Superintendent's Bulletin 4-16-10

Wellesley Public Schools40 Kingsbury StreetWellesley, Massachusetts 02481

Bella T. WongSuperintendent of Schools

Superintendent’s Bulletinhttp://www.wellesley.k12.ma.us/district/bulletins.htm

Bulletin #29April 16, 2010

The Superintendent’s Bulletin is posted weekly on Fridays on our website. It provides timely, relevant information about meetings, professional development opportunities, curriculum and program development, grant awards, and school committee news. The bulletin is also the official vehicle for job postings. Please

read the bulletin regularly and use it to inform colleagues of meetings and other school news.

Friday 04/16 Primary Source Registration DeadlineApril 19 - 24 April Vacation Week

Tuesday 04/27 EMI Registration DeadlineThursday 04/30 C&I Proposal Deadline

May 1 - 21 Open Enrollment Period for Employee BenefitsSunday 05/02 Household Hazardous Products Day, Wellesley RDF Wednesday 05/05 Annual Health Fair, Town Hall, 1:00 - 4:00 pmThursday 05/06 Summer Professional Development Registration Deadline

Calendar

Dear Colleagues, This week I attended a two-day lecture symposium sponsored by the Lynch School of Education at Boston

College on the topics of From Innovation to Appliance: Rethinking the Relationship between Technology and Education and The Role of Educational Technology in Helping Schools Meet the Challenges of the Next Decade. Professor Yong Zhao from Michigan State University was the lead lecturer and reactant to a panel that included school, district and state leaders in educational technology as well as scholars from the Concord Consortium, Boston College, and the National Academy of Sciences. Professor Zhao is the author of Catching Up I or Leading the Way.

I know already that Professor Zhao's words and the symposium discussions have had a profound impact on my thinking about the role of technology in education. I am still reflecting on that experience and how, given time to gel, my thoughts will evolve and eventually crystallize. I was mulling this over as I was driving through heavy traffic en route back from Newton to Wellesley when I noticed that my car’s odometer had flipped over 100,000 miles.

I kid you not that on the day the boys turned nine years old last month the odometer flipped to 99,099. I took it as an auspicious sign - nine is a lucky number in Chinese. I've been watching since then for the moment it would flip the 100,000 mark. One hundred is another lucky number. But with my head full of the future, I missed it and only noticed miles later. Just one of those things, but I was a little bummed.

As I stumbled back from my mental wanderings to the present I considered how remarkable this four-wheeled technology has been. My car has taken our family to Pittsburgh, to New York, all around New England, and back home again. I take it in for occasional check ups and feed it gas, but otherwise don't pay it much mind. What it has given me, in turn, is over 100,000 reliable miles, including some really special trips. There is no denying that what the recently released I-Pad can do is very, very cool. But I have to say, the same is true for what my car can do.

Enjoy wherever your favorite technology takes you this break.

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EDCO Collaborative SPRING 2010 Professional Development Programs

EDCO Collaborative invites you to participate in:

Making the Connection:English Language Learners and Subject Matter TextsCategory 4 of the Recommended Professional Development for Secondary Teachers of ELL students

May 10 and 19, 2010June 4, 2010

8:00 am - 1:30 pm

EDCO SEEFURTH CENTER, WALTHAMPresented By:

Trainers from MATSOLThis workshop is sponsored by the Departmentof Elementary

and Secondary Education

This training was developed through a collaboration between the Massachusetts Department and Elementary Education and the New English Equity Assistance Center, part of the Education Alliance at Brown University. It is intended for secondary content teachers who have ELLs in their classrooms and must therefore shelter their instruction. This curriculum focuses on the challenge of making textbooks more accessible to ELLs, and using writing activities to promote content learning. This is a 15-hour training with an assignment in between each training day.

Presenters: Trainers from MATSOL Presenters are Category IV approved trainers by the Dept of Elementary and Secondary Education

Audience: Content teachers in grades 6 - 12 - Participants are encouraged to enroll of teams of 3 - 5 teachers.

