Thursday Thriller

October 1, 2020

Gonzalo shared this AMAZING video with me.  It is full of hope and inspiration!!  THANK YOU, Gonzaalo!

NUTS-n-BOLTS

1.  After delivering candy to PLC groups and having the opportunity to check in and talk with groups, I have a few thoughts.  First and foremost, I believe in you!  I believe in the work you are doing.  It is harder than anything you have ever done before.  Pushing hard on the people I work with is part of my MO. :D  Sometimes I push wayyyy toooo hard.  Several of you were honest and I am SO GLAD YOU WERE!!!  Here are the guardrails:

-Teach the full 53 mins. What students do not get done they finish in the afternoon
-During async time you  are asking students to return to either catch up, reteach or have them on the screen 'just being there' while they finish their work
-A 'lesson and a half' maybe too much right now.  Maybe my ideas are unrealistic.  
-You are calling, emailing and reaching out to families of students who are not following through, showing up or are failing.  If you can not reach a family, let me know. I need the name of the student, the times of the contacts, the times you invited them back to asyn time and they refused (basically your call log ) and I can include that in a letter to the families.
-We all agree the async time isn't just a 'Hey show up if you want.' Everyone should be working or trying to work with students during this time

A reality check is always good for me.  Thankyou for helping me understand more of all that you are trying to accomplish.  Didn't know you had to keep me in line did you?  LOL

2.  Steve will send out a list of students he will be working with to make up iReady assessments. 

3.  Please check with your 2nd period class to make sure they have all signed up for a Zoom account.

4.  The link for conferences goes 'live' on Friday.  There will be an option for families to let us know they need a translator.  It will be up to the parents to click on the teachers they need to have a conference with.  Some parents may try to get multiple teachers in a conference; that all takes place on the parents' end when they 'sign/click' up for conferences.  If this is different, I will let you know.

5. Thanks for completing the survey after your PLC time. Needing time, patience, grace, more chocolate, Keto and gluten free snacks would be great! :D  Every team is on the right track. Thank you for your work!

6.  As the email indicated this morning, attendance is not black and white.  Up until Oct 4th is the 'transitional time' to allow for troubleshooting, re-establishing routines and removing barriers.  As stated in the OSPI guidelines, we will work as a District to work through a clearer structure for what constitutes an absence.  That will be communicated to you.  For now, keep doing what you are doing.  If you have questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

7.  The calendar links for conferences go 'live' tomorrow.  Each building will send out a call, email and text to families. If you do not have PART 2 established for Zoom links, please watch Carrie LaRoy's video and email.

SOMETHING to PONDER

I must confess because that's what Catholics do.  I was going to skip over this section because I wasn't feeling it and didn't want to burden you with more reading.  If I let myself do it this week, what's to stop me next week, the week after and so forth.  People have said to me, "You don't have to put out a weekly memo you know with all the added stuff."  I know I don't.  BUT I WANT TO.  Here's why:  

A. I feel a moral obligation as a leader to make sure I am helping you to grow professionally.  I like to share articles, podcasts, books, etc.
B.  You work hard!  You go the extra mile. You don't skip a lesson, skip grading, skip uploading a power point; I shouldn't either.  You may not reach every student in every class every day.  Same with my TT.  If a couple of you read past the Nuts-n-Bolts and get something out of  Something to Ponder it makes me happy and I have done my job.

While we are in DL 2.0, what can we find that might be a silver lining?  I think we are going to learn more, become more innovative and creative along the way.

Little Humor

I am so guilty of all of these words! I'm going to have to think of synonyms for them! LOL

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