Week 19 - December 19th is National Re-Gifting Day

Great Things We Noticed:

• Our 2nd and 5th Grade High Impact Teams!  
• Kindness Week
• We made it through Holiday Shop!
• 6th Grade selling Candy Grams!
• Personalized Learning Training on Blended Learning and Choice Boards!
• Several of our Students participating in the Luncheon at Dutton Cadillac!

Nuts and Bolts: 

• Student Behavior - Take some time today to review behavior expectations with your students (Safe, Respectful and Responsible) - Please be present as much as possible to monitor 
• Lorenzo will be here on 12/26, 12/27 and 1/2 and 1/3 - 6:00am to 2:30 - Text him if you will be coming in on those days. 
• STAFF MEETING on the 19th will have fun and FOOD! Longi and I are feeding you lunch on Wednesday (Happy Holidays!)... Team leaders please be prepared to speak about your progress toward your 1 YEAR team goal.   
• Don't forget to encourage your students to bring in CANS for our canned food drive!
• PLEASE let the office know where you are when you are out of the classroom - or take your radios!  It is uncomfortable for our office staff to call and call and not be able to find you when a parent is waiting.... Take a moment and call or take your radio. 
• If you are interested in having a student teacher for next year please let me know ASAP 

• We are beginning to plan our Family Math Night for January or Febuary - if you are interested in joining and helping, reach out to Longi.
• If you are 55 or over and have been with the district for more than 5 years, make sure you attend one of the SERP meetings and learn more about the retirement incentive.  Find the presentation from the board meeting here.
• Pick up your students in a timely manner after recess and lunch - we are finding this unsupervised time is when most of our behavior is taking place.
• Thank you to all of you releasing your students on time at the end of the day.  When you release your students late, the traffic does not move and causes other issues. 
• 2019 Water is Life Art Contest 
• Celebrate water education in the classroom with Western Municipal Water District’s “Water is Life” art contest. 
• Winners will be selected from the following grade categories:
• Grade Categories: 4-6, 7-8th and 9-12th 
• First place, $100 Barnes & Noble gift card
• Second place, $75 Barnes & Noble gift card
• Third place, $50 Barnes & Noble gift card

• Water is Life art contest gives students the opportunity to share a visual message about water. The Deadline is March 15, 2019. The flyer is available on the Principal Resource page in PowerSchool Learning or by clicking on the following link. Water is Life
• Odyssey of Mind
• Are you interested in meeting STEAM, NGSS, and California Content Standards in a fun, creative, and inexpensive way for your students? Then look no further than Odyssey of the Mind, the original creativity competition in the 40th year! Through the writing of original scripts, the creation of costumes, props, scenery, and technical elements, teams of students work together to produce incredible solutions to creative problems while thinking “Beyond the Box!” Students with talents in many areas find a unique opportunity to showcase their gifts in script writing, costume creation, music, dance, visual arts, props and scenery construction, engineering, problem solving, leadership, critical thinking, and more! Here is a link to Odyssey Of Mind 2015 Video
• For more information, contact STEM Coordinator, Deepika Srivastava dsrivastava@rusd.k12.ca.us
• December Paydays - Payroll Department, Jill Collier

•  Classified monthly employee payday is Thursday, December 27th. If you have direct deposit it should post December 27th. Checks and check stubs will be placed in the mail to your address on file during Winter Break by Payroll Staff.
• Certificated monthly employee payday is Wednesday, Jan 2nd. If you have direct deposit it should post January 2nd. Checks and check stubs will be placed in the mail to your address on file during Winter Break by Payroll Staff.
•  Additional Opportunities for BCLAD Grant Participation!

