Week of October 1 (1.7 & RtA)

WINK’S WEEKLY WORDS

CLICK HERE TO READ MY BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY BLOG

The Food Pantry Food Drive will be held all month long.
The winning grade levels will win an ice cream party.
Let's End Hunger.

Congratulations on a fantastic September.  So many great things happened that we can't count them all.  Instruction in every classroom is in high gear, and students are pushed in every classroom every day.  Our football team won homecoming.  Our volleyball team is in first place in district.  Our band is sounding better every week as they prepare for contest.  FFA is doing great and amazing things, and our UIL Academic teams are gearing up to chase the district championship.

As we head into October, I want to encourage you to focus on the questions that I posed last week and think about Question 3, how will we respond when kids fail to learn?  The answer to that question is found in how we plan for Guided Learning.  To push kids to high levels of learning, we create guided learning plans by student and by skill.  Don't forget to look at your misconceptions and prerequisite skills as well as your FA data, for those resources will give you cues as to how to create those plans.  

Upcoming Events

• Week of Oct 1 - Response to Assessment Week
• Oct 1 - 27 - Food Pantry Food Drive
• Tue, Oct 2 - Distribute Progress Reports
• Mon, Oct 8 - No School (State Fair Day)
• Fri, Oct 19 - End of 1st 9 Weeks
• Sat, Oct 27 - Blue Ridge Fall Festival (contact Shawn if you want to sign up)

ADMINISTRATION BUILDING RESERVATIONS

If you would like to reserve the School Board Meeting Room and/or the Hospitality Room for

campus/district meetings, please email your request to Angie Lillard (angie.lillard@brisd.net).

#1 PROFESSIONAL LEARNING NEEDS FORM

If you are in need of training/guidance related to something we have in place here in BRISD, please complete the Professional Learning Request Form.  We are willing to meet one-on-one, in campus teams, or in district groups...all based on need.  There is no such thing as a bad request...if you have a need, do not hesitate to make a request!

#2 RESPONSE TO ASSESSMENT

The window for FA1 administration was September 24th through 28th.
Assessment with no response does nothing for our students.  With this in mind, the Late Start on Friday, October 28th will guide you through the BRISD process for responding to formative assessments.  For a preview of our September 28th training, please review the BRISD Instructions for RESPONDING to Formative Assessments document.

#3 BRISD RtI FLOWCHART

Please take a moment to review the RtI Flowchart for Blue Ridge ISD.
If you have a student who is struggling, please refer to the flowchart for what to do next.
All CARE (Collaborating About Reaching Excellence) Meetings are called by your campus principal.  Therefore, if your interdisciplinary (grade level) team must schedule CARE Team meetings through your campus principal.  
Please direct any questions to your campus principal.

#4 GIFTED AND TALENTED TEACHER INFORMATION NEEDED

Please take a moment to complete the Gifted and Talented Teacher Information Form.

Mrs. Burke will be collecting information until October 1st, so your feedback is needed soon.

#5 LATE START FRIDAYS

Remember to bring your Chromebook to all Late Starts, which begin promptly at 7:30am

For future topics and sites, please see the 1819 Friday Late Start Collaboration Calendar

Date: September 28th

Site: BRISD School Board Room

Topic: BRISD Response to Assessment

Audience: All STAAR/EOC & FA Teachers (see this link for more info)

Date: September 28th

Site: BRISD Hospitality Room

Topic: SpEd MSB Training

Audience: K-12 SpEd Teachers and Paraprofessionals

Date: October 5th

Site: Home Campus

Topic: Parade Meeting

Audience: Campus Staff - see Campus Administrator for specifics

Date: October 12th

Site: BRISD School Board Room

Topic: How to Effectively Work in Vertical Teams

Audience: All K-12 Core Content (ELAR/Math/Science/Social Studies) Teachers

STAFF SHOUTOUT

Great job to everyone for making our Homecoming a huge success.  While the rain rained on our parade, it didn't stop us from having a great homecoming week.  Thank you for your flexibility and willingness to do whatever it takes to have a great week.

Thank you to Coach Bailey, Coach Broach, Coach Hunter and Coach Mathers for organizing a great JH Volleyball Tournament for 36 teams.  It was a great event and extremely organized.

