Contents
Letters
• Head of School
• Board President
• Admission
• Dir. of Diversity
Meet the Staff
• New Faculty/Staff
• LRP Bios
Annual Fund
• Thank You
SFDS Summer
• Programs
• Facilities
PA News
• PA Pres. Letter
• Editor Letter
• PA FAQs
• SFDS 411
• Room Parents
• LINC
What's Happening
• Sept. Events
• 2008-09 Events
Classifieds
Lunch Menu
Week Ahead,
August 31 - Sept. 6
SFDS eNews Homepage |
Dear Families,
The teachers have been very busy the past two weeks getting everything ready for the first day of school. They have been setting up furniture, creating an inviting learning environment, and preparing the curriculum and materials for the first units of the year. Head Teachers have been meeting with Co-Teachers and Associate Teachers to plan how they will work together. Grade level teams have been meeting with the previous grade teachers in what we call transition meetings to learn about the students’ learning styles. Our new faculty members have been oriented, welcomed and celebrated.
The optimistic energy is palpable in the classrooms and hallways. By now, Friday afternoon before the Labor Day Weekend, we all just want see the kids and get going.
The faculty concluded last year with a multi-year commitment to a thoroughgoing implementation of Differentiated Instruction. We have adopted the motto “No Ceiling / Threshold” to describe our approach to differentiated instruction. No ceiling means that all students will be challenged to high levels of accomplishment; students who are capable – based on interest, effort, preparation and capacity - will advance to very high levels of accomplishment. No threshold means that every student will be provided access to mastery of basic skills, understanding of major curriculum content, and development of critical thinking skills. Instructional methods will be designed to meet students’ needs.
There are two key dimensions of differentiated instruction.
- Teachers utilize many different modalities to help each student access information, ideas, basic skills and thinking skills. This approach allows students with different learning styles many different ways to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding.
- In the design of lessons, each student is challenged to different levels of accomplishment based on interest, effort, preparation and capacity.
During the summer months many teachers, as part of the Institute on Teaching and Learning, have attended workshops on Writing Process at Teachers College, Columbia University, Slingerland method of reading instruction, Study Skills, and Brain Research and Learning, to name a few. Working here at SFDS, faculty met in grade level teams with Co-Teachers, Associate Teachers and the new Learning Resource Teachers to plan how to integrate the team into the daily instructional routine.
In my opening speech to the faculty I thanked them for their commitment to fulfilling the founding mission of the SFDS as a family school, embracing the heterogeneity and diversity of our student population. I reminded them that substantial and authentic institutional change could only happen steadily and slowly. There will inevitably be moments of excitement, enthusiasm, and success, but also of frustration, awkwardness and even despair. I asked for their perseverance and promised them the support of the administration, their colleagues and the community.
I am excited at the tasks ahead and eager to see your children as we begin the school year.
David E. Jackson, Ed.D.
Head of School
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