Where did September go?

Holy smokes!  September has already come and gone.  September is the time to get procedures and expectations down, but don't forget to remind the students, and yourself, about those during the month of October.  October has a lot of learning for us (TILT/Writing committee meetings, WIN Wednesday, inservice day) as well as a lot of student activities (Boosterthon fun run, 6th grade Youth Night, 8th grade career expo, 8th grade Beauty and the Beast field trip, 5th grade hot air balloon field trip, Student Senate leadership camp, Red Ribbon Week, 5th grade to Biztown).  And we also have conferences on October 18th.  With the somewhat disjointed nature of October, a reminder or two about procedures and expectations will be necessary.  If I can help out in any way, don't hesitate to let me know.

Great things I saw this week...
Students giving a great effort during MAP testing
Teachers providing a great environment for MAP testing
Student choice during LA and Literacy
Specific and clear directions posted for student reference
Lots of reading in LA, and Math
Archery is really awesome
Struggles in Inventor elective (and it's a good thing!)
Kids and staff smiling
Great phone calls home

Calendar
Intermediate School Special Events

Saturday, September 29th
EdCampMiddleSchool at Concordia

Thursday, October 4th
Boosterthon fun run

Thursday, October 18th
Invitational only conferences from 4:30-8:00

Thursday, October 25th
All day PD day from 8:00-4:00

Friday, October 26th
No school

Tweets, quotes, and blogs
Be More Chef: What I Wish For Every Kid (from AJ Juliani)

The Fallacy of the "Either/Or" Scenario (from George Couros)

The Connection Between Innovation and Time (from George Couros)

Tests are a gift. And great tests are a great gift. To fail the test is a misfortune. But to refuse the test is to refuse the gift, and something worse, more irrevocable, than misfortune.

Lois McMaster Bujold, writer

Self Care Streak Challenge (from Sarah Johnson)

(from Lesley Ann on Facebook)

#HiveSummit (This is from Michael Matera, is free, and has lots of videos from some outstanding educators.  I would encourage you to take a look if you are able.)

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter
Merton Intermediate School Facebook page
mertonint on Instagram
Family smore from 9.28.18

Team website updates
Please look over your team websites and update them as necessary.  If you haven't "changed over" to the new Google, give it a try.  Here's what mine looks like now.

Thanks for another solid week of learning, conversation, and keeping kids at the forefront of all that we do.  I've gotten a number of emails and phone calls from families, as well as some conversations at student pick up, about how happy our families are about the education that we are providing for their children.  They don't just talk about the academics.  They talk about the connections you make with their children.  What you are doing is vital for the growth of our children, and you do it very well.  It's an honor to work with you every day.
Be the spark!
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell

Rut or groove

I have to start out with a weird story.  As I was thinking about what to write this week, I realized that what I was going to write I actually wrote one year ago.  So, instead of rewriting my thoughts, I decided to share them with you again below.  Sometimes it's important to look back and repeat something, and other times it's not.  I hope this is important enough to repeat.

We are in the midst of our third week of school.  Procedures should be in place, with a tweak here and there and a reminder from time to time.  When that happens you might find yourself in a groove or a rut.  Which describes where you are?  It is great to get into a groove as an educator, but doing the same thing over and over, even if it's good stuff, can get you into a rut.  And if you stay in the rut long enough, it might look a bit like the car above.  So how do you stay in a groove without it turning into a rut?  Here are some suggestions.
*Challenge yourself not to do the same thing every day.  For example, Kahoots are effective but not all of the time.  Have the kids develop review games sometimes instead.
*Don't talk to only the same staff or students every day.  Make a connection with someone new every week, or day, so that you get to know more of the great people in our school.
*Open your classrooms to others, and visit other's classrooms, too.  There are amazing things happening in our school every day.  Stop in a classroom and check it out.
*Connect with educators outside of school.  We don't know what we don't know.  Sidle up to someone at a conference.  Connect on a Twitter chat, or two.  Join a Voxer group.
Let's make it a "groove"-y year!

Great things I saw this week...
Students and staff helping each other out.
The excitement of archery in 5th grade.
6th graders building their skimmers.
Measurement activities in math class.
Lots of kids reading.
A variety of staff conferring with students about their work.
5th grade Family Information Night
Watching LA teachers and students while learning from Brenda
Math excitement during Homework Club
7th and 8th grade Family Information Night
Mrs. Tylke and her work with Boosterthon
6th grade band working on "Bringer of War"
The look on Andrea's face when she saw me dressed as a pirate (Ask her about it.)
5th graders and 7th graders doing archery at the same time
Watching Matt play basketball with the kids during gym
Skimmers in the cafeteria
True concern for the well-being of our students during grade level meetings

Calendar
Learning rounds with Brenda and Jay started this week
Ask me if you want to know what this means!

