3.30

 

Hi All,

I hope that you all had a good weekend. My apologies for the lack of blogpost last week. I'm not sure what happened! I know that conferences have passed but if you need to connect about anything that came up at conferences, please let me know.

My father in law is on his way home now and is moving in the right direction. I'm ever grateful for advanced medical care and family. Thank you all for your well wishes and check-ins, it means the world. 

Shoutouts 

• Chuck for your work with the Fire Department 
• Lori for always keeping us staffed 
• Betsy for your ongoing communication
• Addie thanks for your flexibility to support a student last week 
• Jessica Egizi thank you for your pursuit of supporting all students 
• Bess Powers and Katie thank you for your support of a student and her family 

News and Announcements 

• We've noticed an increase in louder morning gatherings in Lori's workspace (front office). We adore seeing you in the morning and if we could all try and move the conversation to the copy room or the hallway outside of the copy room it will make it much easier to get all the morning stuff done. Thanks for your support in making the mornings even more productive. 
• This is a fantastic bank of graphic organizers from Responsive Classroom for student or adult use: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/printable-resources/.
• This is a fantastic resource for making student groups. 
• VTCAP Schedule I have shared a more detailed schedule with those of you who are proctoring. 
• April 2nd--Please Bring 2 Pieces of writing 
• Room/School Assignments
• Protocol

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday
Tuesday	"Joy Squad" 8:15
Wednesday	Staff Meeting---at EMES/Rumney
Thursday	BES Art Connection---Crafting for Joy and Understanding 8:15-8:35 in the Art Room Coffee with the Superintendent 8:00-9:00 PTNA Meeting 6:00
Friday	Data Meetings: 2, 5/6, 4

Where is Celia?

Monday	Student Meeting 9:15 Student Meeting 12:00
Tuesday	WCLT 8:30-11:30 *Celia back by 12:00 Student Meeting 1:40
Wednesday	Student Meeting 8:15  Meeting with U-32 9:30-11:30  WCLT Meeting 1:00-2:00  Board Meeting 6:15
Thursday	Student Meeting 8:15  Celia and Susanne 10:00  Family Tour 12:30-1:30
Friday	Celia out at PD with Jennifer Miller-Arsenault

 

3.16

           Spring Joy!     

Hi All, 

I hope that this sunshine and weather was as much as gift to you as it was to me this weekend. Last week was a doozy with the full moon, time change and weather changes. I'm hoping that we'll reach cruising altitude this week. Please remember to focus on your connections, practice routines and slow down if you need to. 

News and Announcements 

Take a peek at last week's iReady Usage----numbers are looking better and better!  

• District Writing Prompt---This prompt needs to be completed by 3.25. We will score the prompts on the 26th and then complete the district grade alike time to set benchmarks on the 2nd of April. 
• I have enjoyed all the photos and I think having the pictures/poems/etc. in one document will be much easier on our email inboxes. If you are going to add something to the Berlin Bingo board please do so in the linked document. 
• Staff Community Bobcat---Please remember to recognize your fellow staff members.
• I am looking for permanent coverage for Lunch Duty on Friday. If you are interested you will be paid extra for your additional duty. Please let me or Lori know if you are interested.  
• Each week we will pull a staff name and you will have the chance to win a $10 giftcard. 
• Here's an article on student engagement if you are interested: Student Engagement.
• Save the Date---Berlin Mini-Circus Residency and One Man Show May 15/16

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday
Tuesday	"Joy Squad" 8:15
Wednesday	No staff meeting this week--Afternoon in Lieu for Parent/Teacher Conferences
Thursday	BES Art Connection---Crafting for Joy and Understanding  8:15-8:35 in the Art Room Bobcat Book Night 3/20--- 5:30-6:45
Friday	Data Meetings: K, 1, 3

Where is Celia?

Monday	Student Meeting 9:15-10:15 Student Meeting 2:00-3:00
Tuesday	Meeting 9:00-10:00  Steven visits Berlin 10:00-12:00  Student Meeting 3:45-4:45 WCLT Meeting---**Celia out Until 1:00
Wednesday	WCLT Meeting 1:00-2:00  Board Meeting 6:15
Thursday	Student Meeting 8:15 Student Meeting 9:15-10:00
Friday	Community School Committee 8:15-10:00* Celia Out until 10:30 Student Meeting 9:15-10:15

3.9

                    

Hi All, 

What a fast and furious 3 days back! Friday was a wild day for me and I felt like I left the building with a lot undone. I'm going to try my best to get things more on track today/tomorrow. Big shoutout to all who made Friday a success from the behavior team to the SPED team and our intervention team who is diligently making our data meetings happen on Friday---hats off! My goal for this week is to stay present and find the happiness in whatever the week may throw at us. 

