PRINCIPALS' MESSAGES 2013

SEPTEMBER 19, 2013 - Principals' Biweekly Message

Communicating the details of Home Base and all of its pieces and parts can be complex and hard to track. A new web page on the NC Department of Public Instruction's site may be the help you need to see what is happening each day with the software that makes up this major technology project. A new chart that tracks each day's known issues and concerns as well as "fixes," resolutions and additional information and timelines for completion is now online on the Home Base website under Updates (www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/updates). To make it easy to find, the chart will also be on the main page, www.ncpublicschools.org under Highlights for the next several months. Please share this with your team so that you have a place to see issues that are being addressed each day.

Regards,
June Atkinson

In this Biweekly Principals' Message:

1. Public Hearings Scheduled to Receive Feedback on High School Accreditation Framework and Read to Achieve Program
2. Home Base Training Materials Online
3. Reading 3D Tutorials
4. Educator Effectiveness Offers Professional Development Opportunities
5. Sign Up Now for ELA Listserv
6. NC Department of Public Instruction Partners with Capitol Broadcasting on Character Matters Campaign
7. 63rd Conference on Exceptional Children Set for November
8. LEARN NC Offers New Online Professional Development Courses
9. NCDOT Sponsors Model Bridge Building Competition

Public Hearings Scheduled to Receive Feedback on High School Accreditation Framework and Read to Achieve Program

State Board of Education staff have scheduled two public hearings to receive feedback on the High School Accreditation Framework and the NC General Assembly’s Read to Achieve Program. The High School Accreditation Framework public hearing will be held Wednesday, Oct. 9, and The NC General Assembly’s Read to Achieve Program public hearing will be held Tuesday, Oct. 15. Both are scheduled from 1-3 p.m., in the 7th Floor State Board Lounge, Education Building, Raleigh. To read more about these public hearings as well as how to provide comment if you cannot attend in person, please visit the Department’s website at www.ncpublicschools.org and click on the appropriate link under “News.”

Home Base Training Materials Online

Principals are reminded that there are a number of online training materials to help your staff and you acclimate to Home Base. These include taking attendance, locating materials to support instruction, creating lesson plans and an overview of Home Base. Principals also are encouraged to read the Home Base Weekly Update you are receiving via e-mail to see the latest known issues and resolutions, with follow-up documents posted online. These training materials and others are available online at www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase /training/materials/.

Reading 3D Tutorials

The K-3 Literacy division has developed interactive tutorials around mClass Reading 3D. These tutorials can be used as a refresher for experienced users of the assessment system or for training purposes for teachers just beginning to understand and learn about the program. Please visit the K-3 Literacy division livebinder website at http://www.livebinders.com/play/play/850102 to access the tutorials.

Educator Effectiveness Offers Professional Development Opportunities

NCDPI’s Educator Effectiveness offers a variety of online professional development opportunities to keep teachers on top of issues impacting their profession. Current offerings include Building and Sustaining Professional Development, Data Literacy in Action and Measures of Student Learning, Grades 9-12. To learn more about these opportunities, please visit https://rt3nc.org.

Sign Up Now for ELA Listserv

NCDPI’s English Language Arts section is holding a fall listserv drive. By being a member of this e-mail group, English/language arts teachers will be among the first to receive information on upcoming webinars, helpful resources, and the ELA newsletter, The SCOOP. Sign up today at http://elaccss.ncdpi.wikispaces.net/listjoin.

NC Department of Public Instruction Partners with Capitol Broadcasting on Character Matters Campaign

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, in partnership with Capitol Broadcasting (WRAL/FOX 50), on Tuesday launched a new statewide character development campaign, Character Matters, in conjunction with Constitution Day (Sept. 17). The program’s goal is to promote the development of character and leadership in youth through service learning and an emphasis on positive character traits. To read more, please visit www.ncpublicschools.org and click on the appropriate link under “News.”

63rd Conference on Exceptional Children Set for November

The NCDPI Exception Children Division will host its 63rd Conference on Exceptional Children, Believing is Achieving, Nov. 20-22 at the Koury Convention Center/Sheraton Greensboro Hotel at Four Seasons, Greensboro. Division staff invite colleagues from across the state to attend this annual collaborative event to share and learn about innovations and exciting practices to help exceptional children achieve. Conference offerings include more than 90 informative instructional sessions, the annual Teachers of Excellence reception, a poster display of innovative programs and practices, the school-based Enterprise Bazaar showcasing products being created and marketed by North Carolina public school students with disabilities, and an exhibitor/vendor area. Conference details, including registration, are available online at http://ec.ncpublicschools.gov/conferences-profdev/annual-conference.

LEARN NC Offers New Online Professional Development Courses

LEARN NC is offering two new online professional development courses this fall:

Dream of a Nation. Through reading articles and watching videos by some of today’s most innovative and inspiring scientists, economists, environmentalists and others, participants will find materials aligned to both the North Carolina Essential Standards and English Language Arts Common Core Standards that will engage them and their students in empowering ideas. The first offering of this self-paced, interactive, free online course begins on Sept. 25 and runs through Oct. 30. The course is for educators who teach 8th-12th grade environmental science, American history, civics and economics, and English language arts. Upon completion, participants will earn 2.0 CEUs. For more information and to enroll, please visit http://tinyurl.com/ogoufgr.

Co-teaching that works! Best practices for the face-to-face and blended classrooms. Co-teaching That Works! is an online professional development course that explores methods to design an effective co-teaching environment. This course is designed for all educators who want to better understand important strategies and skills in developing effective co-teaching partners. Focus will include partnerships within a brick and mortar style classroom, or a blended or hybrid instructional online environment. This course is appropriate for general and special educators, STEM educators, occupational course of study educators, administrators and counselors. The first offering of this course begins on Oct. 23 and runs through Dec. 4. Participants will earn 3.0 CEUs. For more information and to enroll, please visit http://tinyurl.com/pvnhab3.

NCDOT Sponsors Model Bridge Building Competition

The NC Department of Transportation invites all North Carolina middle and high school students to participate in the 15th Annual NCDOT Statewide Model Bridge Building Competition. The competition is designed to create a greater awareness of careers in transportation, construction, engineering and the services provided by the NCDOT. The competition also gives students an opportunity to work in groups to learn problem-solving strategies and utilize critical thinking skills, while making the connection between what is taught in the classroom and real-world applications. The registration deadline is Nov. 15. Regional competitions will be held on March 7 with the state final competition on April 11. To register, please visit www.ncdot.org/about/kids/BridgeComp.