1/2 Schedule

Here are our half-day schedules with the adjusted lunch times.  

 All certificated staff will have one scheduled prep covered on one or the other day. 

Classified staff will need to adjust their supervision schedule to ensure we have adequate supervision at the earlier recess and lunchtime.  Please take your personal lunch after students leave.

 I appreciate everyone's flexibility and help!  

K8 Memo

Good Read: Parent-Teacher Conference Tips

8 Tips for Parent-Teacher Conferences Review Student Work.  Jot Down Observations.  Look for the Positive.  Prepare to Discuss Issues. Get Ready for Questions.  Be Aware of Cultural Differences.  Come up with a Game Plan.  Keep it Positive. Read more…

Conference Talking Points for Teachers Parent-teacher conferences are a pivotal aspect of the educational journey. They serve as a bridge that connects the efforts of educators with the concerns and desires parents may have for their child. The primary objective of these conferences is to update parents on academic progress and behavioral development and foster a collaborative relationship to support the student's overall growth and well-being. Ream more…

Points of Interest

Staff Potluck

Please use the Sunshine Committee's signup form for the potluck on Wednesday. 

Parent Teacher Conferences

Be sure to report any conference changes to Bailey so she can update the master schedule. 

Additionally, please remind your students and parents that it is conference week.  I have a robo call going out today and an email memo, too.

As you prepare for conferences, please collect the students' work samples, print out FastBridge family reports, and prepare classroom data to share with parents.

Student Support Team

Please include invitations to members of the student support team for special or concerning parent conferences. 

• Brett Joachim, K-8 Principal

• Matt McLain, 6-12 Dean of Students

• Rebecca Abercrombie, K8 Counselor

• Erin Wilson, Student Assistant Professional

• McKensie Brittos, Behavioral Intervention

• Chelsea Shelton, Community in Schools

• Diane Ball, MTSS Coordinator

• Jewelle Collins, School Psychologist

• Sherri Watson, School Nurse

IBA Wrapup

Thank you to everyone who has completed their IBA testing.  I appreciate the work on improving our testing environment.  We did observe some tech issues and know that these will be resolved right away!

  

https://wa.portal.cambiumast.com/index.html

Counseling Updates:

I will be out of the building all day on Monday. You can contact me via phone or email if needed.

If you would like me to attend any specific conferences, let me know and I will be there!

Middle school: Have students fill out their elective choice forms!

Spring break:

This coming week can cause a lot of stress and uncomfortable feelings about being home. If any student has expressed concerns or has a need for extra food, clothing, support, etc. let me know so we can set them up for the week!

Character Strong:

Please be sure to teach your weekly CharacterStrong lesson.  This is a k-8 expectation. Log in at: http://curriculum.characterstrong.com/

• Username: marywalkerdistrict

• Password: character2021 

Character trait for the month of April!

29	Grade 6: Making New Friends	Session 29	29	Grade 7: Reflecting on Conflict	Session 29	29	Grade 8 Exercising Listening on a Team (Team Creativity)	Session 29
This is the 1st of 3 sessions in a friendship series. Having friends is important for well-being and even school success. Having friends helps us feel a sense of belonging in our school. In this session, we do an activity that helps us learn from each other about ways to make friends.			This is the 3rd of 3 sessions on conflicts. In this session, we learn 4 approaches to handling conflicts: compromise, let it go, ask for help, and be assertive.			This is the 6th of 6 sessions on teamwork. In this session we explore the role of creativity in group work and practice applying creativity to real-world challenges.

MTSS Updates

• I am happy to come to conferences as needed and assist with progress monitoring data.

• We will focus on progress monitoring Tuesday and Wednesday during conference week.

• If you are planning to change schedules the day before break, please let me know so we can plan that day accordingly.

• 3rd-5th grades: I am hoping to continue groups as long as possible in May, even after benchmarks are done, as long as the testing schedule allows it. I also plan to continue our fluency intervention as long as possible as it is very flexible and takes just 3 minutes per kid.

Calendar

23-24 K8 Calendar

Monday - 03.25

• PLC @ Work District Team PD, 8-3PM HS Library

• Office Stand-up Meeting, 9 AM

• Student Support, 10-11 AM

• Office Meeting, 1 PM

• Elementary PE Interviews, 3:30- 4:30

• MS Leadership Club @ Library, 3:30-5:30PM

• Spring Sports Start

Tuesday - 03.26

• PLC Time

• Monica OSSI / Springdale K8, 8:30

• Gradient Learning Connect, 11 AM

• Student Early Release, 12:30 PM

• Canvas Basic Course Meeting, 2 PM

• PT Conferences, 1 PM-7 PM

Wednesday - 03.27

• MTSS Round Table, 7:45 AM

• Admin Meeting, 9:30 AM

• Student Early Release, 12:30 PM

• Staff Potluck

• PT Conferences, 1 PM-7 PM

Thursday - 03.28

• 6th-8th Charger Assembly 

Friday - 03.29

• Student Access Day

UP and Coming Events:

• Spring Break, April 1st to April 5th

• End of 3rd Quarter, April 9th

• Charger Assembly K-2 2:00-2:30 3-5 2:30-3:00, April 11 

• LID Day, April 12th

K8 Memo

Good Monday Morning,

The warm weather and full sun sure made for a delightful weekend.  I was able to enjoy a day of baseball on Saturday, but then my lingering cold finally got the best of me, and I was down and out all Sunday.  It was sure hard to be inside on such a beautiful day. 

