Special Education - May 23, 2011

Monday Memo
Courageously leading a dynamic revolution in Education!

May 23, 2011

"Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine". ~Anthony J. D'Angelo

Deadlines and Calendar Events:

CHECKOUT... Katrina and I will NOT be available for checkout on Monday, May 23rd. Katrina will be back in the office on Tuesday, May 24th. Please let her know when you plan to be in to check out.

Lesson Reflections #2 were due Friday, April 15th. Do I have yours? Turn them in when we meet, if you haven't already...

"My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness,
then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength. " ~Michael Jordan 
PERSEVERANCE...

• P - persist no matter what
• E - endure discomfort
• R - request help
• S - steadfastly hold on to your beliefs and values
• E - envision triumph
• V - very consistently keep at it
• E - embrace adversity as your teacher
• R - refuse to give up
• E - enjoy and celebrate every tiny bit of progress!

Go for it
Run toward it
Dive in head first
Live life with no regrets
Put your heart out there
...Don't be scared you might get hurt, but its all worth it in the end... THE BEST IS YET TO COME

Staff Development...

 - Writing Measurable Goals... WEBINAR Series Recordings are all posted on the "ILCD" page of the Special Education Website/blog. 

ASD/Transition Cadre Meeting - Monday, June 13, 2011

ESU 4 Learning Center

9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Agenda: 

How to Facilitate a Productive Meeting

What to Say and How to Say It

It's all about the Relationships! 

 

Presenters: Ellen Stokebrand, ESU 4

Melissa Trautman, SE-ASD Coordinator 

Aimee Daily, ESU 4

Sign up via the ESU 4 Registration Website! Look for "ASD Cadre Meeting."
Questions? Contact Ellen (estokebrand@esu4.net)

 QOE (Quality Observation and Evaluation...  
**Observation (Evaluation) Schedules... All observations that were scheduled have been completed! You should have received your 1 page comments concerning the observation event. Remember to schedule your end of the year/summative conversation! Dates are posted below...


I will need the following forms and documentation from the following people.
     Self Evaluation (originally due 9/10)  - Kathy Novak
     Goals and Individual Development Plan (originally due 9/10) - Kathy Novak
     Lesson Reflection (originally due 11/19/10) - Kathy Novak, Joel Halpine

Lesson Reflection #2... due by FRIDAY, April 15th. 

End of the Year Self Evaluation... due at our "End of the Year" Conversation. 

Available Dates/Times for the Conversation

***(subject to change at district request)***

NOTE: We will need an hour for each conversation. Please plan accordingly

 These people need to schedule their summative conversations with me... 

Suzanne Hinrichs, Deb Pounders, Joel Halpine, Kathy Novak, Rose Petersen, Lori Harring

• My schedule is updated... look closely. There may be days that we can meet either before or after workshops or meetings; we might also be able to meet in an alternate location.

Please contact me to schedule our conversation. I think it's totally worth it. It is one of my favorite activities each year. Thanks! -Ellen

LOOKING 4-WARD... 

• August 11th OR August 12th - CPI Refresher Training (You must sign up for one day OR the other... this is a one day event.)
• August 16th - ESU 4 Health Day @ the Learning Center
• August 17th - ESU 4 - ALL STAFF REPORT @ NCECBVI
• August 18th - Early Childhood Cadre Meeting for all providers serving infants, toddlers and preschoolers @ ESU 4 Office. To register, log on to the ESU 4 Registration website.

End of the Year Assignments and Inventory... I would like to have all speech tests and psych tests returned to the ESU at the conclusion of the school year, for the purposes of inventory and preparing orders for the next school year. I realize that some of the speech tests will be needed throughout the summer; with your help, we will work quickly to get the inventory complete.

What does it mean to be a leader at ESU 4? (Activity: Define "Leadership" in 10 words or less.)

• It means... "Guiding and empowering with respect, understand and integrity."
• It means... "Building and empowering relationships through trust, respect and knowledge."

According to the New York Times, there is no scientific research that proves that life is serious.
So... Lighten up!!! 

Time Management 101... In the interest of trying to support some of you who are still working on the resolution to be better organized in 2011, I found this article from the Harvard Business Review booklet by way of the "Marshall Memo" that is sent to ESUs every couple of weeks. CEO Peter Bregman recommends a 4 step-process each day... 
1) Plan for the day (5 minutes)... before you even turn on the computer! Make your list; similar to decide which "frog" you're going to eat. 
2) Calendar the day... take out your calendar and schedule your top priorities into specific time slots, putting the hardest and most important items earlier in the day. (Sound familiar, frog fans?)
3) Refocus for one minute every hour... set your phone, watch, computer to ring every hour. When it rings, stop what you're doing, take a deep breath, look at your list and ask if your last hour was productive. Then, look at your calendar and recommit yourself to how you're going to use the next hour.
4) Review (5 minutes)... At the end of the day, shut off your computer and look back on the day. What worked? Did you get distracted? What can you do better tomorrow?

Try this and see how it works... report back on all your success!!! 

(You can report back by 'commenting' on this blog page below! Try it out! Just once! Just hit 'post a comment'... come on! You know you want to!!)

HUSKER NATION: 

When is it a great day to be a Husker fan????
The correct answer is... ALWAYS!!!
Never stop playing the game!  Go BIG RED! GO Big RED! GO BIG Red! GO BIG RED  Educational Service Unit #4, Auburn, Nebraska