Week of January 8th - January 12th

WEEKLY MESSAGE
We are certainly "back in the saddle" at Fossil Ridge after
our first full week of the new year! It was another "Great
Week to be a T-Rex!"  Recently, I had the opportunity to 
attend a training that focused on Classroom Management
and Student Engagement. The training was very well done,
and myself and Mrs. Iverson (Reading Interventionist & 
Learning Coach) returned to Fossil Ridge with some great
information and instructional strategies to ensure high 
levels of learning for ALL students.  On a side note...I sit
in trainings or conferences and feel inadequate, start to
reflect on my own strengths and weaknesses, and realize 
that the pursuit of excellence never ends, we can't ever settle 
for mediocrity. 

Anyway, one of my "take-aways" from this particular training
was the critical important of RELATIONSHIPS.  Nothing in a
school setting will ever be successfully accomplished without
positive relationships.  Education is not about programs or
the newest "fad", its about people.  The greatest joy I see
on a daily basis is the interaction, and relationship building
that goes on between students and teachers, students to 
students, and teacher to teacher. I know that the faculty
and staff at Fossil Ridge sincerely care about our students,
and have built relationships that allow students to feel
important and loved.  I also know that our students 
reciprocate that love, soar higher, and taste more
success because of those relationships. May we all continue
to maintain and foster positive relationships that impact our 
lives for the better. Have a Great Weekend...BE EXCELLENT!
--Jonathan

Mrs. Graft's REACH Class

STUDENT, FACULTY, AND STAFF SPOTLIGHT

Welcome to Fossil Ridge Mr. Jensen (7th Grade Counselor)!

Congratulations to our weekly T-Rex Students and Teachers!!😃

Congratulations to our "Plinko Kids" of the week!!😃

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Monday, January 15th--Civil Rights Day NO SCHOOL

Fossil Ridge Theater Presents Mulan

     Opening Night Friday, January 26th--7PM/FRIS Theater

     Saturday, January 27th--7PM/FRIS Theater

     Monday, January 29th--7PM/FRIS Theater

     Friday, February 2nd--7PM/FRIS Theater

     Saturday, February 3rd--7PM/FRIS Theater

EDUCATIONAL LEARNING & SHARING

"Every Kid Deserves a Champion"--Rita Pierson (8 minute clip)

BE EXCELLENT!

     

Happy New Year...January 5th, 2018

WEEKLY MESSAGE
HAPPY NEW YEAR FOSSIL RIDGE FAMILY...HERE'S TO
A SUCCESSFUL, PROSPEROUS, AND HEALTHY NEW
YEAR!💥  

As we look back on 2017 at Fossil Ridge, we
have many things, people, and accomplishments to 
be proud of, and celebrate.  We have seen teachers
recognized with district, and state awards. We have
seen students soar in local, district, and state competitions
like Math Counts, Show Choir, Band, Orchestra, Musical
Theater, Visual Arts, and Lego League.  We have celebrated
student learning and academic growth in individual classrooms, 
REACH Time, and State End of Level Assessments (SAGE).  
Data from SAGE continues to provide evidence of high levels
of learning for our students, making Fossil Ridge a top Mid-Level
school in Washington County School District, and the State of Utah.
In 2017, our students, faculty, and staff were recognized by national
education organizations for student achievement. Solution
Tree recognized Fossil Ridge as a "Model PLC School"
(http://www.allthingsplc.info/evidence/details/id,507) and
the National Association of Secondary School Principals
(NASSP) named Fossil Ridge a national "Breakthrough School",
an honor shared with only 26 other schools across the country!
With all of our success, we are not satisfied, nor do we have
the luxury of becoming complacent...we will continue to 
be driven by our Purpose of "High Levels of Learning for ALL
Students."  At Fossil Ridge, we are committed to "chasing perfection", 
with the understanding that we can always grow and become an
even better school for our students, faculty, staff, parents, and
community. Our work as educators at Fossil Ridge never ends,
we are constantly searching for improvement and ways to have
an even greater impact on student achievement. Here's to a 
fantastic 2018, let's ALL work together to make it "A Great Year
to Be a T-rex!

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Saturday, January 6th...Lego League Competition @DSU (12PM)

Wednesday, January 10th...WCSD Math Counts Competition @FRIS

Thursday, January 11th...Community Council Meeting @ FRIS (9:30AM)

Monday, January 15th...Civil Rights Day NO SCHOOL

EDUCATIONAL LEARNING and SHARING

"We Are All Mentors of Children" --Kevin Honeycutt TED Talk (8 minutes)

BE EXCELLENT!

September 25th - September 29th

WEEKLY MESSAGE
Today the Utah Office of Education released SAGE results and 
Comprehensive School Grades for the 2016-2017 school year. We
would like to congratulate the students, faculty, staff, and parents
for another successful year at Fossil Ridge. We are much more
than a SAGE score, or a School Grade, yet it is also important
that we celebrate individual and collective success on state end 
of level testing. With that said, the entire Fossil Ridge community
should be very proud of the 2016-2017 results. Fossil Ridge, its
students and faculty have once again earned a USOE School 
Grade of "A"! Fossil Ridge is one of only four schools in the 
WashingtonCounty School District to earn an "A" grade, and is a 
top five mid-level school in the entire state! One of the aspects of 
academics that we preach at Fossil Ridge is the critical 
Importance of student and teacher growth. This is certainly an 
area were our kids continue to excel. We will commit to have high 
expectations of our students, we will continue to challenge ALL 
students, and we will celebrate individual and collective growth at 
Fossil Ridge. "Every Child.Every Day. Whatever It Takes!"

