October Finale

Creede Repertory Theatre presents Seeds of Change on Monday at 2pm in the Cafegymatorium.  All materials (study guide, songs, Spanish translations) can be found at their web page.  There will be no Magnet Monday.  Each student will receive a book of their own!

PINK OUT TUESDAY

On Tuesday, Marshall staff and students will be united in pink to show support and raise awareness for breast cancer. We honor those lost, we strengthen those fighting, we celebrate those surviving and we do it together.

BREAKING NEWS
Ms. Alysa Greenberg, Marshall's Art & Science Integration Specialist, just earned $5,000.00 for Marshall students! #WishesforTeachers are selected by a random drawing to receive a $5,000 grant. All wish recipients are invited to walk in the Fiesta Bowl Parade and be recognized on-field at the Cheez-It® Bowl. Her wish: "to puchase MakerSpace STEM materials for Marshall students". Wow! Thank you Ms. Greenberg! Marshall students win!!!!

                    Be Well!

Have you began recording points for your NAPEBT Wellness Program?  They have made some changes.  Check it out.  Please remember that you receive $240/yr Insurance Discount or HSA Contribution when you complete level 1 (12 points).  Level 2 is as high as you can go with this new layout.   Early 12 more points (24 total) and $120 cash is added to your paycheck, Health Savings Account or Flexible Spending Account.  It's easy money ($360.00).  I want you to have it. Mostly, I want you to be healthy.  There are some good/quick videos and lots of resources available to us.  Make yourself a priority.  You're worth it!

Updated CHECKOUT POLICY
For insurance purposes, (per policy) please use this form when leaving the Marshall campus for any period during the workday (including lunch, coffee run, district appointments, etc). Yes, this is new.  Yes, this is district and now Marshall policy.  It is in place to protect you so please comply.  Thank you.

Updated LEAVE POLICY

The FUSD Leave Policy also went through an update approved through negotiations and the governing board and is now ready for implementation.  Please review and familiarize yourself with the updated policy prior to calling off for personal days. Personal Leave PolicyI am sure more information will come from the district level.  I just wanted to give you all a heads up ahead of time.  

Friday's Professional Learning (formerly PD)

During this 2hr interactive professional development workshop, you will:
1) understand the neuroscience of stress, the symptoms, and how is affects learning and behavior.
2) integrate simple, classroom-friendly movement and mindfulness techniques in your class day and with individual students to support self-awareness, self-regulation, social and emotional learning, and resilience.
3) facilitate learning readiness which can improve student achievement.
4) improve classroom management while supporting students' individual needs, cultivating a positive peaceful, productive classroom climate
5) and grow as an effective educator as you lead and practice these tools with your students.  
Wear comfortable clothing and shoes. All staff are invited.  Please let me know if you cannot make it. 

I appreciate you!
I know there has not been enough time in the day, week, month, quarter to be able to recognize the hard work, innovative ideas, awesome lessons, creative collaboration, etc. that I see on a continuous basis.  You are working hard! You are hungry to meet the needs of our students.  They matter!  You matter!  Let's gather at 12:45pm on Friday prior to the Professional Learning Opportunity in Science Lab to eat lunch (I'll order Fratelli's of course).  Thank you for all you do! 

Evaluations next week: Gustafson, Milios, Grimmett 

Marshall's Professional Expectations 
Please review and sign.  Have questions?  Ask me.  

Coming Up...
Monday, October 29th
2:00-3:00pm - Seeds of Change Performance K-5 in the Cafegymatorium (No Magnet Monday)
2019-20 Middle School Academies rollout their applications. 

Tuesday, October 30th
School-wide PINK OUT
2:45-3:30pm Reasor at Title 1 budget meeting
3:30-5:00pm - Reasor at Discipline Matrix mtg

Wednesday, October 31st
Halloween - please see the Marshall Memo from last week and assist all in adhering to the rules.  Thank you.

Thursday, November 1st (where did Oct. go?)
5:30-6:30pm Japanese Taiko Drumming Community Performance featuring Marshall's 4/5th grades in Cafegymatorium.

Friday, November 2nd
9:30-10:30am - Japanese Taiko Drumming School Performance for K-4 featuring Marshall's 4/5th grades in Cafegymatorium.
12:45-1:15pm - Lunch in the Science Lab
1:30-3:30pm - Childlight Yoga/Mindfulness Professional Learning for all Marshall staff.

