Reflections on a post...

Last week I shared a blogpost with our staff and also with the world on social media.  It was entitled "Merton is the BEST" and can be found here.  In the post, I shared about our journey as a school from my first days as principal in 2007.  It was one of those stream of consciousness posts, a chance to clear my head before going to bed, about how our current situation has made us even more of a family.  I received some feedback with some thoughts about what I wrote.  It may help to read the other post first but even if you don't, know that the trust that our staff has with me and one another is one thing of which I am proud.  I am also proud of all that they do for and with our kids and each other, not just now but every day.  Here is an email with information removed to allow anonymity.  I was granted permission to share this.

Disclaimer: You know I will shoot straight with you even if you don't like it...

I think it depends...We love working with each other and some of the best people I know are the people I work with.  We do consider each other family. I do not feel that this enhanced that feeling because the bond is colleague-colleague and has been strong for many years. I do NOT feel that this transition to online learning was difficult for (staff member) or for me.  We set our minds to it and converted everything. So did (other staff members). That part is easy; just time-consuming. What is difficult is seeing those garbage bags lined up in the gym and seeing the sweet faces of the (grade level students) who sent us videos. We sincerely miss the kids  I almost broke down when I spoke to (student) today. It's really hard to not have the kids with us. I know you know that. I know you feel that too.

You write: "We did things without asking.  We did things before we were asked.  We didn't complain.  We questioned and got answers and acted.  The answers changed and we didn't complain.  We knew we were flying the plane while we were building it.  We didn't sit back.  We offered our time, our creativity, our assistance, and our leadership."

I think the staff will like it better if you acknowledge that we have been doing just that for many years and that's why you are not surprised that your staff, your family responded with such stellar professionalism and dedication.  I feel like you have teachers who have always acted this way.

I think right now your blog reads too much like you are surprised or shocked that the intermediate staff is responding so well. That might not go over well. You also repeat "didn't complain" and that implies you are pleasantly surprised no one complained. That might not go over well.

In the end, you are right and Merton staff responded well.  But I think it is because we always have and not because we have just recently become a family.

Okay, maybe now I will really turn off my computer for the night...

This is why I love my Merton family.  They share their thoughts and ideas with me without concern of retribution or retaliation.  They know that I will reflect and make sure that I do just a little better tomorrow than I did today.  Isn't that what we should all try to do anyway?

Learning out of necessity

We are in the midst of an incredible time.  What we do during this time is what is most important.  I have spent time learning, sharing, and noticing.  I've learned more about video conferencing in the last week than I probably would have if not for our current situation.  I've shared the lessons we've learned with others about our school's virtual learning.  I've noticed even more the power of the relationships our staff has with our students and each other.  Why didn't I do any of this before?  Because I was in a routine and I was comfortable and everything was just fine.  And my new learning and teaching became more personal.

My brother-in-law Paul, who has more knowledge about more things than I ever will, shared this quote in our family text message yesterday-

Pictured above the quote is my 83-year-old father, Joe.  He's good with a landline and solitaire on the computer but until Friday he and my mom didn't know how to do a Google hangout.  They do now because we still need to stay connected with their family.  I taught my sister and her daughter, too, and just finished teaching my godson.  The one pledge I made with my mom and dad is this-

I promise not to answer a video call while I'm in the bathroom.

I seriously did the whole, "Repeat after me" part of a swearing-in ceremony.  We have had a couple of laughs about that.  The necessity of learning video calls made it possible for all of us to teach one another and to learn something new.  I learned the importance of patience with my parents because it was vital for me to make sure I could still see them "face to face".  It's important for them to see us, too.

So what's something new that you learned out of necessity, or just something new you've learned, in the last week?

A shoutout from a student to our teachers

On Friday, March 20, 2020, Makayla, one of our 8th grade students asked to have this email shared with the staff at Merton Intermediate School.  Our kids appreciate their teachers whether they tell us or not.  Here is her email.

HELLO MERTON STAFF!!!!! 

