Lincoln Lion's Local Buzz
April 5, 2019
When you are so proud you might explode
I cannot express how proud I was to walk around our building yesterday and think about all the hard work we have all put in to change the way Lincoln operates. Sure we have some days that are busier than usual, but our lions understand that school is a place for learning. None of the classrooms I entered were teaching fluff. It was solid curriculum based instruction--and our kids were "killing it"!!!!
We are still on this journey to make Lincoln "the best place in town", but yesterday was a moment that I celebrated. Thank you for everything that each of you have done to make the changes in our building. I truly hope each of you have time to take a moment to sit back and just take in all the changes we have made together here at Lincoln. It truly is wonderful.
Tidying up
Watching her episodes got me thinking about being a teacher and keeping a classroom organized. Let's all be honest, teachers, for the most part, are hoarders. We keep everything--because we think we never know when we will it again. I'm willing to bet that after 10 + years of teaching we have accumulated so much stuff, that we don't use, that our rooms are cluttered, stuffed with (being real here) 80% of papers/objects we will never use again because curriculum has changed or we have made whatever it is better.
In full disclosure I still have books from my teaching days in fifth grade at my house. I get how hard it can be to part with things from our classrooms, but it is time for us to tidy up our classrooms and part with things that are cluttering up our space. Our classrooms need less objects in them. Less is more. For some of you it might just be eliminating files that have sat unopened in a cabinet for years. For others, this will mean saying goodbye to furniture, reducing files, and making space in your classroom for kids to move.
I'm not asking you to do this task tomorrow or next week, but I am asking you to reduce what is in your classroom by the start of next school year. Be thinking about what does not bring you joy in your teaching. What gets in the way of your students moving in your classroom. What prevents you from having an actual circle in your class---not a funky, squashed rectangle, but an actual circle.
To get you in the frame of mind to start to release items in your classroom I would encourage you to watch the show Tidying Up. It really is good and helps you release the sense of guilt when getting rid of something that doesn't "bring you joy". So get ready everyone, we are going to be tidying up and finding joy in what is really important in our teaching and in our classroom.
Master TN Ready Schedule
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1FvefuklJNmdBIBXzB7Tef4VN0IXxnJyxt2DQV9UUtNY/edit?usp=sharing
FYI: I am training IAs and volunteer proctors in shifts on Monday. I will be training the teaching staff on Monday at our faculty meeting. If for any reason you will be out Monday, email me so that I can get with you asap for training. I will also be confirming small group accommodations with classroom and sped teachers at the meeting.
I thank you in advance for your help in crossing "Ts" and dotting "i"s. Testing is a chameleon that changes just enough to be super tricky each year.
Link to the April Newsletter
PLC Switch-A-Roo
The next change that I'd like to make is to not meet on the 16th. An exciting fact about this month is there are 5 Tuesdays. Since we have the first day of testing on the 16th and we will all be working with a slightly different schedules I thought adding in a book discussion (that is the focus that day) might be more than necessary. What I'm proposing is that we move our book discussion to the last week of the month--after testing. This would take some of the crazy out of the first day of testing, and gives everyone some extra time to read. If this does not work for a grade level just let me know. SPED team, we would also not meet on Thursday the first week of testing with this proposal, and move our book talk to the last Thursday of the month.
More Resources to instill Persistence in our students
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q48fTWSGauA
This video is actually good for all ages. it talks about learning to ride a bike and then applying that to a college course--but all done with a child main character. A quick one that could support a good circle discussion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0qrtsYg6kI
This one is NOT for kids, this one is for you! It is a good video about how and why we would want to teach GRIT to our students. When I watched it, I thought of our data folders and what we can do to maximize that potential.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrnihanwVos
This video is definately for our older students. This is an interview with a rising college freshman. She talks about how she was truant, and her mom let her be truant, but one day--after a visit from folks from her district--she changed her attitude toward school and became a scholar. This one could be one many of our kids can relate to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45mMioJ5szc&list=PLTJl59I5_i6VyysW7ylfZwCdTpjGn-1H4&index=4
Overview of grit and what it means in conjunction with perseverance and reliance. This one drives home the point that work is hard, but if you give up you'll never accomplish anything.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWp6kkz-pnQ&list=PLTJl59I5_i6VyysW7ylfZwCdTpjGn-1H4&index=12&t=0s
Just because every day needs a little Bruno Mars--and oldie but a goodie...Don't give up!