Amanda Flickinger, Teacher at Rancho San Diego, engaged students in a discussion about classroom management, arrangement, and furniture. After implementing some of their ideas, the students shared their opinions. Thank you for sharing Amanda!

Child Nutrition Services is proud to announce that our program is the recipient of a CA Dept. of Ed 2015/16 National School Lunch Program Equipment Grant. We have identified equipment in need of replacement and equipment that will help us build on our fresh and healthy options. We appreciate everyone’s work on this grant, and in particular Cindy Gregory, our buyer.
Look for some shiny new pieces to be appearing at our schools soon!

Mark Mendoza, Director
Child Nutrition Services

Crest Elementary has grown by leaps and bounds. During rotations, and throughout the day, teachers use Google Classroom, Coding, Robotics, Blendspace, Imagine Learning, Lucy Calkins writing, STMath, and the entire Google suite of tools to engage and support students. We’ve increased the number of students using Imagine Learning to include students with specific language goals. Today we had our first Imagine Learning student data meeting, which is designed to empower students to take an active role in their learning and academic progress. The Crest campus also includes Cajon Valley Home School. The partnership between the Crest and Home School teachers has brought an additional layer of collaboration to our campus, which has enhanced the academic experience for our students. The efforts of all our teachers are commendable. Keep a watchful eye on Crest Elementary as we continue to grow and expand our expertise.

Carmen Restrepo, Ed.D., Principal
Crest Elementary and Cajon Valley Home School

As Jamacha prepares our future leaders for an ever-changing world, you’ll see that blended learning allows teachers to provide just-in-time small-group instruction to meet our scholars’ needs. While teachers are working with small groups, a variety of technology-based applications allow scholars to be fully engaged in personalized learning at their level of interest and need. Teacher collaboration in grade-level teams has enriched and strengthened our bonds, our curriculum, and our rigor. You’ll even see our brand-new EAKs learning to be safe as they practice lining up for a fire drill. This is an exciting time to be learning – and teaching – at Jamacha!

—
Kathryn D. Skube, Ed.D, Principal
Jamacha Elementary School

TED-Ed is excited to announce that the 2016 TED-Ed Innovative Educator program application is now open! If you are a passionate and creative teacher, principal, superintendent, social worker or educational leader, who is looking to get more involved with TED and eager to pursue innovation in big and small ways in education, then we invite you to apply here before January 29!

The TED-Ed Innovative Educator program launched in 2015 with a founding cohort of 28 educators from 11 countries. (pictured above) As TED’s on-the-ground education ambassadors and leaders, TED-Ed Innovative Educators inspire their communities, and TED’s network of over 250,000 teachers, in amplifying great ideas in education.

During the year-long professional development program, TED-Ed Innovative Educators participate in two months of digital training in how to help teachers and students make the most of TED’s free tools, followed by 10 months of innovation support within a dynamic community of learners from around the world.

Deadline to apply for the TED-Ed Innovative Educator program is January 29, 2016, so complete your online application now!

“By far the best part was having the opportunity to work with such bright, articulate, dedicated, kind and funny people in the TED-Ed Innovative Educator group. The stories I heard, the encouragement I received, and the connections I made will stay with me and keep me moving forward. Our educators — and more importantly, our students — need this program.” -Mitzi S., current TED-Ed Innovative Educator

Click Here to Apply and Learn More! https://tedtalks.wufoo.com/forms/z1k5x2g00jyy35w/

The TED ED Team

Hillsdale students have been given an opportunity to participate in a unique National Youth Cyber Defense Competition sponsored by the US AirFore and Northrop Grumman called CyberPatriot. This program puts students in the position of newly hired IT professionals tasked with managing the network of a small company. In the rounds of competition, teams are given a set of virtual images that represent operating systems and are tasked with finding cybersecurity vulnerabilities within the images and hardening the system while maintaining critical services. The students work in teams of 2-6 and have 6 hours to find and fix as many vulnerabilities as they can.

Hillsdale has two teams competing this year against 460 other middle school teams. After two rounds of competition, both teams are in the top 50% and moving on to the semifinals. The top 3 teams in the state will move on to compete in the finals in Baltimore, Maryland in April.

Hillsdale students are being sponsored by 7th grade science teacher Carol Strampfer who is working with Cuyamaca College IT teacher Curt Sharon and James US Navy Cybersecurity specialist James Pensal.

What is especially impressive is that these students only recently started meeting and have had very little time to formally train relative to most teams. We’re hoping to continue training throughout the school year and summer in order to more fully prepare for the competition next year.

The students competing this year are:

8-bit Huskies: Tyler Bryson, Aidan Hirasuna, and Ethan Roberts

Cyberteers: Ryan Daniels, Adria Duhamel, PB Griffen, and Kian Mamoodi

Congratulations Huskies and good luck in at the semifinals.

Marietta Minjares, Principal
Hillsdale Middle School