Week of September 28, 2020

Boy, did I think about you all day today while Samira and I attended the CISD Strategic Design Advocates. This group will be meeting (and advocating) as we continue to focus on CISD's Core Values.  We revisited all 4 values and had rich conversation with passionate people around the district.  What a "feel good" meeting.  WHY?  Because as we participated in our breakout sessions and activities, I could so easily brag about the work each of you are doing to live out these values each and every day.  You all have done so much to collectively engage your learners and their families, to demonstrate how you value authentic relationships, and each of your individual contributions is seen through great teaching.  Please know how super proud I am to be part of our incredible famiLEE and that your efforts do not go unseen!  We truly are better together!!

DID YOU KNOW:

• Coppell ISD is now on Amazon Alexa?  You can hear the audio version of Catch Up With Hunt or a daily social emotional tip from Dr. Hunt in your flash briefings.  Cool, right?!
• starting on October 1, all learners (both virtual and F2F will be provided free breakfast and lunch as part of the Seamless Summer Option program sponsored by the USDA and TDA?  Look for more information to come our way.
• you can join the Coppell Gifted Association for FREE through September 30? To join as an educator, visit the web store. If you want to know more about CGA, check out this site.
• next Friday is National Custodian Appreciation Day?  I wonder what creative ways our FamiLEE can show Israel and our night crew how much we appreciate them?
• CISD will be repainting our fire lanes on Saturday?

BOOK FAIR

Our Fall Book Fair is here, through Wednesday, and will operate virtually.  Please visit the RJL Shopping Homepage and books will be shipped right to your door.  Did you know that when you shop at the Book Fair that 25% is shared back with our RJL Library?  These funds help us buy more books and items for our library.  Please retweet our library tweets about the Book Fair to help support her program and our school library.

MAP

Educators, thank you so much for your patience and flexibility with MAP testing. Please check the calendar Fall 20-21 Lee Testing Schedule for next week’s schedule. Feel free to have your learners practice the Math session if you think it will be beneficial. Claudia and Samira will run a report to find the learners who have not completed the test. We will reach out to them and make sure that they finish it. We will schedule a time for them to work with us. Make up will be for learners who have not completed the test or were no shows. Please reach out to Samira if you have any MAP questions.

 

COMMITMENT FORMS FOR 2ND 9 WEEKS

Parents should have received a text and email from CISD regarding the new round of commitment forms for the second nine weeks of the 2020-2021 school year.  Parents only need to fill out the pre-populated form if the mode of learning is changing from their current situation.  The deadline to complete the form is September 30.  So far, we have 8 new learners who will be joining us in the 2nd 9 weeks.  I will keep you posted as the number changes. (1-1st, 5-2nd, 2-4th)

SCAVENGER "HUNT"

Have you seen the huge sign of Dr. Hunt on the front counter?  Well, we got TWO of them, so we are going to have some FUN with the other one.  Please be on the HUNT for HUNT.  If you find him, tweet where he was and find a clever spot for another to find.  Let's have some FUN! 

SOCIAL SPURS

THANK YOU to Linda for stepping in as our Social Spurs leader.  With payday tomorrow, it is a good time to contribute to your Social Spurs dues.  Social Spurs has a staff maintained fund.  This is a voluntary financial commitment by staff members, controlled by staff members.  Dues are $30 for salaried employees and $20 for hourly employees.  You may pay cash to the front office.  

CONNECT WITH COACH KHAN

Friends, please know that I have added a tab for October in the Connect with Coach spreadsheet. Please feel free to schedule a time for anything. Here are some options:

1. Small group: F2F or Virtual
2. Lesson Planning
3. MAP support
4. Find me resources
5. Schoology
6. Tech Support
7. Zoom sessions with learners
8. Lesson with my F2F kids
9. Communication with Parents (Email/Phone support)
10. I need a minute! Or 30 😉

 

Here for you!

  

COACH'S CORNER

Scaffolding a lesson and differentiating instruction are two different things. Scaffolding is breaking up the learning into chunks and providing a tool, or structure, with each chunk. When scaffolding reading, for example, you might preview the text and discuss key vocabulary, or chunk the text and then read and discuss as you go. With differentiation, you might give a child an entirely different piece of text to read, or shorten the text or alter it, or modify the writing assignment that follows. Here are some strategies that you can use even when teaching online:

1. Show and Tell: Fishbowl activity and think alouds are examples

2. Tap into prior knowledge

3. Give time to talk

4. Pre-teach Vocabulary

5. Use visual aids

6. Pause, ask questions, pause, review

[EXCELLENT SCAFFOLDER]

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

“BRILLIANT ESL teachers scaffold instruction for their students. They know when a student needs language support to access the curriculum. They offer visuals and sentence stems. They provide students with graphic organizers and word banks. But they understand that the scaffold is not meant to be used for ever or by everyone.”

