LIFE in the LAB SCHOOLS

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1 Greetings! Somehow we are already through this beautiful Fall season that we ve had, and the Holidays are quickly approaching. Our Laboratory Schools are in the midst of many exciting ventures as we continually strive to improve. Our schools are focusing on new themes to inspire the students, extra-curricular activities to maintain the well rounded program we provide, and the improvement of our facilities to continually create an ideal physical environment. Faculty, specifically, are working on national board certification, professional development around formative assessment, as well as other aspects of our school improvement plans. As always, we are focusing on doing everything we can to improve our schools. I hope you find this edition of Life in the Lab Schools to be informative and provide a sense of the great work being done by our students, faculty, and administration! University High School U-Nite Program One program that focuses on the involvement of students at University High School is U-nite. The concept of U-Nite began last year when one of our senior girls came up with the idea to start "families" that connect the different classes at University High School and help every member of the family as they move through the high school experience. The purpose of the families is to get to know each other and support each other. Each family is made up of a senior, junior, sophomore and freshman member. The families meet at least once a month with the senior setting up the meeting dates and agenda. We are piloting the program this year. We have a total of 52 families and over 200 students participating at this time, over 1/3 of the school. Metcalf 2nd Step Program Social and emotional learning involves the processes of developing competencies, including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Research shows that when these skills are taught in the classroom, we see better academic performance, improved attitudes and behaviors, fewer negative behaviors, and reduced emotional distress (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011). The Second Step Program, which is in its 5th full implementation year at Thomas Metcalf in grades Pre-K through 6th grade, is a comprehensive social emotional learning curriculum that uses songs, role-plays, games, videos, and stories to help students master these skills. When asked

2 Metcalf 2nd Step Program - continued about the Second Step Program, Marissa Lopez, 4th grade, said Problem solving without blaming helped me very much because when I get in fights I don t lose my friends. Sarinna Proctor, 4th grade, reported that, Belly breathing helped me let go of feelings and calm down. Other students like Anna Heinrich, 4th grade, referenced Self-Talk which means talking to yourself in a quiet voice or in your head, an important executive functioning skill. Self-instruction, or self-talk, can be used by students to stay on task, ignore distractions, and help students manage their emotions so they can make better decisions in stressful situations. The beauty of this program is that it provides a common language for students and teachers to talk about and apply these skills. -The Second Step program has been endorsed by numerous organizations-including the Collabora tive for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning for the quality of its research, training, and teacher and family support. *Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D., & Schellinger, K. B. (2011). The impact of enhancing students social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 82, PARCC /ACT testing Standardized assessment continues to shift in terms of what is being required and how it relates to national and state education priorities. Recently President Obama denounced the amount of standardized testing in which students participate. Standardized testing does play a role in the process of determining if students meet the academic standards set, providing it is a part of an overall assessment plan. The Lab Schools will once again be participating in PARCC and ACT (which includes the ASPIRE test for freshmen and sophomores). In the Lab Schools, grade level and subject area teams review standardized testing data along with formative and summative assessment results. The purpose for our continued involvement in these standardized tests is as follows: Each test allows our students and faculty to see how our students compare with their peers throughout the country. A standardized test component is one of a variety of assessment tools we utilize to determine students' annual academic progress. Longitudinal data helps inform changes that are needed in our instructional program. The ACT serves as a college admissions exam throughout the country and we want to provide our students the opportunity to attain scores that provide admissions to the schools of their choosing. Testing arrangements will be communicated by each school. We will once again be paying for our students to take the ACT test this spring and the ASPIRE test has already been administered to freshmen and sophomores. We will continue to monitor standardized testing in Illinois to determine what decisions are needed to provide an assessment program that makes sense for our students. Should you have questions regarding standardized testing please contact: Thomas Metcalf School: Christine Paxson, and University High School: Courtney O Connor.

3 Metcalf Grounds Beautification Modern, but old school is what Dr. Amy Coffman told the designer at G3 Machining. He delivered on a beautiful design for the gates that go with the new fence lining the back preschool playground. We want to thank our three donors whose contributions paid for this project that now enclose a new children s garden designed and created by ISU Grounds. Audrey and Joe Naffziger and Family, The Black Family and Metcalf PTO will be recognized for their gifts with plaques on each of the gates. Parents have expressed that the gates bring them to tears, and we know we ve created something special for students that will last long into the following generations. Plans are moving forward and donors will be sought for the same fence and gates to line the kindergarten playground and complete the fence project that former President Bowman started for us 5 years ago. Did you know... U-High Music Room Renovation The latest updating project on the first floor of U-High was the renovation of Room 101 in the Music Department. U-High music students now have much-needed secure storage lockers for their instruments. Room 101 will also function as a small ensemble rehearsal space. After the removal of the floor and asbestos abatement, a new floor and dropped ceiling were added, as well as new paint. Then the instrument storage lockers were delivered and installed by the Wenger Corporation. The building materials used in the lockers as well as the ceiling tiles are sound absorbing to make it an ideal space for a music classroom. The room looks great and the faculty and students are excited to have an additional 113 lockers for instruments, making the main larger music room a much more adequate space. Funding for the project was provided in large part by a generous donation from the U-High Boosters and a successful fundraising campaign at U-High s Pioneer Palooza last April. Thank you to the administration and U-High friends and families who helped the Room 101 project become a reality this fall! 158 YEARS AGO...In September 1857 the Thomas Metcalf Elementary School opened as the model school with the purpose of preparing teachers for the State of Illinois. It was later named in honor of Professor Thomas Metcalf, the school s first supervisor!

4 Governor Rauner made a few stops on his tour of Central Illinois, and Metcalf Elementary School was one of them. On Monday, November 2nd Rauner was welcomed to Metcalf School by Illinois State University President Larry Dietz, State Representative Dan Brady, and Illinois Senator Jason Barickman. The Governor visited a few classrooms and took questions from students during an assembly. The Metcalf students even staged a debate about cell phones for the Governor. He also received a Thomas Metcalf School T-shirt from Principal Amy Friston-Coffman. Governor Bruce Rauner Visits Metcalf Left to Right: President Larry Dietz, Dean of College of Education Perry Schoon, Principal Amy Fritson Coffman, Superintendent Jeff Hill, and Assistant Principal Ryan Weichman

5 Thank you again for your ongoing support of the Laboratory Schools. Its success is dependent on YOU - the parents, students, and faculty - that contribute your time and effort to help create a fantastic learning environment. We have had an excellent fall and we are optimistic the rest of the school year will be as productive. I am looking forward to seeing you soon! Superintendent, Laboratory Schools Illinois State University University High School is ranked 13th out of 571 in Illinois and 55th out of 14,431 in the Nation in the 2015 Niche ranking of Public Schools. Thomas Metcalf School and University High School represent two of less than 100 university laboratory schools in the U.S. Both schools annually enroll 1,000 P-12 students from Central Illinois, and serve as a living laboratory for teacher candidates to gain more than 40,000 clinical hours each year. UNIVERSITY LABORATORY SCHOOLS