Friday, December 21st

Today's agenda for the Assembly

• 4th & 5th grade report to gym @ 8:25
• Kindergarten and 1st grade report to gym @ 8:35
• 2nd & 3rd grade report to gym @ 8:40
• First song "Wintersong" @ 8:45 
• Recognition @ 8:50
• Holiday Card - Nancy Sun
• Human Relations award - Chloe Adkins
• New Data manager - Angie Bowles
• CEOY - Doris Davis
• TOY - Kelsey Williams
• Crew reports @ 9:00
• 3rd grade - Megan Surbeck
• 1st grade - Holly Say
• 5th Grade - Hadrian Pollard
• 4th Grade - Lynn Hatcher
• Kindergarten - Kelly Gutierrez
• 2nd grade - Kyli White
• Second Song "Here Comes the Snow" @ 9:15
• Dismissal @ 9:20

Enjoy Winter Break!

Classes resume on Thursday, January 3rd.

Thursday, December 20th

Congratulations to:

• CEOY - Doris Davis

• TOY - Kelsey Williams

Enjoy EBOB this morning and be sure to get your Spelling Bee class representative to Sarah before the end of the day!

The Inspire 340 Bar-B-Que lunch incentive will be in the Be. Cafe today! If you signed up, stop by and get a plate of comfort provided by our community partners and Inspire 340!

I am off campus until noon today with my son Joe as he gets two wisdom teeth extracted.

Could you PLEASE send me your holiday party plans for Friday so I can read them while I wait at the oral surgeon? I have fifth grade already and would like to arrange my schedule to visit as many as possible.

Wednesday, December 19th

We appreciate the support last evening for our 4th and 5th grade winter performance.  Mrs. Smith and the students performed admirably and modeled many Habits of Character.  We also recognized our Walter-Robbs Holiday card designer, Nancy Sun and City of Winston-Salem, Human Relations Student Award recipient, Chloe Adkins.

PTA Hospitality provides LUNCH today in the Be.cafe' - ENJOY  

Faculty Crew in the media center @ 3:30.  Bring your nominations for TOY & CEOY as we will vote today!  We will also share the preliminary data from our NC DPI Comprehensive Needs Assessment.

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

4th and 5th grade musical tonight at 6:00.  Please come out and show your love and support for our students and the music program.

4th and 5th graders will hold a joint practice from 1:20-2:40 (a detailed email was sent out to those involved)

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” -William A. Ward

Monday. December 17, 2018

Monday. December 17, 2018

After LOTS of this 

and some of this 

we are ready for lots of this.

Welcome back!

We know this is going to be a "buzzy week" (sorry, but I had to use a bee reference), but our Spelling Bee classroom winner still needs to be reported to Mrs. H by the end of the day Thursday, Dec 20th.

PLEASE WELCOME our new Data Manager, Angie Bowles.

PLEASE WELCOME BACK, Emily Fedel.

We missed our ERD and the presentations from our teams. If leaders on the teams can provide me with some data, we will make arrangements for your work to be shared SOON. 

Wednesday we will have Staff Crew in the media center to elect our Teacher and Classified Employee of the year. There will be nomination forms in each of your mailboxes. Recall that we will circle up and read aloud each nomination to honor the amazing work of this staff. You may read your form on Wednesday or deliver it to Sarah so she can read it and remain anonymous. We will vote immediately following the nomination process.

Our EBOB competition is Thursday Morning in the Gym for all 3rd-5th grade classes. 4th grade will have specials in Period #5

Let JOY flow and live in every action, as we have five days to set the table for 2019!

Thursday, December 13th

Due to continued concerns about road and sidewalk conditions, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools will be CLOSED for students on Friday, December 14. 

However, Friday IS an Optional Teacher Workday.

• Optional Teacher Workday means Teachers may choose to
• Work at school, building open from 7:30 - 4:00 
• Take annual leave
• Work on Wednesday, June 19
• Mr. Kirby, Laurie, Nelva & our new data manager, Angela Bowles, are the only classified employees who will select form the above options
• Instructional Assistants are NOT working on this day

• Staff choosing to report to work on Friday, December 14 should park in our Brunson STAFF LOT only

• ALL WSFCS activities scheduled for Friday, December 14 are CANCELLED

• WSFCS will make a decision regarding weekend activities (Saturday and Sunday), including church services, by EOB tomorrow

Our WSFCS maintenance crews have worked tirelessly all week on the monumental task of clearing our campus and other properties. We are collectively grateful for their efforts, and we appreciate their herculean achievements.