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Book Fair Week

MAP Testing Window for Lee

Sept 30-  Curbside Pick Up (11:00-1:00)

     Flex Learning 3:15-4:15

Bullying Prevention Month

Dyslexia Awareness Month

Persons With Disabilities Awareness Month

Oct 2- National Custodial Appreciation Day

     World Smile Day

Week of Sept 21, 2021

YOU DID IT!!!  You made it through a tough week and we are so super proud of you!  Thank you for being the incredible folks that you are.  Please leave as soon as all learners are safely in buses and cars Friday afternoon.  Enjoy your weekend and take time for YOU because YOU ARE IMPORTANT!

DID YOU KNOW:

• that we had a district safety audit on Tuesday? They found the back door to the EcoPond propped open AND a six foot five gentleman in a bright green shirt walked through our entire building, without a badge or visitor sticker, and no employee stopped him to inquire what he was doing in our school? I am going to think you were all engaged in teaching to a screen and didn't notice him, but I must remind all of you that no doors should ever be propped open and that if you see anyone in our building that is not a staff member that you should always inquire if you can help them or ask if they have business in our building. If you are uncomfortable doing so, please text admin so we can ask for you. Safety first!
• you can join the Coppell Gifted Association for FREE through September 30? To join as an educator, visit the web store. If you want to know more about CGA, check out this site.

MORNING DUTY CHANGE

We can change front loop time to start at 7:15, until further notice.  We are not overwhelmed with cars, so enjoy the extra 5 minutes when you get here in the morning.

BOOK FAIR

Our Fall Book Fair is here and will operate a bit differently this year.  Please visit the RJL Shopping Homepage and books will be shipped right to your door.  Did you know that when you shop at the Book Fair that 25% is shared back with our RJL Library?  These funds help us buy more books and items for our library.  Please retweet our library tweets about the Book Fair to help support her program and our school library.

MAP

Thank you to Leigh Ann and Samira for getting you all set up for MAP Testing.  There is a folder in our RJL Schoology Course titled Elementary MAP Fall 2020 for you to go to.  Please review the Fall 20-21 Lee Testing Schedule and make sure to lesson plan accordingly.  MAP testing is not to replace your scheduled Zooms and we have scheduled in a way that should not conflict with what is our on our campus Zoom Document.  Please update our 2020-2021 Zoom Meeting document if your times have changed since this document was created.

SAVE THE DATE

Curbside pickup starts THIS WEEK, September 23, from 11:00-1:00.  Please share this interactive flyer with your families, too.

STAFF MEETING ON WEDNESDAY

To be prepared for Wednesday's staff meeting, please make sure you have downloaded the Navigate App on your iPad and/or phone.  To do so, please follow only pages 2-5 of this pdf.  Log in using your coppellisd email address, not your g.coppellisd address.  Your password is (lowercase) coppell and the unique identifier is 6891.  Please contact Leigh Ann if you have any troubles before Wednesday.

APPLE TEACHER

Are you an Apple Teacher in iPad, Mac, Swift or all?  Please complete this quick form so we can see who has this designation and can update our Campus Improvement Plan.

GREAT EMPLOYEES MATTER

CISD has an internal Employee Recognition Program (GEMs: Great Educators Matter).  This program recognizes outstanding employees who serve the mission of the district in a manner that exceeds job/salary expectations.  Those who go "above and beyond the call of duty" will be recognized on a semi-annual basis by the CISD Board of Trustees. We have so many incredibly talented folks and people that go above and beyond at our school. Please take time to nominate someone:

How do I submit a GEM nomination? – It’s easy…

• Open “Eduphoria,” select “Formspace”
• Then, at the lower lefthand corner, click on “Submit New Form”
• Click on the “Student & Staff Services” link
• Select “GEM”
• The GEM Nomination Form will “pop-up” and must be filled out completely.  (Please check spelling of nominee’s name, position, and campus.)
• Date your nomination/submission (use calendar icon)
• Once complete, hit the “Submit Form” button in the lower lefthand corner. (Repeat process for additional nominations; teams should be submitted as a group, with each individual name, etc. listed all on the same form

SOCIAL SPURS

Do you enjoy spreading happiness and want to help keep a positive climate on campus?  We have a committee on campus called Social Spurs that is looking for some interested folks to co-chair. The mission of the Social Spurs is to provide celebration and comfort to the wonderful staff of Lee Elementary.  Interested, please reach out to CK.  

