Welcome to Week 27!  Spring Break is truly around the corner. Thanks to Tracy and his troupe of thespians for their great Peanut musical. Once again, stars emerged- some expected, some unexpected, in this great production.  Thanks for your hard work and willingness to take risks! 

COMMUNITY

Trustee Visiting Day, 3/19,  Canceled!

Teaching Candidates Visit This Week
Erin Baker, a finalist for the 3rd grade position, will be visiting for the day on Monday.
Sara Tretter, a finalist for the 5th grade position, will be visiting for the day on Tuesday.

The Amazing Food Detective- Oregon Children’s Theater 3/20 at 10am
Pre-K through Third Grade will gather in the gym to see a performance presented by the Oregon Children’s Theater. See description, http://www.octc.org/schoolservices/etp
Please be seated and ready to go by 10am.

Old Market Pub -
Thanks to those who stopped by to share beverages, appetizers and conversation with colleagues. Great to know that you do enjoy getting together. Based on positive feedback we will certainly plan another gathering later in the spring.

PROGRAM

Faculty Meeting on Monday
All LS School faculty and staff will in the Lower School Library at 3:15 for a brief update on Self Study and additions to the Lower School.

Faculty Meeting on Thursday
Classroom teachers will work on Self Study documents. As we discussed during LSCTF,  plan to use the Essential Competencies as a tool for reflection as you prepare to make recommendations for your section. Specialists teachers will meet in the art room to hear updates on students of concern.

Self Study Update
The remaining Self Study faculty meetings are scheduled to ensure time to complete the report and scope and sequence documents.  Based on the update at the LSCTF meeting, all 4 vertical groups; BS, English, Math and Social Studies, are on or ahead of schedule.

TH 3/22	LS Vertical Groups	Draft/ Revise content
MON 4/2	LS Curriculum	WOL and Laura Benson Literacy work
TH 4/5	LS Vertical	Draft content
TH 4/12	LS Vertical	Revise content/ Scope and Sequence
MON 4/16	LS Curriculum	Revise content/ Scope and Sequence
Th 4/19	LS Vertical	Finish Revisions.
FR 5/3	LS Curriculum	All drafts due

Laura Benson’s Visit
Google Doc Lunch Order for Wonder of Learning Tour, April 2nd, Beginning School teachers, and others staying for the full day, please be sure to order a box lunch on the Google doc.  Lyn will need to submit our lunch order on Monday.  BA needs two week notice to process orders.

April 2nd and 3rd Professional Development Days – Proposed schedule

Monday, April 2 - Specialist Teachers
See details from Department Chairs and Angels.

Monday, April 2 – Wonders of Learning Exhibit               
8:30 – 3:30    Beginning School
8:30 – 12:00    1st and 2nd Grades

Monday, April 2 – Laura Benson
Science Discovery Room
8:00 - 9:00      3rd – 5th meet together to go over continuum
9:15 - 12:15    3rd – 5th work on reading continuum with Laura
12:15 - 1:00    Lunch
1:15 - 3:15     1st and 2nd work on reading continuum with Laura
1:15 - 3:15     3rd – 5th continue work on reading continuum in grade level groups
                      Or review and comment on self-study work in grade level groups

Tuesday, April 3rd – Laura Benson – work dependent on Needs Survey
Morris House Conference Room
8:00 – 10:00             1st and 2nd
10:15-lunch-12:45    3rd Grade
1:00 – 3:00               4th and 5th Grade
3:30 – 4:30               Faculty Meeting

Wonder of Learning Tour, April 4rd,  for Parents
Kindergarten teachers will attend the luncheon at Portland’s Racquet Club.  Jenny will line up EC teachers to cover your classes from 11:30-2:30. Please provide sub plans. Chris and David will join them for lunch.

