Leadership Matters September 2016

Edition

Staff Development

Survey

Socorro ISD will be

conducting a survey of

all SISD classroom

teachers to allow the

District to better plan

districtwide, content

specific and grade

level specific staff

development for SISD

teachers. This

anonymous survey will

be administered

through a digital link to

all teachers from

September 6 -

September 16,

2016. EPAC members

were provided more

details regarding this

survey. If you should

have any questions,

please contact Dr. Holly

Fields at hfield@sisd.net.

Instructional Rounds

Instructional Rounds will

be held September 19-

20, 2016. Please click

here for the latest

schedule. If you should

have any questions,

please contact Dr. Holly

Fields

at hfield@sisd.net.

Academic Services Department Announces

Teachers, SCEIs, and administrators are welcomed to vet the fall benchmarks on

either September 27 or September 29, 2016 from 4:00 - 5:30 pm. All STAAR tested

subjects/grade levels will be assessed on fall benchmarks. To ensure that we have

a record of who will vet, teachers, SCEIs, and administrators may sign up by

clicking on the link below.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?

id=0oNUtgt82UqBujcWpDOWbfeOkIULPMxHo2DpeSFWyvxUQk1GM1ZFR0NFMEgxTk

xZRFZDTTY2RlhRMC4u

6 Opening and Closing Routines for New Teachers

Routines and consistency matter greatly and are necessary for

creating a smooth learning environment in your classroom. Routines

help with creating community, checking for understanding, and

managing the classroom. I'm going to share three opening routines

and three closing routines that you can start using in your next class.

To read more click on this link: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/6-

opening-and-closing-routines-new-teachers-rebecca-alber

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Tech News

Clever is a Single Sign-On (SSO) solution that Socorro ISD is implementing to

provide teachers and students a simple way of accessing the instructional

programs that support SSO integrations.

What does this mean to a teacher or student? By using the Clever desktop

shortcut or the link provided in the My.SISD.net portal, teachers and students will

be able to access programs without having to remember or use separate

usernames and passwords!

Programs available:

There are also links to great websites, such as:

Pearson EasyBridge

International Children's Digital Library

ReadWriteThink

Figure This!

Funbrain

We will continue to build the Clever dashboard to include additional district-level

resources as they become available through this platform.

SCEI Academy

SCEI Coaches will meet

on Friday, September 9,

2016 from 8:00 to 4:00

p.m. Participants need

to register using the

EventsXD App available

at the IOS App Store,

Google Apps or the

PlayStore and select the

SCEI Coach Meeting

Session and register for

the breakout sessions

that meet the needs of

their campus. Breakout

sessions include Tyler

Pulse, SIOP Strategies

Update, Early

Childhood DIBELS,

Elementary and

Secondary ELAR

Revising and Editing,

Elementary 90 Minute

Math Model,

Elementary and

Secondary Vocabulary

Strategies in Science,

Increasing Math

Questioning Through

Rigor for Secondary

Mathematics, and

Eduphoria

FormSpace. All SCEI

coaches need to

attend at least one

offering of the Tyler

Pulse session. For more

information please

contact Leslie

Goldmann at

lgoldm@sisd.net.

Please Note: You can

find more information

on our department

website www.sisd.net/

academicservices

CK-12 Foundation

Code.org

College Board PSAT/NMSQT

Compass Learning

Desmos Graphing

Calculator

Discovery Education

(coming soon!)

Plato Learning Environment

Study Island

Istation

Khan Academy

MackinVIA

myLexia

Nitro Type

Think Through Math

Trinket

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Early Childhood News

Helpful Hints:

1. Implement Structures in your classroom

a. 90 Minute Math Model (See elementary math for framework)

b. Balanced Literacy Framework

Why use a Balanced Literacy approach to teaching reading and writing?

A balanced reading approach is research-based, assessment-based,

comprehensive, integrated, and dynamic, in that it empowers teachers and

specialists to respond to the individual assessed literacy needs of children as they

relate to their appropriate instructional developmental levels of decoding,

vocabulary, reading comprehension, motivation and socio-cultural acquisition,

with the purpose of learning to read for meaning, understanding and joy.