Social Spurs has a staff maintained fund.  This is a voluntary financial commitment by staff members is controlled by staff members.  We are accepting this year's dues.  Dues are $30 for salaried employees and $20 for hourly employees.  You may pay cash to the front office.  

  

COACH'S CORNER

All of us want learners to have ownership of their learning. The best way to do that is to facilitate learning. When learners ask questions and find the answers for themselves they get involved in their own learning. You will notice that learners who are hungry for a grade feel uneasy with open ended and high ceiling questions. They struggle with projects that require them to apply their knowledge and problem solve. As facilitators of learning, it is our responsibility to allow them to sit in the struggle a little bit and EARN their learning. Once that shift happens, learners will be more motivated in the classroom resulting in fewer discipline problems.

[FACILITATOR OF LEARNING]

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

“ FABULOUS ESL educators know that learning is more important than teaching. Walking into their classroom it is evident that students lead the conversation and the teacher is the facilitator of the learning. Students question and collaborate and take charge of their learning. Students in their rooms are not sitting and getting. They are actively learning. These teachers know that there needs to be more student talk and less teacher talk.”

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Book Fair Week

MAP Testing Window for Lee

Sept 22- Shari M's Birthday

Sept 23-  Layne's Birthday

     House Shirt w/ Jeans

     Curbside Pick Up for Library 11:00-1:00

     Staff Meeting (3:15-4:45)

Week of September 14, 2020

It has been such a fantastic week.  What a difference it makes to have KIDS IN THE BUILDING!  I love watching you give all of your effort to engage with your learners and am so pleased with the virtual and physical learning environments you have created for our children.  Tomorrow is Patriot Day.  Feel free to show your red, white, and blue love!

DID YOU KNOW:

• that your Meet the Teacher and Curriculum Night Presentations should be attached to your district website?  If you haven't already done so, please attach them to the tabs added to your sites by next Friday.
• Tuesday, September 15 is Dot Day?  There is a collaborative class book template in Pages to go along with the Dot book for Dot Day.  Thanks to Stephanie and Priscilla for planning creative Dot Day experiences to go along with this iBook, as well!
• Specials will deliver learners back to your spaces after Team Time?  Please make sure you are there to receive them.  Also there is no need to bring their backpacks to Team Time. 
• CISD will offer families the option to commit to either in person or distance learning for the second grading period, which begins on Tuesday, Oct. 12? The commitment form process for the second grading period will begin on Monday, Sept. 21 and end on Wednesday, Sept. 30.  Parents will only fill out a form if they are changing their commitment for the second nine weeks. Be on the lookout for more details soon.
• even though the window opens, we will NOT begin MAP testing for one more week at Lee Elementary?  We want to create a schedule for you to use and also want to wait for the "kinks" to be worked out with virtual testing.  Please do not plan for MAP testing during the week of Sept 14.
• our GTI Specialist, Ayesha, has a S'more to update you on all things GTI?  Check it out!

So we all know that virtual and face to face teaching is HARD!  Maybe it is even harder than this Grandma cooking with her 3 year old grandson with a reach that is as fast as lightning.  ENJOY!

MORNING AND AFTERNOON DUTY CHANGES

With so few learners, we are ready to shave down the number of staff members on arrival and dismissal.  Please review our updated duty schedule that will go into effect TOMORROW (Friday).  If we inadvertently left you off, or you WANT to have an additional duty, please let us know.  We will use these assignments for the remainder of this 9 weeks.  For car duty, please read our arrival and dismissal plan for expectations to help our parents learn the routine.  We will not host a car pool lane at this time.   There will be dots placed six feet apart for car riders to stand/sit on for dismissal.  Car riders should have a spot outdoors, not inside, now.  PLEASE send your learners to the bus and car dismissal areas PROMPTLY at 3:03PM.  If you keep your learners longer, you hold every other staff member and famiLEE up.  We will still use this google document to let you know your bus and car order.  Bus duty, please alert Leigh Ann when all of your learners were placed on the bus so she doesn't send buses off that are missing children.

FLEX LEARNING ON WEDNESDAY

All staff will be attending BULB training on campus at 3:15 on Wednesday.  Training will be from 3:15-4:15 and you will be granted an hour of flex credit.  We will be trained in-house by some fabulous folks.  We will also dedicate time during this training for you to update your professional and campus goals in Strive.  Our campus goal will be related to the Vivatek boards and will be emailed to you before Wednesday's training.

SAVE THE DATE

Curbside pickup starts September 23 from 11:00-1:00.  Please share this interactive flyer with your families in addition to these two graphics.

