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Category: Elementary Info

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Dear Teachers and Counselors, 

Jordan School District is committed to providing high-quality mathematics instruction for every student. All students are capable of learning and succeeding in mathematics. During the upcoming registration for middle school classes, your 6th-grade students may choose their mathematics courses. Students may choose 7th Grade Mathematics or 7th Grade Mathematics Honors. The core standards are exactly the same for both courses. However, the honors course may move a little faster and/or go a little deeper than the regular math course. It is important that students are given the opportunity to access the math course which best fits their needs. Please encourage your students to discuss their options with their parents/guardians. 

The recommended pathway is for all students to take a 7th Grade Mathematics course. 

In light of the education experiences surrounding COVID-19, we see a greater need for students to solidify understanding and build a solid mathematical foundation. 7th grade mathematics is the cornerstone for understanding algebra, geometry, ratios and proportional reasoning, which are critical to the understanding of trigonometry and calculus. 

Jordan School District’s honors courses begin in seventh grade and continue through high school.
Students will have access to AP Calculus, AP Statistics and Concurrent Enrollment courses, regardless of what mathematics courses they are enrolled in during 7th-grade.  

Students can join the Honors Pathway at ANYTIME with no prerequisites.

Jordan District has seen an ongoing pattern, supported by data, showing that students who accelerate through content without a solid foundation in mathematics understanding and skill tend to leave the accelerated pathway. Please note that the Jordan School District has designed opportunities for students to have access to honors courses at every level without having to skip grade levels. Utah Law (Utah R-277.515) states that honors courses now have no prerequisite; however there are requirements for skipping grade levels.  

Alternate Accelerated Pathway
For students who are able to demonstrate mastery of 6th and 7th-grade mathematics standards, an alternative pathway is available. In order to access this pathway, students may choose to take an assessment to determine their readiness for 8th Grade Mathematics Honors. The testing window will be between now and February 24, 2022. Students will take this assessment AT HOME, not in your classroom. Students will receive  the link to the test in a parent letter. 

If students choose to select 8th grade Honors, we will not be able to provide summer courses unlike previous years due to funding being reallocated. Students will have to be fully prepared to begin 8th grade curriculum in August. Many times, they are placed in classes with a majority of 8th grade students. 

Here is an outline of the three options. 

7th grade Mathematics 7th Grade Honors Mathematics 8th Grade Honors Mathematics
This course is recommended 

for the majority of 

incoming students. 

It will provide a solid foundation for developing understanding of mathematics in middle school and beyond. 

This course is recommended for about 80-95% of the population

 This course is recommended for highly motivated students. 

It has the SAME standards as

 7th grade mathematics, however it is fast paced and goes into greater depth with the content. 

This course is recommended for 

10-20% of the population. 

 This course is an 8th grade level honors course. Students will need to enter having mastered the sixth and seventh grade curriculum. Without a solid foundation of 7th grade standards, students will struggle. 

This course is recommended for 3%-5% of the population.
This is a

Parent and Student Choice

 This is a

Parent and Student Choice

 This requires:

Score of 80% or better on a 7th Grade Assessment

Questions
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
Amy Kinder, Math Consultant Amy.Kinder@jordandistrict.org (801) 567-8469

Sincerely,
Amy Kinder
Amy Kinder, MS Ed, NBCT
Math Consultant
Jordan School District

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Weather permitting, all locations shall conduct a fire evacuation drill within the first 10 school days after the beginning of the next calendar year (after winter recess).

Conducting a fire drill in January may not be ideal due to winter weather. Try to select the best day according to the forecast. Promote wearing coats and warm attire, appropriate for this time of year.

Remember to record the fire evacuation drill using the Jordan School District, link:

2021-22 REPORT EMERGENCY — DRILLS, ACTUAL EVENTS, or MEETINGS on Google Drive. Bookmark this form for future use.