Registration: Through the office of Curriculum and Instruction in your school districtLocation: EDCO Seefurth Education Center, WalthamFee: No cost to EDCO members / $20 for non-EDCO members - workshop is supported with funding

from the Department of Elementary and Secondary EducationRegister by: May 3, 2010. Priority seating will be given to those who register by the deadline. Registrations

received beyond the deadline will be accepted according to seat availability.

Questions? Please call the EDCO Seefurth Center at (781) 259-3445.www.edcollab.org

Primary Source Summer Institutes 2010As members of Primary Source, we have the opportunity to participate in a variety of summer institutes that are described below. We are guaranteed ten reserved seats in the institutes. This means ten total seats, NOT ten seats for each institute. If you are interested in attending

an institute, please contact Janice Gross indicating which institute you are interested in attending. Spaces will be filled on a first come, first served basis. The registration deadline is April 16, but earlier is always better. Full course descriptions and pertinent information were published in Bulletins 23, 24, and 25 (March 5, 12, 19). Course titles appear below.

Latin American Rhythms: History, Culture, and Politics Especially for educators in grades 6-12

Teaching for Global Understanding in the 21st Century Open to all K-12 educators

East Asian Stories and Places: China, Japan, and Korea Especially for educators in grades K-7

Democratic Vistas: Civic Life, History, and American Art

The Enduring Legacy of Ancient China Open to all K-12 educators

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The Education Cooperative (TEC) will soon be recruiting the third cohort for the Teaching American History program. This will be an exciting year focused on "The Story of American Freedom: Citizenship and the Changing Meaning of Democracy." Courses begin in fall 2010.

This grant funded professional development program includes:

• 3 Free graduate credits (3 additional credits available)• A $500 stipend• 135 PDPs

• Loads of resource materials, including free and forever access to WebLessons• Historians from Harvard University, MIT and Holy Cross College.

We encourage applications from TEC district teams of 2-5. Applications will be distributed after April vacation week.

Please take a look at the TEC TAH wiki: http://industrialrevolution09.pbworks.com/The slide show featured on the home page highlights some of the historical field experiences of last summer.

Michelle LeBlanc, TEC’s Teaching American History Project Director, would be delighted to come and talk in detail about this intensive program and to share the amazing wealth of resources created by participating teachers. Contact Michelle directly at 781-326-2473 x107

NEW Professional Development from TEC

Professional Development

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Additional Teaching With Technology Series OfferingsThe SMART Board interactive whiteboard is a touch-sensitive display that connects to your computer and digital projector. Using a finger, you can control computer applications, write notes, search the Internet, and annotate and save your work. The SMART Notebook software is an application that lets you add interactivity to lessons through an array of powerful education tools and resources. Attend this three-hour workshop to learn the basics of how to use the SMART Board and the Notebook software in your classroom to engage students in hands-on interactive learning. This is an Intro Workshop.Beginning SMART Board Training Beginning SMART Board Training

for Elementary Teachers for Middle School and High School TeachersMay 5, 2010, 3:30 - 6:30 pm April 14, 2010, 3:30 - 6:30 pmMiddle School Mac Lab 300 Middle School Mac Lab 300Instructor: Jackie Hoglund Instructor: Sondra Hamilton

Advanced Workshop:Prerequisite: Previous hands-on training using basic SMART Board tools and Notebook software. Attend this three-hour workshop to learn advanced skills and online resources for using the SMART Board toolbar and for creating SMART Notebooks incorporating media, graphics, links, etc., to enhance a lesson or unit of study.

