Friday Focus - December 18, 2015

*Thank you to everyone for the fun in the Christmas photo booth!  I will be uploading them all to a google drive folder to share with you in case you'd like to use them and will be printing them for the staff lounge. I'm so thankful to work with a group of professionals that can also take time to breathe and have a few laughs!
Please feel free to borrow the background/props for your class if you'd like!

Events Next Week:
Monday - Guest Author presentations in the IMC (see schedule that was emailed)
*Packer Monday
Tuesday - after school Bucket Fillers are going caroling at Clearview
Wednesday - Festive Holiday Attire

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes
*I know that you're all counting down the days, but please remember to try to keep things as normal as you can (I know that's hard to do). Also keep in mind the parent perceptions...if students come home saying all they did was watch movies and have parties then parents will be more likely to take students out of school on these days in the future. We can still learn a lot while tying in the theme of the year.

There's many of you on the Naughty List right now! To get back on the Nice list before Christmas, please do the following:

*Please sign up HERE for me to read to your class/talk about reading resolutions the first week back from vacation. 

*In addition to me reading/talking to classes about reading I'd also like to put together a bulletin board again to show students that all of the staff are readers too! (See an example below).  Before break I ask that EVERYONE (certified and support staff) email Marie a picture of yourself with a holding a book in front of you to hide your face. Please pick either your favorite book or your favorite genre. If you need to have Marie take your picture, just come on down to the office with your iPad and book so she can.  Marie will be printing the pictures for me (and keeping track of who still needs to do their homework to stay on Santa's Nice list). 

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!
*Mentor Texts for Nonfiction Text Structures
*An old favorite of mine that I love to read when thinking about Reading Resolutions: I Resolve to Read by Donalyn Miller

Monday Musings - December 14, 2015

I know what you’re thinking.  “One final full week” or "8 more days." 

You know what?  The kids, and their families, are thinking the same thing.  We are given only so many days with the kids so why not make these next seven school days the best they can be?  

It takes the same amount of energy to be awesome with the kids as it does to be less than awesome.  How is that possible?  If you are awesome, and you all are awesome, the kids will be awesome, too.  If you are less than awesome, the time you spend because the kids are less than awesome is the same.  Make sense?  I sure hope so.  

Be awesome today, and next week, and the days to come.

and...

Happy Muffin Monday! :)

Friday Focus - December 11, 2015

Great Things I Noticed this Week:
On Wednesday evening the IMC was filled with a mix of 30 staff members, parents, students and community members for the Beliefs, Vision and Mission Statements Committee. It was amazing to see the wide variety of stakeholders invested in the Dodgeland School District. Each person was asked to share a word/phrase that they think of about Dodgeland and their responses are my celebration to share with you this week, because their impressions of Dodgeland are a result of the continued dedicated focus that you have on making this the best school for students:

• Nurturing
• Care about students
• Supportive staff
• Progressive
• Preparing for the future
• Accomplished
• Sense of community
• Innovative
• Forward thinking
• Growing in every way

Events Next Week and Beyond:

Monday - Mid-quarter already! Please send progress reports home.

Tuesday - after school Bucket Fillers activity for 3-5th graders (I'll email a list out so you know who is staying)

Wednesday - Workout Wednesday

Grade Level PLC mtgs 

Friday - Polar Pajama Day :)

I might be out of the building for CESA 6 Learning and Assessment mtg

Monday 12/21 - Author John Brooks will present to all grade levels. I'll have the schedule to you next week, but for now you can see his info HERE.

Tuesday 12/22 - Bucket Fillers christmas caroling at Clearview after school

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:

*Grade Level PLC mtgs are what you need to work on/discuss for writing (I know some of you want to look at student writing/progression together for norming and some want to just plan ahead).

*Please sign up HERE for me to read to your class/talk about reading resolutions the first week back from vacation. 

*In addition to me reading/talking to classes about reading I'd also like to put together a bulletin board again to show students that all of the staff are readers too! (See an example below).  Before break I ask that EVERYONE (certified and support staff) email Marie a picture of yourself with a holding a book in front of you to hide your face. Please pick either your favorite book or your favorite genre. If you need to have Marie take your picture, just come on down to the office with your iPad and book so she can.  Marie will be printing the pictures for me (and keeping track of who still needs to do their homework to stay on Santa's Nice list). 

