And Just Like That- Semester Two!

 

Check out these really awesome portraits from our Durfee Artists!

The Half-Way Blog

• Second Half of the Year
• Glass Half Full
• PD Day Yay

Second Half of the Year:

Yes, it's that time of year.  Teachers are busy wrapping up grades in 6-12 schools as we prepare for new students.  I feel like we should all wear summer clothes on Monday and make like it's September 1 again.  Well, there is one thing that we will all be doing- setting expectations.

  Expectations for learning, for classroom flow, for behavior, for effort, for noise level, for participation... kids need these!  Students thrive on guidelines for learning, so don't be afraid to set these clearly for them at the start, and continue to reinforce them as you go along.  Here is a great example of good visuals I saw this week in Deb CaCosta's room at Viveiros:

A poster like this is PERFECT.  But in order to make it work, you need to be consistent- don't forget to reinforce these expectations with students, and remind them of the why behind each and every one of these!

Glass Half Full:

  Our School Year "Glass" is HALF FULL!  This means from here, we have 90 more instructional days.  Make'em count, make'em fun, challenge your kids, and lean on each other!  We can do this TOGETHER!

PD DAY- Feb 10th:

During the full day PD day, we will spend the morning in an hour long Ellevation online PD, and then have some time to dig into it.  After that, teachers will have prep time, lunch and then travel to Durfee to get together for the second half of the day.  ***Note that on TeachPoint, you will ALL register for the same thing- Fine and Performing Arts PD, but then will "break out" into one of these PDs listed below!

All Art and Music Teachers: 12:30-1:00- Whole Group Meeting in 1902- review agenda, goals for the day, and session outcomes.

ALL: 1:00-2:40: 

Select one from below:

Engaging Reluctant Learners (Abby Casey- 1909):

Multiple skill sets, various learning styles, and apathy...all battles that we face on a daily basis through each term or semester course.  How do we set students up for success when they come to us lacking a growth mindset?  Bring your top three "tips & tricks" for this roundtable discussion to problem solve and share strategies in a team environment.

Keeping Cool in the Chaos (Chelsea Burnham- Band rm):

This PD will provide tools for educators on how to keep their cool when things feel chaotic in the classroom, and when students are out of sorts. We will reflect and discuss how to model appropriate reactions to situations and disagreements that arise with and between students. This workshop will combine reflection, yoga, and breath work in order to provide tools for teachers to use when work and life gets stressful. We will end the workshop discussing how different techniques used can be translated into the classroom with different grade levels. Be sure to dress in comfy clothes and bring a yoga mat,and journal! 

Scaffolding-Small Groupings in the Classroom (Lucini/D’Amarino- Orch room)

This session will cover the benefits of using small group instruction in the Fine Arts classrooms and provide examples of how it can be done strategically. Educators will be provided the opportunity to ask questions, collaborate with colleagues, and modify an upcoming lesson plan with small group scaffolds and ideas. Please bring an upcoming lesson plan and a class roster you'd like to utilize during this session.

Scaffolding Using Mini-Tutorials (Steph Pereira)

This session will teach teachers how to "clone" themselves (or as close as you can get) as you learn to scaffold the task you are planning by breaking it down into mini-tutorial videos and procedural lists. This allows for small group instruction to happen more freely in your classroom, and gives you some "freedom" to facilitate with students with greater need for modeling and individualized instruction.

Have a wonderful weekend!

-Jackie