Contact Emergency Operations Manager Lance Everill with questions:
801-567-8623, lance.everill@jordandistrict.org

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The following are new administrative assignments:

  • New Assignments effective January 3, 2022:
    • Carolyn Gough, principal at Riverton High, appointed Administrator of Teaching & Learning, replacing Shelley Nordick who is retiring.
    • Rochelle Waite, principal at South Hills Middle, appointed principal at Riverton High replacing Carolyn Gough.
    • James Groethe, assistant principal at Bingham High, appointed principal at South Hills Middle replacing Rochelle Waite.
    • Frederico Rowe, principal at Northport Elementary in Robbinsdale Area Schools, Minnesota, appointed staff assistant in Teaching & Learning.
    • Beverly Griffith, principal at South Jordan Elementary, transferred to Teaching & Learning.
    • Bryce Eardley, principal of Dugway Schools in Tooele School District, appointed principal at South Jordan Elementary replacing Beverly Griffith.
    • Staci Moore, assistant principal at Majestic Elementary, appointed principal at Bluffdale Elementary replacing Cynthia Tingey who is retiring.
    • Trudy Jack, administrative intern at Ridge View Elementary and Rosamond Elementary, appointed assistant principal at Majestic Elementary replacing Staci Moore.
    • Michelle Kilcrease, assistant principal at Blackridge Elementary and Foothills Elementary, transferred to ALPS at Riverton Elementary.
    • Baylee Lansford, assistant principal at Elk Meadows Elementary and Monte Vista Elementary, transferred to Blackridge Elementary and Foothills Elementary.
    • April Thompson, administrative intern at Aspen Elementary and Terra Linda Elementary, transferred to Elk Meadows Elementary and Monte Vista Elementary.
  • New Assignment effective July 1, 2022:
    • Brandon Larsen, band teacher at Herriman High, appointed assistant principal at a secondary school, location TBD.

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DATE:      
December 8, 2021

TO:   
School Psychologists and School Psychology Interns

FROM:     
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Fulvia Franco, Program Specialist – Guidance

SUBJECT:  
January School Psychologist Guidance Meeting

A meeting for school psychologists and school psychology interns has been scheduled for Friday, January 7, 2022, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Auxiliary Services Building (7905 South Redwood Road). Dr. Brian King and the Jordan Behavior Assistance Team (JBAT) will provide us with a presentation on Functional Behavior Assessments FBA’s and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIP’s)

Part-time Staff:  I would appreciate it if you could adjust your schedules in order to attend this meeting.

cc:
Principals

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Dear Employees,

Beginning August 9, 2021, Jordan School District is making additional leave days available for all employees who test positive for COVID-19 and are required to isolate. This additional leave will be available through the end of the school year on June 30, 2022. Below is a summary of steps an employee should take to utilize this isolation leave.

  • The employee stays home due to illness, notifies their supervisor, and requests a substitute as needed.
  • A benefit-eligible employee records their leave time in Skyward.
  • The employee gets a COVID-19 test.
  • If the test is positive, the employee notifies their supervisor and then submits their positive test result to jane.olsen@jordandistrict.org in Human Resources.
  • The employee will receive an email acknowledgement.
  • Leave days previously reported in Skyward from the date of the positive test result going forward will be adjusted to Isolation Leave by the District.

The employee isolates as directed by the Salt Lake County Health Department.

Isolation Leave is also available for the following situations where a positive test result is submitted as indicated above:

  • The employee never had symptoms but tests positive. The isolation period for this situation is up to 10 calendar days from the day they tested positive.
  • The employee is the caregiver of an individual in their household who is required to isolate due to a positive test result and the employee needs to care for the isolated individual.

Isolation Leave ends when any of the following occurs:

  • They are no longer required to isolate OR
  • They have utilized 10 isolation leave days OR
  • Until June 30, 2022

Part-time employees testing positive will have pay adjusted to offset average wages lost for the time they are required to isolate, or up to 10 days.

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In anticipation of next year's enrollment planning and scheduling, Information Systems will be turning on pre-transfers the afternoon of December 10th.  You should then be able to start running reports and see your next year's students beginning December 13th.

Below are a few reminders about pre-transfers:

  • A pre-transfer is an activestudent who is currently attending Jordan School District and will be attending next year at a different school within Jordan School District.  The student's record will pre-transfer to the student's next year boundary school based on their current address.
  • Once pre-transfers are turned on, the School Pathtab will show current year permits under Previous Reason Code and next year permits under Reason Code.
  • Current permits for 6th and 9th grade students will be removed for next year as of December 9th.  This will allow these students to pre-transfer to their new entity for next year.

In addition to turning on pre-transfers, the course master will be rolled over on December 10th for next year's scheduling preparation.

Please contact the help desk (ext. 88737) with any questions or concerns regarding the timing of the pre-transfer process.

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DATE:  
Thursday, December 2, 2021

TO: 
Elementary School Administrators

FROM: 
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT:  
Acadience Math Dashboards Available in Tableau

Acadience Math dashboards are now available in your Tableau Viewer accounts.

You can access the Acadience Math dashboards here or through your Tableau Explore menu:

Explore > Acadience Math & Early Numeracy

The dashboards contain both district and school level composite and measure data. In addition, you'll find individual student scores organized by grade level and teacher. To aid you in your data analysis, I have attached a summary of benchmark goals and cut scores similar to what you are already accustomed to with Acadience Reading.

Evaluation, Research & Accountability will disseminate student scores directly to teachers since Acadience Data Management (ADM) is still broken.

Originally, USBE was going to transition schools to Acadience Learning Online, but that transition has been delayed until next year. Once Acadience Data Management is fixed, we will disseminate login credentials to school administrators and educators. We don’t have a timeline for this fix as there are a number of issues, but USBE and Acadience Learning are working on it.

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All kindergarten teachers are invited to join us for Kindergarten Night Out on December 8 at 4:15 pm in the ASB auditorium. The theme will be “A Few of My Favorite Things” and there will be presenters from many of the departments in Teaching and Learning who will share a few of their favorite things to use with kindergarten students. We will have some really fantastic prizes and every teacher who attends will take home something amazing! Please join us for a night of fun!

Published on

DATE:   
November 29, 2021

TO:  
School Psychologists and School Psychology Interns

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Fulvia Franco, Program Specialist – Guidance

SUBJECT:   
December School Psychologist Guidance Meeting

A meeting for school psychologists and school psychology interns has been scheduled for Friday, December 10, 2021, from 12:00 to 3:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Auxiliary Services Building (7905 South Redwood Road). We will start at 12:00 p.m. with lunch. You have the option of participating in our pot-luck luncheon, or bringing lunch for yourself if that’s your preference. Dr. Anne Kirby, faculty member at the University of Utah in the Department of Occupational and Recreational Therapies, will provide us with a presentation that addresses suicidality in students with autism. In addition, Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education, will address Functional Behavior Assessments (FBA’s) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIP’s).

Part-time Staff:  I would appreciate it if you could adjust your schedules in order to attend this meeting.

cc:
Principals

Published on

DATE:   
Thursday, November 18, 2021

TO:
Elementary School Administrators

FROM:  
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
Tableau Dashboard Releases

The following dashboards have been released for elementary school administrators:

RISE with Grades 4-5 Science Results:
RISE data is now available by student demographic for both the district and individual schools in grades 4-5 science in addition to the proficiency data released earlier this summer. Data by individual teacher and student is also available on this dashboard. Please note, student growth was not calculated by the state for the 2020-21 school year, so this data will not be reflected on the RISE dashboard.

Opportunity to Learn Survey:
As part of end-of-year summative testing, students who took the RISE math test or the Utah Aspire Plus science test. The survey asked several questions around the context of the type of learning environment students had access to throughout the school year (online, hybrid, in-person), the learning support they had access to at home as well as at school, and the access they had to educational technology and resources. The purpose of this survey was to provide some additional context around 2020-21 summative assessment results anticipating that learning would be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. School administrators may view this student perception data by student demographic for the district and individual schools.

WIDA Access Growth Targets:
WIDA Access results and proficiency were released earlier this summer. Information on WIDA growth targets has now been added for both the district and individual schools. As part of the state’s school accountability system, schools receive points towards a school grade for EL students who:

  • Reach proficiency on the WIDA Access
  • Meet their WIDA growth target

School administrators may view data for both school report card indicators in this dashboard for each student demographic.

Please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability for any questions about these dashboards or for access to your Tableau account.

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At our next ELD meeting, Dec. 7th, we will be going over our compliance and monitoring information. We also encourage both ELD leads and administrators to sign up for an additional workshop on how to build EL language skills. You will have to register for that workshop. A substitute will be provided for both days selected.

 

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DATE:  
November 15, 2021

TO:  
Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM: 
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Daniel Ellis, Director of Accounting and Audits
Natalie Grange, Accounting Administrator

SUBJECT:
District Allocations by School-October 1 Adjustments

District allocations for individual schools were updated in Skyward on November 9. Adjustments were made based on the October 1 headcount. Carryforward balances, if allowed, are included in the total allocation. Transfers, if requested, were processed separately on November 9. See the following attachments:

  • Student estimate compared to October 1 headcount.
  • Estimated District Allocation compared to October 1 adjustment.
  • Transfers processed by school through November 10, 2021.

Please review these adjustments and contact Natalie Grange (801) 567-8312 with any questions or concerns.

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Additional training sessions for all classroom assistants involved with Walk to Read will be held on December 13th and 15th in the ASB auditorium. In this training, assistants will hone their skills and learn tips and tricks that will be useful when administering assessments and giving lessons during Walk to Read. We encourage all assistants who are involved in Walk to Read to attend. There are four session times being offered so assistants can choose a time that works best with their schedules. These sessions are available for registration on JPLS. Please only register for one session.

December 13: 8:00-11:30
December 13: 12:00-3:30
December 15: 8:00-11:30
December 15:  12:00-3:30

Published on

DATE:  
Thursday, November 11, 2021

TO:  
Elementary School Administrators

FROM:
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
2021-22 Stakeholder Input Survey Response Counts

School administrators may view the response counts for the 2021-22 student, parent and faculty Stakeholder Input Surveys using the links below. Please note that the response counts for each of the links are updated live as survey responses are submitted.

Response Count Reports

K-3 Student Stakeholder Input Survey:
https://jordandistrict.az1.qualtrics.com/reports/public/am9yZGFuZGlzdHJpY3QtNjE4NTNiM2FjNGI0MDAwMDExMTgwZGU1LVVSXzAzMXVIbmNFMUpyaGtZUg==

4-6 Student Stakeholder Input Survey:
https://jordandistrict.az1.qualtrics.com/reports/public/am9yZGFuZGlzdHJpY3QtNjE4NTNiYWNkOTNiN2EwMDEwZjUwNGJmLVVSXzAzMXVIbmNFMUpyaGtZUg==

Parent Stakeholder Input Survey:
https://jordandistrict.az1.qualtrics.com/reports/public/am9yZGFuZGlzdHJpY3QtNjE4NTNjYjdkZTJkZDIwMDEwN2E4MTk2LVVSXzAzMXVIbmNFMUpyaGtZUg==

Faculty Stakeholder Input Survey:
https://jordandistrict.az1.qualtrics.com/reports/public/am9yZGFuZGlzdHJpY3QtNjE4NTM3MDRkOTNiN2EwMDEwZjUwM2Y4LVVSXzAzMXVIbmNFMUpyaGtZUg==

The survey window closes at the end of the day, Friday, November 19, 2021. Please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability with any questions about the Stakeholder Input Surveys.