Monday Memo - Week of January 23

Great Things I Noticed Last Week:
*4th graders learned about Martin Luther King, Jr. in relation to bullying at school.  They then had small group discussions in response to a given scenario of a problem a student was having.  What a great connection to this month's Character Trait of problem solving!

*2nd graders watched a video clip from Into the Book on the strategy for questioning.  This was a great intro to them before starting their animal research reports.
* I had a few conversations with different teachers on professional books they were reading and wanted to share their reflections with me. I'm always amazed by the adult learning taking place in our building (and I always enjoy adding books to my "to-read mountain")!

Events This Week:
Monday - Report & Planning Day
Tuesday - 2nd Quarter Grades Due
Wednesday - Elementary Professional Learning Meeting - We will be looking at what practices are effective for helping close the gap of our struggling readers.
Friday - Report Cards go home
 Next Tuesday- Tech Tuesday (rescheduled from this Tuesday)

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*How often do you give your students a "brain break?" Please go to my blog to take a poll on the top right side. 
*Starting Tuesday I will be outside with 3-5th graders for the noon recess and then inside with them at lunch (just in case you're looking for me in the lunch room)


Tech Tip
*Have you used Into the Book?  These engaging video clips are free for Wisconsin Teachers HERE

 *This weekend the Washington Post published "Teachers take to Twitter to improve craft and commiserate"