Griffith Elementary
Weekly G*News * December 10, 2018
Principal's Principles
Dear Griffith Staff,
As we are coming to the end of 2018 and preparing to start 2019 on the right foot and going in the right direction, we want to continue to focus on our G.R.O.W. statement with intentionality and purpose.
At Griffith, we are working on our school culture and climate, so take a look at these tips as we continue to build a positive school culture:
Build strong relationships - Staff-student relationships influence everything—from the social climate to the individual performances of your students. When students feel liked and respected by their teachers, they find more success in school, academically and behaviorally.
Teach essential social skills - How to share, how to listen to others, how to disagree respectfully—these are the kind of essential social skills we expect our students to have. But the truth is they may not have learned them. Whether it’s 1st grade or 11th grade, we need to be prepared to teach appropriate social and emotional behaviors. “You can’t hold kids accountable for something you’ve never told them,” says Erin Green, Director of National Services Operations at Boys Town. “Behavior should be treated like academics, and students should be taught the skills they need to execute desired behaviors.” These behaviors and values include honesty, sensitivity, concern and respect for others, a sense of humor, reliability, and so on.
Get on the same page - Every classroom environment contributes to your school culture. Sometimes, for real change to occur with students, it’s the adults who have to change first. Together as a staff, we need to create a shared vision of our school. Here's where we start with our Building-Wide Expectations.
Be role models - At school, students learn by watching just as they learn by doing. Observing the actions of others influences how they respond to their environment and cope with unfamiliar situations. Think about what messages our behavior communicates.
Clarify classroom and school rules - Classroom rules communicate your expectations to your students. They tell students “this is the positive environment you deserve. This is the standard of behavior we know you can achieve.” Positive rules help create a predictable, stable environment that is more conducive to healthy interactions. Ideally, classroom rules are simple and declarative (e.g., “Be safe and kind”). And they don’t need to address every possible problem. You don’t need a rule about gum chewing or water bottle use, for instance—your policies on these issues should be clear from your overarching expectations for good behavior. Most important, rules need to be consistent across the building. The same expectations need to apply in the classroom, the gym and the cafeteria.
Teach all students problem solving - Problems will always come up inside and outside of school. Students are much more likely to recognize and resolve them appropriately when we teach them how to do so. Problem solving can also be used retrospectively (with the luxury of hindsight) to help students make better decisions in the future. The Boys Town Education Model uses the SODAS method to teach students the general skill of problem solving.
SODAS is an acronym for the following steps:
S – Define the SITUATION.O – Examine OPTIONS available to deal with the problem.
D – Determine the DISADVANTAGES of each option.
A – Determine the ADVANTAGES of each option.
S – Decide on a SOLUTION and practice.
Principally yours,
~DG
Week-at-a-Glance
Follow-Up Facts (Concerns Corner)
- ALL TEACHERS/STAFF NEED TO MAKE SURE YOUR INTERIOR/EXTERIOR DOORS ARE LOCKED WHEN YOU LEAVE - I will provide you with a checksheet/log to track if doors are found open. Please check all exterior doors you are by to guarantee there are NO ROCKS propping door open.
- DO NOT PROP OPEN ANY GATE/ENTRANCES ONTO CAMPUS AT ANY TIME
GIANT Giants
November Perfect Attendance winner: Marian Morris
THANK YOU to Krebs & Paula for the immense help they provided the front office after the break-in. Amanda, Maricela & Leslie have continued to get the office back in shape. Thank you all for doing such a great job!
5th Grade Parent Workshop
We are facilitating a 5th Grade Parent Meeting to address a variety of topics (i.e. Bullying, Cyber Bullying, Conflict Conversations, Resiliency, Social Media Monitoring, Appropriate School Relationships). A Phoenix SRO will be our Keynote Speaker; Everybody Matters along with our SEaL Team and I will be conducting break out sessions for parents.
We are in need of help with setup, translating, directing to sessions, assisting with child care, collecting feedback cards. Please RSVP if you are able/willing to help with this venture. I will have more information for anyone involved.
