May 18, 2015

Welcome to the Speas Global Elementary Blog!

All staff members, let's make sure we are teaching, reteaching, and teaching again the procedures in the common areas (Hallway, Cafeteria, Bathrooms, Playground, Bus).  We should be giving out lots of Bee's for students demonstrating the basic expectations.  It is a good idea to review the procedures before you leave one area to travel to another area.  

Our Mission: It is the mission of Speas Elementary School to provide its students with the tools necessary to successfully meet the challenges they will face in a diverse world.

Goals:

To increase English Language Arts achievement by 10%
To increase Mathematics achievement by 10%
To increase Science Achievement by 10%

Check out this graphic about global education.  The things above water are just the tip of the iceberg.   Try to go deeper in your instruction and touch some of the issues below the surface.

ISS
Specialists will begin holding ISS in their respective areas on their assigned days.  The schedule is below.  Teachers, specialists may be contacting you for work for students assigned to ISS.  Please get them work as soon as possible.   

Day	Teacher	Location
A	Arora	Room 213
B	Bowen	Music
C	King	Art
D	Childers/McMasters	Media/CL
E	Lindquist	Gym

Teachers: Having Trouble with Defiant Students?  Have you tried these strategies?

http://www.interventioncentral.org/behavioral-interventions/challenging-students/school-wide-strategies-managing-defiance-non-complianc

Our jobs may get hectic as we try to close out the year strong.   Here are some things to remember about what we may call disrespect or defiant behavior:

cont.

Empower students.

Ò Introducing conflict resolution skills.  For exampls, teach students a multistep process for handling upsets, stating with step 1: “Take a deep breath and count to five.”

ÒTeaching students how to deal with anger and frustration

ÒIntroducing responsibilities and the value of giving restitution.  In schools that embrace restitution, students understand that if they disrupt class, they need to “make it right “ by doing something positive for the class.  For example, a student who throws objects in the classroom may be assigned a cleaning or beautification project for the room.

ÒTeaching students to set goals and focus on what they want.

Empower students.

Ò Role-modeling how to solve real-world problems.  Such examples show students how to take responsibility for and resolve the challenges they face in life.

ÒGiving students a weekly life problem to solve collectively

ÒTeaching social skills.  For example, before each social interaction (pair share or buddy teaching), ask students to make eye contact, shake hands, and give a greeting.  At the end they should thank their partners.

ÒIntroducing a stress reduction technique, both physical and mental (yoga and mindfulness/meditation).

Announcements:

Test training today.

Sometimes, when we feel like this.  

We have to smile, and do that.

***For all technology issues, please follow these steps in order to submit a SchoolDude ticket. Mr. McMasters will receive this ticket and be able to work on resolving the issue as quickly as possible. Tickets take priority so please enter a ticket for the technology issue that you have. If you have any questions on how to do this, please see Mr. McMasters. Thank you!

To submit a ticket…on either the WSFCS homepage or the Speas homepage, click on “User Options” in the top right of the screen --> “SCHOOL DUDE requests --> Click “IT request” tab --> fill out request and click submit. ***

We have a Speas Symbaloo page.

http://www.symbaloo.com/home/mix/13eOcMEZPT#

email: djjohnson@wsfcs.k12.nc.us
pass: speasbees2014

Please email us with your favorite educator sites so we can create a huge selection of online resources.  

All staff members, let's make sure we are teaching, reteaching, and teaching again the procedures in the common areas (Hallway, Cafeteria, Bathrooms, Playground, Bus).  We should be giving out lots of Bee's for students demonstrating the basic expectations.  It is a good idea to review the procedures before you leave one area to travel to another area.  

SMOD Tickets (dress code violations) are located in the workroom.  Please keep the bottom portion for your own records as a way to keep track of the number of violations.  The continuum is as follows:

1st offense: verbal warning, and letter will be sent home to be signed.  Parent or guardian notified of violation
2nd offense: Teacher notifies parent or guardian and student is removed from class until proper SMOD is delivered.

(Teachers, we all should be enforcing this, it will only work if we all enforce it).

Calendar

5.18	3	A	Y		EOG TEST TRAINING--11:55 (3rd grade) --1:45 (5th grade)
5.19	4	B	Y		TEST TRAINING--12:45 (4th grade)
5.20	5	C	Y		Johnson out AM
5.21	6	D	X		Skating Trip
5.22	1	E	X		1st Grade NC  Zoo 8:00-2:00 PM; Ready EOG window opens; TRC window closes; all classroom displays to be taken down for EOG; Skating Trip
5.25	2	A	X
5.26	3	B	X
5.27					EOG ELA
5.28					EOG Math; 3,4,5 teachers stay afterschool for bubble party
5.29					EOG Makeups
6.1					EOG Sci 5
6.2					EOG Sci 5
6.3					EOG Makeups
6.4					RTA/EOG Makeups; 3rd grade teachers afterschool for bubble party
6.5
6.8
6.9
6.10					3rd grade teachers stay after to edit answer sheets
6.11
6.12

Holidays Around the World

Monday	May 18	Victoria Day	Canada
Monday	May 18	National Patriots' Day	Canada
Monday	May 18	Ascension Day	Colombia, Venezuela
Monday	May 18	Flag Day/University Day	Haiti
Monday	May 18	Discovery Day	Cayman Islands
Monday	May 18	Battle of Las Piedras	Uruguay

Today in World History

May 18

526		St. John I ends his reign as Catholic Pope.
1643		Queen Anne, the widow of Louis XIII, is granted sole and absolute power as regent by the Paris parliament, overriding the late king's will.
1652		A law is passed in Rhode Island banning slavery in the colonies but it causes little stir and seems unlikely to be enforced.
1792		Russian troops invade Poland.
1802		Britain declares war on France.
1804		Napoleon Bonaparte becomes the Emperor of France.
1828		The Battle of Las Piedras, between Uruguay and Brazil, ends.
1860		Abraham Lincoln is nominated for president.
1864		The fighting at Spotsylvania in Virginia, reaches its peak at the Bloody Angle.
1896		The Supreme Court's decision on Plessy v. Ferguson upholds the "separate but equal" policy in the United States.
1904		Brigand Raizuli kidnaps American Ion H. Perdicaris in Morocco.
1917		The U.S. Congress passes the Selective Service act, calling up soldiers to fight World War I.
1931		Japanese pilot Seiji Yoshihara crashes his plane in the Pacific Ocean while trying to be the first to cross the ocean nonstop. He is picked up seven hours later by a passing ship.
1933		President Franklin Roosevelt signs the Tennessee Valley Authority Act.
1942		New York ends night baseball games for the rest of World War II.
1944		The Allies finally capture Monte Cassino in Italy.
1951		The United Nations moves its headquarters to New York city.
1969		Two battalions of the 101st Airborne Division assault Hill 937 but cannot reach the top because of muddy conditions.
1974		India becomes sixth nation to explode an atomic bomb.
1980		After rumbling for two months, Mount Saint Helens, in Washington, erupts 3 times in 24 hours.
Born on May 18
1836		Wilhelm Steinitz, chess champion.
1868		Nicholas II, the last Russian czar.
1872		Bertrand Russell, English mathematician, philosopher and social reformer.
1897		Frank Capra, film director (It's A Wonderful Life).
1902		Meredith Willson, composer and lyricist (The Music Man).
1911		Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner, blues singer.
1918		John Paul II [Karol Jozef Wojtyla], Roman Catholic pope.
1919		Margot Fonteyn, English ballet dancer.