Advanced SMART Board Training Advanced SMART Board Trainingfor Elementary Teachers for Middle School and High School TeachersMay 12, 2010, 3:30 - 6:30 pm May 19, 2010, 3:30 - 6:30 pmMiddle School Mac Lab 300 Middle School Mac Lab 300Instructor: Brian Allieri Instructor: Ranjani Sriram

Inquiring Minds Project 2010For K-8 Teachers: Two four-credit graduate courses through the Boston University School of Education. Coursees are intended to improve participants’ science content knowledge, provide a model for how to use inquiry-based methods for instruction, and help build participants’ confidence in their ability to teach science.SC 533: Immersion in Green Energy SC 534: Immersion in Global Energy DistributionPre-immersion sessions Fridays, 4:30-7:30 pm Pre-Immersion sessions Mondays, 4:30 - 7:30 pmMay 14, 21, and June 11, 18, 25 May 17, 24, and June 7, 14, 21Immersion session: Immersion Session:July 12-23, 9:00 am - 4:00 pm July 12-23, 9:00 am - 4:00 pmCall back sessions (2 fall; 2 spring) Call back sessions (2 fall; 2 spring)Course meetings held at Boston University. Except for registration fee, tuition is funded (from a Massachusetts State STEM initiative) and a stipend provided. This is a collaborative project between Boston University, Northeastern University, and Wheelock College. For more information, contact Peter Garick (617/353-4735) [email protected] or Diana Cheng, [email protected]

Spring Social Studies Seminar Series 1 Inservice Credit or 15 PDPsSeminars designed to enrich content understanding and model use of thematic approaches to social studies. Teachers will participate in post-seminar discussions to utilize content and pedagogy in preparation for the system-wide curriculum review. Final seminar: Please note Date Change

Thursday, April 29, 2010 Editor, American Protest Literature Zoe Trodd3:00 pm UNC/Harvard

Each three-hour seminar will be held in the Wellesley High School library -- followed by discussion for an additional 45 - 60 minutes. Teachers may choose how they will earn 1 in-service credit or 15 PDPs:

• Pathway 1 = attend three (3) seminars and discussion, complete homework assignments and create a project or lesson plan utilizing the materials or information presented during the seminar.

• Pathway 2 = attend all four (4) seminars and discussion, and complete homework readings.To Register for each seminar, please contact [email protected].

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Empowering Multicultural Initiatives (E.M.I.) Summer 2010 Course Schedule

EMIOne:Anti‐RacistTeachingPractices‐TalkingaboutRaceThis36hour‐3creditgraduatecourseisdesignedforeducatorswhowanttoexpandtheirunderstandingofhowrace,ethnicityandotherformsofmarginalizationimpactlearningandachievement.Section # A: July 6, 8, 13, 15, 20 and 22, from 8:30 - 3:30 - Course#S10ARTPASection # B: July 26 and 28, August 2, 4, 9 and 11, from 8:30 - 3:30 - Course#S10ARTPB

EMICourseforAdministrators:UnderstandingDiscriminationandItsEffectsonAcademicAchievementThis24hour‐2creditcourseisdesignedtobringtogetheradministrators(newandexperienced)toformacohortgrouptoshareideasoncreating/supportingschoolenvironmentsthatsupporttheacademicachievementandengagementofallstudents.June 28, June 30, July 7, from 8:30-4:00, and October 6 from 12:00 - 4:00 - Course#S10CA

New 12-hour (1 credit) courses for summer 2010

Anti‐racist/Anti‐biasCurriculumandConversationsThiscourseisforeducatorsinterestedinprovidingacourse,aminiunitand/oraconcentratedexaminationofanti‐racism/antibiasfortheirstudents.July 20 and 22 from 8:30 - 3:30 - Course#S10ARABC

DifficultConversations:TalkingAboutRaceandRacismwithStudents,Colleagues,andParents/GuardiansThiscoursedesignedtohelpeducatorsdevelopabetterunderstandingofwaystoaddressandrespondtoissuesofraceandracismonapersonalandprofessionallevel.July 6 and 9 from 8:30 - 3:30 -Course#S10DC

