Instructional Spotlight GCSS Staff Support Students During School Closure

Submitted by Dr. Rotonya Rhodes

Thanks to wonderful staff members, learning continues for GCSS students even during the school closure. GCSS educators (teachers, administrators, and support staff) are continuously working to support students, as physical school buildings are closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Teachers and staff are making every effort to both help students focus on academics and take care of the needs of the whole child. While GCSS educators do great work every day, their dedication and efforts have been underscored over the past week. Below are a few of the steps that our team has taken to meet the needs of our students.

Nutrition We know that students cannot learn when they are hungry and that children’s basic needs must

be met first. The nutrition department has been working hard to ensure that students haveaccess to meals. They have established several meal delivery sites throughout the community,providing lunch and snacks to hundreds of students daily.

Social Emotional Learning Carson Middle School teacher and SEL leader

Morgen Gay has created a Google Classroomwith lessons and videos for students to continuetheir “7 Mindsets” lessons. Teachers andstudents are demonstrating the “we areconnected” mindset through continuous onlinesupport and communication. Everyone is really“coming together as one team,” said CMSassistant principal, DeAndra Lanier.

Greene County HighSchool SEL leader andassistant principal, Ms.Draper, has shared their SEL calendar and units with teachers, remindingthem that SEL is meant for both children and adults.

Greene County Primary school teachers sent Voyage SEL lessonshome with their students.

Greene County Schools March 2020 Volume IX, Issue 03

CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION UPDATE

Inside This Issue

Instructional Spotlight 1

Coach’s Corner 3

Instructional Technology 10

Students’ Spotlight/Events 11

Upcoming Events 13

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Distance Learning for Students Literacy. Media specialists are helping students and families learn through literacy. Greene

County Primary School media specialist, Christa Deissler, is committed to reading a story per day to children via Facebook Live. Greene County pre-k students also have access to daily audio books.

Learning Packets – Pre-k- third grade teachers provided detailed printed learning packets for

students. Fourth through twelfth grade teachers also provided printed learning packets for students who do not have internet access.

Google Classroom. Students with internet access are learning through Google Classrooms, thanks to hardworking teachers who are connecting to students as much as possible using this platform.

Internet Access. The technology department and transportation department have collaborated

to create mobile hotspots to help our families who do not have internet access. District staff have also identified and shared additional ways for students to connect to the internet.

Teacher Support & Professional Learning Google Classroom for Teachers. All teachers and staff have been invited to join a technology

professional learning Google Classroom developed by our instructional technologist, Kevin Strickland. “Teachers can always access the Technology PL Google Classroom for previous PL lessons, updated resource lists for distance learning and tutorials, and ‘how-to’s’ for our purchased apps and software. The topics keep everything organized for quick reference and the ‘Continuing the School Day’ topic is created for updates and resources during our time of distant learning.”

Instructional Coaches. Instructional coaches are continuing to provide resources and support for teachers through videos and online professional learning communities (PLCs).

It is often said that there are two groups of people who work in a school system: 1. people who teach children; 2. people who support those who teach children. As shown in the examples above, GCSS is fortunate to have wonderful people in both groups. Job well done to all of our team members who are making it possible for our students to learn and feel safe, supported, and loved throughout the year, and especially now. Links to images and additional information:

https://www.thoughtco.com/maslows-hierarchy-of-

needs-4582571

https://casel.org/core-competencies/

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Counselors Like Math

Mrs. Evans’ class read the book One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, for Dr. Seuss’ birthday. Our counselor, Mrs. Bridwell, integrated a counseling session with math by

guiding the students through a hands-on activity that went with the book.

The activity covered the math standard of kindergartners being able to classify objects into given categories; count the numbers of objects in each category; and sort the categories. The students

even made a graph using their goldfish. The students enjoyed first sorting their mini-size bag of goldfish crackers by color. Next, they placed the sorted goldfish on a graph to see

the number of each color. The students were able to answer questions about their graphs. The students enjoyed the activity, especially when they were able to eat their goldfish crackers!

Number lines

Did you know number lines can be used to solve so many different types of math problems? The students at GCPS are great at using number lines to solve math problems. Our kindergarteners use number lines for counting. The 1st grade students are using the number line to add two 2-digit numbers while the 2nd graders use number lines to both add and subtract.

The 3rd graders love using the number line to find elapsed time which is a third grade standard that is challenging for them. The third graders also label number lines to explore equivalent fractions.