Oh, it has come to my attention that many of you read this Mustang Memo on your phone.  That is just fine but know you are missing some funny videos once and awhile... did you see the "What teachers really say when they are about to be evaluated video" last week?  


Please acknowledge you have read this post.

All things Octoberish

Evaluations and Lesson Plans

I enjoyed getting to spend some time with many of you in CTs this week looking at qtr 1 data and discussing my expectations for TPEC evaluations, professional growth plan and lesson plan collection.  Please get me your professional growth plan and lesson plans (3-4 weeks worth) at your earliest convenience in whatever format works for you.  Thank you. 

Speaking of Professional Learning...

~Mrs. Krause is running the Engineering is Elementary training next week.  This hands on training will introduce you to Engineering is Elementary 1-5th grade STEM curriculum. During this training teachers will engage in a magnetism unit as they learn the Engineering is Elementary Pedagogy and history, structure of the curriculum and the Engineering Design Process.  You must take the training if you wish to teach the kits. They are awesome.  Sign up on TNL!   You can find it here or in THE HUB!  I LOVE THE HUB! 

~Dr. Hagstrom is hosting meetings for Quarter 1 QUEST Revisions per grade level.  You can be part of the solution.  

~ELA implementation (Reach for Reading K-3 and ReadyGen).  You get paid to plan! Go if you can. 

~Nov 9th - Mandatory, You Matter Professional Development Day.  Please sign up asap as many sections are full we all want to get the most out of this day! 

Did you know?
As common sense suggests, teacher attendance is directly related to student outcomes: the more teachers are absent, the more their students’ achievement suffers. When teachers are absent 10 days, the decrease in student achievement is equivalent to the difference between having a brand new teacher and one with two or three years more experience.  Worse yet, a number of studies have found there to be a disproportionately high rate of teacher absenteeism in schools serving low income and minority students, providing yet another obstacle to closing the achievement gap.

Such findings are hardly surprising given that teachers represent the most potent school-based factor contributing to students’ academic achievement, as has been thoroughly documented in recent years.  

In summary: YOU MATTER SO SO MUCH!  
 

Thursday, October 18th was the very first day we had all certified and classified staff in the building.  It was also the last.  😩

We also had 71 students out this morning. Thankfully just under 30 made it before the end of the half day (tardy).  We must continue to do all we can to get students here and keep them here.  I am sending home information regarding the importance of attendance. I am also doing a connect ed. Please let Ms. Erin  know if you have a student who is chronically late/absent.  She is working hard to contact the guardians of most.  
We just don't want to miss someone. 

Halloween 
...is on a Wednesday, I will take Thursday off.  I joke, but I want that to be true.  I don't have a problem with Halloween at all!  It's the day after that always seems to present great challenges.  We will be ready for them! Please check out the "Halloween 3-Pronged Policy"  below.  No surprises here, just common sense.  Oh, and please, I have NO time to prep a costume and REALLY want to participate myself.  Shoot me an email if you have some ideas for my costume (and supplies to back it).  I would love the assistance!
 
Marshall's 3-Pronged Policy -----E   (get it?)
1.  Any Halloween activities must be aligned with standards and instruction. 
2.  Aligned Halloween activities must not impact or interrupt other school programs, schedules, or special classes, including but not limited to RTI.
3.  Costumes must be school appropriate following the guidelines below.  If your students wish to come in costume, please make sure you pass along and monitor these guidelines.  

• If costumes are in any way unsafe students will be required to remove them.  
• No attire may be worn which would in any way impede the student from moving safely and quickly out of the building in the event of an alarm.
• If students do not have a change of clothing, they will be required to stay in the office until parents arrive.
• Costumes must not obstruct vision or movement or in any way present a hazard to the student or other classmates. 
• Masks may not be worn.  Not even outside the classroom.
• No fake knives, swords, or guns of any kind may be used as a part of any costume. 
• Such items will be confiscated and may result in disciplinary action including but not limited to suspension from school.
• Costumes must not be overly gruesome and overtly violent.

Also, please keep in mind: many of our constituents find the celebration of Halloween to be offensive, contrary to their religious beliefs, or just a distraction from what should otherwise be a normal, productive day of school.  In planning to incorporate Halloween into your teaching next week, should you choose to do so, please recognize and honor each individual's position on this issue and their right to hold it.  You may not choose to exclude from instruction students who choose not to recognize Halloween.  Please keep in mind: a separate-but-equal instructional program for such students is most often neither.

