Monday Minute

We are accepting articles for our spring print newsletter. Members always enjoy examples of classroom activities and strategies that they could use, successful school-wide programs, subject-specific ideas, service learning, and more. We will issue PGPs for the articles upon request. We will also accept photographs of activities with brief explanations. Please email them to Susie Highley this week if at all possible.

Wanting to do PBL with your students, but they have trouble coming up with project ideas? These task cards (among other great resources on the PBL Works site) can be a good beginning. You can filter by subject, grade level, and standard (although they are not all the standards Indiana has adopted).

We are very pleased by the proposals we have received thus far! For the most part, breakout sessions will be 45-50 minutes; we did have presenters do two sessions last year. Please submit your proposal using this form by Friday, March 8. If you have any questions, contact Susie Highley.

Please also consider encouraging outstanding educators to present. Or, if you have ideas of topics you would like to have covered, please let me know, and we will seek out the best we can find! (Pictured: Katie Powell with her "learning spheres."

This piece by Megan Kelly at MiddleWeb has some great "provocations," short activities you can use to get students thinking that are not "traditional" starters. We would love to include ideas like these in our newsletter; if you have ideas like this, please share. (P.S. Many of these remind me of Katie Powell's popular sessions last year!)

From IMLEA Board Member Shannon Hudson:

HASTI needs your help to add a middle level science director from somewhere in the state of Indiana.

Responsibilities are

· Meeting 4 times a year on Saturday in Indianapolis (one of these meetings is at the annual conference in February)

· Share information with middle level science teachers

· Other small duties this person could volunteer for as the year progresses.

I always tell people that attending my 1st HASTI as a 2nd year teacher was like going from black & white to technicolor in the "Wizard of Oz!"

This may appeal more to your younger students, but there will be two free live Skype sessions with Cressida Cowell, author of How to Train Your Dragon, on March 6 at 9 am ET and I pm. These books have been adapted into movies, including a recently-released one. You can also receive a recording of the program just by registering. There are numerous activities to go along with her titles that teachers could adapt to other books.On the Skype in the Classroom website, there are many resources for several disciplines, not just language arts.

Corwin Press generally has two webinars a month on Mondays at 6:30 pm ET. While they are in the business of selling books, I've found their webinars to be very well done and useful. For example, they have these topics coming up: (Register here)

Feb 25: Making Sense of Learning Transfer

March 11: The Secrets of Great Instructional Coaching

March 25: Leadership Coaching with Peter DeWitt

April 1: Building and Developing Assessment-Capable Learners with John Hattie

We have two trainings this week, approximately 9:30-11:30. Rochester MS hosted a great event with Boston Middle School last week. Thanks to all who were involved!

Tuesday, February 26: Tri-West MS, Hendricks County (Travis Smith)

Wednesday, February 27: Lowell MS, Lake County (Becky Pavich)

The training involves a staff member bringing at least 2-3 students to meet with staff & students at the host school. For more information, you may also check our website or contact Susie Highley ASAP if you'd still like to attend!

We look forward to schools holding their Champions events. Please let us know and/or send pictures!

Respectful and inclusive language is essential to the movement for the dignity and humanity of people with intellectual disabilities. Join the #InclusionRevolution to bring awareness and take the pledge to promote INCLUSION. The file below includes announcements you can use the week of March 4, with the banner signing designated as Wednesday, March 6. Your banner will be displayed at the Special Olympics Summer Games to support Indiana athletes. March is Disability Awareness Month.

INdiana Service-learning Philanthropy Initiative Resources to Educate, Engage, Empower. Attached update includes: New Spotlight on Service-Learning article Students Get to Work with Service-Learning ; New Service-Learning Stories from Indiana teachers; Our program’s two Free Service-Learning Workshop Opportunities (March 21 – Full day at IASP, Indpls. and March 13 -1/2 day in SW Indiana, Warrick County); Service-Learning Mini-Grants; LTG website lessons and resources for March teachable Moments of Service (Reading Month; Women’s History Month; World Water Day); generationOn website resources (project ideas, service-learning templates, service-learning tracker) For more information and to be added to our existing program’s database Click HERE . Thank you for sharing this linked update with your staff.

February 25-March 21: Math Extravaganzas around the State

February 26: DOE Webinar: ACCESSibility for ALL Students, 4 pm

February 26: Free Webinar with THE Fountas & Pinnell: Building Community Around Essential Literacy Experiences, 4 pm

February 26-March 12: Middle School Integrating Computer Science Workshops

February 28: Children's Museum Spring Educator Preview, 5-7:30

February 28: Digital Learning Day #DLDay

February 28: Deadline for Food for Life Essay Contest

March 1: Deadline for articles for IMLEA print newsletter

March 6: Special Olympics R-Word Banner Signing

March 8: Deadline to submit proposals to present at IMLEA 2019 Conference

March 11: IMLEA Board Meeting, IASP, Indianapolis

March 16: RosieCon, Ben Davis HS, Indianapolis

September 29-30, 2019: IMLEA Conference, Indianapolis Marriott North

Please forward this to staff or anyone else who might benefit from the content. As always, we welcome your contributions and suggestions! Past editions of the "Monday Minute" and our newsletters are available under the 'Publications' tab on our website.

Join Us! Membership Benefits & Application

Shirley Wright, Executive Director

Susie Highley, Director of Operations

Fax: 317-454-0749

Email: shighleyimlea@iasp.org
Website: https://www.imlea.org/
Location: 11025 East 25th Street, Indianapolis, IN, USA
Phone: 317.894.2937
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IMLEA-Indiana-Middle-Level-Education-Association-170748717595/
Twitter: @IMLEAorg