my version of transparent, collaborative leadership...with a Teamann twist

How can we all keep the kindergarten spirit?

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Last week as I was walking through classrooms, I came across this kinder kid who was working feverishly on the carpet on a project. As I smiled and walked around the room, he waved me over and asked if I wanted to see his invention. “See this? I made it up, because I needed something that could go real fast. I didn’t have it, so I made it up. ” In addition to just being adorable, I was impressed with his creativity and that matter of fact attitude. It doesn’t occur to a kindergartener that you shouldn’t just make up what you need. 

Personality is encouraged. Scribbling is encouraged. Sharing is talked about daily.

Expectations for all are high. The ability to have FUN while working each day is natural. Forgiveness is second nature. Independence is being forged each and every day.

No one questions mistakes in kindergarten…they are expected, encouraged, and even enjoyed. There are new discoveries every day. The most basic of discoveries blow their mind.

They’re not too cool for anything. They love their teachers. Teachers are hugged and called mom, more than once. Kinder teachers present life lessons as smoothly as they do math, all with the patience of Jobe.

The natural chaos of “learning” is anticipated….and enjoyed.

What if every classroom was  like a kindergarten classrooms?

kinder loveN,

Amber

So you want to have a class blog…

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Below is a SAMPLE first blog post…this is one that I used with my fourth graders many moons ago that started off our blogging adventure. (Feel free to use!!) During class we’d discussed the many do’s and don’t’s of our classroom blog, and also how we wanted others who read to “see” us. It was a VERY long conversation! Students knew that other adults, as well as other students, would be visiting our blog and they wanted to come across as intelligent as possible, 🙂

By setting the “tone” for what and how we wanted the blog to work, the expectations were in place before we’d even logged on. In addition to the student safety pieces we’d discussed, we also talked about web netiquette and what made a “good” comment versus a “blah” one. Also, spelling errors weren’t a focus for my classroom, I was more interested in what thoughts they were trying to convey rather than whether or not they spelled them correctly. Each teacher (and class!) can make that decision for themselves. That being said, students were way more critical of each other than I could have been about their errors on the blog.

There are so many support systems out there, like #commentsforkids. That stream on twitter will generate more traffic for your class posts to help show your students what a global audience can really look like! There are also a multitude of blogging platforms out there…blogger, kidblog, wordpress, etc. Do NOT be scared of blogging with your students!! I can’t stress this enough! You have complete autonomy of your “space”.  I always set my comments settings to where I had to go in and approve them before they could be “seen”, to ensure no personal info was shared. I used a generic title & my kids didn’t use their real names. It was a safe space!

Good luck with blogging in your classroom! I hope you see as many benefits as I did from the relationships that I was able to develop from both my students and my parents throughout the years.

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i_love_bloggingIt’s time to get blogging! We’ve talked about the different do’s and don’ts for blogging…but I wanted to add a couple more here. Read through these and post a comment about the rule you think is MOST important and why.

1. Don’t give out any personal information like telephone numbers, home address, school name or parent’s office address.

2. Don’t use your real name as your log on name.

3. Make sure you’re not simply typing “Yeah” or “That’s right” or something equally boring.

4. Learn how to use “smileys” to show how you are saying things. Read the smileys sideways – they make a face. 🙂 or 🙂 is a smiley face. You are happy and smiling when you speak….let me see that personality!

5. Adhere to the same standards of behavior online that you follow in real life.

Be ethical. Don’t believe anyone who says, “The only ethics out there are what you can get away with.” If you encounter an ethical dilemma in cyberspace, consult the code you follow in real life. Chances are good you’ll find the answer, 🙂

OK, put these rules to the test and comment letting me know what you think!!

Bloggingly,
Mrs. Teamann

No second chances on a first impression…make your welcome worth it!

