Twentynine Palms Junior High School

With 9 years in the classroom and 8 years on assignment, I always enjoy a new adventure!  I was excited to join the TPJHS staff and be part of the change that was being implemented.  With Twentynine Palms Junior High's shift to block scheduling, common department and interdisciplinary team planning periods were built in to the master schedule.  Currently, I meet with each department weekly to discuss planning, pacing, common assessments, and best instructional practices.  The departments also have regular conversations about transitioning to the new Common Core standards and CalMAPS.   In team meetings, we discuss students and their specific needs in the classroom.  We are working on how interventions can be consistently provided throughout the instructional day, how to best document the interventions, school-to-home communications, and the next step in our action plan.  If an Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) or Behavior Contract is that next step, as a team, we work with the families and student in coming up with a plan or contract that best meets the students' needs.  I also meet regularly with the Coordinated Care Team (CCT) to identify students who are in need or at risk of academic failure.

Over the course of this school year, the Teams are working together on what Common Core Standards will look like within their classrooms and how each Core class will support learning across the disciplines.