Cowen, 2005

BOY Assessments:

Istation testing window: Kindergarten September 5, 2016 – September 16, 2016

DIBELS :-3rd Any student that is Tier 3 in Istation as soon as student is identified

CPALLS: Pre-Kindergarten: Whole month of September

SISD Mathematics Assessment BOY: September 19, 2016 – September 22, 2016

Content Advisory Committee Dates: (by invitation only)

September 13, 2016: Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten

September 14, 2016: 1st Grade

September 15, 2016: 2nd Grade

Cognitive Coaching for

the 16-17 School Year

In an effort to support

the implementation of

TTESS, our district is

offering 2 final cohorts of

Cognitive Coaching.

These sessions are 8 full

days and are only for

those administrators who

have not had the

opportunity to

participate in our past

sessions.

Cohort 3

August 15-16, 2016

September 6-7, 2016

September 22-23, 2016

October 26-27, 2016

Cohort 4

August 17-18, 2016

September 8-9, 2016

November 15-16, 2016

December 8-9, 2016

All sessions will be held at Options HS/Library.

Advisory Committee

Update:

In response to concerns

about content advisory

committees, we will only

be meeting once per

nine weeks. Please refer

to the Curriculum and

Instruction website for

updated schedules.

Several new grants have been recently awarded:

A new 5-year grant from the Department of Defense Education Activity, entitled Creating Positive Change at

Socorro (PCS), will enhance and expand math instructional supports at Sun Ridge, SPC Rafael Hernando III,

and SSG Manuel R. Puentes Middle Schools, with new laptops, TI NSpire calculators, and instructional licenses.

A new military family liaison will be added at Pebble Hills High School, and a new Student Ambassadors

program will be implemented at our five secondary schools with the highest military populations. Additionally,

a large component of the grant will provide for college and career excursions.

A new 2-year grant from Verizon/PLTW will be used to implement the PLTW Gateway Introduction to Computer

Science units at: Bill Sybert, Ernesto Serna, Desert Wind, Jane Hambric, Montwood Middle, Salvador H.

Sanchez, Socorro Middle, and Capt. Walter Clark Middle School.

Congratulations to our schools who turned in the most Impact Aid forms for the 2015-2016 school year! The

top schools were:

#1 – James P. Butler Elementary (289 military/federally connected forms)

#2 – Lujan-Chavez Elementary (273 military/federally connected forms)

#3 – Chester E. Jordan Elementary (241 military/federally connected forms)

#4 – SSG Manuel R. Puentes Middle School (211 military/federally connected forms)

WAY TO GO!!!

We challenge all schools to be in the Top 5 in the 2016-2017 School Year! All Impact Aid forms should be sent

home with students on September 13, 2016.

Grants News

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Elementary

Texas Treasures

Thank you all for your patience with Texas Treasures. We are working with McGraw Hill and it should be up and running in

no time. In the meantime teachers can use their current username and password. The latest information is that once

McGraw Hill is finished, the username and sign-on teachers currently have will not work and every teacher will get a new

username. We will send out an email as soon as it is updated.

SISD Balanced Literacy Framework

This month I would like to focus on the Workstations used during the Reading Workshop. Because the time allotted is about

30 minutes, the 3-5 stations should be more about quality instead of quantity. In other words, if the station requires a

student to be at the station for 15-20 minutes it is okay as long as it is a rigorous activity. The student/group could then start

the next station and finish it the next day. Teachers may continue to use Daily 5, but for those just starting out some great

ideas for continuous stations are Vocabulary, Fluency, and Comprehension. You can keep the same stations but switch

out the activity weekly. Because students tend to struggle with summarization and inferencing, those are good stations to

have as well. Remember that workstations should be concepts that students have already learned and they will practice

at the station. New concepts should not be put in a workstation. If students are struggling at a station, the skill would be

better taught during guided reading or as a retaught skill in the Focus Lesson. Here are some great resources for stations:

http://www.franklinboe.org/cms/lib/NJ01000817/Centricity/Domain/39

A_collection_of_readyto_use_Literacy_Centers_Grades_3-5.pdf

http://www.lauracandler.com/strategies/balancedlit.php

DATES to REMEMBER:

