The Buzz - 12/16/24
We are almost to Winter Break!
I know everyone has been counting down the days and are excited for a little time off. A friend and former co-worker used to tell me, we work for our break; meaning behaviors often spike right before an extended break. I have found this adage to be true more than it isn't. School is a consistent and predictable environment that brings comfort to many students. Sometimes, students are feeling excitement but also anxiety at the prospect of having a less predictable two weeks ahead of them. I want to remind everyone to keep an eye out for students who look more amped or frazzled this week. A little extra TLC and support can go a long way.
We have a lot of fun events ahead of us this week. I'm looking forward to our Staff Holiday Party Thursday evening at Grandpa's! On Friday, Dan and I are planning on rolling a holiday coffee cart around to each classroom as a way of saying thank you and happy holidays to staff members!
Also, on Friday we will have our classroom winter parties. If you have not already done so, please add information to Amy's spreadsheet, letting the main office know when you will be having your party and anticipated volunteers. On Thursday afternoon, PTA volunteers will be in the cafeteria organizing activities and supplies for Friday's parties. Towards the end of the day, PTA volunteers will drop off those supplies to classrooms in anticipation for Friday's parties.
Every week, I save information that I want to share with staff members and put them all here so that they are not lost in one-off emails. Here are this week's notes...
- MAP Schedule - We are almost finished with our NWEA testing. This week, on Monday, our Dual classrooms will be administering the MAP English Reading test. Later in the week, we will pull students for make-ups.
- ROE Inspection - I was told that the ROE might be walking through D34 schools on December 19th and 20th. Please make sure that we are not using any extension cords, string lights, or door wedges. Thank you for your help with this.
- No Learning Labs this week - I want to remind everyone that we will not have Learning Labs this week. We opted to forgo this after school program for the week before winter break in anticipation that things would be pretty hectic already.
- Spirit Week - This week, classrooms around Hoffman will be participating in our Spirit Week. Please see below to see the theme for each day this week.
Play With Words This Week!
Finishing up a unit read aloud? Try out a word play read aloud!
word play focus areas: alliteration, puns, idioms, homophones, synonyms + more
location: LRC cart - ask Gretchen or Paula if you need help finding it
Between word study units? Try out a whole class word play game!
game focus areas: spelling, word building, vocabulary, tongue twisters + more
reserve Gretchen if you’d like a “how to play” lesson with your class
game location: LRC supply shelves - ask Gretchen or Paula if you need help finding them
keep each box of games together - each box is for a whole class to play simultaneously, so please don’t take out a game out
check out the whole box using the barcode
return the game box to the LRC after you’ve played, for the next class!
Prep For Winter Break
Sending students off for winter break can be a teaching and learning opportunity, especially for executive functioning (EF) skills. Consider explicitly connecting an EF skill or two to winter break preparations:
Planning & Prioritizing: Create short lists of TBR books (to be read) for the break with students and put those TBR books in backpacks
Organization: Tour lost & found and the hallway cubbies for winter gear to take home; clean out and organize backpacks, repacking for usefulness
Time Management: Look at the December/January calendar together, noting the break date and return to school date, and create a bucket list for the 2 weeks (chatGPT’s bucket list of ideas)
Goal Directed Persistence: Set a winter break goal together, writing it down and taking it home (visit the Glenview Public Library, play cards once with a family member, prepare breakfast one morning, etc.)
Then, close out 2024 and settle into break mode with your beverage of choice!! See you in January!!
