The Knight Times

Thomas Dale Faculty and Staff,

What an awesome week! And we still have one AWESOME day left! This week, I was able to shadow Jaylin Graham, a Junior who is in the Child Development Program at CTC@Courthouse. I enjoyed my time in Mr. Garavito's class for 1st period, and then it was off to CTC. The highlight of my day was working with 3rd grade students because Jaylin is assigned to a teacher at Gates Elementary for his hands-on experience with the program. This was a tremendous learning experience for me and a chance to build a stronger relationship with Jaylin and other Dale students. You may have noticed the admin team and teachers participating in the shadow experience. The feedback has been tremendous, and I recommend you take me up on my offer to participate.

I also had the chance to travel with Heidi Hicks, Steve Davies, Billy Rudd, Laura Deck, Dick Anthony, Meredith Byrd, and Susan Carraway to Wakefield HS in Arlington today. They have incorporated Senior Project for 22 years. There was a wealth of knowledge to take away, and I believe this aspect of our vision for Thomas Dale will grow into an extremely meaningful experience for our students. So exciting!!

In an earlier email, I shared that we would be taking volunteers for duties. I will communicate more information soon, including a spreadsheet for signing up...stay tuned!

For this weekend, I wanted to include two awesome articles shared by James Buckner and Chris Davis:

• https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/01/23/teacher-what-happened-when-i-stopped-test-prep-focused-building-relationships-with-my-students/?utm_term=.42f11d73150d
  
• https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/opinion/learning-emotion-education.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage
  

Enjoy!

Up-Front Summary (by day):

Monday

• 1st day of the second semester!
• Genius Hour during Enrichment (Click HERE for GH Info)

Tuesday

• NAEP Testing for Select Seniors (NAEP Teacher PPT and Senior Testing Roster)

Wednesday

• Normal Day

Thursday

• Normal Day

Friday

• Normal Day

Links shared in this issue:

• TD Staff Dashboard
• KUDOS
• January 25th Pot Luck Form
• Student of the Month Voting Form
• Tech Integrator - Janice Skipwith
  
• Electronic Absence Form
• Girls and Boys State Nomination Form
• Knight's Cafe Order Form
  

#EveryKnightEveryDay

Each week, I will include writing from our students. This started as an idea to include student voice in our newsletter, and I think has the potential to be so much more. If you are interested in having your students write about their Thomas Dale experience for inclusion in The Knight Times, simply submit them to me...and I will include them.

Here are two more responses to the prompt: "I wish my teachers knew..." Most students wanted the responses shared but preferred anonymity.

• I wish my educators knew that I am adopted and I can sometimes be emotionally unstable due to the trauma I faced as a child. I wish they knew that I was taken out of my biological home at 11 months old and was in foster care for two years. I wish they knew that my biological mother had bipolar disorder, kidney failure, heart disease, and cancer, which puts me at a greater risk for being diagnosed. I wish they knew that I have hyperventilation syndrome which causes me to hyperventilate in stressful situations. However, because of a strong adoptee support system, I have focussed my attention on art and music and try to grow on my history and to make myself a better person.
  

• I wish my teachers knew how important student-relationships mean to me. I once had a teacher tell me that she wasn’t there to be my friend, just my teacher and I immediately felt disconnected and irrelevant to her. It’s important for teachers to know that I look for the acceptance I don’t get from my parents, from my teachers.
  

The I Make A Difference award is a weekly recognition for a staff member going above and beyond the requirements of the job. Each week, the previous I Make A Difference award winner will select one member of the faculty/staff who displays excellence, goes the extra mile, and makes a difference and "pass" it on.

From Meg Bryant:

The next I Make A Difference award goes to... Ron Kaiser.

The first day of work week, my first year at Dale, and every day since, Ron Kaiser has been the definition of supportive! Switching schools, content areas, and transitioning from middle to high school were all things that could have completely overwhelmed me, but Kaiser was there every step of the way! He gave me the rundown on TDHS, World History, and teaching high school in general. He has and is always willing to share his wealth of knowledge and materials relating the content as well experiences and advice on how to navigate challenges with students/parents/admin. He never hesitates to fill in or cover a class/duty when needed. Not to mention, he always manages to make us laugh, even if I'm just laughing to keep from crying! I know I can count on him!