September 1, 2016 - Write to the Point PD 4:30 - 6:30 pm at DSC

September 6, 2016 - Writing Images PD 4:00 - 6:00 pm at DSC

September 7, 2016 - Write to the Point PD 4:30 - 6:30 pm at DSC

September 15, 2016 - Literary Anthology Kick-off Meeting 4:30 - 5:30 pm at EDC

September 21, 2016 - 5th Grade Content Advisory Committee 8:30 - 3:00 pm at DSC

September 22, 2016 - 4th Grade Content Advisory Committee 8:30 - 3:00 pm at DSC

September 27, 2016 - 3rd Grade Content Advisory Committee 8:30 - 3:00 pm at DSC

Secondary

Write to the Point

Teachers will be provided with a tool that may assist ELL and special needs students with their expository essay. Teachers

only need to attend one of the sessions. We will offer three different opportunities:

Dates: August 30, 2016, September 1, 2016, OR September 7, 2016

Time: 4:30-6:30 pm

Location: DSC (room will depend on day registered)

Writing Image Study

Teachers will be provided with ideas on how to identify areas of strength and need using their 2016 STAAR Writing Images.

Date: September 6, 2016

Time: 4:00-6:00 pm

Location: DSC Project Room

Literary Anthology Kick-Off!

This kick-off is for literary anthology coordinators—it is our first meeting of the year.

Date: September 15, 2016

Time: 4:30-5:30 pm

Location: Conference Room (EDC on Eastlake Blvd.)

Dates to Remember

September 9, 2016: SCEI Meeting

September 19-20, 2016: Instructional Rounds

ELAR News

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Math News

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Elementary

Why use the 90 Minute Math Model?

Provides a structure for teachers to differentiate

instruction so they can reach and teach every

student by:

Creating flexible small groups that allow students to

work in their zone of proximal development so they

can learn exactly what they need to know at their

instructional level

Creating activities that tap into student’s individual

learning styles and interests so they stay engaged

Providing immediate feedback so the student can

adjust their work

Questioning students in small groups so they have

an opportunity to talk with their peers, ask

questions and justify their mathematical thinking

Allowing teachers to re-teach, reinforce,

expand and compact concepts, strategies and skills

Providing short lessons that emphasize conceptual understanding, procedural fluency or problem solving

Scaffolding lessons so that they can be taught at a concrete level, pictorial level or abstract level

Ultimately providing students with the self-confidence they need to become successful mathematicians -“What is guided math?” Dr. Nicki

Upcoming dates:

Tuesday, September 6, 2016 – 3rd Grade Math/Science Teacher Advisory committee

Wednesday, September 7, 2016 - 4th Grade Math/Science Teacher Advisory committee

Thursday, September 8, 2016 – 5th Grade Math/Science Teacher Advisory committee

Secondary

Secondary Math Content Advisory Committees will continue in September @Eastlake High School

Algebra 1: September 21, 2016 - 8:30 - 11:30 am

8th grade: September 21, 2016 - 1:00 - 4:00 pm

7th grade: September 22, 2016 - 7:30 - 10:30 am

6th grade: September 22, 2016 - 1:00 - 4:00 pm

Algebra 1 Tech Academy if for Algebra 1 teachers for the following campuses:

• El Dorado HS

• Pebble Hills HS

• Socorro HS

• Americas HS

The initiative will focus on Algebra 1 teachers from our DNA campuses and provide professional development

on blended learning, ideas on device implementation, use of online and technology resources, station based

learning, PBL, flipped classroom, interventions, and digital curriculum...to name a few things, on a monthly

basis. Our first session is set for September 10th, at the DSC HR room from 8:30 - 11:30 am. This session is now

on the staff development website.

Focus of the Month

Questioning at a high level - Chunk your lessons, group work, independent practice, and give students a

quality question in between so that they can internalize information that has been given to them. It is a

perfect way to check for understanding and it gives students the opportunity to Write, Read, Speak, and

Listen.

Science News

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ROBOCOM 3.0 is excited to present in collaboration with

UTEP and FIRST Lego League. This year’s theme: Animal Allies!

