Essential Info - Week of 9/24/18

• Mandated Reporter Training due 9/28- Click here for directions. Submit certificate of completion to Kathy Klingaman.
• PLC time Monday 10/1- Agendas due from department chairs due by the end of the day Wednesday.
• Goals and Objectives due 10/1- Form A template (please make a copy in order to edit). Your evaluator will then meet with you to mutually agree on your annual objectives by November 1st. The purpose of the meeting is to collaborate to support you in meeting your objectives. 
• Kinsella Teacher Takeaways- Here is the Teacher Takeaway graphic from this morning’s staff meeting. The district will be providing posters soon.
• Future Ready Day 11/16 - If you have a family/friend interested in presenting that day, please confirming their availability by filling out this GOOGLE FORM.
• PD Express Expiring- PYLUSD will be transitioning from PD Express to GoSignMeUp to manage and track professional development for district employees. All Employees are highly encouraged to print a PDExpress transcript before 09/30/18 for their professional records. You will not be able to access this information after this date. Anything for the 18-19 school year will be input in the new system. Click here for a video or handy sheet. If you cannot access your account, please contact kvoge@pylusd.org . Username is first initial last name kvoge The default password is welcometopd 
• 9 Essential Skills for the Love and Logic Classroom- Love and Logic is a philosophy of raising and teaching children which allows adults to be happier, empowered, and more skilled in their interactions with children. This series is presented in nine separate two-hour modules, each focusing on a different skill. Upcoming classes: 9/26 Delayed Consequences, 10/10 Empathy. Click HERE for dates and more information.
• Teacher Sound Byte @ pylusdsoundbyte.org - updated weekly

Shout Outs

Give a shout out to someone you’d like to recognize by writing a quick message on this Padlet: bit.ly/VHSShoutout. Bookmark the link. Your messages are embedded weekly in the Tiger Telegram. Simply write the name of recipient as title + twitter lengthed message to that person.

Professional Growth - Extending Silence

Not every learner processes thinking at the same speed. Quality should be measured in the content of the answer, not the speediness. John McCarthy

We’ve known for years that wait time is an important component of learning, yet most still give less than a second before accepting a student response. In this EduTopia article about wait time, author/teacher John McCarthy addresses wait time, extended processing and meaningful student conversations.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/extending-silence

Tech Tip - Listenwise

This is taken straight out of Julie Walker's playbook today. Listenwise is a great "Podcast" resource for teachers across multiple disciplines to use in the classroom. It's free for the basic edition. Check out this quick video to see how you can use it in your classroom tomorrow. 

Essential Info - Week of 9/17/18

• Lockdown Drill September 19, 2018- The drill will begin at 9:50am. We will be practicing deny access, level 3 "emergency". See Matt's email for more details. 
• Join PTSA! Membership is $15. You are encouraged to join online at https://jointotem.com/ca/placentia/valencia-high-school-ptsa/join/register (there is an $1 processing fee) or if you prefer to pay by check or cash, membership envelopes have been placed in your mailboxes. 
• ROAR Cards - Redemption levels for ROAR Cards are for 1, 3, or 5 cards. Students may redeem 1 card for a smaller item (keychain, water bottle, cinch bag, ear buds), or save their cards for larger prizes (3 cards = t-shirt, 5 cards = sweatshirt). 
• Off Campus Lunch Pass - For Seniors only. Students must have an ID at all times when leaving and returning to campus. For increased security, IDs are being scanned as students leave and upon return. 
• NEW Access to Free Online Databases for Research- Get access to ProQuest, eLibrary, SIRS, and Culture Grams HERE
• Flipgrid- In the past few months, Flipgrid was bought out by Microsoft and is now full-access free for everyone! The code is not needed. See directions. 
• Board Items Deadlines and Forms-  Please click here for important dates and forms to be submitted for all extended field trip requests. Must have department chair approval before submitting to Chris Herzfeld. 
• Subscription Based Personalized Professional Development- Check out the website for more details Order your YOUCube
• Teacher Sound Byte @ pylusdsoundbyte.org - updated weekly

Shout Outs

Give a shout out to someone you’d like to recognize by writing a quick message on this Padlet: bit.ly/VHSShoutout. Bookmark the link. Your messages are embedded weekly in the Tiger Telegram. Simply write the name of recipient as title + twitter lengthed message to that person.

Professional Growth - More Talking in Class, Please

Strategies for facilitating small group and whole class conversations with students in grades 3 to 12. A couple strategies shared by Edutopia in this short ARTICLE that align with WICOR and 5-for-All.



Idea interchange - Small groups rotate around the room collaboratively answering a question at each location, synthesizing a written response. Returning to their home station they analyze how their peers have responded and synthesize one summary statement aloud.

Other strategies outlined and explained include:

• Revolving discussion
• Seminar
• Summit
• Debate

Tech Tip - Sharing Google Classroom with Parents/Guardians

As more and more teachers opt for the conveniences of Google Classroom as a portal for sharing class information, assignments, etc. there becomes the necessity or providing access to parents/guardians. Watch this short video to learn how to connect parents to your classroom. 

Essential Info - Week of 9/10/18

·       Back to School Night- September 12, 2018

o   Aeries Parent Portal Flyer – Please be sure to check your mailboxes by the end of the day for class sets of this FLYER for distribution during Back-to-School Night in ALL 2^nd period classes.

o   Please be sure to wear your staff ID. Click to see Olivia’s letter to parents as well as the staff letter for more details. Here is the video to be shown during 2nd period that evening.

·       Grant Opportunities- Click here for a FEDCO grant and here for a Lowes grant opportunity.

·       Aeries Parent Portal Flyer – Once approved, class sets of this FLYER will be distributed to your mailboxes for distribution during Back-to-School Night in ALL 2^nd period classes.

·       PD for teachers of GATE and high-ability students- All sessions are from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. 9/18/18 - Differentiation 101 flyer. Sign up here. 10/16/18 - Introducing the Original Prompts of Depth and Complexity flyer. Sign up here. Contact Krisa Muller at kmuller@pylusd.org with any questions.

·       PD Opportunity from OCDE- Preventing Youth Suicide: What You Need to Know - Nov. 15, 2018, 4-7pm. Click HERE for more information and registration.

·       Math PD- Please see this flyer for details regarding math professional development from September to November. Sign up via the link within the flyer.

·       OCDE Student Mental Health and Social Emotional Learning Trainings- Click HERE for a complete list of all trainings from the OCDE related to mental health and social emotional learning, Registration links are also on the flyer.

·       Mandated Reporter Training- click here for directions. Certificate of completion due by 9/28 to Kathy Klingaman.

·       Teacher Sound Byte @ pylusdsoundbyte.org - updated week

Shout Outs

Give a shout out to someone you’d like to recognize by writing a quick message on this Padlet: bit.ly/VHSShoutout. Bookmark the link. Your messages are embedded weekly in the Tiger Telegram. Simply write the name of recipient as title + twitter lengthed message to that person.

Professional Growth: Strategies to Help Your Students Feel Heard

This Edutopia ARTICLE begins with a reminder, "We must remain focused on the needs of our students and remember a John Hattie phrase: 'A positive, caring, respectful environment is a prior condition to learning.' It goes on to identify ways teachers can value students' voices and perspectives in the classroom including:

• Providing adequate think time
• Recalling specific contributions made by individual students
• Actively gathering feedback about the environment for learning
• Being responsive to student's needs
• Seeking out students you haven't connected with

Tech Tip - Google Docs Add-ons for ALL

This great infographic curated from Pinterest highlights some extremely useful add-ons for Google Docs. Everything from rubric creation, math symbols/charts, speech to text, recorded audio comments, flowcharts/mindmaps, etc. 

BONUS LEVEL: First 2 VHS teachers to show just 1 application of any of these add-ons in their own classroom via 30-second Flipgrid demo-slam WIN a tech upgrade on my (Mike's) dime. 

Essential Info - Week of 9/3/18

·       Back to School Night- September 12, 2018- Click to see Olivia’s letter to parents as well as the staff letter for more details. Here is the video to be shown during 2nd period that evening.

·       Library Calendar for Textbooks - Please use this link to access the library calendar: I’ve included a video tutorial - to add an appointment/event. Feel free to call me at 10015 to make the appointment.  If only a few of your students need textbooks, please just send the students up. It helps to put it on the calendar so we have your textbook handy in order to reduce the time students are out of class.

·       Board Items Deadlines and Forms  Please click here for important dates and forms to be submitted for all extended field trip requests.  Must have department chair approval before submitting to Chris Herzfeld.

·       Mandated Reporter Training- click here for directions. Certificate of completion due by 9/28 to Kathy Klingaman. Group session will be offered on Monday, 8/27 at 11am in the library.

·       HVAC Thermostats - click here for information regarding the thermostat in your classroom. Please reach out to Jeff if you need assistance with your unit.

·       VHS Quick Links - Phone List, Master Schedule, Bell Schedule, Tiger Telegram, Referral Form, etc.

·       Teacher Sound Byte @ pylusdsoundbyte.org - updated weekly.

Shout Outs

Give a shout out to someone you’d like to recognize by writing a quick message on this Padlet: bit.ly/VHSShoutout. Bookmark the link. Your messages are embedded weekly in the Tiger Telegram. Simply write the name of recipient as title + twitter lengthed message to that person.

Professional Growth - English Through Content Is Critical

Dr. Kate Kinsella's 5 for All - Instructional Norms to Accelerate Academic Language and Chris' concept of our "Collective Energy" are reinforced by this recent Edutopia ARTICLE.

"When the science teacher is using “but, because, so” sentence routines to help students understand relationships in an ecosystem, while in the next room the history teacher is using the same structures to help students identify the effects of colonialism, it reinforces writing and thinking for students."

The article promotes the 4th of the 5 practices in "Teaching Language" with an emphasis on sentence structures. Here's a link to the RESOURCES shared by Dr. Kinsella, also in the Teacher Soundbytes. 

Tech Tip: Aeries Gradebooks + New Google Classroom User Guide

It's time to setup your gradebooks. Here's a quick 5min "How To" from YouTube. 

For those of you using Google Classroom, here's a LINK to a new "Google Classroom User Guide".