The safety of our staff and students is a primary objective, and we encourage all employees to make informed choices about whether to report to work tomorrow based on their individual situations.

Wednesday, December 12th

The message from Dr. Emory is clear, stay home on Thursday.  

Mr Kirby is calling our back alley a "skating rink" as the ice in the morning is thick from melting.  The front lot and sidewalks are clear, but slick in the morning before the temperatures rise.

Stay safe and see you when I see you.

Tuesday, December 11th

I hope you are all safe and survived the Snowpocalypse

Our campus is plowed and Mr Kirby is working on the mobile entrances today.  If we are to be in school Thursday, I would anticipate a two hour delay.  As always, staff are expected to report as close to on-time as is suitably safe for your travel situation.

I have a new schedule to attempt on 2-hour delay days.

• 8:15-9:35 PLT in Mobile #40
• 9:50 Students enter & classrooms open
• 10:20 Pledge and Announcements
• Period ONE
• 10:25 - 11:00 4th specials
• Period TWO
• 11:05 - 11:40 2nd specials
• Period THREE
• 11:45 - 12:20 5th specials
• Period FOUR
• 12:20 - 12:50 Lunch
• Period FIVE
• 12:50 - 1:25 Kinder specials
• Period SIX
• 1:30 - 2:05 3rd specials
• Period SEVEN
• 2:10 - 2:45 1st specials

I will post another update on Wednesday

Friday, December 7th

Great work at Family Crew Book Fair night!  

Please be sure to give your regards to our OUTSTANDING student teachers who will complete their semester with us today.  

• Suzannah Brown
• Caroline Gardner

Snow? What Snow?  I know the forecast calls for some of this mythical precipitation, yet I am trying to suspend my rational thought process and hope we do not miss any school.  

Thursday, December 6, 2018

Thursday, December 6, 2018

Brandi, Jeff, Kathy, and Su are all at the MTSS training today, but will be back this afternoon ready to spend the evening with Family Crew.

Looking forward to our Family Crew and Book Fair tonight. Thanks to our staff volunteers for donating time to make this event a success.

SPECIAL THANKS TO MRS. SHEPARD FOR HER TIME AND TALENT TO MAKE BOOK FAIR WEEK EDUCATIONAL AND ENGAGING!

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Book Fair Night on Thursday!  Please come and support literacy in our community

Spelling Bee

• PLEASE hold your classroom bee in time to get the names to Sarah by Dec. 20th.
• Our school bee is set for Jan. 4th

Tuesday, December 4th

Welcome the DPI team to school today as they will provide support in our efforts to improve SA/3D

Wednesday we will all meet in the media center @ 3:30 for the Book Fair preview.  after that we will meet in our OG teams to solidify the Presentations for our ERD on December 12th.

We have a media coordinator interview at 4:15 on Friday.  I would like a classroom teacher and a specialist to join us in the process.  Please give me an email before the end of the day to express your interest and availability.

Monday, December 3rd

Enjoy the book fair!

The NC DPI Comprehensive Needs Assessment team will join us on Tuesday and Wednesday.  They will be visiting classrooms in pairs to collect school level data.  We will utilize their feedback to establish actions steps in our SIP for 2019-2020. 

No sub for Diana today

Friday, November 30th

We randomly selected our Teacher focus group for Tuesday, 3:15-4:00 in mobile #40

• Kindergarten - Kelly G.
• First Grade - Bridget H.
• Second Grade - Kyli W.
• Third Grade - Kelsey W.
• Fourth Grade - Rachael D.
• Fifth Grade - Britanny R.
• HAG - Michelle J.
• EC - Kim B.
• ESL - Dominica B.
• Specialist - Cindy S. 

With the NC DPI CNA visit next week, a copy of lesson plans must be available in all classrooms.  Electronic submission of your plans for December 3rd - 7th is not necessary.  We will collaborate to determine the next step(s) for our planning cycle at our December 12th ERD. 

