Lee's Summit School Uses Grant Money to Promote Healthy Meals

Lee's Summit R-7 Nutrition Services effectively uses grant money to promote healthy meals The Lee's Summit R-7 School District is effectively using grant money to promote nutritious foods through the self-supporting Nutrition Services Department. As part of grants through Midwest Dairy Council, General Mills and Fuel Up to Play 60 programs, Nutrition Services is promoting breakfast programs at Meadow Lane and Summit Pointe Elementary Schools. Lee's Summit R-7 was selected as the Fuel Up to Play 60 district, and school staff members received 50 Kansas City Chiefs football tickets for the Nov. 27 game. Students participating in the breakfast programs at Meadow Lane and Summit Pointe were randomly awarded the tickets in pairs so that they could invite an adult. The students and their guests are also invited to a tailgate party hosted by the Kansas City Chiefs and Midwest Dairy Council through the school program. The students will receive dinner, have their photographs taken and participate in activities with dairy producers and farmers. Video footage from the tailgate party will be shown on the jumbotron during halftime and Lee's Summit R-7 will be recognized as the Fuel Up to Play 60 school district.          In addition to the breakfast grant money, Lee's Summit R-7 Nutrition Services was awarded grant monies from Midwest Dairy Council to help introduce new cheese products at Lee's Summit High School and Lee's Summit West High School. Through the grant, Nutrition Services staff is merchandising and selling cheeses that are not necessarily the norm in school cafeterias. All cheeses are individually wrapped and in single-serve size. Students will participate in taste tests, contests and giveaways as part of the promotion. Varieties include cheddar, Swiss American, mozzarella, cojack, Laughing Cow low-fat cheddar, Gouda and yellow wax cheddar. Cafeteria staff members are also offering grab-and-go packages of fruits and cheeses for students to purchase for lunch or after-school snacks. The program will begin in early December. At Greenwood Elementary, Nutrition Services is piloting Pepperidge Farm goldfish bread. The R-7 School District was selected for this pilot from among schools across the nation. Cafeteria staff members will use the whole-grain bread to make grilled cheese that will be served with tomato soup on Dec. 1. Students will also be asked for feedback about the new product, which is thin sliced and shaped like goldfish. R-7 Nutrition Services is recognized for its emphasis on healthy meals as well as involving students in decision-making when it comes to cafeteria meals. Each high schools and middle school has its own Nutrition Council, and representatives from all 18 elementary schools serve on the R-7 Elementary Nutrition Council. Through these groups, students provide feedback on new products and learn about healthy eating habits. For more information about R-7 Nutrition Services, visit http://www.leesummit.k12.mo.us/nutrition/default.htm. Post from http://www.leesummit.k12.mo.us

Board of Education Approved 2 Year Calendar

Board of Education approves two-year calendar for 2012-13 and 2013-14 R-7 School District officials announce plans for no-cost structured student supervision on late-start WednesdaysThe Lee's Summit R-7 Board of Education approved a two-year calendar, covering 2012-13 and 2013-14, at its November meeting. The calendar includes weekly time for structured teacher collaboration with each Wednesday beginning one hour late. On the late-start Wednesdays, buses will run one hour later than normal with all classes beginning one hour later. Teachers will report to work at their regular time and will work together to evaluate students' learning needs and develop strategies to meet these needs. Since the two-year calendar was approved on Nov. 17, R-7 staff members have continued to work to lower the price of the Wednesday only before-school student supervision. R-7 officials had stated that ongoing efforts were being made to lower, or even eliminate the costs. Following continuing discussions with families and staff members, R-7 officials announced a no-cost program, beginning with the 2012-13 school year, on Dec. 1. The school district will offer free structured supervision of students at all schools on Wednesdays, beginning 30 minutes before the school's regular start time. For example, a school that normally begins classes at 9 a.m. will begin classes at 10 a.m. on Wednesdays. This same school will provide a no-cost before-school program for students beginning at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesdays for up to 90 minutes. Lee's Summit R-7 will offer the student supervision 30 minutes before the normal start of school in an effort to better accommodate family schedules. Families already enrolled in Kids Country for child care throughout the week will see no increase in fees as a result of the late-start Wednesdays. To participate in the no-cost structured student supervision before-school program, families will be required to enroll their children in the Wednesday program in advance and also provide transportation to school on these days. On the late-start Wednesdays, school buses will run one hour late. More information about enrolling in the Wednesday before-school program will be available during second semester. "We had hoped to continue to reduce or eliminate the cost of student supervision on the Wednesday mornings," said Dr. David McGehee, R-7 superintendent, "We have determined that by working with existing school staff members, we will be able to offer the 90 minutes of supervision at no cost." The R-7 Collaboration-Calendar Team made the recommendation for the new calendar, emphasizing the value of weekly time for teachers to work on improving instruction and ultimately student success. During the weekly collaboration sessions, teachers will work together to review student data, evaluate student work, assess where students are in the learning process and design targeted instruction to address the needs of each student. Team members added that the time would be different from teachers' planning periods, and they would not be completing other work-day tasks such as returning parent phone calls, attending staff meetings, grading papers or answering e-mails. In addition, team members stated that this time would be dedicated to strengthening targeted instruction for students, a foundation of the district's Professional Learning Communities initiative. Research has shown that regular collaboration among teachers improves instructional practices and academic performance by students. Collaboration time is designed to ensure that teachers have the tools they need to help each student be successful – whether they are struggling with a specific concept and need additional assistance or have already mastered the lesson and need an extra challenge. For example, second-grade teachers could use collaboration time to discuss student performance on a specific science unit to determine which students require additional help and which students need enrichment activities. During the structured collaboration time, educators would develop specific plans for each student that are tailored to the student's learning style, abilities and unique needs. This is the first time that the Board of Education has approved a two-year calendar, which had been a request from numerous parents for a number of years. The two-year calendar will be approved annually so that parents will always be able to plan well in advance for family activities such as vacations. The complete two-year calendar is posted athttp://www.leesummit.k12.mo.us/districtinfo/calendars.htm. Post from http://www.leesummit.k12.mo.us