News and Announcements 

• District Writing Prompt---This prompt needs to be completed by 3.25. We will score the prompts on the 26th and then complete the district grade alike time to set benchmarks on the 2nd of April. 
• Please see Brittany's email on the Thursday Morning---Berlin Morning HJC Club from 8:15-8:35. Come one, come all! 
• Staff Community Bobcat---Please remember to recognize your fellow staff members. Each week we will pull a staff name and you will have the chance to win a $10 giftcard. 
• VINS---Feedback, I received 6 responses---here is the feedback. 

Given this feedback I will reach out to VINS and get back to you about dates for multiple, grade level assemblies. 

• Here's an article on student engagement if you are interested: Student Engagement.
• Save the Date---Bobcat Book Night 3/20 5:30-6:45! We will be engaging in a book swap so if you have books that you'd like to weed from your classroom libraries or upstairs please box them up and we will offer them to families that evening. 
• Save the Date---Berlin Mini-Circus Residency and One Man Show May 15/16

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday	Berlin HJC Meeting---8:15-9:00
Tuesday	"Joy Squad" 8:15  Steven in the building 10:00-12:00 for Berlin Visit
Wednesday	Staff Meeting      - Nuts and Bolts       - Schedule Feedback      - DESSA Next Steps
Thursday	BES Art Connection---Crafting for Joy and Understanding  8:15-8:35 in the Art Room.
Friday	Data Meetings: 2, 5/6, 4

Where is Celia?

Monday	Berlin HJC 8:15-9:00  Student Meeting 2:30-3:30  Celia out at 3:00 for Curriculum Council  Curriculum Council until 5:30
Tuesday	Meeting 9:00-10:00  Steven visits Berlin 10:00-12:00  Student Meeting 3:45-4:45
Wednesday	WCLT Meeting 1:00-2:00
Thursday	HJC Meet-Up  Observation 10:45-11:45
Friday	LAU Plan Meeting 7:30-8:30  Student Meeting 9:15-10:15

3.3

Hi All,

Any break always seems to fly by in the blink of an eye. I hope that whatever this break brought you, you had a moment for yourself and that you are grounded and ready for the second half of the year. I know that right now I have my fingers crossed that we will have a passed budget come morning! Here's to a great month of March. 

I will be out on Friday afternoon, Rowan was on the cancellation list for the Audiologist and the ENT and we got appointment last minute.  

News and Announcements 

• VTCAP is coming. We will be testing in the month of April. Like last year each grade will have a day to test in the morning and then in the afternoon. I have a DRAFT here for you to look at. I will be collecting feedback and sending out a more detailed schedule with locations and accommodations etc. next week. Here is the draft. 
• Training for VTCAP will be at an upcoming staff meeting. 
• On Demand Writing Prompt---Opinion will also happen in the month of March We will assess the writing using newly revamped rubrics! I think you will really like them. 
• April 2nd during staff meeting we will have grade alike time to create some common benchmarks for writing.  
• Please take a look at Jennifer Miller-Arsenault's Curriculum Newsletter.
• Lastly, Responsive Classroom will be offered in August this year. They are hoping to offer RC1, RC advanced and RC Middle Grades. I HIGHLY recommend that everyone take advantage of this offering right at U-32 even if you take it as a 'refresher.'  There has been a lot of new content in the last five years.    
• Schedule for 25-26---I am hoping to have a schedule for you all to tune and look at in the next two weeks. 
• Grade Configuration 25-26---I took a look at your feedback and the results were clear. I will share the feedback at staff meeting and we will talk about next steps. 
• Literacy Night---The PTNA is working on a community night focused on literacy on the 20th of March. We're looking for a creative name if anyone has any ideas send them my way! 

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday	Staff Meeting
Thursday	Coffee and Conversations with Steven 8:00 PTNA Meeting 6:00-7:00
Friday	Data Meetings: 3, K, 1

Where is Celia?

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday	WCLT---Team Meeting 1:00-2:00
Thursday	Meeting with Susanne 10:00 Meeting with Julia P 11:15
Friday	3rd Grade Tour  Project Serve Check in 10:00-10:30  Student Meeting 10:30-11:30  Student Meeting 11:30-12:30  Celia Out at 12:30 ***

2.16

Hi All, 

I hope that you all are enjoying all this snow. If it's not your favorite, how can you find a moment of joy in it? I stood outside last night just as the snow started to fall and I was reminded of the quiet magic that happens in a snowstorm. Keep up the giving of the paws and recognition of positive behaviors! We are seeing the effects pay off! Let's make it a fantastic week before break. 

Shoutouts

Please see the list of all of the Staff Community Bobcat's from this week. On Monday I will have a student pull a name for a prize :) Don't forget to celebrate the good that your colleagues do! We'll pull another winner on Friday. 

