The Feb. 1 Teal Day is now rescheduled for Saturday, March 16. Teal Day sessions build on teachers’ instructional excellence to support the success of all students through peer-to-peer collaboration and the sharing of best practices for teaching and learning. Registration and session details will be available here starting March 1. Contact Annie Scogin with any questions. This Teal Day is optional and any teacher who attends will be paid a day’s salary.

The 2019 Summer Session Guide is now live. Please consult with your school leader on which session is right for you. These experiences provide opportunities for educators to build capacity, grow in their instructional excellence and support our students. Additional information, including registration links and session locations, will be made available in late spring. If you have questions, contact Annie Scogin.

Would you like to develop as an instructional coach or school leader? Apply today for a paid summer coaching position at Generation Teach (GT). GT offers high school and undergraduate students summer teaching fellowships to inspire them to pursue careers in teaching. GT recruits DPS professional teachers to coach, lead and develop fellows during the summer. If you love collaborating, learning and helping others grow, consider coaching this summer. The commitment for all Denver leadership positions is Monday through Friday, June 3-July 19. 

Learn more about paid part-time and full-time opportunities here and at www.generationteach.org/coach. Apply by March 5. If you have questions, contact Heidi Dotterrer at hdotterrer@genteach.org.

DPS Summer Academy has position openings for teachers, paraprofessionals and office support professionals. DPS Summer Academy is a free program for current K-3 students in ELA programs or on READ plans, and will be held at locations across DPS June 11-July 3. For complete details and to apply, visit summeracademy.dpsk12.org and click on “Employment”.

The DPS Arts and PE team has created the Physical Activity Website based on requests received from teachers. The site has a searchable database to help teachers quickly find brain breaks, indoor and outdoor games and mindfulness activities that are broken down by duration and age group. The site also offers resources to support teachers in incorporating overall physical activity at their school. Teachers are encouraged to check out the site and resources for more information. If you have questions about the site, contact Rose Barcklow.

The fifth open-access ELD Module, Planning and Pacing, is now live in Schoology. This module includes research, tools, instructional videos and turnkey PowerPoints for K-12 educators, school leaders and observers of ELD. The focus of this module includes:

No Nonsense Nurturer is a 6-8 hour self-paced online course that provides teachers and SSPs with tools and strategies to help build a life-altering relationship with students who are in need of motivation to excel academically. Course participants will learn to utilize proven strategies that begin transforming classroom culture, overcome cultural roadblocks that may hinder effectiveness, gain vital support from students’ family members and other strategies. For more information and to access the course, click here.

The Department of Curriculum & Instruction (C&I) is seeking a diverse group of schools to participate in an early adoption cohort to serve as partners in our new elementary science curriculum, Amplify Science. Learn more about this early adoption cohort and whether it is a good fit for your school by attending an informational learning session from 4:30-6:30 p.m. March 4 in room 216 of the Acoma building, 1617 S. Acoma. Leaders and teachers can learn about and explore the Amplify curriculum materials. Additionally, C&I representatives will be available to answer your questions about the elementary science early adoption cohort. Applications are due by Friday, March 8. To learn more about this opportunity, click here or email curriculum_instruction@dpsk12.org.

Want to learn more about the ACCUPLACER Next Generation assessments? Sign up for the DPS ACCUPLACER Next Generation webinar, which is designed to orient school leaders, teachers and staff to the redesigned assessments. The live webinar is from 3:15-4 p.m. on March 5. If you cannot participate in the live webinar, please sign up anyway and a recorded copy will be emailed to you directly. If you have questions, contact Peter Tardif.

Over the past two years, Curriculum & Instruction has received a lot of positive feedback on the K-2 interactive read-aloud lessons and texts that Benchmark opt-in schools received in the summer of 2017. In response to that feedback, we are expanding our offerings to provide additional authentic texts and lessons to K-2 Benchmark teachers. Texts will be delivered to schools the week of March 18-22 in Follett-marked boxes with a guide for distributing. Lessons will be posted to Schoology beginning in June. Keep an eye out for additional details including a comprehensive text list. If you have questions, contact Sara Wortinger.

The Concurrent Enrollment and ASCENT team have created the Concurrent Enrollment Adjunct Instructors Group in Schoology. This group is meant for current and aspiring concurrent enrollment instructors to share and inspire peers with tips, tricks and best practices, which include:

Also available in Schoology is the new DPS CE and ASCENT: All You Need to Know course. This course is the main hub for all things Concurrent Enrollment and ASCENT, and includes a section with tips and tricks on how to implement Schoology into your classrooms.