Connie to the team!
• Contrary to information provided at the Educator Effectiveness Open Workshop, teachers can use Spring data from the data warehouse as a baseline to develop your SLO.
• Click here for a blank template for your Student Learning Objective (SLO)
• Stephanie Herrera will serve as Principal Designee again this year.  This means that when I am out of the building, she will make decisions on my behalf and have authority over the day-to-day functions in the school.
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• José Luis Orozco will be visiting Nuestro Mundo on Wed. Oct. 8th at 9:00am!  He will play a concert for K-2nd graders that should last about an hour.  
• Nuestro Mundo has $833.00 available from the Foundation for Madison Public Schools Endowment Fund.  Look for an email later with directions on how to request a grant.  Grant applications due on October 15th.  Grant ideas should be "creative and innovative projects that are not funded within the core school budget."  
• There are also funds available through NMI, roughly $14,000.  Please contact Libbey Meister (libbey05@gmail.com) for more information (The application form will be shared with you via google docs).
• Please get all completed OMGE surveys to Cecilia or Anamaria by today.