Week of September 9th

UAI Staff News

Volume XII

Issue 3

September 9th,  2024

Three & a Half Week Stretch! Congratulations on a super smooth and lovely launch to the school year.  Your work to welcome back our students and to create warm and welcoming classrooms for our students was appreciated!!  Here are some quotes (and actions) from the folks that matter the most:

• Nia (Q.)- "I don't know what it is, Ms. Kiri, but this year feels really great!  I usually dread waking up and coming to school, but today I was super excited to see my new friends and my teachers!!"
  
  
• Layrab - "I have some five-star teachers this year - more than five star for some!! Make sure to tell them that!! They need to know"
  
  
• In Amanda's class, Lucia was quintessential Lucia with her signature sass, AND she was working well with her own group (and the group next to her LOL) to share ideas on how make the numbers 1-20 using only the number 4 and any combination of operations.  
  
  
• When I asked Milan (C) how the summer Citizen Science experience was, she said "Meh..kinda boring" (because she is too cool for school) and when I followed up with "Would you do it again??" she nodded excitedly and said, "ABSOLUTELY!" (because she really did have fun).

I love our kids!!!  They're amazing!  Having them back made the first two days the absolute best!  As we continue to ride the wave of a new year, make sure to note these moments for yourself!  Appreciating the wins are key to sustaining our work and our energy throughout the year!

Looking ahead...we do have 3.5 weeks of uninterrupted instruction.  How we set the tone now will be the foundation for our year ahead.  Help our kids maintain this excitement and setting into routine by establishing strong patterns of consistency.

• Names & Connections.  Make sure to get everyone's names and make it a point to connect individually with each person by the end of this week (even if it's just a single question about their summer or their day).  As the adults, your positive attention and connection means A LOT.  Be generous with it this week!
  
  
• Cell Phones & Focus.  Coming off of the summer and unfettered access to their phones, kids are going to need constant reminders, and we are all going to feel like broken records - but that is what it will take to teach them how to develop the executive functioning it takes to accountably manage their attention in class.
  
  
• Open each period with a 90 second countdown for students to get ready.  Invite student to plug in phones at the front of class, or turn them off and put them inside their bags (not on their bodies).  If they are wearing smart watches, ask them to put the watches on theater mode.  This slide deck can help you explain why this is so important in class.
  
  
• Remember - to check constantly THROUGHOUT the class period.  Kids will need reminders.  Remind them to put phones away.  On the 2nd reminder, instruct them to plug it in at the front of class (or store at the front of class, if you do not yet have a charging station).
  
  
  
• Engagement & Movement. THE BEST way to get kids to focus on class (and not their phones) is to get them moving and/or talking.  Random groups, working while standing (vertical surfaces), and discussion are three strategies that you can easily use to stimulate student thinking and engagement in the lesson activities.  If you feel that the energy is flagging in class - get them UP and moving and/or get them TALKING about something interesting.

This 3+ week stretch is how you will ground your class for the year.  Focus on establishing strong emotional support in your classroom and with your students.  Use the CLASS Domain Guide to help you.   In particular, think about the moves you can make to establish routines and habits establish firm foundations and cultivate 

• Positive Climate (Elevate JOY) - Create mutual enthusiasm for learning in your classroom.
  
  
• Teacher Sensitivity (Center RIGOR & EQUITY) - See your instruction through the eyes of your students.  Take on their perspectives and make the adjustments necessary to make lessons more accessible AND challenging & more relevant AND reflective of who they are.
  
  
• Regard for Adolescent Perspectives (Grow their POWER).  Make space for and promote student independence and inquiry.  Create and expect space for student ideas and integrate their thinking into the progress of the lesson (sharing student work, integrating student ideas into discussions, making space in the lesson for student voice and choice)
  
  
• And never forget....Love, Live and Breathe the STEM.  Remember to review your lesson (and your own dispositional thinking) to accentuate and create opportunities for STEM thinking - curiosity, problem solving, and innovation.

I recognize that these are big asks, but I also recognize that each of you were chosen to work at UAI because of your amazing talents!    In the coming weeks, I do not expect perfection but I do expect you to show how you are committed to can continually improve.   

Ask for student feedback.  Ask for colleague feedback.  Record your classes and watch the video for your own personal feedback (or feedback from a colleague, ILT lead, or supervisor (Kiri/Annie).  Continually strive to take it to the next level - both because you can AND because our kiddos deserve your best!

Important Upcoming Dates

• THU 26SEP24 - IN PERSON Curriculum Night 5-8PM

Announcements & To Dos

Monday PD.  Monday staff PD begins in the Farm (205F) at 3:30PM.  Please be respectful of the time and make sure you are on time.  2:50-3:30 is teacher work time and office hours. Please begin to wrap up by 3:25 so you have time to get to the farm by 3:30.  Please sit in Subject Teams + Middle School.  This Monday's Agenda

• 3:30 Kiri Welcome -  Kiri welcomes and gives overview of the PD
  
  
• 3:35 School Culture Student Activities Committee.  Shan will introduce the student activities committee to share some of the ideas she has on the docket for the year.  Marsha will be her ILT support and together, they are looking to really step up student and UAI culture.  
  