Spring and Summer Conference Links

Cadwell Collaborative- “Myth Busters, Learning for the Future,” April 19-20
http://cadwellcollaborative.com/

Opal School- Reading the World, Literacy, Creativity and Sustainability- May 24-25

http://www.portlandcm.org/shop/Reading-the-World.html

ISTE
http://www.isteconference.org/2012/

NAREA Summer Symposium, June 22- 24 http://www.reggioalliance.org/narea/summer_conference/current.php

Lucy Calkins’ Readers and Writers Workshop and Teachers College Columbia U. at NYC- Find dates on web site
http://tc.readingandwritingproject.com/institutes/tc-summer-institutes

We are looking into possibly bringing the RWP to our campus

http://tc.readingandwritingproject.com/institutes/home-grown-institutes


OPERATIONS

Lower School Leadership Team, 3/22
3/22/2012        
Calendar Check - April - June         COT    3:15:00
2012-13 Calendar Highlights          COT    3:30:00
New Lower School Building            COT    3:45:00
Open items                                        All       4:00:00

Mini Aardvark Concerns
Chris Thompson reports that she frequently sees Fourth and Fifth Graders climbing on the roof of Mini-Aardvark.  She says that she has had conversations with folks on duty about this concern.  
Please remind your students that they are absolutely not allowed to climb on the exterior walls and roof of Mini Aardvark.  Folks on duty, please be vigilant and be sure students are playing safely on this structure.

David out on 3/22
Chris O’Toole will be in charge

Have a great restful and renewing Spring Break and safe travels if you are venturing far from home.

David and Chris

Welcome to Week 26! Thanks to all who came out and volunteered at the annual Auction. Many Beginning and Lower School parents attended- a sign of their support of the great work that you do every day with their children.
Last week’s spring-like weather was so renewing.  Two more weeks to the much needed Spring Break! Hang in there!

COMMUNITY


Critical Lower School Family Update
The Donegan family is going through some very difficult times.  At the present time, Laura Donegan, mother of Jordan in Kindergarten, is not allowed on campus nor to have any contact with Jordan during any school related function.  If she does appear on campus notify the LS Office immediately.

Hiring Update

1st - 5th
We are well on our way with the hiring process after having reviewed dozens of resumes.  We are in the process of interviewing semifinalists fro the positions, inviting finalists to campus as we find them.  Thank Lyn fro coordinating interviews and grade level teams for your flexibility with the scheduling.

Pre-k Substitute
The two finalists for teaching with Colesie during Lauren’s maternity leave are visiting this week.  We will have a decision by the end of the week.

Atilierista
Congratulations to Laura Foster Flynn.  She has enthusiastically accepted the Beginning School Atelierista (Integrated Arts Specialist) position. We are pleased to have someone with such creativity and artistic experience join our faculty.


5th Grade Play
For some fun and fine music come and see Tracy Arensberg’s class perform “Peanuts”, a comic musical.

Community Celebration - Old Market Pub
We are completing one of the most challenging seasons in school that I have experienced. And you have done it with energy, enthusiasm, and professionalism. Thank you. Let's celebrate!  

When: Friday, March 16 at 3:30 - whenever
Where: Old Market Pub
How: I buy the first round of beverages and appetizers.  You come and enjoy free food, drink and good company.


PROGRAM

Next Friday’s Assembly
Our next Pillar is fairness.  Beginning School friends will present, with the help of our resident composer and musician, Dave Hall.  Our thanks to Dave for leading the charge!

Amazing Food Detective, March 20th @ 10 in the Gym, Kindergarten through Third Grade
Be sure to get this Oregon Children’s Theater performance on your calendars.  It promises to be fun and informative.

Laura Benson Returns April 2nd and 3rd
Laura will be returning to work with 1st - 5th grades on  April 2nd and 3rd. LSCTF will finalize plans for her visit when we meet on Thursday.  Take some time to discuss with you grade level team how you would most like to use Laura during her visit.  I have forwarded some suggestions from Laura to spark ideas.

The Wonder of Learning Exhibit at the Portland Children’s Museum
A group of Beginning and Lower School teachers and specialists will tour with Judy Graves on April 2nd.  A group of interested Beginning and Lower School  parents will tour the exhibit on Wed., April 4th. Our thanks to Catherine Wilmott and Kim Bissell for arranging this great opportunity.
There are volunteer slots available for Thursday’s at the Wonder of Learning Exhibit. Our thanks to those of you who have signed up to help out.

Professional Development - ISTE, Lucy Calkins, NAREA Summer Symposium at Opal School
There are several significant professional development opportunities that happen during the summer, including the three mentioned above. If you are interested, I ask that you decide which one PGD event you are most interested in and inform me.  I want to be able to allocate PGD funds intentionally.

