Jan. 26

For all of you Kansas City Chiefs fans, congratulations on making it to the Super Bowl! The opportunity to make history with a 3-peat is monumental, and it didn’t happen by chance. It took systems, unwavering dedication to the mission, adaptability when the data called for change, and—most importantly—the entire team rowing in the same direction.

Sound familiar? That same alignment drives our success here at Pershing. Our mission—to be a safe community where all students learn at high levels and are prepared for a global society—is our guiding star. Every effort we make, from PBIS to the Instructional Model, tracking progress, giving feedback, and using data to refine our practice, positions our students for success.

As we approach the high-stakes assessment season, I challenge you to reflect: What extra push can I give to ensure our students are fully ready to shine on the MAP? Greatness demands stretching beyond our comfort zones, and I know this team is ready to rise to the challenge.

You are amazing at what you do, and I am grateful we share this mission together. Let’s keep moving forward with the energy, passion, and focus that makes Pershing unstoppable. Let’s make it a fantastic week!

Instructional 

Kick-Off 2024 Slide Deck

Sample lesson from Mr. Wells (LINK HERE)

November Staff: LINK 

Professional Learning Teams (PLT’s) 

This week schedule will look like the following

Elementary: Rise and Shine 1/23 

Middle School: 

• Monday bring an assessment/formative you gave or plan to give and we are going analysis the assessments compared to our high stakes test MAP. 
• Progress Monitoring 

January Staff Meeting 

January 28th: Committee Meetings 7:30-8:30 am 

Committee Assignments HERE

Grading Expectations Reminder

Pershing Grading expectations is at least 2 grades per week entered into Canvas 

Lesson Plans/Focus Boards

Focus Board Expectation

• Permanently placed in the room and clearly visible to the back of the room.
• Teacher reference Focus Board throughout the lesson

Lesson Plans Expectation

• Lessons are turned into the hub Thursday by end of day
• Lessons reflect the implantation of district curriculum and anticipation/differentiation to meet the needs of your students.

Mid Quarter Dates 

09-20-24

11-15-24

02-07-25

04-25-25

 

December Instructional Model Focus
Providing and Communicating Clear Learning Goals
Providing Scales and Rubrics	Learning Targets Communicated multiple times including closure   Students can communicate learning targets and understand how what they are doing ties to the learning target.	Resources: HERE
Tracking Student Progress	Student and Teacher has evidence of student learning	Resources: HERE
Celebrating Success	Verbal and Written feedback on progress toward mastery	Resources: HERE
Processing Content
Organizing students to interact over the learning Planned structure	Students have multiple opportunity to (verbally and non-verbally) to process information every 4-6 minutes	Resources:  HERE  Kagan Structures: Essential 5
Implementation of PBIS
Teaching/Re-Teaching Expectation	Using Our Punch Card system to reward students for doing what is expected with INTEGRITY	Using 4 to 1 positive to corrective interactions

Operational 

  Smart Pass (Middle School) 

This is a reminder to all Middle School teachers: It is a building-wide expectation that SmartPass is used to grant students access to the bathroom during class time. This is not an optional platform. Using this system allows us to track data, pinpoint issues, and maximize instructional time for all students.

 Best Buddies program 

We are proud to announce that Pershing is launching the Pershing Best Buddies program. This is a program that is being led by Morgan Thomas and community partners with the purpose of providing an opportunity for students to cultivate friendships between students with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is a nationwide program that has made its way to Pershing. See the flyer below for more information or talk to Mrs. Thomas.






Nominate an outstanding SPS educator for 2025-2026 Teacher of the Year - 

Nominations are currently being accepted for the 2025-2026 Teacher of the Year.
To be eligible, the nominee must have four or more years of teaching experience with SPS.

To nominate a teacher for this honor, simply click on the link below. The nomination form is simple and can be submitted by a student, parent, co-worker or supervisor. Just fill out the pertinent information and explain in 100 words or less why you are nominating the individual. All nominations will be kept confidential.
Nominations must be submitted by 4:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 7. Contact Melanie Simpson in Human Resources at mdsimpson@spsmail.org or call 417-523-3274 with questions.
Nominate Here

Nominations for the 2025 Linda Luke Librarian of the Year Award are open NOW!

 

 

This award was established by the friends and family of Linda Luke, who was librarian at Hickory Hills and Disney. Linda was known for her dedication and commitment to excellence. The Linda Luke Librarian of the Year is an SPS librarian who carries out Linda’s legacy of dedication and commitment to excellence. The award includes a $1,500 cash prize to the chosen librarian.

Colleagues, parents, and community members may submit nominations. Please share this with your staff and encourage them to make their nominations!

To nominate an SPS librarian go to this link: https://www.supportsps.org/linda-luke-librarian-year-award/

The deadline for nominations is February 14.

AMI Days 

This year SPS will utilize AMI days this school year for inclement weather. Please see the following graphics. 

