Weekly Teacher Download for October 30

ALL TEACHERS

SPED Resource Group: Join the SpEd Employee Resource Group’s first meeting of the year on Nov.1 at Sterling High School from 4-5:30 p.m. Those joining can expect to enjoy a “Show, Tell, and Share” with your Team HISD colleagues, and learn about new manipulatives, techniques, and best practices. Click here to register.

2018 Benefits Enrollment: Benefits enrollment for 2018 starts this week on Nov. 2, and now is the perfect time to do some research before selecting your plan for the coming year. As part of our commitment to provide employees and their families with affordable health coverage, HISD is switching to Cigna as our medical plan and flexible spending account administrator. Your plan and the cost will not change, however your network of doctors could be impacted. To learn more about the changes and how you can prepare for this year’s benefits enrollment, read here.

Rice University Workshop:  The Rice University School Mathematics Project (RUSMP) invites you to participate in a workshop on Friday, Nov. 3 from 8-10:30 a.m. to sharpen your understanding of why computer science (CS) education matters and to learn more about Code.org’s innovative curricula. Paul Greiner, Lecturer and Undergraduate Student Advisor in Rice University’s Department of Computer Science, will give the keynote presentation followed by a group discussion on the challenges facing K-12 CS education. Click here for more information on the event and how to register.

Standardized School Start Times: With the goal of increasing the efficiency of bus transportation, HISD is currently conducting a survey to collect parent feedback as they consider standardizing school start times across all grade levels starting in the 2018-2019 school year. Several options are being weighed to standardize times. K-8 campuses would fall under the elementary school schedule, and 6-12 campuses would fall under the middle/high school schedule. The parent survey will close on Nov. 6. Read here to learn more about the parent surveys.

Are you up for the challenge? Join schools from over 30 countries participating in the annual Bebras Computing Challenge Nov. 6-17. Bebras is a 15-question, 45-minute challenge that aims to promote student interest in computational thinking. HISD had the largest number of participants in the entire country last year and we look forward to an even larger number of students taking part in the challenge this November. Teachers of third to twelfth grade can sign up their classes to take this 45-minute problem solving challenge. Register at http://challenge.bebraschallenge.org/admin.

2017 Parental Involvement Conference: Parents and Educators are invited to this year’s Title I Statewide Parental Involvement Conference. HISD is hosting the event Nov. 30 – Dec. 2 at the Crowne Plaza near NRG Park. This conference will benefit both school staff and parents. Educators will receive tips and guidance on improving relationships with parents and families as well as training on statutes and regulations in the new Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). For more information on how to register, click here.

TADS Training: Due to Hurricane Harvey, the board has approved adjusting TADS completion dates. The Update Training—OneSource course #503001, has been edited to reflect the most current changes. It will be available for completion now thru Nov. 10. This course is not for teachers that have attended NEO in September and October. For those teachers that have completed the course, the resources can still be accessed and the calendar has been updated. Also refer to the TADS toolkit for the most up-to-date revisions and resources.  For more info, contact tads@houstonisd.org.

NEW TEACHERS

Professional Development: Counting down the days to Thanksgiving Break? Finish off your first semester at HISD strong by attending the New Teacher Resource Group meeting on Nov. 2 at the Children’s Museum of Houston from 4-5:30 p.m. Those interested can sign-up, here.

ELEMENTARY

K-5 Stem Academy: Session 2 of the K – 5 STEM Academy will be held on Monday, Nov. 6, at Pugh Elementary School from 4-5:30 p.m. The focus of this session is STEM in the Community. Participants will experience short STEM activities that serve well as activities for the event and will be provided with planning templates and many great ideas on how to make STEM Night a success. Time and resources will be provided to begin planning a STEM Night for the 2017-18 school year. If interested, register on One Source course #742002.

Professional Development: The Elementary Curriculum and Development Office is pleased to offer a variety of professional learning opportunities for teachers during the months of November and December 2017.  For more info, click the course list here.

SECONDARY

Literacy in Action: Are you a fan of Literacy in the Middle or Literacy Empowered? You’re invited to a self-guided tour of hand-picked campuses and classrooms to view model examples of best literacy instruction. Tours will take place on Nov. 7-8 for middle and high schools from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Reserve your spot now in OneSource for course #779003 (middle school) or course #779002 (high school).  Expect to leave the tour loaded with ideas on how to best implement strategies and increase literacy on your campus!