Friday Focus - Week of August 31st-September 4th

Thank you! It's been a busy, but great week back!
You all are doing an amazing job.  I know how exhausting it is, but I've noticed you practicing expectations with your students around the school and I've seen you getting to know them one-by-one.  Thank you for the ways that you are adjusting to new routines and construction.  Things are beginning to settle in and I'm so appreciative of your hard work, flexibility, and the way you work together.  Thank you for being the leaders we want our kids to be.

Construction Fun
To have a little fun with the construction, please come to the office and sign up for a date that you think will be the first day we get to use the new bus lanes.  No money required!  This is just a fun estimate.  The winner will receive a gift card for 2 movie tickets.

Black Top and Line Up Spots
Please work with your BLT member and make a plan as a team for where your students will line up on the new and improved asphalt next week.  Please chalk in your numbers.  We are working with the Lowe's employees (as part of our grant) to use the volunteer day to get the asphalt repainted.  In the meantime, please chalk the numbers until we ca get them down permanently.

Seeing Struggling Math Learners As Sense Makers Not Mistake Makers
A great article about the way we see learners and build on what they know.

Listening Centers for iPads
We will be ordering headphone splitters for the iPads.  If you plan to use an iPad as a listening center, please let your team leader know.  BLT members, please bring me your grade level count sometime next week.

BoxTops
Jefferson was very successful with BoxTops last year.  We earned a money that bought books for the library and went back into classrooms.  It was teachers and an amazing PTO family who kept this going and organized.  Walt and Sandra Cooley have asked to come and explain how BoxTops work to your students next Thursday afternoon.  They will take just a couple of minutes and leave you with the container for collecting.  I will get you more specific times as I have them.

The great thing for staff is that you benefit as well.  Last yer, if you turned in your classes BoxTops on Friday morning, your name was entered into a drawing.  Each week (or close to it) someone one a small gift card to Jamba Juice, Cold Stone, iTunes, ect.  If you didn't have any BoxTops that week, you just had to notify the office to also be put into the drawing.  At the end of the year, teachers could also win prizes for being a top class.  Last year's big winners were:  Val Whitby, Vickie Quinley, and Lisa Henderson.  Ladies, you have not yet seen those prizes, but you have $25 to spend.  Please come see me to collect your prize!

AFLAC Interest?
Please let me know if you are interested in more information about AFLAC.  The representative is requesting a meeting with staff, but I will only schedule a voluntary meeting after school if a number of folks are interested in learning more.

St. Luke's Jerome - Generous Gift
The employees of St. Luke's Jerome donated $100 Gift Card to our school to support students with school supplies.  If you have a student with a specific need to meet, please let Miss Debbie know.  If you know someone who works for St. Luke's Jerome, please thank them for their generous contribution.

Idaho Power Gift
We are a lucky school this week.  Idaho Power Employee Community Funds also donated two boxes of supplies to Jefferson.  We will use this for new students, but please also let us know if you have a student missing something they need.  It's pretty incredible what a generous community we have!

Upcoming Events
IRI Testing - All Week
Friday, Sept. 18th - Homecoming Parade and Walking Field Trip (Details to come)
Friday, Sept. 25th - Spirit Day

Due
Classroom Management Plans - Sept. 9th
Artifact Bags - Sept. 9th

Have a great first day back!!

Angie

Building and Setting Expectations

Building a Positive Learning Environment

Great ideas from Edutopia! Click Here.

Modeling: Ideas to Consider for the Daily 5...and all Instruction and Classroom Management

Excellent ideas from the Stenhouse Newsletter....

Every time I ask students to do something, I model it first. 

—Lindsay Young 

Lindsay Young reflects on teaching and modeling in "I Do, We Do, You Do" onTeaching Channel. Consider your own practice as you observe Young's classroom: 

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/modeling-strategy-getty 

Modeling goes beyond skills. It's important to model behaviors and attitudes too. Ruth Charney writes about modeling as a means for teaching classroom rules. Read "The Importance of Modeling" at Education World to see how she does it: 

http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/columnists/charney/charney003.shtml

Math Manipulatives for the Interactive Projectors

A fun website that has some possibilities for use with the interactive projectors.  Let me know if you try one out!

http://classtechtips.com/2015/06/19/virtual-base-10-blocks-endless-manipulatives-and-annotation/