Monday, January 8, 2018



Weekly Memo
WM 20, January 8-12, 2018

Last week was packed, making a four day week seem like five or more. Thank you Claire, for presenting about mindfulness. Your presentation was moving, informative and provided a powerful rationale for us to continue integrating mindfulness into classes and faculty experiences across Lower School. Thanks to Sarah and the Admissions Team and all who participated in the Information Night last Thursday. Prospective parents left the event better informed about OES and more impressed with what you do for our students. And finally, thanks to Kirstin for organized an excellent Primary Coffee on Friday that featured Chris O’Toole sharing about the program and former Primarians and parents of Primarians sharing about their experience. The student and parent testimonials were a powerful reminder of how fortunate we are to be able to offer the Primary program to our students.

This week begins and ends with coffees and then we head out into a three day weekend in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr.

LS Faculty Norms
  • Do what is best for the students
  • Assume we are all doing our best at the moment and our intentions are positive
  • Be present, participate, contribute, include many voices
  • Create a safe space that encourages sharing different opinions, ideas, perspectives
  • Seek understanding, be curious about what others think
  • Express gratitude, joy and encouragement
  • Communicate with compassion, clarity and effectiveness
  • Demonstrate respect

We continue our new Weekly Memo format with repeat items in blue and new items in black.


 COMMUNITY

Gathering and Chapel - Please be seated and ready at 8:10.
Note several changes to regular routine.
Lower School Chapel Schedule for 2017-2018
  • Tuesday January 9 Chapel
  • Friday January 12 Gathering (Kirstin, David in P/1 Coffee)
Winter Coffees - They start up right after our return from break
Classroom Coverage for Coffees
Remember that if you are the team member attending your winter Grade Level Coffee to arrange for coverage of your classroom.  If you need assistance with this, please see Lyn.

Stephanie Rankin on leave
Michael Gundle is teaching Stephanie’s classes during Stephanie’s leave. Michael has decided he wants to become a teacher, so is thrilled to have this opportunity. Scott and Jessica will be team teaching Prekindergarten and Primary.

Jeffrey Reduced Work Hours
Jeffrey will be working reduced hours for the month of January to facilitate some health related recovery. If you have questions or need to schedule any tech assistance please let him know so he can work them into this schedule. He will be working mostly the first 3/4 of the day leaving between 1:30 and 2:30 each day, with a late start on Mondays at 8:30. As always oeshelp@oes.edu is the best way to get urgent Technology help.

Admissions
Re-enrollment Contracts
Admissions sends out re-enrollment contracts next week. Let us know of any families who are talking about other plans for next year. Have families contact jen Bash if they have questions about financial aid.

Plans for 2018-19
Thanks to those of you who have responded. See Peter’s email for context or simply take a few moments to fill out the survey LINKED here. Deadline is this Friday, 1/12.

Playground Update
Brian and crew are making progress; battling the elements and overcoming unanticipated challenges such as new safety requirements and unexpected discoveries during excavations.  Once the construction is done we will likely need about a week for finalizing details and a safety inspection. We are planning on having a grand opening when the time is right followed by safety training sessions with individual classes before the playground is open for general use. Thanks for your understanding and patience.

Occupational Therapist
We have a new Lower School collaboration with independent Occupational Therapist Sally Stauffer.  Please see these detailed notes from Ari about Sally’s experience as well as how you might access her services in the future for children who need support, including on-campus screenings and evaluations. All referrals are made through Ari.

Stairwell Safety
Just a reminder that students should be supervised at all times when in exterior stairwells. If you are transitioning at a different time than classes traveling with a supervising teacher, you should supervise your class until they reach their destination.

Parent Speaker
Amy Morin, PCL Speaker, 1/17/18 at 3:30 and 7:00
Save the date for Amy Morin, author of 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do, who will be on campus on Wednesday, January 17, 2018, as part of PAL's Community Enrichment Speaking Series. Attendance is optional for faculty, though I encourage you all to attend.

Students Updates
The SST Agenda, includes the names of students that we have discussed. Please review each week.
The SST Site holds lots of valuable information which is helpful as we learn student’s history and as a way of communicating student action plans as we move forward. The SST Site is linked in the Weekly Memo and can only be accessed on campus.


 PROGRAM

Faculty Meetings
  • Monday, 01/08 - Department, BY/IY
  • Thursday, 01/11 - AS (Calendar focus)
  • Monday, 01/15 - NO Meeting, MLK Day
  • Thursday, 01/18 - Professional growth Block
  • Monday, 01/22 - State of the School
Report Timeline
The revised calendar is intended to give you more consistent time in class in January and more  time for your students to settle into the new year before you need to complete assessments. The reporting timeline looks like this:
    • 2/9 – Report Writing
    • 2/12 - Due
    • 2/14 - End of day all posted in PCR
    • 2/16 – posted to Parent Portal/ ERB’s mailed
    • 2/19 - holiday
    • 3/1 & 3/2 - Conferences
Lamb Endowment to support science research and program development
See Erin’s email about it. Deadline for applications is January 22.

Mindfulness Resources
A big thanks to Claire for sharing her own mindfulness story and important information with us at the faculty meeting on Thursday. Claire has compiled a collection of mindfulness resources she’d like to share with you: you can access them here, including the video Why Mindfulness is a Superpower and other wry animated animal wisdom.

Yes Brain
Want to share an introduction to concepts in The Yes Brain with your families to encourage them to read along with our community? Try one of these videos, (one of the last two on the page) which run about 2 min. Here’s the related blurb you can share with families:
The Yes Brain Parent-Teacher Discussion Group – SAVE THE DATE
Save the dates for a series of book-based parent and teacher conversations that will build connection and community as we discuss Daniel Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson’s newest research around strengthening reliance, balance and social-emotional growth in our children. The Yes Brain is available for pre-order through this form before 1/8: we expect the books to be delivered to OES by Friday, January 19th.
Dates: Tuesday evenings January 30, February 20 and March 6, 2018
Time: 7:30-9pm
Location: Lower School Library
We hope you can join us!

