Progress Monitoring

 Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

Progress Monitoring —

We are starting Progress Monitoring(PM) next Monday. This week we will go oversaw to Progress Monitor and put our groups together. If we have time we will set our Pathways Goals in mClass. The reason we do Progress Monitoring is to see the progress of our students, but to also see what is workin and what needs adjusting. This is an important part of our WI time. We will PM the skills the students are working on in WIN time and see how they are progressing. We will make the adjustments as we look at these reports each month. 

Quote I’m pondering —

“What is troubling is being average and settling for it.” Adul Gwande

What’s Happening —

This Coming Week	In Two Weeks
Mon. Sept. 21-25 - Friendship Week	Mon. Sept. 28-29 - Annette Brinkman observations Tues. Sept. 29 - K-1 Anette PD 2-3:30 Wed. Sept. 30 - Observation Debriefing
September 21-25: Start With Hello Week

What I’m Listening and Amazed by This Week —

Marble Machine

I am enamored his 4:30 minute video of the Marble Machine. How do people ever think about doin this?

What I’m Learning about This Week—

The ‘What’ and “Why’ of Social-Emotional Learning

We have opened the Wellness Room and students are able to use its calming effect. We keep track of who goes and when they go to get a sense of a pattern with each student or when there is a need for Amanda to take a little extra time with a student.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work. Have a wonderful weekend.

We Don’t Need No Stinking Goals!

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

We Don’t Need No Stinking Goals! —

The district put together some reading goals and I need to share them with you. There are 2  specific literacy goals. One is about Kindergarten and the other about Second grade. They are specific to these two grades but really affect all grades.

1. By May 21, 2020, Washington County School District will increase the percentage of kindergarten students at or above benchmark as measured by the Acadience Reading composite from Beginning of Year (BOY) to End of Year (EOY) by 5%. 
2. By May 21, 2020, in Washington County School District, 37% of 2nd grade students who scored well-below benchmark at BOY, as measured by Acadience Reading, will no longer be well-below benchmark at EOY.  

These are doable goals and I think they will be met by our school by January. We also have a goal for Arrowhead Elementary. One is specific to K-3 and the other for all grades. We hope we can add 4th and 5th to the Acadience goal soon.

1. With us concentrating on Phonemic Awareness and Phonics this year our goal is to have at least 90% of students in all grades that scored below grade level on Phonemic Awareness and Phonics skills at BOY will be on grade level by EOY, as measured by Phonemic Awareness and Core Phonics tests.
2. We will have an increased percentage of students at or above benchmark from Beginning of Year (BOY) to End of Year (EOY) by 10% in Kinder, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade, as measured by Acadience Reading. 

This will bring our students at below grade level on EOY Acadience to below 10%. That will bring our school to below 10% of students at the below or well below grade level on Acadience. The work you and aides have been doing will make a huge difference in reaching these goals. But the main reason for the goals is to help each student realize their potential and build self-confidence in their reading skills as they get better at reading. This will provide them with endless opportunities. It will also increase their abilities in science and math. When these goals are met, we will not play catch up so much as differentiating and scaffolding Tier 1 lessons. That is where we should be with around 10%, hopefully less, needing interventions. 

Quote I’m pondering —

"Having a positive mental attitude is asking how something can be done rather than saying it can't be done." -- Bo Bennett

What’s Happening —

This Coming Week	In Two Weeks
Tue. Oct. 15 - Picture Retakes Wed. Oct. 16 - TAT Kindergarten 8:00 am Oct. 14-16 & 21-25 - No rotations  Oct. 17-18 - Fall Break	Oct. 22 - Storytelling Festival Oct. 23 - Intervention Meetings Oc. 25 - Meet the Masters Oct. 25 - Aide Training 9:00 am
	Oct. 28 - Teacher Training Afternoon Oct. 28 - Nov. 1 - Red Ribbon Week Oct. 31 - Halloween Parade 3:00 pm

Favorite Article This Week —

Why Not Teach Reading Comprehension for a Change?

This is an interesting article about Comprehension from Timothy Shanahan. Pretty bold in it concept. A reminder that comprehension is more than just answering questions on paper.  