Update on the progress of our District BCLAD Grant! All teachers currently enrolled in the program have now completed at least one class that moves them even closer to receiving their BCLAD. And luckily, because of very slight attrition, we are now able to open this opportunity up to even more teachers. So, if you have anyone at your site who is already bilingual or is at an intermediate Spanish level and might be interested in getting their BCLAD AT NO COST - ALL FREE, please forward this flyer to them and encourage them to contact Michelle Mitchell directly before December 21, 2018. Bilingual and intermediate Spanish classes begin in January, so we have a small window for additional enrollment. BCLAD Program Flyer

• Who Takes DIBELS? Reminder

• All Kindergarten-6th grade students take BOY DIBELS
• All Kindergarten-3rd grade students take MOY and EOY DIBELS
• 4th-6th grade students who did NOT score BOY Above Benchmark (blue) take MOY and EOY DIBELS
• 4th-6th grade students who scored Above Benchmark (blue) on BOY DIBELS do NOT need to take MOY or EOY DIBELS. However, if teachers would like to assess them they may. It is the teacher’s discretion for these students.

• Free Books for Read Across America 

The Literacy Empowerment Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, invites your school or other literacy project to apply for FREE books for Read Across America Day. During the past year, LEF has distributed over 3,000,000 books to schools all across the country for Read Across America Day and other literacy projects.
Resources are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Orders must be received by February 11th, 2019.
Please share this information with your fellow educators!
Free Books for Read Across America Day: Order Form at https://www.lefbooks.org

Focus: 

This is the time of year for SELF CARE!  Here is a great (and easy to read) article with 12 ideas for teacher self care during December... I challenge you to do them ALL this week! 

https://www.weareteachers.com/teacher-self-care-ideas-december/ 

Upcoming Events 

12/17 - Cindy, Longi and Carrie off campus from 10:00-11:30 for District Meeting

12/18 - Cookie Exchange in Library 8:00am

12/18 - Bike Delivery with Longi

12/19 - Special Ed Winter Performance - 9:00-10:00 MPR

12/19 - Holiday Lunch for staff 

12/19 - Staff Meeting at 2:55 

12/20 - First Grade Winter Performance 10:30-11:30 MPR

12/21 - Kindergarten Winter Performance 9:00-10:00 MPR

12/24 - 1/7 - Winter Break 

Birthdays

12/20 - Carrie Brown - Principal

1/8 - Amanda Mofsie - K M/M SDC 

Have a Safe and Restful Winter Break! 

Week 18 - Hanakkah December 2-10

Great Things We Noticed:

• Saturday School!  We had 52 students participate in our first Saturday School - and they had a great time!
• Dimissal on a Rainy Day! Thank you so much for your help! 
• The Kindness Calendar - When you see kids participating, give them a shout out! 
• Hour of Code! 

Nuts and Bolts: 

• STAFF MEETING on the 12th rescheduled for the 19th!  
• We are beginning to plan our Family Math Night for January or Febuary - if you are interested in joining and helping, reach out to Longi.
• If you are 55 or over and have been with the district for more than 5 years, make sure you attend one of the SERP meetings and learn more about the retirement incentive.  Find the presentation from the board meeting here.
• PTA Holiday Shop is this week!  No access during recess or lunch for students - they are going with classes only.   
• Pick up your students in a timely manner after recess and lunch - we are finding this unsupervised time is when most of our behavior is taking place.
• Thank you to all of you releasing your students on time at the end of the day.  When you release your students late, the traffic does not move and causes other issues. 
• 2019 Water is Life Art Contest 
• Celebrate water education in the classroom with Western Municipal Water District’s “Water is Life” art contest. 
• Winners will be selected from the following grade categories:
• Grade Categories: 4-6, 7-8th and 9-12th 
• First place, $100 Barnes & Noble gift card
• Second place, $75 Barnes & Noble gift card
• Third place, $50 Barnes & Noble gift card

• Water is Life art contest gives students the opportunity to share a visual message about water. The Deadline is March 15, 2019. The flyer is available on the Principal Resource page in PowerSchool Learning or by clicking on the following link. Water is Life
• Odyssey of Mind
• Are you interested in meeting STEAM, NGSS, and California Content Standards in a fun, creative, and inexpensive way for your students? Then look no further than Odyssey of the Mind, the original creativity competition in the 40th year! Through the writing of original scripts, the creation of costumes, props, scenery, and technical elements, teams of students work together to produce incredible solutions to creative problems while thinking “Beyond the Box!” Students with talents in many areas find a unique opportunity to showcase their gifts in script writing, costume creation, music, dance, visual arts, props and scenery construction, engineering, problem solving, leadership, critical thinking, and more! Here is a link to Odyssey Of Mind 2015 Video
• For more information, contact STEM Coordinator, Deepika Srivastava dsrivastava@rusd.k12.ca.us
• December Paydays - Payroll Department, Jill Collier