UnderstandingSelf‐Efficacy:HelpingStudentsDoTheirBestWorkThiscoursewillprovideparticipantswithanopportunitytoexploreconceptssuchaspraise,feedback,effectiveeffortandself‐confidencewithparticularattentiontotheimpactonstudentsofcolor.July 12 and 15 from 8:30 - 3:30 - Course#S10USE

UsingMulticulturalLiteratureandMediatoAffirmIdentityThiscourseisdesignedtoencourageK‐12educatorstorecognizetheconnectionbetweenapositivesenseofselfandacademicachievement.July 6 and 8 from 8:30 - 3:30 - Course#S10UML

Thesecourseswillequipparticipantswithresourcesandskillsthatwillincreasetheirabilitytoengagewithstudents,parents,othereducatorsandadministratorsaroundtopicsrelatedtoraceandacademic

achievement.

Toregister,pleasecontactJaniceGross.Registration deadline is April 27.OptionalgraduatecreditsareavailablefromFraminghamStateCollegefor$65percredit.

Acoursemaybecanceledduetolowenrollment.ForadditionalinformationcontactElliSternatelli.stern@comcast.net

Graduate Course Reimbursement Course reimbursement funding of $22,500 is available to distribute in FY11 among qualified teachers for graduate course work which is done as part of a master's degree program to fulfill that teacher's obligations for the Massachusetts educators professional license and for course work required to achieve the next stage of licensure culminating in a professional license. To apply for this course reimbursement, please send--by June 1, 2010--the following to Valerie Spruill:•your name •evidence of your enrollment in an applicable master/doctoral degree program •name and description of the course •evidence of cost of the course •proof of payment (VISA/MC) •transcript. You will be notified of the amount awarded to you by July 1, 2010.

Looking Ahead to 2010-11 Are you Interested in a Job Share? a Transfer? Teachers with PTS who would like to request a job share position or a transfer in the 2010-2011 school year must notify Carol Gregory ([email protected]) in writing by May 1.

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Summer 2010 Professional Development Our full catalog of Professional Development Courses offered during Summer 2010 is posted as a downloadable pdf from the Professional Development section of the Wellesley Public Schools website.

www.wellesley.k12.ma.usRegistration Deadline: May 6, 2010

The full catalog of 2010-2011 courses for fall, winter and spring will be posted separately before the end of this school year.

Requesting C&I ProposalsProposals for C&I projects are currently being accepted. There are two funding sources available, one that requires projects to be completed by June 30, 2010 and the other that will fund projects that take place beginning July 1, 2010 - June 30, 2011. C&I compensation is granted for curriculum development projects or task force members to work on building based or system-wide initiatives. Priority will be given to proposals designed to meet system goals.

Request proposal form from [email protected]. Due Date: April 30

Massachusetts Teachers Retirement SystemSpring Information Seminars

Saturday, May 8, 2010, 9:00 am - 5:00 pmAn all-day, comprehensive retirement planning program, The Next Chapter is designed for MTRS members who are planning to retire in the next 5 to 15 years, but is open to all interested members. Expert speakers will address retirement issues, including financial and estate planning, Social Security and Medicare, your MTRS benefits.

Positions Available LT Substitute (.6FTE) Guidance Counselor Middle School August 30 - late November 2010.

Please send cover letter, resume three letters of reference, transcripts and licensure to: Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Immediate Opening: Preschool Teaching AssistantFull -Time Teaching Assistant is needed to work in a NAEYC accredited integrated preschool, experience working with preschool aged children with special needs preferred, documentation of relevant early childhood college level course work. Please send cover letter, resume, college transcript, and three letters of reference to: [email protected] or mail to Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Apply Now to Enroll Children of Non Resident WTA Members in Wellesley Schools Deadline: May 1, 2010

Children of teachers or nurses residing outside Wellesley shall be entitled to attend Wellesley Public Schools without charge for tuition on a space available basis. (Article 12, WTA Unit A Contract).

If you are interested in this benefit in the 2010-11 school year, please contact [email protected]. Include your child/ren’s name, birth date, and current grade level.