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…And Reading Across Greene County Primary School

The Greene County School District Literacy Action Plan defines a literate student and

provides goals to support and improve the academic achievement of Greene County students. Here at GCPS, we are getting fired

up about books and reading!

Our Spring Book Fair kicked off during Read Across

America Week. Putting on a Book Fair is no small feat, but

with the help of ‘Super-Hero’ volunteers and a phenomenal Librarian, the GCPS Book Fair was a huge success. Dr. D., our school Librarian shared that sales surpassed the Fall Fair. A big thank you to all the families and volunteers who supported this wonderful endeavor!

Our GCPS Read Across America Week also included many fun reading activities, such as a Favorite Book Door Décor contest, and Librarian for the Day.

Young Georgia Author Contest

Learning to write is one of the most important skills a child learns to do in school. Throughout the school day, children write across the curriculum. We would like to congratulate the 2020 GCPS winners of the Young Georgia Author Contest: First Grade student, Sadie Carey submitted a narrative entitled, ‘Three Wishes’. She won first place for first grade, Greene County. Her teacher is Ms. Carolyn Cunningham. Also, congratulations to third grade student, Alexander Silva. Alex submitted a piece entitled, ‘Dear Puppy’. His

teacher is Mrs. Cannon. Alex won second place for Second grade, Greene County. We are very proud of our GCPS Authors! The purpose of the Young Georgia

Authors (YGA) writing competition is to encourage students to develop enthusiasm for and expertise in their writing, to provide a context to celebrate their writing successes, and to recognize student achievement in arts and academics. This prestigious competition has been engaging Georgia students for more than two decades and is open to any student currently enrolled in Georgia public schools, grades K-12. The competition is sponsored by the Georgia Language Arts Supervisors (GLAS) and the Georgia RESA Network with support from the Georgia Department of Education. Again, congratulations to our students and their teachers

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Guided Reading and ELL Students

Guided Reading is at the heart of literacy. The goal of guided reading is not to teach tools for one book, but strategies students can apply to any text.

In this newsletter edition, we highlight one first grade Fundations Phonics class where the regular education teacher and ELL teacher are providing ELL students with alphabetic and decoding skills, while gaining a boost in their confidence as well. In Ms. Cunningham’s first grade class, she and ELL teacher, Mr. Paquinn, provide learners with the phonics tools they need for success. Their instructional partnership takes on an accordion like format, as they teach students with differentiated instructional practices, that blend harmoniously together. This success will spill over into reading, spelling, and writing areas of language learning. Their co-teaching format is one that models productive and smart teamwork.

Delta Sigma Theta Joins the Reading Fun at GCPS!

Our school was blessed during Read Across America week, by Sorority, Delta Sigma

Theta. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated is a private, not-for-profit organization whose purpose is to provide assistance

and support through established programs in local communities throughout the world. Members visited our school and read to our third and second grade classes. They also donated headphones to GCPS kindergarten, first, and second grade classes. Thank you Delta Sigma Theta members for your generosity and kindness!

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was founded in 1913 at Howard University.

Highlights from GCPS Black History Luncheon

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Writing Across the Curriculum

As classroom teachers, how can we help students reach deeper levels of understanding, generate new ideas, prepare for state assessments, and become college and career ready? The answer has been around since the 1970’s- writing across the curriculum.

Writing in content area classes benefits students and teachers in many ways. According to Deva Dalporto, writing aids retention; engages all of your students; helps teachers monitor student progress and gauge their strengths and weaknesses; and helps teachers see gaps in instruction. (Dalporto, Deva. “Writing across the Curriculum: What, How, and Why.” We Are Teachers.)

There are many ways teachers can add writing to their lessons. At Carson Middle School, fourth grade teacher, Ms. Lund, recently taught a lesson about the role of earthworms in decomposing dead materials and releasing nutrients into the soil. As part of the lesson, students observed the behavior of earthworms and conducted an experiment to determine if worms prefer dry or wet areas. At the end of the experiment, Ms. Lund asked students to write about their findings. After the lesson, I spoke with two of her students and asked them to tell me how they felt writing helped them in science. Logan said, “It helps us to remember things because we have to write our answers. We learn to take notes. We remember more if we write it.” Keith agreed and added, “When you move to another grade you still have your notes. I can look back at my notes and remember what I was taught.”

