December 13, 2013

How do our schedules allow us the best opportunity to teach World Class Outcomes?

This week I was suppose to bring photos of classroom schedules to our admin. meeting. As it turned out, we never got to discuss them nor share them. I suspected I knew what we were going to discuss using these classroom schedules. The photos below come from other schools - not ours. And yet, you'll see lots of similarities to schedules within our school. What is the role of a classroom schedule? I know that we have to schedule our time so that we can collectively, at a school wide level, coordinate all the things that go on and how we can use common spaces, supervision, Integrated Arts and breaks.

As we move to thinking about integrating our outcomes and the ways that students work and learn, does our schedule keep us stuck teaching in a less integrated way? I know that every one of you is probably leaning forward right now saying, 'But I don't stick to my schedule all the time - it's just a guide...' and I know that. I am also NOT saying to yank it down or stop having a schedule. I am just wondering...in a small, yet a significant way, do our daily schedules create barriers for us in thinking about teaching and learning in a modern '21st Century way? If the things we have displayed in our classroom (schedules being one of them) paint a picture of how we do things at Renaissance, do they help those who visit our classrooms understand how we are teaching and learning? Do our schedules matter? If so, how?
Just wondering...

Leadership Team

The Leadership Team met this week and we discussed two things. We talked about the responses you all shared with members of the team about the potential possibility of looking at restructuring the way we use our early release time. The largest percent of you felt that shifting from Wednesday afternoons to every other Monday might create more momentum for deep planning. No decisions have been made as barriers have been identified and more discussion will have to transpire before making a decision. We will also need to survey our community, seek input and support from our SAC and talk with district leadership. There will be no changes this year as we are just exploring the idea at this time. If we were to make changes, they would be for next year.

We also discussed the need for teachers to identify quality evidence of what makes a teacher effective on each of the standards and elements within CITE. We made some decisions about our Wednesday professional development sessions in January. We will be devoting time on the first three Wednesday's of January to work collectively to identify what evidence might be, whether it is quality evidence and share our thinking. Collectively we will make decisions about what effective is at Renaissance. 

Our first session will be on Wednesday, January 8th and we will begin our work around CITE Standard 4 - Culture. I'll brief you more about this on Monday, January 6th when we come back together after the holiday.

'The Most Wonderful Time of the Year?

Are you smiling or grimacing at that title? It is a wonderful time of the year and it is also a time when the excitement makes everything topsy turvy. Families are stressed under the time constraints to pull things together to create magic for their kids and express their love for one another. We are pushing hard to complete deadlines of progress reports as we complete the first half of the school year and we are also seeking to create magic for our families! 

Does this translate to kids - you bet it does. So on top of everything else we are also faced with having to support kids and 'poor choices' are escalating. How to deal with it all! I can't give you much help on the home front, but I do know that this time of year can sometimes mean shifting back to the tighter structures you started the year off with. Eliminating potential problems by limiting the opportunity for them to happen. For some kids, that means really limiting their boundaries.

What does that look like? Maybe it looks like having kids play within a closer proximity to teachers on the playground. Maybe it looks like having kids do more learning seated at their desk and not having as much choice (for a short while) about where and how they do their work. Maybe it looks like less group work and more individual work time. Maybe it looks like having a large stack of your favorite picture books on a shelf near a very comfortable teacher chair where you call the group to gather when it just isn't working and call it quits on what you are doing and nestle down to share a great read and all take a break! 

Give yourself permission to ease up on the learning this coming week knowing that kids are really distracted and you are really limited in what you will accomplish. On the other hand (!) having some really meaty learning might be just the cure for all the distractions. You'll know - just go into the next week embracing the chaos and you will be a happier!