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!

*Embrace What You Don't Know

Monday Musings - the 12 Days of Christmas

It may only be December 7th, but this month is going to FLY by, just like a sled down a snowy hill (even though we don't have snow)!  I know I tell you over and over to keep things as normal as possible with your students and that end of the year countdowns just add to the chaos, but I can't help but do a countdown with the 12 days of Christmas theme to get in the spirit. So, starting tomorrow is the 12 Days until Christmas break. All that I will tell you ahead of time is what dress-up days there are for you. so you can plan ahead (and put it on your calendar so you don't forget!)

I'll send out an email each day for the rest of the countdown details.  

Friday Focus - December 4, 2015

Great Things I Noticed this Week:

• I know we told you all not to stress about conferring during writers workshop this first year, but I realized over the past couple of weeks that I saw several of you conferencing with individuals during writing and heard amazing conversations...
• One teacher shared specific praise of what the student included in his writing and then asked questions to hep pull out more details to add to his writing. 
• Another teacher was conferring with individuals to help them narrow in on their topic choices for informative writing. 
• Students writing "like scientists" as part of their informational writing unit. 
• Students playing a quick game of charades to practice vocabulary words in the 3 short remaining minutes they had between math and specials. What a great use of time!

Events Next Week:

Monday - Parent Technology Night 6:00-7:00pm (Officer Borchardt is presenting on student safety online). Please promote with your students...parents get their name in a drawing for an iPad mini each time they come!

Wednesday - Staff Meeting in IMC at 3:10

Friday - Staff Social Lunch (Special Ed/Speech/Cleary)

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:

*For Wednesday's staff meeting, please plan to bring a celebration focused on writing (I know for specials teachers you may have to bring a different type of student celebration) to share. This may be a specific mini lesson that went well or even bringing a piece of student writing to share. 

*The 12 Days of Christmas are coming...more details to come soon. :)

*With the extra play time in the morning for bus duty and winter weather, there have been some questions about protocol for for students. I trust you to make a decision when you're out there and tell the students, when you're on duty. Here are the guidelines we go by for regular recess:

• If there is snow on the woodchips or grass then all snow gear is required to be there.
• If the Grass is wet or muddy, it’s off limits.
• If there's salt, snow or slush then students should have boots to play in it. 
• If the slides are wet from rain (seriously, I thought rain should be over with by December, but I'm not so sure now!)...students shouldn't go down or they'll be all wet!

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!

*Why We Read: Reflections After Completing the Goodreads Book Challenge 2015 You all know I love reading goals and logging books on Goodreads, but I love how this blog post makes connections to leading our readers in the classroom.  

Find more on close reading activities HERE

Monday Musings - November 30 - The Countdown begins!

The Countdown to Christmas Begins!

The next 3+weeks are going to fly by fast. I hope you are well rested from the 5 day Thanksgiving holiday and ready for more fun learning!

Some things to keep in mind over the next 18 days:

• For some of our students who will say “it’s almost break” and lack motivation, it is time to push them & keep them excited and eager to learn.
• For our students who come from challenging circumstances at home and are feeling anxiety about not being at Dodgeland for break (and acting out because of it), it is time to show them how much you care & make the most of these next 17 days.
• For our students that just keep smiling & working hard each day, it is time to pull them aside and tell them how much you appreciate them.
• Help model bucket filling for our students this month so that they feel the positives of giving to others. I am also looking for people to help on Tuesday, December 15th after school for making Christmas cards and practicing singing Christmas carols and/or Tuesday, December 22nd to deliver cards to Clearview and spread the holiday cheer. Please let me know if you can join us for one or both days. 