I don't have all of you as my teachers but I truly TRULY believe you guys need a huge appreciation for the work you guys have been doing in order to keep up our education. You guys are breaking your backs and getting headaches to teach a bunch of kids, and to me that takes courage, love,strength,passion, and perseverance. I don't know if anyone else has acknowledged you guys, but I just have to say you guys are doing a really really amazing job! I can't even try to relate to the pressure and obstacles you all must go through, but let me say one thing, you guys are truly HEROES!!! you guys set the foundation of our future and teach us things that we need to know in order to be successful in life, you are the leaders that move each generation to become leaders for the next, and although some may take your lessons differently than others, your guys work is not going for granted. I have been at merton ever since I learned how to tie my shoes and every teacher i have had has taught me something that made me the person I am today, and no I am no straight A student, but school to me isn't just about your GPA its about the people you get to meet and the stories you are told. And wow, let me just say merton staff you are all amazing people. I look at children around the world who don't have an education and wish i could just CLONE ALL OF YOU!! because I believe every child would be absolutely blessed if they had teachers like you all in their lives. Lots of kids hate school but that's because they just look at it as work,paper,pencil,and numbers, but lord is it so much more than that. Ive recently watched a movie on netflix called the "Freedom Writers" and its about one teacher who influenced and changed an entire classroom of stubborn kids. And the power and passion that teacher had in that movie, reminds me of all of you, because you guys don't just care about getting your students homework, no, you love us. Doesn't matter race or intelligence, you all care about us, even the ones that are a bit harder to work with . I Appreciate you guys, and I am extremely grateful for every single one of you, I hope this puts a smile on your face, because I wish you all happiness.

Anyways, Thank you for taking your time to read this, you are all an inspiration to me. Thank you for working so hard. I miss you all, and have a good day

-Makayla

P.S 

AIR HIGH FIVE TO YOU JANITORS FOR KEEPING MERTON SQUEAKY CLEAN, sorry you have to deal with us stinky kids.

Thank you, Makayla, and we hope to see you in person again soon.

Merton is the BEST!

13 years ago I became a Merton Mustang.  I was proud.
We started out talking about being the BEST (Believe, Encourage, Share, Trust)
We began talking about being a family.
We lived through grade level changes, content changes, room changes, colleague changes, and Act 10.
That was difficult, but we became more like a family.
We lived through Sandy Hook, Stoneman Douglas, and so many other school changes.
That was difficult, but we became even more like family.
We lived through weddings, babies, and funerals.
And our family got stronger.
These last five days we have become a family.  We did things without asking.  We did things before we were asked.  We didn't complain.  We questioned and got answers and acted.  The answers changed and we didn't complain.  We knew we were flying the plane while we were building it.  We didn't sit back.  We offered our time, our creativity, our assistance, and our leadership.  We did all of the things family members would do.
We did things in 5 days that others haven't been able to do in 5 years or 50 years.  We changed the way we are creating learning for our students and families.  And our families are appreciative of our efforts.  Last night I received 14 pages of Facebook comments.  That's pages, not comments.
We are pushing ourselves to learn new things.  We are sharing more.  We are taking chances.  We are taking risks.  We are trying new things.  We might not succeed right away, but we're showing our kids what it's like to learn from our failures.
We didn't learn how to do any of this in our education classes.  It was not taught in teacher school or principal school or any school.  We worked together to do what we thought was best for our kids.  And what we have done is amazing.  We will reflect and reconsider and we will continue to make things better for our kids.
I could not be prouder to go to school with anyone else.  We are a family.  We are Merton Mustangs.  We are the BEST!

Tom Murray shared this and it made me think of you.  Kids today need you, and you are always there for them!  Thank you!

Jen's friend shared this so I had to share it with you.

Some final thoughts...

It's been a crazy week.  One day ago today we could never have predicted what this week would have brought.  A fishing buddy and middle school friend of mine, Erich, used to say this once in a while- 

"Expect the unexpected."  

