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Wednesday, April 17, 2019

MRVED Update - April 17, 2019

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings

Upcoming Meetings

April 18th - MRVED Common Inservice Day
April 24th - Superintendents' Advisory Council
April 24th - MRVED Board Meeting

April 18th Common Inservice Day

The spring MRVED Common Inservice Day will be held on April 18, 2019, at the Dawson-Boyd Schools. You will be welcomed with coffee, juice, and muffins to begin your day, compliments of your administration.  For those individuals who are participating, you should have received an email with detailed information regarding the day.  Once you arrive, please come to the registration table near the commons area to pick up your registration packet.  This packet includes room numbers, clock, hours, and lunch ticket, if applicable.  Please enter through Door #4. 

We look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow!

(Please Note: Districts not participating in the inservice due to a school make-up day: Minneota/Ivanhoe, Ortonville, YME)

MRVED - Did You Know - Strategic Plan

The MRVED went through the strategic planning process a couple years ago.  Below you will find the mission and goals of the MRVED.

MISSION:
The mission of the Minnesota River Valley Education District is to effectively and efficiently assist member districts in meeting the goals they have set for themselves, their students, and their staff.

Goal One: Educational Success
Implement a level of services that will lead to the educational success of MRVED’s various stakeholders.

Belief:
We are committed to the development and implementation of high quality programs that enhance the educational success of the students and staff members of the MRVED school districts.

Strategies:
1. Provide a broad spectrum of professional development activities that enable all staff members to grow in their professional craft.

2. Work with member districts in the development of mentorship programs to develop the professional and leadership capacity of staff members within the MRVED school districts.

3. Provide ongoing technology training to meet the varied needs of the member districts to keep staff and students engaged in learning.

4. Through partnerships, provide high quality broadband connectivity to the MRVED districts.

Goal Two: Collaboration
Provide leadership for our member districts to connect the educational needs of each diverse school by focusing on staff and student success.

Belief:
We believe that by working collectively as a MRVED district, we can efficiently increase opportunities and cultivate a culture of professional relationships.

Strategies:
1. Provide opportunities for each district to collaborate and share resources to meet the needs of our students and staff to promote their success.

2. Increase resources to benefit member districts.

3. Continuously gather information from stakeholders to provide direction in identifying a common vision and identifying unmet needs.

4. Recognize and facilitate collaboration between districts.

Goal Three: Engagement
Engage all member districts to increase awareness, connectedness, and enhance communication in an effort to foster a cohesive partnership for educators.

Belief: 
 We believe investment by member districts is essential to MRVED’s success.

Strategies:
1. Communicate in an effective and consistent manner with and amongst internal and external stakeholders.

2. Utilize multiple approaches to encourage connectedness across districts and facilitate collaboration.

3. Establish clear leadership roles and responsibilities to enhance participation and expectation of member districts.

4. Inform and advocate use of the multiple MRVED resources/services.

Student Mental Health

MREA did a nice write-up of the joint house hearing on student mental health and the shortage of mental health workers in our schools.  The statistics are staggering in this area and it is well worth the read to become educated about this huge issue facing our schools.
  • 50 percent of student mental issues begin before age 14.
  • 20 percent of students age 14-18 will live with a mental health issue.
  • 1 in 5 students had a symptom of depression in the last two weeks.
  • Suicide is now the second leading cause of death in people aged 10-34.
Check out the article and the corresponding files and slides that go with it.

Tech Tip of the Week - PDF Tools

If you are like me, you beg, borrow, and steal from the internet.  Sometime you come across files that are in PDF format and you want to do something else with them.  There are two great online tools to help you work with your PDF.  Check them out today!

PDF Candy
Clever PDF

Ditch That Textbook - Section 4 Ditch That Curriculum

Chapters 34 to the end of the book are interesting chapters to read.  They really give the reader the map to ditch your textbook.  Miller uses the analogy of being a pilot and taking your kids on a journey.

Chapter 34 is about establishing your philosophy.  Miller says, "The motivation to ditch that textbook isn't only - or even mostly - driven by a desire to go paperless...it's about purpose.  What do you want to do with the powerful platform you've been given? (Miller, 198)"  Having a clear understanding of who you are and what you want your students to be is the first step to ditching that textbook.  Miller says to use the following questions to help determine your purpose:

  • What kind of teacher are you?
  • What do you want to be known for?
  • What do you want your students to be known for?
  • What do you want your students to be able to do at the end of the year?
  • What skills do they need to develop for success?
  • What discussion do they need to have to cultivate new ideas?
The next chapter Miller writes about establishing your mission statement.  He talks about creating a one word mission statement that guides everything you do in your room.  Miller says, "What is your mission?  What one word encapsulates what you want to accomplish this year? (Miller, 203)"  For example, his word was "create" one year.  He wanted to create more and he wanted his students to create more.  Everything he did was centered around this one word.  Think about, for next year, what one word do you want for your mission statement?
He ends the book by talking about planning and learning from failures.  Utilize some form of curriculum map to guide your process of ditching your textbook.  Backwards plan with the end in mind.  When your plan blows up in your face, learn from it, grow from it.  It can be really easy to drop what you are doing and go back to your textbook.  Don't!  Fight through it and fail forward.  Failure is bound to happen, expect it and react accordingly.  Miller says your students will forgive and forget.