Thankful Monday Musings - November 23, 2015

It is hard to believe how fast the school year is flying by and that it is already Thanksgiving. You have all been working incredibly hard this year; learning and growing as writers with your students, planning together as teams, focusing on responding to your students to help them all achieve, and all of the 8 million other little things you do every day to make Dodgeland the best place for all of our students!  You all deserve a 5 day holiday weekend to relax and rejuvenate.  :)

Image from Krissy Venosdale

I always enjoy this time of year, because of the holiday decorations, the goodies and watching favorite holiday movies (like Elf for comedic relief).  But thinking about it seriously, I have so much to be thankful for--my incredible family, supportive friends, and an amazing school to go to every day that is amazing because of all of you! As I network with educators in other schools, I always have so many reasons to brag about the amazing work that you do and how much you all truly care about our students, especially our neediest students. I often say that I'm dedicated to making Dodgeland the best school for our students for my own selfish purpose that my own children attend here, but I see the dedication and professionalism that each of you have to making Dodgeland the best place to be each day; for the students and the staff. I am thankful for all of you!

Friday Focus - November 20

Great Things I Noticed this Week:

• Kindergarteners holding focus to write independently for 25 minutes (yes, you read that number correctly). At sharing time, they read their story to partners and then each partner responded with "I noticed..." "I wonder..." It is amazing to see how much our youngest writers are capable of!
• At the board meeting a board member gave the utmost of compliments of how our elementary students were a part of the Veterans Day assembly last week, starting with shaking the Veterans' hands to just how well they sat for such a long assembly. I know this speaks to what you did in your classrooms to prepare your students for the assembly. Thank you!
• A parent of a new student has been so impressed with our school since her child transferred here. She loves school so much, which she never did before. She even wishes she could come on the weekends. Her daughter has always struggled in reading and hated it, but here she loves to read and is already seeing improvement. We truly have built a culture of children that love reading! :)
• Great conversations at each grade level about reading mini-lessons, conferring, small groups, etc. I emailed the notes out on Wednesday in case you'd like to see what other grade levels discussed.

Upcoming Events

I have no staff events on the calendar for next week. Ahhh...did you just hear the sigh of relief? Please relax, refresh and rejuvenate over the Thanksgiving vacation!

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:

*I know I say this every time we have a holiday, but remember with Thanksgiving and a short week that the more you get off track of the regular schedule, the more your students will get off track (with behaviors and everything). Try to keep things as normal as possible. :)
*I will be adding the annual Bucket Fillers activity to the December Calendar...this will be 2 Tuesdays for 3-5th graders after school. On December 15th they will make Christmas ornaments and practice singing Christmas carols. On December 22nd we will go to Clearview to go caroling and deliver the ornaments. Please let me know if you would like to join us for the holiday fun to bucket fill for our community.
*Just a reminder that if you would like to purchase gifts for the Giving Tree (items are on paper ornaments on the bulletin board by the computer lab/gym bathroom) to bring the gifts, unwrapped with the ornament by December 7th.

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!

*@teachkate  Nov 18

We can't expect kids to transfer EVERYTHING. We have to help them focus - what is the ONE thing you are going to carry with you? #tcrwp

(#tcrwp is the hashtag on Twitter for Teachers College of Reading Writing Program...Lucy Calkins. There is always all kinds of great things to learn from this hashtag of other educators teaching with writing and/or reading workshop!)
*Using the Writer's Notebook to Grow Ideas: Diving Into Information Writing

From Fourth and Ten blog

Downloadable HERE

Find more at Gottoteach

Friday Focus - November 13, 2015

Great Things I Noticed This Week:
*Students writing positive comments to others in their small group to recognize what they noticed in their writing.
*First graders writing with transition words in their writing of a how-to book.
*Students recording themselves reading their published piece of writing to go along with the picture taken of their writing so the writing and their reading of it is all together in one digital piece to be shared with others (and their parents).

Events Next Week:
Tuesday - Tech Tuesday Office Hours in the KASCADE room 3:15 to 4:00.
Wednesday - Grade Level Meetings and Workout Wednesday :)
Thursday - I will be out of the building
Friday - Staff Social Lunch (5th Grade/Kuhn)

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*For Grade Level Meetings, please plan to discuss reading...
It's easy to get into the routine of Daily 3, going from round to round, easing up on mini-lessons for reading strategies. Please plan to discuss what reading strategies you're going to be focusing on in the next month as a grade level. Also be ready to discuss your lowest readers; what strategies you are focusing on with them. Please bring what is necessary to share with your colleagues and have access to for our discussions (i.e. CAFE chart, lesson plans, reading group info, running records, etc.)