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This school year marks a new beginning for me in my professional career…the enormity in changing of districts. I spent my first twelve years in the same place, so each back to school season was one of comfort and familiarity. I knew faces, I knew places. I knew language, I knew priorities. I am lucky enough to have landed in a place that handles their newbies with understanding and grace.  If you’ve got new team members, or new to your area students, think about integrating some of these pieces into your back to school routine. I wrote about our C&I retreat where our higher-ups went through a  timeline of the district curriculum implementation. This was such a huge piece for me. Knowing the history of what had been tried and planned will be so helpful as we move forward. I now know the reason why we are things “this” way or why it isn’t happening “that” way. Your new people need a synopsis of where your campus been in addition to where its going. It will help solidify in what direction they should be moving. Another amazing detail about this district is the pride they take in the local community. I had lunch with the namesake of our campus, Wally Watkins. It was so humbling to sit and talk with a man who has contributed to so much to the area, that I was now working in the school they honored him with. He and his lovely wife Nita cemented my devotion to making them proud of what we do each day. IMG_2320 For new teachers to our campus, there was a special breakfast. They were given a goodie bag, a campus tee-shirt & magnet, and an opportunity to meet with key members of our staff. Two of our veteran team members were there to talk them through what it means to be to a Watkins Wrangler. They shared the campus vision and the mission, as well as a glimpse into what it means to work here.  One of our teacher leaders who opened the campus shared that before carpet was laid on the floor, the teachers were encouraged to come in and write what they wanted to see achieved on their  cement classroom floor, or a scripture. Each room has a message written on the floor. Knowing that every room was so intentional in their student focus just warms my heart! How can you not walk through the halls and feel a connection to student success? They then took the new staff members on a tour of the school, showing them in the in’s and outs. New district members were invited to a luncheon, held on a high school campus where local vendors and businesses shared their services and gave away little goodies as a welcome. From calendars with local sports teams schedules to a Race Trac cup with a free coffee coupon, you saw the faces that made our lil’ community what it is. It gave new meaning to “shop locally”, after seeing the support they provide for the school district. how could you not want to shop local first? They also donated enough “goodies” that EVERY single new hire recieved a door prize. Mine? My word. IMG_2409   Finally, the first day of our teacher in service, each teacher was given a tee shirt, a welcome note, and a cookie for each of their students. Our teachers then used Optimap to develop a round trip map and they went and visited each home for their homeroom. My principal and I drove the attendance zone and watched the expressions on those lil’Wranglers faces as they opened the door and met their teachers. The teachers and families absolutely loved it.  This is the #WylieWay!

Whatever method you choose, take some time to make your new team members & make sure they know you’re glad they are there. The best way to get someone to buy in to your purpose is to make them feel like they are a part of the campus family. I am so blessed to have experienced such a welcome!   Wrangler lasso’d, Amber     PS: Feel free to follow our campus throughout the year, you can like the Wally Watkins Elementary School Facebook page or on twitter, @WatkinsElem! (why yes, social media and communication IS encouraged!)

An @ASCD review…Learning in the Fast Lane #ASCD

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114026bIn a book that promises to lay out a plan that helps teachers close gaps in small group instruction, I found myself hoping that Ms, Rollins could do just that, knowing that my focus this school year would be p instructional strategies that truly makes a difference.  “Learning in the Fast Lane: 8 Ways to Put All Students on the Road to Academic Success” may be my action plan to do just that.

Ms. Rollins discusses the notion that students who need remedial instruction are typically working on skills that close the “gaps” from previous years, vs focusing in on skills & concepts that could help them be successful in class that day.

 

 

“Rather than build students academic futures, remediation pounds away at the past.”

She first discusses the term acceleration, to be used as an academic advancement vs remediation. Helping students become successful on what is being covered this week, this class, in order to help them be successful. Instead of removing the student and making them learn something they missed however many years ago, it prepares them to be successful NOW. I love the line “Reverse movement at a tedious pace with little relevance to today’s’ standard will not catch students up to their peers.”

She then lists other strategies that teachers can utilize to help get all students, not just those who are at risk,  learn material & concepts taught the first time.

Having standards walls: Listing standards with no connection to relevance or lets students know the expectation from the daily lesson. (Interesting tie in here to the Fundamental 5, which I believe does a much better job with its framing the lesson than just simply posting lesson standards.) She gives three easy to use components to help make these standards listed as a gigantic “you are here” arrow for students.

Success Starters: (which, as a Pirate would say, an effective HOOK!) She suggests activities that involve active engagement rather than just compliance. Like role-playing, surveys, or making predictions…there are several detailed suggestion in this chapter.

Formative Assessment & Feedback: Frequent ungraded feedback helps students focus on what they are learning versus measuring what they’ve learned. Formative assessment gives students timely feedback allows the teachers to modify immediately their instruction. If we want students meeting our learning goals each and every day, waiting once every two weeks to asses and give feedback won’t cut it. Note: formative assessment isn’t about testing more, it’s about about knowing exactly where each student stands on the material being presented.

Vocabulary Development: An inadequate vocabulary can make it difficult for students, especially struggling learners, to have any kind of conversation about content. Vocab touches every single aspect of a student’s’ development. She also suggests that learning new vocabulary isn’t as simple as prescribing MORE reading. She cites a study (pg. 79) that students need multiple exposures of a word to be able to grasp, retain, and use them. Her offering is that there should be a strategic vocabulary plan. KNowing that a strong vocabulary knowledge leads to reading proficiency, there are several ways shared that can help make this happen in your classroom.