LS Faculty Meeting - 3:15 DVR
3:15    Appreciations
3:20    Brain Research 3
3:30    Report card Debrief -
3:45    New LS Building - programmatic WHY
4:00    Self Study Check in
   Announcements - PGD Day, LB Visit, Pub

LSCTF
3/15/2012
Self Study Check in
Laura Benson Visit 4/2, 4/3

OPERATIONS

Exiting for Recess
Please remind your children to walk down the stairs to recess. First and Second Grade children bolt out of the building at a very unsafe pace.  Fourth and Fifth Graders need reminders to slow down as well.

Lower School Leadership Team
We had good discussions around Trudy Ludwig (great for parents and grades 2-5th, not so appropriate for younger students, need time to reflect, build on pro-social behaviors), recess equipment (need greater accountability, RAZ to inventory once a month, 4th and 5th Graders and EC to lock up at the end of recess and the end of the day), and what to hand up to new teachers at the end of each year (reading assessments, end-of-year math assessments and letter to next year’s teacher, new suggestions- perhaps a self-selected student writing sample and self portrait).  Teams will discuss portfolio items this week.  We will return to this subject at the next Leadership Team meeting on March 22nd.

Summer Projects
David and Chris will be reviewing summer projects with Jon von Behren before Spring Break.  If you have special summer projects in mind, please let us know. The official request will go out as usual after Spring Break.

Assistant Teacher’s Supervision and Evaluation
Please be sure to complete your supervision and evaluation work with your assistants by Spring Break, or the first week of April at the latest. We want to get those documents to Lori Shelby in a timely manner.  Please give a copy of the supervisor and assistant teacher’s documents  to Lyn.

The first day of spring is around the corner. Enjoy the cheery daffodils, crocuses and flower trees on campus.  What a delight! Thanks for your hard work and dedication!

Welcome to Week 25! The first full week of March...March 5th through March 9th.  The weeks leading up to Spring break tend to ramp up, as students anticipate their upcoming vacation.  With any luck, the weather will begin to moderate and we will all be dealing with Spring Fever.  Please be vigilant out on the playground and in the lunchroom.

COMMUNITY

Trudy Ludwig’s Visit
We will discuss Trudy’s visit at Leadership Team on Thursday.  Communicate with your LSLT representative if you have feedback.

OES Auction on Saturday
A portion of auction proceeds goes to our professional development fund...we all benefit from this big fundraising event!
If you want to have a good time, volunteer for a good cause and hang out with colleagues and parents from all three divisions- log on to Volunteer Spot and sign up to help out at the auction. 

Hiring
David was up at NAIS interviewing Thursday and Friday and returned with 3 strong candidates to consider.  Hiring Committees are beginning phone interviews.

Math Specialist
We are very pleased to announce that Tracy Arensberg has accepted the Math Specialist position for next year.  Please join me in congratulating Tracy on his new position.  We have begun the search for a new 5th Grade Teacher.


PROGRAM

Fifth Grade Writing Assessment
Please be especially quiet in the Fourth and Fifth Grade wings on Tuesday and Wednesday morning.

Laura Benson Visit
We will be checking in with Laura on this week to finalize plans for her visit on April 2nd and 3rd.  Our original plan was to have Laura work with teams on use of the Reading Continuum on Monday and then to continue with reading coaching sessions on Tuesday.  LSCTF members please let us know your grade level plan and we will coordinate.

AS Faculty Meeting Monday
Meet in Dining Hall at 3:15.

Thursday Morning Meeting:  K-12 Departments & LS curriculum
The faculty meeting on Thursday is a K-12 Department and LS Curriculum meeting.  Specialists will be meeting with K-12 departments, but the LS meeting will be dedicated to the Self Study work.  We will not gather as a group, but have you meet in usual locations to continue the work.  Let Chris or David know if your group has particular quesitons.

TH, 3/8

LS Vertical Groups

Discuss questions, take notes, determine research. Revisit questions, refine response.

Cadwell Collaborative
Division Heads and Academic Dean will be meeting with Cadwell Collaborative on Thursday to discuss inquiry based project as PreK-12 focus for next year. Look for an update in next weeks Weekly Memo post.

OPERATIONS

Assistant Teachers Supervision and Evaluation
Assistant Teachers supervision and evaluations should be completed before spring break, early at the latest. Our aim is to have all evaluations completed and letters of employment issued in May.

Benefits Committee
The Benefits Committee will be meeting with 4 insurance providers on Tuesday to hear each provider’s new health care benefit proposal. David will be representing the Lower School.  Please contact him if you have questions you would liek him to pursue with the different providers.

