"B" week schedule

Teacher & Staff Member of the Year Awards!

It's that time of the year!  I would like EVERYONE to vote for Teacher of the Year and Staff Member of the Year on the provided google forms.  Please add thoughtful comments regarding the reasoning for your nomination and submit them by Tuesday, May 21.  Being nominated by your peers is always an honor, and one that I know I cherish, even years later!  

You all are the best!! 😁

Field Day - May 23, 2024

This year's field day is sure to be EPIC!  Coach Smith & the PTO have been working hard planning a fun-filled day, including competitive and non-competitive races, games, events & special treats.  Students will be receiving their t-shirts the day of field day (as we do not want anyone to forget to wear them for this day!).  Lunch is provided by the PTO and water is being donated by Arlington Charities!  

I'd like to also have a potluck event for us during this day for not only us, but for also the PTO to participate in.  They have worked hard all year providing us with amazing things, so having some fun foods for us all to celebrate together on that day would be great.  Please sign up on this Sign Up Genius if you are able to provide anything.  Also, I will be collecting money for a gift from us to each PTO lady, so if you would like to donate any money amount, please do so by Tuesday, May 28 so I can purchase a gift for them from our staff to thank them for all they have done for us this school year!

Parents are welcome to attend and be with their child's class on this day!  When they arrive, they are to check in at the front desk with Ms. Tabatha for their Raptor sticker.  If you see any adult on campus that day who does not have a Raptor sticker on, please send them to the front office to receive one.  Please also have your walkie on you during this day at all times, as announcements may need to be made when you are not in your classroom.

The activities that students will be participating in are:

• Yard Dashes:  40, 50, and 60 yard dash

• Foodball or beanbag toss

• Soccer kick competition

• Musical Chairs/Hula Hoop competition

• Water Balloons

• Creative Art Fun!

• Hallway races

• Icee truck

• Movie Time!

It is a full day with lots of fun activities!  A structured schedule will be passed out by Wednesday afternoon for you to view.  Make sure each child that day wears tennis shoes, as a lot of running around outside and inside will be occurring and if they do not wear the proper footwear, they will not be able to attend the event.  Parents have been made aware of this through the parent newsletter.

We are looking forward to a fun time! 

8th Grade Graduation Ceremony

On Friday, May 24, the 8th grade graduation ceremony will begin at 8:30am in the gym/cafeteria.  Thursday afternoon, after field day festivities are complete, we will bring in chairs from the 6th-8th grade classrooms into the gym to set up for the event.  

While only 8th grade & their families will be participating in the ceremony, at 9:45am we as a campus will participate in an all-school "clap out" to celebrate the 8th graders.  8th graders will line up outside of door 7 (south end of the building) and will parade down the front sidewalk all the way to the playground area.  At the north end of the building (end of the sidewalk prior to crossing to go to the playground) PK 4 will stand in two rows and hand the 8th graders a gift (PK4 we will practice this prior).  All other grade levels will stand on either side of the sidewalk lining the front of the building (I'll give a visual on Monday). Please have your classes outside and ready to cheer by 9:40am.  

We're excited to celebrate our 8th graders and cheer them on into their high school career!  

End of Year Grade Level Ceremonies

For end of the year grade level ceremonies, please place student awards in this folder for the following:

• Top Grade Level Scholar

• Top Reader

• Top Scientist

• Top Mathematician

• Top Social Studies Scholar

• Top STEM Scholar

You can choose any award format, just place the completed awards in the folder so that I can print them in color on card stock prior to the ceremony day.  Canva has great certificate templates, as well as you can find fun academic templates online as well.  I will create grade level completion certificates, A/B Honor Roll and Perfect Attendance certificates for each student and place within those folders as well.

Ms. Corey, Coach Smith, Ms. Gigi & Ms. Fadoua, please place your grade level certificates (Top Artist, Top Language Students, Top PE Student) per grade level in grade level folders as well.

Please have certificates complete in folders by Monday, May 20.  Let me know if you need any assistance!

Charter School Academy - SIGN UP NEEDED!

Charter School Academy is the first two days of District PD on July 25th and July 26th.

All returning staff members for the 2024-2025 school year must be registered for Charter School Academy prior to leaving for the school year as part of the check out process.

August 1 and 2 are for NEW HIRE Orientation. If you are unable to attend the July 25th and July 26th Charter Teacher Training due to being out of the country, for example, then you will be asked to join the August 1 and August 2 training. This is approved only on a case by case basis - subject to approval for extenuating circumstances.

August 5, 6 and 7 are the beginning of the year district PD for all returning staff and all new hires. 

Here is the link to register for the July 25 & 26 training. You are allowed to select your own breakout sessions. There are two steps to this process:

1. Register for the Training - You must be logged into your Region 10 Account using your Manara Email address for this to be FREE:

Charter School Academy

2. Open the attached letter Charter School Academy for Teachers (CSAT) Letter to click on the link to begin selecting your sessions. 

Reach out if you have any questions!

Manara Leadership Academy Graduation - May 24, 2024

Please join us in celebrating our Manara 2024 Senior Class on May 24, 2024 at 6:00pm for their high school graduation ceremony.  We are excited to celebrate the young adults completing their studies at Manara!  

Having staff members from all campuses for the event is wonderful for the seniors to see!  I'd love to see as many of the STEM staff members as possible there to celebrate the Manara senior class!  

See the flyer for further details!

Final 6 weeks grades

Final grades are due for 8th grade students by Thursday, May 23, and all other grade levels by Friday, May 24.  Grades must be finalized by then, as I need to print out certificates (A/B Honor Roll, Perfect Attendance) with the ceremonies coming up.  Reach out if you have any questions!

TFAR Naming Conventions

For teachers in grades 3-8, please make sure to update your TFAR naming conventions with the following:

 Teacher last name.grade.subject.TEK focus.date

The last TFAR is due the week of May 20.  (for the LAST 6 week period).  However, you can still use the platform for practicing STAAR type questions.  Practice makes perfect...or at least it helps with learning the platform better! 

SLO data collection

Within your individual SLO folders I have added a data tracker where you will input data collected from your TFAR or mCLASS assessments.  The following dates are when the following data should be input:

Using the Initial Skill Profile Rubric:  

BOY assessments (Data acceptable:  1st TFAR given, mCLASS, Circle)

Using the Targeted Skill Profile Rubric:

December (week of Dec 11) End of 3rd six weeks - Evidence of student progress #1 Done!

January (week of Jan 3) Start of 4th six weeks -  Evidence of student progress #2 

February (week of Feb 12) End of 4th six weeks -  Evidence of student progress #3

February (week of Feb 21) Start of 5th six weeks -  Evidence of student progress #4

March (week of Apr 1) End of 5th six weeks -  Evidence of student progress # 5

May (week of May 20) End of 6th six weeks - EOY Student Skill Level

Remember to utilize the same TFAR for the the start and end of each 6 weeks so that the data is an accurate comparison.

Reminder:  Naming conventions for TFAR assessments:  last name.grade.subject.date

I will begin setting up Summative conferences for the week of May 20, so please have your SLO data collection complete by your Summative conference date!

To-Do Items

Things to do this week:

• Pass out Maverick Bucks for great behaviors and expectations!!!!!!  Store will be open until May 30!

• Complete mCLASS, Circle, TX-KEA or TPRI assessments - grades PK3 - 5

• Place your lesson plans & newsletters in the correct google drive folder 

• SLO data collection - EOY Skill Level (and making sure all SLO data collection has been completed in the drive folder)

May 6-31 mCLASS EOY Assessments K-5

May 6-31 TX-KEA & TPRI EOY Assessments K-1

May 20-24 Last TFAR completion due (grades 3-8)

May 20 EOY grade level certificates due in grade level folder

May 23 Field Day 

May 24 8th grade end of year celebration 8:30am - 12:00pm (information was sent home with 8th grade families)

May 24 Manara High School Graduation (Irving location)

May 27 No school - Memorial Day holiday

May 28 4th & 5th grade end of year ceremony 8:30-9:30am

May 28 6th & 7th grade end of year ceremony 10:00-11:00am

May 29 1st & 2nd grade end of year ceremony 8:30-9:30am

May 29 3rd grade end of year ceremony 10:00-11:00am

May 30 Pre-K 3, Pre-K 4 & Kindergarten end of year ceremony 8:30-10:00am

May 31 Last day of school for students (and staff check-out day!)