Calendar

Week of December 16th - 20th:

Sixth grade to Keystone Monday - Wednesday

Tuesday:
* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:
* 8:30 Parent Orientation
* All School Meeting
* Professional Development: Reflection on progress (personal assessment)

Thursday:

Wear your ugly (or beautiful!) Christmas attire

Friday:
First grade fieldwork to Asian Market and King's Land restaurant for Dim Sum
(Should we prepare for a snow storm? You know what happens when first grade schedules field work...)

Holiday Staff Get-Together at my place directly after school
You are not to bring anything - my gift to you.
I live less than 2 minutes away from school so it is on the way home for everyone.
I hope you will come for 5 minutes or 5 hours.
I hope you will stop by as you journey home
or go home and then come.
You can come alone.
You can bring your spouse or significant other.
I am modeling by example: I will not clean, I will keep it simple
It will be fun :)

Kenny sent this along to me - 
just had to share!
The comic is from his father-in-law :)

Have a wonderful weekend!

Deborah

December 6,2013

Honoring the life of Nelson Mandela. What an inspiration he has been to the world.  I am humbled by his story. I truly cannot imagine being imprisoned for 27 years and coming through that experience positive, kind and leading peace. I find wisdom, guidance and am inspired by his words in the work we do.

Calendar

Week of December 9 - 13th:

Tuesday:
* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:
* 9:00 a.m. Third Grade Musical
* 1:30 Professional Development: Balanced Assessment System

Friday:
* Third Grade fieldwork to Castlewood Canyon

Week of December 16th - 20th:

Sixth grade to Keystone Monday - Wednesday

Tuesday:
* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:
* 8:30 Parent Orientation
* All School Meeting
* Professional Development: Reflection on progress (personal assessment)

Evidence of our mission:

The voice of six third graders during lunch:

What does 'We are Crew, Not Passengers' mean to you?

"You belong here and others belong here."

"Like on a ship - we need everyone's hands to build something new."

"Crew is completing our mission together." 


Why do we drum?

"So we can see how we are all feeling. Helps us belong as a Crew."

"To become Crew."

"Practice the Circle of Courage for real."

"Show that we are a community - that we are Crew."


What is a challenge in your life right now?

"Eating the right foods."

"Not getting enough attention."

"Having a lot of brothers and sisters."

Mid-year Evaluations

I have scheduled mid-year evaluations with most of you and look forward to those conversations with you in the coming weeks. To prepare, it is your choice whether you want to look at last years evaluation as you reflect on the growth you have made. You can find your evaluation from last year on the district website under employee services under employee self service. During our conference we will go through the CITE standards, element by element. If you like to have time to think about things in advance, I suggest you look at those elements in advance of our conversation. We will also talk about how things are going with the goal you set at the beginning of the year.

Certified Staff - You need to get registered!

Job Alike - District Professional Development

January 17, 2014

Registration for Job Alike 2014 is open for Certified Staff.  January 17, 2014, will provide incredible opportunities to analyze and produce synergistic ideas, concepts or plans to improve instructional practice. Marc Prensky will come and share his deep experience and insight in educating our youth.

Registration begins November 21, 2013 and closes Friday, December 13, 2013. Additional information and registration links may be found on the DCSD Job Alike 2014 Google Site.

Please contact The World Class Education Department with questions or if you need additional information. 

Have a great weekend!

Deborah

November 26, 2013

Coming Undone?

Not the Thanksgiving photo you were expecting?

What is it about this time of year that makes things feel like they are coming undone, leaving us feeling frazzled, confused and upside down?  Each person I talked to today was dealing with a complicated situation and most of those included a good deal of emotion from all people involved.

What happened? Things were going so smoothly just the other day???? How did this happen? Suddenly it all feels like it's coming undone?

I'm not blaming the holidays, but it is foolish for us to discount that emotions run higher this time of year in children, their parents, and in us. Have we acknowledged that? Do we see it in ourselves? How do we get steady on our feet again, let alone be a rock for others? 

A gentle Love and Logic reminder to all of us. Stop. Unless you are dealing with imminent danger...you can simply say, "I'll get back with you." (This works with kids AND adults.) Take some time to talk it through with someone else before you make any decisions or actions. I don't know what the magic is in talking with others, but I know personally that once I've been able to articulate it, clarity comes and I am able to identify the real concerns, apart from the emotion. Talking with others also allows us some 'group think' and some much needed support.

Do not go the rough waters alone. Take a buddy. Take a life jacket. Plan for the trip. 

Calendar

Week of December 2 - 5th:

Monday:

* New Parent Orientation

Tuesday:

* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:

* Professional Development - Balanced Assessment System 

Week of December 9 - 13th:

Tuesday:
* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:
* 9:00 a.m. Third Grade Musical
* 1:30 Professional Development: Balanced Assessment System

Friday:
* Third Grade fieldwork to Castlewood Canyon

Week of December 16th - 20th:

Sixth grade to Keystone Monday - Wednesday

Tuesday:
* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:
* 8:30 Parent Orientation
* All School Meeting
* Professional Development: Reflection on progress (personal assessment)

Apple Award

'Tis that time of year for nominations. As a staff, with our agreement to recognize a teacher by seniority on staff, we will be recognizing Michelle this year! We will take the opportunity to have an appreciation circle for Michelle on Monday, January 6th, at the end of the day (the day we return from break). Spend some time thinking about the word or phrase that captures what you would like to acknowledge and share with Michelle.

Job Alike - District Professional Development

January 17, 2014

Registration for Job Alike 2014 is open for Certified Staff.  January 17, 2014, will provide incredible opportunities to analyze and produce synergistic ideas, concepts or plans to improve instructional practice. Marc Prensky will come and share his deep experience and insight in educating our youth.

Registration begins November 21, 2013 and closes Friday, December 13, 2013. Additional information and registration links may be found on the DCSD Job Alike 2014 Google Site.

Please contact The World Class Education Department with questions or if you need additional information. 

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Deborah

November 22, 2013

The more you know,

the more you don't.

I've been thinking a lot about some of the things I've asked you to do because now I'm just not so sure.... 

I started off the year asking you to think about creating systems for students to track their learning, as a way to increase student ownership. In addition, to think about creating systems for providing student with authentic feedback. Then I started reflecting about myself as a learner.

 I worked hard over the summer training to run in the Ragnar Relay. Running any distance was not something I had ever been able to do successfully. I started off by driving the roads on a four-wheeler calculating the distance( I still wasn't running :) I looked at the Ragnar training schedule. I started in...I tracked my progress (and lack of it...). Then Lauren showed me this great app for my phone that calculated my distance and now my speed. (Gulp.) I rarely embarked on any run without it. I noted the days that I didn't complete the scheduled training and berated myself. I decided if there was a rubric for this, I would just have to be okay with developing and not mastering this thing...but I could 'see' that I was no longer just beginning. That felt good. Just being able to track that my distance had increased was monumental for me. It was concrete.

Then the race was over - I'll never forget the first day I went for a run and didn't take the app and didn't chart the course. I just went out and ran. For the first time, I actually enjoyed it. I decided I was no longer interested in tracking any of it. I would just do it for the joy of it.

Hmmm. If I had just gone out and run and never looked at the training schedule or tracked myself would I have progressed? Would I have had the same level of commitment? Would I have been as successful?

So, what does that mean for other areas of learning? Does it mean that first when I'm learning something new I have to break it down, keep track, assess my progress until I reach a level of independence and then I can let that all go? Did I feel successful because I had a way to really define my success by tracking it? Do learners need to track anything? Do they need to know how they are doing? Does that take the joy away? Does it support the victory?

What do you think?

Then....

What about learning targets?

I do see power in making it clear for kids what they are trying to learn. AND I also can see that posting a learning target before a lesson kills the curiosity and inquiry. Is this one of those 'it depends' responses? Could there be times when the learning target should be clear at the end of a lesson? Could there be times when figuring it out - deciding what we've discovered and learned should be part of the shared inquiry? What about this idea of posting a question instead of a learning target? Hmmm....

Would someone please figure this all out and just tell me?

 During our Creativity course we overlooked

 the importance of constraints in the creative process.

 If you want to know more about this element of a successful creative process 

you might want to read Pam's blog post, Creativity Loves Constraints 

 Pam's favorite resource on creativity is Ken Robinsons book, Out of Our Minds. 

The most comprehensive, thorough and entertaining look at creativity she's read.

Teacher/Crew Blogs

I just love reading your blogs! I find out so much about what you are doing that way. You should all check out one another's blogs from time to time! I promise you'll find inspiration!
I was looking at our school website the other evening and noticed on the staff page that most everyone has their bio's posted. However, there are many missing their blogs. Take a minute to check - if you haven't sent the link to your blog to Ryan  to be uploaded into the website, please do that.

Peek Into the Life of our School

Service - Recycling Diva's

Skyping with their sister school in Australia 

Using the Circle of Courage with Drum Circle -

Tyler's Crew focused on Independence this Monday

Dynamo Diana

Diana - thank you for you passion, enthusiasm, abundant energy and dedication to create such an awesome Book Fair!!!

The Book Fair, and the special events you created, brought our community together and strengthened everyone's sense of belonging. I don't know how you maintained your high level of energy and enthusiasm all week. Impressive! Bravo!

Our own personal movie star:

Mr. Doug

Speed Stack, a local company off of County Line that has since gone global and in partnership with WSSA, recognized Doug's expertise and how his program has taken off. They contacted Doug and asked if they could come and film him to use as an instructional video on their website. In addition, they are using photos of Renaissance cup stackers in their new catalog, promotional materials and on their website.

Yeah, Doug - 

You deserve to be their 'poster' teacher to get

other schools interested!

Calendar

Week of November 25th:

* Only two day week

Monday:

* New Parent Orientation

Tuesday:

* RTI 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday - Friday:

Thanksgiving Holiday Break

Week of December 2 - 5th:

Monday:

* New Parent Orientation

Tuesday:

* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday:

* Professional Development - Balanced Assessment System 

Have a great weekend!

Deborah

(How's your creativity challenge coming along?)

November 15, 2013

This is me tonight. 

Considering that I couldn't keep anything straight today, it would not be a good idea for me to delve into anything that requires anything remotely connected to thinking.

Today, I was just certain, that today our new director of schools (Tacy) was going to make a school visit. I even planned to get a photo of her to share with you so you would recognize her if you saw her.  

Along with a list of other things I had wrong today, I discovered she is coming tomorrow - Friday. So, if you see me touring around the building, popping into classrooms with a new face, you'll know that I'm showing our new director around. (I will try very hard not to touch anything in your room and be diligent about the vampire sneeze/cough.)

Calendar

Week of November 18 - 22nd:

* Book Fair week

Tuesday:

* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

* Book Fair Family Night: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday:

* Professional Development: Assessment work

Thursday:

* Family Thanksgiving Lunch beginning at 10:30 a.m. (different lunch schedule)

Week of November 25th:

* Only two day week

Monday:

* New Parent Orientation

Tuesday:

* RTI 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday - Friday:

Thanksgiving Holiday Break

Have a restful weekend!

Deborah

November 8, 2013

All School Meeting

The Creative Process 

When we embarked on creating our All School Meeting we did so with the purpose of creating a ritual that would bring our community together to develop our culture - to be unified. To develop belonging within our community.

Our All School Meeting is an opportunity to practice the Circle of Courage. There are opportunities for students to practice independence, generosity, mastery and belonging.

Crews who lead All School Meeting have an opportunity for leadership and to be creative about how they engage the audience. For the Crew leading the meeting the purpose isn't to present; rather to bring the 'audience' together in a shared experience.

An important part of the creative process is to have some constraints. Our constraint is the framework we developed for how the All School Meeting would flow - the structures of the meeting. Within that structure, Crew's have the opportunity to be creative people and to lead our community in a creative experience.

As in all things, the pendulum swings. As we develop our meetings and prepare our Crews to lead the meeting could the pendulum have swung a bit too far in following the structure and it is time to think about how we can be creative within the structure?

When I sit in the audience at All School Meeting and students share the results of their creativity I am so moved. When I watch students who are creative people expressing their passions, I am moved. Might this be yet another opportunity where we can take risks, embrace new and creative ways of working within the All School Meeting structure?

This might also call on us to 'let go'. Would it be okay if a Crew is presenting and dancing to a song to invite the audience to dance too? During the last All School Meeting when the video of Bootcamp was playing I was surrounded by students who started to sing along with the music 'Roar' as it played. My heart swelled as the students around me were moved to sing and sway. They connected to the music and the pictures and the audience was one with the presentation. When Josh's students were singing the Beatles song they had selected for the Going Out Song, I was moved to see them smiling, dancing and feeling the moment. I wanted to sing and dance with them. 

I am so proud of how far we've come developing All School Meeting as an important ritual in our school. Certainly the kids love it and so does our community. I wondering if we can open up our creativity and see how our All School Meeting can be an opportunity for creative expression? How can All School Meeting be a creative process and opportunity for our creative students to be creative?

Calendar

Week of November 11- 15th:

* Climbing in PE

Tuesday:

*RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

*REA meeting 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday:

* New Parent Orientation 8:00 a.m.

* All School Meeting 9:00 a.m.

* Professional Development: Assessment work

Week of November 18 - 22nd:

* Book Fair week

Tuesday:

* RTI meeting 7:30 a.m.

* Book Fair Family Night: 4:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday:

* Professional Development: Assessment work

Thursday:

* Family Thanksgiving Lunch beginning at 10:30 a.m. (different lunch schedule)

Week of November 25th:

* Only two day week

Monday:

* New Parent Orientation

Tuesday:

* RTI 7:30 a.m.

Wednesday - Friday:

Thanksgiving Holiday Break

Our Second Graders
at Rocky Mountain College
of Art and Design

Sharing the link to this wonderful article written by Kristine Kilbourne about our second graders fieldwork at RMCAD. You will also see there is a link at the bottom of the article to Pam's backward plan for this unit. What a cool idea to include photos from the actual implementation into the plan! Check it out! Really incredible Pam!

http://www.rmcad.edu/news/elementary-students-visit-rmcad

Just a reminder...

At the conclusion of our time together last Friday I asked you to find a few quiet moments and think about your "perfect" classroom and think about what you would see there. Take one idea from this or move forward with an idea you've been wanting to explore and implement it using the creative process. Be willing to fail, to be resilient and try again and again.
Shifting from 'What would I do if I wasn't afraid" to - "What matters enough that I'm willing to fail?"
You will need to identify something you are currently doing and be willing to set it aside while you work on this new thing. I'm anxious to hear about what you are going to try.

Thinking about the Design Principles: 

How do these apply to you?

The Primacy of Self- Discovery –

learning happens best with challenge, emotion and support. We find our abilities, values, passions, in situations that offer adventure and the unexpected. Include perseverance, craftsmanship, fitness, and imagination. Teacher’s primary task is to help students overcome their fear and discover.

The Having of Wonderful Ideas –

curiosity and providing important things to think about, experiment and make sense of what is observed

Solitude and Reflection –

time to explore own thoughts, make connections, create their own ideas

Collaboration and Competition –

personal best with rigorous standards of excellence

Success and Failure - must have experiences of success to build confidence to take risks and more difficult challenges AND also important to learn from failure - to persevere when things are hard, and turn disabilities into opportunities.

Gratitude HD - Moving Art

Have a great weekend!

Deborah