Please see registration details below:

Each school will be allowed a maximum of two teams (4th-8th grade students)

Each team may range from 2 to 10 students

Only one coach, per team, is required at the District level

Registration fee: One team - $105.00 (field mat included in fee) additional team - $30

Please send registration fee to Veronica Bolanos (70308). Make checks payable to SISD.

Fees due October 21, 2016.

Registration will be open from September 1st to September 16, 2016. Please register online at http://

www.sisd.net/robotics

Timeline of ROBOCOM Events

FLL Releases Competition Rules and Field information – August 30, 2016 (http://www.firstlegoleague.org/)

Optional: UTEP Kick-off Event – September 3, 2016 @ UTEP, 9:00 - 11:00am

Mini Kick-off - September 8, 2016 from 4:30-6:00 pm @ the DSC

Build & Programming PD – September 24, 2016 @ Pebble Hills HS 9:00 am - 1:00 pm

(One coach and 2 students from each campus/team may attend)

Referee/Judging PD – October 29, 2016 @ Location TBD, 9:00am - 1:00 pm

(ROBOCOM Coaches are welcome to attend)

ROBOCOM 3.0 Competition – January 7, 2017 @ Pebble Hills HS

UTEP Regional Competition – January 21, 2017 @ UTEP

Any questions, please contact Jennifer Ellis-Martinez (jellis@sisd.net) or Stephanie Carrasco (ycarra@sisd.net)

Elementary Science

The next Simplifying Science Training will be held on September 14, 2016 from 4:00-6:00 pm at the

DSC. These sessions will assist new 5th grade teachers with understanding what to teach and the depth in

which each concept should be taught. Please e-mail Jennifer names of 5th grade teachers that are new to

teaching, new to the grade level or new to the content. This session is by invitation only.

Upcoming Super Science Academies (Please register on Staff Development website):

3rd/4th Grade - September 27, 2016 from 4:00-6:30 pm @ the DSC

5th Grade - September 21, 2016 from 4:00-6:30 pm @ the DSC

Social Studies News

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Happy September! Celebrate Freedom Week is just around the corner

(Sept. 12-16)! This weeklong celebration serves as a reminder of the sacrifices made for freedom in the

founding of this country and the values on which this country was founded. Instruction pertaining to this week

includes the intent, meaning, and importance of the Declaration of Independence, the United States

Constitution, the abolitionist movement, and women’s suffrage. Socorro I.S.D. will be hosting the Third Annual

Celebrate Freedom Week Contest, which includes:

1. District Poster Contest (for students)

2. District Essay Contest (for students)

3. Campus Celebration

Please stay tuned for specific contest instructions and rules.

This will be our second year with the Social Studies digital adoption. Please make sure to contact Leslie

Goldmann (lgoldm@sisd.net) for any questions regarding the resource or for setting up a training to further

implement Social Studies in the classroom through ELAR and/or stations.

Teachers get “the biggest bang for their buck” when integrating Social Studies and ELAR, especially since

many of the Social Studies Process Standards align with the ELAR SEs and Figure 19. Careful planning can

lead to successful activities in which students learn reading, writing, and social studies at the exact time!

Station Idea of the Month: Lap Books!

Lap books are a great way for students in any grade level to display their learning of a topic or unit in a

holistic manner. Integrate Celebrate Freedom Week during the Balanced Literacy Workshop and have

students create lap books covering a variety of topics, such as the Founding Fathers, what freedom means,

the Bill of Rights, and the U.S. Constitution!

Did you know...?

As we enter the ninth month of the year, many remember the attacks on September 11, 2001, and the heroes

who arose to protect this great nation. This month in American history has seen many events in which the

foundation of the United States has withstood against enemies, either abroad or at home. On September 3,

1783, the Treaty of Paris was signed, formally ending the American Revolutionary War. In 1864, during the

American Civil War, Atlanta, a city in the deep South, was captured by Sherman's Army. After this major

victory which was instrumental in the North winning the Civil War, General William T. Sherman telegraphed

President Lincoln, "Atlanta is ours, and fairly won." Finally, in 1945 President Harry Truman declared Victory over

Japan Day, V-J Day, commemorating the formal Japanese surrender to the Allies.

A Look Ahead:

A SE that is vertically aligned from Kindergarten through high school is that of our

civic responsibility of voting! Please help students understand the importance of

informed decision making when it comes to casting their votes. Election Day is

Tuesday, November 8, 2016!

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I would like to take a moment to share with you updates that have occurred in our Advanced Academics

Department.

The following members are part of our Advanced Academics Department:

Lourdes Coria – lcoria@sisd.net

Rosario Rojas – rrojas06@sisd.net

Nancy Torres – ntorre02@sisd.net

Below are the assignments for each of these coordinators – please feel free to contact:

Upcoming Trainings for GT, AVID, DI, and UIL

Advanced Academics

Date Professional Development Title Time Location

September 21, 2016 GT Campus Coordinator Meeting 4:30 - 6:00 pm Options HS Cafeteria

September 21, 2016 GT Parent Meeting 6:00 - 7:00 pm Options HS Cafeteria

AVID Events

September 12, 2016 AVID Campus Coordinator Meeting 4:30 - 6:00 pm DSC

September 27, 2016 AVID Regional District Director Training 8:00 - 3:30 pm Americas HS

UIL Trainings

September 21, 2016 Academic Decathlon Coaches Meeting 4:30 - 6:00 pm Ysleta HS Library, YISD

September 22, 2016 UIL Campus Coordinator Meeting 4:30 - 6:00 pm Chaping HS, EPISD

Lourdes Coria Rosario Rojas Nancy Torres

Advanced Placement UIL - Academics Dual Credit

Pre-AP Curriculum Academic Decathlon Early Colleges

AVID – Elementary Schools AVID – High Schools AVID – Middle & K-8 Schools

Gifted & Talented – Montwood

& Socorro Feeder

Gifted & Talented – El Dorado &

Pebble Hills Feeder

Gifted & Talented – Americas

& Eastlake Feeder

Destination Imagination Destination Imagination Destination Imagination

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Bilingual Buzz

Dates to remember:

We encourage you to have conversations about the importance of learning and using academic language

for ALL of your students. One way to spark the conversation is through the article below which references

the excellent resource Academic Conversations (2011, Jeff Zwiers and Marie Crawford) and refers to

academic conversations as:

Purposeful and sustained conversations about content

Anchored in grade-level texts and tasks

Students work together to co-construct knowledge and negotiate meaning

Students use “talk moves,” such as asking for clarification, paraphrasing, and

building on or disagreeing with a previous idea

Check out the full article and begin to talk about how every one of your teachers works to purposefully and

explicitly teach academic language through their content.

https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2014/10/24/academic-discussions-and-english-language-learners-

ousd/

Date Event Time Location September 9, 2016 SCEI Coaches/ SIOP Strategies 8:oo - 11:00 am

12:30 - 3:30 pm DSC Room A-D

September 13, 2016 ESL Academy Teachers’ Training on Procedures/ Lesson Plans 4:00 - 5:00 pm DSC Project Room

September 14, 2016 ESL Academy Teachers’ Training on Procedures/ Lesson Plans 4:00 - 5:00 pm DSC Room D

September 20, 2016 TCM Focused Reading Interventions Kit PD 4:00 - 6:00 pm TBA

September 21, 2016 TCM Focused Math Intervention Kit PD 4:00 - 6:00 pm TBA

September 23, 2016 TIA Training on Roles and Responsibilities 8:30 - 11:30 am 12:30 - 3:30 pm

DSC Room A

Please see attached flyer on the upcoming Eduphoria Aware trainings that we will be offering. We want to

empower especially our secondary level department heads and grade level leaders to pull data analysis and

feel comfortable in going into the Aware so they can support their campus teams. Please have your campus

grade level or department heads register on the staff development site if you feel this training will be

beneficial.

Staff members attending training will need campus access to all data (Administrative access in Eduphoria).

Note: Accountability data tables posted on August 23, 2016 and made public on the TEA performance reporting

website on August 26, 2016. Click here for the One-page Accountability Index Overview and please visit this

link http://bit.ly/2bKrl69 to download a video recording on the Index calculations. Safeguards and Distinctions

will be available by September 16, 2016.

Research and Evaluation Dept.

