Clare's Blog: Week of April 23, 2017

Upcoming at AWS...

Monday, April 24
D DAY
8:00am Morning Meeting in the Lounge
10:00am All Schools Chapel
10:40am Snack @ the MS Office
3:30pm Topic Group Meetings
Advisors: Grade Check (Reference to Questions for narratives and May 12 deadline; Progress Reports Spring 2017 Letter to Families; MS Student Narratives – Parents’ Questions)

Tuesday, April 25
E DAY
8:00am Advisory
10:05am Snack @ the MS Office
10:20am Class Meetings: Journeys Prep
2:15pm Collaborative Time: Ind & Soc and Science
2:45pm 7th Grade Team Meeting in the Design Lab
3:15pm 8th Grade Team Meeting in the Design Lab

Wednesday, April 26
F DAY
8:00am Advisory
10:05am Snack @ the MS Office
10:20am MS Chapel led by the Strate Advisory and 6th Grade Recognitions
2:15pm MS Faculty Meeting in the Design Lab

Thursday, April 27
A DAY
POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY
7:45am 8th Grade Parent Coffee
8:00am Advisory
10:05am Snack @ the MS Office
10:20am Long Advisory
2:15pm Collaborative Time: Math & Lang Acq

Friday, April 28
B DAY
ALL SCHOOL CIVVIES DAY
8:00am Advisory
10:05am Snack @ the MS Office
10:20am Clubs

Saturday, April 29 & Sunday, April 30
Private Lessons Recitals in the Great Hall & Chapel

Monday, May 1
3:00am 8th Grade Journey to Costa Rica: Meeting time at SEA
6:00am 7th Grade Journey to the Southwest: Meeting time at SEA
6th Grade Journey to California: Special Schedule for Journey Prep

Tuesday, May 2
5:00am 6th Grade Journey to California: Meeting time at SEA

Action Items...

Summer News: Summer Work, Supply Lists

It's time to start thinking about communications in preparation for next year. The MS Summer News 2017 doc is the MS-relevant information that was communicated in Summer News last year, including: Summer Work Checklists for each Grade; Summer Work descriptions and details (Math, Language & Literature, Language Acquisition); and Supply Lists.

Language & Literature, Language Acquisition, and Math Teachers: Please review the instructions for summer work, and edit the doc directly with any changes.
Everyone: Please review the supply lists. What needs to be updated? What can be removed?

Math & Science Teachers: Is a Scientific Calculator necessary? Or will any calculator suffice? If so, is there a recommendation about which calculator students should purchase?

Please complete any changes by the end of Friday.

Chapel

Just a reminder: upcoming MS Chapels will be led by the following Advisory groups:

April 26 Strate
May 10: Hartmann/Finch
May 17: Hunt
May 31: Taylor

If your group needs a different date, there is a little bit of flexibility. For details about awareness months or holidays, see the MS tab or the Cultural & Religious Observances tab on Chapel Planning 2016-2017.

Updating, Refurbishing, and Fixing...

Please continue to think about the needs for your classrooms and workspace and what updates you'd like to see for next year and capture ideas and requests on this doc.

Communications

This week, the blog for families will feature the Individuals & Society and PHE programs. Please email your post to Bill or Alicia, or drop it in the corresponding box on this doc.

Following up...

Student Awards

As we discussed on Wednesday, nominations are open for year end awards. Before May 16, please nominate students via this doc: MS Awards - 2016-2017 Nominations.

edCamp!

edCamp Puget Sound is scheduled for Saturday, May 20, starting at 9am. Annie Wright will host for the second straight year. One of this year's lead sponsors will be CorelaborateWA, a group that finds and funds teacher-leaders from around the state to spark conversation and start collaborations among educators. If edCamp already seems down your alley, click here to register. If this will be your first EdCamp, I promise you’ll be amazed, enthralled, and engaged: edCamps are open, alternative forms of professional development put on for teachers and organized by teachers. Participants themselves set the agenda, and the panels run the gamut of what educators at AWS are already experienced with or interested in. Which makes this a great opportunity to learn a new tip or resource, connect with our regional community of educators, or even start preparing & prototyping a workshop you’ve been hoping to facilitate at a much larger conference. (I might even break out the Jenga set for a presentation Sandra and I are giving this summer!) If you’re wondering how an edCamp works, check out this quick video tutorial. You’ll also have the opportunity to collect Clock Hours, should you be interested.

Upcoming Religious & Cultural Observances

April 1 marked the beginning of Autism Awareness Month and National Child Abuse Awareness Month.
Sunday, April 23 is Yom ha-Shoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day, which commemorates victims of the Holocaust.
Monday, April 24 is the Muslim holiday Lailat al-Miraj, which commemorates the Prophet Muhammad's ascension into heaven.
Wednesday, April 26 is Administrative Professionals Day.
Friday, April 28 is Arbor Day in the US.