WE Newsletter Jan 29 - February 2nd
What's happening and other educational information
Events for the week and month
Tuesday - 100th Day of School!!
Thursday - Living museum
Thursday - Ed Fund teacher grant requests due
Thursday - Lock down drill
2-5 - Living museum for parents - 6:30pm - 7:30pm
2-8 - 2nd grade program 6:00pm
2-9 - House meeting
2-12 - Progress grades due
2-13 - School board election
2-13 - Chamber Pancake Supper 4:00 - 8:00 pm ($7.00/$8.00 @ door)
2-13 - P/T conferences 4:00 - 7:00pm
2-14 - Valentine's Day parties
2-15 - P/T conference 4:00 - 7:00pm
2-15 - Round Up grant due
2-16 - No School
2-22 - 3rd grade to Goldilocks
2-26 - Faculty Meeting
2-26 - Ms. Hanson's Birthday
2-26 - Pizza kit flyers to go out
2-27 - Ms. Doye's Birthday
2-28 - Captain Super Tooth assembly
Things that make me go "humm"
What If?
· What if the work is the reward?
· What if the prize is in the process?
· What if you can be grateful in the grind?
What if the gift is in the grind? LIstening to Groeschel today, he spoke of how what we do daily is the gift. The day in, day out work is what gives us the small victories that compile into large victories and successes. It is the hug you get each morning from that "one" student that keeps you grateful for mornings especially that afternoon. It is the "ah ha" moment this student has after you have explained a concept for the sixth time. You had to put in the time each day, each moment to get to that "ah ha". It is the pushing through when you think I'm so tired, that you end the day thinking "what an awesome day". You would have missed the blessing in the stars aligning when all your students had a good day and you were able to teach without all "those" interruptions.
1) The pillow: the seduction of comfort.
2) The shiny thing: the allure of constant distractions.
3) The towel: the perpetual temptation to quit.
We've talked about good vs. great and that complacency is never a good thing. Additionally, the distractions of the "little" inconveniences or personality conflicts can make us take our eyes off the vision, the prize, the goal. Sometimes, and I can be guilty of this, we just decide we don't like this, so we throw in the towel and walk away. Life is hard. I will be the first to "amen" this statement! However, pushing through the hard to go the distance (Rocky reference) is what life is about. We tell our students everyday to keep a "growth mindset", to conquer their struggles, to not give up. Sometimes we need to listen to our own advice.
Life is better together, and life is fabulous at WE. Thank you for overcoming, pushing through, and conquering. This is what makes you so wonderful to work with and learn from, and it makes our students the most blessed of all.
Scientific Literacy
"Scientific literacy starts in early childhood and continues through elementary school. Scientific knowledge is necessary to fully participate in human culture and democracy—especially as it becomes more technological. The future of our nation depends on a scientifically literate public.The new vision for science education emphasizes the need for consistent science instruction throughout a student’s academic career. Scientific literacy is a developmental process that takes years of concerted effort to cultivate. Students are ready to reason about science in early childhood. Children enter elementary school with reasoning skills and perceptions of the natural world that provide a sound basis for science learning." -STEM Teaching Tool #43
Starting in the early childhood classroom, students need time to observe the world around them and ask questions about what they are seeing. Teachers can bring in phenomena that the students experience in their everyday life, to help build the students' scientific knowledge. "Phenomena are observable events in nature (or our lives) that connect to multiple disciplinary core ideas (DCI), such as Finnish Snow Trees or the behavior of bees. Throughout a unit, students work towards explaining the science concepts behind the phenomenon in their own words."-TJ McKenna
Making the shift to a phenomenon-driven science lesson allows for a meaningful experience for students because it allows them to think about the world around them and they can then use the DCI to explain what they observe. Once a phenomenon has been presented to a student, literature and textbooks can then be used as a supplemental tool to help the students build their content knowledge. The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) publishes a list of science trade books each year for K-12. The list for 2017 can be found here. If you would like to know more about how to bring phenomena into your classroom, please contact me.
Megan Cannon, Director of Science and Engineering