Early release for students at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. This is to allow for teacher professional development.
Make-and-Take Workshop for Elementary School parents on Thursday, January 26, 2012 (5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.) at the Newton Elementary School Library. Presented by Ms. Judy Jones.
MOVING FORWARD IN 2012
The spring semester of 2012 is off to a great start in Newton ISD. During the week of January 2nd, students that either did not pass TAKS, were not passing their courses for the fall semester, and/or had 5 or more absences were provided with opportunities to accelerate their learning. Small group instruction and focused learning activities using new resources were utilized.
Teachers attended twelve hours of professional development centered around creating learning environments that help students learn at optimum levels. The brain is an amazing organ and intelligence is fluid; there are activities that teachers can do to help increase IQ and student academic success. Using the research of Eric Jensen, teachers learned how to set up their classrooms to achieve that goal. Teachers also learned how to give students feedback that will affect their students positively and motivate them to do their best. Reading abounds in every curriculum area and Ms. Judy Jones provided ideas to teachers to increase comprehension not only in Language Arts but in Math, Science, and Social Studies classes.
Teachers spent time creating data walls at each campus to monitor progress of students throughout the year. Teachers learned from the data that students in Newton ISD are progressing and meeting their goals. For students that are still struggling, teachers are meeting in teams to discuss what to do to assist them in meeting their goals. Teachers are stronger when they work together than if they work individually.
Teachers are also discussing ways to assist parents in homework activities. Mrs. Sherrie Leach said, "It is clear that we need to do more to bridge the work between home and school and give parents the information that they need to support their children in learning. That's what we will be working on as a team. We are appreciative of parents who hold us accountable and give us feedback regarding what they need."
To help our parents:
Teachers in primary grades (up to 3rd grade) are sending home weekly homework sheets; on the back, step-by-step instructions for Math problems will be provided. For 4th and 5th grade students, Math teachers will provide examples for problems on the back of homework sheets. Middle School teachers are posting sample tutorials online for students; they are seeking other methods to reach parents that do not have Internet access at home. High School Math teachers are sending home old textbooks to provide examples of how to work problems.