One of our fifth grade math teachers also has her students write regularly in class. Earlier this year, when learning about multiplication, a child in her room, Emma, wrote, “Multiplication is a repeated addition. For example, 4X4=16 and 4+4+4+4=16. A multiplication problem has factors and a product. Factors are the numbers multiplied. A product is the answer. Multiplication is NOT division or subtraction.” When I asked her to explain why it is

important to write in a math class, she told me, “In my head, I take everything I learn and organize it and write it.”

Students can write in journals, complete quick writes, reflect on what is being learned, create poetry, write mini biographies, create advertisements, and many other activities. In a world where we communicate regularly through our written word, it is imperative that students

be given opportunities to develop as writers.

To learn more about writing across the curriculum, visit the following sites: http://www.nea.org/home/34959.htm https://www.nais.org/magazine/independent-teacher/spring-2018/writing-across-the-curriculum/ https://info.thinkcerca.com/writing-across-the-curriculum-guide/math https://info.thinkcerca.com/writing-across-the-curriculum-guide/science https://info.thinkcerca.com/writing-across-the-curriculum-guide/social-studies

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Literacy Week at Greene County High School When asked what is literacy, four out of five students answered: It’s the ability to read and write. However, we hope our students and staff who participated in this week’s literacy events have a different perspective.

Monday: The week began with students accepting an invitation to write an essay using the four points of Rotary’s 4-Way Test or on choosing to break the barrier on an issue they wanted to understand more about. The essays will become a part of a scholarship competition for seniors, but the experience is open to all students. Mrs. Dotson who led the essay writing event had this to say: “What we learned from this literacy activity is that our students are interested in becoming better writers”. Tuesday: Having experts within one’s own community is an exceptional resource. Dr. John Buckley is a published e-book author,

and Dr. MaryAnn Bruno is a published author of children’s book and the creator of the character “toys” that complement the story. Dr. Buckley included

how to “bid” for an electronic book cover for a book.

Dr. Bruno shared copyright information for the toys she created. Both read to students and held a question and answer session. Wednesday: The midweek focus was on favorite poems and stories from our GCHS students and staff. The morning began with Mr. Peek giving a book talk on the book he has checked out from the GCHS library, and Ms. Mansfield read her favorite book, Dr.

Seuss’s Oh, the Places You’ll Go.

McKenzie Hale from

Russell Wall’s office shared the story Seuss-isms! A Guide to Life for Those Just Starting Out...and Those Already on Their Way. In a question and answer session, McKenzie talked about the meandering path that led her

to choose a career in the medical field. Mitzi Sanchez stopped by to talk about Latin writers and led a round table discussion in the value of enjoying your high school years before

rushing into adulthood.

Ms. Dotson working with students to write an essay using the 4-way test.

Dr. Buckley shares his expertise with GCHS students.

Dr. Bruno, published author, shares her book, Matthew Meatball.

Mr. James Peek, Principal, excited about literacy week at GCHS.

Ms. Mansfield shows excitement about a book that was her childhood favorite.

McKenzie Hale shares Seuss-sism in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday.

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Thursday: The GCHS art department and the Exceptional Children’s group contributed a mural representative of diversity and multiculturalism: Our differences make us stronger. Poems, books, manga, graphic novels, and writings by other ethnicities were displayed for students, staff, and community members to “taste” and explore. Friday: The morning began with a guest violinist whose career path led to being a credit analyst. She spoke about her career path and her joy for music. Students embraced the literacy of sound and articulated that literacy is indeed far more than the ability to read and write.

Atlas Ministries representatives came for lunch-and-learn. They shared insight into early childhood education and the significant value of literacy around the dinner table. The afternoon concluded with Ralph Boswell’s presentation of visual literacy. Blue prints, architectural drawings, text and the connection of math and literacy revealed the precautions taken to produce a product that meets specific specifications and state codes.

In summary: This was an exciting week. The activities we selected were meant to showcase the various types of literacy that surround us, how each “genre” of literacy is connected to another, and that while some of us will “head straight out of town” others will find “there is work to be done” right here in our own hometown. Connect @ GCHS On Tuesday, March 3, 2020, all Junior and Senior GCHS students took part in something never done before at their school! fifteen community and staff volunteers devoted their morning to facilitating interactive, engaging sessions with students ages 16—19, in an effort to “connect” with them. CONNECT Day was developed by the Student Support Services Department as a four-fold initiative to foster the following:

1) Connect the present with the future 2) Connect the staff with the students 3) Connect the community with the schools 4) Connect education with real-life issues

A total of five seminars were held for young ladies and separately, five seminars for gentlemen. Topics ranged from the importance of post-secondary education to the consequences of poor decision-making once students leave high school. The halls were vibrant with discussion, heated debate, and even laughter as students openly disclosed their views on current issues and eagerly listened to advisement from their presenters. Presenters were greeted with a Welcome Reception and ‘Thank You’ swag bags. continued on next page

Mr. Ralph Boswell concludes literacy week with a visual literacy presentation.

