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Reading, Reading, Reading…

Reading, Reading, Reading…
This year the Rio School District, more than ever perhaps, is focused on guiding every child to become an interested and excellent reader. Interested readers choose to read as a discretionary activity as well as finding the interest in the reading they are assigned at school. Excellent meaning that they read…
Superintendent Blog
Amazing Rio Technology Team
The Rio School District employs nearly 500 people in one role or another. All working together to provide the best possible learning environments and opportunities to our more than 5000 students in grades TK-8. One amazing team of four people, Kathryn, Tony, Oscar, and Brian make up our technology team.…
Dr. V’s Tech Blog, Superintendent Blog, Technology news
Portrait of a Graduate
As we commence the 2016-17 school, we have begun to reflect on the basic AIMS of this school year and every year. We are asking ourselves again the simple question; what do want our students to be like when they leave us in the 8th grade? We call this the…
Superintendent Blog
What’s a great 4C classroom look like ?
Across this country, American schools are innovating, changing, and re-inventing themselves in the calculus of a rapidly changing world. Not every school, of course, but schools like those who are members of edleader21 are focusing on the 4Cs; communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity among other practices that leaders know…
Superintendent Blog
Why the 4 Cs for Title 1 Schools?
There’s a movement afoot exemplified by edleader21 School Districts and Schools. These learning organizations recognize that the world is changing rapidly while many schools are not. Edleader21 schools and Districts seek to help their students develop the 4Cs; communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity. The 4Cs are basic practices and…
American Equation, Superintendent Blog
Thinking About Testing
The Ides of March are upon us. Soon it will be May and students in grades 3-8, and 11 will be asked to do state mandated tests called the CAASPP which utilizes the SBAC. Folks should follow the links of the acronyms in order to learn what these tests aim…
Superintendent Blog
I am a son
I am a son of an orphaned son of immigrants and immigrants’ daughter. I am a son of the low income class. I am a son of high school graduates with no college degrees who raised children who all earned college degrees. I am the son of truly wise and…
Superintendent Blog
Renaissance in Rio and Oxnard
Recently we have engaged in a series of visits of community members and staff to Rio School District classrooms and Oxnard High School District Classrooms. These visits have brought visitors from the business community, school community, city government and recently city government officials and educators from Kuanianen, Finland. It was great to…
Superintendent Blog
Why Art Matters?
This year the Rio School District has made a concerted effort to develop our Visual arts programs across our eight schools. In doing so, we hired two new outstanding art teachers who are working to develop art lessons and learning with students and teachers alike. This week we will hold…
District News, Rio Artists, Superintendent Blog
What does it take to be great?
The leadership of the Rio School District is aiming at greatness. We are rallying our resources and energies to achieve great things. Our main function as a school District is teaching and learning. Along these lines we have established goals and narratives that aim to help every child develop their…
Superintendent Blog
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American man that left teachers and students an endless legacy of learning for as long as there are schools , lessons, and the country we call the United States of America. In memory of his legacy, I often sing a song I wrote…
District News, Superintendent Blog
Rio’s Teachers are Diverse Learners
Rio’s Teachers are Diverse Learners. Our more than 200 teachers are a diverse set of people. Almost a third are new to teaching and new to Rio. Many more have long experience in teaching and here working for the Rio School District. Our teaching staff are engaged as learners and…
Superintendent Blog
Leadership
The Rio School District actively engages its employees to develop themselves as staff members and people. We look to develop leadership in every employee as well as every student. Our school site leaders, our principals, are key players in the quality of our schools and the resulting student educational outcomes.…
Superintendent Blog
Test Results, Learning, and Improvement
Last year was the first year California’s students took the new computer based SBAC test. Late this summer we received the results from the California Department of Education (CDE) and have been analyzing the data ever since. We look at various levels of the results and have been working to…
Superintendent Blog
21st Century Learning! What’s it All About?
Rio School District students and staff are working towards new learning goals. Like many Districts across the country we call them 21st century skills or practices. This acknowledges that we live in times that are rapidly changing and in many ways very different than just a few decades ago. Success…
Superintendent Blog
Caring…..How to Score a “5” on a scale of 1-5 for Caring
Caring is a 21st century skill and practice and has always mattered and will always matter in any century. Rio’s students, staff, and community care. This is why we have made the point of having 5Cs for our 21st Century Learning Aims: Communication, Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Creativity, and Caring. Caring…
Superintendent Blog
The Centrality of Reading
In the last three year at Rio, we have gone all in for reading. We have added many high interest books to our libraries and made sure our libraries are full time places to learn and explore books. We have encouraged students and teachers to engage in our Accelerated Reader…
Superintendent Blog
One to One to the World
This month, October 2015, the Rio School District will achieve its goal of having one connected computer device for each child enrolled. This is sometimes called one to one computing or even one to the world which is, perhaps, a better term. We’re calling it One to One to the…
Superintendent Blog
Rio’s “Forward Momentum”
More than one half of the 2014-15 school year is complete marking the half way point of my third year serving the Rio School District. Staff, students  and community have accomplished much in the last two plus orbits of the earth around the sun. Among the major elements of forward…
Superintendent Blog
S.T.E.A.M. – What’s it all About?
 is learning that focuses on science,technology,engineering, the Arts, and mathematics. The Rio School District is working to imbue STEAM learning in all our 8 schools in a variety of ways. In addition, we are in the planning process for constructing a new K-8 STEAM school that will combine architecture, curriculum,…
District News, Superintendent Blog, VCSTEAMN
Exploring Space and Time
This week students are out for Winter break but it will be my pleasure and adventure to go out to the observatory we are creating and record the shadow length. 6th grade students, their teacher (Mr. Spencer) and I are exploring learning through this project which examines earth/sun relationships and…
Superintendent Blog, VCSTEAMN
T.R.I.P. Meeting Update 11.21.13
The Rio Indigenous Project (TRIP) met successfully on 11.21.13. Representatives from the Rio School District, CSUCI, St. Johns Hospital, MICOP, Boys and Girls Club After School programs were in attendance with Dr. Faviana Hirsch Dubin attending via conference call. As usual great dialogue and idea development took place including plans…
Superintendent Blog
VCSTEAMN Colloquium# 3 “SEARCH”
Keynote Speaker: Andrew Schwab, CTO, Berryessa Union School District VCSTEAMN search colloquium flier Andrew Schwab is an educator, IT professional and 1:1 evangelist. As a member of the CUE Board of Directors, a CETPA Certified CTO and a Google Certified Teacher, he is active in supporting and growing the edTech community. Andrew…
District News, Superintendent Blog, VCSTEAMN
Instructional Vision
Recently, the Rio School District has been working on developing our vision of Rio Instruction. Like many other Districts and organizations, we are pressed to do two simultaneous and daunting tasks;help learners build and develop basic literacies while helping them develop 21st century learning practices. The three charts posted above…
Superintendent Blog
Quilts and Math
Quilting and Math are inexorably intertwined. Here are some excellent links for educators to get learners working on both. Math Quilts Explained Tying Quilts to Montessori Math and Geometry (PDF) QUILTING – Let’s Finish the Pattern (PDF)
Superintendent Blog

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