Week of March 21, 2022

You made it to Spring Break!  WAHOO!  Please enjoy taking time for yourself over the week.  Travel.  Sleep in.  Read a book.  Binge watch some TV.  Do what makes YOU happy!  You have EARNED IT! 

DID YOU KNOW:

• that Keiko was awarded a grant from the Native Plant Society of Texas?  The proposal was titled "Bring Back the Monarchs to Texas." and will help her be able to get native Texas plants to start a garden in the K-2 area of the playground.  CONGRATS Keiko!
• you should have received an email from Infosec IQ Notifications?  This is required technology training the district sent out that must be completed by April 15.  I am happy to provide an hour of FLEX after you complete this training.
• we have FINAL CALL for those interested in being on our interview team?  Sign up here. 

EVERY INTENTION MATTERS

Do you ever wonder about the impact you make with your learners and others in your lives?  Take a look at this short reminder that you are going to be remembered...the only question is HOW?  Thank you, Rachel, for sharing this video.

BREAKFAST

Don't forget that we will announce when Chick-Fil-a breakfast is ready for you Thursday morning.  It is a LONG day, so why not start it off in a great way.  This is just one way to say THANK YOU!

FUN RUN

Please permit learners to change if they bring a change of clothes.  The powder used is non-toxic and washes off with plain water, so don't panic. Thank you, designers, for staying with your house and helping with safety during the run portion of Specials.  Thank you support staff for assisting when you can, too.  We can't wait to find out which classes get $50 of supplies from PTO.  Have FUN!  I have 3 ARDS and a parent meeting tomorrow, so I will be out as much as I can.  We will announce with Sonic drinks are here.  Thank you to Shanna for picking these up!

OPEN HOUSE

Thank you for ALL of your preparations.  The building is looking SO ALIVE!  If you have learners of staff, please give them time after school or before Open House starts to be a parent and see their work.  Please plan to be in your spaces, READY, for our guests who will be hear promptly at 5:30.  As I mentioned in staff meeting, a reminder email will go to all parents at 9:00 reminding them of the Art Show, time, and to bring earbuds.

FRIDAY

We will follow the Early Release schedule and have sack lunches in spaces on Friday.  No recess is required on half days.  Please leave a soon as I announce all learners are gone. 

(send an EXTRA reminder about this separately from your newsletter)

 

YEARBOOK

Order your 2021-22 yearbook from Lifetouch today!

PTO

PTO is still looking for parents to fill open Board positions.  Please share this link with parents to share their interest. 

DLC UPDATE

Looking for some ways to learn over the next few weeks? SPRING into one (or more) of the DLC PowerSchool Asynchronous Courses! Learn at your own pace, on your own time, with various credit hours available. Click here to watch a video on how to find courses!

COACHES CORNER

Pioneer Valley Books Collection | Kinder through 3rd Grade

1. These books are available in the Lit Library (under the stairs by the elevator and in your house storage).

2. Each level comes with a book list.

3. Each book comes with an educator lesson plan for two days. 

4. Each level comes with prompting guides and level introduction. 

5. Great for small group instruction. 

Please use this link to book a time with me so we can collaborate.

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

Supporting Language Development 

Emergent Bilinguals learn English as they learn academic content. For this reason, we need to consistently integrate language teaching throughout the school day. 

Modify Language:

• Body language 

• Visuals and charts 

• Reflect on your speed and volume

• Rephrase and simplify 

Vocabulary Instruction:

• Preview vocabulary 

• Address unknown vocabulary

• Check for understanding

DATES TO REMEMBER:

March 13- Daylight Savings Time

March 14-18- SPRING BREAK

March 14- Maria's Birthday

March 15- Linda's Birthday

March 18- Claudia's Birthday

March 19- Hannah H's Birthday

March 22-  Ed Foundation Shirt Day

     Grades Due (8:00)

March 23- House Shirt Day

     Leadership Mtg. (Yellow House)

March 24- RTI Meetings During House Time

     Blue House Music Performance (2:00 and 6:30)

     Youth Art Month (6:00 CMSW)

March 25- TELPAS Make Ups

     Send Report Cards Home

Week of March 7, 2022

You made it!  One more week until Spring Break.  Thank you for all you are doing to get your learning spaces set up for Open House.  It is a HUGE deal to have parents in the building and there is so much learning to showcase.  Please make sure all extra furniture is moved out of your spaces and that collabs are as organized as your learning spaces.  We've GOT THIS! 

