This program is designed for teachers with 3 years or less of teaching experience. All new teachers in the Spackenkill Union Free School District take part in this program.
- Annual District Orientation: This is a three day orientation held before the opening of school each year. Topics addressed in the program include:
- History of Spackenkill
- Distinct Mission, Beliefs, and Direction
- Examples of Academic Excellence and High Expections
- Professional Development Opportunities
- Professional Responsibilites
- Support Services Available
- Parent/Teacher Communication
- Public Relations
- Mentoring Program
- New Staff Seminars: This inservice program, consisting of a series of workshops, is held throughout the first 3 years of employment in the district. Some of the following topics to be addressed:
- Parent Teacher Conference: This workshop uses videos, role-plays, handouts and discussion points to help teachers prepare for a conference with parents. The workshop also helps establish or improve the ongoing partnership involving the teacher, student and parents.
- Classroom Management: Class focuses on how to establish a framework for developing a personal system of classroom management that includes organizing the classroom to facilitate learning and enhancing the competence of all students. The workshop will model and investigate several conditions that are integral to an effectively managed classroom.
- Discipline Strategies: This workshop takes a comprehensive look at student-centered discipline and a plan of action for teachers who wish to establish a positive classroom learning environment. Teachers learn how to set expectations and design strategies to prevent discipline problems from occurring.
- Study Skills: The focus of this workshop is to learn how to integrate study skills into specific content areas. Participants engage in hands-on experiences to gain insight into the process(es) of learning study skills and the importance of teaching study skills as part of the curriculum.
- Motivating Student Thinking: Teachers will become familiar with highly effective questioning combinations that lead students to think beyond the superficial answer. These questioning techniques produce students who become critical thinkers and active participants in their internalization of curriculum.
- Student Success - Find and Play To Their Strengths: Workshop activities demonstrate methods of identifying students' learning styles and designing lessons that reach all students.
- Building Orientation: New teachers meet in their home buildings with mentors to learn individual building procedures.
- Mentor Program: This program is designed to provide peer guidance to new teachers in the district.
- Technology Orientation: This orientation gives new employees an overview of the technology environment in the district. Included is information about the network operating system and the technology resources available district wide. This orientation is a prerequisite to logging onto the network.
- SAVE Legislation Workshop: This program will meet the mandated NYS SAVE legislation requirement.
- On-going Inservice Opportunities: District workshops are held each semester to help teachers meet the educational goals of the district.
- My Learning Plan.com Training: is the leading web-based service for tracking and managing Professional Development activities for educators.
- Curriculum Writing Training: A district focus classes are offered throughout the year in order to help teachers improve student learning.
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