Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Thursday MM - Day A

Good Morning!

At our next faculty meeting - April 17th - we are going to discuss the opportunity to shift the Technology in our school by joining the "MLC."  

Read the information below from Dr. Weycker and follow the link to be informed before the meeting next Wednesday the 17th.
  • Intent Forms are due April 19 for schools wishing to allow students and staff to bring their own devices to school for instructional purposes. This form is on the Technology Department’s webpage and can be found at http://wsfcs.k12.nc.us/Page/69938. This is not a pilot (this is not a test…it is the real deal!)! We are providing this opportunity for schools who express an interest in providing instruction in a mobile setting with students bringing their own devices. The training to help teachers prepare themselves in preparation for the school year is extremely important. We are willing to flex times and work with schools but the amount of training we are requiring is minimal to the amount we believe it could be to be successful. After April 19 and the forms are collected we will begin the process of determining the training schedule. Schools who are interested in becoming a MLC campus will be able to schedule the training at their site. Others may require pairing with another school or coming to a common ground for training.  This is an exciting opportunity but truly requires teachers making adjustments such as going from being the deliverer of instruction to the facilitator.
Silvia forwarded an e-mail form Jordan Callaway our amazing PTA president regarding our assistance at the Spring Fling on May 3rd.  Please reply to her sign-up genius and let's all work together to create a great event to build our school culture.

I am at a STEM meeting this morning at Atkins.  We also have a PTA board meeting at 1pm this afternoon.

Wednesday MM - Day F

Good Morning!  

Subs:
Melta Mebane for Kyrie G.
Jane Desantis for Tonya L. 
No sub yet for Venice H.
  • With all the activities revolving around the formal Teacher Appreciation week, the PTA has decided to change our week to an earlier date.  We are celebrating you the week of April 22nd –April 26th.

    In lieu of an “Apple a day” what would make you feel the most appreciated?  Even though a lot of families and classrooms have their own ideas for you I would like your honest opinion’s so I may pass that on to the families.  What do you really want, is it supplies, time, or something else?

    I also would like to remind families why you do what you do every day with the various challenges you face as a teacher or staff member.  Please answer the question below for me in a few sentences or paragraph.
                
                                        Why teach?

    Thank you very much for your precious time and I look forward to hearing from each of you so we may finish our plans for the big week.
    Sincerely,
    Reply to Nicole Henshaw
    NHenshaw@triad.rr.com
    336-255-2341

Monday, April 8, 2013

Tuesday MM - Day E

Good Morning!  

I have not heard much from you all on our new specials schedule or the action teams. Maybe it is because...
  • You did not read the blog posts previous to Monday
  • You never read the blog
  • The schedule is perfect, why mess with it
  • You do not want to volunteer for another thing
  • Whatever the reason - fill in the blank
My deadline to post the new schedule is Wednesday, so if you have issues with the schedule, please let me know.  As for the action teams, they can wait until the end of the week for your commitment.

Garnet is willing to help with our tech needs while we search for a replacement for Stephanie.  Please e-mail me your technology issues and I will do my best to respond quickly.

I am at the Joint Principals meeting today and will return after lunch.  the agenda is posted to the blog documents folder.

Monday MM - Day D

Good Morning!

I am thrilled to be back with our amazing students.  We have one quarter remaining to engage their minds.  

Report cards will be delivered in a Thursday Packet this week.  Andy, Kathy and I will review comments and Damita will help with the NC WISE portion as our goal is to print and deliver to you all by Wednesday at Noon for appropriate envelope stuffing.  We will provide a special insert for students to take home on Tuesday to explain to parents the date of distribution.

Subs:
No sub for Kathy W.
No sub for Dorothy M.
John Wright for Kim M. (pm only)  Keep Kim in your thoughts and prayers as her Grandmother passed this weekend.


Friday, April 5, 2013

POWER SCHOOL

The following is from our IT department.  Please see me if you have any questions about PowerSchool activation.

Teacher Accounts for PowerSchool have all been issued and now we need them activated ASAP so we can get the courses pushed out. 

With such a large group we will cut off all those who have not activated their accounts by Wednesday, April 10 and push out the courses. 

This will create lots of extra work for my staff but we don’t want to hold up the 2000+ teachers who have activated their accounts. 

After next week, we will begin dealing with individuals who did not receive an activation email or deleted it.

Specials Schedule

I have posted in the blog documents the schedule for specials that will begin on our next "A day"- April 11th.

Please review and inform me of any suggestions/corrections before Tuesday.  I know we will make some adjustments during our assessment window of May and April as we utilize our specialists as test administrators.  

If you are interested in serving on a SIT action team to work on schedules, please e-mail me before Friday April 12th.  In the subject line of your e-mail message to me please choose one or both of the following;
  • 2013 Testing Schedule Team
  • 2013-2014 Specials Schedule Team
The first meetings will be @ 3:30 in the LTM:
  • 2013 Testing Schedule Team - Monday, April 22nd
  • 2013-2014 Specials Schedule - Tuesday, April 30th 

April Race to the Top Calendar

Dear NC Teachers, 

If you are on spring break, I hope it's a great one! If you had your break last week, welcome back! 

Attached (in the blog documents folder) is this month's Race to the Top calendar focusing on Home Base. This month, there are several webinar opportunities and other items to notice. Also, I hope you'll take a moment to be introduced to Ken Little, Instructional Improvement System Business Analyst for Learning Systems, and see what he's been reading lately. I have now added two new items to my reading list as a result! 

Hope your spring is a great one. 
 
Vanessa W. Jeter, director
Communications & Information division
NC Department of Public Instruction