News for the Week of September 16, 2019

Passion - Persistence - Patience - Positivity

We all bring a superpower to our team. Thank a colleague for his/her superpower today!

This Week at Brown

NWEA testing continues

9/16  IEP Day - see google calendar invitations
         Elementary Back-to-School Night 
         Board of Education Meeting 6pm @ Central

9/17  Cub Scouts visiting at lunchtime 
         PTO Meeting in the Media Center 7pm - McElroy

9/18  Late Start (with your team)
         Surprise lunch in lounge - no need to pack!

9/19  Drop-In Tech & Kagan Support @ lunchtime in Media Center (11:45-12:35 p.m. - see information below)   
Coming Up...

9/23 & 9/24  Kristen at Adaptive Schools training

9/24 Staff/SI Meeting 4pm - looking for hosts again this year! Please let Kristen know if you would like to welcome us.

9/25  School Pictures - sign up in the office
         Late Start (with your team)

9/26  Staff lunch provided by Grand Canyon University
         Fire Drill 1:55 p.m.
10/10 &10/11 Half - Days - P/T conferences (a.m. schedules)

Thank you, Becky, for leading our Friday Fun Day! Do you have a great idea? We would love to have you lead us!

Walk-a-Thon Dates
9/30, 10/2, 10/4, 10/7, 10/8, 10/9, 10/14, 10/16, 10/18 


Looking for celebrity walkers again this year - let Kristen know if you have a great idea for a nominee!

Background Checks
The safety of our students is a top priority. Background checks MUST be submitted for any volunteer working throughout our school environment or with our students on field trips.  This includes guest readers, party volunteers, etc. One way to frame your thinking is that even if you are present in the classroom with the volunteer, he/she has access to the school at large. A stop in the restroom or an interaction with a student in the hallway would be out of your range of control, therefore, we need to err on the side of caution. Please direct volunteers to the office for a form to complete.  Pleas note: it could take up to two weeks to receive clearance.

Sensory Circuit
We are looking forward to exploring the opportunities for our students to safely and productively refocus to ensure high levels of learning. Our leadership teams will work collectively on the development of our plan. Stay tuned!

Back to School Night

Please collect a donation of $5 per student OR $10 per family at BTS Night. A message will be sent to families ahead of time, so many will bring their contribution. Checks can be made payable to SJPS. Sara will collect it from all of you and/or from families that stop in to the office. 

Schedule

5:45 - 6:30  Session #1 1st, 4th & 5th Grade

6:45-7:30   Session #2 ECDD, 2nd & 3rd Grade

Parties
Please do not address parties at Back to School Night on Monday. As a team, we will discuss dates and themes to ensure cultural sensitivity per our school improvement plan. Information will be shared with parents after we've made a collaborative decision. 

To share the words of one of my colleagues, "On parent information night, the main things I care about are that you love your job, you love my kid, and that my kid will be learning important things. Make sure I know that before we go over grading policies and I will have your back all year long."

"The gifts a teacher brings...nurturing, trusting, compassionate relationship."

Additional copies have been ordered.
Please let Sara know if you need one. 

Please send the car tags that are in your mailbox home with students. Thank you!

Guess Who...
This week's mystery staff member loves...

chips & salsa, chocolate chip cookies, avocado, pizza and sushi.

to watch This is Us, Chicago PD/Fire/Med, any anything on HGTV.

to spend time with family, exercise, and read.

swimming.


Kudos and Thank you to...

Sarah and Alyssa for sharing morning check-in strategies with staff.

Becky for leading our Friday Fun Game!

our special eduction parapros, Mindy, Faith, Ann, and Susie, for your superhero powers!

everyone's hard work to prepare for BTS Night! 

Do you have a burning question related to Kagan Cooperative Learning? Want to learn Blogger to share your classroom news with families? Would you like to set up a social-emotional check-in on Google Forms? If so, please join us for an informal drop-in session anytime between 11:45-12:30 on Thursday, September 19th. 

Be sure to stay in the loop by reading our family blog as well. Click here and bookmark it - it is updated every Sunday.