Weekly Teacher Download for April 5, 2021

ALL TEACHERS

Office of Special Populations – Interventions Office
“Momentum:  Getting Back on Track,” the first annual Interventions Office Conference, will be on Saturday, April 17, 2021, from 8:00 am – 1:00 pm. This virtual event is designed to empower and engage HISD employees, families, community members, and other partners to drive strategies that focus on four learning strands that guide our work and help us plan the future. Teachers, administrators, and instructional personnel at all levels are invited to participate. Click on this link to register and view the conference schedule: https://hisdinterventionsofficeconf.sched.com/.

Social and Emotional Learning
Rethink Ed: This online SEL curriculum helps students learn skills for positive behavioral responses. Rethink Ed provides direct instruction in the areas of emotions, stress management, support systems, and resilience. Educators and counselors can filter these areas by grade level. Click here to access the Rethink Ed self-care series and lesson plans. Visit the Rethink Ed HISD page and the SEL Google site for more resources. If you need assistance, please contact SEL@HoustonISD.org.

SEL Campus Spotlight: “As a school counselor working on two different campuses, I have had the pleasure of implementing the HISD SEL curriculum through the Rethink Program that consists of social and emotional skills needed to be successful in teaching students to manage feelings, identify emotions, build good relationships, and make sound decisions,” said Fondren and MacGregor ES Counselor Marisela C. Sigala. “I have been able to teach these skills in various settings such as ancillary, classroom, small group, and individually. The student’s response to the program has been positive, as students welcome skills based on learning that helps them answer questions and doubts they have in their personal life.”

Career Readiness
When I Grow Up, the ninth annual career expo for HISD students in grades K-12, is going to be virtual this year. Set for 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 17, it features hands-on career exploration, summer job opportunities, raffles, prizes, and entertainment. See this flyer for more information.

TADS Waivers
The Board of Education has approved waivers for certain components of DNA(LOCAL) impacting TADS. The impact, as it relates to TADS, is as follows:

• All probationary contract teachers will continue the TADS appraisal process as outlined in DNA(LOCAL).
• For term and continuing contract teachers not on a PPA participating in TADS, teachers earning all 4s and 3s in all Instructional Practice and Professional Expectations criteria at their Progress Conference will have their Progress Conference ratings applied as their EOY Conference ratings, and an EOY Conference will not be held. Additional formal walkthroughs and observations will not be conducted.
• For term and continuing contract teachers not on a PPA participating in TADS, teachers earning all 4s, 3s, and no more than two 2s in all Instructional Practice and Professional Expectations criteria may have their Progress Conference ratings applied as their EOY Conference ratings, or these teachers can opt to continue the appraisal process according to policy. If a teacher chooses to apply the Progress Conference ratings as the EOY Conference ratings, an EOY Conference will not be held, and additional formal walkthroughs and observations will not be conducted. If the teacher chooses to continue the appraisal process, the appraisal process will continue as outlined in DNA(LOCAL).
• For teachers not on a PPA participating in M-TADS, teachers who have maintained ratings of 4s, 3s, and no more than two 2s in all Instructional Practice and Professional Expectations criteria during the current appraisal year will carry over their 2019-2020 Summative Rating as their 2020-2021 Summative Rating.

Coaching visits and follow-up coaching conversations are encouraged for all teachers. If you have any questions regarding the above, please reach out to your assigned campus appraiser.

Multilingual
Save the date! The third annual multilingual symposium, “The Blueprint: Engineering Foundations that Build Academic Language,” via Teams is set for June 25-26, 2021. The deadline to register is June 24, 2021. See this story for more information.

SECONDARY TEACHERS

Fine Arts
Dance teachers, there is an open call for dance film choreographies for an HISD dance film festival on April 24. This is an opportunity for your middle and high school dance students to screen their dance films and receive professional feedback. Register here. For more information, contact Sanja Korman at skorman@houstonisd.org.

Career and Technical Education
Attention all middle and high school CTE teachers, as well as CTE administrators: Please view the April 2021 Vol. I Weekly CTE Bulletin for the latest CTE updates, opportunity to submit CTE student highlights, CTE curriculum support, CTE certification and instructional support, professional learning opportunities, summer virtual professional development requests, teacher-led professional development requests, virtual programs, workshops, conferences, job opportunities for youth, youth resources, scholarship opportunities for high school seniors, career tips, and other CTE teacher resources. Sign in here using your credentials to visit the Career Readiness Course on the HUB for weekly announcements.

ELEMENTARY AND PRE-K TEACHERS

EC Literacy Routines in PreK: Register for Course #1450030 on April 6 from 4:00-5:30 p.m. to learn how to use Literacy Routines strategies in the PreK classroom to nurture language and literacy development. Participants will gain a clear knowledge of how to use these practices and strategies to make content comprehensible to all students.

Virtual learning classes for PK parents: Please see this story for information on free virtual early childhood classes through the Soccer Starts at Home Program. Parents can register at this link. These virtual classes support parents with the implementation of the program at home.