AMI Teacher Expectations 

Elementary Newsletter: https://secure.smore.com/n/jwyzm 

Important Dates 

Jan 28th- Staff Meeting Committees 

Feb. 2-14th : SPS Foundation Spread the Love Campaign 

January 

1- Tom Cunningham

3- Stephanie Routh 

4- Constance Bonner 

5- April Barron 

10- Julie McClure 

16- Acacia Cavin

17- Leanne Newman 

25- Ashley McCord 

31- Corbyn Bartels 

February

5- Robert Kaiser 

10- Vicki Steineke 

March 

2- Jennifer Coffman 

6- Elaine Farrar 

9- Angie Cox 

17- Megan Lannholm

23- Allison Holiman 

28- Lauren Parrish 

29- Jake Viele 

Jan. 3rd

Happy New Year! I hope you all had an incredible and rejuvenating holiday break! My hope is that your time off provided exactly what you needed to recharge and refocus as we step into the second semester of the school year.

I am genuinely excited to continue this journey of growth, learning, and transformation alongside each of you. As we transition back into the structure and rhythm of school life, it’s crucial that we intentionally revisit both behavioral and academic expectations.

Let’s not assume that everyone remembers these expectations perfectly. Instead, let’s approach this with the mindset that every student (and even ourselves) could use a reminder and a refresh. Setting clear expectations from the start will lay a strong foundation for success in the months ahead.

There’s still meaningful work ahead as we guide our students toward mastering their standards, but let’s not forget to embrace and enjoy the process. Progress happens not just in the milestones, but in the small victories along the way.

I can’t wait to see all of you and continue this amazing journey together. Let’s make this semester extraordinary!

Good things

Instructional 

Kick-Off 2024 Slide Deck

Sample lesson from Mr. Wells (LINK HERE)

November Staff: LINK 

Professional Learning Teams (PLT’s) 

This week schedule will look like the following

Elementary: 

Middle School: NO PLT'S this week.  

January Staff Meeting 

January 14th: Whole Staff 7:30-8:30 am 

January 28th: Committee Meetings 7:30-8:30 am 

Grading Expectations Reminder

Pershing Grading expectations is at least 2 grades per week entered into Canvas 

Lesson Plans/Focus Boards

Focus Board Expectation

• Permanently placed in the room and clearly visible to the back of the room.
• Teacher reference Focus Board throughout the lesson

Lesson Plans Expectation

• Lessons are turned into the hub Thursday by end of day
• Lessons reflect the implantation of district curriculum and anticipation/differentiation to meet the needs of your students.

Mid Quarter Dates 

09-20-24

11-15-24

02-07-25

04-25-25

 

December Instructional Model Focus
Providing and Communicating Clear Learning Goals
Providing Scales and Rubrics	Learning Targets Communicated multiple times including closure   Students can communicate learning targets and understand how what they are doing ties to the learning target.	Resources: HERE
Tracking Student Progress	Student and Teacher has evidence of student learning	Resources: HERE
Celebrating Success	Verbal and Written feedback on progress toward mastery	Resources: HERE
Processing Content
Organizing students to interact over the learning Planned structure	Students have multiple opportunity to (verbally and non-verbally) to process information every 4-6 minutes	Resources:  HERE  Kagan Structures: Essential 5
Implementation of PBIS
Teaching/Re-Teaching Expectation	Using Our Punch Card system to reward students for doing what is expected with INTEGRITY	Using 4 to 1 positive to negative word interactions

Grade Posting Readiness Checklist

DCA entry in Educlimber must be done by the end of day Jan. 3rd 

Teach Forward Jan. 3rd 

January 3rd will be Teach Forward 8-9:45 am. The rest of the day will be a workday to work in your classrooms to complete the 7.25 hours. 

• Middle School teachers need to check your email for instructions of where your session will be located and register for your session in KickUp. 

• Elementary Teachers our teach forward day will be held @ Jefferies Elementary. This is an effort to differentiate and provide choice to what each teacher may need.

Operational 

Smart Pass (Middle School) 

This is a reminder to all Middle School teachers: It is a building-wide expectation that SmartPass is used to grant students access to the bathroom during class time. This is not an optional platform. Using this system allows us to track data, pinpoint issues, and maximize instructional time for all students.

Important Date

AMI Days 

This year SPS will utilize AMI days this school year for inclement weather. Please see the following graphics. 

AMI Teacher Expectations 

Elementary Newsletter: https://secure.smore.com/n/jwyzm 

Important Dates 

Dec. 23-Jan. 3 - Winter Break (students out)

Jan, 3rd - Teach Forward

• Middle School Check email for designed sight
• Elementary we will collaborate with Jeffries to provide choice

January 

1- Tom Cunningham

3- Stephanie Routh 

4- Constance Bonner 

5- April Barron 

10- Julie McClure 

16- Acacia Cavin

17- Leanne Newman 

25- Ashley McCord 

31- Corbyn Bartels