Congratulations to Kim Willdridge, Special Educator at Schofield, upon the birth of Addison Shea and Cameron Jason, April 10, 2010

Consider joining the Wellesley Walkers spring program beginning May 3, 2010. The program runs six weeks. It’s free, fun, and filled with benefits. Kick-off meetings will be held April 27 and 28. Full information was included in Bulletin #28, dated April 9, 2010.

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James Peebles Scholarship Sons and daughters of members of the WTA are eligible for financial assistance for their first year of college or specialized school. Applications are available from Jonathan Simon, WTA President. Application Deadline: May 21

1.0 FTE Long-Term Substitute Math Teacher Beginning May 13 - mid-June to teach 8th grade Algebra I Honors level with the CMP curriculum and College Prep level with the Cognitive Tutor curriculum. Knowledge of one or both of these curricula would be beneficial. The Cognitive Tutor curriculum is 40% computer-based, so comfort and familiarity with Mac computers is important. Please send cover letter, resume, three letters of reference, licensure and transcripts to Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Anticipated Openings 2010-11District• Interim (one year) K-12 Director of Libraries (.5FTE)• Special Educatiion Department Head for K-12 District-Wide Programs (Search Reopened)

High School• Interim (one year) High School Librarian (.5FTE)• History Teacher (1.0FTE)

Pre-School• Special Educator/Pre-School Teacher (1.0 FTE) * certification for special education and regular education required

Middle School• Department Head for Special Education (Search Reopened)• Art Teacher (1.0FTE)

Elementary• Speech & Language Pathologist (1.0 FTE)• ELL Teacher (.6FTE)

Please send cover letter, resume three letters of reference, transcripts and licensure by May 12, 2010, to: Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Long-Term Substitute Art Teacher Full-time, high school ceramics teacher for maternity leave from Late Aug to Mid Nov 2010. Duties included teaching ceramic courses; hand building; wheel throwing; and ceramics Intensive; as well as Introduction to Drawing & Painting, and Creative Journal. Must have experience teaching ceramics. Send cover letter, resume, college transcript, licensure and three letters of reference to: [email protected] or mail to Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Special Educator - Summer Position Special Educator with Moderate to Severe Certification to teach in a six week summer program for a small number of 6th grade students needing academic and functional skills. Salary is $39.49/hr. The program runs from July 1 to August 6 . Hours are from 9 AM to 3 PM each day. Send cover letter, resume, college transcript, licensure and three letters of reference to: [email protected] or mail to Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Wellesley Public Schools Actively Seeks to Increase the Diversity of its Workforce

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Coaching PositionFall Season 2010 Coach High School Boys GolfContact Athletic Director [email protected]

Part-time (.5 FTE) Middle School technical support for teachers. Understanding of Mac computer operations and proficiency with basic software applications needed. Strong communication skills and ability to multi-task in a fast paced environment required. Please send cover letter, resume, three letters of reference to [email protected] or mail to Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Paraprofessional to support a third grade student with autism. Student receives support within a substantially separate classroom with opportunities for inclusion in general education classroom. Must have ABA experience. CPI training preferred. Start dates is negotiable. Send Cover letter, resume, three letters of reference, licensure and transcripts to [email protected] or mail to: Personnel, Wellesley Public Schools, 40 Kingsbury Street, Wellesley, MA 02481

Bring Your Sharps, Needles and Syringes

to the Household Hazardous Products Collection Day at the RDF 5-2-10

GUIDELINES:

Sharps must be brought in capped sturdy

containers such as: sharps container,

detergent bottle, coffee can or

similar container

Questions? Contact the Wellesley Health Dept.

Tel: 781-235-0135 website:

www.wellesleyma.gov/health

WHEN: Sunday, May 2, 2010 TIME: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

WHERE: Wellesley Recycling and Disposal Facility (RDF)

169 Great Plain Ave., Wellesley

For Wellesley residents only

Wellesley Health Department