Primary Conversations
We have completed initial conversations about primary candidates and begin conversations with parents next week. If you were unable to attend the discussion please send feedback about any students who you would like us to consider for Primary.

Videos
Jeffrey has prepared a folder for us for LS Professional Development videos. Currently you can access videos of the Purpose to Practice Fishbowl from our Faculty meeting as well as Patricia Polacco’s BY Library visit from last year.

Thinking Routines
It’s been great to see so many thinking routines applied in classrooms this fall. If you are wanting to expand your toolbox in the new year, Project Zero has published several new Visible Thinking routines in four categories (see below).  

Lesson Plan Reminder
When you leave lesson plans for Guest Teachers, please note that their day ends at 3:15. Your plans should indicate this--Guest Teachers are expected to work on brief notes to you about your class during non-student contact time in the day or in the moments after dismissal, but they should check out from the office at 3:15 pm. Thank you for your help with this detail!

Faculty Meeting Follow-up
Thanks for all of your participation at the Faculty Meeting on Thursday, with some special gratitude to the 4th grade team for sharing their work and Kristen H. for documenting our process.  The Fishbowl chart, color-key and questions are in the faculty room for temporary viewing, but here are some digital resources for your team access longer-term:
We look forward to hearing more about what you are learning about each other and your own practice as you delve into these conversations with colleagues.

Summer Programs Teaching
You heard from Kati, Chelsea, Shannon and Meghan.
If you are interested in teaching in our OES Summer Program, please fill out one form for each class or idea to the best of your ability.  You can access the form HERE.
We are looking to grow a few areas: Design, Lego Building, Service Learning, Cooking, Film and Animation, Drawing, and Painting.

OES Google 2 Factor Authentication requirement
  • OES Requires the use of 2-factor authentication for all of our Google accounts.
  • The Link to get you started
  • The Link to show the different ways of getting your personal codes.
After your initial authorization all users will be required to re-verify every 30 days through:
  • a smartphone with an app
  • a phone that can receive a text or
  • one-time login codes for your account
Please sign up for this extra level of security as soon as possible. Please either open a ticket with oeshelp@oes.edu or connect with your divisional tech coordinator if you need assistance. Failure to enroll will shut you out of your account after we enable enforcement of the policy on Thursday January 24th.


 OPERATIONS

ALL LS employees: TIme Cards need to be approve twice a month.
EVERY MONTH you need to login to ADP on the 17th and End of Month (at the end of the day) to approve your timecard. We’ve added a reminder on the faculty calendar. You can find the link to ADP on the right sidebar of the Weekly Memo.

SCHOOL CLOSURE PROCEDURES
  • We generally make a decision—school as usual, two hour delay, or no school—shortly after 5:00 AM.
  • Decisions are announced to employees and families using the Honeywell Instant Alert system.  If you have not signed up for this service, or if you want to change the details of your subscription, here is the link to the instructions :  https://www.oes.edu/uploaded/contacts/enrollment-instructions.pdf.  If you need help troubleshooting your account, please contact Rebecca Williams
  • Most of us have some work responsibilities on days when school is cancelled.  If you are unsure what these are, please check with your supervisor and consult the Employee Handbook (Section 3.7, School Closure Due to Inclement Weather).
Accident/Incident Form
We have a NEW Incident/Accident Report Form  created by Brad K.  It is posted on the employees’ website. The responses/data will go automatically to Rebecca and Elaine.  No more handwriting and scanning, etc…We will pull the hard copies out in the office. Please begin filling the I/A form online starting next week. The link is also included under “Lower School Common Forms and Relevant Information” (in the right sidebar of the WM).

Three SubFinder Reminders
  • Be sure your regular sub hours are set for 7:30 - 3:15
  • Specialists, be sure your regular hours match your schedule with 20 minutes of prep time before the day begins and 20 minutes after the day is done for clean-up and communication
  • Request planned sick days at least 3 days in advance.
Food Service
Kelly is always juggling the desire to provide great food and service with cost management and waste reduction. Three things that could help Kelly and the food service team.
  1. In the Dining Commons, Kelly will put out an extra pitcher of milk that a duty teacher use when the milk is all gone from the table. Please promptly return the bonus milk pitcher to the food service area for others to use.
  2. When children are eating more than the anticipated amount of an offering, Kelly will call up to the kitchen to get more. Please be patient while we wait for more food to come down.
  3. Help reduce waste by proving moderate portions to children and encouraging them to eat what is on their plate.
Bus Cost: $50/hr or $2.75/mi
Information Organization
 LS Common Forms & other Relevant Information in LS Important Documents
Calendar Manager -  LS Calendar information.
Lice Policy - There have been some changes
Field Trips- use the Field Trip Checklist and forms
Ordering materials and supplies - use this Order Form and Order Tracking List
Amazon orders - OES Amazon Business Account
Curriculum, Furniture and Students Services Supplies - Contact your division Assistant Head Trips around and off campus - be sure Ls Office knows where you are
Disease Prevention - health department predicting an early  and heavy influenza outbreak
SmartFind Express Reminders - Use SmartFind Express to report all absences
Field Trip Budgets - approximately $1500 per grade.
Food From Home - must have approval from the nurse
TIME SHEET -Fill out your timesheet digitally in ADP and approve it twice a month

Your Announcements
Send any announcements you have for faculty to Kirstin, Chris or David by Thursday each week August-June and we will include them in the Weekly Memo.  This should help reduce the number of emails we are receiving, and maximize our time to collaborate during meetings.
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