What Is Expected of Me This Week

• PLTs:  Kinder, 2nd, 4th and 4th on Tuesday.  Make sure your agendas are updated!   Note: Due to TELPAS happening in the PLC room, we will once again meet with teams in one of the team leads' room.

• TELPAS again this week! We will be testing in the PLC room. We will pull students at 8 for testing. Make sure to remain quiet in the halls when the testing signs are up. 

• Monday, February 24th--3rd Grade Math PD at Providence 3:45-4:30 REGISTER HERE

• Wednesday, February 26th: Science Test Prep REGISTER HERE

• Wednesday, February 26th: Mentor/Mentee meetup in the library

• No staff meeting this Thursday. 

• Boosterthon is Friday! We will not have Celebrate Savannah this day. Here is the Boosterthon Schedule:

  • • • • Pre-K & AFS classes - 8:30am

        • 2nd & 3rd grades - 9:30am

        • 4th & 5th grades - 10:30am

        • Kinder & 1st grade - 12:30pm

Note: If there is rain or inclement weather our Boosterthon will move inside to the gym and follow the regular specials schedule with one grade level at a time running. 

Upcoming Events:

February 24th--3rd Grade Math PD at Providence 3:45-4:30 REGISTER HERE

February 26th -- Mentor/Mentee Meet- Up

February 26th -- Science Test Prep REGISTER HERE

February 28th -- Boosterthon Fun Run

March 3-7th -- "Read Across America" week (See graphic below!)

March 3rd -- 5th Grade Math PD at Bell 3:45-4:30 REGISTER HERE

March 4th -- 4th Grade Math PD at Savannah 3:45-4:30 REGISTER HERE

March 4th -- Open House

March 6th -- Staff Meeting: Book Study

March 6th -- Diagnostician Day

March 7th -- Grading Period Ends

March 7th -- Student Half Day/Reading Academy at PDC

March 10-14th -- Spring Break 

Still Important:

• Intent Form 2025-26 School Year -- It is planning season again! Please fill out this form as soon as possible to inform Hawkins and Norris of your plans for next year. Please fill out this form even if you plan to stay in your current spot. 

• Attendance Challenge!!! Starting Monday, February 10th, any staff member with perfect attendance between now and Spring Break will be entered into a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card.  Congrats to Mandi Bruce, Ashley Ahlheim, Tralonda Thomas, Elizabeth Dowden, Meaghan Jarosz, and Kelley White for attending the dance and gaining another entry into this drawing. (If I missed seeing you, please email me and I will add you to the drawing as well.) Also, Kathy Holt and Mandi Bruce will get another entry for helping set up for the event on Friday night. Woohoo! 

Read Across America Week March 3rd-7th:

A message from Holt

I wanted to send out the plan and resources I have put together so that you have them. There are a couple of things still in progress and will be updated next week. 

I have attached two images from the slideshow to promote Read Across America Week. Please share these with families in your communications and participate if you can! 

I also have a slideshow for staff. This has the video read aloud for each day that you can play for your class when it is most convenient for you. There is also a slide for each day with additional related ideas you can use to celebrate! LINK

(Heads Up - Tuesday suggests Buddy Reading and pairing up with a class in another grade, so make those connections and get that scheduled if you would like to participate! Maybe with your sidekick's class? Just an idea! I'm happy to help facilitate if you need help finding a partner class!)

Thank you to everyone who participated in my brainstorming sheet to help decide what direction to go. If you have additional ideas we can incorporate this week, please bring them on!

And just some extra information for those who may not know - Read Across America is an event started by the National Education Association. It's always been a celebration of reading and originally was very focused on Dr. Seuss and his birthday. Over the years it has evolved and become a celebration of being a nation of diverse readers that can continue throughout the year. Many places still celebrate RAA day or week (like Denton) to bring extra focus to reading during this time. Check out more information about Read Across America on the NEA website. LINK

Grants to Teachers

The DPSF Grant to Teachers process has an update we hope will help you create an even better, focused grant application this year!  Think of this as a rough draft for your grant idea. There is a Laserfiche form that will be the pre-step for your 2025-26 DPSF grant application and it can be found here - https://forms.dentonisd.org/Forms/DPSF-GrantPreApplicationApproval. It is open NOW!

You will be asked to describe your grant idea, state what purpose or goal you hope to accomplish and then list the items you wish to purchase. It is ok if you are unsure of the cost – the important part for this stage is the “what” and from “where”.

This form will then be routed to the appropriate departments (Curriculum, Early Childhood, EXPO, Technology, Fine Arts, Library Services, Digital Learning, Bilingual, SPED, Counseling) to ensure that requests for items and projects are in compliance with DISD’s initiatives and guidelines. 

If you receive an approval or an approval with conditions, then you will attach a copy of the Laserfiche form to the full DPSF Grant Application that will open April 1 and closes Thursday, June 12 at 5 p.m.  If you receive a denial you will receive an explanation so that you will have the information needed to tweak your idea and resubmit.  If you submit your request early, you’ll still have time to re-assess and resubmit, if needed! Please give yourself at least 10 days to receive the DPSF Grant Pre-Application Approval back  as it must be attached to the DPSF Application before it closes June 12 at 5 p.m. 

You will receive an email from DPSF notifying you that the application process is opening up.  We’re looking forward to lots of great ideas and innovations!

What is a sidekick? Your sidekick is simply a buddy at work outside your traditional team. This is meant to be a fun way to connect with someone outside of your usual path. Below is a calendar for sidekick dress up days through the month of February.  Jeans are acceptable for anyone participating in the dress up days.