April 12, 2024

 Hear Ye, Hear Ye

• Our Jr. Coaches got to join other Jr. Coaches from around WI in Milwaukee to play and learn on Wednesday.  Shout out to Teresa for organizing this, supervising them and making it happen for them through PlayWorks! Also, shout out to Ann for going along to supervise and play too!

• 3K/4K Screening staff put in a lot of extra time, effort and work to welcome our new students and families!  It was a long couple of days, but our families were very appreciative!  Shout out to Amber, Bethany T, Chris, Stephanie S (who prepared for it and supported us while on maternity leave!), Brittany, Karissa, Jill, Ella, Chrissy, Hailey, Nicole, Teresa, Trisha and Lexi.

• Also shout out to James and Roxanne who were so helpful to us with the set up planning and with putting things away for the screening as well.

• Finally, screening would have been MUCH more difficult without Brad.  He taught Trisha and I how to get the pieces done for PowerSchool that we needed for future enrollment/registration.  He got the devices ready, answered all my annoying phone calls, and even stuck around at the beginning of the night to make sure everything went smoothly.  Thank you so very much!

What's Happening at Dodgeland?

• Sunday, April 14
• Happy Birthday Mary Jo!

• Monday, April 15
• Happy Birthday Bethany D!
• Teresa Chambers will be out all week at a training
• Bus Duty: TCaine, Riege, Juech, Vertz (3K/4K playground)
• Forward Testing for Grades 3-4-5 (8am-11:30am)
• Recess for 3-4-5 at 9:45-10am
• Mentor/Mentee mtg @ 3:15 in IMC (Year 1, 2 and 3 teachers)
• HS Track meet today.  Parking lots will be quite full.

• Tuesday, April 16
• Social Media Posts due: Juech, Braunschweig
• Forward Testing for Grades 3-4-5 (8am-11:30am)
• Recess for 3-4-5 at 9:45-10am
• CANCELED SEL mtg for 4th gr (combined with Wed. mtg)
• Lunch Detention Supervisors
• 12:00 - Huso
• 12:30 - Zastrow
• 1:00 - Anderson
• MS Track meet, parking lots will be quite full

• Wednesday, April 17
• Happy Birthday Lexi!
• Forward Testing for Grade 4 (8am-9:45am)
• Recess for 3-4-5 at 9:45-10am
• 4th gr. Academic data meeting (will talk SEL then too) from 12:35-1:25 pm
• 5th Gr Biography Fair @ 1:45pm (Sign up for a time HERE)

• Thursday, April 18
• Student Nurses will be here. (Here is the schedule)
• Run for State at 8:30am
• Forward Testing for Grade 4 (8:45 - 10:00am)
• Jenny in a meeting from 8-10am
• Guest Speaker for 1st Graders in the IMC from 11:30-12:00pm
• Lunch Detention Supervisors
• 12:00 - Open
• 12:30 - Open
• 1:00 - Anderson

• Friday, April 19
• Jenny in a meeting from 9-10am

• Saturday, April 20
• Happy Birthday Karissa!
• Happy Birthday Jerry K!

Nitty-Gritty

• Gallup Engagement Survey
• On Monday, April 8, you received an email from Gallup with a link to a survey. The survey is anonymous, but helps to give us feedback.  Please take the 5-10 minutes to complete the survey as soon as you are able.  Mrs. Johnson emailed us on April 3 with some additional details regarding this survey as well.  One of the clarifications relates to one of the questions.  Below is her message regarding this question.
• I will share again that one of the questions needs a bit of clarification (because I was confused when I saw it).  There will be a statement for you to respond to:  I have a best friend at work. This isn’t literally asking if your best friend works here, but is getting to if you have people at work that you do feel you can go to, whether it is to ask questions or get support. 

• Clearview Residents
• I know that 3rd grade and 1st grade are planning to visit residents next month.  If anyone else has an activity or idea for how to provide joy and learning for our students, please reach out to Amanda Stein, the Director of Life Enrichment at Clearview, at astein@co.dodge.wi.us

• Forward Testing
• Next week is our last full scale week of testing.  Even if you are not proctoring a test, we will all need to work together to provide a strong testing environment for our kids.  This might mean we need to move our schedules, our students may need to travel a new direction during testing times, quiet hallways are necessary at a higher level, our interventionists will not be able to take all of their groups, and our some of our staff and students will be under more stress.  Please support each other and our students with kind words and actions next week and every week!

Recess Information

4k - the grass zone and sidewalk zone will open on 4/22 weather permitting. 

5k-5th - the soccer zone will open on 4/22 weather permitting. Please continue to reinforce students lining up

behind the cones for kickball and gaga ball and remind students they should not be touching/playing with the

sticks, trees, or mud.

Behavior Specialist Information

I will be out at training from 4/15-4/19. Wishing you all a peaceful and engaging week full of regulation.

TechKnow Tip

A note from Christina: 

I don’t know if you are the same as me, but I always find myself with a clearer head in the summer.

Perhaps it is the fewer decisions that need to be made or the more fresh air I’m able to get, but I tend to do my

best “school year thinking” over summer. In the spirit of summer “school year thinking”, I would like to offer

up a group summer professional development opportunity: a book club around the book by Monica Burns titled EdTech Essentials: The Top 10 Technology Strategies for All Learning Environments. 

She states, “In this book, we will examine the EdTech skills and strategies that are essential for all students if we

want to prepare them to succeed in the digital world of today and tomorrow. With so much going on in the EdTech

space, focusing on the essentials is key. I have narrowed the list to 10 indispensable skills and strategies,

highlighting the roles of teachers and students.” Similar to her other book (Tasks Before Apps), Monica Burns

believes learning must be front and center and digital tools should be used with intention. In this book club,

we will work to find the balance of strategic use of technology and hands-on experience, all while being intentional

with technology.

The skills and strategies she has identified as essential (and will be discussing) are: 

• Help students navigate online spaces effectively

• Curate resources to support all students

• Introduce opportunities for students to explore the world

• Develop structures to give students the ability to collaborate

• Give students time and space to create products of learning

• Assess students to check for understanding and pivot instruction

• Provide opportunities for students to share what they have learned

• Connect student work to a relevant and authentic audience

• Help students develop skills they can transfer across digital spaces

• Plan for tech-rich learning experiences

Burns states, “Each chapter includes an overview of the skill or strategy being discussed and why it is essential,

connections to research, classroom examples for all grade levels, and websites and mobile apps to help build your

EdTech tool belt. 

If learning together with the guide of good literature, listening to diverse thinking, and pushing your teaching practices is just what you are looking for this summer, please sign up here for this EdTech Essentials summer book club.

Friday Funny

I love to listen to kids' imaginations.  I watch grown adults get to play every day with our little ones and their imaginations.  From helping to "rotate tires" and "changing the oil" in their "car" which is really a scooter, or calling each other on their watch, or buying things from their "store, I am always so glad that I get to go to work and have conversations like these.  What other job would get to be that FUN!  So when I saw this joke, it reminded me of the many ways that we get to play pretend with our students each week.  Laughter is very good for for our souls and our stress levels.