Saratoga Union School District
Educational Services Newsletter
September 2014
August 8, 2014 - In This Issue:
Professional Development Opportunities for SUSD Educators

Saratoga Symposium: Google Drive for Beginners

Come to this session to begin your Googley adventure. Learn the best practices for setting up your Google Drive, no matter what your role at your school. We'll even share a couple simple geeky tricks that will make your techiest friends ohh and ahh.
Register: rzarea@saratogausd.org
Mon Sept. 8th 3:30 - 5:00 at Argonaut Computer Lab

A Close Encounter, Through the Writers' Eyes, of the New ELA/ELD Framework Webinar 
The lead writers of the new ELA/ELD Framework will share important understandings included in the new framework. Educators will gain information on the instructional strategies that support the goals of the Common Core State Standards and the English Language Development Standards.
Wed Sept 17 3:30 - 5:00
Click here for more information and to register.


Saratoga Symposium: iPads & Common Core: Beyond Basics to Practical Classroom Uses 
Turn the iPads in your classroom into tools to create, document and share learning using free, open-ended creative apps to meet the digital demands of the Common Core State Standards. This session will exhibit innovative ways to engage students in learning using iPads by demonstrating a variety of iPad apps. Bring your iPads and get ready to have fun!
Register: rzarea@saratogausd.org
Mon, Sept 22 3:30 - 5:00 Redwood Library 

 

 

LEC Digital Educator

Designed with the classroom teacher in mind, this eight-week course focuses on a variety of important issues for teachers today. Topics include: Digital Citizenship, Collaboration & Communication, Learning Environments (1:1, BYOD, one-computer classrooms, etc.) and more! Click here for more information! 
 

 

 

Tools for Launching a Common Core Academic Vocabulary Campaign (Grades 5-12)

Dr. Kate Kinsella will provide research-based instructional principles and routines to prepare mixed-ability classes for the vocabulary demands of complex text analysis, discussion and response. She will explicate and model a productive process for introducing focal lesson concepts at the beginning of a unit or text using a customized graphic organizer. Dr. Kinsella will also provide a detailed protocol for assisting students in analyzing context to understand an author's word choice or identify sentence-level clues to word meaning.

Sat. Oct. 18th 8:00 - 3:30 at SCCOE

Click here for more information! 

 

 

 


San Jose Area Writing Project Fall Saturday Seminars

Oct. 4: Informational Writing

Nov 8: Narrative Writing

Click here for more information! 

 

 

 

California Reading Association

47th Annual Professional Development Institute

The "one stop" conference for everything you need to know about implementing CCSS! Come to the CRA Professional Development Institute where your grade level and your needs/interests are met with OVER 70 Speakers and Experts in Literacy, including our own Laurie Brandt, addressing the Common Core!  

Fri and Sat Oct 17 and 18

Sacramento

Click here for more information! 
Educational Services Meetings
& Trainings
all meetings are in the District Office Large Conference Room unless specified

Mon Sept 8    3:30  Saratoga Symposium: Google Drive (Argonaut)

Thurs Sept. 11 3:30 Wellness Committee 

Mon Sept 15  3:30
District Leadership Team
(DLT) 
 
Tues Sept 16 3:30 Progress Update (Report Card) Meeting

Thurs Sept 18 3:30 District English  Language Advisory Committee (DELAC)

Mon Sept 22 3:30 Saratoga Symposium: iPad Apps (RMS)

Tues and Thurs Sept 23 & 25 8:00 - 12:00 First Aid and CPR Training  (Redwood)

Thurs Sept 25 or Mon Sept 30 3:30 Intro to Dreambox (choose one)

Tues and Thurs Sept 30 and Oct 2 8:30 - 3:30 PE & CCSS (RMS)

Tues Oct 7 and Tues Oct 21 8:30 - 3:30 SCCOE Engage NY Math Training (Argonaut)

Tues Oct 7 GATE Meeting

Thurs Oct 9 Emergency Preparedness Meeting

Mon Oct 13 DLT

Tues Oct 23 Khan Academy Training

Thurs Oct 30 District Wellness Meeting

Fri Oct 31 RMS PD; Elementary Work Day
SUSD Links for Teachers
Tech Support
 
   
Need Technical Support?

Send an email to helpdesk@saratogausd.org
WELCOME BACK!

Dear SUSD Colleagues,

 

Welcome to the 2014-15 school year! I hope you find this newsletter informative, interesting, and relevant to your teaching. In this issue, you will find information about Project Cornerstone, CCSS and NGSS implementation, instructional technology resources, and professional development opportunities. You may want to save this email and refer to it in the future. I plan to send a newsletter at the beginning of every month with current information. Please let me know if you have any ideas on topics to include in upcoming issues.

 

Thank you for all you do to make Saratoga Union School District GREAT!

 

Have a wonderful month!

Roberta   
Congratulations...

Leading Edge Certification (LEC) is a national certification program in educational technology and curriculum innovation.