DID YOU KNOW:

• you are getting a $500 gift on behalf of CISD to thank you for going above and beyond for all that you have done this school year?  Please review the email sent by Kristen Eichel on Monday for details.  Thank you Coppell ISD and to each of you for all you have done during these tough times! 
• on March 7, that the CISD district form for staff transfers will open up?  If you are interested in signing up for an in-district transfer, please visit with Chantel first before you fill out the document.
• the March Imaginarium is out?  Here are PDF and Pages resources.

NATIONAL SCHOOL BREAKFAST WEEK

It’s no secret that eating a nutritious breakfast helps our learners start the school day off right!  Next week, March 7-11, is National School Breakfast Week.  All week long our cafeterias will be featuring a new menu item.  This year’s theme is “Take Off with School Breakfast."

SCHOOL PICTURE DAY

Monday is staff and class picture day.  Please plan to be here by 7:10 for our staff photograph in the cafeteria.  Immediately after arrival, we will start calling your classes down for class and individual pictures.  It is imperative you drop what you are doing and hustle down, so we can try to get learners through before PE or recess. Please line your learners up from shortest to tallest before coming down.  Lastly, remember that lunch is in your spaces as the photographers will need the entire cafeteria.

PTO MEETING

I will send an email to parents through Parent Square with a Zoom Link on Tuesday morning.  Please advertise in your weekly newsletter.

EAT MORE CHICKEN

...for breakfast!  Enjoy having a hearty start to the long day.  We will announce when breakfast is ready to be served in the teacher's lounge.  Have a great day!

OPEN HOUSE

We are excited to host a full Open House for the first time in two years.  Front and rear doors will be unlocked for entrance at 5:30.  This is a "come and go" event so stay as long as you like.  Don't forget to stop by the cafeteria to see the beautiful artwork our learners have created.  You can purchase it and take it home, if you like.  All proceeds go back to our Art program.

LEE FUN RUN

We are super excited to bring our Fun Run back to Lee Elementary.  Instead of sourcing this to an outside company, we will be running this on campus which means 100% of the funds raised stay on campus. This school-wide event that helps fund our PE program and supplemental PE equipment.  FamiLEEs can donate funds here, and the color run will take place on Friday.   We will have an adjusted schedule on this day.  Our Fun Run Committee will send it out when it is finalized.  You all are doing an awesome job of hyping this up.  THANK YOU!

EARLY RELEASE

Please remind parents that school releases early on Friday.  A mid-week reminder email would be appreciated because once learners are gone, I will make an announcement for all to head home early for the START OF SPRING BREAK!    

CISD JOB FAIR

Are you interested in being on our campus interview team this year?  It is a wonderful time to get to know new people and share about our school with future candidates.  If you would like to join us, you need to agree to attend annual training (30 mins or less).  Please sign up here, if interested.  You are also invited to join us at the Job Fair on April 9.  Babes lunch will be provided by CISD for those that help with the Job Fair.

YEARBOOK

Order your 2021-22 yearbook from Lifetouch today!

PTO

PTO is looking for parents to fill open Board positions.  Please share this link with parents to share their interest. 

DLC UPDATE

The spring is a great time to reflect on the things students have learned and celebrate their growth!   

Bulb: Using digital portfolios is a great way for students to capture learning, draw connections and recognize the growth they have made throughout the year. Example: Have learners create a page sharing writing from the beginning of the year and writing from right now. What have they done well? How can they continue to grow? 

Digital Reflection Journals: Use one of these pre-made journals to curate work and reflections from the year. These journals can be exported as PDFs and added to learner bulb portfolios too!

End of Year Reflection Journals: Are you wanting to curate memories from this year? Use one of these premade memory books to celebrate the friends, memories, and growth from this year.

Reach out to your grade level DLC to brainstorm ideas or for implementation support!