We'd be sitting in my old boat or in a blow up two person raft, not catching much.  And then out of the blue he would cast, often in an unexpected direction and say, "Expect the unexpected."  Sometimes he would catch something and sometimes he wouldn't.  The point of the story is that when the normal wasn't catching fish he would try something at least somewhat different.   We are in that position now.  And tomorrow might look different than today.  But I know that whatever today brings, we are ready for it.  Let's concentrate on today.

#MertonProud!

#JustInspire

Jay

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

Focus on the kids, and yourself

I started this for last week and paused it.  I made a change to the calendar, a shoutout to Ron, and added a salutation at the end.  Otherwise, this was where I was in my efforts on Thursday night when I got a call from Nicole Russ.

For a number of reasons, we're in a state of uncertainty.  There's the schedule and the coronavirus but there is also one constant- the kids.  I'm proud of each of you and the focus you maintain on our kids and what's best for them.  When the kids are in front of you or beside you, your focus is on the kids.  You sometimes don't even know that I stopped in.  But you need to remember to focus on yourself, too.  You know what I learned this week?  I bring work home and most often it stays in my bag.  The days have been long and hard and sometimes you just need to go home and watch "Swamp People".  Yes, I'm doing that while I'm typing this up.  There are no answers yet but we can work together to find the answers that are best for our kids and for us.  It's almost like we're building the plane while we're flying it.  I know that we'll get through this uncertainty together.  But to do that we need to keep our focus on the kids and take care of ourselves.

Holding Onto Hope

(adapted from an email from Todd Nesloney)

In this time of fear and uncertainty the one thing we can hold onto is hope. This week has been a challenging one for me. Family concerns, financial concerns, and today is the anniversary of my mother's passing two years ago.

But in the midst of all of this I hold onto hope. And I'm reminded to check in on others.  Check in on your colleagues and friends to stay connected and to support one another.  Reach out to our students so they know you are thinking about them.

Please find time today to check in on administrators in your area. They are stressed and making extremely difficult decisions that will affect and upset many. Many are already overworked and this time of year is already incredibly stressful. I know the weight this is adding on so many of their shoulders right now as they try and figure out next steps.

Please check in on families. Some are worried about lost wages and feeding their children. Maybe you can help?

Please check in on the elderly. They are stressed and overwhelmed and often feeling even more isolated now.

Please check in on those around you who are suffering severe financial concerns with the amount of cancellations of travel, events, and more.

Please check in on those who suffer with anxiety or depression. Instances like what is happening now overwhelms those of us who struggle with these. No amount of "just pray" or "go outside" helps. But being present and listening is a nice start.

Please check in on friends and family in heavily affected areas.

Just be calm. Be kind. Be helpful.

The worst thing we can do right now is to put our head in the sand, claim "it's not as bad as the flu", blame someone else for this, or anything else.

HERE is a list of free resources from education companies during this time of immense school closures.

HERE is a "Prayer for Such a Time as This" from Tanner Olson.

Great things I saw this week...
Our custodial staff is amazing!  Set up for the concerts on Tuesday, tear down on Wednesday after the assembly, and set up for the NJHS induction ceremony on Thursday.  And they're still keeping our school clean and awesome.  Thanks!
The kids, Jonathan, and Michael at our concerts on Tuesday, assembly on Wednesday, and NJHS ceremony on Thursday.  It's great to see their talents.
Becky P. and the NJHS kids before, during, and after the Induction ceremony
The 5th grade Make an Impact projects.
Ron on Thursday night at his house with two phones gathering information to do what was right for our students and staff.  He was amazing!

Calendar

Please continue to review the Intermediate Special Events Calendar at our weekly grade level and specials meetings, too.

Monday, March 16th
School board meeting 7:00

Tuesday, March 17th
All staff report from 8:00-4:00

Wednesday, March 18th
All staff report from 8:00-4:00
Culver's Night 4-8PM?

Saturday, March 21st-Sunday, March 29th
Spring Break

Tweets, quotes, and blogs

Spring Forward...and Not Just on the Clock (from Dave Burgess)

"Don't spend time beating on a wall, hoping to transform it into a door."

