You Are Loved!

Enjoy your much deserved mid-winter break!  May you find time to rest and recharge before we head into spring!  See you back on February 24 for a FULL SIX WEEK stretch until Spring Break - of course, ready to make the most of every minute in the classroom!


UPCOMING PLCS

  • 2/18 - Mid-winter Break!
  • 2/25 - Complete GRS for Gifted Testing
UPCOMING FACULTY MEETINGS!
We will have two faculty meetings next week.  ONE VERY brief for HR teachers only!
  • 2/24 - 3:30 in Learning Commons, Booster Teacher Kick-off Meeting (come with class incentives in mind for a quick in/out meeting)
  • 2/26 - 3:30 in Auditorium, Dr. Rivera Look, Listen & Learn Tour
SOR COACHING WEEK RECAP
The cycle this week focused on FLUENCY - the bridge from word recognition to text comprehension!  Fluency can be practiced everywhere in the classroom, but our intentional efforts ensure students can become automatic and efficient readers.  In addition to repeated reading practices, fluency practices will include:
  • Modeled, choral, partner, independent reading (never round robin, or one read the rest listen)
  • Fluency grids at the word, phrase, sentence level
  • Scooping the phrases
  • LAVA Reading (an old favorite!)
  • Focus on prosody and expression with modeling and immediate feedback
The importance of PRACTICE!  Those with the most practice have the greatest potential for growth.  Kobe Bryant shared this analogy attributing the hours spent practicing basketball to his growth in the game as a young athlete.  As a reflective question in our teaching... How do you prioritize this practice time for all students during your small group instruction?  Our STEPS Framework strives for PRACTICE in connected/decodable text/grade-level text for 10-minutes in EVERY lesson!  If you struggle to get to this in your daily lessons, make it your next goal.

*NOTE:  LJFA Walks will continue on 3/6.

UPCOMING LLT MEETING, 2/27
Our LLT members will attend the next district meeting on 2/27 for W&W M4 Planning.  Please be mindful of the additional subs that will be in the building this day.  Your LLT grade level lead will prepare an agenda for the upcoming 1/2-day planning time for M4.  Subs have been arranged and entered.  Subs plans should be completed.

Kinder

March 10 – 8:00-11:30

1st

March 7 – 8:00-11:30

2nd

March 5 – 8:00-11:30

3rd

March 10 – 11:45-3:30

4th

March 7 – 11:45-3:30

5th

March 5 – 11:45-3:30


ALICE & WONDERLAND, JR. 3/7

We look forward to bringing the entire school to enjoy the Alice & Wonderland, Jr. performance on Friday, 3/7 at the Marietta Performing Arts Center.  Please see trip logistics and reminders below.   

  1. Permission Slips were signed at the beginning of the year.  Nothing to send home.
  2. Field trip shirts not required.
  3. NO 3rd-5th grade specials.  NO reading small groups from 9:00-11:30.
  4. First bus shuttle (3rd-5th Grade + 2A/2B) will leave at 9:00 AM.  WS staff will be at MPAC to assist with seating and provide supervised restroom breaks.
  5. Second bus shuttle (K-1st Grade + 2C/2D/2E) will leave at 9:15 AM.
  6. The show will begin at 9:30 AM.  The show run time is approximately 75 minutes. 
  7. First return shuttle (K-1st Grade + 2C/2D/2E) will leave at approximately 10:45 AM.
  8. Second bus shuttle (3rd-5th Grade + 2A/2B) will leave at 11:00 AM.
  9. No changes to lunch schedules.

Community shows are Friday, 3/7 at 7PM & Saturday, 3/8 at 2PM.

*NOTE:  Alice & Wonderland cast will complete tech day on Wednesday, March 5 @ MPAC during the school day. 

BELOW THIS LINE IS REPEATED INFORMATION FROM PREVIOUS STINGER STATS.

