Roberts Middle School
Aviator Agenda: February 8 -12
What does origami have to do with saving lives?
Jeremy Gutsche, the author of Better And Faster, said that patterns surround us.. “We eat them, see them, smell them, taste them and walk past them every day. But most people fail to connect the dots. In order to see those patterns, we have to look at things differently." When NASA needed help folding a satellite into a shuttle, whom did they call? When a heart stunt manufacture needed help to squeeze a stunt in a heart valve, whom did they call? When car manufactories needed help to fold 13 air bags in a car, whom did they call? What connects all these questions is origami. When Robert Lang was in first-grade, he was far too clever for elementary mathematics and quickly became bored, prompting his teacher to give him a book on origami. His brilliance for mathematics would lead him to become a physicist and later work for NASA. Robert Lang would eventually resign from NASA to do what he obsessed about, origami. Robert Lang merges mathematics with creativity to fold elegant modern origami. His scientific approach helps him make folds once thought impossible. Now a professional origami master, Lang practices his craft as both artist and engineer. This has led to revolutionary advances in creative paper folding, space exploration, auto safety, and biotechnology.
Lang said, “Almost all innovation happens by making connections between fields that other people don’t realize. To find opportunity, one should look for connections and try to understand the patterns. It’s all well and good to see a connection between two fields, but if you understand the underlying pattern, then you can easily see similar types of connections at play in other fields of endeavor.” This teaches us as classroom facilitators, that we must recognize connections and interpret patterns that we see in education. As teachers, we must put various pieces together to create success by studying data and tailoring instruction based on our students’ needs. We have to stop repeating the same ineffective formula again and again to avoid the traps in education. By recognizing patterns of opportunity, we may be able to unlock new concepts that can reach our students.
This past week I was in Phoenix learning about PLC. I was validated by the conference because we are doing so much of what they are teaching. When I was gone, I realized how much I missed visiting with you and missed seeing the kids. I am so grateful for all the work you are doing for our students. I will come by and visit this week.
Jorly
WHAT DOES YOUR PLC LOOK LIKE?
SOLO IN A MARATHON?
ROWING IN HARMONY?
WHAT QUESTIONS DO WE NEED TO ANSWER IN OUR PLC?
- What do we expect our students to learn? (Goals/Expectations)
- How will we know they are learning? (Assessment)
- How will we respond when they don’t learn? (Intervention)
- How will we respond if they already know it? (gifted)
FOCUSED WALKTHROUGHS: SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION
3 QUESTIONS THAT WILL GUIDE YOU
- It starts with us, the teacher led group in the blended model. We need to make sure that we are increasing the rigor of instruction in our small group.
What does increasing rigor look like.
- This means providing our students more of a challenging and meaningful learning environment. We want to create a small group environment where students are thinking critically and actively employing problem solving skills. We need to allow our students the opportunity to struggle in their learning.
How do you support this necessary struggle to take your student further than ever?
- This can only happen if we preplan our questions. At times, we let our students off the hook by supplying the answer too quickly. One of the tools we can implement within our small groups is to check for understanding. Understanding is best gauged through a written answer. Written responses give teachers an objective framework for understanding when to move on and when to reteach.
What will we be looking for:
- Give students the opportunity to struggle
- Preplan questions and sentence stems
- Check for understanding through writing
FLIGHT ITINERARY: February 1-5
MONDAY
- Carnation Sale
- Admin Staffing
- 12:53-1:53 6th Grade Science PLC
- 1:55-2:53 6th Grade Reading PLC
- 2:57-3:55 5th Grade Reading PLC
TUESDAY
- Carnation Sale
- 10:15-11:13 6th Grade Social Studies PLC
- 12:53-1:51 5th Grade Social Studies PLC
- 1:55-2:53 5th Grade Math PLC
- 2:57-3:55 6th Grade Math PLC
- 6:00 STAAR Parent Information Night
WEDNESDAY
- Carnation Sale
- 10:15-11:13 5th Grade Science PLC
THURSDAY
- Carnation Sale
- 9:30 Enrollment Reconciliation
FRIDAY
- Carnation Sale
- 8:30 Hoops for Heart 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament
News From the Flight Deck: 2016-2017 Staffing Plans
- If you are thinking about a career change or not being at RMS next year, please let me know.
- If you are wanting to teach a different subject or grade level at RMS, please come and talk with me.
* Attached is the RMS 2016 -2017 Staffing Plans document. Please submit by 2/8/16