R-E-L-A-X

No, I'm not referring to Aaron Rodgers famous quote.  I'm referring to what we should all do over Winter Break.  We made it!  Winter Break is just a day away.  My hope is that you find time over our break to detach from school altogether.  Unless it's an emergency, you'll get no emails from me until maybe Sunday, January 3rd.  If you need something from me, email or text me or send me a direct message on a social media platform.  Above all, make sure that you find ways to relax over break.  You deserve it!

Calendar

Friday, December 18th    Polar Express Pajama Day/Raffle drawing/ Material pickup

Saturday, December 19th-Sunday, January 3rd    Winter Break

Monday, January 4th    School resumes

Wednesday, January 6th    Intermediate School staff meeting in the gym/ Wear Merton gear

Friday, January 8th    Materials pickup

Tweets, quotes, and blogs

"Failures are infinitely more instructive than successes."

George Clooney, actor, director, producer, screenwriter

(from George Couros' blog)

"If you try desperately to hang on to something that used to be a success for you, it's going to go away.  You have to change."

George Clooney, actor, director, producer, screenwriter

Say I Won't (by Todd Nesloney)

"It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams."

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, writer, journalist, Nobel Prize winner

"What's in front of you is a whole world of experiences beyond your imagination."

Phylicia Rashad, actor, singer, stage director

This is from an email from A.J. Juliani (@ajjuliani on the Twitters).  Please take this to heart.

In a recent article, author Thomas Oppong wrote:

According to research, the brain gradually stops registering a sight, sound or feeling if that stimulus remains constant over time. You lose your focus and your performance on the task declines.

When faced with a long creative problem, it is best to impose brief breaks on yourself. Brief mental breaks will actually help you stay focused on your task and improve your idea generation approach. A structured downtime can help you do your best work.

We tend to generate redundant ideas when we don't take regular breaks. If you're hesitant to break away because you feel that you're on a roll, be mindful that it might be a false impression. Your brain needs downtime to remain industrious and generate better ideas.

So, please, don't forget about rest this break.

(Just wondering if any of you feel this way after this week.)

"The fact that you can only do a little is no excuse for doing nothing."

John le Carre, writer

Growing from What We Know During Times of Uncertainty (from George Couros)

A reminder from Ron...

I know every larger break our Buildings and Grounds crew begins a deeper clean over the few days we have no students.  We need your help with a few things:

• Classrooms - Please push the furniture to the sides of the classrooms. We will be shampooing carpets, placing new blue dots, etc...
• Desks/tables - Please have the student areas clear if at all possible. Staff desks/tables, if you could clear off what can be placed away as we will be disinfecting and cleaning over break as well.
• Primary School - If kids can clean out their cubbies as best as possible. Things that can be taken home: Art Smocks (could be washed at home), lunchboxes, papers not needed, etc... Anything kept, please have it in the "second/big" section of the cubby. We will be cleaning the bottoms and the tops of all cubbies.
• Holiday lights - please take them down before you leave.

Not sure if staff plan on coming in over break, but if we do happen to get winter precipitation, please understand that lots will not be cleaned at the same pace/speed as we would during student contact days.  If we do get snow, please be very careful coming onto campus.  Our buildings will be completely closed with no snow removal for sure on December 24, 25, 26, 27, 31, and January 1, 2, and 3.  

Thank you everyone for your help in our cleaning preparations! 

Any questions, please let me know!

Ron

I'm not planning on sending any emails during break, but I will be checking emails.  If you need me for anything, you can send me an email or a text and I'll get back to you as soon as I am able.  I'm going to be taking some time away from school work to spend with Jen, Lauren, my parents, and other family, and you should, too. (Yes, I know this is an almost exact repeat from the opening paragraph, but it's worth saying more than once.)

Enjoy your Winter Break!

Jay

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

Keep connecting!

You amaze me. I can stop in and watch a lesson and see the amount of thought and preparation you put into what you are doing. That's the curriculum part of your class. But the real amazement is the connections that you make with the kids. Just think about it. I could ask you about any of your kids and you could tell me something that no one might know about them- their successes, their struggles, their interests, their dreams. Those connections are where the learning starts. Please keep making those connections with our kids, and with each other.

Calendar

Friday, December 11th    Wear flannel/ Material pickup

Monday, December 14th    Holiday Colors Day/ BLT meeting 4:15PM/ Board meeting 6PM

Tuesday, December 15th    Holiday Hat Day/ PTO brunch

Wednesday, December 16th    Homeroom Pride Day/ Workout Wednesday/8th grade PreACT at 9:15AM in the gym

Thursday, December 17th    Throwback Thursday

Friday, December 18th    Polar Express Pajama Day/Raffle drawing/ Material pickup

Saturday, December 19th-Sunday, January 3rd    Winter Break

Tweets, quotes, and blogs

Fake it until you make it or Face it until you make it? (from Allyson Apsey)

"For me, being an innovator doesn't mean being more intelligent, more rich, it's not a word, it's an action."

Ornette Coleman, jazz musician

(from @Toups_J. He thinks about this as he creates lessons for his kids, and I know you do, too!)

This is a link to a new resource, Education Blueprint, shared by the Teach Better Team. Looks pretty cool, and it's free!

"I never decide if an idea is good or bad until I try it."

Rick Rubin, record producer

"If you want to grow old as a pilot, you've got to know when to push it, and when to back off."

Chuck Yeagar, US Air Forcce officer, test pilot, first pilot to break the sound barrier

A couple of nuggets from George Couros- the quote and the short video.  Please know this will be my focus with each of you next week, and I hope that you are able to do the same for and with each other and our students next week, too.

A thank you from Donald Driver...

Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act Extensions for COVID FMLA/Sick time

The bill ends on December 31, 2020, and the federal government has not agreed upon an extension.  If you have a determined school-based exposure, Merton SD will continue to provide COVID sick time. More to come on other non-school based exposures due to the expiring federal laws.

Here are some suggestions from our guest teachers.

Please consider adding these items to your guest teacher plans.

- Sign in info (Envisions, 2nd Step, etc..)

- Links in the lesson plans are AWESOME!

- Mark places in texts that they want to highlight or to be discussed in the lesson

- Provide examples in the lesson when applicable

- Provide names of teacher helpers

- Note any students that may need extra guidance/support

- Include classroom behavior plan or incentives (punch cards, clip charts, fill jar, etc...)  I like to use positive reinforcements!

It's been such a wonderful experience working with the awesome staff and students in this district so far this year!

Global Awareness Committee

The Student Achievement Committee met to discuss how to bring Global Awareness to our staff and students. The end result of the work will be to make staff and students more Globally Aware. Global awareness encompasses many aspects and the work will continue to be refined.  Our first step is to identify how to begin developing our staff.  The team of admin, specialists, guidance, and board members will be examining different ways to engage our staff in this work. Later in January, we will be engaging other staff members to assist in learning more before bringing something to the entire staff.  Our next meeting is set for January 11. More to come!

Thanks for another great week.  Enjoy the weekend, and maybe some snow, relax, and come back next Monday ready to take on one more week before Winter Break.  We've got this!

Jay

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

We are our best resource!

I'll tell you this.  I really needed the Thanksgiving Break to take some time for myself and my family.  When Monday came, I was ready for school to get started again.  My trips into classrooms and the conversations that I was a part of were invigorating and made me realize just how fortunate I am to go to school with each of you every day.  Your willingness to share on Wednesday was so appreciated.  I spoke to a couple of you later that day and you had already tried one of the tips or were going to try it.  When you take risks it gives your students permission to take risks, too.  Keep connecting with one another.  Visit each other's classes (and if you need coverage, just let me know).  There is so much we can learn from one another!

Calendar

Friday, December 4th    Material pickup

Monday, December 7th    Donuts

Tuesday, December 8th    Wear an ugly holiday sweater

Wednesday, December 9th    Wear blue/ Staff SEL meeting 7:45AM in the gym (read chapter 6)

Thursday, December 10th    Wear red or green

Friday, December 11th    Wear flannel/ Material pickup

Monday, December 14th    BLT meeting 4:15PM

Wednesday, December 16th    8th grade PreACT at 9:15AM in the gym

Friday, December 18th    Material pickup

Tweets, quotes, and blogs

Leaders, how do you break over a break? by Amber Teamann (This is a post for all educators!)

(from School Leadership 2.0)

"Open, honest communication is the best foundation for any relationship, but remember at the end of the day it's not what you say or what you do, but how you make people feel that matters the most."

Tony Hseih, entrepreneur, former CEO of Zappos

(from Dr. Bryan Pearlman @DrP_Pearlman)

"There were certainly things I was scared to do, but I never thought I wasn't up for the challenge."

Rooney Mara, actor

(from @mellowdoodles)

"It's not about what it is, it's about what it can become."

Theodor Seuss Geisel, writer known as Dr. Seuss

Know that you are all a "Mr. Jensen"!

(Yes, you have all probably seen this before but it's just too good not to see again!)

A-team topics from Wednesday

• Health Department/Local Discussions: Some schools in the area went virtual to see if that would allow for a decrease in the spread in schools that could not space out. CDC released new guidelines for quarantine (direct contact in quarantine 1)10 day infectious period 2)Negative test & 7 days. States/County need to decide whether to adopt that recommendation.  WE WILL WAIT TO HEAR FROM THE COUNTY AND THEY MAKE THE CHANGES. Until the county health department gives us the directive, we will hold tight. More to come. Vaccines - The recommendations from CDC for Health Care and Essential Workers completely out number the number of vaccines in our state. For the general public and schools maybe by April if lucky. You need 2 doses so that means half needs to be saved.  Once completed, about 5 weeks then the vaccine will be effective.  NO STUDIES ON CHILDREN as it is not being recommended for kids. Teachers/Educators are not considered “Essential.”

• Substitute Update: Feedback discussed from teachers and building subs on + and opp for improvement. Principals will follow-up with building subs and work with staff to leave detailed lesson plans.

• IS’s Remodel Update: Design plans will be completed at the end of December. Remodel begins in the Spring of 2021 after break.

• 1202 Staff Report for DPI: We are required to obtain updated license information for staff. If we need anything from someone, Ron/Jay will reach out.

So about Wednesday...

I hope that you were able to make a connection with someone (remember the text?). If you weren't able to connect, or just forgot about it when you left the gym, why not try and reach out this weekend. You might have a little more time or you just might be on a car ride, hear a song, and make a call. You never know what song might make a connection with one of your friends or colleagues.

Have a great weekend! So many of you said, "This week has really flown by!" I hope this isn't a jinx to make today the longest day of the week, but at least we know it will be the best Friday of the week!

Jay

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