Thank you for your recent professional learning feedback!
Jenna Kuder, Director of Professional Learning, compiled the information from September 6th and shared the results with Dr. Yeager and district leadership. Everyone who plans and delivers professional learning makes every effort to meet your needs and consider your feedback. This week, a team gathered to discuss the preliminary plans for the January 6th professional learning sessions. Our district has always been fortunate to have a team of facilitators, teachers, teacher leaders, and administrators so willing to share and discuss classroom ideas and successes. We continue to need your voice and your reflection on your classroom practice to promote continuous learning and student growth throughout our district.
~LuAnn Hermreck, Interim Learning Services Director
Everyone Reads
September 21, 2022
Learning Services exists to Prepare Students for Their Future by empowering students, teachers, and school communities. It is made up of many departments that serve the Olathe Public Schools. You will find updates from these departments in the AIM.
Professional Learning Department Updates
Director - Jenna Kuder
Elementary Grade Level Symposium- January 4, 2023
Calling all Elementary Grade Level Teachers! Our Elementary Symposium is coming up on January 4, 2023. Survey results show that you want opportunities to learn from and share with other teachers in your grade level and we want to make that happen! But, WE NEED YOU! If you would like to present a session or lead a grade level collaboration session, please click here to submit the Symposium Session Proposal.
Deadline for submission: Monday, October 17
Notification of session acceptance: Monday, October 24.
Thank you for considering a submission to support your learning and the learning of your colleagues!
Did You Know… About Professional Learning?
Did you know that the one-half of the time scheduled for District, Building, and Job-Embedded Professional Learning counts toward the required 1,116 hours of student contact time? Time designated as Educator Preparation does not count toward these required hours. All of this must be considered when building our district calendars.
Out-of-District Professional Learning Activities
We are able to support professional learning activities that occur outside of the district on a limited basis. We are currently not able to provide substitutes for activities that occur on a Monday or a Friday due to staffing challenges. Should a request include a Monday or a Friday, your building will be asked to provide “in-house” coverage for your absence. You can find out more about Out-of-District Professional Learning by clicking on the FAQ page of the Professional Learning Website.
BIG3 Tuesdays
We are offering a wide range of professional learning activities on Tuesdays after school! Sessions are available focused on Developing a Culture of Belonging, Designing Your Own PD Path, Regaining and Maintaining Positive Self-Care, and more! Sessions have limited participant numbers! Please click on this link to find additional information, including how to sign up! Additional sessions will be added as they are developed.
Special Services Department Updates
Executive Director - Anjanette Tolman
IEP Action
As mentioned in our SpEd Update, on Sept 6, during PD, we are going through our formal IDEA and Gifted IEP File Review. The size of our district required 20 random IDEA files and 7 Gifted files. There were findings that require us to take corrective action steps. You will hear more about this in the coming months, particularly if you were involved in an IEP that needs to be revisited. Here are three areas we'd like to highlight for you right now:
IEPs must include frequency, location, and duration of services, accommodations, and modifications! Along with that, there must be a projected date for beginning each of the services, accommodations, and modifications.
Staff training under “Other Considerations” in the IEP. Staff training is a support for school personnel that requires frequency, location and duration, as well as a start date. The start date would be the date of the IEP. The frequency might be annually or when a new provider is added to the team. The location could be any district building. Finally, duration would be the deadline for completion of the training, such as by the end of the first week of school or a specific date.
Progress Monitoring and Reporting must be completed four times a year for all goals. Please remember to save your report in Synergy!
January 4, 2023 Professional Development
Be on the lookout for a survey in the next AIM that will engage you in helping develop our plans for January 4th!
New Educator Department Updates
Director - Ann Addison
New Educators – Collegial Mentors – Orientation Partners!!
Parent Teacher Conferences are just around the corner and will be here before we know it. For many of you, this will be the first time you are doing parent-teacher conferences, and for more of you, it will be the first time to conduct them in Olathe.
We are asking you to complete a Nearpod with your Orientation Partner or Collegial Mentor to guide you through the Parent-Teacher Process in Olathe. All new educators and their building level mentors should participate in one of the following Nearpod sessions by October 6. I know that October 7, is a teacher work day, but please do not put it off until then; these Nearpods will help you prepare for conferences or progress monitoring (SPED) and the activities will be things you will want to do on the 7th. We have three sessions – one for special educators working with grades PK-12, one for PK-5 general education teachers, and one for 6-12 general education teachers. Nearpod links and links to the handouts are below. You will receive one professional development point for relicensure and movement for participating in these modules.
Special Education Elementary Gen Ed Secondary Gen Ed
Nearpod link No handout Nearpod link Handout Nearpod link Handout
University Parnerships Department Updates
Director - Ann Addison
Master's Degree Program
It is not too late to enroll in our Onsite Master’s Degree Program through Emporia State University! If you are interested in starting your master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction or Instructional Specialist, contact Ann Addison right away at 913-780-8163 or aaddisonirc@olatheschools.org.
Our first cohort class is this coming Tuesday, September 27, starting at 4:15pm at the IRC. Attend one EPIC a month and one master’s seminar each month and you will have 9 credit hours before June!!!
Instructional Technology Department Updates
Director - Thomas (TJ) Ulmer
Nearpod
Click here to find out what is new with Nearpod!
Resources and Support
OPS staff can request training on how to use technology while teaching and learning in meaningful and engaging ways.
Click here to access the training request form
Staff, Students and Families can visit the district’s page of Instructional Technology for resources to support teaching and learning with technology.
Click here to visit the Instructional Technology page
OPS staff can request training on general software and device basics by submitting a SchoolDude ticket. Be sure to select Training as the Work Category.
BSEL Department Updates
Director - Angie Salava
National Bullying Prevention Month
October is Bullying Prevention Month. This month reminds us that we all have a role to play in preventing bullying. The following website has free, easy to use resources that educators can use in their classrooms. Grades K-5 Grades K-12
For more information about Bullying Prevention Month, go to the following sites:
Stopbullying.gov KSDE.org Stompoutbullying.org Youth.gov ADL.org
Culture & Belonging Department Updates
Director - Marquis Harris
Become a Verified Culture Setter! Become part of Cohort 1 of a new and exciting professional learning initiative!
Course Title: The Culture Setter: How to Cultivate A Culture of Belonging for All
This course will explore how educators are the key to setting the right atmosphere for all learners to achieve. Participants will examine how their cultural identity impacts professional practice through a historical analysis of race and culture within the United States educational system. By the end of this course, participants will leave with an action plan centered on culturally responsive pedagogical strategies that will help support a culture of belonging to meet the diverse needs of the students and families they serve.
40 Spaces available. (Only 12 spaces left!) Certified Staff can receive up to (60) Professional Development Points or (4) College Credits through MNU. More Details on how to register can be found by visiting this link.
Session Dates: 9/27, 10/25, 11/29, & 12/13 (All dates are Tuesdays from 4:15-5:45PM) Location: IRC
ELL Department Updates
Coordinator - Mike Flenthrope
ELL Instructional Spotlight: 4 Steps for New Words
What are some strategies that you use in your classroom to teach new tier II and III words? Vocabulary is a key component of Scarborough’s Reading Rope aiding in language comprehension, especially for our English Learners.
See this month’s Spotlight for a simple 4-step process for teaching new vocabulary in your classroom. Reach out to your instructional coach and/or ELL support team for additional strategies to support your students.
Click on the buttons below for Learning Services Content Updates and Resources: