November 26, 2007
Welcome
Honored Guests
Jean Martinez
LPS Director of Elementary Education
Jean Martinez assumed this job in July 2007. She is very excited to be a part of LPS. There are several important elements that make LPS such a wonderful district:
o Principals – True leaders within LPS at all levels (elementary, middle and high). They are people who really want to create a system that works for the students. She’s not surprised, but she is heartened by the quality and commitment of these principals. They are committed to answering the hard questions - how to continue to improve. LPS principals work together to get better.
o Parents – So important in making the school a community. Wilder is fortunate that so many parents are involved. Parents support the principals and teachers, and help do the critical thinking that goes into creating a good environment for our children.
o Teachers – Make a huge commitment to get the results that LPS does. They make that happen. LPS has the very finest educators; they do an amazing job!
o Students – Don’t lose the picture of the whole child – inquisitive, curious, taking risks. It’s tough in a school like Wilder where the expectations are high, especially if things don’t come easily to you. There are many pleasers at Wilder, but we should encourage them to be academic risk-takers too. Challenge and periodic frustration keeps students growing. We need to give them opportunities to use their minds in every way.
Q: What are the standards for elementary education?
LPS elementary schools generally have math for 60-90 minutes per day and literacy (reading and writing) for 90 minutes per day. There is a shift in education in the last decade to “standard based” learning. What should students at a particular level be expected to do? How can the staff help students demonstrate learning/achievement for each standard?
Q: Do all LPS schools have the same curriculum?
Yes, the LPS schools have the same curriculum, the same standards, and approved resources. The greatest alignment across LPS is in Everyday Math. LPS is starting to move toward consistency in building blocks at each grade. PLCs (Professional Learning Communities) have enabled schools to come together. Now that teachers can collaborate and share best practices, the lessons are similar. Teachers can use different resources, but they are all held to the same standards.
Q: What is LPS doing to reduce drop out and improve achievement at a high standard prior to graduation?
In the USA, a person could have very little formal education and still get a good job making a good wage. This is not true anymore. More than ever, across the USA, we are talking about educating all children. It is really difficult to compare USA education achievement to that of other countries because many other countries don’t track ALL children (only those that remain in the education system). Although it is politically popular to talk about “not pushing students along”, it is actually detrimental to hold students back.
Within LPS, we are getting clearer about what is expected at every grade and how to differentiate among students achieving at, above and below grade level. We are also getting clearer about what best practice is and how it might be different for gifted or disabled children. PLC is giving teachers the opportunity to collaborate, to define best practices, and to evaluate students individually and identify interventions or accommodations that might help them achieve their potential. Wilder students benefit from special education services, help from literacy staff or have accommodations. Wilder has 1.6 equivalent literacy teachers (specialists).
Q: What do you think of the new report card and what has been the feedback from educators and parents?
The report card product itself is pretty good. It is comprehensive, aligned to standards based learning, speaks to the 5 elements of reading and math, and has a place for a narrative. It is an objective measurement. Parents really get more info about specific category of reading or math.
Change is hard in any situation, but part of the push back on the report card is changing mid-term. Many teachers already had traditional grades in their grade books, and they had to convert them to the new grading system.
Parents are having a tough time because they don’t understand what it means to “exceed application level”. Parents should focus on what a 4 is where students demonstrate higher level thinking and are able to apply the knowledge to novel problems. Encourage children to work hard, to be respectful, and to love learning.
WAC Feedback: The E, S system was better because it defined exactly how a student was doing. In the new system, if student gets a 3 he/she is doing grade level. Is that OK or not? How does that translate when they move to the traditional grading system? Does a 3 equal a C?? Is Advanced Math automatically a 4? Should parents push their children to get 4s? LPS needs to do a better job communicating the standards and guidelines to the parents.
JoAnn Levesque
Wilder Director of School Age Child Care
School Age Child Care (SACC) includes KED, K+, Preschool (under a separate director), and before and after school child care. All are licensed by the state of Colorado, and must be state standards.
The SACC Program is self-supported. There are 46 students in KED, 27 in the K+ program, and 96 students in before and after school child care. The budget covers salaries and health insurance, building use, utilities, teacher salaries, parapros for KED, suppliers, 2 hours / day of C Marsh and C Martin, lunch recess playground parapros.