TECHNOLOGY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Tech Tip for Thought: 
Have you heard about the great updates made to Google Classroom over the summer? 

Updates include:
-New Classwork page for streamlining student work and organizing assignments by topic or unit
-Improved grading process that now includes a comment bank and the ability to simultaneously view student work as you grade or leave feedback. 

Click here to visit the new Google Classroom resource page for more information. 

Business Office ANNOUNCEMENTS

$100 Six Weeks Attendance Bonus Schedule

1st 6 Weeks: August 8-September 28

2nd 6 Weeks: October 1- November 9

3rd 6 Weeks: November 12-December 20

4th 6 Weeks: January 7- February 15

5th 6 Weeks: February 18-April 5

6th 6 Weeks: April 8- May 29

Week of September 24 (1.6)

WINK’S WEEKLY WORDS - 4 Questions that lead every student to excellence

It's Formative Assessment Week, and in order to reach our goals, there are 4 questions that we must ask constantly if we want to guarantee that every student grows in their learning.  These are the 4 critical questions of a Professional Learning Community At Work:

1. What do we expect all kids to learn?
2. How will we know if they have learned it?
3. How will we respond when they haven't learned it?
4. How will we extend and enrich kids when they have learned it?

If you think about these 4 questions, they are essentially the driving force for everything you do.  They drive your lesson planning, your assessments, your interventions, your extensions, and your collaboration with your colleagues.  This week, answer this question.  Which questions do I need to put more effort into, so that I can push all kids to reach their +10 goals.

Bonus Reflection - Why did every question have the pronoun, we, and not the pronoun, I?

CLICK HERE TO READ MY BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY BLOG

Upcoming Events

• Week of Sep 24 - FA 1 Week
• Fri, Sep 28 - End of 6 Weeks Grading Period
• Week of Oct 1 - Response to Assessment Week
• Tue, Oct 2 - Distribute Progress Reports
• Mon, Oct 8 - No School (State Fair Day)

#1 PROFESSIONAL LEARNING NEEDS FORM

If you are in need of training/guidance related to something we have in place here in BRISD, please complete the Professional Learning Request Form.  We are willing to meet one-on-one, in campus teams, or in district groups...all based on need.  There is no such thing as a bad request...if you have a need, do not hesitate to make a request!

#2 FA1 WEEK IS HERE!

The window for FA1 administration is September 24th through 28th.  

Central administration will scan all test forms (answer documents) into DMAC for all FAs administered unless you chose to utilize the Online Response System for instant data.

Follow these steps when you are ready to scan your test forms. As a reminder answers can be input online using the Online Response System and provide you with instant data. 

• Initial FA administration complete
• Gather all test forms and send them to Melissa Stiney via interoffice mail.
• Angie Lillard picks up interoffice mail every day at 10 am. 
• Once test forms have been received by Melissa Stiney, you will receive a confirmation email. 
• After test forms have been uploaded into DMAC you will receive an email from Melissa Stiney notifying you that your data is ready to view. 
• For students who were absent during the initial test administration, you will send their test forms via interoffice mail to Melissa Stiney once they are complete. 

ALL test forms (BOTH initial and makeup) must be received by Friday at Noon. Extensions to this deadline for individual students must be approved by campus administration.

Pro tip: schedule your assessment early in the week!

See the 1819 BRISD Testing Calendar for information about future administration windows.

#3 BRISD REPORT CARD/PROGRESS REPORT SCHEDULE

Please review the 1819 Report Card/Grading Period Schedule for dates to send home Progress Reports and Report Cards...as well as information on when grades are due each Nine Weeks.

#4 GIFTED AND TALENTED TEACHER INFORMATION NEEDED

Please take a moment to complete the Gifted and Talented Teacher Information Form.

Mrs. Burke will be collecting information until October 1st, so your feedback is needed soon.