Thursday, Dec 13, 2018, 05:30 PM
Griffith Elementary School, East Palm Lane, Phoenix, AZ, USA
- PTO Reindeer Lollipop sale during lunch December 10th-14th (.50 cents each)
- Holiday Door Judging on Tuesday, December 18th from 7:45-8:45 AM and from 3:30-4:15 PM in the cafeteria. Please stop by and help judge these student created holiday doors.
DG's Office Door 2013
Everybody Matters Update
Everybody Matters wants to thank Griffith staff & teachers for letting us work with your kids! Our interns had a great semester and will be back in January to meet with them again. You can send in referrals during December and those kids will be matched with an intern in January. Have a great December and we look forward to working with everyone in January.
~ Kelsie Shevitski
Our SEaL (Social Emotional aspects of Learning) Team will be putting a schedule together - to START IN JANUARY - for Everybody Matters to lead a social lesson with your class. If you have a specific topic you would like EM to focus on, please let the team know (Sarah, Megan or Alison).
Mindful Moment - 7 Simple Ways to Sneak Mindfulness Into Your Teaching Day
Teaching is a juggling act. Days are filled with never-ending to-do lists of lessons, assessments, meetings, and more, not to mention the care and attention we give to dozens of children every day. With all of the demands of the job, it’s easy to see how teachers become exhausted and unbalanced. One way to stay healthy is to intentionally build in short, focused breaks throughout the day to practice mindfulness. When we practice mindfulness, we intentionally hit the pause button and turn our attention to nothing but the present moment. Here’s our simple guide to mindfulness for teachers, including seven practices that will help you find some much-needed calm amidst the madness of your hectic day.
1. Take a moment to breathe.
It sounds strange, but sometimes we get so caught up in our day that we actually forget to breathe. At the very least, we get caught in a rhythm of shallow breathing that leaves our bodies and minds woefully short of the oxygen it requires to function optimally. When you find yourself in this state, take a pause. Close your eyes and breathe in and out slowly and deeply five times. It will take less than a minute, but it will do wonders for your nervous system.
[Check out 23 Classroom Yoga Photos for even more inspiration.]
2. Listen carefully.
Every once in a while you catch a rare moment of silence: in between periods, when your students are at lunch, or even when you’re alone in the staff bathroom. Don’t let it pass you by! Take a moment to focus intently on the absence of racket in your ears and in your head and feel your breathing deepen and your pulse slow.
3. Ground yourself.
Stand up straight with your arms resting comfortably at your sides. Place your feet shoulder-width apart and focus on feeling the bottoms of your feet grounded on the floor below you. Close your eyes and scan your body from bottom to top, sensing any places that feel stiff or tender. Try to breathe into those areas to release any tension.
4. Use your sense of smell.
Plug in an essential oil diffuser and add any of these calming essential oils to it. If your school is a fragrance-free environment, keep a small bottle of your favorite scent in your desk drawer and inhale deeply when you need a calming break.
5. Try a change of scenery.
Nothing grounds a person faster than connecting with nature. Even when you’re indoors, you can still connect. Sneak a peek out the window every now and then. Pause and focus on the blue sky, the green leaves on the trees, or the bright sunlight outside. Take just a moment to block everything else out and soak it in. If you are unfortunate enough to work in a windowless environment, zone out with one of these beautiful videos or choose one of these serene images as a screensaver for your computer.
6. Walk mindfully.
Whenever you leave your classroom, instead of racing through the hall with a million things on your mind, try to slow your pace and just focus on putting one foot in front of the other. Count your steps silently, if that helps. Use your movement as an opportunity to catch your breath and clear your mind as you transition from one space to another.
7. Make an authentic connection.
On super busy days it’s easy to speak at your students instead of with them. Make it a goal to genuinely connect with individual students whenever you can, even if it’s just a quick greeting in the morning. Look straight into their eyes and listen carefully to what they say, giving them your full focus, if just for a few moments. Here’s a guide to learning to love even your most difficult students.