Week of February 5, 2019

What a wonderful week of technology learning for our campus!  Starting in Austin on Monday showcasing the STEM opportunities our learners have at Lee and finishing the week with Apple Academy have been inspiring and invigorating.  We are super excited to bring back our learning and enthusiasm for new ideas.  I want to extend a happy THANK YOU to Samira, Priscilla, Kasey, and Stephanie for their leadership and growth mindset.  I also want to thank our entire campus for the incredible experience you gave today's guests.  Please ask any of the girls for their take-aways, but the overwhelming response was how engaged your learners were, how articulate they are with guests, and the beauty of learning created for and by learners on our walls and windows.  As your Principal, I appreciate your intentional lesson design that showcased creativity on our devices.  THANK YOU!  Please leave when learners are safely dismissed, tomorrow, and enjoy your weekend.

DID YOU KNOW:

• there is a sign up for Free Time Friday where your Admin Team will read to your class for 20 minutes?  Sign up now so you get a time that works for you.  THANK YOU for signing up for World Read Aloud Day (tomorrow) with Melinda. 
• most of your district generated email signatures need to be changed? Email yourself and check out your descriptor.  Please follow the district email to customize yours to say Designer instead of Teacher/Educator.  
• CISD will have a dedicated location for a comfort room for our nursing mommas. They will have the 6 offices in Student Services North reserved for use. The easiest way to access these offices is to enter the office at the back of the Cafeteria/Commons area. Once you enter Student Services North, take a right in the first hallway and look for the rooms marked with signs.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

TELPAS security training will be on Tuesday, February 12th during your conference time.  There we will share all the details for the TELPAS timeline and complete your security training.  Tapas/snacks will be provided. 

STAFF MEETING BEFORE FED EX

Please plan on ALL staff attending brief meeting on Wednesday, in the Media Center Flex Space, at 3:15.  We have mandatory HR meeting from the district regarding staffing for 2019-2020.

FED EX

Enjoy your one hour, on Wednesday, where you learn about a topic of YOUR choice related to YOUR goals, and earn flex credit for it.  This is a time for learning.  Please complete this form at the conclusion of your learning session on Wednesday.  The form will open at 4:30. 

WEEKLY WALKTHROUGH FOCUS
For our focused walkthroughs we will be focusing on Domain 2 Dimension 2 Content Knowledge and Expertise.  We will be looking for things like cross curricular connections, strategies to avoid learning pitfalls, learners analyzing, creating and evaluating, and learner-directed learning.

LEE LIFE PRINCIPLE:

Cooperation- working together

LESSON IN LEADERSHIP:

Staying positive, being approachable, and expressing positive thoughts and feelings through both verbal and nonverbal communication help you build rapport with those around you.

LEE QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

"We must all live together as brothers or perish alone as fools." -Martin Luther King Jr.

DATES TO REMEMBER:
Feb 5- Education Foundation Shirt and Jeans
     PTO Mtg. (7:00 Cafe)
Feb 6- Book Fair Preview
     College Shirt and Jeans
     HR Meeting (3:15 Flex Space)
     Fed Ex Day (3:30 -4:30)
Feb 7- Book Fair Preview
Feb 8- Book Fair Shopping Begins
     Fresh Fruit Friday
     MOY Data must be in AWARE
Feb 9- Kylie's Birthday

Week of January 28, 2019

Happy Thursday!  I hope you had a lovely four day week with the children.  THANK YOU for showing off the great learning in our building to Mr. Gollner and Ms. De La Isla.  They have such kind words to say about you and our learners.  Enjoy your weekend!

DID YOU KNOW:

• we are collecting Box Tops?  A flyer and the box top sheet are posted on our electronic site called PeachJar.  Thanks, Stormy for the flyer!
• we have issues with learners using sharpies inappropriately?  Please take these out of your supply bins and keep these in areas where learners do not have access to them.  For now, Art is the only room where learners need to be using sharpies.  
• there is an order form for Amal Unbound available for 3-5 learners and their families?  Please share this with them.  PreOrders are due by Friday, February 1.
• you can click here for some ideas on ways your learners can organize their Bulb portfolios if your learners are having trouble organizing the content in their digital portfolios?  
• a CFA can consist of 2-3 questions on only one TEK?  The purpose of a CFA is not only to provide data about your learners, but also a way to share instructional strategies and ensure high levels of learning for all.  This is one little "ditty" from our PLC Academy training and something to think about. 

KINDNESS QUOTES
We will review these each day on morning broadcast:

• Mon:  "No act of kindness no matter how small is ever wasted." (Aesop)
• Tues:  "Treat everyone with kindness and respect, even those who are rude to you...not because they are nice, but because YOU are."  (Unknown)
• Wed:  "Choose to be kind over being right and you'll be right every time."  (Richard Carlson)
• Thurs:  "Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing."  (Mother Teresa)
• Fri:  "Go into the world and do well.  But more importantly, go into the world and do good."  (Minor Myers, Jr.)

GREAT KINDNESS CHALLENGE

We will start the parade at 8:10 at the cafeteria by lost and found.  We will begin by having guests line up in the cafe in parallel lines and along the walls by Enrichment and STEAM ending toward the front office doors (not passing into yellow house).  Guests will cheer our kids on as they parade one lap and return to your houses.  

The order of the parade will be:  Green House -> Purple House -> Blue House -> Red House -> Yellow House.  Go right after the house in front of you with a couple of learners carrying the class banner. (Talk to learners about how to participate in a parade.)  Downstairs will stay in spaces and watch until it is their turn to go.  Make a full loop back to your space, then line the railings of your house to cheer the others on.  Don't forget to pass out your Kindness checklists and encourage your famiLEEs to sign up for The Great Kindness Challenge App to be able to participate at home.  Bookmarks need to be completed by Friday and put in Chantel's mailbox.

CAMPUS TOURS
We know AWESOME learning experiences happen at Lee all the time, but be aware we have two tours on Thursday this week.  We have 40+ guests coming from arrival, through 10:30.  Guests are from Apple Distinguished schools across the globe and are looking for how we use 1:1 technology in our classrooms.  There is a 12 person tour at 1:00 from Blue Valley Schools in Kansas.

SOUPER BOWL
We hope you will participate in our first Friday event during Fabulous Fridays in February.  We will host a SOUPer bowl in the lounge.  We ask that you bring a crock pot of your favorite soup.  The office will provide bowls and spoons. There will be sampling, voting, and a "prize" for the top three favorites. 

NATIONAL GO RED DAY

Wear something RED with your jeans on Friday.  Please tweet out pictures of you, your learners, and teammates to #lifeiswhy and #coppellgored /xczb

WEEKLY WALKTHROUGH FOCUS
For our focused walkthroughs the next four weeks we will be focusing on Domain 2 Dimension 2 Content Knowledge and Expertise.  We will be looking for things like cross curricular connections, strategies to avoid learning pitfalls, learners analyzing, creating and evaluating, and learner-directed learning.

LEE LIFE PRINCIPLE:

Loyalty- faithfulness to another

LESSON IN LEADERSHIP:

If you hear something negative about one of your friends, don't repeat it.  If necessary, let a designer know what was said.

LEE QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

"I will speak ill of no man and speak all the good I know of everybody." -Benjamin Franklin

DATES TO REMEMBER:
MOY Assessment Window
Kids Heart Challenge
Great Kindness Challenge
Jan 28- Kindness KickOff Parade (8:10 am)
     RtI Mtgs. (Conference Time)
Jan 29- Animal Shelter Delivery (Coppell Animal Shelter)
Jan 30- House Shirt with Jeans
     New Learner Lunches (Cafe)
     Staff Mtg.  (3:30 - 5:00) Flex Space
Jan 31- TEAM SPIRIT FOR KINDNESS DAY
     Apple Tour (7:50 - 10:30)
     Red House Field Trip
     Tour (1:00)
Feb 1- Black American History Month
     Blue House Lounge Duties
     National Go Red Day
     "SOUP"er Bowl (Lounge)

Week of January 21, 2019

I want to thank you for continuing to lift Sophie, Mike and I as we heal from losing our sweet Hannah.  The kindness and compassion that people have shown has truly touched our hearts.  Our tour from Frisco was, once again, blown away by the incredible learning experiences you provide our children.  Great job in our first round of Team Time and working on your grade level SLOs.  

DID YOU KNOW:

• that hashtags help connect you on Twitter? Don't forget to use #AppleDistinguishedSchools #75019Science #75019Math and more to connect, learn, and teach others.
• that you should already have evidence in Strive for your annual goals?  Don't forget to start adding links and images so that you are prepared for your post conferences in April.
• the purpose of flex hours is for employees to meet the expectation for professional learning by attending workshops, conferences, seminars, and courses?  Designers, make sure you are on your way to earning your 18 hours of flex time and submitting requests for approval of hours for outside learning opportunities.  You can check your flex time in Eduphoria Strive.
• PTO is offering Grants?  If there is something you would like to apply for, please fill out this form.  I must approve the form, first, before it is shared with PTO.  After their grant committee reviews, you will find out if you are a recipient. 
• the links from Kristen's email with the National Educators for Restorative Practices and Sample Green/Yellow Circle ?s are in the DTR resource folder in Schoology?  This way all of our Disciple That Restores resources are in one place.

PLC ACADEMY

On Thursday and Friday, Anita De La Isla and Chris Golliner will be guest principaling at Lee while Leigh Ann, Jacque, Claudia, Ayesha and I are at PLC Academy.  I KNOW that you will make sure they see great things happening at Lee!

THE GREAT KINDNESS CHALLENGE

We will be celebrating the entire last week of January.  You should be creating your class kindness banner this week so that it is ready for next Monday.  Put it somewhere SAFE so that custodians do not accidentally throw them away.  We have the CHS Band, School Board Members, Community Members, and parents invited to attend the event.  Bookmarks have been cut and placed in your teacher mailboxes (thanks Gwen).  Please commit to decorating all bookmarks in your box so we have enough for all elementary learners in Coppell ISD.  Please set the expectation that learners do their BEST work and that they spread kindness through their message, phrase, and work.  These bookmarks represent our entire school, not just one class.  Here is the schedule of events:

• Monday 1/28 - Kickoff Parade (8:10) / 100th Day of School
• Tuesday 1/29 - Make bookmarks / Kind Bars 
• Wednesday 1/30 - Make bookmarks / Lunch snacks provided by campus
• Thursday 1/31- Make bookmarks / Spirit Day (Team Kindness)
• Friday 2/1-  Finish bookmarks / World Read Aloud Day

Don't forget to remind famiLEEs to sign up for The Great Kindness Challenge App so they can participate at home.

100TH DAY OF SCHOOL

Start letting parents know, now, that the 100th Day of School is approaching on 1/28.  Feel free to use this flier (thanks Layne).  This is the same day as our Kindness KickOff Parade.

WEEKLY WALKTHROUGH FOCUS

Our focused walkthroughs for the next four weeks, will be focusing on Domain 2 Dimension 2:  Content Knowledge and Expertise.  We will be looking for things like cross curricular connections, strategies to help your learners avoid learning pitfalls, learners analyzing, creating and evaluating, and learner-directed learning.

LEE LIFE PRINCIPLE:

Problem Solving- creating solutions; finding answers

LESSON IN LEADERSHIP:

You should never complain if the line is too long, the food isn't good, or there is a wait.  You don't want to be negative to the point where you spoil the enjoyment of the event for others.

LEE QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

"We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations" -Charles Swindoll

DATES TO REMEMBER:
MOY Assessment Window
Kids Heart Challenge
Jan 21- NO SCHOOL
Jan 22- CISD Education Foundation t-shirt and Jeans
     DLC iPad Challenge
     Ayesha's Shower during lunch
     Geo Bee (3:15 Media Center Flex)
Jan 23- Angela's Birthday
     RJL Shirt and Jeans
     Leadership Meeting (3:30 Kylie's Room)
Jan 24- National Compliment Day
     Must be signed up for CISD Professional Learning for Feb 15
     Spurs Savings (7:20 Cafe)
     PLC Academy (all day @ CMSW)
     Honor Choir Concert (7:00 CHS)
Jan 25- Meredith's Birthday
     PLC Academy (all day @ CMSW)

Week of January 14, 2019

WOW, did this week go by FAST!!! We are so excited to have everyone back.  This has been a super first week of the year at Lee!  I hope you can see and feel how excited I am to be your leader.  What an honor it is to be a part of the journey you are on.  THANK YOU for the experiences you designed for our children this week.  It has been awesome seeing learners set goals, review resolutions, and vision for the new year.  THANK YOU for being inspiration to them!  We also THANK YOU for the flexibility you have demonstrated with our new learners enrolling.  YOU ARE APPRECIATED!

DID YOU KNOW:

• that Kasey has a blog post with ideas on what your learners can put in your Bulb Math Collections?  Check it out here.
• the Bulb app is now in Self-Service?  Bulb is still working out some of the glitches within the app, so it doesn't work perfectly yet, but is available if you want to give it a try.
• Jacque shared a presentation with details on how to assess a running record on Raz-Plus?  Check it out here.
• the application period for becoming and ADE (Apple Distinguished Educator) is open?  With all that you gals do with technology, I think we have quite a few great candidates.  Here is a link to the ADE online application. 
• we need images of some respect/trust agreements completed by classes for Wednesday's staff meeting?  If you have one you would like to share, please text or email and image of yours by Tuesday morning.  THANK YOU!

PLEASE HELP ADVERTISE THIS LEARNER SOLUTION THAT NEEDS HELP!!!

#ONEWORD2019
Since opening year, we, as a staff, have come back in January and had a word for the year.  Just one word.  My first word was INSPIRE, then LEAD, followed by GRATITUDE, and then KIND.  This year my word is LISTEN.  Your word can be something tangible or intangible.  It can be a thought, a feeling, or an action.  The key is to find something that has personal meaning for you.  This word may not make sense to anyone but you, and that is okay.  This is YOUR word!  This little word can have big meaning in your life if you allow yourself to be open to the possibilities.  Sometimes a word will pop into your brain, and it will not make any sense to your right now.  Give it some time.  Let it percolate a bit.  Maybe this is a word you need to hear, but just aren't ready for it yet.  Again, be open to the possibilities.  Between now and Wednesday's staff meeting, please determine what your #oneword2019 will be.  We will have an activity to go along with your word, so come prepared with yours.  For those of you that have already done this activity with your learners, here are some bookmarks you are welcome to use to reinforce their commitment.

CLOTHES BIN
Please share this graphic with parents in this week's newsletter.  Our school earns money for every pound donated.

GREAT KINDNESS CHALLENGE
Did you know that we will be participating in the Great Kindness Challenge again this year?  We will talk more about this with LEEdership Council in the morning.  You can download the toolkit here. Be thinking about how you can incorporate KINDNESS into your lesson plans the last week of January.  You will need a banner for your class for our Kindness Kickoff Parade, first thing Monday morning, January 28.  New staff, please ask your house to tell you more about this wonderful event.  

KIDS HEART CHALLENGE
(Please remind your parents)

• Online donations accepted now 
• Collection envelopes accepted starting Jan 21
• Checks made payable to American Heart Association
• Last day accepting donations is Feb 1
• Participate in 20 minutes of jump rope with your class between Jan 28 and Feb 1 and you can wear warm ups on that day

MOY SCREENER and RtI:
As you start your MOY assessments, please remember that this information is an additional data point to use for RtI.  ALL DESIGNERS, please make sure you sign up for an RtI time with Leigh Ann.  I have asked Leigh Ann to meet with each designer and go over the specific needs of your class.  Please make sure you come to your meeting prepared with your notes and data.


MOY GOAL SETTING
If you are a paraprofessional, instructional aide, or office support staff,  I am willing to set up a middle of the year goal setting appointment with you.  This is a time for us to check in and see how we can support you and your professional goals in Strive.  For all others that are evaluated under TTESS, Ashley, Leigh Ann, and I hosted your formal TTESS Observation Post Conferences.  This conference serves as your middle of the year check-in.  If you would like an additional meeting, please email your evaluator.  Don't forget to be adding your evidence in Strive for your goals, now!

WEEKLY WALKTHROUGH FOCUS
It is time for our walkthroughs to start back up now that most of our formal observations are completed.  For our focused walkthroughs the next four weeks,  Leigh Ann and I will be focusing on Domain 2 Dimension 2:  Content Knowledge and Expertise.  We will be looking for things like cross curricular connections, strategies to help your learners avoid learning pitfalls, learners analyzing, creating and evaluating, and learner-directed learning.

LEE LIFE PRINCIPLE:

Honesty- truthfulness in words and actions

LESSON IN LEADERSHIP:

No matter what the circumstances, always be honest.  Even if you have done something wrong, it is best to be honest.

LEE QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom." -Thomas Jefferson

DATES TO REMEMBER:
Jan 7-Feb 1- Kids Heart Challenge
Jan 14- RtI Meetings
     School Board President visits Lee
     School Board Meeting (7:00 pm- Recognize TOY)
Jan 15- Complete reading and responding to DTR Chapter s 6-8
     Akta's Shower (3:30 Lounge)
Jan 16- Convocation t-shirt and Jeans
     Staff Meeting (3:30 Meghan Wood's Space)
Jan 17- 4/5 Class Geo Bee must be completed
     Spur Savings (7:20 Cafe)
     Tours (9:00 and 1:00)