On top of all of this, Kaiser has an incredible relationship with his students! He connects with them in a way that lets them know he cares and has their backs, but he also means business! He genuinely gives his all and wants every student to be successful, in and out of the classroom!

Kaiser has most definitely made a difference in my life, and there's no doubt he makes a difference in the lives of his students as well! Thanks for being such a reliable coworker and friend, Kaiser! We love and appreciate you!

The purpose of our weekly KUDOS is to give public affirmation to a faculty/staff member for a job well done. Anytime you witness something that you think deserves KUDOS, you are invited to fill out THIS FORM with the staff member's name and a little about why he/she deserves KUDOS. You will notice a difference in the form. We have added a layer that will send each individual recipient an email with attachment shortly after the KUDOS has been submitted! The list of teacher names and valiant acts will be published in The Knight Times. At each faculty meeting, those nominated for KUDOS will be entered into a drawing for a special prize! Be alert to the wonderful actions of your colleagues and give a shout out when you see something awesome!

Please enjoy this week's KUDOS by clicking HERE!

Each month, we will celebrate and recognize one teacher as the Teacher of the Month and one staff member as the Staff Member of the Month. We were so excited to celebrate our Teacher and Staff Member of the Month recipients so far!

• September: Jamie Barrack and Michelle Kimenhour
• October: Rachel Langston and Steve Davies
• November: James Thompson and Bridget Lehman
• December: Heather Walker and Lisa Neal

Submit your nomination for February's Teacher and Staff Member of the Month by clicking HERE.

Each month, we will celebrate and recognize one student from each grade level as the Student of the Month. This student will be publicly recognized in front of classmates and on social media. Additionally, we will place a yard sign at each student's place of residency indicating that they are a Student of the Month for the appropriate grade level. Each student will be able to keep the yard sign. Each student who is nominated but not selected will also be recognized publicly.

Please think of a student you feel is deserving of January's Student of the Month and submit that student's name HERE.

The Culture by Design team has come up with several ways for us to celebrate our awesome knight students, as they exemplify the pillars of the Knight Code. Please take a moment to read through the awards and methods of nomination.

Additionally, we would like to ask that all Homeroom teachers encourage their students to come up with spirit-oriented Genius hour sessions. Ideas to jump start the conversation include: poster painting, face painting, relay races or candid photos... but we'd love to make their ideas come into reality.

• Student of the Month (Action). Please visit this link to cast your vote for our January students of the month by Wednesday, January 30th. The last few votes have been very close so please participate to help us recognize our awesome students!
• Missing Sub Binders (Action). Teachers: Please check your classroom and workrooms for black binders with the cover page: "Thomas Dale Main Campus Substitute Binder." We are missing about 10 of these.... Please return these to the front desk at main. Also, if you put in for a sub and have classes at the west campus, please, please, please put this in your substitute directions. We still have several substitutes every week report to the main campus when they should be at west.Many thanks!
• Tech Integrator (Information). Janice Skipwith is a wonderful resource for high-quality instruction. Please see her weekly newsletter HERE.
  
• Senior Assembly (Information). 1st period teachers of seniors: On Thursday, January 31 there will be a senior assembly during enrichment. Please release your seniors at the 9:00, before the Enrichment bell, giving them instructions to report to the large auditorium for a senior presentation. If you’re a teacher of all seniors 1st period, please accompany your students to the auditorium. If you have any questions, email me. (laura_deck@ccpsnet.net) Thanks for your help. --Laura

This document has all information for 1/28 Genius Hour.

• The student spreadsheet with assignments will be updated later today (1/24) and will be posted to Google Classroom for students to see.
• Teacher duties are now located in this document. Please see what you will be doing during Genius Hour.
  
• Attendance for all sessions and holding areas will use the same Google form (it is in the document). All students should fill out this Google form.
• Students who are not signed up for a Genius Hour will report to their Homeroom.

