**Please check the Meeting Schedules (in the sidebar) and the calendar at the bottom for information regarding this week's meetings and events. Laptops are not required unless requested. Thank you for leaving them in your classrooms.
***Please bookmark the Mindset link so you can access it easily.
12-15- Budgets reviewed by Office
13th- MA-2 Winter Concert
13th- Nutcracker Rehearsal
14th- All Overviews and Learning Identity Comments inputted into Veracross by 4 pm (see guidelines)
14th- Nutcracker Performance
16th Winter Break
Andrea Gubola received an early Christmas gift this year. Marcell Kolos joined his Mom onDecember 7th at 11:28 am. He weighed 1960 grams and is 45 cm long. Despite his early arrive, Marcell is healthy for his gestational age. Andrea and Marcell will remain in the special care unit until Marcell is fully grown and ready to head home with Mom. Andrea sends her greetings to all of you.
~from the ES Senior Leadership
We are looking at possible options for next year's parent information sessions. All possibilities were shared with Instructional Leads two week's ago. As of the Friday deadline, only seven people have responded to the survey. If you wish to have your voice heard, please carefully review each option and submit your responses by 4 pm today (December 11). You can review example options based on this year's schedule using this link: Back to School Night Options Form. If you have questions or need clarification, please see your Instructional Lead, Krista, Tracey, or Leigh.
~from Conway and Molly
The Elementary Winter Concert is on Wednesday, Dec. 13th.
MA and K will be from 9:00 to 9:30
1st and 2nd will be from 10:00 to 10:40
Here is where our wonderful, talented, supportive, understanding, and above all FLEXIBLE teachers (core and encore) and assistants come in. Below is the remainder of the rehearsal schedule. We tried to mix it up to interfere (or not interfere) with both core and encore teaching time. We are sorry for any inconvenience. We would really appreciate teachers and or assistants to attend and help with discipline during that time.
Monday, 11th
- 10:00-10:40 – MA and K
- 2:05 – 2:50 – 1st and 2nd
- 9:35 – 10:15 - dress rehearsal MA and K (1st and 2nd are invited to watch)
- 2:05 – 2:50 – dress rehearsal 1st and 2nd (MA and K are invited to watch)
We strongly encourage and would love for 1st and 2nd grade classes to come watch MA and K dress rehearsals and vice versa, but it is not required if you feel it interferes with what you need to do. Please email us to say whether your class will watch the dress rehearsal.
Please tell us if there are any MAJOR conflicts (field trips, etc.) with any of these times. We will send more detailed info as we get closer to the rehearsal times. Please ask or e-mail about any questions, comments (nice ones :) or conflicts.
Thanks for your patience and understanding.
The Elementary Office, in collaboration with the Elementary PSA, invites you to a week of relaxation. This is a small token of appreciation for all the wonderful things you do. Come sit by the fire, and enjoy some holiday treats, holiday movies, and festive music in a relaxing atmosphere.
Date and Times: December 7 -13 from 8:00-4:00 pm.
Where: Sweet Treat Cafe (ES Community Room)
~brought to you by the Blazer Voices
Come to school in your PJs on Friday, December 15 and enjoy a cup of Hot Chocolate and a cookie from the ES PSA and ES Office.
~From the ASA Coordinator, Gareth Lloyd
Tomorrow, Tuesday, December 12th, there will be a Blazers Basketball Christmas Celebration held in the Gym. All Basketball students have been invited along with their parents. There will be no Basketball practice today, December 11th, or on Thursday December 14th. All parents have been informed but please remind your students.
Registrations are now closed for ASA and HCs. I will create ASA and HC participant lists this week and share the final lists with you and all parents by Friday, December 15th. Trimester 2 ASA and HC begins on the first day back to school on January, 8th.
Our Professional
Learning Journey
information collected on 'Time' (see below). This conversation will include a
small holiday celebration.
~from the Principal
The Cult of Pedagogy podcast is a collection of episodes focused on teaching and learning. There is something for everyone. Author, Jennifer Gonzalez , interviews teachers, parents, students and administrators about hot topics in education (MA-Grade 12). Each episode provides the listener with practical ideas, tools, and resources to reinforce, support and extend teaching and learning. Each week I will highlight one or two of Jennifer's Podcasts or resources. I hope you will find time to explore them yourself. If you do and come across one you believe others in our community might enjoy, send it my way and I will add the link here.
This Week's Cult of Pedagogy Highlight: How to Stop Killing the Love of Reading
From the Math Lead (Ashley Christians)
'Guided Math and Math Workshop'- Here is an easy to read, yet detailed description. We encourage all math teachers to have a read as we continue our curriculum cycle year of math implementation.
From the DTL (Leigh Miller)
Fractions: Where It All Goes Wrong This article talks about why fractions are so difficult to understand.
From Piroska Nagy via Conway Chewning
This is an interesting article about a school in England that transformed itself with music.
'From STEM to STEAM: Using brain-compatible strategies to integrate the arts' By David Sousa-and Tom Pilecki.
A is for arts—and for the advantage students gain when you integrate arts into STEM instruction. As research in neuroscience shows, arts activities enhance creativity, problem solving, memory