A Big Thank You —

Thank you, Crystal, Amy L., and Heather L. for taking the time to be a part of the PTA and Community Council. These are important jobs to help our community see and hear about what is happening in our school. It also gives the community to learn more about what our needs are and how they will help our students. PTA does so much for our school and Crystal helps them as they find activities and opportunities for our students. Amy L. And Heather L. Help with Community Council as the council decide what the money and programs we need for our school are decided upon. They help relay how the programs are working and if changes need to be made. Community Council helps us with programs and Items that will help our school. Thank you for helping with these councils. It really makes a difference for our school and for the students. Thank you for taking the extra time. Thank you for all that you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

Bonus: I just saw this today. Inktober. Artists draw single pictures each day of the month of October. Here is a list of prompts for the month. it looks like a fun 5 minutes morning or after lunch activity. Have fun.

The Path is Clearer

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

The Path is Clearer—

The DIBELS data from the Middle Of the Year is looking very good. I compared last year's BOY through EOY and this year's BOY to MOY and the students have improved a little more in half a year then they did the full year last year. Even with the new sections in First and Third. The work you have done for the last couple of years is showing and it is amazing. The path we have been on is showing dividends. We appreciate all you have done. As we keep on the path Jennifer has helped us with the students will see success in many ways. Thank you all for all you do. 

Quote I’m pondering —

If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment. -- Marcus Aurelius

What’s Happening This Week —

Mon., Jan 21 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day (No School)

Mon., Jan 22 - 25 - No Power 50 this week

Mon., Jan 22 - 25 - Aides will be coming to all PLC’s this week to discuss Power 50 lessons

Tues., Jan 22 - iReady Training grades 5th:8:10-9:30, 4th:9:40-11:00, 3rd:12:00-1:20

Tues., Jan 22 - Hundredth Day of School

Tues., Jan 29-30 - Jennifer Throndsen training and observation

Favorite Article This Week —

There will be a total eclipse of the moon over Utah Sunday night

If you are in Utah on Sunday night, take a peek at the moon about 9:00PM to watch the eclipse.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you to our new custodian Jeff for all you have done to keep our school going. It has been great to have a head custodian again and has kept the tradition of cleanliness at Dixie Sun. We appreciate your attention to detail and for helping with our new evening custodians. It has been hit and miss with our custodians for a while and we appreciate all you have done so far. You are a great addition to our school. Thank you for all you have done so far. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work. Have a wonderful 3 day weekend.

Excitement in the Air

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

Excitement in the Air —

I don’t know about you but I am excited to see how well our students do next week on the DIBELS test. With the work that has been done in Power 50 and the lessons, Jennifer has been teaching us about learning intentions and making sure students understand what they are learning and why. With these new things we are doing, I hope to see improvement. There is a new part of the test for students to be tested on in the younger grades, but we should still see improvement in our students. I know many of you have expressed that you have seen improvement as you have been progress monitoring your students. I am excited to see what our next steps will be when we see where our students are now. Thank you for all you do.

Quote I’m pondering —

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson

What’s Happening This Week —

Mon., Jan 14 - 8:15am HAL Testing for first grade

Mon., Jan 14 - DIBELS for K-3

Mon., Jan 14 - District Grade Level Training K-1 (optional)

Tues., Jan 15 - DIBELS for 4-5 in morning

Tues., Jan 15 - District Grade Level Training 2-3 (optional)

Wed., Jan 16 - District Grade Level Training 4-5 (optional)

Thur., Jan 17 - 1:00pm LRI Band for 5th grade

Thur., Jan 17 - 2:30pm Community Council Meeting

Mon., Jan 21 - Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (No School)

Favorite Article and Video This Week —

This Teacher's Innovative Way Of Teaching 'Vowels' and 'Consonants' is Winning the Internet

A reminder that there is always a different way to teach something if the way we have been teaching does not work for some students.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you second and third-grade teachers. You have really put your work in with the students and with teaching two grades. There have been some special times that have given you the opportunity to learn and grow with4 your students. Thank you for all the time you commit to helping your students. Thank you for finding alternatives to help those in need. We appreciate all your work and time you put in. You are important for those students in your classes. They need you and you show that you care. Thank you for all you do and thank you for all you have done. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.