FOSSIL RIDGE EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
Monday, September 25th--Early Out PLC Day (School Ends at 11:45AM) and
Mrs. Lund-Fuller Birthday
Tuesday, September 26th--REACH Math Priority Day
Wednesday, September 27th--REACH Science Priority Day, Mrs. Sherratt Birthday
and Parent Teacher Conferences (4PM-7PM/Commons Area and Gym)
Thursday, September 28th--REACH Language Arts Priority Day, School
Community Council, and Parent Teacher Conferences (4PM-7PM/Commons and Gym)
Friday, September 29th--REACH Social Studies and Reading Priority Day

A new Bow-Tie from the twins for "Bow-Tie Tuesday!

FOSSIIL RIDGE INSPIRATION STATION AND LEARNING

"Challenges are what make our lives interesting, and overcoming them

is what makes life meaningful." --Joshua Marine

Show off your #TREXCELLENCE...Last week's "Get Your Brain On" Students

CONGRATULATIONS!!

Students and Teacher (Mrs Randall) caught being #TREXCELLENT...

Congratulations to our "T-Rex" students and Mrs Randall!

--Weekly Dose of Educational Learning and Sharing--

"Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance"  (6 min. Angela Duckworth. TED Talk)

"Helping Students Develop Growth Mindset" (ASCD...short article)

HAVE A FANTASTIC WEEK!

BE #TREXCELLENT!

September 18th - September 22nd, 2017

WEEKLY MESSAGE
This past week, Mrs. Brackett and myself participated in an
#EveryClassroom Challenge with administrators from the entire
district. The challenge was for EVERY administrator, at EVERY
school, to get into EVERY teacher's classroom during the week.
This allowed Mrs. Brackett and I to each visit 45 classrooms 
in a three day period! It was indeed a fabulous week, and time
very well spent. It was inspiring to watch dedicated and 
passionate teachers work their "magic" to ensure that all 
students were learning at high levels. Teachers were greeting 
kids at the door, teaching and learning was happening from 
bell-to-bell,clear objectives and daily learning targets provided 
a "learning road map" for students, multiple and effective teaching
strategies promoted an environment of student engagement, and 
formative assessments were used to check for student understanding.
It is clear that the Faculty and Staff of Fossil Ridge Intermediate
sincerely care about the academic, social, and personal well 
being of each student. Our teachers are also willing to "do 
whatever it takes" to ensure that ALL students are provided 
the necessary opportunities and resources to learn at high levels.
Last week simply supported everything I already knew...We have
an EXCELLENT school because we have a dedicated group of adults
who understand that everything we do centers on our students
and their success. 

FOSSIL RIDGE WEEKLY EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Monday, September 18th--REACH College & Career Awareness and

Fine Arts Priority Day and District SPED Training(2:10PM)

Tuesday, September 19th--Team Data Analysis(Team Prep Time),

REACH Math Priority Day, and Mrs.Anderson's Birthday

Wednesday, September 20th--REACH Science Priority Day and

School Leadership Team Meeting(2:10PM)

Thursday, September 21st--REACH Language Arts Priority Day and

District SPED Training(2:10PM)

Friday, September 22nd--REACH Social Studies and Reading 

Priority Day

Mrs. Fernandez and the student-led "Reading Advisory Council"

making plans for the next school-wide reading challenge!

FOSSIL RIDGE INSPIRATION STATION

**Happy Birthday Mrs.Anderson...September 19th**

Stay #TREXCELLENT! Congratulations to our

Weekly "Plinko Players"

BE #TREXCELLENT Fossil Ridge! 

This Week's "Get Your Brain On" Students

Strive to Be #TREXCELLENT Fossil Ridge!

Congratulations to our "T-Rex" Kids and Mrs.Stevens

"Teachers who are always positive and 

passionate are an absolute blessing to

their Principals." --Danny Steele

HAVE A GREAT WEEK...

STAY #TREXCELLENT!

  

Week of September 11th - September 15th

WEEKLY MESSAGE
Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, Thomas
Edison failed over 1,000 times trying to invent the lightbulb, Vincent
Van Gogh only sold one painting in his entire lifetime, and the greatest
power hitter of all time, Babe Ruth struck out over 1,300 times in his 
baseball career.  So what do these men have in common? Each one 
of them experienced desperate failure, internal conflict, significant 
challenges, and productive struggle on their way to becoming unbelievable 
successful. They did not give up when obstacles were placed before them.
They did not avoid challenges and failures that come with risk taking. Instead these men realized that failure was an essential part of growth,
learning, and success.  