Becky	Positive letter in support of a student
Lori Renaud	Thank you for assisting me with a technology issue! It didn't turn out as we hoped but the help was appreciated.
Wendy from CC	Going above and beyond for the CC preK kids to make sure they are safe, respectful and ready for the day!
Lori Renaud	For handling the traffic and craziness of the morning in the office with grace and patience
Brittany LeClair	Your consistent attempts to bring spirit and positivity to Berlin (Staff and Students)
Lori Renaud	Keeping extra water available right next to the Keurig. Reliable and helpful gesture!
Chuck	Chuck fixed a bookshelf in my room for me that was very special. He took the time to fix it up and restain it. It was really kind and thoughtful.
Danny Velez	Thank you for being flexible when I was pulled to do other jobs this week.
Lisa Audet	You are always positive and uplifting to the students
Becky P. and Mary Beth	Thank you ladies for jumping right in with me to help spread joy
Lynn Wagner	Thank you for being flexible when I was pulled to other jobs this week

News and Announcements 

• Community Respite---Student OB 4th Grade, Hello! I wanted to reach out and see if you could ask your staff if anyone would be interested in doing some respite/community skills with OB. His mom is up in Burlington and we'd love to have some connections for them to utilize to give mom a break or to help when she needs it. Is there anyone you could think of? 
• Whole School Meeting: 2:45-3:15 on Tuesday we will utilize the WSM/Special Celebration schedule here. Lori's signing group will grace us with their voices and we will participate in the Slime Challenge!
• Thursday is looking like a wonderful day for our Winter Wellness Celebration. Here is the schedule: Winter Wellness Schedule. 
• If you haven't had a chance please make sure that you respond to the 25-26 Schedule Feedback. 

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday
Tuesday	Whole School Meeting 2:45-3:15 BINGO Night 5:30-6:30
Wednesday	Staff Meeting
Thursday
Friday	Data Meetings: 2, 5/6, 4

Where is Celia?

Monday
Tuesday	WCLT **Celia Out until 1:45 Student Meeting 3:45
Wednesday	Meeting with Steven at CO **Celia Out 1:00-2:00
Thursday
Friday	Student Meeting 2:00-3:00

2.3

Hi All, 

I hope that you are warm and cozy wherever you are! January certainly has gone out with a bang in terms of germs and the cabin fever feeling! This weekend marks the start of Black History Month and while I firmly believe that this work should be integrated into every month and all of our work it's an important reminder to focus our lens this month. I've linked a handful of resources below. I will continue to do so in the coming weeks as well. I would strongly recommend this quick read: A Message on Teaching Black History written by the Educational Justice Coalition of Vermont as a place to start. 

Staff Shoutouts 

• Too many to count this past week! 
• Sarah Rogers and the K team---way to get the K kiddos on MyPath! 
• Lori thank you for always finding a way to make coverage work--you're a wizard!
• I'd like to give a shoutout to the Behavior Support Team who are working overtime to support a kiddo in crisis. 
• Josh, Lucia and Chuck thanks for paying extra attention to our door handles, surfaces and door jams this week. We'll take anything to keep the germs away! 

News and Announcements 

• Please take a moment to check out Jen's monthly Curriculum Newsletter.
• As you think about your curriculum work for the upcoming months please utilize this template WCUUSD unit design template to find entry points for all of your learners.
• Curriculum Tools from Clemmons Family Farm
• Choosing Books with Diverse Characters
• Color Brave vs. Color Blind PDF
• 10 Tips for Reading Picture Books through a Race-Conscious Lens
• On February 12 we will join Curriculum Associates for a day of PD at U-32. Here is the schedule below: 

• 8:15-10:15 - K-3 pacing

• 10:30-11:30 - Instructional leadership session (all grade level principals)

• 12:00-2:00 - Grades 4-6 pacing

• 2:15-3:15 - Grades 7-10 - focused on leveraging i-Ready data.

• 2:15-3:15 - Grade 4-6 (Optional) data analysis facilitated by Ellen and/or Jen

• 3:30-4:30 (Optional) elementary focused on leveraging i-Ready data.

Lori is lining up subs to make this all happen, I'm looking forward to this day and am excited for what it means for the teaching and learning in our building.

• Take a peek at the this last week's myPath usage. For the first time we have minutes at all grade levels! Woohoo. We are looking for 80% passage of lessons and  30 mins of usage total a week. 

What's Happening at Berlin?

Monday
Tuesday	*Tyler out at 2:15
Wednesday	Staff Meeting     - Community Building     - PBIS Check-In      - Community Bobcat   Board Meeting
Thursday	Coffee and Conversations with Steven 8:00--9:00 PTNA Meeting 6:30
Friday	Data Meetings: 2, 5/6, 4

Where is Celia?

Monday	Meeting 9:00 Student Meeting 9:15  Meeting with Lori 10:00 Meeting with Julia 2:45
Tuesday	WCLT---Celia Out until 1:45
Wednesday	Meeting at U-32 8:30-9:30. Celia in at 9:45   Meeting with Ellen 1:00
Thursday	Student Meeting 11:00-11:30  Steven at School 11:15-1:15  District Safety Meeting 3:00-4:00**Celia out at 2:40
Friday	Student Meeting 8:00  Data Meetings at Berlin