RETURN TO SCHOOL COMPLIANCE COURSE:

If you are like me, this task has dropped down on the "to do list."  Please work to get the Return to School Compliance Course completed by Friday.

VIRTUAL STAFF, WE NEED YOUR HELP

Virtual teachers, I KNOW how badly you crave engagement with the children and other staff while you are on on campus.  It PAINS me to restate this, but I am directing you that if you are a virtual teacher that you make best efforts to stay in your teaching spaces and in spaces around the building that you HAVE to go to.  To begin with it is about your health.  We recognize you want to help and also be around children, but we NEED you to follow the campus expectation to wear your masks if you are around the building and to stay in a minimal amount of spaces.  If you are with your team or others, please remain at least six feet from one another with your masks on.  Rainy recess time can take place on the pavillion, not in closed classrooms.  We are doing our best to keep our virtual teachers mostly interacting with others outdoors, not indoors.  Please talk through situations with Chantel if you have to disregard this request.  

OFFICE HOURS C&I SUPPORT

CISD is offering optional times for staff to collaborate and meet virtually with members of the curriculum team. These are available for administrators, educators, paraprofessionals or staff members who have questions or want to brainstorm ideas about lesson design with the team. Click on the link to view dates/times. Also, we have included the content specialists/depart chair meetings for the year as well. Click here for link!

PARENT COMMUNICATION

Do you keep a parent communication log?  This is a good idea for both positive and not so positive conversations.  In education: if it is not documented, it didn't happen.  Also, think about picking up the phone (instead of emailing) when you have an issue that could potentially escalate.  We have a caring staff, and typically if there are issues, it is due to miscommunication.  When a parent has your listening ear and hears your voice on the other end showing concern, most problems will be solved.  Please always inform Admin if you have a "tricky" conversation.

  

COACH'S CORNER

All of us want our learners to be successful and their academic levels to increase. Small group instruction has a significant impact on student achievement. Here are some basic questions about small group instruction answered:

• What are the benefits of small group instruction?

• Learners get personalized instruction.
• Learners and educators get feedback.
• The educator can re-tach or pre-teach a skill.
• Build confidence through collaboration.

• How are small groups organized?

These groups should be fluid. Small groups should be based on frequent and on-going progress monitoring and assessments. Educators can sometimes, also form diverse groups based on abilities to work collaboratively during independent work time. 

• What are the other learners doing?

The challenge of small group instruction is the management of other students who must be engaged in meaningful assignments during independent work time while the teacher is working with a small group. For independent work time to be effective, assignments and activities should be selected that are designed to directly reinforce concepts taught during whole group literacy or math instruction. These activities and assignments should be meaningful and not just “busy work”.

[SMALL GROUP TEACHER]

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

“SUPER teachers work with students in small groups to target instruction and meet students’ needs. They know that students’ needs are not one size fits all, so they don’t teach the same lesson to the whole class. They understand that some students already know certain information while others have not experienced it before. Everyone has different needs.”

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Celebrate Freedom Week

MAP Testing Window Opens

Sept 15- International Dot Day

Sept 16- Convocation Shirt w/Jeans

     Flex Learning (3:15-4:15)

Sept 17- Constitution Day

Sept 18- Last Day to order CISD Ed Foundation T-shirt

     CISD Return to School Compliance Course Due

     Goals Entered into Strive Due

     Link Meet the Designer and Curriculum Night presentations on your Lee Websites

Week of September 7, 2020

So many of you have praised your colleagues in the building to me this week!  THANK YOU for loving each other so well and for sharing the awesomeness you have seen since the beginning of the year.  I am the proudest principal around getting to lead our group, but this leadership is truly shared.  So much greatness is possible because each person is doing their ultimate best for our learners and each other.  I FEEL IT.  Huge shout outs to all of you in the building, but please let me give an extra shout out to my Admin Team.  They are the most positive, hard working, and kind-hearted partners a girl can ask for.  

Please give yourself 60 seconds on Friday to STOP what you are doing.  Look around your space. Celebrate what you have accomplished so far this school year.  I could not be more pleased with the first three weeks of school and what you are part of creating at Lee!!!  Have an incredible weekend- you deserve it!