I hope that everyone had a wonderful weekend and St. Patrick's Day!

CharacterStrong / Purposeful People: S.E.R.V.E Model

"Students care when they know the adult in the room cares about them. Study after study shows that students are more motivated by who is teaching than what is being taught. Outcomes like belonging, well-being, and engagement are critical enablers to learning and set students up for life success. 

Think about it: What happens when students don't feel like they belong or feel valued as a member of the class? Students' well-being decreases, engagement is lower, there is an uptick in behaviors that interfere with learning, and ultimately academic growth is hindered. What if there were a set of low-burden, high-impact, research-backed practices that educators could implement consistently to improve those outcomes? 

The S.E.R.V.E. Model was developed based on findings from research, years of practical experience as educators, and input from students. It is built upon two core beliefs: 1) the ability to influence students comes through serving them to meet their needs, and 2) when it comes to creating a supportive and inclusive classroom, it is all about relationships. S.E.R.V.E. organizes low-burden, high-impact practices to help educators increase their intentionality and impact on critical student outcomes like belonging, well-being, and engagement, knowing that these outcomes enable learning and life success. The S.E.R.V.E. Model provides common language and a dedicated set of relationship-focused practices that educators can implement and discuss to ensure every student is able to access a supportive school environment."  Read More

Points of Interest

Pi Night 

Pi Night was a great community event.  Thank you to everyone who helped make this happen! 

Healthy Classrooms - Action Needed

Please help maintain healthy classrooms by encouraging students to wash their hands frequently and wiping down desktops. 

Parent-Teacher Conferences - Action Needed

Please be sure to confirm your classroom conferences.  Additionally, as you prepare, be sure to collect student sample work and data to share parents.

Warm Weather Brings Dress Code Reminders

Please remind our students of the dress code.  Here is what is in the handbook:

"Springdale Middle School students are expected to wear clothing that is suitable for school and all school-related activities.  Springdale Middle School dress code ensures that student dress and appearance meet health and safety standards while respecting student expression and the learning environment.

• Chest, nipples, genitalia, buttocks, and extended midriffs/navel, underpants, shall not be exposed. 

• Clothing that promotes alcohol, drugs, tobacco, sexual connotations, profanity, sexist or racist subject matter, weapons and gang-related material is not permitted and may lead to student discipline. 

• Footwear must be worn at all times and should be appropriate for the respective class activities. 

• Hoods are not permitted in the school. The exceptions are before school and during lunch.

• Apparel items should not be a safety concern (ie chains, spiked collars, etc)

• Sunglasses are not to be worn in class.

Based on these guidelines, staff will use respectful discretion/privacy when deciding on the appropriateness of student dress. 

Except in cases of acute violations, students will not be sent out of class to the office for violating the dress code.  Rather, staff will discretely refer the concern to an administrator. Consequences within the school-wide discipline system may be applied if a student continues to wear inappropriate clothing after receiving guidance to adjust the clothing."

Spring Observations  - Action Needed

Please be sure to sign up for your Spring Observation.  Here is a link to the sign-up form. 

Job Post

Sham has shared out two of our current job openings: MTSS Coordinator and K8 PE.   More district opening will be share this week.  Please let me know if you would like any information regarding either job.  

Interim Assessment Block  - Action Needed

3-8 grade teachers, please be sure to signup to complete an interim assessment block by the end of the month.  This will be a great talking point for your parent-teacher conferences. 

Building Leadership Team Meeting

After school will be our BLT meeting.  

Here is the agenda:

• 2024-25 Schedule

• Spring Hiring 

• Interim Assessments

• SIP Goals

• PBIS Partnership

• CharacterStrong (SEL)

• PLC 

5 to 1 Praise 

The 5:1 compliment-to-correction guideline was originally introduced as a tool for educators. Research supports the idea that children learn and perform best in an environment that provides consistent praise and occasional redirection. The ratio is 8:1 for children who have behavioral or emotional challenges is often needed.  Remember, this isn't a ratio to one specific child, but hole classroom praise. 

Please work to reinforce your classroom environment with praise!

MTSS Updates - Action Needed

Thank you to those who filled out the FastBridge survey. I did not receive enough feedback to allow me to plan a presentation. Please reach out to me with individual questions.

Please let me know if you would like me to attend a conference.

Dates to note:

• Last day for 3rd-5th grade groups will be Apr 25, 2024.

• FastBridge testing window for 3rd grade and up is April 29-May 2.

• Last day for K-2 groups groups will be May 16, 2024

• FastBridge testing window for K-2 will be May 20-29.

• Last date for MTSS Roundtable referrals is May 1!

8th Grade Field Trip to EWU: I need all 8th grade permission slips for students who want to participate TODAY. If they do not have their forms in, but would like to go, please contact Ms. A!

Calendar

23-24 K8 Calendar

Monday - 03.18

• Office Stand-up Meeting, 9 AM

• Student Support, 10-11 AM

• Office Meeting, 1 PM

• MS Leadership Club @ Library 3:30-5:30 PM

• BLT Meeting, 4 PM

Tuesday - 03.19

• PLC Time: Staff Meeting 

Wednesday - 03.20

• MTSS Round Table, 7:45 AM

• Admin Meeting, 9:30 AM

• Fire Drill @ 1PM

Thursday - 03.21

• Lindsay on Campus

Friday - 03.22

• Regular Scheduled School Day, March 22

UP and Coming Events:

• Middle School Spring Sports Start, March 25 

• Conferences and Early Release, March 26 and 27

• Spring Break, April 1st to April 5th