At Chegwin we are FAMILY:
F- Friendships
A- Accountability
M- Mindfulness
I- Integrity
L- Leaders
Y- YOU Matter!
There is a bit of irony with this theme as we have all learned that during the Covid-19 pandemic we certainly are not able to see what may be coming next. Despite the many uncertainties of this time, our vision remains strong. We will work collaboratively to ensure success for ALL students.
Chegwin Principal, Kari Saunders, believes in the power of professional development. As part of the 2020/2021 schedule, Ms. Saunders built monthly professional development sessions into the Chegwin staff calendar. During the months of September and October, staff engaged in professional development sessions to strengthen their understanding of UDL.
Due to community spread of Covid-19 during the month of November, all schools in the Fond du Lac School District moved to a fully remote model of instruction until school resumed after the Thanksgiving holiday. Because of the change in format, after school professional development was put on hold during the month of November.
After school professional development sessions resumed in December, and the staff implemented "Vision Checks" following the sessions. The "Vision Checks" are a means of encouraging staff to utilize the skills learned during professional development sessions within their classrooms.
This year's theme for UDL implementation, "We're Engaged!", highlights the Chegwin staff's commitment to providing engaging learning opportunities for ALL students. The UDL implementation plan at Chegwin includes professional development during staff meetings, instructional coach support within the PLCs, and individualized instructional coaching.
On March 17, 2020, Chegwin Elementary (along with all Wisconsin schools) was closed to in-person instruction due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Professional development was put on hold for the duration of the school year as all staff learned to navigate the remote learning platforms.
During our first PD session, we welcomed the staff to UDL implementation with a fun game to introduce ourselves as quickly as possible. Our record thus far is 9.10 seconds!
Enjoy this video of Mrs. Hamburg's second grade students playing the Name Game as part of their morning community circle.
Well, maybe the Chegwin staff didn't exactly win the $100,000 Pyramid, but they sure had fun playing this game which focused on vocabulary related to student engagement.
Chegwin staff model their sketching skills as they were asked to define a vocabulary term related to engagement using only a quick sketch.
"We're Engaged!" is this year's theme for our UDL implementation at Chegwin. Some might know the cliche', "the old ball and chain", when referring to a lifetime partner. At Chegwin, we are referring to the "ball and chain" as the barriers that our kids face at school.
The Chegwin vision states that the Chegwin Family honors the uniqueness of ALL learners. And because they know that each learner is unique, Chegwin staff learned about designing learning opportunities to support the variability of their students.