The Sign up for the 43 BBQ tickets is next to the sign in sheet.  Once we hit the magic number, it will come down.  

Enjoy the weekend!

Thursday, November 29th

Please send me strategies to select an unbiased and effective focus group 

• Staff
• Students
• Families

I am working on the "fix" that will allow ALL staff members to be present for the BELT, TOY and CEOY elections.  I will keep you posted as I work with our Math leaders.

Please spend some time the next two days teaching our HOC's in relation to Book Fair.  Many situations arise that challenge our students and to practice thinking about their utilization of the HOC's will help them make the choices that build character.

Wednesday, November 28th

Thanks for the support of our Science Fair.  The highlight for me was watching our primary students engage with curiosity and awe!  

Today, every faculty member should cast their vote concerning the support of the School Improvement Plan. The ballot reads:

I support the SIP as a living document for the 2018-2019 school year  

I do not support the SIP for the 2018-2019 school year because______________ 

Directions to vote

• Get a ballot in the office 
• Complete the ballot 
• Place the ballot in the box with Laurie before 1:15 pm on Wednesday the 28th 
• She will mark your name to record that you have voted (not how you voted)

See everybody at Staff Crew beginning at 3:30.  Please sit in the following tables

• BELT
• Discipline
• Crew
• HAG
• Dismissal
• Culture

On Wednesday, every faculty member should cast their vote concerning the support of the School Improvement Plan. The ballot reads:

I support the SIP as a living document for the 2018-2019 school year  

I do not support the SIP for the 2018-2019 school year because______________ 

Directions to vote

• Get a ballot in the office 
• Complete the ballot 
• Place the ballot in the box with Laurie before 1:15 pm on Wednesday the 28th 
• She will mark your name to record that you have voted (not how you voted)

To review the plan online, follow the directions below. 

• First, use this link to access our School Improvement Plan on Indistar.
• Username = GuestS15357 
• Password = GuestS15357 

You can also talk with colleagues who have spent time working on the plan:

• Brandi Brown
• Stacy Swanson
• Emily Fedel
• Kelsey Williams
• Holly Say
• Martha Howell
• Jenn Currin
• Su Matalik
• Valerie Glass
• Kathy Wilheit
• Sarah Huddleston
• Monica Douglas
• Jeff Faullin

Monday, November 26th

Good Morning!

I so enjoyed my extended time with family over the thanksgiving break.  Spent some time reflecting and am ready for the next four weeks to collaborate for SA/3D.

• Tuesday brings our Science Fair and Symphony
• Here is the schedule for visiting the science fair on Tuesday,November 27th
• Students who created a project, or a class representative, can come stand by their project for up to 30 minutes 
• The symphony performance is in the gym @ 9:00 for all 4th and 5th grade classes

• Wednesday is staff crew in the media center

Tuesday, November 20th

I have two requests for you today or in the next few days

First, use this link to access our School Improvement Plan on Indistar.

Username = GuestS15357  

Password = GuestS15357   

Review the plan as we will vote for faculty approval on Wednesday November 28th. 

 Second, use this link and read about strategies to increase the depth of our gratitude 

I am thankful that we choose to do this work, TOGETHER

 

Monday, November 19th

Where is Business 40?  We will allow grace for the next two days and waive tardy slips while folks adjust to the new dynamics.

Thanks to Kelsey, Samantha, Stacy, Su and Sarah for the support at the magnet fair.

BELT meeting @ 3:30 today

Friday, November 16th

I am looking forward to the magnet fair and thank you for sharing the joy we have at Brunson.  Typically we head out to socialize after the event, around 2:00pm, and all are welcome to join us at Small Batch

My plea: with the holiday approaching, be an outstanding model for the efficient use of time.  Each instructional day is opportunity!

“We waste so many days waiting for the weekend. So many nights wanting morning. Our lust for future comfort is the biggest thief of life.”
-Joshua Glenn Clark-

Thursday, November 15th

Today we welcome Liza Mundy to engage our EBOB students.  Thanks to Bookmarks for their generosity.




We also welcome members of the WSFCS operations team to observe and support improvement to our arrival and dismissal systems.

Please share the minutes for your team time work and thanks for the engaging conversations.