Coco, Chanel, fashion designer, businesswoman

Elevating the Work Across the Hallway (from George Couros)

"A promise made is a debt unpaid."

Robert W. Service, poet, writer

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter

Merton Intermediate School Facebook page

mertonint on Instagram
Presentation from Wednesday's assembly
Family smore from 3.6.20 (unfinished)

See you tomorrow.
#JustInspire
Jay
Take care of the kids.  Take care of each other.  Take care of yourself.- John Gunnell

It's a time to support one another

We're all dealing with something that none of us learned in "principal school".  Starting on Thursday, COVID-19 (coronavirus) became real for us.  We had meetings with our administrative team and our instructional team.  We had begun to plan for a possible school closure.  And then Thursday night we became aware of a possible case in our school community.  We moved quickly with the incredible leadership of our superintendent and Waukesha County and realized that we needed to close school on Friday for the health and well-being of our students and staff.  That was followed by two separate Google hangouts with our administrative and instructional teams.  We discussed the uncertainty of the length of our closure and what we needed to do to support our students, our staff, and our families.  We are still discussing what learning will look like, realizing that what is most important is the health of our school and our community.  We are hoping to have our staff come in a couple of days next week to provide support and time for creating virtual learning experiences for our students.  We have provided families with a technology survey and will reach out to those who haven't completed it so that we can make sure our students have the necessary technology access for some of our learning.  We are speaking with our food service about meals for our students.  We are speaking about ways to maintain and even foster the relationships that our teachers have with our students.  We are speaking about ways that we can give access to our schools because many of our students left most of their school supplies at school.  These are just some of the things we are thinking about.  But I am also thinking about these things, and I encourage you to do the same.

• When is the right time to check in with students, staff, and families?

• Some staff have reached out to me and I have reached out to some staff.  This morning I'm going to check in with staff either via video or Voxer.  I'm honestly not sure what my message will be yet, but I'm certainly going to have my thoughts organized.  Monday I'll be checking in with students via email and our school Instagram account, just to check in.  Our superintendent will be reaching out to families on Monday to update them on our specific situation and what we will be doing moving forward.

How often do I check in with our students?

• The students are my why and my daily interactions with them are what I will miss most.  I'm trying to figure out ways to connect to maintain the relationships we have with one another, but not being able to high five or fist bump or elbow bump will be tough for me.  I'll probably try some videos, but that's just one-way communication.  Student cell phone numbers aren't in our student information system so I can't just give them a call at home because many families, mine included, have gone away from landlines in their homes.  I know I'll post things on our school Instagram account but that's one-way communication, too.

• How often do I check in with our staff?

• My plan is to continue my weekly staff nuts and bolts, but I'm not sure about the frequency of checking in with staff outside of this normal weekly communication.  Do I check in on Mondays and Fridays?  Do I check in once a week?  Should I organize Google hangouts or Zoom meetings (just saw Zoom is free for schools impacted by the coronavirus) with grade level or content teams?

• How often do I check in with our families?

• My plan is to continue my weekly family smore, but I'm not sure about the frequency of checking in with families outside of this normal weekly communication.  Do I try to connect with Facebook Live?  How can I provide "office hours" in case families have questions?

• How do I take care of myself?

• I'm fortunate to have an amazing wife, daughter, and family who support me all of the time, but we are in uncharted waters.  I also have an unbelievable PLN who is always there for me and for each other.  None of us have gone through anything like this before and we are encountering something new almost every day.  I'm going to make sure to connect with my PLN daily to make sure that they're okay and to get some support myself.  As an example, after a string of voxes, Joe Mazza texted me just to check in.  We had a 15 minute phone call that was just what I needed.  Thanks, Joe!

