MRVED Update - January 22, 2019

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings

January 22, 2020 - Superintendents' Council
January 24, 2020 - Principals' Council
January 31, 2020 - Title III Teachers
February 6, 2020 - Substitute Teacher Training
February 12, 2020 - MRVED Board

MELT Recap & Evaluation

MELT 2020 is now in the rearview mirror.  Once again, the conference was a huge success.  Over 650 teachers graced the hallways of Lac qui Parle Valley High School and attended over 100 sessions.  Many of the sessions were led by some of our own awesome teachers, counselors, principals, social workers, etc...  Our hope is that you were able to grow as an educator through your sessions.

If you have not done so already, please take the time to fill out the Evaluation for the day.  Our Teacher Advisory Committee uses the information from the evaluations to make decisions on future professional development opportunities.  We appreciate any and all feedback.

Thank you to all that participated and presented.  A special thank you to all of Lac qui Parle Valley for the hospitality and hard work in getting things ready for the day.  LqPV does an excellent job!

Public Review Period for MCA-IV Test Specifications for Science

As a result of the 2019 revisions to the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards in Science, the Science Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment-Series IV (Science MCA-IV) will begin assessing these standards in the spring of 2024. In collaboration with a committee of Minnesota educators, MDE has drafted the Science MCA-IV Test Specifications to assist with the development of the new assessments.

Members of the public are encouraged to review the proposed MCA-IV Draft Test Specifications for Science and provide feedback through the Science MCA-IV Test Specifications Feedback Survey. The survey will be open until February 17, 2020. Your feedback is important in creating the best assessment possible for all Minnesota students. A copy of the survey questions is available to review and discuss with colleagues before entering your individual or group survey responses.

Professional Development

The Today Show recently featured the story from Lucy Laney Elementary School in North Minneapolis.  I highly recommend watching both the Today Show clip as well as taking the time to watch the documentary Love Them First.  The documentary is grabbing national attention and shining a spotlight on SEL in our schools.

Today Show clip
Love Them First

Book Study

Sanctuaries - Introduction and Section 1 - Sanctuaries

As we begin our journey through the book Sanctuaries by Dan Tricarico, I highly suggest purchasing the book and following along.  The book is about self-care secrets for stressed-out teachers.  It provides strategies for teachers in taking care of themselves.  During this book study, I will highlight some of my favorite points in the chapters and by no means is a substitute for not reading the book.  I would love to hear your feedback and experiences as well.

Tricarico starts by telling us why self-care is so important.  As teachers, I think we are well aware of teacher burnout and why our burnout rate is so high.  Teaching is such a personable and stressful profession.  We all have stories about teachers, and good teachers at that, that have left the profession due to the stresses.  A great quote in the introduction is, "Your well-being and the success of your students, relies, in many ways, on your ability to thrive - not simply survive" (Tricarico, iii).

I'm going to summarize the first section of this book in 1 paragraph, please note there is SO much more in this reading.

We need to find and recognize our own "sanctuaries", that is a place of refuge and protection.  This can be a physical place or an emotional place.  Some people go for a run to find their sanctuary, and some people simply want to sit in front of a TV.  We need to know where our sanctuary is, so you can go to that place during a stressful time.  You also need to be intentional about your self-care.  He says, "If you want to treat yourself better..., you must do it on purpose and by choice" (Tricarico, 7).  Then you need to give yourself permission to take care of yourself.  If your sanctuary is running, and you have a plan to run and are intentional about it, you also need to tell yourself that it is OK to take the time to do it.  Tricarico says you also need to put this permission in writing and give yourself a permission slip to do it.  By doing this, you are more likely to actually do it!

Again, there is so much more in these chapters, my goal is to get you thinking about your own self-care.  Start a conversation at your school today.

1. Where is your sanctuary(ies)?

2. How can you be intentional about your self-care?