#5 LATE START FRIDAYS

Remember to bring your Chromebook to all Late Starts, which begin promptly at 7:30am

For future topics and sites, please see the 1819 Friday Late Start Collaboration Calendar

Date: September 21st

Site: Home Campus

Topic: Homecoming Meeting

Audience: Campus Staff - see Campus Administrator for specifics

Date: September 28th

Site: BRISD School Board Room

Topic: BRISD Response to Assessment

Audience: All STAAR/EOC & FA Teachers (see this link for more info)

Date: September 28th

Site: BRISD Hospitality Room

Topic: SpEd MSB Training

Audience: K-12 SpEd Teachers and Paraprofessionals

Date: October 5th

Site: Home Campus

Topic: Parade Meeting

Audience: Campus Staff - see Campus Administrator for specifics

STAFF SHOUTOUT

Shoutout to Miranda Garlington for her excellent
work as the BRE tech leaders. She is working
hard to promote the great things happening at BRE. 

Shoutout to Lyssa Broach for having a great start at
BRMS. She is doing excellent work promoting literacy
with her 6th-grade students.
             

TECHNOLOGY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Tech Tip for Thought: Have you ever wanted to convert a PDF to a Word Doc or a PDF to a JPG? Check out this free resource that allows you to do that and much more. www.smallpdf.com

BUSINESS OFFICE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Please have all $100 classroom supplies reimbursement forms and receipts to Amanda by September 28th. We will no longer accept reimbursement forms after this date. 

Week of September 17 (1.5)

WINK’S WEEKLY WORDS

Check out Coach Moman's C4B4Me.  His
students created their own anchor charts of the
13 colonies to drive their learning.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY BLOG

This week is all about setting +10 Goals with every kid.  Remember +10 Goals that kids believe in makes students have more than a year's growth.

• BRISD Student Goal Sheet (CLICK HERE)  
• Click LINK for SCREENCAST

Upcoming Events

• Sun, Sep 16 - Paint the Town Green for Homecoming Week
• Fri, Sep 21 - Homecoming at 7:00 p.m. and Homecoming Parade at 1 p.m.
• Week of Sep 24 - FA 1 Week
• Fri, Sep 28 - End of 6 Week Grading Period:  All classes must have 5 grades in the gradebook at beginning of the week.

#1 PROFESSIONAL LEARNING NEEDS FORM

If you are in need of training/guidance related to something we have in place here in BRISD, please complete the Professional Learning Request Form.  We are willing to meet one-on-one, in campus teams, or in district groups...all based on need.  There is no such thing as a bad request...if you have a need, do not hesitate to make a request!

#2 BRISD TESTING CALENDAR

The 1819 BRISD Testing Calendar can be used to find dates and windows for all major testing in the district.  Please do not print the calendar, as it will be updated periodically.

#3 BRISD REPORT CARD/PROGRESS REPORT SCHEDULE

Please review the 1819 Report Card/Grading Period Schedule for dates to send home Progress Reports and Report Cards...as well as information on when grades are due each Nine Weeks.

#4 NOTES FROM SPECIAL PROGRAMS

New announcements and information regarding special programs have been added to the Special Programs page in the Teacher Toolbox blog!!

Information regarding the BRISD RtI/CARE procedures will be made available October 19th, and explained in detail on Monday, October 22nd.

#5 SEPTEMBER LATE START FRIDAYS

Remember to bring your Chromebook to all Late Starts, which begin promptly at 7:30am

For future topics and sites, please see the 1819 Friday Late Start Collaboration Calendar

Date: September 14th
Site: Home Campus
Topic: Review & Respond to MAP Reading and Math Data
Audience: K-9 Vertical Content Teams

Date: September 14th
Site: BRISD Administration Building
Topic: SpEd Random Moment of Time
Audience: K-12 SpEd Teachers and Paraprofessionals

Date: September 21st
Site: Home Campus
Topic: Homecoming Meeting
Audience: Campus Staff - see Campus Administrator for specifics

Date: September 28th
Site: BRISD School Board Room
Topic: BRISD Response to Assessment
Audience: All STAAR/EOC Teachers

Date: September 28th
Site: BRISD Hospitality Room
Topic: SpEd MSB Training
Audience: K-12 SpEd Teachers and Paraprofessionals

TECHNOLOGY ANNOUNCEMENTS

Tech Tip Thursday: Always remember to turn off your projector when it is not in use. This saves the bulb and helps the projector last longer.

