1.20.26

I rarely write about my personal life in the Tribune, but this one felt worth breaking the rule. This Tuesday evening, Shannon and I will be flying to Florida to elope, with our wedding day set for Friday, January 23rd. I know…elope?! what?! why?! 😄 I couldn’t be more joyful or grateful to begin this next chapter of life with her.

We’re both pretty private people, so we wanted this moment to be simple and meaningful, just the two of us, barefoot on a quiet beach in Key West, promising forever (and agreeing to share food). We also hope, in time, to have our marriage blessed in the Catholic Church. Our faith is important to us, and while that part of the journey may take a little longer, we trust God’s timing and are grateful for His guidance every step of the way.

More than anything, I want to thank you. Travis will always be home to us, not because of the walls or the front office keys, but because of the people inside: our scholars, our families, and our incredible staff. You have supported us, laughed with us, and walked alongside us in ways that mean more than you know. We carry this community with us wherever we go, even all the way to a tiny island in the Florida Keys. 💜

• All Principals, Assistant Principals, and ILSs permissions have been updated in OnShelf to see all classroom libraries. Log in at prod.bookmarked.com.

• Teachers can copy this template to upload their classroom libraries easily. Only the ISBN field needs to be populated.

• Additional barcode scanners have been purchased for campuses. If you have not already received them, they will be delivered the morning of January 5th. This video shows how to use them with the above template.

• Teachers might see several sections in their account. They only need to upload their list once, then we will duplicate it on the backend.

• This classroom library does not need to contain instructional materials (i.e., Amplify readers, classroom novels, etc.)

Below is from the last tribune:

We are officially kicking off our classroom library uploads in OnShelf, and many of you should have already received an email titled “Password Reset Request” around December 11 from

no-reply@bookmarked.com. Please be sure to check your inbox and spam folder so you don’t miss it.

Once you locate the email, here’s what to do next:

• Open the email and accept the invitation

• Set your password and register your account

• Begin scanning and uploading your classroom library using the district’s step-by-step instructions

The deadline to complete your classroom library upload is Tuesday, January 20. This is a required process for SB13 compliance, and it’s important that every book in your classroom library is accurately inventoried in OnShelf.

To support you with this process, I’ve reached out to The Well, and we will have volunteers available to help. Volunteers will be assigned to classrooms to assist with scanning and uploading—more details to come.

One quick note to ease any concerns: your student roster may not appear in OnShelf yet, and that’s expected. It will populate automatically, and you do not need to wait for it to begin scanning your books.

Thank you for taking care of this important task and for your continued professionalism and teamwork as we ensure compliance and accountability across our campus.

The impact that visual supports can have on student learning was evident this week during a lesson in Mrs. Draper's class. The lesson was about a food chain in the savanna habitat. Mrs. Draper effectively used images of animals and a cycle graphic to help students make connections and spark discussion. Beyond just recognizing that zebras eat grass and lions eat zebras, the visual supports helped students think about the effects removing one part of the food chain would have on the other parts. They could also see, rather than just hear, that a food chain is a cycle which repeats.

Visual aids/supports help students understand what we're teaching. In addition to enhancing engagement, visual supports can improve comprehension by providing a framework for understanding complex information. Visual information is processed in a different area of the brain than verbal information, and more pathways are created, which can lead to better retrieval of information and retention.

We are excited to share how our Travis scholars are growing in reading and math as of our Mid-Year i-Ready Diagnostic (January 2026). We are not completely finished with the MOY iReady Diagnostic.

School wide Highlights

• Reading: Scholars are at 77% of annual typical growth overall...well above the mid-year goal of 60%.

• Math: Scholars are at 64% of annual typical growth overall — also above the mid-year benchmark.

This tells us our scholars are making strong academic progress, and our instructional focus is paying off.

Literacy & Math Growth by Grade Level

Kindergarten

• Reading: 63% growth (above goal) | 72% improved placement

• Math: 72% growth (above goal) | 50% improved placement

Huge celebration for our youngest learners exceeding the growth benchmark in both subjects!

Grade 1

• Reading: 79% growth (well above goal)

• Math: 69% growth (above goal)

Outstanding literacy growth and strong math progress.

Grade 2

• Reading: Testing this week

• Math: 52% growth (approaching goal)

Great momentum in math...closing in on the benchmark.

Grade 3

• Reading: 62% growth (above goal)

• Math: 73% growth (above goal)

Above benchmark in both content areas with over half of students improving placement.

Grade 4

• Reading: 87% growth (far above goal)

• Math: 61% growth (above goal)

Incredible literacy growth and steady math progress.

Grade 5

• Reading: 98% growth (nearly a full year already!)

• Math: 65% growth (above goal)

Our strongest literacy growth campus-wide and the highest math placement gains.

A huge congratulations to Ms. Kelley’s 2nd grade class and Ms. Conover’s 3rd grade class for earning this week’s Golden Croc Award! 🏆

These classrooms are setting the standard for what excellence in the hallways looks like at Travis. Their scholars walk right behind the person in front of them in a single line, keep their hands, feet, and bodies to themselves, and maintain a voice level of 0 throughout the building. That level of consistency, self-control, and pride in doing things the right way does not happen by accident, it is taught, practiced, and reinforced every day.

Way to go to our scholars and to Ms. Kelley and Ms. Conover for building such strong classroom cultures. You are showing all of Travis what it means to move with purpose, respect, and responsibility. Keep leading the way!

Last week, we launched our focus on the What To Do action step, clearly naming the observable behaviors we expect from scholars to remove ambiguity and increase success. Thank you for leaning into this work. Walkthroughs showed examples of precise directions, calm delivery, and consistent follow-through.

This week, What To Do remains our primary look-for, with added emphasis on using it consistently during instruction, transitions, small groups, independent work, and hallway routines.

During visits, we will be looking for:

• Directions that are specific, observable, and actionable

• Expectations stated before behavior breaks down

• Consistent language across the day

• Follow-through the first time

• A calm, confident tone

This isn’t about perfection, it’s about precision and repetition. Small shifts in how we give directions create big gains in time on task, transitions, and classroom culture.

Thank you for your intentional work. When we are clear about What To Do, our scholars rise to meet the expectation.

This week, we want to celebrate the intentional work happening behind the scenes before scholars ever walk into the room. Strong lessons don’t start at the board, they start in planning: selecting the right materials, deeply internalizing the lesson, and aligning every move to the standard and the outcome.

Thank you for the time, thought, and care you put into this work. Your preparation is powerful and our scholars benefit from it every day.

Travis Hub

SMCISD C&I Handbook

Assessment Calendar

Travis Problem Analysis Form

Faculty Advisory Agenda

Instructional Leadership Team Agenda

Eureka Internalization Protocols

PLCs - PLCs this week will focus on iReady this week. We will discuss the following questions:

• What are some strengths and weaknesses in your individual level data?

• What instructional strategies worked in your classroom?

• Are there specific students or groups that need targeted support?

• How have you been able to connect i-ready to your Tier 1 instruction?

Pledges to the flags will be led by 3rd Grade

Mrs. Blanda will be doing announcements this week so please use the following link:

Morning Announcements

Join Zoom Meeting

https://smcisd-net.zoom.us/j/86029750777?pwd=IAgybDyIkbDY3B8miOMZaQr1zWTL55.1

T-TESS Completion Reminder

If you have already completed your T-TESS observation, please ensure that the full process is finalized by completing the following steps:

• View your Pre-Conference

• Sign your Evaluation

• View your Post-Conference

Your T-TESS cycle is not officially complete until all three steps have been completed. Thank you for staying on top of this important process!

Texan of the Month

Please nominate an outstanding teacher and/or staff member for Texans of the Month.

PLC's iReady Data

MLK Jr. Holiday - January 19

Rising 6th Graders - January 20

Science (3rd and 4th) and Social Studies Checkpoints (5th) - January 21

MTSS - Week of February 2

100th Day of School - February 2

ELAR Field Test 5th Grade - February 3

Family Community Day - February 9 (More info to come)

President's Day - February 16

TELPAS Window Opens - February 17

MONDAY:

Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday

TUESDAY:

Social Studies Check Point 5th Grade

Science Check Point 3rd and 4th Grade

Miller Tours 8:30 - 10:30

3rd Grade PLC - 8:15

4th Grade PLC - 9:15

5th Grade PLC - 11:15

BST Meeting 1:00

Rising 6th Graders at Miller 5:30

WEDNESDAY:

Coaching Connection

Texas Roadhouse Spirit Night

THURSDAY:

2nd Grade PLC - 10:15

Kindergarten PLC - 12:45

1st Grade PLC - 1:45

FRIDAY:

Friday Assembly 7:30

Saturday:

UIL - Come cheer our scholars on!

A huge thank you to Ms. Markham, our Speech Language Pathologist, and Ms. Killian, our Speech Therapy Assistant, for the incredible work they do each and every day for our scholars.

Their patience, expertise, and genuine care help our scholars find their voices, sometimes literally and always confidently. Whether they are supporting articulation, language development, or communication skills, they approach every scholar with compassion, high expectations, and unwavering dedication.

We are so grateful for the impact they make behind the scenes and in the classroom. Travis is stronger because of you, and our scholars are more confident communicators because of your heart and hard work.