COACH'S CORNER

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

Correcting Grammar Errors

ELs need a low stress environment to feel safe in taking risks. We should not worry about correct grammar in the early stages, but we can model correct forms. Rather than calling out their name and inviting the student to repeat, teachers can repeat the phrase using correct grammar. Students should feel comfortable trying a new language without the fear of being constantly corrected in front of other students.

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Lee Fun Run Fundraising Window 

March 7- Spring Picture Day

March 8- Virtual PTO Meeting (6:30 link emailed home)

March 9- Pink Shirt Day

     Baby Showers/Staff Meeting (3:15-4:45) All must attend

March 10- ChickFilA Breakfast for Staff from Admin

     GEM Nominations Due

     Dental Visit K &1 (2:00 Cafeteria)

     Open House and Art Show (5:30-6:30)

March 11- Fun Run

     Early Release (12:30)

Week of February 28, 2022

Hi team!  I hope you are all staying warm and safe at home today.  Please give yourself some extra minutes as you drive in tomorrow, so you can take your time.  I worry about each of you!  Please have an awesome weekend.

DID YOU KNOW:

• Super Teacher nominations are due March 4, and GEM nominations are due March 10?  Please nominate some dedicated peers by visiting   go.coppellisd.com/Recognitions.  
• if the steel doors at the cafeteria are down in the afternoon (which they should be each day) that you can exit to the cafeteria through the vestibule in the media center?  
• since we did not get to have RTI meetings today, we will reschedule them for next Thursday?

LEE FUN RUN

We are super excited to bring our Fun Run back to Lee Elementary.  Instead of sourcing this to an outside company, we will be running this on campus which means 100% of the funds raised stay on campus. This school-wide event that helps fund our PE program and supplemental PE equipment.  FamiLEEs can donate funds here, and the color run will take place on Friday, March 11.   

Also, PTO will gift the top designer in each house $50 in classroom supplies (of their choice) from Amazon (PTO will order on their behalf). And PTO will provide Sonic drinks for the entire staff on March 11.

FLEX LEARNING

Mary Kemper will share some of her favorite digital tools for math that support inquiry, exploration, and creativity in math class. Come play with GarageBand, The Math Learning Center's Geoboard and Partial Products Finder, and Mathigon's Polypad. 

Podcasts in GarageBand hosted by DLC team member, Mariela.

PTO SPIRIT NIGHT

Don't worry about cooking dinner on Thursday night.  Our PTO is hosting a spirit night at Papa Johns.  This was rescheduled due to this week's weather.  Don't forget to share our school code. 

DLC UPDATE

The DLC team attended the amazing TCEA Conference at the beginning of the month and have a huge gift to share!  Check out this Jamboard Collection that has 1,200 free Jamboard templates.  Yep, you read that right! 1,200!  There are templates for every content area, including arts, SEL, holidays, and so much more!

 

Click here to see the collection.  (If you click the little outline button on the left of the page when you open it, you can scroll through the different categories.)

YEARBOOK

Order your 2021-22 yearbook from Lifetouch today!

COACH'S CORNER

You can choose a topic to get some verbal responses but you can ALSO connect with people all over the world with GridPals. The concept is very similar to PenPals. 

• Login using Microsoft or Google. You will be prompted to go through Security Duo. 

• You will need to create a group for your class or you could make groups by subject. 

• Next click on your profile icon on the top right corner.

• Select GridPals.

• It provides you with a bank of people you can connect with all across the world. 

• Click on Active because you want to connect with the educators before you connect your learners. 

• You can filter by Community and Subject

• Plan a topic with the other educator and start a conversation.

• You can connect with other educators and learners without worrying about time differences.

• Ideas for connecting with your GridPals

Please use this link to book a time with me so we can collaborate on ideas about using Flipgrid in the classroom or anything else.

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

The Silent Period

This is a time when newcomers do not communicate independently in English. Don’t worry, it does not mean that they are not learning. It is appropriate for them to participate by copying text and repeating phrases. They need time to listen and observe, to process and internalize what they hear, and to develop receptive and eventually expressive language. Avoid forcing them to speak if they are not ready. Speaking skills emerge later, as their language develops.

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Feb 28- Lee Fun Run Begins through March 11

March 1- Review Digital Citizenship with your class 

March 2- College Shirt Day

     Flex Learning (3:15-4:15)

March 3- Makenzie's Birthday

March 4- Super Teacher Nominations Due

     TELPAS Writing Samples Due

Week of February 21, 2022

Two short weeks in a row.  ENJOY the four day weekend!  I hope you and your family can enjoy some time together.  Thank you for including me in your weekly communication to parents each week and KUDOS to those of you that are using Parent Square.  We have a building of ROCK STARS! 

DID YOU KNOW:

• we have a newly engaged staff member in the building?  You might want to look at some ring fingers in Red House!!!  CONGRATULATIONS!
• that PTO awarded grants to Kristi, Maddie, Mary, Layne, Tabitha, and Wendy?  Congrats to each of them and thanks to all that applied!  

PAREN REMINDER

DOUBLE THE FUN

Welcome back from the long weekend with twins and quins day.  Have fun finding a partner...or four to double up with on Tuesday.  We can't wait to see how creative you are!

PTO SPIRIT NIGHT AT PAPA JOHNS

Don't worry about cooking dinner on Thursday night.  Our PTO is hosting a spirit night at Papa Johns.  Don't forget to share our school code. 

RTI MEETINGS ON THURSDAY

Our next round of RTI will be on February 24th.  Please have your documentation updated on the QuickGlance/RTI Notes Doc for each of your learners.  Also, have your progress monitoring documentation linked in the Notes document.  If you are unsure how to do this, please reach out to Samira or Leigh Ann prior to our RTI meeting on the 24th.  In order to honor everyone's time, if your documents are not ready, we will not be able to discuss your learners.

FABULOUS FRIDAY

Stop by the fridge and freezer closest to the window on Friday.  We will "Fill the Fridge" with lots a GREAT snacks for you.  We love you!

RED AND BLACK SUPERSTAR NOMINATIONS DUE

Help the Coppell ISD Education Foundation spotlight the dedicated and hardworking students, teachers, administrators and support staff in CISD by nominating them for a Super Star award.  The deadline for Super Star nominations is February 25. Teachers and Staff, nominate a student today! CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE

 

YEARBOOK

Order your 2021-22 yearbook from Lifetouch today!

DLC UPDATE

Mark your calendars: Digital Learning Day is Tuesday, February 22nd. Your continuous creativity, flexibility, and innovative uses of digital learning tools and strategies has led to deep and engaging experiences for all learners, and we want to celebrate you!  Check out this infographic for more information.

COACH'S CORNER

Consider exploring Flipgrid. A LOT has changed since its first launch. 

• Login using Microsoft or Google. You will be prompted to go through Security Duo. 

• You will need to create a group for your class or you could make groups by subject. 

• Next click on your profile icon on the top right corner.

• Select Discovery.

• It provides you with a bank of topics that you can add to your groups. 

• The sentence stems, pictures and videos are all created so you don’t have to start from scratch. 

• Consider sharing the topic with parents through your blog and have them respond as well. 

• Try this one that I got from the Discovery Library… https://flipgrid.com/d792ac2d 

Please use this link to book a time with me so we can collaborate on ideas about using Flipgrid in the classroom or anything else.

ESL STRATEGY OF THE WEEK

Helping Students Who Say I Don’t Know

It’s important that we include ELs when promoting student responses. Very often, ELs will say “I  Don’t know,” but if we prepare them to monitor their own thinking we will help them be independent inside and outside of the classroom. When this happens, point to alternate responses, scaffold together, use visuals, and model sentence structures when they reply with 

one word.

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Feb 18- NO SCHOOL

Feb 21- NO SCHOOL

Feb 22- School Bus Driver Appreciation Day

     Reading Academy Cohort A

     CMSW visits 5th Grade (2:00 PM)

     Calibration Set 2 (3:15)

Feb 23- Reading Cohort A

     Staff Meeting (3:15 Cafeteria)

Feb 24- Reading Cohort B

     iPad exchange for 5th

     PTO Spirit Night @ Papa Johns

     RTI meetings during Team Time

Feb 25- Kelsie's Birthday

     Updated School Supply Lists Due

     CISD Ed Foundation Red and Black Superstar Deadline

     LEEdership Council Meeting (8:00)

     Finish iPad exchange for 5th

     Economics Fair (2:00 Cafeteria)

Feb 23- Reading Academy Cohort A