Weekly Update 11.1.15-11.7.15

I love this message!  Takes just 1 minute to watch.  

Party on the Playground:

Please join us in celebrating the grand opening of our Concord playground.  We will have 2 food trucks if you would like to purchase dinner or feel free to bring your own.  We will have a special guest, 5^th grader Miles Hoffmann from the C-PLAY team, to lead us in our ribbon cutting celebration.  We will also enjoy music from Mr. Joe Gassel.  This should be a fun way to celebrate our new addition

When: Monday, November 2, 2015

Time: 5:00-7:00

Where: Concord Playground

Food Trucks: 

• The Meltdown serving soups and sandwiches for purchase.
• Walk Away Waffles (cash only): Fresh fruit and flavors mixed right into the waffles.

Academic All Stars: 

Just a reminder that our Concord celebration will be November 23rd at 6:00 p.m. I would be so grateful and appreciative if staff would attend, especially teachers from grades 3, 4, 5, and PEGS.

Thank you for your hard work preparing for and completing parent/teacher conferences.  It was a CRAZY week, and we all survived! Enjoy the 3 day weekend.

Monday, November 2:

• Helping Hands Campaign begins-Food collection week
• Party on the Playground 5:00-7:00 p.m.

Tuesday, November 3: PTG Board Meeting 9:00-11:00 a.m.

Wednesday, November 4: 5th grade math development ½ days

Thursday, November 5: 

• Learning Labs during block
• 4th grade math development ½ days

Friday, November 6: 

• Building Assistant Day
• Jingles for Jammies
• Adult Trivia Night 7:00 p.m.

Monday, November 9: 7:00 p.m. DOC meeting

Tuesday, November 10: 

• 3rd Grade math development ½ days
• 7:45-8:30 Staff Meeting

Wednesday, November 11: 9:00 a.m. Veterans Day Assembly

Thursday, November 12: 2nd Grade math development ½ days

Friday, November 13: Extended PLC's for Reading

Angie Out of the Building:

Tuesday, November 3: District PD Committee 12:00-3:00 p.m.

Friday, November 6: Principal Mtg. 1:00-4:00 p.m.

Tuesday, November 10: Admin Leadership Team 10:00-12:30 p.m.

Writing Workshop IS Hard Work

https://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2015/10/29/writing-workshop-is-hard-work/

Weekly Updates 10.25.15-10.31.15

Synergy at Work!

Parent Teacher Conferences:

• Dinner will be served both nights.  Thanks PTG!
• Please send us your schedule.  A time correction: 3 hours each night until at least 7:00 p.m.  

Fundraiser Updates:  We want to see if we can give all those Garfields to students working so hard on fundraising so we are doing to extend the fundraiser until Monday.  Please send all fundraising items to the office.  Also, be sure to check out the awesome online selection for the fundraiser.  Did you know you can renew your magazine subscriptions AND there is an awesome app for the entertainment book?  Remember teacher sales count too.  Check it out: http://www.gaschoolstore.com/Login    school ID # 3150158

Halloween Updates:  Please remember to park at the farmers lot so we have as many spots possible for families attending the parties.  

Link to Schedule for the Day

Red Ribbon Week Updates:

Party on the Playground:

Please join us in celebrating the grand opening of our Concord playground.  We will have a food truck if you would like to purchase dinner.  Please feel free to bring your own dinner as well.  We will have a special guest, 5^th grader Miles Hoffmann from the C-PLAY team, to lead us in our ribbon cutting celebration. 

When: Monday, November 2, 2015

Time: 5:00-7:00

Where: Concord Playground

Food Truck: The Meltdown serving soups and sandwiches for purchase.

A huge thank you to Drew Hrach, Steve Donze, and Marco Mariscal for completing our pallet furniture in the reading lounge.  With the funds raised for iDiscover and our grandparent donations, we will be purchasing cushions for these seats.

Also, I would like to give a big gigantic shout out to 2nd grader Finn D. who had a birthday party and collected $290 to donate to the iDiscover project.  We plan on purchasing a big shed to store our blue blocks that should be arriving later this week.  

