Some STEM Activities for the Winter Break

Evansdale Elementary will be further increasing our focus on STEM during second semester as we gear up to apply for Georgia STEM certification.  Here are a few great websites with fun and engaging STEM-related activities that can keep the children busy and learning over the break.

NASA Kids Club

CryptoKids from National Security Agency

The Molecularium Project

The Geometry of M&Ms

Juice Box Geometry

Exercise your Pulse

How Everyday Things are Made

Really Unexpected STEM Careers - divided out for children in elementary school through college

SACS puts DeKalb County School District on probation

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (http://www.advanc-ed.org/) has determined that DCSD will be on probation until December 2013.

Here is the official announcement from DCSD:  Today members of the DeKalb County Board of Education, along with the Superintendent and Senior Team, met with AdvancED and Dr. Mark Elgart, President and CEO of AdvancED. During this meeting, Dr. Elgart reviewed the Special Review Team Report from the October 17-19, 2012 visit. As a result, the District is now being placed on Accredited-Probation until December 31, 2013. The District has received this information and will work collaboratively to review the findings and begin to address the required actions. The District still remains fully accredited and students’ academic status remains unchanged.
 

The full announcement from Dr. Mark Algart can be viewed here:
SACS puts DeKalb County School District on probation - CBS Atlanta 46

There are eleven items that must be resolved and are listed in the video announcement.  Seven of these were previously brought to the attention of DCSD and have not been sufficiently resolved.

The four new items are:
1) Need for comprehensive plan to unify the Board of Education
2) All actions and decisions of the Board of Education must be of the collective board and not individuals
3) Appropriate separation of the Board of Education from the administrative offices of DCSD
4) Fiscal responsibility within the financial means of the school

What is SACS accreditation?
http://www.advanc-ed.org/what-accreditation

What does it mean to be on probation?  
Here is the definition from the SACS website:

Probation – Failure to correct deficiencies or failure to make satisfactory progress toward compliance with
the Principles of Accreditation, whether or not the institution is already on Warning, may result in the institution being placed on Probation.  An institution may be placed on Probation for the same reasons as discussed above regarding Warning if the Commission’s Board of Trustees deems noncompliance with the Principles to be serious enough to merit invoking Probation whether or not the institution is or has been on Warning. Probation is a more serious sanction than Warning and is usually, but not necessarily, invoked as the last step before an institution is removed from membership.  Probation may be imposed upon initial institutional review, depending on the judgment of the Board regarding the seriousness of noncompliance or in the case of repeated violations recognized by the Board over a period of time.  An institution must be placed on Probation when it is continued in membership for Good Cause beyond the maximum two-year monitoring period (see section on “Good Cause” below).   The maximum consecutive time that an institution may be on Probation is two years.

What happens if they don't fix the issues?
DCSD will lose accreditation.

Why does accreditation matter?

Accreditation is designed to help educational institutions boost their ongoing performance efforts for the benefit of their students.  AdvancED insists on a relentless pursuit of excellence – for itself and for the institutions it accredits. This ethic of excellence ensures that institutions will find rich benefits from accreditation and that parents can confidently make informed decisions about their children’s education, knowing their child’s school is accredited. Accreditation matters because our students deserve the highest level of educational excellence possible.

Message from Evansdale Principal

Parents and Guardians,

The Evansdale community is truly saddened by the recent tragedy that occurred last week. Please rest assured that Evansdale has procedures in place to address all emergencies that occur. Throughout the year, we conduct drills and make improvements in order to maintain a safe atmosphere for all our students. As a parent/guardian, please make sure you do the following each day:

  • Sign in/out at the front office

  • Do not walk down to your child’s classroom during dismissal

  • Exit out the front door and do not leave outside doors open

  • Review the student handbook with your child (evansdalepta.org)

Sincerely,

Dan McGuire

Principal

Evansdale Education Foundation Newsletter - Now Available

You can view a copy here: Evansdale Education Foundation Newsletter

If you are looking for a heart warming story, check out Brian's Trek on pages 6-7.

Also, thank you for the lovely letter of thanks from the EEF to the School Council - your kind and supportive words are appreciated!

Resources in Light of Trauma and School Shootings

Below is a communication sent to the parents in the Decatur School System.  These messages and resources may be useful to our community following Friday's tragic events.  

Parents, teachers, and other adults:

Attached and below are some resources for parents and adults as they think about their children/students in light of trauma and school shootings. While some children/students may be oblivious, others will deeply feel such situations and may not know how to process and express how they feel. (They may give you a typical "I'm fine.")

Teenagers are at the unusual developmental stage; they have characteristics of both children and adults. One attachment pertains mostly to younger children. Another attachment concerns young adults (and has much that relates to high school students).

A few quick suggestions:

• Keep communication open with your children.
• Monitor your children (including news intake). See "Fact Sheet 3- Disaster and Trauma Responses of Children."
• Discuss in age appropriate ways. "A good analogy is how you might talk about sex," adds Nancy Carlsson-Paige, Ed. D. "You obviously wouldn't explain everything to a 5-year-old. Talking about violence and safety is similar."
• Seek assistance from a counselor if needed.
  

Finally, the parents, teachers and adults need to realize that these events affect us too. We also need to take care of ourselves, apply the suggestions to ourselves, especially in talking with others who can give support.

Ken Jackson, Ph.D., LPC

Head Professional School Counselor, Decatur High School

310 N. McDonough St., Decatur, GA 30030

(404) 370-4420 ext. 117; (404) 370-0975 FAX

kjackson@csdecatur.net

Links to Resource Documents:

Helping Children Cope

Guidelines for Helping College Students at Virginia Tech

Fact Sheet - Disaster and Trauma Responses of Children

  

Talking with Kids About News

http://www.pbs.org/parents/talkingwithkids/news/

  

Strategies for Talking and Listening Through Your Child's Eyes

  

"Children think about the news very differently from adults. News to kids is not just tragic events or disasters; instead they define it to include their entire lives. A child's "news" could be a dead bird on the street, a cut finger, as well as a story about Hurricane Katrina.

"They also interpret the news in personal ways. For example, when young children watch or listen to news reports about crime, bombings, and hurricanes, they may worry about their own safety. Because young children are not able to fully understand cause and effect and distance, it's hard for them to make distinctions between an immediate threat and one that is far away."

  

Diane Levin, Ph.D.

Professor of Education, Wheelock College. Co-Author, The War Play Dilemma.

  

Talking about the news with kids happens in everyday moments. Children ask questions in the car on the way to school, in between pushes on the swings, and just when you're trying to rush out the door. In one breath, they'll ask about a range of topics - from the weather to the president to the latest war. And when difficult questions come up, parents wonder how to respond.

To help the conversation along, this article offers flexible suggestions for answering kids' questions about the news. There is no script to follow but these strategies can help you tune in to what your child is thinking and feeling and talk it through together.

Start by finding out what your child knows. When a news topic comes up, ask an open-ended question to find out what she knows like "What have you heard about it?" This encourages your child to let you know what she is thinking.

  

Ask a follow up question. Depending on your child's comments, ask another question to get him thinking, such as "Why do you think that happened?" or "What do you think people should do to help?"

  

Explain simply. Give children the information they need to know in a way that makes sense to them. At times, a few sentences are enough. "A good analogy is how you might talk about sex," adds Nancy Carlsson-Paige, Ed. D. "You obviously wouldn't explain everything to a 5-year-old. Talking about violence and safety is similar."

  

Listen and acknowledge. If a child talks about a news event (like a local robbery or kidnapping) and is worried,recognize her feeling and comfort her. You might say "I can see you're worried, but you are safe here. Remember how we always lock our doors." This acknowledges your child's feelings, helps her feel secure, and encourages her to tell you more.

  

Offer reassurance. When a child is exposed to disturbing news, she may worry about her safety. To help her calm down, offer specific examples that relate to her environment like, "That hurricane happened far away but we've never had a hurricane where we live." Actions speak louder than words - so show your child how you lock the door if she gets scared by a news report about robbers, point out the gutters and storm drains if a hurricane story causes fear, and explain what the security guards do at the airport after a story about terrorists.

