Thank you!

The school year seems to start so quickly, but it ends even more abruptly than it begins.  I'd like to thank each and every one of you for your dedication to our kids, for your dedication to each other, and for your dedication to your passion.  It was a great year!

Great things I saw this week...
Becky, Carey, and Barb doing so much behind the scenes work for graduation.
Students still reading, writing, mathing, and all other types of academic work, even on the last week of school.
The graduation ceremony, with awards handed out at the ceremony for the first time in a long time.
Brainstorming ideas for next year to make it an even better year.

Calendar
Enjoy the next few days, or weeks.  You deserve it!
Friday, June 8th
I'm at school, at least until noon

Monday, June 11th and Tuesday, June 12th
I'm at Summer Spark all day

Wednesday, June 13th-Friday, June 15th
I'll be in school all day, or at least most of the day


Tweets, quotes, and blogs
Lessons From Ten Years of Trying... (from Pernille Ripp)

"Enjoy the little things in life because one day you'll look back and realize they were the big things."-Kurt Vonnegut

Pushing Past the Organizational Plateau (from George Couros. Take note of the highlighted line in the last paragraph, and the Bruce Lee quote is pretty great, too.)

It has been my personal experience that the true flavor, the real fun, the continuous excitement of work lie in the process of doing it rather than in having it over and done with.

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, statesman, scientist and engineer

3 Questions To Challenge Practices That No Longer Work in Education (from George Couros)

Tell Your Story (from Todd Nesloney)

Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.

Anne Lamott, writer

What We Can Give (from Pernille Ripp)

One doesn't discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.

Andre Gide, writer

Any kind of creative activity is likely to be stressful. The more anxiety, the more you feel that you are headed in the right direction. Easiness, relaxation, comfort -- these are not conditions that usually accompany serious work.

Joyce Carol Oates, writer

Take the time to focus on yourself, and your family, this summer.  Read a book that you want to read.  Find a happy place to be all by yourself.  Unplug from your phone and any other device you might have that connects you to email, voicemail, and social media.  Write someone a letter.  Go surprise a friend with their favorite beverage.  Go for a boat ride.  Go for a bike ride.  Go for a walk in the woods.  Do whatever it is that you do to find your happy place and do it.  If you do one of these things, or all of them, you will come back next year ready for the opportunities that a new school brings.  Have a great summer!

Be the one!

Jay

Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell