Weekly Coaching Communication
Make it a great day -- every day!
Believe in PINK . . . Stronger Together #SPP
For this week's communication, I have changed the color scheme to PINK in honor of Maxine Vrba and her family. And when I was choosing which "pink" shirt to wear from my many that I have accrued over the years as a volleyball coach and supporter of the October Breast Cancer Research and Awareness efforts, I settled on the dark pink shirt with the print, "Believe in PINK . . . Stronger Together #SPP." This is one of the few shirts that does not have a year on it, and I could not help but to think that the timeless message carries beyond the Pink Volleyball game -- it is meant for Maxine, too.
26 - 30 November 2018
Hats off to you!
Here's the past couple of weeks' amazement*:
- Congratulations to Coach Klett on his 200th win this past Saturday with a win over Mt. Vernon.
- Thank you Mr. Libolt and Mr. Chamberlin for representing CPU at the Blue Ribbon Ceremony and sharing your adventures.
- Blended Learning Teams spent a day at GWAEA to better their blended learning practice. If you want to know more, talk with a second-year participant: Mrs. Dierks, Mr. Arends, Mr. Havener, Mr. Grennan, or Mr. Burke; or, get a fresh perspective from a first-year participant: Ms. Recker, Mrs. Mahoney, Mr. Spicher, Dr. Andersen, or Mr. Tupa.
- Social Studies Teachers: Mrs. Kelly, Mr. Burk and Mr. Tupa spent two days in the trenches learning more about their new standards and putting together units of learning. These are the newest kids on the block when it comes to working with their standards, so give them a little encouragement to keep after it.
- Shout out to the Jacobis and our band students for hosting the WAMAC Band Festival -- a well-organized, honoring event
- Thank you, Culture Team and teachers, for making our support staff feel important -- a small gesture goes a long way. Special shout out to Beth for the reminders and encouragement!
- Super-duper KUDOS goes out to Mr. Tupa and Mr. Jaquette for organizing the Veterans Day assembly -- our community and the veterans appreciate the opportunity to be honored by our youth.
- Thank you, Mrs. Cummings (and family) for the wonderful meal prepared for the veterans -- another special shout out to Mrs. Ferguson for helping in the kitchen!
- ALL Visible Learning Teams -- Wednesday morning learning time is short, and your attentiveness, participation and diligence are greatly appreciated.
#nobetterplacetowork
*As always . . . my intent here is not to leave out anyone, so if you know of some great things happening in this building, please send me a text or email so I can include them -- share the greatness that people are choosing to do for our learners and for each other.
Blended Learning -- Incorporating Habits of Mind and Ramping Up to Phase 2
Overview
The first day's learning was mostly about ramping up the blended format from a phase 1 implementation, that grounds itself in timed rotations where learners follow the same path, pace and place, to a phase 2 implementation that allows for more choice through checklists, playlists and choice boards.
The second day's learning was much deeper and afforded me an opportunity to learn with the team. Travis Lape is the Innovative Programs Director for Harrisburg School District in Harrisburg and Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Lape's district is in its second year of implementing personalized learning in the lower grades -- no grade levels, no bells, no set schedule . . . It sounds wonderful, and yet daunting. He assures that the practice of teaching is no different than what any teacher in any other district would do; it's just a different structure.
Habits of Mind
One of the most intriguing topics Lape addressed is the culture and mindset of the learners at Harrisburg. The children that attend Harrisburg are not called "students," they are "learners." The teachers at Harrisburg are called "facilitators." To make a new approach to learning work, a new approach to education was necessary, and one of the first phases to shifting the mindset of learners and their facilitators is to shift their habits of mind. Lape and the other administrators saw a need for facilitators to INTENTIONALLY design habits of mind into the content.
According to ASCD, "A 'Habit of Mind' means having a disposition toward behaving intelligently when confronted with problems. According to Arthur Costa and Bena Kallick, the 16 Habits of Mind are a repertoire of behaviors that help both students and teachers successfully navigate the various challenges and problems they encounter in the classroom and in everyday life." A classroom with habits of mind allows children "to learn how to develop a critical stance with their work: inquiring, editing, thinking flexibly, and learning from another person’s perspective. We are interested also in how students behave when they don’t know the answer. Interested in enhancing the ways students produce knowledge" (Lape).
Harrisburg uses Costa's and Kallick's “16 problem solving life related skills necessary to effectively operate in society and promote strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity and craftsmanship” (Habits of Mind: A Developmental Series, 2000).
The poster shown below offers the 16 different habits of mind (or click the link to be able to zoom in):
A CHALLENGE . . .
CHALLENGE: Choose one or two habits of mind in which you set a personal goal to better your own behaviors.
SUPER CHALLENGE: Share your goal(s) or set a goal with your classes in the second semester and include them in the change of their habits of mind.
I will be setting a goal for myself and offering a weekly reflection, here, in my weekly communication. Join me on this journey to better behaviors: If you accept the challenge or super challenge, please let me know if you are willing to reflect with me on your progress; better yet, become a guest columnist and share your goals and progress with the staff along with my own reflection.
The new semester starts January 14th, so begin to plan how you will handle the challenge, but you can join in on betterment anytime!
RESOURCES for HABITS OF MIND
Co-Founder of Institute for the Institute of Habits of Mind
Co-Founder for the Institute of Habits of Mind
Coaching Schedule -- see Google Calendar for specific "Busy" times **schedule subject to change**
Monday, 26 November
- 8:20 - 9:20 AM Blended Learning Taping
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Research & Resources
- 1:00 - 4:00 PM Data Team Planning w/ Mrs. Vaupel & Mrs. Wooldridge
Tuesday, 27 November
- 8:15 - 9:00 AM Blended Check-in x2
- 1:15 - 1:45 PM Blended Check-in
- 2:00 - 2:30 PM Blended Check-in
- 3:20 - 4:00 PM IEP Goal Writing
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Research & Resources
Wednesday, 28 November -- 7:30 AM Collaborative Structure -- Data Team Supports
- 9:00 - 10:00 AM IC/Program Lead Mtg
- 12:30 - 1:15 PM IC/Principal Mtg (Pope, Rozek, & Libolt)
- 2:00 - 2:30 PM SBL Check-in
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Research & Resources
Thursday, 29 November -- PTCs
- 1:00 - 4:00 PM SDI Training @ Intermediate
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Research & Resources
Friday, 30 November
- Serve Teachers & Students
- Research & Resources
- 12:00 - 1:00 PM IC MTG
- 1:00 - 3:00 PM IC & Program Leads Mtg
- 3:00 - 4:00 PM IEP w/ DM
ARCHIVE LINKS
Click on the link to access 2015-16 prior weekly communications.
Pope's IC Weekly Communication Archive & Index 2016-17
Click on the link to access 2016-17 prior weekly communications.
Pope's IC Weekly Communication Archive & Index 2017-18
Click on the link to access 2016-17 prior weekly communications.
Contact Information
Center Point - Urbana CSD
Email: epopenhagen@cpuschools.org
Phone: 319-849-1102+91015
Twitter: @Epopenhagen