DID YOU KNOW:

• our newest Special Education paraprofessional, Alli Hill started this week?  Please welcome her to our FamiLEE!  She has already jumped right into her role!
• we are lucky that our school has the AirCuity system in it?  There is NO PLACE I would rather be in during a pandemic than OUR BUILDING!
• ALL learning spaces in Lee will be getting a Vivatek board?  This news came this week from the technology department.  This means every enclosed classroom and MORE!  We will be coming by to mark where they are going, soon.  They will be mounted like the boards at CRE with the ability to raise and lower the height on the wall to accommodate different sized learners.  
• you can mirror your iPad on Zoom and also use Noteability in Zoom?  Ask Samira, Leigh Ann, Schlossstein, or a DLC how. 
• next year's school supplies will be ordered and delivered to the learner's home instead of the campus?  What cool ideas our new PTO is coming up with!
• car tags are in your teacher mailboxes?  You can pass these out to your car riders on Tuesday.  
• a box of gloves was put in your mailbox?  This is to accompany the other PPE you got in your bag from Ameira.  Please wear gloves when you use the disinfectant (or any time you feel inclined).  We will get more for you at any time.
• we have 3 student teachers this semester?  Please welcome Chandana Mohite in R1, Rachel Cage in R2, and Marla Espinoza in BK.  

CURRICULUM NIGHT

Thank you for working as a grade on your Curriculum Night presentations.  Please post your presentation AND recording on your Lee Website before leaving on Friday.   I will look over your FAQs for approval as quickly as possible.  Thank you for lifting language from the Return to School Guide, where possible, in your responses.  YOU GOT THIS! 

RETURN TO SCHOOL

Coppell ISD created this checklist that would be helpful for those returning to school on Tuesday for face to face instruction.  Chantel also sent this information home to communicate Lee's plans for return to school.  

BUS RIDERS

Your bus riders got an email on September 2 with information about their bus route, bus stop, and pick up and drop off times.  If your parents did not receive an email, they need to contact transportation@coppellisd.com to be ready for Tuesday.

TECHNOLOGY

Please communicate with parents about the change in the Schoology dashboard.  I think this change is going to make it easier for our younger learners to navigate moving forward.   More info can be found here.

FACE TO FACE

Thank you to each grade and content for helping us navigate the tricky transition that Tuesday will bring.  Please know that I am still working through some logistics (we have another Principal Meeting in the morning) and I am making continuous tweaks to the RJL Return to School Procedures and Protocols.  I am also creating our Arrival and Dismissal Duty Roster (will send out on Friday, maybe Saturday).  For now, as mentioned in last week's blog, it is imperative that you arrive at school on time and prepared for your duty at 7:10.  These three days this week have been great for getting us all back in a morning routine, so please, PLEASE, avoid being late.  We will all have an am and pm responsibility because it is about the safety of ALL.   Face to Face teachers, if ANY of you want to Zoom and work through any logistical questions you may have, I will open a Zoom room at 1:30.

RETURN TO SCHOOL COMPLIANCE COURSE:

If you are like me, this had dropped down on the "to do list."  Please work to get the Return to School Compliance Course completed by the September 18 due date.

BUDGET

We are excited that we now have our 2020-2021 budget dollars to order what you need to work with your learners.  Part of my role is to make sure you have the supplies you need to do your job.  Please try to plan ahead so that you do not have to spend personal funds on supplies.  Also, be thinking about items we need to add to house storage closets (like manipulatives, science tools, etc.) and write up a PO and put it in my box.  Remember that it will take a couple of weeks to process, get quotes, and ship.  Please do not turn in a PO unless you have verified that your order is from an approved vendor.

RESPECT AGREEMENTS
Please email a photo of your respect agreement to Leigh Ann so that we can put it in the office Discipline Binder.   We will refer to your respect agreements when learners have behavior reflections.  

COACH'S CORNER

The skills needed for effective teaching involve more than just expertise in an academic field. You must be able to interact with people and help them understand a new way of looking at the world. This is not an easy job! Although there are many different ways to teach effectively, good educators have several qualities in common. They are prepared, set clear and fair expectations, have a positive attitude, are patient with learners, and assess their teaching on a regular basis. They are able to adjust their teaching strategies to fit both the learners and the material, recognizing that every child learns in a different way. As an educator, you are a role model who sets the tone for the class. If you are able to show enthusiasm and commitment, your learners and peers are more likely to reciprocate. Conversely, when you are negative, unprepared, or impatient, these qualities will be reflected in the attitudes of your learners and peers.

[PROACTIVE PLANNER]

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

“AMAZING educators think about what their students will need to be successful. They are PROACTIVE. Yes, they respond too but first and foremost, they are proactive. Thinking ahead about each student and what they may need in order to access the grade level curriculum. Who will need adapted text? Will anyone need a small group to preview vocabulary or build background? Which students will benefit from sentence stems? And what will the stems be in order to develop academic language? They think about their students and the road ahead.”

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Sept 7- NO SCHOOL

Sept 8- First Day with KIDS!!!

Sept 9- Grade Shirt with Jeans

     Leadership Mtg. (3:00-4:30)

Sept 11- Patriot Day

     Susie's Birthday