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

MRVED Update - April 3, 2019

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings

April 12th - Title III Teachers
April 18th - MRVED Common Inservice Day
April 24th - Superintendents' Advisory Council
April 24th - MRVED Board Meeting

April 18th Common Inservice Day

The spring MRVED Common Inservice Day will be held on April 18, 2019, at the Dawson-Boyd Schools. You will be welcomed with coffee, juice, and muffins to begin your day. The day will consist of attending one session for the entire morning and the afternoon will be time with your district, determined by your administrator. The choices for the morning sessions are: Social Emotional Learning, Teach Like a Pirate, and Structured Unconference. Registration is now CLOSED and no changes can be made to your lunch choice.

Closer to the inservice date, you will receive an email with detailed information including the school's address, which to door to enter, and other information. Please read this carefully. When you arrive, your meal ticket and agenda will be in the commons area at the registration table.

We look forward to seeing everyone on April 18th!

(Please Note: Districts not participating in the inservice due to a school make-up day: Minneota/Ivanhoe, Ortonville, YME)

MRVED - Did You Know

The MRVED has hosted the MELT conference for over 15 years.  Throughout the years the conference has morphed into what it is today.  Today there are around 100 sessions for educators to choose from.  The topics range from the latest drug trends to the newest technology.  One of the goals of the MRVED is to efficiently use resources to accomplish goals.  The MELT is accomplished for $12 per teacher.  To put this in perspective, the TIES conference registration costs $389.  If we were to send everyone in the MRVED to the TIES conference, the total cost would be around $252,000, just for conference registration.  The MELT is put on for around $7,000!

What is Social Emotional Learning (SEL)?

Social Emotional Learning or SEL has been a big buzzword in education over the past few years.  It's something we are hearing more and more of, but what is SEL and why is it important.  The short video below does an excellent job of explaining the what & why.



MCA-IV Science Test Specs Committee

The Minnesota Department of Education is looking for educators to serve on a committee charged with creating the test specifications for the new science test.
This committee will be comprised of K-12 teacher leaders who will use their expertise to help develop assessment boundaries for the new 2019 Minnesota science standards. Committee selection will emphasize balance of demographics, grade levels, and content areas. The committee will meet for a total of 7 days starting on August 6-8, 2019 at MDE in Roseville and continuing through the spring of 2020. Committee members must commit to attending all meetings. The meeting dates are as follows:

· August 6-8, 2019

· October 29-30, 2019

· March 3-4, 2020

You will receive an honorarium and per diem for your travel expenses as needed.

If you are interested in being considered for this committee, enter your information in the form on the link below by April 12, 2019.

MCA-IV Science Test Specs Committee Application

Tech Tip of the Week - Automastery

If you use Google Forms in your classroom, this is an Add-On for you!  Automastery is awesome and a great way to differentiate.  Maryellen West did a fabulous job!  Check out the write-up from the website.
AutoMastery is a Google Forms Add-On that allows the Form owner to send students assignments based on their score on a Google Form. The owner sets a mastery level score and a beginner level score in a Google Form and sets what link respondents will receive via email with an assignment based on their scores.

Quiz takers will fall into one of three grade categories: Mastery, Progressing, and Beginner.

If a student has mastered the material and scores at or above the Mastery Score you set, he or she will be assigned an extension activity as set by the teacher.

A student who scores above the Beginner Score, but below the Mastery Score, will be sent a progressing assignment, set by the teacher, to bring them to mastery level.

A student not reaching the Beginner Score will be sent a comprehensive assignment, as set by the teacher.

Ditch That Textbook - Section 3 Part 3

We will take a look at chapters 30-33 in Ditch That Textbook by Matt Miller.  These are simply my thoughts on the chapters and by no means should replace reading the chapters for yourself.

Chapter 30 is titled, Make It.  Plain and simple, if you can't find what you are looking for, make it!  As a teacher, you have some of the best available resources at your fingertips to make whatever you need for your classroom.  If you can't find a video to explain how the letters "t" and "h" go together, gather a group of students and make your own video.  Think about the learning experiences involved in that activity.  We all have awesome cameras built into our cell phones.  We have Google Docs and Microsoft Office products at our fingertips.  Some of the best creation iPad apps offer free or discounted versions for education.  Even if you think you are not creative enough to make something, try!

Miller also talks about staying in touch with students and meeting them in their space.  If your students are on Twitter, join Twitter to see what it's all about.  If your students are Snapchatting, join it and try.  Instead of thinking about how I can block these tools in my classroom, think about how can you harness their power for educational purposes.  It may not be apparent to you right away, but if you think hard enough and creatively enough, you'll find a way.  Social networking is the way of the world today.  Classroom Twitter pages are popping up all over the place.  Teachers are using Instagram to show parents what is going on in their classrooms.  Schools are creating Snapchat filters and Twitter hashtags to create a virtual showcase of their events.

We have one section left in the book and a conclusion to go.  Once you are done with this book, I encourage you to borrow it to someone during the summer.  But, don't forget who you gave it to because you will want this playbook back to start the year next year.