•  Classified monthly employee payday is Thursday, December 27th. If you have direct deposit it should post December 27th. Checks and check stubs will be placed in the mail to your address on file during Winter Break by Payroll Staff.
• Certificated monthly employee payday is Wednesday, Jan 2nd. If you have direct deposit it should post January 2nd. Checks and check stubs will be placed in the mail to your address on file during Winter Break by Payroll Staff.

Focus: 

Hillery Rubens shared a great edutopia article with me and I wanted to pass it along to you!  Here are some highlights from the article: 

• Education research continues to remind us of the powerful impact teachers have on children. This impact is overwhelmingly positive—the studies we highlight here demonstrate specific ways in which teachers can or already do help students feel a sense of belonging in school and make gains in learning.
• To boost student learning, focusing on academics isn’t enough. We should also think about how well students—and teachers—are supported.
• Small changes in the classroom can yield surprising benefits. A study this year found that greeting students at the classroom door had both psychological and academic benefits: Engagement increased by 20 percentage points while disruptive behavior decreased by 9 percentage points—effectively adding an extra hour of learning to the school day.
• Brain networks connected with language, visual imagery, and learning were more engaged when adults read the children illustrated stories
• Trying to guess an answer—and getting feedback on how close the answer is—leads to higher recall rates than simply trying to memorize information, a new study found.
• Teachers who helped students improve their behavior (measured by things like attendance and suspensions) were 10 times as effective at improving their students’ graduation rates and grade point averages as teachers who focused on test scores.

Find the entire article at: https://www.edutopia.org/article/2018-education-research-highlights

Upcoming Events:

11/26-12/20 DIBELS

12/12 - Dutton Holiday Luncheon - 12:00-2:00

12/13 - Principals Meeting - Carrie out AM      

12/13 - Baby Shower for Morgan

12/13 - District Leadership - Longi and Carrie out at 2:30

12/17 - Cindy, Longi and Carrie at DO 10:00-12:00 (Projections)

12/18 - Cookie exchange - 8:00 - Library

12/19 - SPED Winter Performance - MPR 9:00

12/20 - 1st Grade Performance - MPR - 10:30

12/21 - Hawk Shop Open

12/21 - Kindergarten Winter Performance - MPR - 9:00

Birthdays: 

12/9 - Monica Esteva - IA in Lantz

12/11 - Michelle Simmons - Hearts Coordinator

12/14 - Paulina Tang - Attendance/AP Secretary

12/20 - Carrie Brown - Principal 

Week 17 - Computer Science Education Week

December 3-9

The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. 

https://code.org/learn

I am working on getting stickers for student laptops for those that complete an hour of code.  

Great Things We Noticed:

• Shared Leadership Team looking at data and bringing back to staff.4
• Several students receiving Honor Roll.
• Sixth grade team going in depth with math and science planning.
• Students and Staff exiting quickly during the fire drill.
• First Saturday School was a success with 57 students attending.

Nuts and Bolts: 

DIBELS

• MOY DIBELS window 11/26 - 12/20
• All Kindergarten-3rd grade students take MOY and EOY DIBELS
• 4th - 6th grade students who did NOT score BOY Above Benchmark (blue) take MOY and EOY DIBELS
• 4th - 6th grade students who score Above Benchmark (blue) on BOY DIBELS do NOT need to take MOY or EOY DIBELS.  However, if teachers would like to assess them they may.  It is the teacher's discretion for these students.

Elementary Science

• We are very glad to continue to support our teachers experimenting with NGSS.
• Thursday, December 6 - Teachers who will be using FOSS module for the FIRST time.  3:30-5:30 at Earhart B4.
• Wednesday, December 5 - Teachers who are in their second year using a FOSS module. 3:30 - 5:30 at Earhart B4.
• Tuesday, December 4 - Science Renaissance Project teachers using a FOSS module this trimester.  3:30 - 5:30 at Earhart B4.

