Chancellor News and Notes
March 8, 2016
4 Days until Spring Break!
Yes, four days! Just something to think about as you prepare for your time off: please keep in mind that many or our students may not be looking forward to Spring Break. They may not have enough to eat at home, they may be sitting alone all day or on electronic devices because parents are at work, they may be at day cares all day, or they may be in stressful situations that are out of their control, and being at school with loving teachers and friends is the only relief. Talk to your students this week about positive and productive uses of their time over the holiday, and give them time to share with you their thoughts about the upcoming break.
Speaking of Spring Break, you received a Shutdown Checklist in your mailboxes. Please complete all actions listed and check them off, and turn in to Marie by noon on Friday. Yes, you may still be using some of the items listed during the day (such as your computer or a microwave), but make sure you follow the action listed. This is where we get a good portion of extra money in the district- shutting down and saving pennies on thousands of electronics across all of the buildings when we are not here.
STAAR Buddies Reminder- Get your banners up for your students as soon as you can. The classes and the teachers are so excited to see the ones that have already gone up! Remember, if you have a 4th or 5th grade class, you want to make them feel special with some treats leading up to STAAR testing! These treats can be for fun with a motivational saying, and might include water bottles, tissues, and snacks for the days of the test. If you have a classroom, your students can write good luck letters or posters and you can deliver (verify a time with the STAAR teacher), which is always appreciated by the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders! The younger class might even sing a song or retell a poem! Be creative! Just re-check your dates to make sure you deliver before the testing day. No one will be allowed to deliver the day of testing.
For our 4th and 5th grade STAAR students..
Visitor Parking- Please do not park there!
Testing T-Shirt Sales
Do you give 100%?
Often times, we find ourselves complaining, if only she did a little more, if only he worked a little harder, if only she applied herself every day...but do you? This week, you may find yourself not as focused, thinking ahead to Spring Break. Or you may be distracted by outside events or relationships- taking away from your attention. Experience shows that this is when things start to slip- first for us, but also for the students. What do we do to stay in the moment with our students? What do skilled practitioners do? For one thing, they sharpen their saw every week- work toward growing and developing skills they know may need work.
An excerpt from the article:
On Fridays, my students write short reflections about the week. One Friday, I asked them to write about the most important thing they'd learned in class that week. One student wrote, "I didn't really learn anything important this week, but that's OK because Mr. Ferlazzo tried his best."
Although I wasn't that thrilled with the first part of his comment, there's an important message in the second half. Even if we can't always think, say, and do the ideal thing to strengthen struggling students' motivation, there's always something we can do to meet them halfway. We can try our best.
How to "sharpen your saw" this week: Read the article below, and pick one of the following skills in the article to really focus on to help you stay at 100% this week:
1. Remember that authoritative beats authoritarian.
2. Believe that everyone can grow.
3. Understand that power isn't a finite pie.
4. Give positive messages.
5. Apologize.
6. Be flexible.
7. Set the right climate.
8. Teach life lessons.
Email me when you have decided which skill you will focus on after reading the article, why you are choosing that skill, and what you will do to "sharpen your saw" this week. :)