Intermediate School Special Events

Monday, September 24th
First BLT meeting  4:15PM
6th grade Family Information Night 5:30PM
School board meeting 7PM

Tuesday, September 25th
Boosterthon kickoff 8:45-9:15ish
Adjusted schedule for the morning

Saturday, September 29th
EdCampMiddleSchool at Concordia

Thursday, October 4th
Boosterthon fun run

Thursday, October 18th
Invitational only conferences from 4:30-8:00

Thursday, October 25th
All day PD day from 8:00-4:00

Friday, October 26th
No school

Tweets, blogs, and quotes
Forget Lawnmower Parents- I Was a Lawnmower Teacher (from We Are Teachers)

A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.

Jackie Robinson, baseball player

One Important Question That Leads to Student Empowerment in Schools (from George Couros)

Today I was coached (from me)

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter
Merton Intermediate School Facebook page
mertonint on Instagram
Family smore from 9.21.18

Thanks for another great week.  Mini-observations will start next week.  Nothing will be announced, but if you get an email from me with notes and the tagging of evidence, remember that I will not only include the "I noticed..." and "I wonder..." statements, but also one of the four questions I mentioned at grade level meetings.  You'll then need to either respond in writing or set up a brief meeting for a discussion with me.  Thanks for always being prepared and for having your teaching point there for the kids, and me!
Be the spark!
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell

I was coached today

When I was a high school athlete, I wanted to be better.  When I was a college athlete, I wanted to be better.  In order to be better, I listened to my coaches and did my best to follow their training plans and suggestions for improvement.  I rarely if ever questioned what they told me to do, except maybe when I was a long jumper and sprinter in high school.  What's the purpose of running two miles when the most you'll ever run in competition is 220 yards (now you know how old I am)?

What I'll tell you is that because I listened to my coaches and practiced, I became a better athlete.  Hard work pays off in athletics, but every athlete has a limit.  The question is, what is that limit?  How will we ever know if we aren't pushed to be better.  Growing up as a sprinter and long jumper, no one would have known that I would become a marathon runner, ultimately qualifying for the Boston Marathon.  My coach for my qualifying run was Hal Higdon, and not because I ever spoke to him during my training.  It was because I found a training plan online and followed it almost to the letter.  I did meet Mr. Higdon at the Chicago Marathon Expo the year I qualified for Boston.  We briefly discussed my training, which consisted of lots of long runs on my treadmill, and he told me he didn't think I would qualify.  He felt the treadmill wasn't the place to do long runs.  That just made me want to prove him wrong, and I did.  I followed Mr. Higdon's training plan mileage and pace, but I was able to alter it to meet my situation.  Good coaches can give you the training plan, but there needs to be a little wiggle room.

Why do I bring this up?  I bring this up because I was coached today.  I realized that I still have a lot to learn about our Language Arts program so I went to classrooms today with our Literacy coach and we took notes together, had discussions during the lessons we saw, and had further discussion afterwards.  I was learning about teaching points, gradual release of responsibility, and ways to facilitate small groups.  Did I already know about these things?  I sure did, but I wanted to get better.  You know what else I can tell you?  Our staff wants to get better.  We both benefit from our coaches.  But there is one sticking point that can get in the way of coaching and learning-mindset.

My mindset has always been one of a learner.  I can't learn on my own all of the time.  I can do personal reflections, but I need feedback on my performance from an outside source, too.  My mindset was put out there last night on the #nyedchat Twitter chat.

Jay Posick

@posickj

A3 I think a great way to get better is to have a coach, mentor, colleague, or admin provide feedback conversations following a lesson. Everyone needs a coach, even Lebron James! #NYEDChat

Carol Varsalona @cvarsalona

A3 #NYEDChat

Show this thread

7:29pm · 17 Sep 2018 · TweetDeck

I have been coached by principals, superintendents, instructional coaches, teachers, and many others, including my wife, about ways to improve as a principal.  It's happened face to face, over the phone, in a Google hangout, on Twitter, on Facebook, and on Voxer.  All of these coaching experiences have helped me to become better.  But I'm not done being better.  There is so much more I need to learn, so I'll keep searching for more coaches.

So my next big challenge is this- How can I help educators realize the value of being coached?  Who of you out there can provide me some suggestions and a plan?  You know, who is willing to coach me through this challenge?

It's not just another week

As you look back at week two, there are probably moments that you remember because of their greatness and other moments that you remember because of their awfulness.  Do me a favor and concentrate on that great ones.  Don't even let those awful moments sneak in.  So, what's the great one?

