What's Up With That Finger?

So this is funny, huh? I've had a few people awkwardly ask me if everything is okay. To which I replied "Sure is! How about you?" A few have pressed on, is everything okay with TJ and you? And that's when I clued in. Ah Ha! Odd blog entry, but maybe I can catch everyone here in case you've been wondering too but didn't want to ask ;) Always ask anything....btw! This summer TJ and I played together on a beach volleyball league. We had a blast. However, during one game, I attempted to return a serve with a bad set. Poor form. I broke my finger. My finger is still way too swollen to get that ring even close to sliding back on. Interestingly, I had also sustained a concussion a few weeks earlier that took a bit to recover from. Two take aways? Maybe 44-year-olds should think twice about playing beach volleyball against people half their age (or at least I should think twice!) and TJ and I are happily married, communicate regularly and pray for many more years of doing life together. Wonder anything else? Feel free to ask! :D 

Thank you for your work at the staff meeting today. I will get that Grandparents Day order out to you soon. There are a few other tidbits and considerations for you listed below. Homecoming Game tomorrow. Dress cozy and maroon gear if you have any!

Beautiful Gate Chapel
For your calendar, we will have our annual Beautiful Gate combined chapel on October 17. Due to whatever time zone they live in, we have to adjust our chapel start time. We will START chapel at 8:45 on Wednesday, October 17. Several high school students who worked at Beautiful Gate this summer will share stories of their experience with us. At 9:00, we will pull up our little friends on FaceTime and sing together. Preschool, guess what! This means you can come too if you'd like and you're available. No need to worry about being able to sit perfectly still yet. All are welcome!

Assessment Season
Thank you for working through round 1 of MAP assessments! Remind yourselves when you see little ones just clicking through the screens this is just one piece of the "pie" when we look at student data. Your running records and math assessments truly provide us with the clearest picture of each child, particularly at this age.

Delta Math for 1st & 2nd Grade Only 
Speaking of assessments (I know...this feels like a lot), our Delta window just opened. For first and second grate teachers, would you please administer the Delta screener sometime before October 1? October 1 will be the week of our first round of data meetings. We'll need this assessment to gain a picture of students' skills and readiness. Here's a refresher on Delta since it's been since last spring:

1. What is Delta Math?
2. Preparation for Readiness Screening
3. Video of teacher leading class through assessment http://www.screencast.com/t/aFhwxuxb6
4. Decided how your students will get to https://inqwizit.oaisd.org/
5. Website: http://www.deltamath.org/
1. Username: deltamath
2. Password: math4all
1. Grade level screening packets
2. Grade level intervention lessons
6. Data: Generating Reports
7. Winter screening window December 5-16
8. Building data meetings TBD

Data Meetings During the Week of October 1
Here's what we've penciled in thus far:
First grade: Tuesday, October 2 from 12:45-1:45
Kindergarten: Thursday, October 4 from 11:45-12:30
Second Grade: Thursday, October 4 from 12:45-1:45

We'll examine the MAP, Delta Screener and Running Records of our students using the spreadsheets linked above.

PD Day on Friday, September 28
Breakfast begins at 8:00 on main street in the high school. We'll be engaged in a variety of work until 3:00 on Friday.

We're Hiring
Well....not exactly. Just trying to put out an enthusiastic ask. Amanda Bohle used to represent our South Side community on the School Improvement Team. She has relinquished that post when we moved to Zeeland. Imagine that! Before individually starting to ask people, I thought I'd toss it out to the group. Does anyone feel called to represent South Side and voice our perspective as the School Improvement Team continues their work in moving HC forward toward our Accreditation Goals? It really is a fun, productive group who is getting good work done.

We have one curricular review group that does not have a South Side rep. The Technology group needs a South Side representative. If you currently do not serve on a curricular review group and you are interested in ALL of the learning and advancement we can make with our tech tools at HC, would you please let me know? We'll happily accept your offer to help our South Siders grow in this important area of learning.