May 27, 2016

Are you considered "today's teacher" Take a look at that check list above and see if you truly are! We are excited for the things to come for next year and take a look at THIS ARTICLE for more ideas and inspiration!

Please remember to:

• Update the learning objective, big idea or focus that you are working on DAILY! Our kids need to know what and why they are learning something and not just because their teacher told them to do it :)
• Write a Good News Referral for a kid who may be that shy, quiet, or silent student but who is always on task!
• Make a positive connection to a student who doesn't always draw your attention!
• Write a positive note to an 8th grader to tell them how proud you are of them!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:
May 27/30 No school

June 1 Promotion Practice DURING 4th period
June 1 Happy Hour at Sticky Rice in Green Valley!

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday
June 24 Last day office is open for teachers

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, DOK/SAMR model, 
TEAM BUILDING!
August 31 Back to School Night
September 14 College and Career Night at GVMS!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders
December 7 Career Day at GVMS!

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to TRACY for agreeing to sub for Lacey for part of next year too! Thanks to ROSA and MIMI for taking on the schedule of promotion and "lock down" for promotion!

PLAY: GET A SHIRT!!! Thank you to ELIZABETH for the Secret Pal organization and celebration on Wednesday! Thank you to SUE, GIGI, SANDY, DUSTIN, TAMIA, JOSIAH, POZZESI, SARJ, CHRISTEN, JACY, SANDRA, KRISTY, TOM, PAULA, LORRAINE and HEATHER for having FUN on the 8th grade trip!! :)
THANK YOU to Heather, Sue, Allison, Cristina, Joe, Susan, Michele, Candy, and Christen for writing Good News Referrals to at least one colleague! We challenge ALL STAFF to write something NICE and POSITIVE to a peer! C'mon and let's encourage one another for something! Put a smile on someone's face!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Thanks SUSAN, MICHELE, MICHELE, and KAREN CANDY for taking care of promotion tickets! Thanks to KRISTY, ROCHELLE, and KEN for writing Good News Referrals for ALL OF GREEN TEAM for their sportsmanship! WE HAVE OVER 300 GOOD NEWS REFERRALS WRITTEN IN MAY FOR STAFF AND STUDENTS!!!! SO AWESOME!!

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING! 

May 20, 2016

As we move to close the school year (and keep our sanity), we must reflect to grow. We also must do the same with our students. How do you do this, you ask? I am so glad you asked :) Check out THIS ARTICLE about ways to make reflection on the school year empowering for ALL students and super powerful for you as a professional who is always learning!

When we walk into classrooms, we love to hear the great questions that students ask to clarify their learning. Wish you knew how to train them on ways to ask more effective and meaningful questions? HERE are 5 easy ways to get students to ask better questions!

Please remember to:

• Update the learning objective, big idea or focus that you are working on DAILY! Our kids need to know what and why they are learning something and not just because their teacher told them to do it :)
• Write a Good News Referral for a kid who may be that shy, quiet, or silent student but who is always on task!
• Make a positive connection to a student who doesn't always draw your attention!
• Say thank you to a PTC Board member for an AWESOME week! The thank you cards are in the mail room. Please sign each one!!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:

May 21 Great America Band Trip

May 24 Rally Schedule for yearbook distribution

May 26 8th grade trip to Allan Witt (List of those attending coming ASAP!)
May 26th 6-7:30 8th grade dance

May 27/30 No school
June 1 Promotion Practice DURING 4th period

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday

June 4 End of year party/Candy's retirement celebration at Carol's house

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, TEAM BUILDING!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to TRACY for agreeing to sub for Lacey for part of next year too!

PLAY: GET A SHIRT!!! Also, thanks to those that already RSVP'd for the end of the year party! Going to be fun!!
THANK YOU to Heather, Sue, Allison, Cristina, Joe, Susan, Michele, Candy, and Christen for writing Good News Referrals to at least one colleague! We challenge ALL STAFF to write something NICE and POSITIVE to a peer! C'mon and let's encourage one another for something! Put a smile on someone's face!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Thanks to DAN for another great performance with our talented kiddos! Thanks to SARJ and SHAWNA for a fabulous breakfast!

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING! 

May 13, 2016

Happy GVMS Teacher Appreciation WEEK!