*Nov 16-24 we will be collecting non-perishable food items for The Gathering Source.

*Mrs. Breselow will be sharing information soon on The Giving Tree so that if you'd like to help purchase Christmas gifts for a family in need you can plan to shop on Black Friday.

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!
*Infusing Information Writing Throughout the Day
*25 Activities to Inspire Grattitude

Monday Musings - EP Update

I'm still working on reviewing your Student Survey Growth Plans and SLO/PGG's. I appreciate the deep reflection put into analyzing student survey results and making plans to improve your classroom communities with this student input in mind. A common area that many of you have found students to rate lower is: "I am able to do the work given to me." Several of you have used this feedback to help you in planning to differentiate for the various student needs in your classroom. As I ponder this student perception, I can't help but also think about the concept of a Fixed Mindset and a Growth Mindset and the impact that has on how students feel about the work they are given.

Over the next couple of weeks I will be continuing to review/finalize student survey growth plans and your SLO's. Please know that I may be scheduling times to meet with you about your SLO/PPG if I need additional information and to find out how I can help support your goals. Please know that if I meet with you it is not anything to be worried about...it is more for my learning and for my own SLO to support student learning/growth.

I am also continuing to get into classrooms and may give feedback verbally, via email or use my visit to complete a documented walkthrough form in mylearningplan. As you get notifications of my submitted walkthrough form in mylearninpglan, please review it and acknowledge it (and add a comment if you would like). My final step then is to finalize the form. I enjoy the conversations that we get to have about student learning and wish I could meet with everyone after being in a classroom, but it is just not a realistic goal for me. If you ever want to chat after I've been in your classroom, just let me know and we can figure out a time.

Personally, I will share with you that one of my top goals is to be in classroom frequently and to provide you with feedback. As I reflect on the 1st quarter of the school year, I have logged 173 classroom visits and provided feedback just under 70% of the time (either verbal, emailed or in mylearningplan). I hope to increase my rate of feedback in classroom visits during the 2nd quarter of the school year.

Friday Focus - November 6, 2015

Great Things I Noticed this Week:
*Several students excited to help paint the new mural in progress outside the art room. This extra splash of color is looking nice!
*Students reviewing their academic progress and writing a letter to parents to go home with their report card to talk about what they worked hard on this quarter and what their goals are for 2nd quarter.
*Several math lessons that included the teacher probing students for further explanation of their answers, how they got the answer or just explaining their thinking. I am always amazed to hear how many different ways our students can solve the same math problem!
*Students practicing having each other check for understanding for "read to someone." The teacher modeled for the class with a student partner and then students were sent off to practice with their partners. It was amazing to hear students prompt each other to check for understanding of what they read on that page and to hear one partner say, "What I heard you say is..."

Events Next Week:
Monday - Grades/comments due by 7:30 am
Tuesday - Report cards to go home
 Fundraiser Pick-Up 3:00-5:30pm in the commons.

Wednesday - Veterans Day Assembly starting at 9:25. Please review behavior expectations with your students before taking them down to the gym.
*Please dress professionally as we will have many community visitors here this day.

Thursday - Bus evacuation drills in the morning before school. This may cause some students to be late in getting to breakfast (and then to class). Please plan to hold off on attendance for this reason.

Friday - 1st Quarter Dodgeland Pride assembly starting at 2:30. Again, please talk to your class about behavior expectations for this assembly.
Evening Family Movie Night in the elementary gym, sponsored by the HS FBLA (free admission with concessions open for cost) at 6:30pm.


"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*Grade Level PLC Meetings were moved to Wednesday, November 18th.
*Just a heads-up: On Monday/Tuesday there will be some gentlemen in the building working on our heating/cooling units and will need to go into every classroom to check on the status of the air in your room. This should take about 5 minutes when they are in your room and it could be at any time.  

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!
*4 Sentences Educators Must Stop Saying About Students
*10 Ways Teachers Kill a Love of Reading
I discovered this video of Lucy Calkins talking about Being a Good Writer and having a classroom community that honors writers, paying attention to details, etc. (this would be a great video to share with your students!):

Monday Musings - Celebrate!