Student Work Sessions: Giving Students Greater Responsibility with Valuable Work All students need the opportunity to collaborate, be creative, and have collegial relationships with teachers.

Student Motivation  The buzz word of the day is student choice and student voice, with good reason. There has to be a reason for a student to WANT to learn before its going to happen. And you’re going to have to WORK to find that reason! Otherwise, you wouldn’t be dealing with the academic apathy that you may have in your classroom.

Just in time Scaffolding: Knowing what your students needs right when they need it, versus trying to cover years worth of gaps just makes good sense. This chapter gives research and a common sense plan on how to make that a reality.

 

There are checklists after each chapter that help you discern where your room stands with each of these ideas. If you’re looking for a way to do things a little differently, I think you’ll enjoy this book! It’s an easy practical read, and she completely supports each of these strategy with examples and “how to’s” that you can make happen. Plus, who doesn’t like living in the “fast lane” every once in a while?? 🙂

 

pedal to the metal,

Amber

 

 

Quick ways to model “Digital Leadership” #leadershipday14

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leadershipday2014_011This year I am choosing to take part in  Scott McLeod’s Leadership Day 2014. He challenged us all to write about any digital topic that spoke to our heart. Having led the inaugural Digital Fluency Academy for Region X this summer, I think there are easy fluid ways to easily embed technology into your admin day.

1. Find a digital way to share campus news.

Whether it be a Smore, a YouTube video, or a blog, try sharing your Friday Focus or campus news in a digital fashion. There are too many free & easy tools out there for you to be sending out a word document to your staff each week!

2. Utilize Remind with your teachers.

Instead of a flyer, or a callout, try sharing reminders with your teachers via Remind. We have seen a lot of success with using this with our staff. We got them all in with jeans pass bribes, 🙂 and then used it to send intentional timely reminders. From grade book lock down to potluck lunch reminders…these easy texts were SO much more effective. Did you know that 90% of text messages are read in the first three minutes they are sent? 99% of text messages are read, period. Take advantage and get that important info out there! Utilizing my favorite techie trick from Erin Klein, I plan on taking pictures all throughout our staff development next week, creating an animoto, and then sharing the video via Remind on our last training day. (An easy creative tool for our teachers to then use in their classrooms!!)

3. Google Drive, Google Drive, Google Drive!

There’s always a question I need answered, or a form I need access too…google drive is the answer! Create a form in minutes, collaborate with team leaders, track RTI data…all in a form that doesn’t have to be downloaded, updated, re-uploaded and then reshared. Why take 9 steps when you can do it in one? My digital bestie, Kasey Bell, has a Google handout for you that you can use, or share. She is amazing!

4. Instead of a notepad, keep your notes in Evernote.

I’ve created a checklist for walk throughs to utilize. I’ve also created a shared document with each of them that will serve as a running record of all of my visits. I plan on adding pictures, documenting our PLC progress, as well as any “above & beyonds” that happen throughout the year. As the instructional leader, I want to see a longitudinal “glimpse” into the classroom each time I visit. This shared doc holds us both accountable!

5. Techno Tuesdays

One of our campus improvement plan goals was to increase staff members comfort and familiarity with technology in the classroom. As a way to help them see how seamless it truly can be, I am going to hold monthly “Techno Tuesday’s” where on the first Tuesday of the month I’ll have a short & sweet mini tutorial on a different tool and show, K-4, how it can happen in the classroom. We know that teaching is already hard enough without having to feel like we are struggling in the classroom with something we aren’t familiar with. I want my teachers to be able to come and ask me how to use something, or know that I am giving them the time & space to figure it out. No pressure!  I hope to ask our awesome learning specialists, and fabulous instructional tech guru, to host some sessions, as well as some of our more techie teachers. To better educate our kids, we need to first better educate their educators! These integration strategies aren’t difficult but teachers need to SEE and PLAY before they are going to be willing to use it in front of their students.

 

I struggle with being the “that girl” as Justin Tarte as articulated recently. The problem is, in order to really see a relevant, 21st century authentic learning environment, there is going to have to be a technology integration component. If we as the campus leaders aren’t the ones modeling and showing our teachers the way to make that happen, who will? Our students deserve it!

Technology isn’t something that just “adds” to your plate. It genuinely isn’t an extra. Tom Whitby had a great post about the separation of the tech world and the academia world. Angela Watson talked about the ponds of fishie fishs that we are all swimming in. I think as long as keep we keep separating pedagogy from technology integration, it’s never going to be seamless. Hopefully these  tools will allow you to do something differently in your world! You are a LEADER. Use your power for good!

 

Leadershiply,

Amber