December 19 - Have a great break

Don't let the cold get you down!

Best wishes for a restful, fun, and rejuvenating winter break. This time off is well earned and needed. Thank you for all that you do for students, each other and our community. You are amazing people and make it a joy to work at PA. 

Cheat sheet: M (Snowed in Day), T(Winter Activities).....

Check out our Grading Question responses (no names) from BP last Monday. Thanks for your honest and thoughtful answers. We're not that far apart in our thinking. 

Best Practice Plan for today; includes redo procedure for 2nd semester.

Calendar

12/19 - Best Practice
12/20 - Community Meeting
12/23 - Last Day of School '16
1/13 - End of 1st Semester
1/12-12 - PBL check ins
1/16 - LSSU In-Service Day
1/17 - Community Meeting in TA
1/24 - Talent Show (Schedule)
2/2 - Early Release - data day
2/3 - LSSU In-Service Day




Schoolwide Happenings:

A talented Talent Show awaits us

When school culture merges with writing

-20 degree wind chill, so other schools go on delay -  not PA PE, they embraces it!

Searching for skulls

Mousse au choolat!

1:1 student interviews in English 9

This week's links: Some fireside reading for your break (all short thought provoking articles): 

- Brain Friendly Practices for Adolescent Success
- (Sturgis) Harvard and Wellesley and Tufts, Oh My! (And Did I Mention MIT and Babson?) « Competency Works
brief blog by a math teacher testifying to the positive impact the shift to proficiency-based learning and grading has made for his learners.
- When Success Leads to Failure (The Atlantic)
-Resource to help you understand our shifts and envision the future
- UVM medical school receives 66 million dollar donation to personalize their instruction


Celebrations:

Way to go Dr. Kate! We are so impressed with your PHD accomplishment. Thanks for all of your hard work and focus on students. We will all benefit.

Congratulations to Sheila Jones who was recently nominated and accepted to VEOP (Vermont Education Opportunity Programs) board and will represent VERMONT at the Council for Opportunity Education (COE) seminar in Washington, DC next March. She was required to submit an essay (among other criteria) about the impact that Upward Bound has in her life as well as the impact to other students. She has worked with Upward Bound for more than 20 years and certainly deserves this honor. While in DC she will participate in the 33rd annual seminar with US Department of Education and The COE 37th Annual Policy Seminar. She is very excited to advocate and educate members of the 115th Congress, congressional staff and the Trump Administration officials about the success of TRIO.

Congratulations to 12th grader Tyler Shackett (chorus) and 10th grader Edward Habeck (band-trumpet) for their acceptance into the New England Music Festival. This is a BIG DEAL!! The performance is March 2017 in Norwalk, CT. Road trip anyone? 

Happy Birthday: Karen Weeks (12/13), Karsten Weiss (12/21)