Monday Memo
April 10th - 13th
Students who can identify what they are learning significantly outscore those who cannot. - Robert Marzano
If anyone is not a fan of stuffing Easter eggs and would love to have a few extra minutes of found time this week, Lisa would love to help you out! Simply bring your eggs and desired content to school this week, and she can take care of that for you. Let me know if this is something you are interested in so I can plan her week accordingly.
It is time to start preparing for our Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon. Please use this link to submit names of any parents who have volunteered for you this year. All names need to be submitted by the end of the day on Thursday, April 13th.
If you would like to add anything to the agenda for our Team Leader Meeting today, please click on this link and submit the question or topic to be discussed.
Teacher Appreciation Week is quickly approaching. While we would love to provide all of you with the hours of pampering you deserve, we have worked out a way to provide you a few minutes of peace and relaxation during the school day. We have arranged for a massage therapist to come and provide you with ten minute chair massages. Please know that there will not be any pressure to purchase any massage packages nor will there be an expectation of tips. In order to prepare for this, we need you to go ahead and sign up for a time now. Please let me know if you have an questions.
In effort to address the shortage of subs, the district has recently changed their policy in regards to who can get a sub when they are out. For our campus, the impact will be felt in the Learning Commons. When Melanie is out, we will no longer be able to request a sub for her. This will mean that in order for Lynn to have a lunch, we will need to close the Learning Commons for a brief period. While we hate that this will create an inconvenience for you from time to time, we hope that you will understand this is beyond our control. We will do our best to give you as much advance notice as possible so that you can plan appropriately.
Make today count,
JL
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INTERESTED IN ATTENDING GOOGLE SYNDICATE ACADEMY?
INTERESTED IN ATTENDING GOOGLE SYNDICATE ACADEMY???
Calling all campers! if you are interested in attending the Google Syndicate Academy (PK-12) on June 21, 2017 from 8:30-3:30 fill out the form below. Participants need a working knowledge of Google Apps for Education. The academy is limited to 30 participants. The application will be closed on May 19. Acceptance emails will be sent out Monday, May 22. If you have questions about the application please email Lynda Swanner lswanner@mckinneyisd.net or Amanda Gavin agavin@mckinneyisd.net
Application Link: https://goo.gl/forms/NR9rNV2sh8dgEaoQ2
Call for Converge Presenters
Below is the link to the form for presenter proposals for Camp Converge 2017. The deadline for proposals will be May 5th with presenters notified by May 19th.
Registration Links
Below are the links for both days of Converge 2017 for this summer. Both days will count for GT update training.
Converge Day 1- Monica Martinez Keynote Speaker
https://eduphoria.mckinneyisd.net/wshop/default.aspx?cid=15458
Converge Day 2- George Couros Keynote Speaker
https://eduphoria.mckinneyisd.net/wshop/default.aspx?cid=15459
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Shoparoo
Did you know that each week I give out jeans passes to the three highest scoring staff members on Shoparoo? I know that many of you have already joined, but if you haven't, it is not too late. Simply go to www.shoparoo.com to create your account. If you use veft4467 as a referral code, McGowen will earn money for you just signing up. Please feel free to push this information out to your parents as well. Once you sign up, Shoparoo will give you a referral code for your parents to use when they sign up. Schools with just 40 supporters are earning an average of $1,000 every year.
Congratulations to Donna Fabian, Barbara Peebles and Ashley O'Connor for being the highest three staff contributors to Shoparoo this week!
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Focus for 2016 - 2017
In order to help every child their personal best, McGowen teachers and staff will:
- Knowledgeably speak about our current practices that contribute to McGowen becoming a Level 1 Certified High Reliability School.
- Actively participate in grade level and content Professional Learning Communities.
- Engage in collaborative team planning and lesson design that addresses the four essential questions of a PLC.
- Present lessons in such a way that students understand and can speak knowledgeably about posted learning and language targets.
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Remind for Staff
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Appreciations
- JD- Thank you so much for taking the time to help me with my Smartboard on Friday! You went above and beyond trying to help me out. - Amy
- Thank you to everyone for your wonderful collaboration at both content PLCs as well as Kid Chats. I am in awe of you and your grit to do whatever it takes to help each and every child! - Michelle C.
- Awesome office peeps – Thank you for always being so helpful with each and every one of my calls, questions, retrieving a parent, delivery, etc. I am so appreciative of all you do! I love you all! - Michelle C.
- SL – Thank you so much for thinking of me and being my lunch fairy. I was ever so grateful! I owe you! - Michelle C.
- Trisha – thank you for thinking of the PE people when you made your Sonic run. We really appreciate your thoughtfulness – and our drinksJ
- Many thanks to Bravo, Prugh, Hoye, Sneller, Ward, and Harris for supporting our McGowen GT students in their performance at Webb last week. -JL
- Kristi - Thank you for serving as the Admin on Duty at the Mav Dad Movie Night on Friday. -JL
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GT UPDATE OPPORTUNITIES - TAGT
The district is providing you access to the TAGT Learning On-Demand, a library of online courses for professional development. You will be able to select six hours of courses. Please note that the library includes 1-hour, 3-hour, and 6-hour courses.
To begin, you will need to acquire a username and password. To do this, click the link below and use the registration code to complete the form.
Registration Code: 5491mck9544
Link: http://txgiftedcourses.responsivelearning.com/SelfRegistration/
IMPORTANT NOTE:
It is essential that you disable your popup blocker. The courses are not compatible with smartphones.
We find that Google Chrome tends to provide the best user experience. You may download Google Chrome here: https://www.google.com/chrome/browser/desktop/.
If you need assistance, email support@responsivelearning.com and a support team member will be happy to assist you.
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McKinney ISD's Vision, Mission and Beliefs
Any time we have an idea, concern, solution and/or comment, this is the filter through which we should speak. Let's help each other live up to our vision, mission, and beliefs.
Vision:
We are a cohesive, diverse community providing engaging learning experiences for all.
We will provide engaging learning experiences so students can become effective communicators, quality contributors and socially responsible citizens.
Beliefs:
- Partnerships between students, parents, community members and staff are foundational to educational success.
- Positive school culture and a safe environment foster growth.
- Everyone has inherent value and deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
- Learning is an active process requiring engaging tasks and engaging minds.
- Relevant and authentic experiences ignite continuous, deeper learning.
- Meaningful relationships enrich learning.
- Confidence fuels risk taking and higher achievement.
- Financial stewardship ensures a tomorrow for education.