Monday, February 9, 2015

Information and dates you need

Dr. Littleton will meet with the staff on March 6th at 9:00 am.   It is part of the grant requirement for MSP and ACHE.   It will be a simple conversation as he documents our ability to manage the grant within the requirements.

Once again, I used  the RSS work for 2014-2015 on Google in order to "prove" what schools we have served this year and where we have been.   Thanks for keeping it updated.

The material manager meeting here at JSU is down to one day, February 19th.  At our staff meeting on Friday, February 13th, lets plan the refreshments we will provide for the material staff from across the state.

If you use the laminator, please remember to shut it off.  It has been left on a couple of times. THANKS

As of February 1: If you need assistance with  copying or other things like that related to AMSTI, please ask Leslie for help.  

Please remember to respond / acknowledge the receipt of emails in a timely manner.  Some emails are time sensitive and need a reply as quickly as possibly by the close of business.

DATES for NEXT School Year - 2015-2016 I will post them as soon as I receive them.  This isn't all of them [I haven't received dates for CCRS, RSS or RPT/RSS] only Statewide Staff meeting dates.
Statewide Staff meetings -

August 24-28, 2015
October 19-23, 2015
May 2-6, 2016

THANKS!
Tanya

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Updates October 9, 2014

Statewide Staff Meeting

Monday and Tuesday - 44 (Directors, Assistant Directors, SDE)
Tuesday: Middle and  HS Math specialists 30
Wednesday - 176 Everyone including AMSTI and ASIM.
Thursday - 143 - AMSTI 

IF you want to bring your snack on Monday, we will help you get it in the building.
Drinks—If each site could bring two cases of water  and also at least two 12-packs of soft drinks.        
ASU/WCCS – Fruit (apples, bananas, oranges, etc)
Athens- Bagels & Cream Cheese
AU–  Chocolate 
JSU – Cheese & Crackers
SDE – Small paper plates, Napkins and Forks
Troy – Individual bags of chips
UA/UWA – M & Ms, Candy, Chocolaté
UAB–  Homemade goodies and coffee
UAH–  Tortilla Chips and Salsa
UM –  Homemade goodies
UNA: Cookies/Pastry/Muffins
USA–  Nuts and “spicy stuff”

There are two cases of water left from the last staff meeting.  We will carry those and I will bring an additional case.   
Cheese and Crackers:   bags of cheese cubes, boxes of crackers and cheese crackers and peanut butter crackers.  

Bring your contribution on October 17th and Kay and I will take it with us on Monday, October 20th.  

Material Managers Meeting here at JSU - change of date:  New date: February 19-20, 2015 - we will supply home made goodies for them.  

Friday, September 5, 2014

September 4, 2014

Please remember to move your magnet.  It is a matter of safety and security.  Those in offices downstairs need to know who is upstairs in case of emergency.  

Living material update -- 

We spoke with Michelle last week.  Just as FYI:
The teachers’ misunderstanding appears to be with using the correct number off of the living materials card.  As you know, these cards are already paid for so teachers need only redeem them to get their critters; however, by using the PO#, the teachers were creating new orders for these materials.    
We will be discussing this with the specialists at the upcoming statewide meeting and with the materials managers at their meeting in September.
Thanks –
Martha Anne

Martha Anne Allison
AMSTI  Science Administrator
Alabama Department of Education
334-353-9151 

Calhoun County PLTs: Please let me know which ones for your grade level you will be attending.  This is an awesome opportunity for us to support ALL math and science teachers in Calhoun County.  


Math 2nd- 4th are using PLC at work books.
Math 5th - 12th are using the formative assessment books.  Keeley and FA to differentiate.
Science 4th - 12th : Teaching Students to think like sciencetists.

Everyone should have a copy of the books for their subject.

Math PLT's
September 29 (5th-8th grades)
September 30 (9th-12th grades)
October 2 (2nd grade)
October 3rd (3rd-4th grades)

December 8 (2nd grade)
December 9 (5th-8th grades)
December 11 (9th-12th grades)
December 12 (3rd-4th grades)

February 2 (2nd grade)
February 3 (3rd-4th grades)
February 5 (5th-8th grades)
February 6(9th-12th grades)

March 10 (2nd grade)
March 11 (3rd-4th grades)
March 12 (5th-8th grades)
March 13 (9th-12th grades)


Science PLT's
September 30 (4th-6th grades)
October 1 (7th-12th grades)

December 4 (7th-12th grades)
December 5 (4th-6th grades)

February 9 (7th-12th grades)
February 10 (4th-6th grades)

March 17 (7th-12th grades)

March 18 (4th-6th grades)



Friday, August 15, 2014

State meeting update- August 15

 This means that all State Staff, Directors and Assistants will need to be at JSU at 8:00 on Tuesday, August 26th.  Specialists will need to attend beginning on Wednesday at 8:00.  I will send more information concerning the content of  the 26th  as well as the rest of SWSMeeting next week.

Per Steve’s earlier email:
The “44” refers to site directors, assistant directors, and SDE staff.
August (at JSU)
Aug. 25                 Cancelled (some people will likely drive in for tomorrow- note: not everyone starts tomorrow) 
Aug. 26                 1 Day DuFours Coaching Academy for the “44.” (Begins at 8 AM)  No site math or science specialists this day.
Aug. 27                 State Staff Meeting everyone – site math and science specialists and the “44.”  Begins at 8 AM
Aug  28                 SSM everyone all day
Aug 29                  SSM  everyone until 12 noon-then dismissal
I have tried to update my Directors distribution list, but please double check to make sure I have not left someone off. 
Looking forward to seeing everyone!

Karen 

Refreshments provided by  JSU AMSTI 
Refreshments for State staff, directors and assistants on Tuesday, August 26

Home made goodies for August 27 and August 28

2 cases of water and 3 cases of soft drinks 

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Weekly update - please read before staff meeting on August 15, 2015

August 14, 2014
2014-2015
BLOG will return.  Please read it before a staff meeting and each Friday am.  We will take the first 5 minutes and answer questions from the BLOG.  Hopefully this will cut down the "announcement" time during our staff meeting and we can concentrate on the work in the schools and learning together.

Begin staff meetings 9:00
Tanya will be in the conference room my 8:30 if anyone has something that pertains to only them that they want to discuss.
If there is an item to discuss with only math or science then that group will meet at 8:30 or at 1:30.

As part of our emphasis on coaching this year, we need to encourage the teacher to be reflective. When we leave they need to be able to do things that they couldn't do before we got there. They need to feel more confident in their ability to do something.  We should be able to assist with and model  questioning, and formative assessment in our lessons.   Offer to help them with differentiated instruction  and with planning.
For your one schools there might be a lot of modeling.  Please ask the teacher should give the specialist feedback so that they're getting in the habit for year two and beyond.  We need to be moving into that reflective coaching cycle.  

We need to use ongoing evidence of learning to inform our support and to guide feedback for our teachers. We need to do what we ask our teachers to do. Use PQP when we are teaching and ask the teachers to give us feedback. 

GOOD NEWS:   InService is buying a new copier.  The copier from down stair will be moved upstairs.  We will assume the service contract on it.  I'm guessing the one upstairs will be deleted from inventory and picked up.  We will have to request that to be done. 


Dr. Bice will be at Jacksonville High School on October 7 at 6 pm.  As many as possible, we need to be there.   

Please try to post something on our  JSU AMSTI page at least weekly.  Post where you are, who you are working with, a lesson you are teaching, student work posted in the hallway, something.   If you have a professional twitter account, post something there too.   Promote your work!!!!!

Check the JSU Facebook page for Material pick up pics.  Trying to promote their work too. 

SDE news:  Dr. Mark Kirkmier is not our Regional Support Coordinator any longer.  He took another job at the SDE or just stopped doing 2 jobs.   Karen Winn is our Regional Support Coordinator. 

By next Friday, August 22, please submit an updated list of every piece of equipment  you have in your possession that belongs to JSU AMSTI.  This includes cameras, clickers, remotes, computers, speakers, projectors, etc.

Please bring the review of work and planning for work form to the staff meeting on Sept 19. [days in a school, pd, etc..]

Email from Jeff Loper:
Please get with your science specialist and make sure they get with their teachers on how to redeem the Living Material cards.  Apparently several are going on line and placing orders for additional ‘critters’ with the sites PO# (See below).   Michelle is going to get me a list and I will be in contact with the sites that need to address this issue.


The teachers are going on the web and ordered their living materials and referenced site’s PO#.  Customer service is looking to see how many more we have had in the past couple of days.  



Friday, October 4, 2013

Update : dates for 2014-2015

We do not have RSS or CCRS dates but they may be similar to this year so you could tentative plan for the same time frame.  Save those dates too!

AMSTI dates: 
Statewide staff meetings:
May 5-8, 2014 [you had this date, no  change]
New dates 
August 25-28, 2014
November 5-7, 2014
May 4-7, 2015

Directors meetings
January 7-8, 2015
March 10-11, 2015

EIE training - train the trainer :  ALL SCIENCE SPECIALISTS
Hold these dates:  July 8 - 11, 2014

JSU Summer Training dates for K-12 math [year 1 and year 2], science 6-8 what ever is needed. 

June 16-20 and 23-27 

Robotics - July -
OGAP dates  need to be decided 
I think we need 2 or 3 additive, 2 multiplicative and possibly 5  or more fractional - we can start with 5 and see how the registration goes.

Thursday, August 1, 2013

August 2, 2013

August 2, 2013

Everyone:

Congratulations to everyone on a successful summer supporting our teachers.

Odenville Middle canceled for August 16th so I can help clean out 3170.   Next clean out/up day is August 20th. 

Hokes Bluff Middle Data PD is moved to Thursday, August6 15th.  9-11 is the time. 

Calendars: No JSU calendars are avaiable at this time.  If you need a calendar, our only option for us to purchase is Office Max. Or you can print one, in any format you want, bind it, etc The credit union usually brings come for everyone or the National Guard.  Talk to Kay and she can let me know what you decide.

From Steve:  Memo from Dr. Bice:
Subject: Beginning of School
Last year we began a tradition that was well received by our local school systems and thoroughly enjoyed by our staff - volunteering on the first day of school.
August 19, 2013 is the first day of school for the majority of school systems in the state and I would like to ask that you inform your employees of this opportunity and urge them to participate. I would also like to keep a running list of volunteer efforts so please ask each of your “offices” to assign someone to keep of record of who volunteers and in what school they volunteered. This will be considered part of a regular work day for all employees participating and no leave will be required.
TRB

August 13th
Leslie will need to borrow a laptop for August 13th.  She has a training for the Online Science Course at Pelham / UM AMSTI.  Barry is also attending.

Lots of work ahead and that is just in August.

Specialist:  PDs:  PDs [Quality Questioning, Thinking Through Quality Questioning, Leading Throught Quality Questioning, Formative Assessment and Data Driven Decision Making]  are in the dropbox and have been shared with you.  Complete with facilitator notes.  If a participant packet is required, then those are in an adobe packet that will print all pages in order. 

If you are presenting the Data pd, please review it and let me know if there are questions or if we need to review it as a group. .  It has been updated to include the latest info on Assessment and Plan 2020.     I think we should use the video of Dr. Bice from the 3rd quarter CCRS meetings.  I will work on downloading that and getting it in the drop box.

Please do not let the participants keep the articles from the PD.

Staff meeing moved from August 19th to August 21st