We know that GVMS is celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week May 16-20 (and you DON'T want to miss the luncheon on May 20th!) AND we wanted you to know we are thinking of you! Please watch this video AGAIN!...Always makes my heart melt!!

There will be treats in your mailbox each day from us! Hope you all enjoy!

During my walk with Tammy on Tuesday, I realized how VERY different the feedback form needs to be. It is SO much more focused on students and how they respond to the teacher and are engaged. We will be spending time during the retreat to review this more in depth. One of the things that we noticed is that we are struggling to get past a DOK level 1 or 2. In a simple way (by getting students to compare what they are working on or studying to other cultures, other historical times, or how life would be different, etc) bumps their learning from Level 1 to at least a 2 and most likely a 3.

We really do strive to teach kindness in school. Are we all effective at doing so? Take a look at THIS ARTICLE about 8 reasons why kindness should be taught in schools and what the fantastic results are!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:

May 16-May 20 Teacher Appreciation Week

May 19 Honor Society Trip
May 19 Spring Concert

May 20 Sport O Rama/Teacher Appreciation Lunch
May 21 Great America Band Trip
May 24 Rally Schedule for yearbook distribution

May 26 8th grade trip to Allan Witt/8th grade dance

May 27/30 No school

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday

June 4 End of year party at Carol's house

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, Illuminate, TEAM BUILDING!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to ALL TEACHERS who let kids stay longer in their classrooms and also helped with testing and more! SUPER appreciate it! Thank you to JASON, SUE, ROSA, MIMI, AIDA, and WENDY for helping with testing during the Thursday morning chaos!

PLAY: GET A SHIRT!!! Also, thanks to those that already RSVP'd for the end of the year party! Going to be fun!!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Thanks to DAN for a fantastic performance on Wednesday with our guitar players and to JOSIAH for attending too!
CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING! 

May 6, 2016

Happy Day of the Teacher!

We know that GVMS is celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week May 16-20 (and you DON'T want to miss the luncheon on May 20th!) AND we wanted you to know we are thinking of you! Please watch this video...Always makes my heart melt!!

Deep breath. Deep breath. We are ALMOST done. We are, I promise. Keep it going people, you can do this :)

Thank you for the rich and engaging conversation regarding the academic conversations and the DOK Levels. We are working to change our half sheet of feedback to make them more meaningful! Here is the email from Dalal (thank you!) on how she has rich conversations between partners:

1. Whole class responds to a question on the whiteboard (also ask them to jot down a piece of evidence or justification)

2. Partner A: Turns to partner and reads whiteboard response.

3. Partner B: I agree/disagree with __ because the text says __. (Or the distributive property says __, or the third law of motion says __ or the passage said __ or the video said __).

4. Partner A: I would also add ____. (or "that makes me think of ___." Or "By contrast, the other side might say__." Or "Another example would be ___." Or "The text also says __.")

More examples are attached to our emails!

Since we are STRUGGLING with getting away from worksheets on our campus (HINT HINT) please check out these EASY ideas HERE for turning a worksheet into a collaborative, critical thinking activity including "Cut Apart", "Everybody Knows", "Lines of Communication", "My Mistake", and "Pair Rotation". It's a very SIMPLE way to get AWAY from the boring, simple worksheets!

What does a modern educator look like? I am glad you asked... THIS ARTICLE describes the photo in more detail to include thoughts and practices such as seeing yourself as a "co-learner", allowing yourself to fail, feeling secure to ask colleagues for help, embracing change and more. We are getting there GVMS!

Want to help your neighbor?  Pass these links along to your friends and family to get support for the various projects!  In fact, check out these project from Mrs. Nitto HERE , Mrs. Love HERE, Ms. Toll's HERE, Mrs. DeVries HERE, and Mr. McNamara's HERE, Mrs. Bates HERE !  PASS THESE ON!!!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:

April 25-May 13 SBAC
May 11 Guitar Night
May 15-24 Classified Employee Week

May 16-May 20 Teacher Appreciation Week

May 19 Spring Concert

May 20 Sport O Rama/Teacher Appreciation Lunch
May 24 Rally Schedule for yearbook distribution

May 26 8th grade trip to Allan Witt/8th grade dance

May 27/30 No school

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday

June 4 End of year party at Carol's house

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, Illuminate, TEAM BUILDING!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to ALL TEACHERS who let kids stay longer in their classrooms and also helped with testing and more! SUPER appreciate it! Thanks to DUSTIN, CAROL, ALEX, POZZESI, KRISTY, KEN, ROCHELLE, SANDY, ELIZABETH, MIMI, ROSA, CARLA, KIMBERLY, and DAVE F. for coaching and organizing Sport O Rama! Thanks to SUE, DAN, and TOM for being our refs!

PLAY: Tell me what the GVMS stands for on the back to get yours...and no, it's not just Green Valley Middle School silly!! :); We still have some up for grabs!! C'MON!!!!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Thanks to DALAL for all of the screen shots and more for testing! Thanks to CRISTINA, MIMI, ROSA, LIZ, AIDA, LYNN, JULIE, ELIZABETH, CHRISTINE, and OFFICER JOE for searching for our new friend on Wednesday!

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING! 

April 29, 2016

Here is our plan for next week and CAASPP testing, so PLEASE make sure that you know where to send your students if they need extra time:

We will be taking ALL the "spill overs" in the library next week unless you want to or are willing to keep them or have them test on the next assigned day. We will be borrowing Dave's chrome books for ELA as we did with Kristin's for Math. If we have WAY too many students, we will move into a classroom to continue. Thank you for your help!

Please continue to help us by sending students to other classrooms to work or for a time out. If they are officially class suspended, please send them as usual. We are really trying to support SBAC testing and the back office is getting WAY too crowded!

This graphic can be really hard to see and the article is much better. Click HERE to read about 15 differences between a teacher-centered and student-centered classroom. Our goal is to have EVERY classroom at GVMS be and stay a STUDENT-CENTERED CLASSROOM!!! Check out the article to see the list!

I know this is ANOTHER article but I loved it....Do we think our grading system is fair? Is it working for ALL of our students? Check out THIS ARTICLE for a QUICK read on zeros, the ten point scale and more. It's definitely something to think about ;)

What does a modern educator look like? I am glad you asked... THIS ARTICLE describes the photo in more detail to include thoughts and practices such as seeing yourself as a "co-learner", allowing yourself to fail, feeling secure to ask colleagues for help, embracing change and more. We are getting there GVMS!

Yes, it can be a little scary. Yes, it can be a little nerve wracking. Yes, it can be a little uncomfortable. And yet, we DO need to OPEN OUR DOORS! Why do we, as teachers, need to watch others in action? Because we LEARN so much! Check out THIS AWESOME ARTICLE on the reasons why: to see the successes, the failures, the learning experiences and more! This is happening more and more on our site and we could NOT be more excited!!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:

April 25-May 13 SBAC
April 29 No School :)

April 30 Spring Fling

May 11 Guitar Night

May 16-May 20 Teacher Appreciation Week

May 19 Spring Concert

May 20 Sport O Rama/Teacher Appreciation Lunch

May 26 8th grade trip to Allan Witt/8th grade dance

May 27/30 No school

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday

June 4 End of year party at Carol's house

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, Illuminate, TEAM BUILDING!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to ALL TEACHERS who let kids stay and also helped with testing and more! SUPER appreciate it! Thank you to WENDY and SUE for covering for Sarj!

PLAY: Tell me what the GVMS stands for on the back to get yours...and no, it's not just Green Valley Middle School silly!! :); We still have some up for grabs!!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Have someone to nominate for ROCK STAR TEACHER? Email Kristen ASAP or click HERE!  
Thanks to TAMIA for taking an IEP on Monday that wasn't even hers, making sure the parents were taken care of, and covering Dawn's testing group!
Thanks to LYNN, JOE, DAN P., KEVIN, SARJ, ELIZABETH, POZZESI, LORRAINE, DON, CRISTINA, JULIE, SHAWNA, KIMBERLY, KRISTY, TOM, HEATHER, GIGI, SUE, ALLISON, CAROL, DAVE M., DALAL, KEN, CHRISTEN, TAMIA, PRISCI, and LACEY/TRACY for already completing the Student of the Month for the last month for MOST IMPROVED! We have so many to choose from and that's AWESOME!  PLEASE pick one ASAP if you have not done so! The link is HERE!
Thanks to all SECRET PALS that are still making other people's day! PS- Mine is a ROCK STAR and I totally appreciate her/him!! :) 
Thanks to RIC for all his double duty that he has been doing to ensure we are clean and covered!

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING! 

April 22, 2016

Here is our plan for next week and CAASPP testing, so PLEASE make sure that you know where to send your students if they need extra time:

Monday, April 25, after 1st period (during 3rd) Kinder, Schwarzbach, and Vargas please send any overflow testing students to Christine in Booker's room. Laffey, McKenna, and Garza please send your students to Kristen in Toll's room.  

After 3rd period (during 5th) Kinder, Schwarzbach, Vargas, Pozzesi, and Diaz please send students to Christine in the library. Laffey, McKenna, Garza, and Hafich please send your students to Kristen in Laffey's room.

Tuesday, April 26, after 2nd period (during 4th) Vargas, Diaz, and Pozzesi please send students to Christine in Vargas' room. Laffey, Hafich, and Garza please send them to Kristen in the libary.

After 4th period (during 6th) Kinder, Schwarzbach, Diaz, Pozzesi, and Vargas please send students to Christine in the library. Laffey, Hafich, and McKenna please send to Kristen in Garza's room.

For Wednesday and Thursday, please follow what we have for Monday and Tuesday.

If we need to carry over to the next day, we will deal with that on a case by case basis in the library to ensure that all students have completed the math portion of the CASSPP.

As we get closer and closer to the end of the year, we often hear more and more negative talk (about not teaching a standard well enough, preparing our kids well enough, the amount of activities, etc). We know that this is a STRESSFUL time of year and we are here to SUPPORT you! Please watch this short video too. We loved it!

Yes, it can be a little scary. Yes, it can be a little nerve wracking. Yes, it can be a little uncomfortable. And yet, we DO need to OPEN OUR DOORS! Why do we, as teachers, need to watch others in action? Because we LEARN so much! Check out THIS AWESOME ARTICLE on the reasons why: to see the successes, the failures, the learning experiences and more! This is happening more and more on our site and we could NOT be more excited!!

Mark your calendars!! Here are some dates to remember:

April 25-May 13 SBAC
April 29 No School :)

April 30 Spring Fling

May 11 Guitar Night

May 16-May 20 Teacher Appreciation Week

May 19 Spring Concert

May 20 Sport O Rama/Teacher Appreciation Lunch

May 26 8th grade trip to Allan Witt/8th grade dance

May 27/30 No school

June 2 8th grade promotion/minimum day

June 3 Teacher workday

June 4 End of year party at Carol's house

August 9 WEB Day

August 11 Staff Retreat- Technology, Google EVERYTHING, Illuminate, TEAM BUILDING!

October 25, 26, 27 Challenge Days for 7th and 8th graders

**Please remember that August 8, 9, 10 are PD days for FSUSD! Here are a few that will be available for you to participate in:

Doug Curry on 8/10

Illuminate workshop

MAP Workshop

ED Tech workshops

and more!

Have you checked out our Fish Moments?

BE THERE: Thanks to CHRISTINE for taking on master schedule as I really appreciate it! :)

PLAY: Tell me what the GVMS stands for on the back to get yours...and no, it's not just Green Valley Middle School silly!! :); We still have some up for grabs!!

MAKE THEIR DAY: Have someone to nominate for ROCK STAR TEACHER? Email Kristen ASAP or click HERE!  
Thanks to LYNN, JOE, DAN P., KEVIN, SARJ, ELIZABETH, POZZESI, LORRAINE, HEATHER, GIGI, SUE, ALLISON, CAROL, DAVE M., DALAL, KEN, CHRISTEN, TAMIA, PRISCI, and LACEY for already completing the Student of the Month for the last month for MOST IMPROVED! We have so many to choose from and that's AWESOME!  
Thanks to ALEX for the caffeine on Wednesday and to KRISTY for hosting the PD! Thanks to all SECRET PALS that are still making other people's day! PS- Mine is a ROCK STAR and I totally appreciate her/him!! :) 
Thanks to RIC for all his double duty that he has been doing to ensure we are clean and covered!

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE: LET'S STAY POSITIVE PEEPS! KEEP ON SMILING!