Dramatic pause...

Now, share it with someone.  Anyone.  There's a reason that it's a great moment so it should be shared.  In fact, I would love to compile a list of your great moments from the week so that everyone knows about them.  This could be our first staff blog, play or pass.  Now that would be my great moment of the week.

Great things I saw this week...
physical activities in PE.
outdoor recess all week!
math discussions between students and staff.
burning metal in Science.
safety reminders before burning metal.
students reading in math class.
small group work in math class.
the bands working on new music.
7th and 8th graders playing together at recess.  The 5th and 6th graders are playing together, too!
individual conversations between staff and students about math and reading.
the kids were awesome at the assembly, and so were you!
amazing discussions with kids in class.  You are really getting to know them as learners.
terrific grade level meetings with a bit of humor thrown in.  It's great to laugh together.

Calendar
Learning rounds with Brenda and Jay start this week
Ask me if you want to know what this means!

Intermediate School Special Events

Saturday, September 15th
Choir car wash and grill at Hartland Piggly Wiggly

Wednesday, September 19th
Workout Wednesday for staff and students
Boosterthon staff kickoff 8:00AM
Culver's Night

Tuesday, September 25th
Boosterthon kickoff

Saturday, September 29th
EdCampMiddleSchool at Concordia

Thursday, October 4th
Boosterthon fun run

Tweets, quotes, and blogs
At the End of the First Week (from Pernille Ripp)

The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.

Stephen Covey, writer and educator

The Balance Between Struggling and Developing Strengths (from George Couros)

#InspiringOurSchool challenge.  When you post to Twitter, add the hashtag for a chance to win some cool stuff from InspireYourPeople.com

7 Lessons Every Kid Should in School (That Have Nothing to Do with Curriculum) (from AJ Juliani)

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter
Merton Intermediate School Facebook page
mertonint on Instagram
Student assembly from 9.12.18
Family smore from 9.14.18

I hope that you enjoy the weekend.  We just finished our first 5 day week.  I'm tired, but it's a good tired.  I know a weekend of golf and the Packers game will get me energized for another great week.
Be the spark!
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell

What did you learn this week?

The title of this blog may seem a bit odd, but I really want you to reread it and reflect on it.  What did you learn this week?  About the kids?  About your colleagues?  About yourself?  As an educator, one of the most powerful things I do every day is reflect on the things I was involved in during the day.  I would encourage you to do the same.  The #AWSAconnect chat that I co-moderate did just that last night.  Here is the promotional poster from the chat.

Maybe you might even feel the urge to blog about your week.  Were you someone's spark or was someone a spark for you?  If you do blog, I'd love for you to share it with me.

Did you complete this and meet with me?
Getting to know you?
If not, please complete the form before the end of the day on Tuesday.  The meetings can happen later.

Great things I saw this week...
Smiles on students' and staff members' faces as the kids came back!
Teamwork in 7th and 8th grade. (Ask the 7/8 staff about their first day.)
The flexibility of our cafeteria staff with a different schedule Monday and a tighter schedule for the year.
The first 5th grade Science experiments.
6th graders making an orthosis for students with cerebral palsy.
Watching 6th graders problem solve technology issues with their entire class.
First team meetings were so positive!  Let's keep it up!

Calendar
Intermediate School Special Events

Wednesday, September 12th
WIN Wednesday

Thursday, September 13th
Grade level meetings
PTO meeting
Family Night (picnic/ice cream social/Principal Chat)

Saturday, September 15th
Choir car wash and grill at Hartland Piggly Wiggly

Wednesday, September 19th
Boosterthon staff kickoff 8:00AM
Culver's Night

Tuesday, September 25th
Boosterthon kickoff

Thursday, October 4th
Boosterthon fun run

Tweets, quotes, and blogs
What Middle Schoolers Want From Relationship Building With Teachers (from Noah Geisel)

(from Bright Solutions for Dyslexia Newsletter)

3 Things in Education That Have Stayed the Same and How They Have Changed (from George Couros)

(from Bright Solutions for Dyslexia Newsletter)

On this teen's first day back, his school life changed thanks to one act (Thanks for sharing, Heidi!)

(from Pinterest)

The Importance of Curiosity and Challenge in Education (from George Couros)

How to Prove Them Wrong (video from Bright Solutions for Dyslexia Newsletter)

The Rights of Our Readers (from Pernille Ripp)

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter
Merton Intermediate School Facebook page
mertonint on Instagram
Family smore from 9.7.18

Thanks for a terrific week.  I look forward to seeing you create more sparks next week.
Be the spark!
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell