By Superintendent Dr. Kurt Steinhaus

Although school is not in session for students Oct. 9, staff members of Los Alamos Public Schools will be busy participating in professional development sessions in order to gain new skills and knowledge to implement into their classrooms and throughout the District. 

There are 45 different sessions being offered to staff members Friday.

Some of the highlights include:

Safety

• First Aid/CPR type training:  (not certification, but on the topics of Bleeding Control for the Injured followed by Heart Start; and
• CPI for staff supervising students with behavioral needs (Crisis Prevention Intervention and restraint training).

Cultural Awareness

• Presentations with the Native American perspective from San Ildefonso Governor on the pueblo perspective and from a Navajo presenter in the second session.

Learning, Data, and Instruction

• Reading Plus – computer program to build reading fluency (rate of speed) and vocabulary/comprehension;
• DIBELS/What next – for K-2 teachers- using your laptop and learning how to dig deeper into student data!; and
• Power Teacher – review/overview of the tools in Power Teacher, email, parent/student view.

Integrating Technology into the Learning Process

• Webpage Design – create your own Teacher webpage using the district’s program;
• Google training – Gmail, setting up groups, labels, calendar, drive, sharing, etc.;
• Google Classroom – specifically the classroom tools for teachers (apps, assignment management); and
• Laptop basics – managing your laptop settings, files, folders, printing, programs – and helping guide student use.

School Construction

Pulse of the Community – with Dr. Steinhaus and School Board Vice President Dr. Matt Williams, construction, maintenance, budget process in the district; input and question session.

The afternoon will be spent at schools or sites working on their own learning community with grade level and department work sessions.

Students don’t have to report to class Oct. 9; however, there will be plenty of learning going on for their teachers and Principals!