Recess Equipment
We need to have a better recess equipment managmeent plan so we do not lose so many recess items.  If you have ideas let your LSLT representative know as we will be discuss ing this at Leadarship Team.

LSLT - 3:15 on 3-8 in Marty’s Room
We will be addressing the following topics:

Trudy Ludwig visit
Recess Equipment Management
Portfolios - what gets past up to the next grade

Stay healthy and well and have a great week! 

Welcome to Week 24, February 27th though March 2nd. Four more weeks to Spring Break. It promises to be a busy week, with a number of special events.  Be sure to check calendars for details.

COMMUNITY

Arts Week
Take time to explore the art displays around campus this week. It will be truly inspiring! Thanks Shelley and Margaret for highlighting our talented students’ work!

Hiring
With Admissions season almost behind us, Chris and David’s attention is shifting to hiring the four positions for next year; Math Specialist, Beginning School Atilierista, 1st and 3rd Grade Teachers. Thank you to the many internal candidates who have expressed interest and presented themselves so well.  Thank you in advance to the hiring committees as we begin scheduling interviews and eventually visits.

Recess Duty Asthma Attack
Last week a student had a significant accident induced asthma attack during recess.  At the time there was only a single person on duty.  The duty teacher did the right thing by sending students in to get help.  The event serves as reminder to all of us how important being on duty and on time can be. The student was fine after being calmed down and using an inhaler.  We will now have a school issued inhaler available in the Lower School Office.

Tonya and Claire
Claire and Tonya will continue to partner in class this week, with Tonya having her first full solo day on Friday.

Trudy Ludwig Visits Friday, March 2nd
Trudy will have a full day of presentations to parents and then students. Check the YAAG for presentation times. Trudy will meet with teachers over lunch in the library. We hope to discuss how we can implement strategies which will promote healthy social lives of our children.

PROGRAM

Work on the Reading and Writing Continuum
First and Second Grade teams met on Friday to delve into how to use the reading and writing continuum as a reporting tool.  They did exciting work connecting the reading continuum to CAFE strategies and the writing continuum to Lucy Caulkin’s Writers Workshop lessons.  
We are hoping that 3rd through 5th Grade teams will (not simultaneously please) take time to come to agreement on how to use the reading and writing continuum next year.

LS Faculty Meetings
The faculty meetings on both 2/27 and 3/1 will be dedicated to self-study work.  Plan on using both sessions to meet in your vertical groups; Beginning School, Math, English and Social Studies, to discuss the self-study questions. Record notes from your conversation in your Google doc.

Lower School Curriculum Task Force Meeting, Mar. 1st
First through Fifth Grade LSCTF members meet in Chris Thompson’s room to talk about recent Literacy work and plans for Laura Benson’s visit April 2nd and 3rd. BS teachers do not need to attend. BS teachers may use the time to work on Self Study documents or plans for our meeting with Judy on April 2nd.  Neither Chris nor David will be in attendance.
 
Professional Development
This May's Learning and the Brain Conference is focused on "Web-Connected Minds: How Technology Transforms Brains, Teaching and Attention."  This seems like an interesting opportunity as we explore more ways of integrating technology into the classroom. Please let me know if you're interested in attending.

A few of you have expressed interest in the Reading and Writing Workshop Institutes for this summer. You can download the brochure from the following webpage: http://readingandwritingproject.com/institutes/tc-summer-institutes


Fifth Grade Writing Assessment
On Thursday and Friday the Fifth Grade will assess student’s writing ability using an “in-house” five paragraph essay exercise.  Please be mindful of their need for quiet focused work during the early morning hours.

OPERATIONS

Admissions Decisions
This week we wrap up our admissions season.  Our thanks to all for your time and efforts, especially our Pre-K friends who gave up a Saturday in early February.  They even greeted a small group of candidates at the bewitching hour after school last Friday.  
Our thanks to Marty, Jackie, Kiah, Asha, Ari and Patti for taking time to read admissions files last week.  It was a really great exercise.  They came away with lots of suggestions on how we could improve the admissions process next year.  
We have a fine group of prospective candidates.  Sarah, Susie Gundle, David and Chris will review candidates Monday through Wednesday.  Letters will go out to new families early next week.

David and Chris Off Campus This Week
David will be in Seattle Thursday and Friday March 1st and 2nd  interviewing teaching candidates. On Thursday March 1st Chris will be off campus taking a personal day.  Jenny Cleveland and Ari Sternberg will serve as administrators on duty.  Seek them out if you need assistance.

