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?

Monday Musings - Oct 12

I know that this is a busy time of the school year, especially as we prepare for next week's Parent/Teacher Conferences. As you are getting all of your student work, data and anecdotal notes ready to meet with all of your parents, let's make sure to keep in mind:

• An ideal parent/teacher conference is a conversation between you and the child's teacher, so be sure to leave room in your scheduled time to allow for parent talk time. It may even help to jot down some questions to ask to help gather information during the conference to move forward with each student this year.  (Some possibilities include: What have you observed about your child? What do you think are your child's strengths? Where do you think your child needs to grow this year?)
• This is a great opportunity to build rapport/relationship with the parents of the student to make for a successful school year. By showing each set of parents what you already know about their child's progress thus far, you are showing them how important their child is to you. 

Some key pieces of information to share with parents include:

• Baseline pre-assessment data that you have and what goals you have to get the student to by the end of the year. 
• Identify the student's strengths and areas for growth, along with ways that the parents can help support the student to grow. 
• Share how the student has transitioned to this grade/class (or even new school for some). 
• Share how the student behaves in class/specials/recess or how they get along with peers. 

Friday Focus - Oct 9

Great Things I Noticed this Week:
*During an independent math work time a 5th grader blurted out "Yeah! I love cross-multiplying!" I'm not even kidding...that's what he said!
*A couple of teachers brainstorming together on a student behavior issue to help the child be more successful in the classroom.  It's this kind of dialogue and teamwork that helps us all be better for our students!
*A teacher sharing a piece of her own writing from her writers' notebook (that she had obviously put in a great deal of time to be able to grow herself as a writer and model a writerly life for her students).
*Students collaborating together in different groups (and together as a whole class) for a mystery skype session to figure out what city/state they were skyping with.
*A parent shared with me how much she appreciates seeing what her child is doing at school through the class Facebook page. She loves the teacher newsletters, but seeing pictures of the day show up in her Facebook feed help her with nightly conversations about "what did you do in school today?"


Events Next Week:
Wednesday - Grade Level Meetings (agenda below in Nuts & Bolts)
Friday - I'll be out of the building at CESA 6
 Staff Social Lunch (1st grade/Madsen)

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*Grade Level meetings agenda - Discussions on beginning of year MAP/F&P data and WIN. Please bring your data (to the data room).

*Please make sure that you send home the parent letters from the common sense media digital citizenship lessons as you are teaching them.

*As part of Connected Educator month you can download the ASCD book Digital Learning Strategies by Michael Fischer for FREE HERE!

*Parent/Teacher Conferences are almost here. Please let me know if you want me to join you for any of your conferences, because my schedule is already filling up.

Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!!!
*Great resource: List of Mentor Texts for Writers Workshop
*When Does Level Matter? Being Efficient with Small Group Instruction
*Disappearing Pencil Woes
*Pernille Ripp ‏@pernilleripp  59m

59 minutes ago

Some Rules We Need to Break In Our Reading Classrooms http://wp.me/p3Lwy8-Vm  (Great post!)

Monday Musings - October 5

I saw this quote from Shel Silverstein and wanted to share it with you this week.  Imagine if we all professed the final two lines to all the children we see each day.  "Then listen close to me. Anything can happen, child, anything can be." 

We need to provide the supports and encouragement for children to reach their goals.  We need to pick them up when they're feeling down on themselves or just don't even know what they are capable of.  I have shared with you before that I was one of those children with a dysfunctional home life and it was the supportive teachers that I know are why I was able to accomplish the things I did in school and most importantly, to develop the belief that I could do anything I set my mind to, that there were no limits other than in my own mind.  It was my teachers that coached me through difficult times, instilling in me that I would have to work hard, yet encouraging me along the way.

So, I challenge you to connect with that one student who will see you as their mentor, their "one person." I'm positive that it will amaze you!

Friday Focus - October 2

Great Things I Noticed this Week:
*Students in quick partner discussions to predict what will happen next in their read-aloud book.
*A 1:1 conference with a student about their MAP score, highlighting the areas of strength and then helping the student to create a plan to improve their area for growth.
*1st graders meeting with their writing partners to share with each other what they thought was their best piece of writing so far and what made it their best (after they had seen good examples).
*I overheard one student quietly say "I'm done" during writer's workshop and his neighbor said, "well you can start writing another one or add more details."
* I wish we could have somehow measured the amount of typical writing per student last year to this year to have data, because when I'm in classrooms I am impressed across all grade levels in seeing the  amount of writing by students.

Events Today/Next Week:
Today - 1:10 Homecoming Assembly, 2:20 Dismissal (you are free to leave AFTER the buses leave), 4:00 parade line-up, 4:30 parade

Monday - at 2:45pm I plan to announce the students of the month-please send them down for their pictures.
-evening 6pm parent digital citizenship presentation...please remind your students that parents can be entered in a drawing for an iPad mini for attending! :)

Tuesday - Picture Retake Day (on the stage)
*No Meeting (see notes below)

Wednesday - I'll be gone at a DPI event

"Nuts & Bolts" Notes:
*No staff meetings next week. Those were originally put on the calendar for on-demand writing norming, but we're already done. You can feel free to use this extra calendar space to meet as a grade level team or go to Tech Tuesday at 3:15 in the KASCADE room.


Blogs, Tweets & Pins...Oh My!
*Whole-Class Instruction...Then and Now (comparing Basal to Daily 5)
*Great Picture Books to Teach Tough Questions