This process of extended learning from intense challenge, a growth mindset, and even failure has been labeled the "Learning Pit" by the educational community.  The "Pit" represents all that is wonderful about learning and growth; conflict, challenge, questioning, failure, struggle, confusion, mistakes, resilience, and deeper thinking.  If we as educators and parents want our students to experience "true" learning, we must push them into the depths of the Learning Pit.  Not only do we need to teach 
students that mistakes and failure are acceptable, but critical to long-term individual growth and success.  As ALL learners experience the challenge of the "Learning Pit", have the freedom to make mistakes, and taste the power of productive struggle, they learn the necessary skills for future life-long success.  When students show effort, make mistakes, and push forward with resilience, they will ALL learn at the highest levels!

FOSSIL RIDGE WEEKLY EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Monday, September 11th--National Day of Remembrance, Fall Team 

Reflection Week, and REACH CCA & Fine Arts Priority Day

Tuesday, September 12th--Fall Team Reflection Week and REACH Math

Priority Day

Wednesday, September 13th--Fall Team Reflection Week, REACH

Science Priority Day, and Mrs. Power's Birthday :)

Thursday, September 14th--Fall Team Reflection Week and REACH

Language Arts Priority Day

Friday, September 15th--Visiting School (Page Middle School), Fall

Team Reflection Week, CCA "Pre-School" Day, and REACH Social 

Studies and Ready Day

FOSSIL RIDGE INSPIRATION STATION & LEARNING

Fossil Ridge "Get Your Brain On" Students of the Week!

BE #trexcellent 

Come on down, You're the next "Plinko" Players of the Week!

Stay #trexcellent

--Weekly Dose of Educational Learning--

For additional information concerning the "Learning Pit" and "Growth

Mindset", please see the following resources...

"The Learning Pit" (James Nottingham. YouTube)

"Labels Limit Learning" (James Nottingham. YouTube)

"The Power of Yet" (Carol Dweck. YouTube)

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

BE EXCELLENT!

September 4th - September 8th, 2017

WEEKLY MESSAGE

As the Labor Day weekend comes to a close, I am reminded of the importance

of self reflection concerning our own professional and personal growth. At times 

educators\may wonder "Why" we chose this profession, "Why" we have such a 

passion for kids,and "What" is our purpose?  Ken Williams essentially describes the answers to these three questions as our "Educational Mantra." "Our Mantra is a statement repeated frequently to aid in concentration of a thought." 

(Starting a Movement. Williams and Hierck. Solution Tree Press. 2015) Its a small, 

simple, yet powerful way to share with the world what we are truly all about. Williams 

and Hierck recommend a short 5 word Mantra to be clear, concise and profound. 

It can be difficult to share what motivates you as an educator in 5 simple words. 

However the best part of the experience isn't necessarily finding the "right" words 

but the actual process of developing your own Mantra; its about the true reflection 

and purpose that leads to your Mantra (BTW mine is actually 6 words...sorry Ken). 

So here we go, Jonathan Howell's Mantra as an Educator and Principal at Fossil Ridge Intermediate School... "Passion and Purpose for Student Success!" That 

sums it  up, I exist as an educator because of the kids. It is the kids that drew me

to the profession with the hope that I could/would make a difference. I have a 

sincere and deep rooted passion for students and their individual and collective

success. My purpose, our purpose at Fossil Ridge is to ensure that ALL students 

(ALL means ALL) receive the best education possible. It is our collective responsibility 

as a school-wide team at Fossil Ridge to provide ALL our students with fantastic

classroom instruction and additional learning opportunities, resources and time

(when necessary) to meet our purpose of guaranteeing high levels of learning for

each and every student! Its not about me, the faculty nor our support staff; its all about

the 910 students we serve at Fossil Ridge!  These are the things that continually push

me to reflect, strive to become better and focus on excellence. So, here's my advice

for all of us...When we have struggles, when we question the direction of education, 

when we become more focused on state testing than actual student learning, and when 

we have that day of frustration; simply take a breath, reflect and remember your Mantra.  

BE EXCELLENT!!

Are you ready for some "Plinko?!"

FOSSIL RIDGE WEEKLY EVENS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Monday, September 4th--NO SCHOOL (Labor Day Holiday)

Tuesday, September 5th--REACH Math Priority Day

Wednesday September 6th--REACH Science Priority Day and Faculty Meeting (2:10)

Thursday September 7th--REACH Language Arts Priority Day

Friday September 8th--REACH Social Studies and Reading Priority Day

Mrs. Zwahlen's Math 6 Students playing "zero" to learn Absolute Value

Science 7 Students learning and experiencing Newton's Laws of Physics

FOSSIL RIDGE INSPIRATION STATION

Fossil Ridge "Get Your Brain On" Students of the Week!!

Stay EXCELLENT!

Fossil Ridge "T-Rex" Students and Teacher (Mr Keeler) of the Week!!

Every Child. Every Day. Whatever It Takes!

--Weekly Dose of Learning--

"5 Rules to Find Your Spark" --Simon Sinek (YouTube)

"Every Kid Deserves a Champion" --Rita Pierson (TED/YouTube)

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

BE EXCELLENT!