PERSONNEL ANNOUNCEMENTS

All Local and State days have been updated in Aesop and now reflect your current balance. If you have any questions please email Shawn Harris at shawn.harris@brisd.net

Week of September 10

WINK’S WEEKLY WORDS

The 3rd week of school has been another great week, and I want to thank you for all that you are doing to engage your students.  You are setting the bar high and because of that, your classes are responding well.  I can't thank you enough for the hard work you are putting into helping your students learn, grow, and excel.  

As we begin the 4th week, I challenge you to find the engagement structure that is your biggest challenge and set a goal for growth.

• Is your bell ringer effective at priming student brains for your lesson?
• Is your focus lesson concise and precise at modeling learning for the kids and is it effective at getting student to take notes?
• Is guided learning targeted for your most struggling students?
• Is collaboration effective at letting students learn with and from one another?
• Is independent learning differentiated based on where each student is growing?
• Do your exit tickets give you quick information to drive the next day's lesson?

The answers to these questions should drive you to find your greatest area of need and then it should push you to find a colleague who is successful with that structure that you can learn from.  Remember, we learn the most from one another.  If you need help with any of these structures, please remember that Matthew, Melissa, and I will help you in any way that we can.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY BLUE RIDGE COMMUNITY BLOG

What I'm Reading

Are You Monitoring Your Relationships with Your Students?

CURRICULUM ANNOUNCEMENTS

BRISD utilizes TEKS Resource System for the scope and sequence related to your subject, as well as other tools designed to enhance your planning.  For a quick reminder on how to access your subject's scope and sequence (YAG), please view this video.  CTE teachers in need of additional support are encouraged to visit the Texas CTE Resource Center.

All consumable curriculum resources have been delivered to the campus principals.  Ms. Stiney is in the process of preparing all online curriculum resources for deployment as quickly as possible.

Please see your campus principal for questions/suggestions/concerns regarding curriculum resources.

LATE START FRIDAY FOCUS

Please bring your Chromebook to all BRISD Professional Learning

Friday, September 7th is a district level Friday Late Start.

Check with your building principal for attendance expectations vs campus coverage.

We will begin promptly at 7:30am in the BRISD Board Room.  

In order to keep traffic flowing smoothly, please park behind the elementary building, and utilize the elementary sidewalk to access the administration building.  Please do not park in the administration building parking lots.
We will be discussing how to document Allowable Accommodations for FA and STAAR testing.  If you are a core subject and/or special education teacher in 2nd through 11th grades, you need to plan to attend.

Friday, September 14th is a campus level Friday Late Start.

Check with your building principal for attendance expectations vs campus coverage.

We will begin promptly at 7:30am on your home campus.

The topic will be reviewing and responding to MAP Reading and Math data within vertical campus Math/Science and Humanities teams.

ALL DISTRICT SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS AND PARAPROFESSIONALS will attend a required training regarding the Random Moment of Time samples at district administration.

Friday, September 21st is a campus level Friday Late Start.

Check with your building principal for attendance expectations vs campus coverage.

We will begin promptly at 7:30am on your home campus.
Since September 21st is Homecoming in BRISD, your campus administrator will use this time to ensure all processes and procedures are in place to make the day a success.

Friday, September 28th is a district level Friday Late Start.

Check with your building principal for attendance expectations vs campus coverage.

We will begin promptly at 7:30am in the BRISD Board Room.  

In order to keep traffic flowing smoothly, please park behind the elementary building, and utilize the elementary sidewalk to access the administration building.  Please do not park in the administration building parking lots.
We will be discussing the BRISD Response to Assessment that is required after FA1 testing.
All Grades 2-11 core teachers must attend
ALL DISTRICT SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS AND PARAPROFESSIONALS will attend a required training regarding MSB at district administration.

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING - My growth page

Click here to learn how to use the "My Growth Page" tab of your lesson plans as part of your Beginning of Year Goal Setting Meetings with your principal as part of T-TESS.

Log your compliance training, as well as any other professional learning from this summer in the BRISD Summer Learning Documentation Form.

Testing Announcements

TEA has released the 2018 STAAR/EOC assessments.  BRISD uses these assessments as the MOCK FA prior to your STAAR/EOC assessment.  With this in mind, please 
DO NOT USE ANY 2018 RELEASED STAAR/EOC MATERIAL.  