Many people think of celebrations as a time to get together with family/friends for a birthday, , wedding, anniversary or other reason for a party.  I would bet that some of your greatest family memories may come from one of these special events.

In school, we need opportunities to celebrate too and can do so for a variety of reasons.  When we celebrate together it can be a great way to motivate our students and to reinforce what we value (learning, hard work, bucket filling, etc.).  When we celebrate, it helps build the momentum for the work that we do and it's just fun! Several years ago we started our Friday celebration with the purpose of having students reflect on something that they are proud of for the week, have some students share their reflections on the announcements and get to dance/celebrate together.  We have been using our opportunities of sending high school athletes off to state competition to build a culture of Dodgeland Pride.

Image from careereallism

This year, I am excited to see the writing celebrations that are already starting to take place as students get to publish their work at the end of the unit. As you celebrate with your students, keep in mind that this is also a celebration of your work:

• Taking on a huge new way of teaching writing that you haven't had experience with before. 
• Reading every day so you know how to teach the next session. 
• Growing yourself as a writer as you learn the writing tips that you're going to impart with your students and be ready to share your own writing in mini-lessons. 
• The time you took with your students to practice/rehearse the procedures to make the writing workshop an efficient use of students' time for writing. 
• The time you have taken to get to know each of your students individually to help pull out their ideas/experiences to add into their writing. 
• Your attention to the teaching points in effort to keep the mini-lesson focused and mini so that students could spend more time writing. The more time they spend writing, the better writers they will become. 

This list could go on and on.  My point is, we have a lot to celebrate at this point of the year already, so please take some time to enjoy it with your students and be excited for the growth that is yet to come. I would love to see when your class is celebrating/sharing published work, so please let me know when it is scheduled and I will try to make it. 

And for our teachers that are not teaching writing, I didn't forget about you.  Please take some time to reflect with your students on the hard work you've accomplished in your content area so far and celebrate together too!

Friday Focus - October 30

Great Things I Noticed This Week:
*A reading mini-lesson on creating a mental image for comprehension and then had students apply the own strategy to their good fit books, writing down the 3-5 descriptive sentences that helped them create a mental image as they read. (Just imagine how this can also transfer to their writing)
*Students watching a video of the author, Lynda Mullaly Hunt, talk about her writing of Fish in a Tree for the Global Read Aloud. What the author had to say connected nicely with their current writing in writers workshop!
*Students practicing their math facts with partners and then recording their individual scores of correct facts on a chart to track their progress each day (what a great way to build intrinsic motivation for mastering those facts!).

Events Next Week:
Tuesday - staff flu shot clinic after school
Wednesday - 3:10 Staff Meeting in the IMC
  (I'll be out of the building at CESA 6 for most of the day, but will be back in time for the meeting)
Thursday - Last day of the quarter
Friday - Grades due by 8AM (report cards will be printed and put in your mailbox, hopefully by lunch/recess. Report cards will be distributed on Tuesday, November 10th)

"Nuts & Bolts Notes"
*For Wednesday's staff meeting, please bring your laptops. Our agenda will include SMART Notebook update info from Christina and discussion on WIN/RTI at the elementary.
*Edcamp Beaver Dam is Saturday, November 7th and a great opportunity for professional learning. You can find out more and register at: http://edcampbd.blogspot.com/  I'm looking forward to attending an Edcamp so close to home (I've traveled all the way to Chicago for one before!)

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!
*10 Not So Obvious Quotes for Teachers
*3 Things Students Desire to Hear From Their Teachers
*@ChristinaNosek  1

11 hours ago

"When you teach reading, you are teaching something that is largely invisible" Why lifting the level of talk is critical! #RUOS #TCRWP

Monday Musings - October 26

After an enjoyable 3 day weekend with no profound thoughts to reflect on (other than gratefulness of time to rejuvenate) I peeked at older posts for ideas on what to share in my Monday Musings and decided to revise a previous post since we have Workout Wednesday this week...

The above tweet has a great connection to Workout Wednesday this week; you can read the full article from that tweet HERE. 