  
• 3:45 Intervention Work with New Visions.  A resuming of our work from last week's PD to create the intervention groups for MP1
  
  
• 4:15 Google Classrooms and Sync Grades.  Sync Grades is the online tool we use to track student PII and take period attendance.  The goal is to have it up and running for Tuesday with staff trained on the basics (accessing classes and connecting Google Classrooms).  

NOTE:  I'm working on setting up SyncGrades AND New Visions accounts with DOE logins - this should all be ready to go by PD on Monday.  So, please don't be concerned if it's not ready until then!

Committee Sign Up.  We are looking for staff to sign up for various committees & teams to help UAI become even better.  Please complete this FORM by this FRIDAY 13SEP24

Here they are

School Culture Committee.  This committee will be led by Shan (with Marsha being leadership support).  The goal of this committee is to elevate student voice, create more opportunities for all students to have joyous & strong experiences in school, and for our UAI community and identify to deepen and strengthen as a whole.  More details on the committee to follow during Monday PD.  Per Session available for activities with students.  Meeting time for planning and prep is limited to 1 hour per week.

Equity Team:  As we begin a new school year at UAI, we're looking to continue and build our RPET (Restorative Practices Equity Team) and launch this year's equity work. Last year's RPET's mission: 

The Restorative Practices Equity Team (RPET) is responsible for providing an inclusive, culturally aware, and equitable environment for all students/staff. Our mission is to educate our community on how we can foster an environment where different perspectives and cultures are accepted and respected despite differences. 

Our three main objectives are: 

1. Create structures and systems of support that empower our community to continue to become one where all stakeholders of all backgrounds feel that they belong and are valued.
2. Educate all students and staff about our diverse backgrounds and learn how to respect and accept all who are different from us 
3. We will work actively towards becoming an anti-racist, fully inclusive, caring community that proactively builds community and education to reduce instances of all types of identity-based bias. 

This year's focus is to be determined but the core of the work will be driven by the idea noted in the first sentence above: "...[being] responsible for providing an inclusive, culturally aware, and equitable environment for all students/staff." Equity work is hard work, but it's essential we challenge ourselves to commit to it not only for the students we teach, but for ourselves, our school community and the community at-large. 

Per session is available to 1 hour per week for meeting and planning and for after/before school events 

Recruitment Committee.  This committee will support Jen in planning, executing, and following up on all recruitment activities for the Fall 2024 recruitment seasons.  There are significant after school, weekend, and in-day time commitments as we are intensifying our work this year.  You do not have to participate in all, but you do need to commit and follow through on some if you choose to join the committee.  Jen will lead the committee with team support.  Per session available for 1 hour a week meeting and for after/before school events.

Staff Sunshine Committee.  This is strictly a volunteer committee - primarily because it can't be per sessionable without kids being the direct recipients.  Unlike the other committees, this committee is really aimed about building camaraderie and community of the adults on staff, and while important, the DOE can't use tax dollars to do that....BUT it is important, and we do need more than just my or Annie's or Jen's brain thinking about how we uplift the well-being of our UAI grownups.  Please join if you can!

Other Committee.  If you have another idea for a committee, please do submit it!  Just because it's not here doesn't mean that it's not important!  Share your thinking.  It may be a blindspot in our school, and we'll make it happen.  (It's also possible that your identified need is being addressed in the work of another body - we'll let you know if that's the case too!)

Staff Social.  To kickoff the adult community building, the ILT (Marsha, Phillan, Judy, Liza, and Kelly) are hosting our first social.  A back to school Staff Social at the local Pub down the street from the school.  All are invited to join at Randolph Brewery.  Meet in front of the school for a group walkover at 3:15PM!!

After School or Lunch Time Clubs Sign Up.  All staff are encouraged to offer lunch time and/or after school clubs for students.   All clubs should be a confluence of teacher interest and student interest.  Examples of clubs in the past have been:  Guitar Club, Piano, Mural Painting, Running, Dungeons & Dragons, Photography, Youth Leadership Council, Gay Straight Alliance, Muslim American Club, Journaling, Journalism, National Honor Society,  Spanish Club, STEM Club, and more! 

If you have an interest that you think kids would be interested in, sign up to share!!  Please sign up by Friday 13SEP24.  All before and after school clubs are per sessionable (and max meet 3 hours per week).  Clubs must have at least 10 students that attend regularly to remain active.  Lunch time clubs will be eligible for coverage pay and staff must collect students from the cafeteria.

Last Day for Program Change Requests.  The last day that students can request to change programs is Monday, 09SEP24 at 3PM.  This gives a chance for kids who didn't come last week to make a request to change.  This way we can work on making all the changes and balance groups to finalize programs by Friday.  The goal is that all program movements are settled by Friday (substantively - we'll still have to make changes as new students arrive), and that we settle into our pattern for the year by Monday 16SEP24.

Per Session Postings

For ALL per session activities, please complete Per Session Application Form

Classroom SetUp and Planning.  12 hours total.  All Classroom Staff (Teachers & Paras) are eligible.  Tue 27-29Aug .