“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”

 – John Fitzgerald Kennedy

 

CISD's theme for the year, “Learning today, Leading tomorrow”, has special meaning as Hannah leaves for A&M this Sunday. (Whoop!)  I realize the importance of her education at CISD and how it has prepared her for the leader she will become.  Not only did she learn academic things, but she learned many life lessons.  She learned how to be a member of a group and the importance of team work through band. She learned the importance of leadership through all her school clubs and offices she held. She will now have to take all she learned and apply it and hopefully to make good choices. There are so many things we learn in life through school.

As an educators it is important to continue to learn whether it is the latest technology or educational trends. If we don’t continue to learn, we cannot prepare students to be the leaders they need to be after graduation.

 

Below is a link to an article on project based learning.  Hopefully you will learn something from the article and how project based learning will help students be leaders for tomorrow.

 

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/01/what-project-based-learning-is-and-isnt/

Are You Ready for the New School Year?

Ready or not school is just around the corner!  I will begin my 35th year in education!  It seems like yesterday that I was setting up my first class room.  I still wonder if my students in that first class are productive members of society.  I made lots of mistakes, but learned a lot too.  As I reflect back on the years, I have seen many educational trends come and go and some come back again. Over the years, I have used and seen many classroom management tips and procedures.  I have reflected on what would be the best advice for a new or veteran teacher.  I believe one of the best pieces of advice for teachers is to have your procedures in place.  Begin teaching those procedures from the first bell on the first day and continue until the final bell on the last day of school. What are your procedures?  How should they enter the classroom, what do they do after they enter the classroom?  Will your procedures keep them engaged and out of trouble until you are ready to begin the morning? What is the procedure for sharpening pencils?  How do they hand in papers when they are finished? You will need to practice and model what that procedure looks like. Be prepared to reteach your procedures. Start making a list of procedures you want your students to follow.   What are your expectations?  Whatever they are will greatly influence your students achievement and success in your classroom.  Make sure your expectations are positive.  Look at the difference between "We are going to win the attendance award at the end of the year" and "We will be lucky if we get half the points needed to win the attendance award.  Which one motivates you more?  Make sure you tell your students on day one how happy your are to have them in your class and what a great year it is going to be.  Many first day of school ideas can be found on Pinterest. Harry Wong's book, The First Days of School is what every teacher should read and have as a handy reference.

 



 

 

 

Change is inevitable.  My daughter has graduated and is heading to Texas A&M in the fall. She is majoring in education.   I'm not sure I like the changes about to take place in out house!  It's going to be quiet and I will miss her.  Yes, I only see her about five minutes a day as she breezes through the house just long enough to drop her stuff off and then she's out the door again.  But, the difference is that I know she will be home whether I see her or not.  Now she will be gone and starting a new chapter in her life.  She is so excited to be an Aggie. (Maroon blood courses through her veins.  She is a fourth generation Aggie.) I am excited for her and looking forward to seeing what the future holds for her.  She is prepared thanks to all the people who influenced her life. Wonderful teachers, child care, Sunday School teachers, friends and family have helped raise her to be  outstanding young woman she has become.  I thank all of you for that.  We couldn't have done it without you! Yes, change is inevitable, but the future is exciting.

Ending the Last Chapter and Beginning a New Book

As the school year comes to a close it is a time to reflect on what a great year it was.  Many exciting things happened in the classrooms this year.  Writing was a district initiative this year. For the past few days there would be a knock at my door and little heads would peek in the see if I was there.  Then toothless kindergarten grins would greet me, writing folders in hand wanting to share their writings with me.  This made my day.  It was so fun seeing their portfolios and how they had grown as writers from the beginning of school until the end of school.  I am looking forward to see what the beginning of first grade brings for these young writers.