Dr Weiss's blog

Elections

We are beginning to prepare students for our 2008 Presidential Election here at Rutledge Hall, and we are excited!!   We want our students to be informed about the candidates and the process.   Each week, we are discussing information about the candidates and their election platforms.  You can help by continuing this discussion at home.  Here are some suggestions:

•    Share your own ideas and thoughts about the election process.  Share the importance of voting.
•    Watch the news and coverage of the candidates.  Help your child see what each candidate stands for, what issues they hold important.
•    Read magazine articles that compare the candidates and discuss these with your child.

Writing is an important curricular area in all grade levels at Rutledge Hall.  As you may be aware, the state tests students in this area at grades 3 and 5.  The emphasis at our building is on paragraph and essay writing.  We focus on expository, persuasive, and narrative writing.

This year we have added some new resources to help our teachers teach writing.  The Write Source Program and 6 Traits Writing both help guide students through the writing process, focusing on student production that is of higher quality and more consistent with how writers write.

This year, The National Mathematics Advisory Panel released a groundbreaking report entitled Foundations for Success.  The report includes recommendations to improve the teaching and learning of mathematics in grades K-8.  The report focuses on the areas of curriculum, teacher education, instructional practices and materials, and learning assessments.  45 recommendations were made.

Margaret Spellings, the Secretary of Education, writes:
“ Just as with reading, we know that the math knowledge children bring to school at an early age is linked with performance in later grades.  It is vital that we encourage our children to believe that working hard in math will lead to better results.  Studies have shown that it is effort, and not inherent talent, that makes the critical difference between success and failure in math.  When it comes to math, the evidence shows it is truly worth the effort.”

In my conversations with students throughout the day and in the lunchroom, I am finding that many do not eat breakfast in the morning.  Did you know that breakfast is the most important meal of your child's day?  It gives energy and nutrients that are needed for learning.  Research shows that children who eat a good breakfast get better grades, have better attention, and behave better in school.

Here are some suggestions for making sure that your child eats breakfast before coming to school:

* Set the alarm clock a few minutes ahead to allow for time to eat.  That way everyone will be a bit more relaxed and no one will have to hurry.  You can provide some quick items like granola bars, fresh fruits, or yogurt.

* Make sure breakfast items are healthy.  Including protein and carbohydrates will give your child needed energy to get started and stay going through lunch.

Good readers use many tools to help increase their understanding of what they read.  Here are some ways to make reading go faster and stay with your children longer:

Visualize- Strong readers form pictures in their minds.  Encourage your child to imagine what is happening in the story.  Making that mental picture will help your child "see" the story.  Drawing the image may also help.  Visualization helps students to better remember what they read.

Find a purpose- It is sometimes easier to understand a story if one knows the purpose for reading.  Suggest that your child look at subtitles and turn them into questions.  This will encourage the reader then to look for the answers.  Providing this purpose encourages the reader to be more engaged.

Say it back- Have your student rephrase information they have read.  This helps to make sure that there is a good understanding of what was read.  

Do you know a great teacher that you think should be rewarded for their efforts?  The Golden Apple Foundation does just that.  This year the Foundation is looking to recognize Pre-K through Third Grade teachers who have done an excellent job and have contributed over and above to the field of education.    

You can pick up an application at the school office, or go on line to: www.goldenapple.org.

Nominations are due in by December 12, 2008.

We have had a Golden Apple winner in our District.  We have also had nominees in our District.  This is a very prestigious award, and a wonderful honor for any individual who receives it!!

Students need to be in school every day to stay on track.  Teachers' lesson plans are carefully constructed to introduce new concepts, reinforce them with learning activities, and then move on to new skills and ideas.  When children aren't in school, they fall behind.  And the more days they miss, the harder it is to catch up.  That's where parents come in!!

Report in: Schools are required to track attendance of every child every day.  It is essential that you call in and report absences in a timely manner.  Also call if children are going to be late or need to be picked up early.

Get the work: When you know ahead of time that school will be missed, make arrangements with the classroom teacher so that work can either be completed early or made up upon return to class.  Be sure that your child follows through on missing assigments.

We are quickly rounding the corner to the end of July.  The summer is passing right before our eyes!!  I just returned from a great driving trip back east.  It was relaxing and fun.  Now it is back to work and really focusing on being ready for the start of school.

We have completed hiring.  Our new staff include:
Brandon Koenig, Physical Education
Allison Heuberger, Special Education
Dana Auerbach, ELL

These new staff are bright and eager to join our staff.  I know you will like them.

I have received some of the reading post cards that I distributed to students.  I would love to see many more coming in.  Please remind your children to read and send me their post cards.  In return, I will write back to them.  I do enjoy having an on-going relationship over the summer.  The feedback I have received has been very positive!!

Rutledge Update:

Cleaning continues at the school.  Things are looking shiny and new.  Several of the large areas need to be finished, and furniture needs to be moved back into rooms.  I love having the building clean and ready for another year!

We are working at completing staffing.  We will be hiring a special education teacher, an ELL teacher, and a PE teacher.  These are new positions.  The remainder of our staff remains stable, so we are in great shape.

Teachers have been in for a number of summer training sessions.  They have received training on technoloy programs, writing curriculum, reading strategies for struggling readers, and thinking skills.  More workshops are planned throughout the summer.

Reading postcards keep coming in.  PLEASE remind your students to complete their cards and mail them to me.  I am hoping to have a huge response to this initiative.