This Read Across America Week has been nothing short of incredible for our local lead! So far, she’s read to 24 classes of children, and it’s only Wednesday! 📚✨ We’re so grateful for her dedication to inspiring young readers.
A huge THANK YOU to Dardanelle Primary, Danville ABC, Friendship in Danville, Two Rivers Preschool, Hugs Preschool at Western Yell, and Kidzplace for welcoming her into your classrooms and helping make literacy a priority in our community!
Stay tuned to see where her adventures in reading take her next! 🌟📖
#ArchFordServes #yourBESTsolution
Mentoring Specialist Bethany Hill visited first year teacher Sarah George this week. She teaches kindergarten at Maumelle Charter Elementary. Her students were working on writing! #ArchFordServes #yourBESTsolution
The Early Childhood program hosted the annual Kindergarten Transition meeting with our member districts. Staff from district agencies were given the opportunity to collaborate on students who will be changing school settings in the fall. It's always fun to catch up with our school-age friends! #archfordserves #yourBESTsolution
Become a Certified CLASS Observer!
📅 Training Dates: March 12th-14th
⏰ Time: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
📍 Location: Arch Ford
Are you ready to enhance your skills in classroom observations? The CLASS 2nd Edition PreK-3rd Observer Certification Training is a comprehensive, multi-day workshop designed to prepare you to become a certified, reliable PreK-3rd CLASS observer.
During this training, you will gain in-depth knowledge of the CLASS framework, learn effective observation techniques, and be equipped to assess early childhood and elementary classrooms with confidence. This is the perfect opportunity for educators, coaches, and administrators to build their expertise and improve classroom interactions.
Training Highlights:
Hands-on training for PreK-3rd grade observation
Learn to assess classroom quality with the CLASS system
Get certified as a reliable observer
🔗 Register Now: https://www.escweb.net/ar_esc/catalog/session.aspx?session_id=547435
Don't miss out on this opportunity to deepen your observation skills and make a lasting impact in the classroom. Reserve your spot today!
#yourBESTsolution #ArchFordServes
Special Education Novice Teachers collaborated with their region today in a session led by Jessica Saum, the 2022 Arkansas Teacher of the Year. They discussed advocacy, time management, supporting behavior, and more! It was a great day of networking and learning! #ArchFordServes #yourBESTsolution
🌟 Celebrating Leadership & Innovation in Education! 🎉
We’re proud to highlight two outstanding superintendents from our area who recently shared their expertise at the ArkaNSPRA Conference in Hot Springs!
👏 Zebulon Prothro, Superintendent- Mt. Vernon- Enola School District, and Jessica Prothro, Communications and Technology Director- Arkansas School Boards Association, led a session on Building Your Brand, offering valuable insights on shaping a strong school identity.
🎤 Dr. Joe Fisher from Guy-Perkins School District presented on Developing Strategic Community Engagement Plans, providing tools to strengthen school-community connections.
Their leadership in advancing communication and engagement in education is truly awesome! 👏✨
#yourBESTsolution
#ArchFordServes
Planting the Seeds of Entrepreneurship
April 15
4:30- 6:30
#yourBESTsolution
#ArchFordServes
Arch Ford ESC regional Library Media Specialists welcomed Demco's Book Doctor, Kimberly Young , today! She provided book care training with the aim of helping participants keep their book collections in circulation longer. #ArchFordServes @demcofun
Our Local Lead Captain had the privilege of visiting some incredible childcare providers throughout Yell and Van Buren counties this February. It’s been inspiring to see the excitement and curiosity that children bring to their learning environments.
Play is such a vital part of a child’s development. It sparks creativity, problem-solving, and social skills. Whether they’re building, painting, or exploring the outdoors, each moment of play is an opportunity for growth.
Arch Ford is incredibly proud to serve these counties and support our dedicated providers who are creating spaces where kids can engage, learn, and thrive.
#ArchFordServes #yourBESTsolution
The Early Childhood program hosted the annual Kindergarten Transition meeting with our member districts. Staff from district agencies were given the opportunity to collaborate on students who will be changing school settings in the fall. It's always fun to catch up with our school-age friends! #archfordserves #yourBESTsolution
Melissa Gasaway, K-3 School Support Specialist, and Mindy Mann, Dyslexia Specialists collaborated, collaborated with teachers at Southside Bee Branch to create mid-year IRP Literacy goals!
Because the Writing on Command: Practicing the Parts session has been moved to Wednesday, February 26th, it will be held in Hargis. That means we have more room! If you have had the Writing on Command training and want to take your instruction to the next level, this is the session for you. It is Writing on Command meets ATLAS. You will learn how to break the writing instruction into parts and embed the instruction into your reading curriculum. Click the link below to join me next week.
https://www.escweb.net/ar_esc/catalog/session.aspx?session_id=547106&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR3NcekrV5jdG8zWuLtY8aZiMgFZvWudBO5HhfuVCZq_yP1uLKS3Kf-yII0_aem_fJdIZsXu9pEQJJguHlC92Q
🚨 Attention Arkansas Schools! 🚨
Great news—the 2025 School Safety Grant now covers hazardous material disposal (Item Z) as an approved safety expenditure! This is a big step toward making science labs safer for students and staff.
🔹 Grant Deadline: February 28, 2025
🔹 Details: Check the Commissioner’s Memo for full grant info.
Thanks to Thomas Floyd, FutureFuel Chemical Company, and the Arkansas Environmental Federation, schools now have support for safely disposing of hazardous chemicals. Mr. Floyd is actively working with disposal facilities to coordinate pickup, packaging, transport, and disposal options.
📩 Need help including hazardous disposal in your grant application?
Contact Thomas Floyd at thomasfloyd@ffcmail.com or reach out to your regional science specialist for guidance on cleanup efforts.
Let’s work together to create safer schools for our students! 🏫♻️
#yourBESTsolution #ArchFordServes
https://adecm.ade.arkansas.gov/ViewApprovedMemo.aspx?Id=5710&fbclid=IwY2xjawIYVZNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHczqCaVE82eUfcLlJC3LXgi_5odu1j0bNzs-OesjtvQV-VaOXVu32trd_w_aem_T7KhKohLvn8fsc1a7uunzA
Do you know someone who would do an amazing job presenting at Arch Ford this summer? We are looking for presenters who have high levels of impact on student growth and can share their strategies and tips with others! We believe that the experts are already in our classrooms and want to make sure that other educators have the chance to learn from them. Please complete this form if you are interested in being a presenter or send the link to that amazing teacher down the hall who needs to apply! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdMO5GRYpcCWYKojAOrulZOTLgivLXkm8-TmSHp4rYL8TmgSw/viewform?usp=sharing #ArchFordServes #yourBESTsolution
Mentoring Specialists Jacob Sisson and Jennifer McMahan supported regional Novice and Support Educators in strengthening their teams through Student Excellence and TESS. Throughout the day, teams engaged in deep reflection on implementing levels of student excellence and effectiveness indicators in their classrooms. From meaningful discussions to strategic problem-solving, participants left feeling empowered to grow and achieve success this school year. Together, we thrive!
#archfordserves
#yourBESTsolution
At the Heber Springs ALE Campus, the students participated in the Egg Drop Experiment: Engineering in Action. The Egg Drop Experiment challenges students to design a protective device that prevents an egg from breaking when dropped from a height. Using the engineering design process, students will: Ask – What materials and designs best protect the egg? Imagine – Brainstorm creative solutions. Plan – Sketch and choose a design. Create – Build the prototype. Test – Drop the egg and observe results. Improve – Modify the design for better results. This hands-on activity teaches problem-solving, physics, and innovation while encouraging teamwork and critical thinking! #archfordserves #yourBESTsolution
Help us pick our summer theme!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe_hsmZlg50Z2rHGwJqHYITGhvxkW7KpfTwDh8pbw7Tuj7qAg/viewform?usp=dialog
Sarah Stratton led the first 2025 Writing on Command for Newbies on Thursday, February 6th. (Two more sessions will be offered this summer.) The 25 participants learned how to turn students into writers by teaching them techniques that make writing great. Their teams created idiom stories with the familiar story: The Three Little Pigs. The teacher samples they created were awesome and definitely showed off their techniques.
Do you know someone who would do an amazing job presenting at Arch Ford this summer? We are looking for presenters who have high levels of impact on student growth and can share their strategies and tips with others! We believe that the experts are already in our classrooms and want to make sure that other educators have the chance to learn from them.
Please complete this form if you are interested in being a presenter or send the link to that amazing teacher down the hall who needs to apply!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdMO5GRYpcCWYKojAOrulZOTLgivLXkm8-TmSHp4rYL8TmgSw/viewform?usp=sharing
#ArchFordServes
#yourBESTsolution
🏆 CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR SPELLING BEE CHAMPIONS! 🐝
What an incredible display of talent at this week's Spelling Bee hosted by Communication and Engagement Specialist, Candace Smith! Over 60 brilliant young spellers from 15 schools across grades 3-8 came together to compete in this amazing showcase of academic excellence.
🎉 Congratulations to our winners:
🏆1st Place: Abby Hosman from Mayflower Middle School
🏆2nd Place: Mikayla Dumont from Wonderview Elementary School
🏆3rd Place: Connor Ringele from Two Rivers Middle School
A special shout-out to all 60+ participants who demonstrated exceptional spelling skills and sportsmanship throughout the competition. You've made your schools proud!🩷
Thank you to our dedicated teachers, volunteers, and parents who made this event possible. And a huge thank you to our participating schools for nurturing these bright young minds!
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#ArchFordServes