The article shares some great ideas for adding movement to the classroom (in addition to the great brain breaks you all already do).  I couldn't help looking at the brain scan image and also reflecting on  how much I personally struggle in our PD days or at conferences when I have to 

sit for an extended period of time...I end up fidgeting, feel the need to stand, look forward to the bathroom break to get to move my legs and sometimes beg Mrs. Kuhn if I can borrow a yoga ball to sit on.  Think about how long some of our students sit...on the bus before school, at breakfast, in the classroom, at lunch, the bus ride home, etc.  Keep in mind what their brain scans might look like if they were taken in your classroom.  Are they getting a chance for movement? Are they getting that needed blood flow/oxygen to their brain so they're ready to learn? 

Try to add in some extra movement this week and especially join your students in some exercise on Wednesday...I'll bet you'll enjoy the movement too!

Early Friday Focus (Oct 22)

Great Things I Noticed This Week:
*Kindergartners learning/practicing how to give feedback to a peer sharing their writing by telling what they noticed in their picture/writing and asking questions to help the writer know what details to add for their reader.
*Heard a 2nd grader (that I know struggles academically) say "I just love writing!"
*Heard a 5th grade parent say how impressed she was with what her child was writing this year and that she wants to write when she comes home from school each day.

Events Next Week:
Wednesday - Workout Wednesday. Please feel free to wear your workout attire and add in some extra exercise with your students to benefit everyone in the room.
*That's all that's on my calendar for all staff...am I forgetting something?

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*Please remember to send Birthday students to the office on their special day to pick out a book for their gift.
*I know I probably don't have to remind anyone of this (because you all say how much you lack time to teach what you need to), please make sure that any special Halloween classroom activities/parties are just an event and not a half-day ordeal. The more you get out of the regular routine, the more your students will (and then you'll be counting down the minutes until 3:00!)
*My November principal's newsletter (on the back of the calendar) is all about math facts/fluency, but also references the parent letters in Math Expressions. Please make sure to send those home as they come up through the units. While Math Expressions is no longer new to you or your students, it is likely the parents first time with ____th grade Math Expressions.
*Just a heads-up that we will be collecting non-perishable food items during November to donate to the Gathering Source.

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!
*Introducing Daily 5 to Parents
*For Connected Educators month I had this blog post published on the Corwin Connect blog: Being a  Connected Educator - Better Than a Top 5

Read about Student Produced Strategy Cards HERE

Monday Musings - October 18

I have always shared this article with new teachers on the Phases of First Year Teachers; however, I've always found that I went through these phases as a veteran teacher and still now as a principal. The difference is that I know to expect these different phases of the year and that I will make it through each one.  I don't know about you, but I don't even need to look at this graphic to know that we're to the "survival" point of the school year (although I would have to add that to a few other places in the year too!)  

The key to the survival phase is to make sure that you are taking care of yourself, because you can't take care of others if you don't take care of yourself first.  I appreciate the thoughtful time you are putting into preparing for Parent/Teacher conferences and that you will have great conversations with your students' parents to inform and involve them in their child's learning.  I realize that this means you have a couple of late nights  this week so please make sure to make time for yourselves over this 3-day weekend to relax or do whatever it is that you do to rejuvenate. (For me-it will be catching up on some pleasure reading and enjoying Fall walks/runs with my family). 

Some other great tips to avoid teacher burnout can be found HERE in this post.  Here's the shortlist of tips:

• Ask for help
• Don't sweat the small stuff
• Don't play the teacher at home (I struggle with this one!)
• Take time for yourself
• Remember why you teach

Friday Focus - October 16

Events Next Week:
Monday - 4:00-7:30 P/T Conferences
Tuesday - 4:00-7:30 P/T Conferences
Thursday - PD Day

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*I've been seeing the notification for many survey forms, SLO's and Alt Com rolling in. Please know that I have not had the opportunity to look at any of them (so don't worry about why yours hasn't been responded to yet!) and thank you for your patience. I'm super behind on everything, which I'm sure you can relate to. If you haven't submitted yours, I have't noticed. :)


Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!
*"Have you read....?" The Art of Recommending Books
*How Can We Help Our Book Abandoners?