Remember that FA1 is due in DMAC on or before September 7th.
Click here for FA testing dates and required subjects.
Click here for Instructions for Creating FAs
Click here for Instructions on how to print FA Answer Documents

Your campus principals will be sending you your Student Goal Sheets.  To assist you in completing the sheets prior to the administration of FA1, please view this screencast.

The beginning of the year MAP testing window opens September 4th and closes September 14th.  Remember that we will be assessing students in grades K-9 in reading and math.  

Elementary: IStation, F&P,  and AR testing windows open September 4th.

Be sure to check the 2018-2019 Blue Ridge ISD Testing Calendar for important testing dates throughout the school year.

TECHNOLOGY ANNOUNCEMENTS

All online programs are now available for teachers and students to access through Clever. If you have any issues accessing teacher and student accounts please submit a support request using the Technology Support Request Form. 

To access teacher and student accounts BRISD uses a tool called Clever. Clever allows teachers and students to log into multiple online accounts using only one username and password. This reduces the amount of wasted instructional time spent on logging into accounts. To get started with Clever and to begin accessing your online programs please view the following resources. 

HELP VIDEO: How to access teacher Clever Accounts

HELP VIDEO: How to access student Clever Accounts

BRISD Clever Support Guide

To log into your Teacher Clever account click on the Clever app logo in the top right-hand corner of your Chrome browser and sign in with your BRISD Google account information. You can also go to https://clever.com/in/blueridge and sign in with your BRISD Google account information.

Social Media Reminder: Pictures and videos of students cannot be posted from a personal social media page. All posts with students should go through a district/campus social media page first and then it can be shared from a personal account. Contact your campus tech leaders to submit social media posts: ES- Miranda Garlington MS- Mary Townsend HS-Kenny Williams

Transportation Request Form: This process has been updated to a Calendar format in Google Sheets. This will allow staff members to see transportation requests previously submitted. The first page outlines the instructions for completing transportation requests. 

Transportation Requests

STAFF SHOUTOUT

Thank you Eduardo Vargas for the work you did in Blue Ridge ISD!

Upcoming Events

• Fri, Sep 7 - End of 1st 3 Weeks Grading Period (Progress Reports out the next week)
• Fri, Sep 7 - Deadline to enter your 1st FA in DMAC 
• Sat, Sep 8 - Saturday Night in Blue Ridge by BRASA at the Square in Blue Ridge
• Sun, Sep 16 - Paint the Town Green for Homecoming Week
• Fri, Sep 21 - Homecoming at 7:00 p.m. and Homecoming Parade at 1 p.m.
• Week of Sep 24 - FA 1 Testing Window
• Week of Oct 1 - Response to Assessment

SPECIAL PROGRAMS ANNOUNCEMENTS

New announcements and information regarding special programs have been added to the Special Programs page in the Teacher Toolbox blog!!

Information regarding the BRISD RtI/CARE procedures are coming soon!  Check with your campus administrator for more information.

Please complete the Gifted and Talented Teacher Information form for the 2018-2019 school year.

The 2018-2019 Blue Ridge ISD Special Program Coordinators are:

Terra Mathers, Special Education - terra.mathers@brisd.net
Missy Douglas, Section 504 - missy.douglas@brisd.net
Missy Douglas, At-Risk - missy.douglas@brisd.net
Leslie Patterson, Dyslexia - leslie.patterson@brisd.net
Anna Miller, ESL/ELL - anna.miller@brisd.net
Rebecca Kay, CCMR - rebecca.kay@brisd.net
Alise Burke, Gifted & Talented - alise.burke@brisd.net

These coordinators are ready and willing to assist as needed.  Please do not hesitate to contact them with any questions or concerns.

BUSINESS OFFICE ANNOUNCEMENTS

2018-2019 Budget will be adopted at the Board Meeting on August 27, 2018. Purchase orders will begin being processed September 7th. This will also be the first day checks are cut in the 2018-2019 school year.

Personnel Announcements

Due to some technical difficulties updates to AESOP have been delayed. We will have all local and state days updated by the end of September, if not sooner. Your 5 new local and 5 state days will be reflected in September Payroll.