Grandparents Day was such a success!  I am so proud of our 5th graders and their teachers.  Check out the photo album here.   As a part of our service leadership initiative, the 5th graders welcomed their grandparents to come and learn about how we are integrating technology daily at our school. From our greeter leaders to our coffee station, everyone felt welcome and commented on what a wonderful school we had. They had a chance to learn about snap circuits, legos, iMovie (A Day in the Life of a 5th grader), and Makey Makey kits. As one sweet grandma put it, "Things sure have changed a lot since I was in school!" I am so proud of the amazing respect and patience that was shown by our children today. Way to begin with the end in mind!     A special thanks to Valerie Creech, JoAnne, Lindsay, 5th grade teachers, and Marco for making this a success!

• Please do a quick hallway check Monday morning.  I would like to ask that you remove any back to school or welcome activities if they are still up.
• Also, if you have any strings of lights in your room, please make sure they are plugged directly into the wall.  To meet fire code, we can't have any of these plugged into extension cords.  Thank you for your help with this.

Monday, October 26: Parent Teacher Conferences 4-7:00

Tuesday, October 27: 2nd Grade to Powell Hall

Wednesday, October 28: Parent Teacher Conferences 4-7:00

Thursday, October 29: Link to Schedule for the Day

Friday, October 30: No School-Conference Compensation Day 

Monday, November 2:

• Helping Hands Campaign begins-Food collection week
• Party on the Playground 5:00-7:00 p.m.

Tuesday, November 3: PTG Board Meeting 9:00-11:00 a.m.

Thursday, November 5: Learning Labs during block

Friday, November 6: 

• Building Assistant Day
• Jingles for Jammies
• Adult Trivia Night 7:00 p.m.

Angie Out of the Building:

Tuesday, November 3: District PD Committee 12:00-3:00 p.m.

Friday, November 6: Principal Mtg. 1:00-4:00 p.m.

Love this!

1st graders in Mrs. Boyd's class are charting their Number Sense progress.

Weekly Update 10.18.15-10.24.15

I know this is a time of year that many of us get a bit overwhelmed with all that we have going on and the craziness of the schedule.  This is a great blog post that reminds us of the importance of focusing on the positive.  Here are some great quotes (all easier said than done I know):

"Even though it sounds like a cliche, you MUST stay focused on the positive. Complaining and focusing on the negative will wear you down. So use your interactions with other teachers to talk about SOLUTIONS, rather than seeking out people to vent with you."

"Don’t get distracted by the documentation and paperwork and meetings –-handle your business, but always, always, keep your heart and mind focused on the kids. They’re the best part of this job, and it’s only going to get better with them from here on out."

"You’ll feel a lot better if you spend your evenings celebrating the good stuff and looking for new ways to make the next day better instead of rehashing problems." 

Report Cards and Conferences:

• Effort Rubric: Just a reminder that this is the tool to use as you complete your report cards.
• Grades are due Sunday at midnight.
• Please be sure to get a conference scheduled with every parent for Parent/Teacher conferences.  Our goal is 100% participation.  Please let me know if you are having any trouble scheduling conferences.
• Please let Marco, Angie, Velina, or Maggi know if you have conferences set where you would like one of us to attend so we can get those on our calendars.

Observation Updates:
Don’t forget to invite Marco or Angie in when you are doing something specifically related to your indicator.  In addition, Marco created a video to explain the observation form if you are wondering about our process.
Observation Form Explanation Video
Identifying The DOK Levels

Valic Representative (Tuesday):

The School District’s 403(b) and 457(b) Retirement Plan Rep, Ken Klages, will be visiting Concord Elementary on Tuesday, October 20th from 8:00-11:30.to discuss retirement planning, provide information on the School District’s 403(b) and 457(b) Plans, and review existing accounts.  If you are interested in meeting with Ken you will need to reserve an appointment with the link below.  If there is a green “Select” button in the Register column that time is available.  The Registration Code is:  8234SAI11AR    https://my.valic.com/SeminarRegistration/   If you are unable to meet that day but would still like to speak with Ken, he can be reached on his cell phone at (314) 346-0047.

Academic All Stars Celebration:

Save the Date -  Academic All-Stars for Concord will be Monday, November 23 from 6:00-7:00. We would love to see 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teachers in attendance.

We have a lot to be thankful for this week!