  

Tailor your answer to your child's age. The amount of information children need changes age by age. "A kindergartner may feel reassured simply knowing a hurricane is thousands of miles away. An older child may want to know how hurricanes could affect the place where he lives and may want to know what is being done to help those in need. Both ages will be reassured by doing something to help," notes Jane Katch, M.S.T., author of Under Deadman's Skin: Discovering the Meaning of Children's Violent Play. 

SCHOOL COUNCIL MEETING CANCELLED!

The extra School Council meeting which was scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday, December 11^th at 5 p.m. has been cancelled.  The sole purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Magnet Revision proposal with Pat Copeland from the School Choice office of DCSD.  The proposal has been routed to DCSD administration for review and therefore this meeting was no longer necessary.  Details of the final proposal can be found here.

The next School Council meeting will occur on Tuesday, January 8th at 5 p.m. in the Evansdale Elementary Media Center.

Magnet Revision Proposal is now being considered by DCSD administration.

The Magnet Revision Proposal has been moved forward to the county level for review.  The timeline has not yet been communicated to us, but it is now considered 'pending approval'.  If approved, the changes would take effect for the 2013-2014 school year.  We will post any available updates here as soon as they are available.  Additional paper communication will not go home in the couriers until we know the county's response to our request.  The exact proposal submitted appears below.

Current Magnet Program	Proposed Magnet Program
One magnet homeroom per grade level (except PreK).	Dissolve the magnet homerooms and distribute resident and non-resident Magnet students among all homerooms.
Every K-5 homeroom has science lab once a week for 45 minutes.	No Change
All Magnet homerooms receive French once a day for 30 minutes. Non-Magnet homerooms receive French once a week starting in second grade for 30 minutes.	Offer French or other world language instruction as funding allows.
Magnet homerooms (one per grade) are comprised of 50% resident and 50% non-resident students. (For example, Kindergarten currently contains 13 resident and 13 non-resident students.)	Each grade will contain non-resident students determined by the Magnet Program and the Planning Department based solely on enrollment, class size, and grade size. Students will be selected via the existing DCSD Choice Lottery. All current students will remain enrolled.
Students must maintain a “B” average to stay in the Magnet program.	Out of district students selected to enroll at Evansdale Elementary may continue enrollment through the highest grade level. Enrollment will not be based on academic performance.

Meeting Updates

The School Council met from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. tonight, December 4, 2012.

The agenda is detailed in a previous post and the official minutes will be posted on the bulletin board within 20 days of the meeting and online after approval at the January meeting.

A few of the meeting highlights are recapped here.

Magnet Revision Discussion

DCSD representatives responded to the draft of the Magnet Revision Proposal and requested two changes. On point 4, they requested that control of seat selection for at large students remain in the School Choice Office.  The School Council is requesting that the county include the Evansdale Principal in this process.  On point 5, the county requests that no achievement metric be tied to enrollment for out of district students in order to keep them on a level playing field with the in-district students.  The revised proposal follows below. If the county agrees with the minor changes suggested by the School Council at tonight's meeting, next week's meeting with Pat Copeland will be cancelled.  The next step for the proposal is to acquire DCSD approval prior to open enrollment which begins in January.     

Current Magnet Program	Proposed Magnet Program
One magnet homeroom per grade level (except PreK).	Dissolve the magnet homerooms and distribute resident and non-resident Magnet students among all homerooms.
Every K-5 homeroom has science lab once a week for 45 minutes.	No Change
All Magnet homerooms receive French once a day for 30 minutes. Non-Magnet homerooms receive French once a week starting in second grade for 30 minutes.	Offer French or other world language instruction as funding allows.
Magnet homerooms (one per grade) are comprised of 50% resident and 50% non-resident students. (For example, Kindergarten currently contains 13 resident and 13 non-resident students.)	Each grade will contain non-resident students determined by the Magnet Program, the Planning Department, and the Evansdale Administration based solely on enrollment, class size, and grade size. Students will be selected via the existing DCSD Choice Lottery. All current students will remain enrolled.
Students must maintain a “B” average to stay in the Magnet program.	Out of district students selected to enroll at Evansdale Elementary may continue enrollment through the highest grade level. Enrollment will not be based on academic performance.

