News for September 10, 2018


What a terrific first week! ALL of your hard work to establish expectations and to build strong relationships with your students will help to ensure that we can reach high levels of rigor for all. This can only be accomplished after setting the stage with relationships and creating the relevance for our learners.  



 Thank you for working hard on modeling and practicing our common area expectations with your classes. It is making such a different throughout our school! 
NWEA begins this week and runs until September 21st. As in years past, we will have students take the Math and Reading - be sure to select the GROWTH: Math or Reading K-2 (for K, 1) or GROWTH: Math or Reading 2-5 (for 2-5 grades) when setting up your test sessions. 

 K-2 teachers: please sign up on the computer lab google calendar that was shared by Connie. You can use your assigned time and add additional times, as needed. 3-5 teachers, please consider switching lab times with your K-2 colleagues in effort to ensure everyone has time as needed. As in years past, 3-5 classes will test on Chromebooks in classrooms. Thank you for your flexibility!  

 Sandy, Kristi, and Kelsey are happy to help with set up or trouble shooting as needed, but will also be busy assessing last year's at-promise students to determine needs. A support schedule will be created based on SMART time blocks and fall student data, once collected and analyzed. 
The recess/supervision schedule is complete. Thank you for adding your preferred times. Unfortunately, a few changes were necessary to ensure adequate coverage at all times. PLEASE check it over and add any changes to your plans. The supervision schedule begins this Monday.


Fire Drills will begin soon. Please practice the procedures with your class and contact Kristen if you need an escape route map to hang in your classroom. 

 Please considering joining the Brown School staff in running/walking the "Your Life Matters" glow in the dark 5K in honor of Mike. Click here to register. Let's wear our ONE shirts and support our friends and colleagues. 




 Curriculum release day subs will be scheduled by Sara.  She is working to secure familiar faces now.  Please remember to add these as in-district professional development days in Skyward.


 This Week at Brown

 9/10  E Day 
Recess/Supervision schedule begins
NWEA begins

 9/11  F Day

9/12  A Day
Media Center sessions begin
Not a late start

 9/13  B Day

 9/14  C Day
Kristen at Central (a.m.)


Coming Up...
9/17 Constitution Day
Back to School Night
5:45 - 6:30  Session #1    ECDD, Y5, Kdg & 1st Grade
6:30-7:15    Session #2    2nd & 3rd Grade
7:15-8:00    Session #3    4th & 5th Grade
9/18 PTO Meeting 7pm - Lokey & Lignell
9/19 "Talk Like a Pirate Day"; Late start
9/20  Tech Meeting (district), 4:15-5:30 Upton
9/21 Fall NWEA ends
9/22 BBQ at Elizabeth's house!
9/25  Fire Drill #1 @ 9:00am
School Improvement / Staff  4:00-5:00
9/26 Late start day
School picture day
9/29 Your Life Matters: Mike Wagner 5K
10/1 Walk-a-Thon begins

Celebrations
Looking for a fun way to celebrate accomplishments with your students? Click here for a pdf of Cheer Cards that you can laminate, throw on a ring, or select from a jar when you're in need of a new celebration.

If you haven't had a chance to sign up for a PTO meeting this year, please do so here. Thank you!


Please encourage your students and their families to visit our little library located outside of the school office. Here's how it works: take a book, read it, return it for someone else and get a new one (or keep it if you don't have many books at home). With their family's permission, students can also bring books from home they no longer read to allow others to enjoy them.

Interior Loop Design
Student engagement is one of our main SI focuses this school year. In his book, Tools for Teaching, Fred Jones discusses the power of the "interior loop" when setting up your cooperative learning groups. The pathway allows for the teacher to walk through, observe, listen, and collect formative feedback while students process content collaboratively. 

Kudos and Thank You to...
  • Caroline for creating and setting up our line-up signs for the first week of school. 
  • Kelly N. for sharing her H.A.L.L. sign so that we could make one for each of you - check your mailbox and please post in your room near the exit to the hallway as a visual reminder of our school-wide expectations. 
  • Kesley, Sandy, Kristi, Bri, Jen, Jamie, Rachel, Caroline, and all others who assisted with recesses, before and after school supervision last week. Your help is so appreciated!
  • The Y5/K team for assisting with the bus lines and in the lunchroom last week. Your students are so lucky to have you!
  • Stephanie for your innovative practice and for welcoming colleagues into your classroom to see glowforge.
  • Morgan and Natalie for sharing their materials with all of us in the media center last week. 
  • Mindi and Faith for their kind patience and dedication to learning our students' needs that they help to so closely support. 
  • All of you for making this one of the best starts of the year that I can remember. You are all simply the best!