Congratulations to the following SUSD educators for earning the Leading Edge Digital Certification:
Shannon Avina
Harry Dill
Jim Fitzgerald
Vicki Gochnauer
Julie Kwok
Allyson Parker
Megan Queen
Amy Roper
Doris Watson

Are you interested in becoming a Leading Edge Certified teacher? Click here!
CURRICULUM RESOURCES
Project Cornerstone Ideas for Educators 
Caring School Climate

While it may seem that creating a caring climate demands extra energy and vigilance, in fact it will reduce stress and restore the energy you need to focus on important tasks such as teaching. Students consistently report feeling settled, safer, and in greater control of their behavior when they are in a nonthreatening environment. How to create a caring school climate...
Next Generation Science Standards
Get the latest information on the Conceptual Framework and implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards. Click here!

Smarter Balanced News

SUSD students in third - eighth grade will take the computer adaptive test in ELA and Math after spring break (testing schedule TBD). Click here for Smarter Balanced resources, including practice tests for your students and training modules.
Schoology News

Visit the Schoology blog to learn 4 quick tips for busy educators:
  • Creating Standards-Aligned Assessments
  • Weaving Vocabulary into Lessons with Tooltips
  • Sharing Cross-Disciplinary Discussions
  • Creating and Organizing New Content on the Fly
Click here for the Schoology User Guides and FAQs.

SBE-Adopted ELA/ELD Framework Now Available Online

The prepublication version of the English Language Arts/English Language Development (ELA/ELD) Framework, adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE) on July 9, 2014, is now available on the CDE English Language Arts Frameworks Web page. Click here! 
Everyday Math Online Resources 

Third, Fourth, & Fifth Grade Teachers - are you interested in supplementary materials to enhance your Everyday Math lessons, including an alignment of EM curriculum with CCSS? Click here!  If you've never logged on to the site, contact Roberta for the registration code.
Digital Citizenship 

Click here for Common Sense Media's
K-12 Digital Literacy & Citizenship Curriculum, available online as downloadable lessons or as interactive iBook Textbooks. The curriculum includes easy-to-use lessons, student videos, engaging activities, assessments, and parent resources, and is adaptable to low-tech and high-tech classrooms.

Engage NY Math and ELA Curriculum

 

In order to assist schools and districts with the implementation of the Common Core, NYSED has provided curricular modules and units in P-12 ELA and math that can be adopted or adapted for local purposes. Curriculum modules include:

  • Year-long scope and sequence documents
  • Module framing/overview documents
  • Performance tasks (for administration in the middle and at the end of each module)
  • Lesson plans
  • Lesson plan supporting materials (class work, homework, etc.)

Click here to access the Engage NY CCSS library of resources.
What is SchoolCity?

SchoolCity, or DMM, is SUSD's assessment platform. It provides a Common Core-aligned item bank with test items, a student-friendly online testing interface, a repository of our students' data, informative reports to drive instruction, and CCSS instructional resources and pre-built formative assessments.

Click here to log in to the SchoolCity STARS Suite!
Dreambox
DreamBox offers over 1,200 math lessons with millions of paths through the curriculum. To engage students exactly where they are, it adjusts in real-time, adapting hints, level of difficulty, pace, and sequence.

All SUSD teachers and students have Dreambox accounts!

Click here for more information.

Please come to the Dreambox Introductory webinar on either Thurs Sept 25 or Tues Sept 30 at 3:30 at the District Office to learn how to quickly and easily get Dreambox going in your class!

If you need Dreambox support: Extended support hours from 5:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Pacific), Monday through Friday by phone at 877-451-7845 ext. 3, and by email at support@dreambox.com.
NEWS FROM OUR SEF TEACHERS
News from the SEF Elementary Art Program

by Marie Helene Bauguil

Art classes for 4th and 5th grade start next week: 5th grade first project will be a still life study and 4th grade will learn about mixing tints and shades while painting a sun that shows personality.

I have worked with the art lead coordinators from Argonaut, Saratoga and Foothill  for the past two weeks to recruit volunteers for the docent program. We had a Welcome Breakfast meeting at Foothill this morning as well as  our first training: printmaking techniques for 3rd grade.
News from the SEF Elementary Tech Teacher
by Doris Watson

Many K-5 teachers are anxious to get their class up and running with Google Apps. Here is a great resource for ideas on how to take advantage of this powerful collaborative tool in your classroom: http://bit.ly/classgoogle

News from the SEF Redwood Librarian

by Vicki Gochnauer

 

The Redwood Library Media Center has had a busy start to the school year. The calendar has been filled with the sixth grade exploratories having their orientations to the library and lab. By now all the sixth graders have had a peek at the tools and research resources available to them as they start their time at Redwood.

 

If you have not done so, check out the Redwood Library webpage: http://www.redwoodlibrary.blogspot.com/. The right-hand column contains links to school information and also to sites containing resources of interest to both students and teachers.  

 

Are you a Redwood teacher bringing your class in to the lab, or do you have links that will be used across Redwood classrooms? Contact Vicki or Joni to find out about having your links posted to the blog.
News from the SEF Elementary Music Teachers
by Dave Chisler

I will be using many resources and lesson plans in the upcoming weeks from the Classic for Kids (www.classicforkids.com).website. It's a great resource for parents, teachers and students alike and you can find how standards from Common Core can be used in a music lesson.

by Margie Alejandro

Fifth grade students are busily preparing for Programs, Fourth graders are ordering recorders preparing to READ music, Third grade students are working on beat/rhythm and singing on pitch.....BUSY BUSY BUSY in the music rooms! 
Roberta Zarea
Director of Educational Services 
rzarea@saratogausd.org
408.867.3424 x 206


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