 STEM Certification Process

The presentation detailed in the previous blog post was presented to the School Council. There was Council support for exploration of certification.  Specifically, 1) an informational flyer will be drafted for parents and approved at the next meeting, and 2) a group of parents will begin to examine what specific things have to be introduced or changed at Evansdale in order to pursue certification, 3) the PTA, BLT, and Evansdale Foundation will be queried to determine their level of support.

STAR Testing Updates

Explanation of the testing scores will be posted on the school website by Dr. McGuire.  Individual student scores will go home before the end of December.  In general, the scores have improved this semester and we are on track for CRCT testing.  The problem areas identified are being addressed.

STEM Certification Presentation

Here are the slides that will be presented at the Evansdale Elementary School Council meeting this evening regarding the possible pursuit of STEM certification.  A full agenda for tonight's meeting is listed in a previous post.

November 2012 Evansdale Enrollment

Homeroom/Grade Summary

11-27-12

Kindergarten

17, 21,  20, 18, 19, 26 (magnet) = 121

                         

1^st grade

22, 21, 21, 18, 25 (magnet) = 107                   

2^nd grade

25, 23, 23, 24 (magnet) = 95

                

3^rd grade

24, 24, 22, 22, 24 (magnet) = 116                    

4th grade

27, 26, 24, 29 (magnet) = 106                     

                         

5^th grade

34, 34, 31 (magnet) = 99                     

Pre K

22

  

Total   Enrollment:  666

Agenda Update for Tomorrow's Meeting!

Dr. McGuire just learned that he will receive feedback from the county later today in regard to the Magnet Revision proposal.  In light of this new information, the agenda has been updated and what previously was listed as a tentative discussion of Magnet Revision under "Unfinished Business" is now a scheduled discussion that will occur during tomorrow's meeting and will be led by Dr. McGuire.  The planned discussion with Pat Copeland will still occur next Tuesday, December 11th - in addition to the discussion at tomorrow's meeting.

AGENDA FOR SCHOOL COUNCIL MEETING

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

1.     CALL TO ORDER

2.     INSPIRATION – Denise Robinson

3.     APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Joli Mauldin

4.     REPORTS

     a. PTA President – Jennifer Hatfield

     b. Evansdale Foundation– TBA

     c. Principal’s Report – Dan McGuire

          i. Staffing and Allotments

          ii. Enrollment

         

5.     UNFINISHED BUSINESS

a.     Magnet Revision Discussion – Dan McGuire

         

6.     NEW BUSINESS

a.     STEM Certification Process – Gretchen Neigh

b.     STAR testing updates – Dan McGuire

         

7.     DEVELOP AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, January 8^th, 2013

8.     ADJOURNMENT

Extra School Council meeting announced: December 11, 2012

In addition to the meeting already scheduled for Tuesday, December 4th, the School Council will meet on Tuesday, December 11th at 5 p.m. in the Evansdale Media Center.

The purpose of this meeting is to review the proposed changes to the Evansdale Magnet program with Pat Copeland from the DCSD School Choice Office.

As always, anyone from the Evansdale community can attend the meeting, but the meeting will not be open for public comment.

A Succinct Column on How to Help Your Child Succeed in School

Maureen Downey of the AJC and the Get Schooled Blog recently assembled reader comments into a  list of great tips to facilitate student success at home.  A copy of the article can be found on her blog at the following link:
Best advice ever on how to raise successful students. Thanks to my Get Schooled readers.

Henderson Mill STEM Program

The Evansdale Principal and a parent representative toured the Henderson Mill STEM Program today.  Information about the Henderson Mill STEM Program can be found by clicking here.

The Evansdale School Council will discuss the possibility of Evansdale Elementary pursuing STEM certification at the meeting scheduled for Tuesday, December 4th at 5 p.m. in the Media Center.

Proposed 2016-2017 DCSD Redistricting - Includes Evansdale

Below is a link to the "Proposed 2016-2017 School Organization Attendance Zone Adjustments, and Bond Financing" that was released by the central DCSD office on November 28, 2012.

http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/www/documents/splost-iv/proposed-organization-facilities-presentation-and-binder-(2012-11-12).pdf

The proposed plan makes significant changes to Evansdale and the middle and high school feeder patterns.

This plan will be voted on by DCSD School Board on December 10th.

More information will be forthcoming from the Evansdale PTA.

An article appeared in the AJC last night: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/dekalb-officials-consider-new-attendance-lines/nTG25/

December Meeting Agenda

Generally, the School Council does not meet in December; however, several agenda items had to be pushed back in meetings earlier this fall.  The Council will meet next Tuesday, December 4th at 5 p.m. in the Evansdale Media Center so that these agenda items do not have to be held over until the new calendar year.  The agenda appears below.  It is unknown at this time if the Magnet Revision discussion will be continued at this meeting because we are waiting on a response from the DCSD School Choice office.  An agenda update will be posted when it becomes available.

AGENDA FOR SCHOOL COUNCIL MEETING

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

1.     CALL TO ORDER

2.     INSPIRATION – Denise Robinson

3.     APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Joli Mauldin

4.     REPORTS

     a. PTA President – Jennifer Hatfield

     b. Evansdale Foundation– TBA

     c. Principal’s Report – Dan McGuire

          i. Staffing and Allotments

          ii. Enrollment

         

5.     UNFINISHED BUSINESS

a.     Magnet Revision Discussion

          - tentative – pending appointment with Pat Copeland 

         of  DCSD School Choice office

6.     NEW BUSINESS

a.     STEM Certification Process – Gretchen Neigh

b.     STAR testing updates – Dan McGuire

         

7.     DEVELOP AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, January 8^th, 2013

8.     ADJOURNMENT

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Evansdale School Council wishes you all a Happy Thanksgiving!

If you are looking for activities to do at home during this week-long break from school, check out some of these free resources that are available online:

Thanksgiving videos and worksheets are available from Scholastic free of charge.

Schoolfamily.com offers links to various free printable worksheets.

Bright Hub Education provides ideas on how to work math and patterns into preparations for the Thanksgiving meal.

Parental Involvement and Parental Engagement

One of the themes that was recurrent during the focus groups was that of parental involvement and parental engagement.

Here are a few resources that touch on the qualities of involvement versus engagement, how to increase the role of the parents in their child's education, and the power a parent has in facilitating the academic success of their children.

Ways to Engage in Your Child’s School to Support Student Health and Learning

A fact sheet from the CDC:  http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/adolescenthealth/pdf/parentengagement_parents.pdf

Beyond the Bake Sale: Family-School Partnerships

The link below will take you to a recorded presentation by Anne Henderson, the author of "Beyond the Bake Sale: Family-School Partnerships."  The presentation is long - but maybe good listening for that Atlanta commute.  Learn about the differences between a "fortress school" and a "partnership school".  

Description from the website:

"Countless studies demonstrate that students with parents actively involved in their education at home and school are more likely to earn higher grades and test scores, enroll in higher-level programs, graduate from high school, and go on to post-secondary education. But, what is a family-school partnership supposed to look like? How can schools and families build trust instead of blaming each other? How can involving parents help raise student test scores? How can teachers relate to families who do not share their culture and values?"

http://dev.forum-network.org/lecture/beyond-bake-sale-family-school-partnerships

An essay on "Parent Involvement or Parent Engagement" by Larry Ferlazzo

An excerpt from the essay: 

"Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines involvement as “to enfold or envelop.” It definesengagement as “to interlock with; to mesh.” Those definitions get to the crux of the difference. When schools involve parents they are leading with their institutional self-interest and desires – school staff are leading with their mouths. When schools engage parents they are leading with the parents’ self-interests (their wants and dreams) in an effort to develop a genuine partnership. In this instance, school staff are leading with their ears."

http://www.learningfirst.org/LarryFerlazzoParentEngagement

The School Council is actively reviewing ways Evansdale can promote parental involvement and engagement and these important topics will be examined at a Council meeting in 2013.