As a result of a SACC survey conducted last year, many improvements have been made. A call box was installed to increase security, more staff were hired to answer the door, and activities were changed. We now have field trips on early dismissal days, including Heritage Square Theater, Littleton Town Hall, Skate City, and Local Restaurants. We are open to advice and comments.
Typical before school child care:
6:30am – Quiet opening. Breakfast. Games. Reading. Homework.
8:00am – Sports in the gym.
8:30am – Play outside.
9:00am – To classrooms.
Typical after school child care:
3:43pm – Nutritious snack.
4:10pm – Play outside.
4:30pm – Homework club.
5:00pm – Computer lab, arts and crafts, cooking, storytelling.
5:30pm – Sports in the gym.
6:00pm – Close.
PLC child care:
We usually have 50-55 children for a PLC day. A special activity leader is brought in, and many of the parapros work PLC days. “It’s not just crowd control; the kids are excited about it.”
Summer child care:
We usually have 35-50 kids per day in the summer.
Mondays – Enrichment days (foreign language, cooking, Tai kwon do)
Tuesdays and Thursdays – Swim
Fridays – Field Trips
Q: What is the range of age of the children and what is the ratio of staff to children?
We usually have children in grades K-5th, but SACC is licensed to age 14. The ratio of staff to children is 1:10. We staff to the planned child care participants for any given day. That is why we can not refund fees for days that a child is signed up to be present, but does not show. We accommodate drop-ins if we have margin in the staff to children ratio for that day.
Q: Do you have a large financial reserve?
Wilder SACC is a not-for-profit entity. However, when we find ourselves fortunate to have a reserve, we contribute to school improvement projects, including the new curtain for the stage, the new computer lab, etc. This year SACC purchased new floor mats for several entrances.
Q: How has staff turnover been lately?
Retention has been much better than in years past. Julie, JoAnn’s assistant, has been with SACC for 3 years. Most of the turnover can be attributed to college students that return to school or that graduate and get full time teaching positions.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes approved.
Community News
There are still concerns about Bus Radio being inappropriate for the audience (even the cleaned up version). Kathleen Ambron will send a memo home to parents.
Parents are starting to park on the grass (ball fields) again. Kathleen Ambron to put a reminder in the newsletter not to park on the grass.
Neighbors are expressing some concern about Wilder pine trees that are infested or dead and at risk of falling. Kathleen Ambron said the District is aware, and has plans to remove them.
2007-2008 WAC Projects
- School Survey
Roger Mutz, Carol Minzer, Gina Ferrari, and Kathleen Ambron drafted the satisfaction survey. WAC members are asked to review and send comments to Gina. Some questions from the general survey were moved to the grade level specific section. Several questions were eliminated. Many questions were retained for comparison with previous results.
- Update WAC By-laws
Nothing to report.
Principal’s Report
- Technology Update
Kathleen Ambron distributed options for location of the second computer lab. Wilder is also considering implementation of N-computing pods (one computer is the host to run 4 guests / monitors). Proceeds from the Silent Auction will be required to support a second computer lab and N-Computing.
- Representatives for Weighted Staffing (Michelle Kastner and ?)
One more volunteer from WAC is required for the Weighted Staffing Committee.
Committee Reports
- DAC
o Newly elected board members were introduced.
o House Bill 1118 approved to have the Governor appoint a 12 member council to draft High School Graduation Guidelines.
o DAC members evaluated school improvement plans.
- PTO
Holiday stockings for East Elementary (Wilder’s LPS sister school) are due 6 Dec. Thank you to all Wilder parents for participating.
- Preschool
In November, 350 school boxes and church matching funds were donated to our sister school. In December, the preschool will be donating educational toys and art supplies for 3-4 year old kids in a Denver Head Start Program.
- Teachers
o Totally Terrific Teachers drawings were done last week.
o First trimester report cards have been completed.
o Common assessment training has taken place during PLC late starts first semester.
o Primary benchmark testing is scheduled for January.
Good of the Order
- December Meeting
December Meeting will not be held.
Future WAC Meeting Dates
12/17/07 3/31/08
1/28/07 4/21/08
2/25/08 5/19/08