Upcoming Events:

• 12/3 - Second Grade Eureka Training
• 12/4 - Third Grade Eureka Training
•         -Co-Admin Meeting (Longi off campus until 12)
• 12/5 - Coffee with the Principals
•         -Leadership Team Meeting
• 12/6 - Longi off campus in the afternoon
•         -Winter Cluster Band Concert 6pm at Chemawa
• 12/7 - All in Attendance Day
•         -Fourth Grade Eureka Training

Birthdays:

• 12/3 - Monica Galvez (SAP Counselor)

Week 16 - Welcome Back

Great Things We Noticed:

• Gratitude Week! Thank you to Tina Sumerford 
• A week off to relax, gather together with friends and family and EAT!  I hope you had a great Thanksgiving Break
• Personalized Learning in our Preschool Class!  
• AVID WICOR Collaboration Strategies!

Nuts and Bolts: 

• Please do not mark students absent or tardy before 8:35
• SOTM and Honor Roll certificates have been distributed and need to be into Cindy by WEDNESDAY - Don't forget to send the invites out ASAP! (Great job Carrasco and Forsythe!)
• Make up pictures are tomorrow - ALL staff need pics taken for security badges 
• 11/26-12/20 DIBELS window open
• RUSD Science Newsletter can be viewed here.
• The Carol Addiss Student Drug Use Prevention Poster Contest - DUE 12/10/2018
• The contest provides young people with an opportunity to showcase their creativity and unique vision around this year’s Red Ribbon Week theme “Life Is Your Journey, Travel Drug Free” The top three ranked posters in each age category will be featured in the 2019-2020 year calendars that will be distributed countrywide. The flyer is linked for all of the details to Power Learning>Pupil Services>Alcohol, Tobacco & Other Drugs>Poster Contest. Posters must be submitted no later than December 10, 2018, to Lanna Goffman in Pupil Services. Late submissions will not be accepted.
• Enjoy the latest arts opportunities for students in the November Arts Partners Newsletter here.
• Toyota Dream Car Art Contest:
• Students aged 4 -15 are invited to participate in the Toyota Dream Car Contest to envision their dream car. Cash prizes for national contest winners, and grand world contest prize includes a trip to Japan for winning student and guardian. Submissions due Jan. 31, 2019. More info.
• Elementary SLT
• We are looking forward to seeing you and your teams at Bourns!! Below are a couple of reminders for your teams:
• Bring a charged device - we will be looking at data and items in Smarter Balanced and Illuminate
• TK-2 Teachers need to bring their math assessments. They do not need to bring the grade level, just their own class set.
• Grade 3-6 Teachers should bring any scratch paper from math with them. This will help them to determine common misconceptions.
• Foss Training (Teachers will will be using a FOSS module this trimester):  Thursday, December 6th 3:30-5:30 at Earhart B4 - Contact Shannon Dadlez for more information

Upcoming Events:

• 11/27 SLT 7:30-3:30 Bournes
• 11/27 Make up Picture Day
• 11/26-12/20 DIBELS Window is open
• 11/28 Lunch on the Lawn
• 11/28 Staff Meeting
• 11/29 Kiwanis Dictionaries to 3rd Grade 8:45-9:45
• 11/29 School Site Council 3:10
• 11/30 Student of the Month/Honor Roll Assemblies
• 12/2 Empty Bowls Riverside (Riverside Art Museum) 11:00-4:00
• 12/3 Eurkea Training 2nd Grade (Longi will be attending)
• 12/4 Eureka Training 3rd Grade (Carrie will be attending)
• 12/4 Longi - Co-Admin Meeting - 8:00-12:00
• 12/5 Coffee with the Principal 
• 12/5 Leadership Team Meeting
• 12/6 HIT Coaching Session #2 - 2nd and 5th grade
• 12/7 Eureka Training 4th Grade (Carrie will be attending)

Birthdays:

11/24 - Alexa Meiser - Preschool Aide

11/26 - Rowena Couture - Cafeteria

12/1 - Elizabeth Gomez - Cafeteria

12/3 - Monica Galvez - SAP Counselor

Week 13 - November is Peanut Butter Lovers Month

Great Things We Noticed! 

• 2nd and 5th grade teams working hard on student centered assessment with Dave Horton!  
• Pink Day! 
• Pie in the Face is awesome! 
• A windy Halloween! 
• Socktober socks being taken to Path of Life in Riverside!
• PL 101 and the PL success email's Erin is sharing - I love how we support and share ideas across grade level and content areas! 
• 65% of our staff has completed the Gallup Survey!  Great progress!  

Nuts and Bolts: 

• Please let Longi and I know if (and when) your report cards are ready to be checked.  Please don't forget the following: 
• Check Title I school for all students
• For ELD Students check the box and complete the ELD addendum 
• For Read 180 Students check the Read 180 box (Christina will fill out Read 180  addendum)
• If you have a student that earned all 1's (in any given area) check the "At Risk for Retention" box
• Input attendance on Wednesday - If you are holding your conference earlier than Thursday and Friday you have to go back and double check attendance for students you have met with
• ILE Quick Tips can be found at bit.ly/ILEQT  - Sign up and receive emails with EdTech tools, tips and resources
• Please take your Gallup Engagement Survey - When we get 100% participation we will give recess duty coupons for certificated staff and extra break coupons to classified staff!  Ask your teammates if they have completed the survey! 
• We are in the midst of the United Way Campaign - Information will be in boxes this week
• VERY IMPORTANT - Please remember to take your walkie to recess.  It is difficult for our office staff to explain to parents why it is taking so long to find their students.  
• We have been asked to create Veterans day Cards for our local VA medical clinics and hospitals.  Please schedule with your students time to create "Thank You for Your Service" cards that will be distributed on November 11th to Veterans in the Riverside VA facility. Example templates (for your use or consideration) have been placed in boxes.  
•  Ideas for Veterans Day Activities can be found here, here, here and here
• All classroom thank you's are due to the office by NOVEMBER 8th
• November 13-16 - Hawthorne Attendance/Spirit Days!  
• We will have special spirit days planned AND Longi and I will be coming through classrooms looking for GREAT student attendance!!
• Please verify the information located on the "Parent Education Level Verification Forms" (Grades 2-6) - These were placed in boxes this afternoon

• We are required to gather email address for ALL PARENTS by the end of this school year.  Please pass out half sheet and collect information (for parents that need it) during your conferences! 
• If you are one of our ELPAC examiners or are interested in becoming one follow the information below: 
• ELPAC Summative 2018-19 Test Administration Preparation (Action Item) Sign ups for the required ELPAC examiner trainings indicate that 17 of 50 sites are represented. All training of ELPAC trainers and examiners are listed in the PD Hub under RAE 00-12. Please have your examiners and coordinators sign up for the appropriate training. Training dates range from November 5 through February 21 with various scheduling. The number of available subs is limited on each of the dates, so please have your staff sign up early. The test window opens February 1 and concludes with district ELPAC window closing on May 15. All required coordinator trainings have be completed. If your primary ELPAC coordinator did not attend the required ELPAC 2018-19 Coordinator training, please have them contact Carmel. Thank you. Carmel Acosta-Cooper, ccooper@rusd.k12.ca.us, ext. 80805
• EarthWatch Applications are now available. Teachers can apply at the following link: https://earthwatch.org/program/signup?type=Teach%20  
• Earth Applications are due January 10, 2019. 
• Full details on the program are here: https://earthwatch.org/Education/Teacher-Fellowships/Teach-Earth-United-States
• ELA Assessment window: 10/15-11/7
• K-2 Reading Comprehension assessments sent to sites from Publications
• Kindergarten and First Grade audio link sent to teachers and accessible on PowerSchool Learning > TK-6 ELA/ELD > Assessments (Reading)
• 3rd-6th IAB Interim Block - Reading: Informational Text (Illuminate)
• K-6 Writing Assessments sent to sites from Publications 
• Writing assessments, including rubrics and exemplary models, are also located on PowerSchool Learning > TK-6 ELA/ELD> Assessments (Writing)
• Festival of Lights Coloring Contest
• In celebration of lighting Riverside’s downtown and The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa during the Festival of Lights “Switch-On Ceremony”, K-6 students are invited to participate in Holiday Coloring Contest. Winners will receive a $50 gift certificate and a holiday stocking filled with goodies. Submissions due November 12, 2018. More info.
• A note from Gallup:

Riverside Unified School District has partnered with Gallup, an independent research and consulting company, to conduct the RUSD Engagement Survey. You will soon receive an email from Gallup inviting you to participate in the online survey. It will be open from October 29 to November 9 and should take only a few minutes to complete.  Gallup will hold your personal responses completely confidential. Under no circumstances will your responses be revealed to anyone at RUSD. After everyone has completed the survey, Gallup will generate reports that summarize the responses for each department/site. To protect your confidentiality, reports will be generated only for groups with at least four employees participating in the survey. No individual responses will be reported.  You will learn the results of the survey later this winter. It is important that you participate in the survey so your voice can be heard. Please watch for another email message from Gallup which will give you instructions on taking the survey.

Gallup"Helping People Be Heard"

• The email from Erin had LOTS of good information: 
• Here is a website I have created for Hawthorne PL. bit.ly/PL-101. I have added documents, pictures and websites from Hawthorne teachers. If you have anything to add please send me an email. There are so many amazing things going on and our best resource is sharing what our awesome Hawthorne teachers are already doing! 
• Thank you 3-6 grade teachers for having your students take the PL survey! We got some awesome data from it because almost 200 students took it. I really appreciate that! Here is a link to the data (Click Hawthorne at the bottom). We will be reviewing this data at a staff meeting soon.
• On Monday at our meeting Tina shared a website she started using with her kids- www.freckle.com The free version of this website gives students an assessment in ELA and Math and allows them to work through standards at their own pace. It places them on a continuum (K-9 standards). On the PL survey, just over half of the students stated that they were not able to work ahead if they already knew the content- so this would be a way advanced students could move ahead. There is also the ability to assign some practice/benchmarks/exit tickets and get assessment data. In math, there are some free inquiry-based lessons you can do as a class to promote collaboration. They are linked to other content and include discussion, math talks, and mental math. There are some free lessons you can do in social studies and science as well. 5/6^th grade- The math would be good for the 5^th grade students who have finished Zearn, and 6^th grade students until the new Zearn curriculum comes out. It is definitely worth checking out. 

• Message from Kristi Forsythe: 
• I hope all is well, your parent conferences run smoothly, and you have a restful Thanksgiving break.  This email is just a friendly reminder that all your grade level Digital Citizenship (DC)  lessons are suppose to be taught by Nov. 9th. If you are having problems reaching this flexible deadline, please let me know.  Please make sure you fill out the DC completion form before you go on break. It is located on the new RUSD DC Site on the bottom of each grade level page.  

FOCUS: 

Our 5th and 6th grade students are taking or have taken the Gallup student engagement survey -  I thought it would be helpful to all of us to see what questions the Gallup people ask to gauge our level of student engagement.  How can you use these questions in your daily interactions with your students? 

Birthdays: 

11/18 - Erron Turner Floyd (IA/MM Carol OK's Class) 

Upcoming Events: 

11/2 - Minimum Day

11/2 - Carrie and Longi out (Erin Admin Designee) 

11/5 - Longi out 

11/5 - PTA DJ Party 

11/6 - SST Marathon Day

11/7 - Coffee with the Principal

11/7 - Make-Up School Pictures

11/7 - Leadership Meeting

11/8-11/9 - PTC Days 

11/8 - K12 Principals Meeting (Carrie out morning)

11/9 - End of First Trimester
11/12 - Veterans Day
l1/13-11/16 - ATTENDANCE DAYS/SPIRIT DAYS!
11/19-11/23 - Thanksgiving Break