Concord Choir Shines at Sunday Night Lights:  A huge thank you to Valerie and the choir for their contributions to Sunday Night Lights!  It was a huge success.  Be sure to check out her blog post to learn more about this event.

Fundraising: I am so appreciative of the teachers and parents for their fundraising efforts over the last week.  Between box tops, Garfields, and Cookie Dough we have been super busy!

Concord Team Picture: Another gigantic MUCHAS Gracias! to the staff and parents who helped us with our Concord picture on Friday.  Here is the link to the folder where you can add any pictures you took.  We have some awesome video from the drone that I will combine with the pictures to make a video.  It turned out super cool, and I thank all of you for your patience as we created this treasure.  A special thanks to: 

• Kristie Deeter (Coordinator Extraordinaire and Photographer)
• Mehlville Fire Department-Captain Mike, Assistant Chief Dan, John, and Keith
• Mark Fisher (drone pilot) 
• Ann Lucarz (HS band photographer)
• David Wyss, Alec Patton, Dan Arana, Joel Fisher, and Cheslesea Silvermintz (Field Painters)

Tuesday, October 20:

• Service Leadership Mtg.
• Instructional Leadership Mtg.
• Student Leadership Mtg. 
• Ken Klagus (VALIC representative) in lounge
• Garfield -Ticket collection

Wednesday, October 21: Kindergarten to Stuckmeyer Pumpkin Farm

Thursday, October 22: 5th Grade to Cahokia Mounds
Friday, October 23: Last Garfield-Fundraiser Ticket collection and last day for Boxtop competition

Monday, October 26: Parent Teacher Conferences 4-7:30

Tuesday, October 27: 

• Teacher Leadership Mtg.
• 2nd Grade to Powell Hall

Wednesday, October 28: Parent Teacher Conferences 4-7:30

Thursday, October 29: Link to Schedule for the Day

Friday, October 30: No School-Conference Compensation Day 

Angie Out of the Building:

Thursday, October 22: 9-11 District Walkthroughs

Scientific Method

Plickers in Math

Miss Hooper wrapped up today's math lesson using Plickers. Quick and easy way to assess the day's objective. Here's the link if you are interested in trying it out.

Setting Writing Goals in Kindergarten

It is so fun to see writing goals in action in Kindergarten.  In Mrs. Cooksey's room, the class talked about various goals such as I'm adding to my pictures and I'm adding talk bubbles.  Then they had to decide what they were going to focus on for the writing lesson and how they would edit their piece.  I just love seeing the basic skills of a great writer in our youngest students.

See Saw App for Parents

Parent Access in Seesaw - this will answer some of your questions from the parent side.

Give Parents Access - this will help you solve the issues of giving access to your parents.

Anyone try anything out yet?

In the Garden with Mr. Loos

So this awesome signage is going to be moss art. The garden club is spraying it with water and adding a moss paste for the next several weeks. Super cool!

Goal Setting with Mrs. Kraus using Tagxedo

Weekly Update 10.11.5-10.17.15

I hope everyone has a very restful weekend as we have a SUPER busy week coming up!  Be sure to do something fun and restful. 

Monday-RACE FOR RECESS-Box Top Collection
Start collecting those Box Tops from everyone you know! We are holding a grade level competition.   The winning grade will receive an extra recess. All proceeds will go towards the new iDiscover project: http://idiscoverproject.weebly.com/

Monday-Cookie Dough Fundraiser Kick Off: Our fundraiser will start on Monday.  We will have a live video to kick this off on our Youtube Channel at 2:50 p.m.  Please tune in when Terri announces it.  Students will bring in coupons to claim their Garfields on 10.15.15, 10.20.15, and 10.23.15.

Tuesday's Staff Meeting @ 7:45 a.m.

Here is the agenda.  IF you have a moment over the weekend, this is a great article that supports what we are talking about.

Please Bring:  One of your student leadership binders or an example of something you have done with the binder.

Friday's Schedule:
Please do NOT park on the parking lot by the field.  Thank you for your help with this.  If you are late, you might get stuck parking at the farmer's lot.  Also, it will be a NO LETTER day as the schedule does not allow for block time.  
9:00-9:30 Assembly in Gym
9:40-10:15 Group Picture: Immediately after the assembly, we will head out to the field for a group picture.  We will be spelling out "CONCORD" and Mrs. Deeter will be directing us but it will be helpful if you know your placement and instruct the children ahead of time which letter they will be filling in.

