Plus/Delta Responses

We had our Plus/Delta Forum on January 9th, which was a school wide forum and opportunity for parents to express the things that are going well in our cluster and the things that they would like to see changed. Thank you to the parents that attended and shared their thoughts with us. This helps us know what is on your minds and how we can better meet the needs in our cluster. The list of Pluses and our responses to the Deltas are below:

Pluses:

*just reading as homework

*ixl access and books

(worth $ invested)

*happy with student progress and learning

*individualizing for student needs

*banana bucks

*excited about Project Group

*Project Group is good for hands-on learners

*actual groups in project group helps them learn to listen to others’ ideas

*exposure to word problems in math

*all teachers know the kids

Delta: communication of what kids are learning in school

This information was available on our blog, however, we have moved it to the main page of the blog now so that it is easier for everyone to locate. If you have specific questions at any time about what we are doing, please feel free to email your child’s teacher.

Delta: switching to blog was not helpful (too many places to check)

We originally switched to the blog in an effort to organize all the information we were putting online. We have had some positive feedback about the ability to subscribe to a blog. Some parents mentioned that it is difficult to remember which teachers your children have for which subject. Unfortunately there is not much we can do to change the way it is organized by teacher because of the amount of differentiation done in our school. However, your children are good at keeping track of which teachers they have, so they should be able to remind you.

Delta: ILP meeting with only homeroom teacher (can we meet with other teachers?)

We understand why this is a concern and we are brainstorming about how to address this next school year. We have discussed it with Mrs. Bullock and we have a few ideas we will be exploring as a staff. We do understand that you want to be able to meet and get information from your child’s other teachers. We hope you understand why this is not possible when we see 70-90 different students each day. Please remember that if at any time you have concerns or questions you would like to discuss with any of us, we are happy to set up an appointment. Next quarter prior to ILP’s we will send home a form you can return with any questions you may have for your child’s teachers. The homeroom teacher will then secure the information needed to address these questions at the ILP conference. If you don’t let us know your questions in advance, we may be unable to answer your questions at the conference.

Delta: explanation for parents about differences between kinder and ½ policies and new expectations for kids (ie: homework turn-in)

We appreciate this suggestion and have been trying to find ways to ease the transition from kindergarten to 1^st grade for students and parents. We know that our expectations are much different. If you have any specific ideas about how to ease the transition let us know. We are thinking about having a comparison chart to give families at the beginning of the year to help with this process.

Delta: Project Group supplies- more notice before shopping

Some parents expressed that the kids often bring home lists of what they need for projects and that they have to run to the store to get what they need for the next day. We never intended for you to have to buy anything, but we know sometimes the kids have a vision and really want certain supplies. From now on, we will make sure there are a few days between when the lists go home and when the supplies are needed to allow you time to get things if you want to. Please know that you are in no way expected to go buy things for project group.