#edchat — Page 2

Be a leader. Be open to learning. #thefirstyear

March 4, 2016 by Amber Leave a Comment

Took advantage of connections today to visit three different schools to see how they are utilizing and maximizing their maker spaces. Completely different, all three of them. Different budgets, different people in charge, different spaces.

I loved it.

I love an idea that is SO broadly fabulous that it can’t fit into a mold. It was great conversations, great connections, and sparked many a thought on how we can fit the maker-ing into my Whitt world.

As I walked the halls of Sigler Elementary, the esteemed campus of one Matt Arend, I once again in life, realized how beneficial being a connected educator can be…one who is open to hearing the fun things others are doing, tweaking the suggestions that others have shared to make them work for you, and how much that makes me grow as a professional.

How very boring our world would be without the awesome of all of us.

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Be open, friends. Be collaborators. Be sharers. Be someone’s spark.

I’ll write more about the excellent conversations I had today soon. After all, sharing IS caring!

Amber

Honor traditions #thefirstyear #VeteransDay

November 11, 2015 by Amber 1 Comment

There is a tradition at my campus each November. The third grade presents a huge Veteran’s Day program. There are elaborate costumes, gut wrenching songs, and even more special, heartfelt reverence and appreciation.

Frequently we challenge the status quo of always doing the “same ol’thing” and I, in particular, am a fan of making positive student supporting changes. But when looking at the tradition of the Veteran’s Day program that I am in awe of last night…I can’t imagine it not being a part of what we do here.

Now, I have ALSO been a part of cultures where the same thing is done each year, but there was no ceremony…no tradition about it. It was just “the way it was always done”. It was easier for the teacher, it required minimal thought/effort. There’s a difference and a good leader can tell between the two.

When making changes, make sure that you aren’t changing for changes sake. Evaluate what you are wanting to do, talk to the people involved…gauge the impact change would have. As a leader (and we are all leaders in one form or another), it is very important to understand the power of we have in our choices and changes we make.

Don’t waste your power taking away something that BUILDS up and SUPPORTS the culture that you want!

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I was honored to read a list honoring our veterans and the wolves who love them last night. I was prepared with my list, knew how to say each tricky name. What I wasn’t prepared for was each service member and his/her wolf walking up to the front of the stage beside me. Some brought ornately framed pictures, instead of a person.

(Note: These are the things you should warn your new principal that are going to happen!) I know while reading those first four names my voice cracked, and I almost started bawling. (I kept reciting in my head rainbowsunicornsYOUARETHEPRINCIPALunicornsrainbows.)

It was moving. It was powerful. It was humbling.

And it will not be changed, anytime soon.

Tradition appreciative,

Amber

Leadership lessons from “The Karate Kid”…

July 19, 2015 by Amber Leave a Comment

Did you know that it takes 12 positive experiences to make up for one unresolved negative experience? How does that apply to your upcoming school year? More than you think!

Source: “Understanding Customers” by Ruby Newell-Legner

Our 2015-2016 has already kicked off with a bang!!

We received an email last week inviting all of our administrators and central office staff to celebrate our 2014-2015 school year with an afternoon at the movies. We were going to see “The Karate Kid” in anticipation of it being our theme for convocation, and had free snacks and drinks. It was an incredible welcome back and provided a huge leadership lesson!

Not only did we feel appreciated and celebrated, but there were several moments in the movie that I could directly apply to my new principal-ness…it’s like they picked it just for me! (Confession: I’d never before seen the movie!)

When Daniel-son was hesitant to start cutting on the bonsai tree, he was cognizant of his own lack of experience. He was hesitant to just jump in and start. Mr. Miyagi walked him through a visualization, and again told him to start. Daniel’s question of how Mr. Miyagi know if his visualization of the tree was right? (which has most certainly occurred to me as I take on this new role!)…if it comes from inside you, it is always the right one. As a new principal, I need to have faith in my vision. I do know what to do, I know what our campus goals and mission speak too. Creating our blue print for the year will be much easier if I just have faith in what our system, and that I know what I am doing.

Balance. As I watched Daniel trying to balance on the boat, I knew exactly how he felt. Life, work, marriage, mommying…it is all a balance. I did an interview with the @thenerdyteacher, and that was a question sent in by a listener. How do you balance it all? My answer was honest…I don’t know that I know how to yet! Mr. Miyagi said that balance isn’t just about karate, it’s also about life. Everyone works better when there is balance. Do you have a plan for how to maintain (or achieve) balance for your 2015-2016 school year? For myself, I am building quiet time in. I am blocking out windows of reflection, of appreciation. I am committing to NOT answering email at night on my phone. (gulp.) I am going to come home, take my phone upstairs, and LEAVE it, until my girls are asleep. I challenge you to BE INTENTIONAL in finding your balance.

This movie as a whole just relates to educators. I hope that you have a Mr. Miyagi in your life. Someone to offer you pearls of wisdom that challenge you and keep you grounded.

As an educator, I hope you also recognize that you are someone’s Mr. Miyagi.

