Weekly Teacher Download for January 25

ALL TEACHERS

Academics
The HISD Teacher Preparation Day (no students) scheduled for Friday, Jan. 29, 2021, has been designated a remote working day for all district employees. This day is available for teachers to close out items for the third grading cycle and prepare for the next. Employees should take home anything they may need to work from home when leaving work on Thursday, Jan. 28. Teachers should not report to school on Friday, as all HISD facilities will be undergoing a deep cleaning. HISD schools and offices will reopen with regular business hours as the district resumes in-person working on Monday, Feb. 1, 2021. This January 29 remote working day for HISD will not impact teaching and learning, as the day is already a designated day off for students under the 2020-2021 academic calendar. 

Reminder: The teacher service day previously scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021, was changed on the 2020-2021 academic calendar to Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020. All students and staff should report to school as normal on Feb. 24. For questions, contact Academics@houstonisd.org or PSD@houstonisd.org.

Social and Emotional Learning

Rethink Ed: Students continue to face challenges of stress, anxiety, and coping with their emotions. Please check out HISD’s Rethink Ed platform for training videos, downloadable resources, and SEL lessons for the classroom. Teachers and counselors are encouraged to collaborate and watch the video series on trauma located in the My Training section of the platform. Please refer to the training video using the access passcode located on the page. Contact SEL@HoustonISD.org for assistance. 

SEL Campus Spotlight: We would like to share an SEL best practice sent to us by Ortiz Middle School Dean of Culture Rewa Booher. “Ortiz Middle School has been using Restorative Behavior Practices, with which we are teaching students to adapt to the virtual learning environment. Our students have been part of virtual circles, and teachers have been able to monitor and engage parents in this process. We are proud to be a Family First team.“ Thanks to all for implementing SEL on your campuses.

Group 1 Automotive
HISD has partnered with the Sterling McCall family of dealerships to offer HISD employees an exclusive Vehicle Buying Program with services designed to save you time and money at all Group 1 automotive dealerships. Click here to learn more.

SECONDARY TEACHERS

Career and Technical Education. Please view the Jan. 29 Enrichment Professional Development Calendar for professional development sessions, self-paced training courses, and other events for CTE teachers and administrators. Register through OneSource Learning to receive credit for courses. Please visit the HUB for Career Readiness resources and announcements. Also, visit the HISD Career Readiness website or click on Weekly CTE News Bulletin, Volume 3. Before registering for OneSource courses, reference the CTE audience, dates, and times on the Enrichment Professional Development Development Calendar. We look forward to your participation! For questions, contact Dr. Stacey Whitmore at SWHITMO1@HoustonISD.org.

Detailed CTE information and opportunities

Attendance is limited and by invitation only to this TestOut LabSim Training for Grant Use on Feb. 4, so register today. Questions about industry-based certifications and curriculum? See this flyer. To help youth gain and understand financial freedom, take this course. To learn about Statecraft Simulation and Setup, register for this course. For EverFI Career Exploration Lessons training on Jan. 29, see this flyer. eDynamic Learning has a new class on differentiated instruction and remote learning; see this flyer to register. Junior Achievement is offering a new course on Strategic Goals for HISD Scholars on Jan. 28; see this flyer for more information. For a course on Culturally and Linguistically Special Populations, see this flyer. Applied Educational Systems Rep Heather Young will present two trainings; Jan. 26 is an introduction to Health Center 21 Digital Curriculum and Jan. 27 is about Business and IT Center 21. For additional trainings, see the January Region 4 Distance Learning Event Schedule and the Weekly CTE News Bulletin, Volume 3.

Free job training starting January 25
SERJobs is offering FREE training to help prepare unemployed or underemployed clients for greater earning potential. See www.SERhouston.org/application or text JOB to 69922 to apply for these trainings. Please contact Fernando Perez at fperez@serjobs.org for more information or questions.

Career Tip Tuesday: Teachers, please encourage your students to join CTE career advisors every second and fourth Tuesday of the month for a mini lesson watch party led by expert professionals and educators on how to stand out from the crowd and become competitive job applicants.

ELEMENTARY TEACHERS

Elementary Curriculum and Development Office
Nominations for the 2020-21 Elementary Science Teacher Awards are now open. This an exciting partnership that rewards elementary teachers for exemplary teaching and learning in science and STEM classrooms. This year’s nominees will be selected from those who have demonstrated a unique ability to “engage the students in a virtual world, breaking barriers beyond traditional brick and mortar.”  For a complete summary of requirements, as well as nomination information, please see this Academic Service Memo. We encourage you to self-nominate and nominate an outstanding science/STEM teacher colleague in grades K-5 or a science lab.

Grant opportunity for third-grade project-based learning. Teachers, be on the lookout for an upcoming opportunity exclusive to grade 3 science teachers. EnCap Flatrock Mindstream, in partnership with HISD, is offering two grant opportunities for third-grade elementary classrooms to enhance and grow their STEM or science labs. Each grant totals approximately $2,500. The objective is to provide updated STEM and science resources and materials that will impact student achievement and learning. They will be looking for evidence of students’ usage of Cycle 3 Cumulative Projects, which begins the week of January 25. Winners will be identified via a social media challenge, which is due Feb. 1. Detailed information can be found in this Academic Services Memo. We look forward to seeing the outstanding work of HISD’s third-grade scholars.