Week of 3/16 - 3/20

Hey Panda Family,

Week 28 was the Great Escape....from Coronavirus 😵😬😳 But y'all have been doing an amazing job! I know everyone is stretched thin right now, but remember you can only control what you can control & we are in this together. 

Baby Panda: Meet Baby Panda Ivy! Congratulations to Michelle and her family. If anyone would like to donate leave time to Michelle please contact Pam Willis.

Zoom: Please see the email that I sent earlier today with updates from district technology. At this time they are not allowing the use of Zoom with our students. I apologize, for I would not have promoted this means of communication if I knew this was coming. See the email for more details.

Staff Meeting: We will, however, have a virtual staff meeting using Zoom tomorrow at 2:00. I will send out the link via email & Remind beforehand. The meeting should last 15-20 minutes. 

Teacher Working Conditions Survey: Thank you to everyone who has completed their TWC Survey. When you have completed it please email or text Terri Ball letting her know. If you need any assistance with the survey she is the contact person for our school. 

Virtual Tutor: Wake Forest University is offering a program for WS/FCS students to receive virtual tutoring from WFU students at no cost. Please feel free to share with your families. Link is below. 

https://communityengagement.wfu.edu/virtual-engagement/virtual-tutoring/

Virtual Technology Training (from HR): As you are planning meaningful tasks for your staff, please forward this information for hour-long virtual technology trainings that take place at 9am OR 1pm on Mondays.  Here is the link to register - bit.ly/wsfcstechintro.  The training includes Microsoft Office (Outlook Calendars, Excel, etc.) and Google Drive (creating docs, managing folders, creating forms, etc.).  Once you sign-up for a course, you will receive an email from technology (Sunday at the latest) inviting you to join the training via Microsoft teams which is already installed on your laptops.  When it is time to log in you will select the option to attend on the web.  This should take you straight into the training.

Virtual Career/Transfer Fair (from HR): We want to ensure our students have the very best district employees to support their growth so we are going to move from an in-person to a virtual career fair!  We will host a virtual career fair for teachers, operations and central office staff on Saturday, April 25, from 10am-2pm. More details to come! 

Soaps: Ms. Pizzino wanted us to share that she has an Avon contact that has a large stock of hand soaps, bathing soaps, etc. if you need some. Please reach out to Ms. Pizzino if you are in need. 

Retention: Any considerations for retention need to be shared with me and Ms. Gardner. I am seeking guidance from our Instructional Superintendent, Mr. Hall, on how retention will look considering the current circumstances. 

Staff Spotlight: I don't even know where to begin this week :) I am truly blessed to lead such an amazing staff that cares for each other and our students the way y'all do. You exceed my expectations every day! 



Teacher Tuesday Spotlight: Our school Facebook page is highlighting a teacher each week! Our spotlight this past week was Ms. Sherrill. Check it out! 

IF Updates

K-3 teachers: Don't forget to register for this Istation webinar: 

Part 1: March 23rd 3:00 to 4:00

Please register for WSFCS - Understanding Istation's Reading ISIP and Adaptive Curriculum  on Mar 23, 2020 3:00 PM EDT at:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/19239659973291021

Part 2: April 7th 3:00 to 4:00
Please register for WSFCS - Driving Instruction with Istation's Reports and Resources! (Session 2) on Apr 7, 2020 3:00 PM EDT at:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4439656834656947213

• Here is a great site with tons of great demonstrations for various math standards.  I know one grade was struggling with demonstrating measurement and I was able to find something here.  I hope this will be helpful to some of you too!

• Here is a good video to explain synchronous vs asynchronous learning. This may help you as we continue to discuss video conferencing. 

• I’ve started working on a project for one grade level. If you would like to plan together, have me research digital learning for a topic, or anything, please let me know. I have lots of resources other IFs have shared but don't want to overwhelm you if you don’t need it. I’m just a call or email away! 

• I will continue to forward subject-specific information as I receive it. 

Upcoming Dates:

March 23 - Virtual Staff Meeting @ 2:00
March 30 - Teacher Workday (RS)
March 31 - TWC Survey due
April 25 - Virtual District Career/Transfer Fair 10:00 - 2:00

Keep smiling and keep working hard! Hope this gives you a good laugh...