Lunch
Be sure to notify the Kitchen at least 72 hours ahead of time if your class will not be eating in the dining hall. Bon Appetite will credit the Lower School for the lunch expense.

Google Docs
You should all have access to the shared collection of Self Study documents. For future reference, when a document or collection is shared with you, open the email notifying you about the documents and open the Google document.  Once you open the document it will appear in your Google Docs Titles list.

Enjoy one of the first full five-day week after a jumble of short weeks.  January through February are intensely packed with time-soaking demands. Relax and breathe.

February 21- 24
Welcome to Week 23.  Congratulations, you made it through the demanding weeks between assessments, report writing, admissions and conferences. We truly appreciate all of the hard work that went into this sprint of intense demands. Now on to Spring. Daffodils are beginning to bloom on campus!

Community

Hiring Season
We will begin interviewing semifinalists for the four Lower School positions.  Hiring committees, look for communications from Lyn concerning dates and times.

We know that scheduling interviews and observations are challenging, especially for Lyn.  Please be flexible, rearrange teaching schedules and get duties covered.

Contracts Due- Students not Returning?
Wondering, if in your conference discussions you learned about  students who are not returning next year. If so, please let David or Chris know.

Ash Wednesday,  February 22nd
See Jenny Cleveland’s article in the Wednesday Express for details.

Program

LS Faculty Meeting
We will carry on with Self Study work on Thursday morning. Let us know if you have any questions or concerns.  

1st/ 2nd Grade Literacy Work
First and Second Grade teams will take time next week to review the  progress  made thus far and set new goals and objectives for the remainder of this year.

First through Fifth Grade Literacy Work with Laura Benson
David and I plan to chat with Laura Benson some time in the coming week to develop plans for her possible return on April 2nd and 3rd.  We can talk further about plans at next week’s Curriculum Task Force meeting.

Aardvark Science Fair
Great news!  For the very first time, Lower School students can visit the Aardvark Science Fair at SPARC.  The Science Fair is open to the public this week from 8am-5pm on Thursday the 23rd and 6:30-7:30pm on Friday the 24th. We hope you will consider taking your class or visiting the research of some of your former students.

Trudy Ludwig’s Visit on March 2nd
Here’s Trudy’s schedule:

PAL Meets with Trudy- 8-9:30 in the Common Hall
Kindergarten and First Grade Meet with Trudy 9:55-10:40 in the Library
Faculty who signed up for lunch with Trudy- 11-11:45 in the Library
Second and Third Grade Meet with Trudy- 12-12:45
Fourth and Fifth Grade  Meet with Trudy- 1:00-1:50

Another Chance to See the The Finland Phenomenon, Monday, March 5th 6:35-8:45
City Club of Portland is sponsoring a presentation of Finland Phenomenon at the Hollywood Theater.  If you are interested in reserving a seat, follow the link below.  There will be a panel discussion following the film.  
http://pdxcityclub.org/content/schools-making-difference-portraits-excellence-engagement-and-equity

Operations

Calendar Check for the Remainder of 2011-2012 School Year
On Friday Angela, Lyn and Chris reviewed three calendars: the LS Parent event calendar (the one seen on your web sites), the BS and LS Year at a Glance calendar and the AS calendar maintained by Anne Weston.  We got as far as the end of April, and will make time to review May and June some time in the coming week. They all should be in sync now. If you happen to come upon some type of glitch, please let us know so we can adjust.  

2012-13 Calendar Items
It is that time of year...time to think about the AS calendar.  If you can, please forecast when your big events like overnight field trips, plays and parent events, will take place.  

PCR Progress Report Survey
Please take time to complete Angela’s progress report survey. The information she yields will help us improve the reporting process in the future.

LS Leadership Team, 2/23, 3:15-4:15
2/23/2012
New snack options
Conference debrief
Calendar check - 2012-13

Admissions on 2/24
We will greet a small group of children at 3pm on Friday. Sarah will fill us in on the details early this week and be in contact with Pre-K and K teachers about the process.

NO ADMISSIONS Saturday, February 25th
Thanks, Sarah, for juggling schedules so that we do not have to come in on a Saturday.  
Creative thinking!

NAIS
David will be away at NAIS on 3/1 and 3/2 interviewing teaching candidates.

We hope you enjoyed this glorious long weekend with family and friends.

David and Chris