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Connect @ GCHS continued Sessions were as follows:

𝑬𝟑: Education, Exposure & Experience led by Dr. Rotonya Rhodes (GCSS Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction)

and Mrs. Tanisha Wright (Anita White Carson Middle School Assistant Principal). Females

Choices…led by SRO Sergeant Brandi Lester and Nurse Jodi Ashurst. Females Pursuing Your Passion…led by Mrs. Brittany Rowland Neal (local business owner, Britt’s Boutique; co-founder, DOPE Clothing Line). Females

Self-Image & Self-Esteem…led by Coach Courtney Reid (Assistant Varsity Girls Basketball Coach). Females Relationships…led by Mrs. Torri Merritt (GCHS R.I.S.E. Coordinator) and Mrs. Renee Evans (GCHS English teacher). Females 𝑬𝟑: Education, Exposure & Experience…led by Dr. Darren Rhym (GCSS 2019 Teacher of the Year) and Mr. Malik Jones (GCHS 2018 Valedictorian). Males Choices…led by Sheriff Donnie Harrison and Chief Rodricus Monford. Males Man/Hood…led by Minister Arthur Porter (Pastor, Boswell Baptist Church of Greensboro). Males Your Name’s Sake: Character & Integrity…led by Coach Lou Tepper and Coach Richard Lawson (GCHS Tiger Football Coaching Staff). Males

Pursuing Your Passion…led by Coach Brandon Johnson (GCHS Tiger Basketball Coaching Staff & CEO, Build Your Brand). Males Students offered a plethora of positive feedback about Connect Day! The overall comments suggested they wanted more activities like this one; desired more platforms for real-life discussions; needed extended time in each session; and were extremely appreciative for the opportunity to do something “out of the box” at GCHS.

Staff members echoed the feedback, hoping events such as Connect Day could become common place at Greene County High School and even extend to underclassmen in the future.

GCHS Counselor, Ava Weaver, would like to offer ‘Special Thanks’ to all Connect Volunteers, GCHS Faculty & Staff, and Principal James Peek for continued support as our school strives to make connections inside and outside of the building!

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Curriculum and instruction Update

Discovery Education was recently launched for our teachers and students. Discovery Education is a fantastic resource for news and current events; virtual field trips; science, ELA, and math videos, games, and podcasts.

You can also find print materials with read-aloud functionality for almost any topic. Discovery Education allows teachers to create a class and assign lessons and assessments inside of

Discovery Education that link straight to your Google Classroom. There is also an “Instructional Strategies” section on the Discovery Education site that spotlights strategies that teachers around the country have used in their classrooms. Check out the Discovery Ed topic in the technology PL Google Classroom.

iXL has been a favorite for our ELA, Spanish, and math teachers for years. Now, the science and social studies teachers have something to cheer about. iXL has offered access the science and social studies subjects in iXL for Grades 2-8 for the remainder of this school year. This will be an excellent resource to use as you prepare for the Milestones in those subject areas. Access to the free subjects is available now and should run until mid-April. Teachers, please take advantage of this trial offering from iXL.

The high school teachers have more options in the second semester as we released Courseware by Edmentum (think Study Island) for our CTAE department and EdPuzzle for the entire staff. The CTAE teachers had training during our PL Day in January where they were introduced to the 100+ courses offered for the Career and

Technical Education. EdPuzzle subscriptions were purchased for the entire high school staff, which will allow for unlimited video storage for the lessons that they create in EdPuzzle. These are two great resources for in-class, blended learning, and at-home instruction.

As testing season approaches, teachers can take advantage of the free trials of useful tools such as USATestPrep, Edulastic, Formative, and Quia among others. These assessment tools are convenient to quickly build classroom tests from year-long classroom material.

Be sure to join my Technology PL Google Classroom (join code 9qyftn) for all the PL lessons, tips and tricks, and instructional technology strategies. And be sure to check out the “I Have Chromebooks, Now What?” presentation in the Chromebook topic for new ideas to use technology in your classroom to move instruction to a higher level.