1/28 Genius Hour Information

When thanks seems inadequate...I am at a loss with expressing my gratitude to each one of you who hopped aboard the new student registration train!! Tomorrow we will ALL embark upon this scheduling journey together. We may encounter unforeseen glitches. However, it is during those times that The Knight Family bands together to make the best of it and learn for future journeys. I have no doubt that we will rise to the occasion.

As you are aware, all students will have the opportunity to visit the Elective Fair. After which, they will begin their course selection process. Counselors will be positioned in the hallways to to assist with addressing questions that may arise...just poke your head out of your door.

We anticipate that this new scheduling process may cause 'a little' angst among our student body. We ask that you reassure them that each of them will have an individual meeting with their counselor to discuss their course selection, graduation requirements and post-secondary opportunities. We will adhere to the following schedule:

• Rising seniors (through US History)--January 30th through February 13th
• Rising juniors (through H/PE 10 or their specialty center foundational class)--February 14th through February 26th
• Rising sophomores (through H/PE 9 or their specialty center foundational class)--January 30th through February 26th
  

TD Family, I am so glad to share the maroon and gray ties with you, EveryKnight, EveryDay!

NAEP Assessments: Thomas Dale was notified of our selection for the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) operational assessments in mathematics, reading and science. A group of our 12th graders were randomly selected by DOE to participate in this assessment on Tuesday, January 29th. NAEP, known as the Nation's Report Card, is the only ongoing project to chart trends in student achievement at national and state levels. We are excited that our students can be a part of this assessment. Detailed information about this assessment has been added to the student's Google Classroom; please encourage them to review this information. This short "NAEP Teacher PPT" is a great resource to understanding this assessment process. Click HERE for NAEP students. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Chromebooks and Chargers: With May fast approaching and many testing opportunities for our students from now until then, please remind them to charge their Chromebooks nightly and to bring their charger to school on a daily basis.

W!SE Testing for "targeted" Students: Wednesday and Thursday, January 30th and 31st.

The new Absence Form can be found on the TDHS Dashboard. Please be sure to fill this form out before or the day of your absence. Even if you are out for one hour, we MUST have a completed form. Also, if you use 'in-house coverage' you must still fill out a form. Punctuality is the only way we can make this process run smoothly.

Once you fill out the google form and hit 'submit', that is your electronic signature. The administrator that you select will be sent a PDF of your absence form for their records. Once Kirsten at West receives your form, she will forward you a PDF of your answers for your own records (this is your official confirmation). Your submitted form will be printed, signed by Dr. Jones, and added to the weekly file for payroll. If you have any questions or concerns, please let Kirsten know via email (kirsten_graham@ccpsnet.net).

For hourly employees, please be sure to fill out your timesheet and turn in on FRIDAY(unless you have additional bus aid hours).

Please save THIS FORM and bookmark it. We will also provide access on the TD Staff Dashboard.

Please enter your nominees HERE for both Girls and Boys State. These are leadership programs that are FREE of charge to our students. The American Legion and its Auxiliary, who sponsor Girls and Boys State, will interview interested students and select approximately 6 to 10 representatives from Thomas Dale for each program. PLEASE ENTER YOUR NOMINEES BY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8th. If you nominate a student, please make sure that student knows that she/he will need to fill out an application as well. If you have questions please let Gonjoe Winn know. THANK YOU!

The initial grade file build will be TODAY, Friday, 1/18. It helps a lot if you do an initial send of your files as soon as the marking period opens. That way, Jill has plenty of time to see errors caused by things you may not be able to see right away. The most common problem is with students whose grade is over 100. You have to override the grade with a 100, though their 100+ is used in the semester average. The other common problem is with transfer grades. If you have received a student from another school/class during Term 2, you will need to find out from the student's counselor what the transfer grade is. If they came during Term 2, you should have a Term 1 grade AND a Term 2 grade. Enter the Term 1 grade ONCE in any column under Term 1 that is worth 100 points. If they arrived during Term 2, enter the transfer grade in as many blanks as you have in Term 2 prior to their arrival. If you need help with this, Jill is happy to assist. She is in 1007 or may be reached by cell at 804-980-1323. Other points to remember:

• Should you need instructions/checklists/guidelines for sending MP2 grades, they are available on CNet, under Synergy Report Cards.
• Grades can be sent from any internet connection - grades do not have to be sent while on the CCPS network.
• All assignments must have a non-zero Points value.
• When you override the calculated grade for the marking period, please do so using a numeric value, NOT a letter grade (the exceptions being "I", "N", or "P"/"F" - those are the only valid letter grades to use as overrides by teachers).
• To override a grade, there must be a numeric average in the grade book.
• Any calculated grade above 100 MUST be overwritten with a 100 for the report card (the calculated grade will continue to be used in semester/final year calculations).
• If a student is exempt from an exam, and everyone was, leave the value as a blank (which will show as "N/A" when they go to post grades). DO NOT enter a value of "N" for an exemption. If a student CHOSE to take the exam, or if you teach a dual enrollment class, enter the exam as we usually have in the past.
• The absolute deadline for having all grades sent is Monday, January 28 at 3:30.

Once you have sent grades for all classes, please run the U-GBK407 - Secondary Teacher Posted Mark Verification Report - it can be found under Reports in the seating chart sub-menu. Due to state reporting requirements, ALL students must have a grade (even if that grade is an "N"). Please see picture below.

Jill will start running this report on Monday, January 21st and will run it a million times, checking to see where we are. It's so nice when the errors can get cleaned up well before the 3:30 deadline on Monday, January 28th. This can happen if teachers will post all grades early and then continue editing, adding, calculating to your heart's content until 3:30 on the 28th.

this week the Knights Cafe is offering Cinnamon Streusel Muffins, Banana Nut Muffins and Cinnamon Rolls. Click HERE for the order form.

As part of our intentionality to strengthen trust, communication, and relationships, we will include agendas and minutes from our meetings in this section of the newsletter.

• Admin Team: January 3
  
• ILT: January 11
  
• Instructional Admin: January 22
  
• Community Partners Meeting: January 8
• Principal's Advisory Council: January 16
• Student Advisory Council: December 6
• ACTS Notes (from Cindy Waters): November
• English: January 23
• Math: Minutes Folder

Steve Nigro - January 30

Shana Davis - January 31

April Moss - January 31

Sarah Roquemore - January 31

Enjoy your day!!!

Stay connected to OUR CALENDAR and mark yours!

Click HERE for our 2018-2019 meeting dates.

January 25 - "Registration Rally" Half Day (12pm Dismissal; Bell Schedule)

January 25 - Pot Luck Staff and Student Luncheon (12:30-1:30pm)

January 28 - Genius Hour during Enrichment

January 29 - NAEP Testing (Selected Seniors)

January 29 - Live Twitter Chat on Social-Emotional Learning (8pm, #VASCDChat)

January 30 - VHSL New Region 6A Planning Meeting

January 31 - Senior Assembly during Enrichment

January 31 - Bermuda District Town Hall Meeting (7pm in Large Auditorium)

February 5 - Instructional Coaching with Dr. Ray Jones for Administrators

Click below to access previous issues of The Knight Times, our weekly staff newsletter:

• Week of August 13
• Week of August 20
• Week of August 27
• Week of September 3
• Week of September 10
• Week of September 17
• Week of September 24
• Week of October 1
• Week October 8
• Week of October 15
• Week of October 22
• Week of October 29
• Week of November 5
• Week of November 12
• Weeks of November 19 and 26
• Week of December 3
• Week of December 10
• Week of December 31
• Week of January 7
  
• Week of January 14
• Week of January 21

Click below to access previous issues of From the Castle, our monthly parent and community newsletter:

• August 2018
• September 2018
• October 2018
• November 2018
• December 2018
• January 2019

If you have information you need to share, input you seek, or dates you need to communicate, please send it to me. As we improve our communication structure, The Knight Times will become an increasingly collaborative document.

Please email me what you'd like to share - just ensure you have The Knight Times as part of your subject line. I will just need a title, body of text to include, and a picture attachment (if you have one to add to your piece).

Email: christopherm_jones@ccpsnet.net
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/ccpsnet.net/tdhs/
Location: 3626 W. Hundred Rd. Chester, VA 23831
Phone: (804) 768-6245
Facebook: facebook.com/ThomasDale
Twitter: @GoTDKnights