C- 5^th grade Grey shirts 
O- 1^st grade Green shirts 
N- 4^th grade Dk Blue shirts 
C-K Red shirts 
O- 2^nd grade Purple shirts 
R-3^rd grade Lt Blue shirts 
D Staff –Black shirts

 10:15-11:50 Class time

11:50- Dismissal

Report Card and Conference Tips:

• Report Card Comments from Scholastic
• Great Ideas for Report Card Comments
• Resource for Parent Teacher Conferences.  There are both ELA and Math.

Monday, October 12: 

• Cookie Dough Fundraiser Kick off
• Box Top Competition Collection-Grade level competition begins

Tuesday, October 13: Staff Meeting @7:45 a.m.  *Remember to sign up in MLP*

Friday, October 16: 

• 1/2 day 
• 9:00 a.m. Assembly, Outdoor Group Picture afterwards
• End of 1st Quarter, Dismissal at 11:50 a.m.
• Grades due Sunday night at midnight

Tuesday, October 20:

• Service Leadership Mtg.
• Instructional Leadership Mtg.
• Student Leadership Mtg. 

Wednesday, October 21: Kindergarten to Stuckmeyer Pumpkin Farm

Angie Out of the Building:

Wednesday, October 14: 9-12 Leadership Mtg.

Thursday, October 15: 11-1 Kiwanis Club Mtg.

Thursday, October 22: 9-11 District Walkthroughs

Weekly Update 10.4.15-10.10.15

Playground Updates: 

Exciting News!  Our playground construction will begin on Monday, October 5th.  This is such awesome news.  Our preliminary plan is that we will use the Kindergarten playground, blacktop, and pavilion area for lunch recess. 

eValuate for October: 
Grades 3-5: please take the Mathematics test this month.  As a grade level, you can decide if you want to take the ELA test.  Be sure to sign up for the computer cart for when you need it this month.

Recycling in Cafeteria:
Green boxes are in cafeteria for recycling Capri Suns and squishy fruit packs.

Box Top Competition:
Our box top competition begins October 12th.  It will be a grade level competition.  Containers will be in the lobby and box tops can be delivered daily for those two weeks.

Movie:

Please share this movie with your students at some point during the week.  I think this is a very powerful message for our young people.

Observation Update:
Just a reminder that when Marco and I are in your rooms observing, we will be adding our notes and observations to TalentEd so please be sure to check there for your feedback.  If at any time you want to talk face to face, please let us know.  

Learning Lab Updates:

eAssessment Tool -How to assign tests/assignments online, how to create/edit tests

ConnectEd Directions

Directions on how to get into math book-  Math Book Login Video

Report Card Update:
One item we forgot to share on Thursday is the "Effort Rubric" that we used last year for this portion of the report card.  I will send this to parents the week the report cards come out but wanted you to be able to look at it ahead of time. 

A huge thanks to Marco and his "crew" for coming in over the weekend to create pallet furniture for the atrium reading lounge.

 

Announcements for You to add to Social Media:

Directions on how to get into math book:  Math Book Login Video

Tuesday, October 6: PTG Board Meeting 9:00-11:00 a.m.

Friday, October 9: Family Trivia Night 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Truman Cafeteria

Monday, October 12: 

• Cookie Dough Fundraiser Kick off
• Box Top Competition Collection-Grade level competition

Tuesday, October 13: Staff Meeting @7:45 a.m.  *Remember to sign up in MLP*

Friday, October 16: 

• 1/2 day 
• 9:00 a.m. Assembly, Outdoor Group Picture afterwards
• End of 1st Quarter, Dismissal at 11:50 a.m.
• Grades due Sunday night at midnight

Angie Out of the Building:

Tuesday, October 6:1:00-2:30 Meeting at CO

Friday, October 9: Dressel and ECE West Ribbon Cutting

Wednesday, October 14: 9-12 Leadership Mtg.

Thursday, October 15: 11-1 Kiwanis Club Mtg.