Thursday, March 16, 2017

Mirror or window?

Saturday morning I had the chance to read Pernille Ripp's post entitled "It's On Us".  Please take a moment to read it.  And then this blog, "I Cried at School Today" came across my Twitter feed, thanks to Mark French, a principal from Minnesota, tagging me in his tweet.  Please take a moment to read it.  It made me think of a few things but two in particular I'll share with you.  Lauren, Jen and I recently visited Marquette's School of Nursing for a tour.  We went into their learning lab and saw some of those fun one way mirrors, you know the ones that someone on one side can look through while those on the other side see only a mirror.  The other was the title of this post, and I found a blog post entitled "Are You a Window Person or a Mirror Person?" written by Bill Zipp which really hit home.  Please take a moment to read it.  The following image, which is a brief summary, is taken from Mr. Zipp's post.

Now I know what you're thinking.  "Jay, you want us to read three blog posts?"  Yes I do!  These three posts made me reflect on being a husband, being a father, and being an educator.  I'm sure they'll make you reflect, too.  So I have just one question, are you looking at a mirror or through a window?

Great things I saw this week...

  • Volleyball practice has started, and the kids are really enjoying it!
  • Kids having fun playing in the snow on Monday.
  • Socratic seminar in Science (Visit Dave's class to see it in action)
  • Kim stepping in for Matt while he is presenting and learning at the @shapeamerica conference in Boston (#shapeboston).  Thanks goodness Matt got to Boston safely on Monday.
  • An outstanding choir and band concert on Tuesday night.
  • Coding spheros in 5th grade Science. (Stop in and see!)
  • The overall effort and focus with test preparation and your willingness to change our testing schedule to benefit the students.
  • 5th and 6th graders skiing during PE class.
Calendar
Monday, March 20th
  • 5th and 6th grade Forward Exam
  • 7:30-8:15  Coaching
  • 4:15-5:15  BLT meeting
  • 7:00  Volleyball coaches' clinic
Tuesday, March 21st
  • 5th and 6th grade Forward Exam
  • 7:15-8:30  Volleyball practice
  • 2:30-3:00  Heather
  • 4:15-5:15  Homework Club
Wednesday, March 22nd
  • Final group pictures and candids for yearbook in the AM
  • 7:15-8:30  Volleyball practice
  • 9:30-11:30  A-team meeting
  • 1:15-2:30  5th grade interviews
Thursday, March 23rd
  • 7th and 8th grade Forward Exam
  • No grade level meetings with me due to Forward Exam week
  • Lynsey Bakkum shadows me in the PM (She's going for her administrative license.)
  • 4:15-5:15  Homework Club
  • 4:30-6:30  Volleyball games at Swallow
  • 4:30-8:15  7th and 8th grade arena conferences
Friday, March 24th
  • 7th and 8th grade Forward Exam
  • 7:15-8:30  Volleyball practice
Saturday, March 25th
Tweets, blogs, and quotes
(from Pinterest)

Stuck in a Rut or in a Groove? (from George Couros)


(from AJ Juliani. I know it's small, but it's powerful!)

Have you ever had one of those weeks where you were pulled in what seems like a hundred directions?  Me, neither. (Just kidding.)  This week was one of those weeks.  But I wasn't pulled in a hundred directions.  I was pulled in just one direction- trying to find what's best for each of our kids.  Think about your week here at school, and probably on your drive and at home, too.  You were going in a hundred directions, too.  And I bet your focus was on kids, ours here or yours at home, most of the time.  That's one of the things that impresses me about you- your focus on the kids.  Remember when we used to say "What we do is for kids"?  Well you all still live those six words.  Have a great weekend watching basketball, or dance, or hockey, or gymnastics, or whatever, and come back focused on our kids again.  Next week will be a great week because of what you do for and with our kids.
Be the one!
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell
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