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Whether it is a room full of 6 year olds, 16 year olds, or a staff of all ages…you have the opportunity to be the voice of wisdom. Take advantage.

This movie also challenged me to really think about how I began my year with the most awesome Wylie ISD staff. I want them to have a POSITIVE beginning, as I did, so that they are as fired up and excited to get the year going as I am.

Karate chopN,

Amber

The three foot rule…

July 1, 2015 by Amber 2 Comments

This isn’t post about proximity…unless you mean proximity to things that stress you out!

I read a great book this week from the perspective of a navy SEAL. He detailed several missions (some heavily redacted) and went through what key lessons he learned from each one. There were general suggestions about being a team player, what that meant to a SEAL, and some that were were specific.“No Hero: The Evolution of a Navy Seal” was written by a SEAL, and it makes for easy reading.

Mark Owen (pen name for Matt Bissonette) who is just worth googling himself, had a fear of heights but went to great lengths to overcome it. He was aware that his weakness, any weakness, could compromise a mission at any given moment. One of his early training exercises was to climb a giant rock wall, whose” shadow of this wall seemed to stretch on for miles.”. While climbing, he decided to do it in his own way. They were told to place their cams, the tools jammed into crevices that would catch them if they fell, every ten feet, but Mark placed them every 5 thinking that if he were to fall he would only fall those few feet.

Having used entirely too many camming devices he ran out and was essentially, stuck, not quite half way there. He then made the mistake of looking at something other than the rock face in front of him, and realized how high up he was. Starting to panic, his struggle was obvious. Luckily his guide had noticed what he had been doing and he scampered over all the extra cams he’d collected from below him. He then offered him a brilliant piece of advice.

“Stay in your three feet. Don’t look up, don’t look down. Stay right there in the three feet that you can control.”

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He completed the rest of the climb easily, by only thinking about each three feet in front of him as he finished.

You can’t do anything about what is behind you. You can’t worry about what is ahead of you. The best thing you can do is worry about where you are RIGHT now. It is liberating once you let go of things you can’t control. This advice seems to work for just about every situation.

Transitioning this summer from AP to Principal, I completely feel the panic of the wall ahead of me. Am I going to know what to do every day? What about tricky situations? How do I be the very best first year principal in the history of the world?!?

But that advice…”Stay in your three feet world.” is so powerful. I need to focus on the now, on preparing, on learning all that I can about my new campus, on getting situated…and then when the future gets here…I’ll handle it in the same “three feet world” style.

Wall climbing,

Amber

What I’m doing NOW to prepare for 15-16! #cpchat

June 27, 2015 by Amber 8 Comments

This clip from Armageddon may best describe how I feel as I transition this summer from AP to Principal. Packing was surreal…but sitting in this big’ol office…having my note pads and posit its where they go…it means thisisreallyhappening.
I am walking into a dream position. The campus is beautiful. The scores are phenomenal. The staff has been lauded by all. The parents I’ve met have been beyond friendly and approachable. Most importantly, the systems that are in place are amazing. They are in a good place (nah, a great place) with PLCs, with logistics, with morale.

What am I going to do all summer then??

1. Get to know the office staff. These team of ladies has the potential to be my front line at any given moment. I want them to KNOW me, know my heart and to genuinely know who I am. I want to make sure they know my vision, my big picture plans, to help make it easier for them to see why I do the things I do, or make the decisions I make.

2. Meet with my “groups”. There are a myriad of “groups” within a school, and school district. I have a “Tea with Teamann” for the PTA board already planned. We’re meeting team leaders and PLC leaders for a leadership day. I’m thinking about a “grill & chill” for families. I met with my superintendent and assistant supts to talk about what expectations they had for me for my first year. (Not surprisingly, their answer was relationships!) I want to meet all my SHAREholders, 🙂

3. Dig in. The outgoing principal was a data junkie. I am SO fortunate to be able to see longitudinal data on each student before we ever sit down to talk within our PLCs. I’m going to dive deeper into last years test scores, know my percentages, my areas of focus, and my initial thoughts where we can achieve even higher. I. can’t. wait.

4. Breathe. I am going to enjoy this year. I am not going to be worried and stressed over everything. I am not going to think I need to know everything. I am going to focus on being me, knowing that that was what allowed me to be chosen for this position.

I am going to leverage my PLN, which is chock full of incredible educators, to help make this the very best first year in the history of the world.

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5. *bonus* ( I wrote this post Thursday afternoon and it timed out and LOST the whole things. As I’m rewriting, I’m adding a bonus #5. You’re welcome!;))

That last paragraph? I used the word “I” a ton. One of my goals this year is to excise that word from my vocabulary. I never want to be the kind of leader who is “I” focused…this is a team, a family. WE will accomplish great things, together. It is SO defeating to be with someone who Unless something has gone wrong and I am taking responsibility, then the word I will use is WE.

I want to remember that using the “I” word alienates those around you…

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#dontbethatleader #wontbethatleader

It may be summer, but my wolf wheels won’t stop spinning. Any other pointers/advice you can share? PLEASE do!

Wolf ready,

Amber