Monday, February 12, 2018

Feel the Love

Principal ponderings...

Since it's the week of Valentine's Day, it makes sense to be feeling the love at Flo Ro this week.  There are many things that I love about our school.  Let me share the top 5 things that popped into my head...

1. I love that when I walk into a classroom I often see students collaborating with each other.  That collaboration can take different forms.  Sometimes it's table groups working together to solve a problem.  Sometimes it's small groups working on an informational unit project.  Sometimes it's partners working on writing and recording a book buzz with iPads.  I love to see students connecting and learning with each other.

2. I love that I see students help each other, both in the classroom and out of the classroom.  Students will volunteer to walk with a friend to the nurse after a fall on the playground.  Students will volunteer to explain an assignment to someone who was out of the room.  Students will help each other carry library books back to the library.  I love seeing students show that they care about about each other.

3. I love that our staff support each other.  We have had so many people battling the flu, colds, sickness, etc.  And staff have jumped in to support, whether that means taking on a different duty, covering a class, bringing a co-worker a coffee or any number of other kind gestures.  I love that FloRo staff truly cares about all of the members of our school family and finds ways to support everyone.

4. I love that when I walk into a classroom I often see teachers presenting the curriculum to students through multiple means.  One group might be practicing a math concept using manipulatives.  Another group might be working directly with the teacher.  Another group might be independently exploring a topic on a Chromebook and preparing a presentation about the topic.  I love seeing teachers get creative with how to present the curriculum and as a result, seeing all students benefit from creative teaching.

5. I love that when I walk into a classroom students are excited to share their learning with me.  They are proud of what they are doing, and they are often bursting with excitement about a book they just read or an opinion piece they just wrote.  They light up when you ask them to explain their thinking.  It's like I can almost see their brains growing!  I love that our students truly love school.

Now it's your turn to feel the love for FloRo.  What do you love about our school?  What do you love about your job?  What do you love about our students?  What do you love about your classroom?  What do you love about how you teach?  What do you love about how your students learn?  Take some time this week to reflect on these questions.  Write down your answers or tell someone how you feel.

Feel the love this week FloRo!

Currently reading:
Apparently it is "I love to read" Month.  How did I not know this?!  Probably because every month is I love to read month for me!  With Valentine's Day coming up, I reread one of my favorite Valentine read alouds...Somebody Loves You Mr. Hatch.  Mrs. West was looking for a good Valentine book, so I searched my library at home and found this one.  After an anonymous Valentine is delivered to Mr. Hatch, his life is completely changed.  It's a heart-warming story for this week!
I finished The Hate U Give this weekend, such a timely, tough, powerful read.  Definitely not for our elementary students, but you might want to read it for yourself.  And I picked up a professional development book that I began to look at over the summer but abandoned.  Lately, I feel like I need this book right now so I am diving back into it: Escaping the School Leader's Dunk Tank: How to Prevail When Others Want to See You Drown.

Events this week:
Monday - Grade 2 chorus rehearsal 1:25-2:55, Elementary curriculum leadership meeting 12:30-2:00
Tuesday- Grade 2 school show 1:30-2:05 @ PAC
Wednesday - 2nd grade chorus concert @ 7:00 - PAC
Friday - Elementary curriculum half day, 12:15 dismissal, staff meeting 1:00-1:45, team time

Great things I noticed last week:

  • 3rd graders in the library were eager to spend time reading their book choices. 
  • Mrs. Lanctot's 1st graders made a list of all of the things they love about 1st grade! 
  • Even though we had an early dismissal, global school play day was still a hit! 
  • We celebrated the 100th day of school!  
  • These kindergartners found me in the library and were proud to show me what they did not know 100 days ago! 

Check it out:
Check out this link.  It contains podcasts from the various 2017 Teachers of the Year where they share experiences that shaped them as educators, very inspirational! http://www.teacherpodcasts.org/
When we return from break, it will almost be March!  I will share a post next week about the slice of life challenge that I did last March.  I will be preparing to participate again this year.  Anyone else up for the challenge of writing everyday in March?!  Check out this link here to read more about it: https://twowritingteachers.org/2018/01/22/11thsolsc/

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