BOOSTERTHON COMING SOON!
We will kick-off Boosterthon after mid-winter break.  This year's Fun Run will assist with the completion of the turf field and give back to your classroom (10% Classroom Giveback!).  Please note these dates.
  • 2/24 – Booster Kick-off in Auditorium, during Specials
  • 2/24 – Homeroom Teacher Meeting (3:30 in Learning Commons)
  • 2/25-3/3 – Booster Huddles in Auditorium, first 5 minutes of Specials
  • 3/3 – Fun Run t-shirts distributed
  • 3/4 – Booster Fun Run

FUN RUN SCHEDULE

OTHER NOTES

K-1ST GRADE

12:45-1:45

*NO recess (Fun Run = Recess)

*Regular Specials Schedule

*2nd Grade Lunch Change 11:00-11:30

2ND-3RD GRADE

11:30-12:30

4TH-5TH GRADE

1:50-2:50

NOTES ON READING SMALL GROUP!

As we settle back into routines, remember in EVERY reading small group the bulk of your time (10-12 minutes) should be spent in the P/PRACTICE phase of the STEPS lesson.  

During this phase of the lesson, students will:

  • Read at the paragraph-level and whole text level to practice with the new skill.
  • Read text independently.
Also during this phase of the lesson, materials used include:
  • Decodable Books (gold standard!)
  • Decodable Passage
  • For your consolidated readers (1st-5th Grade) - Books and/or passages selected based on student Lexile level
Q3 PROGRESS REPORTS, DUE 2/12

Progress reports should be completed and emailed to parents by February 12th.  Who receives a progress report?

  • K-2nd Grade:  Students projected to earn mostly 1s & 2s; Students on the retention list.
  • 3rd-5th Grade:  Students with a C in any subject area; Students on the retention list.
By 2/14, complete the Progress Report Record to record students who received a Q3 progress report.

UPCOMING GIFTED DATES

  • 2/24 - Gifted testing begins
  • 2/24-3/14 – MILE paused for spring gifted testing (NEW gifted students begin in August)
  • 3/7 – Last day for TD Session 2
  • 3/17 – MILE resumes
  • 3/24 – TD Session 3 (K-2nd ONLY) begins

UPCOMING DATES (Dates added since last week)
  • 2/17-2/21 - Mid-Winter Break!
  • 2/24-3/14 - MILE Paused due to Gifted Testing
  • 2/24 - Boosterthon Kick-off
  • 2/24 - Boosterthon Teacher Meeting, 3:30 (VERY brief!)
  • 2/25 - PLCs
  • 2/26 - Faculty Meeting (Dr. Rivera on campus for Look, Listen, Learn)
  • 2/27 - Dress Down Day
  • 3/4 - PLCs
  • 3/4 - Boosterthon Fun Run! (schedule to come)
  • 3/5 - Leadership Meeting
  • 3/7 - Last Day for TD Session 2
  • 3/7 - Alice & Wonderland 10:00 (School-wide Performance @ MPAC)
  • 3/10-3/14 - Teacher Appreciation Week
  • 3/11 - PLCs
  • 3/11 - 5th Grade FT (MSGA Show on the Road @ The Strand)
  • 3/12 - Q3 Progress Reports DUE
  • 3/12-3/13 - Angie on Campus
  • 3/18 - PLCs
  • 3/19 - Q3 Grades DUE
  • 3/19 - Faculty Meeting (ELA Standards Training #1)
  • 3/21 - Q3 Report Cards Published
  • 3/21 - 4th Grade FT (In house)
  • 3/21 - 5th Grade FT (High Museum)
  • 3/21 - 1st Grade FT (Fernbank)
  • 3/21 - Kinder FT (Zoo Atlanta)
  • 3/24 - TD Session 3 Begins (K-2nd Grade ONLY)
  • 3/25 - PLCs
  • 3/25 - SGT Meeting
  • 3/26 - Leadership Meeting
  • 3/27 - Dress Down Day
  • 3/31-4/4 - Unwind Your Mind (3rd-5th)
  • 3/31-4/3 - SOR Coaching Week Angie on Campus
  • 4/2 - Vertical Teams
  • 4/3 - 5th Grade FT (State Bar)
  • 4/4 - 5th Grade FT (State Bar)
  • 4/4 - 2nd Grade CFA FT
  • 4/7-4/11 - Spring Break!

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