Big thanks to our staff for coming to EdCamp on February 29. It was an amazing half-day of learning from our peers about instructional technology and how our neighboring schools and fellow teachers use technology in the classroom. Mr. Brasley presented to a standing room only crowd about ELA in the classroom! We all had a blast and we look forward to more teachers joining us next year!

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Gifted Information

Several first grade students were tested in March. If you have gifted recommendations, please email them to Tara Burdette for Fall testing.

Remember, all students scoring about the 90th percentile on NWEA will receive an automatic referral for testing.

Benchmark Update

Benchmark post testing will begin soon! We expect the testing process to run smoothly again. Kevin Strickland will visit schools in March before Spring Break to facilitate reviewing and analyzing data with all content teachers. We look forward to working with you to determine growth and set a plan for remediating standards prior to GMAS and EOC testing.

Professional Development

District-wide professional development days for the 2019-2020 school year are complete. Thank you for completing surveys through survey monkey to provide feedback for next year’s Professional Learning.

Academic Events

Please enjoy the following highlights of recent academic events. Be sure to congratulate the students on their accomplishments!

Teachers collected writing entries for Young Georgia Authors. The following

pieces were selected and submitted to RESA in early March. Regional Winners will be selected in April! Congratulations to all our phenomenal writers!

Grade Level

1st Place

K N/A 1st

GCPS Sadie Carey “3 Wishes”

2nd N/A 3rd

LOA Darragh Sidhu

“My Journey to the Masters”

4th CMS

Ja’Mia Gresham “Barred Owls”

LOA 5th Emma Claire Dimascio

“The U.N. is 75 years Old – The Georgia Times”

6th

LOA Emilia Viscarra “Won’t Let Go”

7th

LOA Irem Erturk “Flowers”

8th

LOA Alexis Moss

“Where I am From”

9th

LOA Elisa Garcia-Carreras

“Blank Page”

10th

LOA Gabrielle Gruszynski “Seven Deadly Sins”

11th

LOA Abigail Cash

“Officer’s Daughter”

12th

LOA Helen Garcia-Carreras

“Mockingbird”

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Several CMS students attended District Project Achievement (DPA) Rock Eagle on February 15, 2020. The following students placed 1st – 3rd in their category.

Name Grade Project Category Placing

Jameria Dunn 5th Interior Design 2nd Daniel Stephens 6th Beef 1st Camara Brown 6th Between Meal Snacks 1st Taylor Waller 6th Workforce Prep 1st Joseph Brown 6th Fruits, Vegetables, and

Nuts 2nd

Tammy Parker 6th Performing Arts 2nd Va’Quaria Dunn 6th Clothing + Textiles 3rd Jaylin McKellar 6th Horses 3rd

Be sure to congratulate these students. Also, a special shout out to Melissa Brown and Ashley Bridges who joined these students to support them at Rock Eagle!

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Governor’s Honors Program Ten students interviewed for the Governor’s Honors Program in October. Five were selected to represent Greene County and move to the next level of State Competition. On Monday, March 9, a small reception was held to honor these wonderfully talented scholars.

Pictured Left to Right: Paulina Macias, Joe Bashore, Logan Fedelem, Steve Kilgore, Zanobia Brown, Clarence Hunt, Aaliyah Wyatt, Mike Lynch, Tiffany Hernandez-Salinas, Asia Stokes, John Heinen, Rylie McDonald and Braeden Strickland. Paulina Macias, Logan Fedelem, Zanobia Brown, Rylie McDonald, and Braden Strickland were selected to represent Greene County. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mark your calendars for these important upcoming events!

Spring Break March 30 – April 3, 2020

Last Day of School Friday, May 22, 2020

Memorial Day Monday, March 25, 2020

Post-Planning May 26, 2020

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101 East Third Street; Greensboro, Georgia 30642

www.greene.k12.ga.us

Board of Education

Michael Lynch, Chair

Steve Kilgore, District 1

Joe Bashore, District 2

Clarence Hunt, Jr., District 3

John Heinen, District 4

E d u c a t e - I ns p i r e - C h a l le n ge - S u p p o r t

Dr. Rotonya Rhodes

Assistant Superintendent

Tara Burdette Gifted, Benchmarks, Professional Development and District Competitions Coordinator

Kevin Strickland Instructional Technologist, Testing and Assessment Coordinator

Instructional Coaches Tanya Ansley Kami Gegen Jeanette Glover

Kathy Magee

Cynthia Sumner

Chris Houston, Ph.D.

Superintendent of Schools

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