We are all in education for our kids.  They are my why, and I'm sure they are your why, too.  As we continue to go through this uncertain time, let's make sure that we support one another.  Let's stay connected with our colleagues, our students, and our families.  Let's look at this time as an opportunity to show the resilience of educators and an opportunity to try something new for our kids.  As Gene Krantz, NASA flight director for Apollo 13, says in the movie Apollo 13, "With all due respect, sir, I believe this is gonna be our finest hour."  We've got this!  I believe in you!

Change

I saw the following quote from George Couros almost every day last week and it made me think about the many discussions that we've had recently.

This week we met as grade levels to discuss possible changes in our school schedule.  For some, the changes will seem minor.  For others, the changes will seem major.  Either way, the changes will have an impact on each of us.  And that's where we need to think about how we can help either other through any of the changes that will occur in our school schedule.  Some of us will need more support than others, but we all will either need some support or will need to provide some support.  Ultimately, the question is, "How can we support one another?"

Great things I saw this week...
Students really focused on glazing their clay pieces.
Creating newspapers in 7th grade
6th graders sharing their learning with 5th graders
Creating videos about child labor in 8th grade
The excitement of the kids with their Making an Impact projects in 5th grade
The 8th grade cooking class and their impressive recipes
Circuit training and hockey in PE
The lunch volleyball tournament
Connecting concerns and careers in 6th grade
Your continued focus on our kids and each other following our Wednesday meetings.  Thank you!
Your consistent and positive interactions with our families during conferences last night.

Name it.  Claim it.  Explain it.
Thanks to Becky for playing along last week.

Calendar

Please continue to review the Intermediate Special Events Calendar at our weekly grade level and specials meetings, too.

Friday, March 6th
Half day- Noon release

Saturday, March 7th
EdCampElmbrook 8:00-2:30
PTO Trivia Night

Tuesday, March 10th
Choir (5:30) and Band (7:15) concerts

Wednesday, March 11th
WIN Wednesday (Please join our assembly at 9:00 for a staff "Rock, Paper, Scissors challenge.  Let me know if you'll be there so that I can make a March Madness bracket.  The winner will get a choice of a GOOSE pass or ATSL- Arrive To School Late- pass)

Thursday, March 12th
A-team meeting 1:15
NJHS induction ceremony 2:00
PTO meeting 2:30

Friday, March 13th
Art Show

Monday, March 16th
BLT meeting 4:15
School board meeting 7:00

Tuesday, March 17th
Leadership Camp 8-12
SEL meeting all day
Spanish placement test 1:00

Wednesday, March 18th
Yearbook Activity pictures (NJHS and volleyball teams)
Culver's Night 4-8PM

Saturday, March 21st-Sunday, March 29th
Spring Break

Tweets, quotes, and blogs

6 ways to (mentally) leave work at work (from Angela Watson.  I really needed this this week.)

"Nothing will ever be attempted if all possible objections must first be overcome."

Samuel Johnson, writer

10 East Ways To Create an Amazing Classroom Culture (from George Couros)

"Without little ideas, there are no big ideas."

Twyla Tharp, dancer, choreographer

Sydney Jensen TEDTalk (I've shared this before but it's important to see it again.  We have to take care of ourselves so that we can take care of our kids.)

"Life is a series of commas, not periods."

Matthew McConaughy, actor, producer

#mertonint on Twitter
#MertonProud on Twitter

Merton Intermediate School Facebook page

mertonint on Instagram
Family smore from 3.6.20

As I reflect on conferences tonight, I realize a number of things.

• You communicate so well all year long with our families that they know you know their kids.
• When are families are in for conferences, you provide insights about their kids that they don't even know.
• You want our kids to be successful and you show our families that you are willing to do almost everything to help them be successful.
• Our families look at you as professionals who take going to school every day as your passion and not your job.
• Even after you have been in school all day you still maintain an amazing attitude and concern for every family that stops in to see you.
• Your sense of humor with our families and their kids makes them feel at ease to talk about academics, behavior, and nearly anything else.
• Our families trust you with their most precious possessions, their kids.

Thank you for a great week and enjoy the weekend.

#JustInspire

Jay

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