Sunday, January 6, 2019

Be Present in the Present


I'll admit it. I am a vision-oriented person. I like to plan for and think about the future. In my personal life, this looks like planning for family vacations or Clemson football tailgates. In my professional life, this may take the form of planning for a theme or focus for our school and trying to guide our faculty and staff to this common goal. So, don't get me wrong. I believe you need to have a clear vision to be successful. However, let's focus on the here and now. My challenge to you, as we return to greet the 2019 portion of our school year, to to embrace the present. The present, defined as being, existing, or occurring at this time or now, is where we will tackle our problems head-on, learn from our failures, and ultimately accomplish our goals. This is where the hard work is done - the blood, sweat, and tears. My favorite professor during my time at Furman would always say "You cannot change the past, but you can re-write a new future." With every decision we make, relationship we build ... with everyone positive step forward, we are writing the future of the students in our care and shaping the destiny of our school. Don't let June sneak up on you and lament not doing enough or simply not taking action. The time is now. Embrace the present. 



OLWEUS:
Per my email last week, House meetings on Monday were postponed until Friday afternoon (more on that in a bit). We will resume OLWEUS class meetings on Monday morning. I would suggest reminding students of our expectations and school-wide rules regarding bullying behaviors and set a positive tone for the remainder of the school year. As always, the shared folder has some resources available to you. It would also be great to share ideas among grade levels and teaching teams.


Live PD:
There is no Live PD this Wednesday. Just FYI - we do have Live PD scheduled on Wednesday, January 16th. More information regarding this session will be released in our next blog. 


Talent Show Tryouts:
Our school talent show is scheduled for Thursday, January 24th. Ms. Epperson is hosting tryouts this week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Some of you have volunteered to assist her with tryouts, As you know, we will need many others to assist the actual evening of the event. This is always a very well-attended show and we appreciate PVHS for allowing us to use their facility. If you are able to do so, please check in with Ms. Epperson and ask how you can help her. 


Spirit Day This Friday:
This Friday, we will have our next PVES Spirit Day. Teachers may wear blue jeans. Students and staff are asked to wear House t-shirts/colors. PTSO will sell Chic-Fil-A biscuits that morning in the car line and we will have House meetings that afternoon around 1:50ish P.M. I will send out a reminder about House meetings and will also send an agenda to House leaders this week. Let's show off our PVES Pride on this day! 


Moore's Musings:
In regard to PLCs, Mrs. Tollison and I want our home room teachers to know how proud we are of your commitment to the PLC process. It has not been easy, but if it was meant to be easy, everyone would do it. Grade level PLCs should plan to pick back up with regular meeting schedules. I would recommend taking time before each meeting to go back over your norms/values. Each group has established essential standards and learning targets for your next reading unit. On the 16th, our Live PD will focus on assessment as we transition to focusing on common formative assessments and how to use those to enhance our instructional program. Stay the course. Be true to the process. This is continuous improvement at its finest and our students will benefit greatly. 


Mark Your Calendar (MYC):
  • RISE Group Transition Meeting (for any teachers who has a student in RISE) - 1/7 at 3:15 P.M. in Media center.
  • Talent Show Tryouts - 1/8, 1/9, & 1/10 after school in music room.
  • Papa Johns "Dollars for Dough" - 1/8 & 1/9 
  • PVES Spirit Day (House meetings, Chic Fil A biscuits) - 1/11
  • RISE Group #2 - First meeting - 1/11


Video of the Week: Make an Impact

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