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Professional Development

We will be offering CPI Training EVERY MONTH for the 2016-2017 school year. This will facilitate the opportunity for every

campus to train their TBSI campus core teams.

Just as a reminder, every campus must have a TBSI campus core team which should consist of (at minimum) one special

education teacher, one general education teacher, and one administrator. Every campus will have specific needs and

may have to train additional faculty or staff in order to best meet those campus issues or needs.

All training dates are currently posted on the Staff Development website. Each training date is restricted to ONLY 40

PARTICIPANTS, therefore it is best to register early. It is also recommended that if a campus plans to train a large number of

people, they stagger their staff to attend different training dates throughout the year.

CPI: Nonviolent Crisis Intervention

Date: September 27-28, 2016

Time: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm

Place: DSC room CD

Audience: Restricted to campus core team members only

Coffee with the Director:

September 29, 2016 from 8:30 am - 10:00 am at the DSC TBA.

What Teachers Should Know and Do:

Meet with your General Education Teachers in order to:

- Interpret the IEP.

- Review accommodations/modifications/PLAAFPS/goals and/or objectives/BIPs and any assistive technology.

- Create student/learner profile.

- Make sure that ARD dates, for the year, are scheduled and communicated to the appropriate personnel.

- Draft goals/objectives, which should be provided to parents 10 days before the scheduled ARD.

Experience & Learning Pyramid

Special Education Department

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Title Date Time Location

Co-Teaching That Works for

Elementary Teachers

September 8, 2016 8:30 am - 3:30 pm DSC Room B

Co-Teaching That Works for

Secondary Teachers

September 8, 2016 8:30 am - 3:30 pm DSC Room A

NO! DON’T! STOP! So How Exactly is That Working for You?

Strategies for Responding to Challenging Behavior Demonstrations

September 13, 2016 8:30 am - 3:30 pm DSC Board Room

What Should a PLAAFP

Look Like on an IEP? (and What is it)?

September 15, 2016 8:30 am - 3:30 pm DSC Project Room

BIC Academy (for BIC Teachers Only) September 28, 2016 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm Sgt. Roberto Ituarte

Elem.

Co-Teach Strategies Training (Teachers) September 29, 2016 8:30 am - 3:30 pm DSC Room CD

State and Federal Programs

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SCE Guidance

1. Know you SCE Personal. Personal may consist of Class size Reduction teacher, SCEI coaches, Intervention

teachers, Instruction Aides, At-risk Aides. All SCE staff should have a yearly signed job description,

schedule, semi-annual certification, intervention roster, and progress monitoring documentation.

a. Semi-Annual Certification-All employees must certify in writing, at least semi-annually, that the

worked exclusively on the program for the period covered by the certification. The

certification must be signed by the employee or by the supervisor having firsthand knowledge

of the work performed.

2. SCE employees complete time and effort/ weekly logs. Weekly logs are auditable records which account

for the time spent under their program. Time and effort also shows how our programs are supplemental in

nature. Weekly logs describe the work being done and the employee’s responsibilities.

a. SCE funds must be used to provide support services that supplement the regular education

program so that we reduce the achievement gap for the at-risk population.

b. Duties unallowable by SCE Staff- Anything required by federal law.

• GT

• Dyslexia

• Subbing/covering classes

• AVID coordinator

• Duty

• Study halls

Zero zones

º The further away the expense is from the classroom, the more likely it will be

questioned by an auditor.

c. Must meet purpose and intent of SCE program.

3. SCE evaluation-The SCE program is evaluated through several avenues

a. CIP/DIP-Document is a working document that is completed by campus teams to increase

academic performance for students.

b. Student performance data- STAAR data, benchmarks, and other assessment instruments help

drive at-risk intervention given by teachers and SCE staff. *SCE staff must document which

student are being served how they are served, and give data on improvement on a progress

monitoring sheet.

c. All documentation will now be stored in Title1crate.

*One to one at risk coordinator trainings are now taking place. Please call 937-0360 or email Desiree Valdivia

at dvali01@sisd.net to schedule an appointment.

ACADEMIC SERVICES

Address:

Phone: 915-937-0000

12440 Rojas Drive

PO Box 292800

El Paso, Texas 79928

Phone: