August 8, 2009

I had the pleasure of attending a performance of "Mulan Jr." this afternoon, at the invitation of the Douhan family. Olivia and Ruby were in their first play and they did a marvelous job! Riverside Youth Theatre is a great organization for children who enjoy singing and acting. It is always such a joy to watch children engage in the activities they are passionate about, be it theatre, dancing, sports, music, or learning. My goal is that we as teachers always honor the passion that drives each child and incorporate it into the classroom. Sometimes we seem so focused on textbooks and assessments, but we cannot forget that the best learning involves "doing."

Some of the office staff and I are heading back to work on Monday! It has been a great summer break with lots of time to relax and renew. There are just two weeks to go before the first day of school so we are busy putting the final touches on another new school year.

The teachers return to work on Thursday, August 20. They will be in a meeting all morning that day, and then will spend that afternoon working in classrooms. On Friday morning the PTA will be providing teachers with breakfast treats. Thursday afternoon and all day Friday is the official time for teachers to get their rooms set up (many come in much earlier than that, though), so you are welcome to stop by with your child and introduce yourself. I'm sure they'd love it if you could offer a little help while you're there, too!

The summer break often brings many changes, and this one was no different. As many of you know, the teachers decided to move classrooms over the summer so that the school is organized in a sequential manner. The preschool and kindergarten rooms remained in the same spot, but the rest of the classes were moved as necessary in order to group classes in order- from K to 1st to 2nd and so on. If you think of the campus as an upside down letter U it should help you know in which area of the campus to find your child's class based on grade.

There have also been some staff changes over the summer. Mrs. Nelson moved to another school, so Mr. Dowal has asked to take her place as a Title 1 resource teacher. He will work with Mr. McGinn and Mrs. Koss to form our intervention team that will ensure that all children receive extra help immediately as the needs arise.

We currently have a second grade teacher vacancy, but depending on the enrollment numbers and budget constraints, that may change. Additionally, several teachers have changed grade levels for this year; some because they decided they wanted to "loop" with their students. That means they have moved up to the next grade and kept the same students they had last year.

Looping is a highly effective strategy which allows students to make accelerated growth because no time is lost while teachers and students learn how to work with each other at the beginning of the year. They have already been together for an entire school year so on day one of the second year they can just pick up where they left off and soar ahead! The teacher does not need to diagnose individual needs because s/he already knows exactly where each child's strengths and weaknesses are and has a plan in place. I am truly excited that several teachers chose to loop this year, and applaud them for the extra efforts involved.

We are all very anxious to welcome students and families back to school in just two weeks! See you soon.

--Ms Boucher