Monday Morning Memo --- February 3, 2014

Upcoming Events:

MON. (2/3) Teaching & Learning Abound!

TUES. (2/4) DR. KROPP WALKTHROUGH @ LAHS

Superintendent Kropp visits the Los Al campus to observe

classrooms and be a part of the teaching and learning and

innovation everywhere!

8th Grade G.A.T.E. Night @ 6:30pm in PAC

The transition in to high school starts now, and our amazing

counseling staff with help students and parents prepare for their

first year at Los Al.

WED. (2/5) STAFF MEETING @ 7:30am, Room 500 (Breakfast Included)

All Teachers & Counselors will be on hand for a fruitful

exploration on the importance of Pursuit and Payoff in the

teaching and learning cycle.

LATE START WEDNESDAY, 1st Period @ 8:37am For Students

Parent Workshop On Drugs & Alcohol, 6:30pm In PAC

Join Police Commander Paul LeBaron for a night of important

information for parents for FREE.

THUR. (2/6) Catch A Girls Soccer Or Basketball Game, Both @ Home!!!

FRI. (2/7) Catch A Boys Soccer Or Basketball Game, Both @ Edison!!!

Edison is sure to try and take on the #beststudentsectioninOC

on their home court this Friday night... so be sure to head over to

the game and represent Los Al on the road! Bring some friends!!!

SAT (2/8) District Band & Orchestra Night, 2pm & 6pm In Gym

ATHLETICS: Have you been to a Girls Water Polo match yet this year? They're undefeated in Sunset League play wit

h 44 goals scored vs. just 13 allowed. That's an average game score of winning 15-4 every match. Great job ladies! Come watch Coach Carlson and the Girls Water Polo Team every Wednesday at Newport Harbor High School. They love to see the fans!

& On The Horizon...

2/10 --- PTSA Meeting, 9am In Room 500

2/11 --- Leadership Council, 7am In Room 500

2/11 --- Community College Information Night, 7pm In PAC

2/22 --- Race On The Base!

2/28 --- LosAl4Life Prize Giveaway!

.............. Unlimited Possibilities!

For Forrest Gump, The Pursuit IS The Payoff:

Watch The Video Below And Consider, Both, Its Ridiculousness And Truth...

In preparation for this week's Staff Meeting, watch the following clip from Forrest Gump and think about whether or not it resonates with you...

Here are a few things to consider before, during, or after the clip:

Where is Forrest running to?
Why does he start?
Why does he stop?
Would you run if you really had nowhere to go?
What if Forrest was running somewhere, would that change anything?
There's an old proverb that says "The journey is the destination..." Does that even make sense?
And finally, what does any of this have to do with Common Core?

Can't wait to discuss this, and more, at this Wednesday's Staff Meeting...

See you then :)

Meet Los Al's Fish In The 2014 Common Core Aquarium:

Teachers Ray Coriaty, Brandon Hart, Tracy Lundblad, And Lauren Helm Are Getting Ready To Teach Fishbowl-Style On February 14th...

The picture above features last year's first-ever Common Core Aquarium at Los Al. This 2013 professional development venture featured Crystal Jerabek teaching a lesson on Media Persuasiveness for all of the Los Al staff.

This year, we're tapping into the talent on campus to hold our 2nd Annual Common Core Aquarium (because it's bigger than a fishbowl) on the upcoming Staff Development Day, February 14th.

Later this week, staff will be receiving an email that will ask them to choose 2 Teachers from the available list of 4 to observe and debrief with during The Aquarium. Teachers from the four core subject areas (English - Ray Coriaty, Math - Tracy Lundblad, Social Science - Brandon Hart, and Science - Lauren Helm) will be conducting 45-minute lessons in various areas on campus, so please choose topics and content areas that are of interest and relevance to you.

Here's a list of the practices being highlighted in each session:

Ray Coriaty --- Rigor / Close Reading (Room 810/811)
Tracy Lundblad --- Gamification / Student Talk (405/406)
Brandon Hart --- Chromebooks / EdTech Integration (Room 500)
Lauren Helm --- Depth & Complexity / Inquiry (Room 153/154)

Please look for an email from Kathy Currie, organizer of this year's Aquarium, with details about how to sign up and indicate preferences for observation and debrief.

Also, when you see Ray, Tracy, Brandon, and Lauren on campus, give them a pat on the back... getting ready to teach live and under the microscope in front of all of your peers isn't easy to do.

At least it'll be Valentine's Day :)

The New Normal:

Chromebook Carts Are Here For All, And They're Already Booked For Weeks!

The above artist rendering is of Social Science Teacher Mr. Moses pushing a set of chromebooks to his room from one of the 4 geographic areas on campus used to house these individual computing devices.

How fast change occurs, right?

Just like that, we've entered a new era of education and technology where we no longer go to the "Computer Lab," the Computer Lab comes to us...

And in case you missed Dan Bennett's email earlier this week, here are some details you'll probably like to know about how to check out and use our new mobile computer labs:

How do I check out a chrome cart?
- Carts are checked out through the Tandem online calendar, The location section will allow you to select a chromebook cart. We recommend you check the calendar before trying to reserve a cart to make sure which cart is available of your date.
Am I allowed to reserve a cart that is not listed as my department? (example: World language checking out the Math Cart)
- Of course! The carts are listed by the location they are stored at, so the math cart is in the math office room 407. When we selected the storage locations it was an effort to make sure everyone had at least one cart near them, so you wouldn't have to push all the way across campus.
- There are 4 carts: 2 in the Social Science Office, 1 in the Special Ed Office in the 700 building & 1 in the Math Office.
Where do I get the key to the cart?
- The front office has the keys to the carts, so go their first on a day you have reserved a cart to get the keys.
When do I pick up and drop off the cart?
- Carts can be picked up in the morning before school by going to the front office to get the key and then to the storage location. Carts should be returned to the storage location by 3pm the same day, locked up and plugged in to charge.
What if my class is larger then 36 students, a cart only holds 36 chromebooks?
- We have extra chromebooks stored in the front office so you can check out enough for your class size.
- We also recommend checking one out to test online content before you access it with students. If a site relies heavily on Java it may not work on a chromebook or the site may be blocked by the web filter, so test it first to make sure it will work for your students.
Can I get some assistance on a day when I have the cart?
- If you would like some help getting started email Trisha(tcallela@losal.org ) or myself (dbennett@losal.org) to setup a day when we can assist you.
- Help can include getting students started with the chromebooks in class or even sitting down to help you become familiar with what a chromebook is and how to access the resources students will use.

Happy Googling Los Al!!!!

Week 20 2013-2014... IN THIS ISSUE:

Upcoming Events

For Forrest Gump, The Pursuit IS The Payoff

Meet Los Al's Fish In The Common Core Aquarium

The New Normal... Chromebook Carts Are Here For All...

Mentor Breakfast 2014

Deep & Complex... Ms. Jones And The Socratic Seminar

Junior Class Represents At The Griffin Olympics!

Just before last week's Assembly got started, these ASB'ers jumped for joy at finishing all the decorations and set-up with time to spare.

Mentor Breakfast 2014:

Over 200 Griffins Have Breakfast With Business Professionals Working In Industries Our Students Aspire To Be A Part Of...

Junior Aleah Collins (right) listens intently as mentors impart their wisdom on a group of Griffins preparing themselves for career success.

It's the signature event of the year for The College & Career Center, and there's a reason for that. The annual Mentor Breakfast is one of the most impactful student experiences one can ever have in high school.

The opportunity to eat breakfast with a successful adult doing the exact kind of work you're looking to do just a few years now is meaningful in and of itself... but being able to connect with them, get their business card, exchange emails, and gain a lifelong contact is truly invaluable. That's exactly what this year's attendees plan on doing by the way... mentors and mentees staying connected!

Coordinated by Shelley Riekenberg, Stacy Eatmon, and Valerie Beachley of the College & Career Center, this year's breakfast changed locations to the Gym to accommodate the overwhelming growth in attendance and popularity. Career mentors sign up well in advance to volunteer this morning for great conversations with Los Al Juniors and Seniors. And each time our attendance gets larger and larger.

Adam Gubman, music composer extraordinaire, was this year's Keynote Speaker, and he gave a presentation on the 6 Traits Of Character that helped make him successful. Among them, he spoke at length about passion and perseverance. As it is in schools and in life, loving what you do and sticking to it for a long time usually helps one to maximize their efforts and reach some level of success.

If you're interested in being a mentor or mentee for next year's Mentor Breakfast, it's never too early to get on the list. Email Shelley Riekenberg at sriekenberg@losal.org for more information!

Deep & Complex:

Ms. Jones' English Class Furthers Their Thinking Through Socratic Seminars

This is a picture of Ms. Jones observing a Socratic Seminar in her English class. The verb "observe" is important because Ms. Jones does not participate in this discussion at all... it is completely student-led and based 100% on participation.

The challenge of continuing to push our students further along the Rigor/Relevance framework can be a daunting one. Teachers from all disciplines are always looking for ways to support students as they are tasked with complex learning goals and expected to make deep connections across content areas. Naturally, many teachers respond to this shifting paradigm by "teaching more."

Not Kelly Jones. In fact, the model of Socratic Seminars she uses regularly in class actually requires her teach less. A lot less.

Coupled with Dr. Sandra Kaplan's Depth & Complexity Icons training, Ms. Jones is developing a learning and participation modality in her class that forces students to "make parallels" between texts, consider the "Big Idea" in works of fiction and non-fiction, draw out the "details" of an author's claim, and more. The best part is, after some initial modeling for students, they are able to do all this work on their own.

The level of Student Talk in Socratic Seminars is truly its greatest boon. Students own language and cultivate conceptual understandings with far greater depth as a result of the effort it takes to construct arguments and build upon developing ideas.

The marriage between this protocol and the use of Depth & Complexity Icons to prompt student learning allows for full classes to achieve rigorous benchmarks of progress ongoingly throughout the year. For teachers looking to mix up their weekly routines with a "You Do" activity that supports the general ethos of Common Core instruction, you way want to think about adding Socratic Seminars or Depth & Complexity Icons to your tool belt.