The week of August 26th-30th

Food for thought...

Thank you all for an amazing first week! There were smiles everywhere this week-- on the faces of students, parents, teachers, and support staff. It's great to be back at school! Every day, learning was happening for grown-ups and kids alike, and I love being a lead learner. Check out Jessica Johnson's blog post about what it means to be a lead learner! She is a principal in Wisconsin and I follow her on Twitter @principalj :) She inspired me to have a weekly staff blog. There are so many great ideas out there, and here at Star! Do you sometimes feel like others have great ideas? Check out this video shared by my friend (and fellow educator) Trina Carter to discover what I already know:

You are all brilliant! Have a fabulous week!

Jennifer

Success Notes

You might wonder why I am walking around the school and am in and out of classrooms... It's because I am in love with teaching and learning! I am always amazed by how smart both students and teachers are and I love seeing learning in action. I also consider myself to be an "idea pirate" - always on the lookout for instructional strategies and ideas to share. Fortunately, idea treasures are everywhere at Star! Some things I loved this week:

Every time I go in the Karen's TK room, kids are 100% engaged! They are using blocks, they are playing in different areas together, they are listening and learning. One parent shared that her son asked "Why are you here so fast, Mom? I just got here!" Time flies when you are having fun. 

I also had a great time shaking my sillies out with Amy's class- no time for pictures, I was too busy dancing!

Second graders in Julie's class making mini-kids for goal setting!

Tammy and Janet working smarter, not harder by sharing kids for art and PE! 

Writer's Notebooks in Maria's class















Digital writing in Petra's class as they explored the theme of friendship!

First Grade Inquiry: What Makes a Good Friend? Created with PhotoPeach


And...a friendship Padlet!

Created with Padlet

Hope's class took a brain break with this Dinosaur Stomp video!

In Saryn's class, students learned about American symbols using this cool video from BrainPop Jr. 

Finally, Joe Wood visits Star every Thursday. This week, students chose their read aloud in Janet's class- James and the Giant Peach!

Dates and details:

August 28 late start-- grade level / prep

August 29th- Back to School night

• 5:30-6:15   TK / Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers will present in their classrooms 
• 6:20-6:40    General Session in gym with Mrs. Kloczko for all Star Families
• 6:45-7:30     2nd and 3rd grade teachers will present in classrooms

Weekly Tech time with Joe Wood- None this week due to Back to School Night

September 2nd- No school-Labor Day

September 3rd- After school enrichment begins

September 6th- Early release Friday

September 13- Jog-a-thon! Envelopes will go home August 30th

Project GLAD 2 day training September 18 &19
Petra, Hope, Janet & Tammy   8:00-3:00 at Star Academy
December 3-6 Demonstration lessons at Star Academy- Petra's room
Subs needed for all 6 days- see me with questions

September 20th- Picture day!

September 21st- Area 3 Writing Project Super Saturday! Be inspired for FREE!

Tech Tips:

This week, so many of the cool things I observed in classroom were tech-related! You'll find tons of technology inspiration above in the success notes. I'd also like to recommend finding some blogs to follow! Here are a few posts from blogs I follow -- these posts have our Back-to-School theme! Happy teaching!

5 Goals Teachers Should Shoot For This School Year

Why You Should Take Your Time the First Few Weeks of School

Resources for Back--to-School: Social-Emotional Learning

Back-to-School!

Food for thought...

Sometimes it's like this! Thanks for herding our cats this week!

Success notes...

      There were so many things that I loved as I walked around this week! The first day photos with a surfboard in Maria's class as well as weekly academic updates via email. The Hollywood theme complete with popcorn in Julie's room. Saryn orchestrating the perfect first day photo. Hope shooting hoops with her first graders. Petra's kids saying "Oh, yeah!" to celebrate something fun and walking out with their "o-fish-all" first grade snack. Janet using a shape to reveal her procedures one by one. Amy bringing a completely Common-Core aligned assessment to Star. Karen's room filled with the perfect TK accessories including an amazing mega-magnifying glass found on Craigslist! Diedre taking care of every child on the playground and braving the spider-infested trike shed-- all for the kids! Tammy modeling homework and creating a video with Janet about it. Cindy answering a million questions and being the door master! Katie and Susie jumping in like seasoned veterans in the parking lot AND in the classroom! Carlos and David for keeping our school looking great! Joe and Joe saving the day and our sanity by fixing up our wireless! Thank you for all you do for our school!
     We also have paper Success Notes-- give one, get one! If you notice someone doing something amazing, tell them! I have a stack for you!

Events coming soon...

August 28 late start-- grade level / prep

Project GLAD 2 day training September 18 &19
Petra, Hope, Janet & Tammy   8:00-3:00 at Star Academy
December 3-6 Demonstration lessons at Star Academy- Petra's room
Subs needed for all 6 days- see me with questions

Back-to-School Night

Back-to-School-Night will be held on August 29th for all grades. We will be using a different schedule this year to allow families with students in different grades attend multiple sessions if needed.

• 5:30-6:15   TK / Kindergarten and 1st grade teachers will present in their classrooms 
• 6:20-6:40    General Session in gym with Mrs. Kloczko for all Star Families
• 6:45-7:30     2nd and 3rd grade teachers will present in classrooms

Weekly Tech time with Joe Wood- Thursdays at 3:15 in "the lounge". Get ready to be inspired!
Jog-a-Thon coming to Star Academy on September 13th from 8:30-11:00
Picture Day is September 20th 

Nuts & Bolts

Area 3 Writing Project Super Saturday September 21, 2013 ***FREE*** Location:  Natomas Charter School, Sacramento Teachers know best what works in their classrooms.  Take advantage of the Area 3 Writing Project's Super Saturdays and experience first hand high-quality professional development that you can immediately implement.  Super Saturdays are free to interested teachers, resource personnel, administrators and student teachers.

Write from the Start:  Creating Effective Writing Communities in the Primary Grades (Grades K-2) Explore how to set-up and foster a powerful writing community through the use of modeling, "writing the room", providing authentic audiences and celebrating students' writing.  When you create the environment, your students will know they ARE writers! Presenter: Kelli Wilner, William Brooks Elementary, Buckeye USD The Writing Workshop Room:  Let's Get Started! (Grades 3-6)   Learn how to set up your classroom and curriculum for writing success! Participants will explore practical ways to organize writing instruction (like the two-sided notebook) as well as specific lessons that will get the year rolling in the right direction Presenter: Mary Golden, Russell Ranch Elementary, Folsom-Cordova USD   Creating the Writing Community in Middle School (Grades 6-8) Learn how to set up your classroom and curriculum for writing success!  Participants will explore practical ways to organize writing instruction with adolescent writers.  Using the writer's notebook with specific lessons will help build the writing community and your students will start the year off on the right foot. Presenter: Megan Hagelis, Norwood Jr. High, Twin Rivers USD More Students + More Papers = What's a Teacher to Do?           Grading in Real Time (Grades 9-12)     Join other teachers as we share our concerns over meaningful grading and managing the paper load.  Work collaboratively to identify specific points of concern regarding finding time to effectively respond to student writing.  You will learn timesaving strategies and have a chance to practice them on authentic student work. Presenters: Kevin Little & Susan Abbott, Elk Grove Unified School District In Your Own Words: A Writing Workshop For Teachers (All grades) Please join us as we celebrate the process and craft of our own writing!  While the content of this session may be modified for student and classroom use, the focus of this writing workshop for teachers is your own writing and the process of it.  We will explore a variety of strategies and genres and provide time for writing as we examine the gifts of experience and inspiration, and the use of writing for reflection, clarity and celebration. Please bring paper, pen, laptop or whatever materials support your writing. Even if you have joined us for previous sessions, this workshop's content will be different, and you're invited to return! Presenter: Edna Shoemaker, Norwood Jr. High, Twin Rivers USD Look What I Can Do! Helping Students Use Media to Demonstrate Knowledge (All grades) How do you teach a genre that wasn't even in existence when you were in school? Learn from one teacher's journey about how to apply limitless possibilities in getting students to effectively use technological genres to demonstrate what they've learned.  No prior technical knowledge necessary! Participants with an iPhone or iPad should download the free version of Splice video editing application ahead of time.  If you do not have an iPhone or iPad, we'll have iPads available for your use.  Presenter: Kirsten Spall, Natomas Charter School, PACT (Pursuing Academic Choices Together)  All participants will receive a letter documenting 2.25 hours of  professional development at the end of the workshop. Register Here

Tech Tips

Cool Communication! Remind 101

Remind101 Presentation Deck from Remind101