"SHESC Messenger": End of March 2021
End of March 2021
| Match Madness March 25: Final Reminder! | |
| Featured PD: Growth Mindset Courses | |
| Spring Workshops Live for Registration | |
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Look at All Professional Development and the Newsletter Archive |
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Match Madness on March 25: Final Reminder! Smoky Hill Education Foundation has set a goal to raise $2,000 during the annual "Match Madness" fundraiser! Mark your calendars! The fundraiser through the Greater Salina Community Foundation is a wonderful opportunity for charitable giving to SHEF. That $2,000 will cover more than half of the cost of bringing storyteller Tim Lowry to area schools in cooperation with the annual Kansas Storytelling Festival, which has been moved to September for the health and safety of all involved by allowing time for distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Get a taste of Storyteller Tim Lowry performing "The Wide Mouth Frog" for a K-2 classroom!
Learn more about Lowry at www.storytellertimlowry.com. Lowry will also perform at the Kansas Storytelling Festival, learn more at www.kansasstorytelling.com.
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To give on March 25, visit |
Importance of an Instructional Curriculum and Resource Adoption Process Training Opportunity April 1 By Melissa Fast, SHESC Education Consultant Implementation of the 2017 Kansas Mathematics Standards is complex and requires many components to be effective in developing mathematics learning for all students. Districts should always look for ways to better meet the needs of their students and propel them into becoming successful in any academic career or professional path that they choose. Curriculum and other instructional resources play a significant role in the math that is taught and learned in schools. Educators will remember from previous courses the various types of curricula explained by research. The types described by Glatthorn, Boschee, Whitehead, and Boschee (2012) are: recommended curriculum, written curriculum, supported curriculum, taught curriculum, tested curriculum, and learned curriculum. When researching and analyzing curriculum, keep in mind the outcomes expected for your school or district and how the different types impact what students actually learn.
It is difficult to separate curriculum from the instructional practices employed by teachers when analyzing effectiveness. A quality curriculum should be provided to educators, but quality professional development that is continuous and focused must also be provided (National Research Council, 2001). Educators should be aware of the interplay between the curriculum adopted and the instruction provided.
Once a curriculum is provided to educators, a purposeful and thoughtful plan must be used when implementing the units and the individual lessons. This does not mean that educators adhere to curriculum without thought toward the needs of the students that are in the classrooms. Educators need to understand those students’ needs and make informed modifications and adaptations within the curriculum as necessary, without losing sight of the end goal in mathematics. Maintaining rigor is essential!
As a committed mathematics educator, I believe that all students can learn mathematics at high levels and that all students deserve a robust, rigorous, and appropriate education. Mathematics education is constantly evolving and, as a result, mathematics resources continually evolve.
Smoky Hill Education Service Center recognizes that mathematics resources are an investment for your school and our children, so I am providing training to examine a strategic process for adopting mathematics curriculum, textbooks, and resources on April 1. I will share rubrics aimed at evaluating the alignment of instructional and professional development resources with the 2017 Kansas Standards for Mathematics as well as instructional shifts necessary in their implementation and training. This session will provide the most recent information available regarding highly aligned mathematics curriculum. We will explore resources that districts can use to investigate mathematics supplemental programs as well.
Registration for the training is open now at link.smokyhill.org/Curriculum-Adoption-April. |
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Featured Professional Development: 'Growth Mindset' Focused Courses First, a parable about mountains, tunnels, and change: One railroad supervisor sees a mountain in his way - fixed and immovable. He walks away, despairing of ever finishing his work. Another supervisor sees a towering pile of rocks and sand - loosely stuck together. She uses well-placed dynamite and teams of diggers to tunnel through and succeeds in laying down the track. The twist? Both supervisors encounter the same mountain. It is only their mindset about the possibility to create change that determines their success... or lack of success.
This is an allegory on the important concept of the fixed mindset (the first supervisor) versus the growth mindset (the second supervisor) in education. In education, it's the difference between believing that students have innate, fixed talents they have no control over that create success; versus the Growth Mindset, which has proven to lead to greater student success by showing students how they can learn, develop, and improve. Recognizing the importance of the Growth Mindset in creating student success, SHESC has three upcoming workshops scheduled in March and April to help educators use the concepts in their own schools and districts:
Read more about each workshop and register at go.smokyhill.org/growth-mindset. |
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Volume Purchasing: Five New Catalogs Now Live; Athletics Coming End of March New pricing is now live for the Smoky Hill ESC Volume Purchasing Program in five critical catalogs. Click on each point below to download a printable PDF catalog of the new prices:
Coming up: the new Athletic Catalog for 2021-2022 will be coming out in early April. Also be sure to read the updated vendor listing HERE for the most current shipping and other ordering policies from suppliers. To receive these new print catalogs in your inbox, along with other critical volume purchasing news, we encourage you to sign up for the Volume Purchasing email list at go.smokyhill.org/vp-mail. Contact Adam Pracht, Volume Purchasing Coordinator, at vp@smokyhill.org for more information about the program and to get enrolled with your FREE login today to take advantage of savings. Even non-member schools and districts - as well as non-profit organizations - can participate in the program! |
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Spring Workshop Options Available Check out our calendar and register today for many more workshops available this spring on our escWeb events site!
Don't wait and get your professional development on the calendar today!
Also, watch for social media posts, emails, and other communications from education consultants and official channels that use the special springtime logo at right! This logo will indicate quality workshops, training, and other events this spring, especially more in-depth looks at what is available!
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Registration is open now for the Scramble for Schools Charity Golf Tournament on Tuesday, June 1, 2021 (the day after Memorial Day), at the Salina Municipal Golf Course! Noted as being one of the largest tournaments hosted in Salina, we’d love for you to join us for a fun-filled day of golf, while helping to support education in more than 50 school districts across Kansas.
The tournament includes multiple hole-in-one contests with fantastic prizes (if you’re lucky!) and multiple contests offered throughout the day, such as closest to the pin, longest drive and longest putt!
There are multiple ways you can support this year’s tournament! Hole sponsorship, donating a door prize, making a cash donation, and, of course, bringing a team are all ways you can assist and help our tournament be the best it can be!
For more information about these opportunities, contact Jaye Ditter at jditter@smokyhill.org or by phone at 785-656-2300. If you’re ready to register your four-person team for this year’s tournament, you can do so by calling Cassie in our Salina office at 785-825-9185 or by email at cedgerton@smokyhill.org.
We’re looking forward to counting this year’s tournament as a WIN for everyone involved! |
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Easter Baskets Filled with Hygiene Items by SHESC Employees Last week, one of our SHESC employees suggested responding to a call from the Salina Emergency Aid / Food Bank for needed hygiene supplies.
On Monday, we had gathered two full baskets of donations!
For any individuals or organizations who also want to help with donations, more information is available from Salina Emergency Aid / Food Bank at www.salinafood.org/give-now.html.
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