Thank you for you help in enforcing the "Halloween 3-Pronged Policy".  Please share your educational ideas and photos with the rest of us. 

November is Indigenous People's month.  If you have some planned events for November and the celebration of Indigenous People, could you please share those events, times, dates with me? 

Thank you! 

Coming Up

Monday, October 22  

FUSD's Keeping Our Children Safe - Free Parent Presentations at CHS
Protecting Youth Online 6pm, The Dangers of Vaping & E-Cigarettes 7:15pm

Tuesday, October 23
Governing Board meeting 5:30pm

Kindergarten Fall Family Night 6-7pm

Wednesday, October 24

Reasor, Axler and McCleskey at Threat Assessment Mtg 1-3pm

SEI Family Night 5:30-7pm 

Friday, October 26

Reasor, Overton, McAllister, MacDonald at Growth and Inspiration Council 7-8:30am.

P/T Conference Week

Parent/Teacher Conference Week

12:25PM Early Release on Monday and Tuesday

11:10AM Early Release on Wednesday (also International Walk to School Day)
On Wednesday, 11 October, we will dismiss school at 11:10AM
Lunch schedule that day will be as follows:

• 9:35-9:55 -- K-1 eat lunch 
• 9:55-10:15 -- K-1 on playground 
• 10:00-10:20 -- 2-3 eat lunch 
• 10:20-10:40 -- 2-3 on playground 
• 10:25-10:45 -- 4-5 eat lunch 
• 10:45-11:05 -- 4-5 on playground

 Enjoy Fall Break! 

Still needed:
United Way Campaign Liaison Responsibilities of campaign liaisons will include attending one campaign planning meeting on Monday, October 15 from 4:00-5:00 p.m. to plan ways to better inform staff and to determine fun ways to increase participation.  Liaisons will also assist with communication during the campaign.  Interested?  Please let me know! Please...anyone...

Taiko Drumming is coming!

Marshall will welcome back Tony Trapasso for our 3-week Taiko Drumming Artist in Residency from Oct. 15-Nov. 2.  You will all experience Taiko during your regularly scheduled music instruction time.  The 5th grade target group will also include some of Ms. Arnold' s 4th graders this year.  I will let you know if Mei can make it out and if she will once again host the Asian Culinary Experience. 

 

School Letter Grade

I expect that our current school letter grade, along with those of the rest of FUSD, will probably hit the front page of the newspaper later this week.  I have been "fighting" for point for these past two weeks.  Yes, one point.  I am still waiting on Dr. Hagstrom to see if our EL data is indeed correct as it is (we have a one student discrepancy.  Yes, ONE STUDENT).  You see, this is very important to me because WE are on the cusp.  We are 3/4 of a point (0.75) away from a B. I want it!  I want it for you!  I want it for our students!  I want it for Marshall!  I have NEVER been content with a C (as you clearly heard in our very first staff meeting).  We are NOT average.  I know what it will take to be a solid B!  We will get there.  Only now I want Marshall to jump from a C to an A in one year!  Very achievable when we put all of the pieces together!  
Together, we rise!

End of the quarter thoughts...

I am blow away by the pace of this school year. I feel each week goes faster than the one before and all of the items on my "to do" list sit unfinished. I feel behind. I feel, at times, overwhelmed. I see that in many of you, too. You are powering through a new ELA curriculum. You are setting high expectations and adjusting your behavior and academic plans to meet the many needs of your students. You are building relationships with students and their parents. You are pushing students in their Tier II reading interventions. You are patient, you are professional, you are AMAZING! I see it everyday and I don't get a chance to tell you nearly as much as I wish. Thank you for making this quarter successful for students, parents and fellow staff members. You are on the front lines of something truly remarkable. "What are you teaching the world?" - Kid President

Coming up

Monday, Oct 15th
~Taiko Drumming AIR begins
~Reasor at Admin Council. Please know that Heather Overton is here assist in any administrative needs that may arise whenever I am out of the building. Thank you Mrs. Overton!

Wednesday, Oct 17th
~Reasor and McCleskey at Counselors meeting
~Reasor at Elementary Admin
~Parenting Arizona -Active Parenting Workshop in the gym 5:30-7:30PM

Thursday, Oct 18th 

~10:18AM AZ ShakeOut Earthquake drill immediately followed by a fire drill. More info to come.